Toronto Maple Leafs: The Future of the Roster
Almost two years after Brian Burke took over the helm of the Toronto Maple Leafs, the franchise is starting to shown signs of promise. The team has come a long way since the reign of John Ferguson Jr.
Since then, a massive roster overhaul has taken effect. Only four players still remain since before Burke took over and only three of them were parts of the JFJ regime. Only Kulemin, Kaberle, Schenn and Mitchell are left from the pre-Burkian years.
As the Leafs begin the 2010-2011 NHL season, fans are filled with hope. The team anointed its first captain since Mats Sundin. The team has one of the deepest prospect pools Leaf fans have ever seen. The Leafs have goaltending depth that may be unprecedented in the team's history. Fans have a lot to look forward to.
In this slideshow, I will attempt to look at the roster and determine who is and who isn't in the future plans for the roster.
The Forwards: The Core
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The forward corps as it stands looks as follows:
Centers: Tyler Bozak, Mikhail Grabovski, Tim Brent, Mike Zigomais, John Mitchell
Top Six Wingers: Phil Kessel, Kris Versteeg, Nikolai Kulemin, Clarke McArthur
Bottom Six Wingers: Colby Armstrong, Freddy Sjostrom, Colton Orr, Mike Brown
The core that Burke is building up front is quickly becoming apparent.
The most obvious forward that is here to stay is Phil Kessel. Blessed with preternatural scoring talent, Kessel is the forward that Burke is building the forwards around. Kessel, for the time being and likely for the next few years, is the Leafs' top right wing. That much is set in stone.
The next forward that makes up the core is Tyler Bozak. Whether he vaults himself into the top center position permanently or becomes the teams second-line center, Bozak is here to stay. While many will point to him going undrafted as a sign of his worthlessness (which is silly, the best right wing in the game today, Martin St. Louis, went undrafted), Bozak has talent. Slick hands, great offensive sight, decent defensive game and great speed, Bozak is a top-six talent in the making.
Kris Versteeg, a new addition, is the next player. Many have debated him being a top-six player, but he has the skill to be one. Whether that is as a first-liner or second-liner is still to be decided, but his phenomenal two-way game and chemistry with Bozak and Kessel make him a lock to stay for the time being.
Nikolai Kulemin is another player who is not going anywhere any time soon. With good size, great two-way play, nice hands (at times) and just sublime board work, Kulemin has many believing that he is close to putting it all together and joining the ranks of the league's elite power forwards. Regardless, his hard work and the Leafs' lack of size up front make him a lock on the top six for the future.
Colby Armstrong and Colton Orr round out the forwards, filling the core spots on the Leafs' forward roster. Now, "core" is used loosely as most people use core as a word to describe a team's best players. However, I will use core to describe players who will make up the Leafs roster for the future. Both players fit the Burkian model and are here to stay after signing longer contracts in the past two offseasons.
That leaves several players in roster flux. Freddy Sjostrom, Clarke MacArthur, John Mitchell, Mike Brown, Mikhail Grabovksi, Tim Brent and Mike Zigomais all are left out, and in the coming slides, I will explain why.
The Defense: The Core and the Rest
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Defense on the Roster: Dion Phaneuf, Luke Schenn, Thomas Kaberle, Francois Beauchemin, Mike Komisarek, Carl Gunnarson, Brett Lebda
The following players fit into the core for the future:
Dion Phaneuf: Like Kessel, Phaneuf is the most obvious choice. With his long contract and the recent captaincy being given to him, Phaneuf is being handed the reins to the No. 1 spot on the defense. He fits every part of the Burkian model and is the perfect player to lead this team for the future.
Luke Schenn: A non-Burke draft pick, but one that no doubt fits into Burke's plan. While he is still developing, Schenn has shown he has the talent to be a top-four defenseman, and if he can step it up, he might be able to reach the top-two predictions many gave him before he was drafted.
Carl Gunnarson: A late-round gem uncovered by JFJ (who is spectacular at finding late-round gems), Gunnarson is a player that finds himself in the Leafs' future plans on defense. A solid bottom-pairing defender, Gunnarson employs a safe two-way game and plays an effective game that can see him chip in up to 20 points a season. Look for him to stay as a fourth or fifth defender in the near future.
Mike Komisarek: His contract alone makes him a lock as a core member of the Leafs, but the faith Burke has shown in him makes him an obvious choice for the future.
Brett Lebda: Two-year deal, perfect seventh defenseman.
Goaltending
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Jonas Gustavsson is the heir apparent in goal. "The Monster" has shown the talent and dedication to become the Leafs' No. 1 goalie, but he still has his work cut out for him. In a platoon situation with J.S. Giguere, it is up to Gustavsson to prove he can be the man (or the Monster) in net.
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Players Who May Play Themselves Into the Core
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The most notable omission from the core was Tomas Kaberle. Through trade rumors, apparent differences with Ron Wilson, and the removal of the alternate captaincy from him, the reason is not a surprise to many.
Kaberle, however, is not someone easy replaced. If the Leafs can sign him to an extension, the defensive core becomes that much stronger and ready to compete in the future. Kaberle is an integral player to the team and a leader—with or without the captaincy. Losing the longest-serving member of the Leafs would hurt, and getting him signed to an extension is a priority for Burke. Hopefully the Leafs will see him for more than just this season.
Freddy Sjostrom: Burke and team just might have to extend Sjostrom, who is a spectacular penalty killer. His penalty killing is the biggest part of his game, but he is quite underrated as a third-liner. Superbly gifted in the skating department (one of the league's fastest players) and with decent size, Sjostrom is a great option for the third line for the time being.
Trade Bait
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While Francois Beauchemin has been handed one of the "A's", he is more valuable to the team as trade bait. With only one more year left on his contract (after this present season), Beauchemin might interest a team looking to win a cup (like Boston, Washington, San Jose) or a team in need of defensive help (NYI, Colorado, Anaheim).
Clarke MacArthur: This one might surprise people. His one-year deal is indicative, though. Regardless whether he impresses, he is trade bait. Nashville, Phoenix or any other team looking for cheap depth scorers might be interested.
J.S. Giguere: A veteran goalie with Stanley Cup experience and in the last year of his contract? Perfect deadline trade bait. Many believe he will be signed as a mentor for Gustavsson, but he may want one last shot at a Cup before signing that type of deal. A team trading a veteran only to sign him back is not unprecedented.
Positions That Need Filling
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The following positions are filled for the time being:
Top Six Wingers: Kulemin, Kessel, Versteeg
Top Six Centers: Bozak
Bottom Six Winger: Colton Orr, Colby Armstrong
Top Seven Defenseman: Dion Phanuef, Luke Schenn, Mike Komisarek, Carl Gunnarson, Brett Lebda
Goaltending:Jonas Gustavsson
Spots that must be filled (left blank):
Forwards
| Kris Versteeg | Tyler Bozak | Phil Kessel |
| Nikolai Kulemin | ||
| Colby Armstrong | ||
| Colton Orr |
Defenseman
| Dion Phaneuf | Luke Schenn |
| Mike Komisarek | Carl Gunnarson |
| Brett Lebda | |
Goaltenders
| Jonas Gustavsson |
That leaves six forward spots, two defensive spots and one goalie spot.
Possible Fits for the Open Positions
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Forwards
Second line center spot: The hope would be Nazem Kadri would be ready to take the spot. If not, trades and the free-agent market would be considered as options.
Top six winger spot: Another rookie might be given a shot, but more likely Burke will try to fill the spot through a trade or the free-agent market.
Bottom six spots: Sjostrom and Brown will likely be re-signed. Rookies will likely be given shots at the other two spots. Players like Caputi, Hanson and Mueller will be given shots.
Defensive Spots: The hope would be that Kaberle would fill one of the spots. Should this not happen, the two spots will most likely be given to rookies like Blacker, Holzer, Aulie and Mikus, or another prospect brought in through a trade.
Goaltending: If Reimer is ready to take over the backup, then Giguere or another backup option will not be signed. The Leafs will likely sign Giguere or another backup, however.
Possible Trades or Signings
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Throughout the season, Burke will look for deals to come his way. The Finger demotion (while not directly done to facilitate a trade) will certainly leave Burke cap room to play with.
Expect Burke to try and "upgrade" prospects and players to better fill positions. Grabovski, Beauchemin, MacArthur, Mitchell and prospects (most likely defensive) will all be used to attempt this. Very much like the Versteeg trade, Burke will try to get an established player from teams or will try the buy low option again (à la Phaneuf).
The most likely position Burke will target is a top-six winger. However, in the 2011 offseason, if Burke is able to get his hands on a top-line center—say, Joe Thornton—then Bozak becomes expendable should Kadri be expected to take the second-line spot. It's more unlikely, but with Burke you can't count anything out.
One thing is for sure, Leaf fans have a lot to look forward to. Burke is fulfilling his plan and building a team that will compete and sustain that competition for a long time.
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