Toronto Maple Leafs: Dion Phaneuf Out 4-6 Weeks, Now What?

With the news that Toronto Maple Leafs defenseman Dion Phaneuf will be on the shelf nursing a laceration to his left leg for up to six weeks, many Maple Leafs fans are starting to ask the obvious question—what now?

Whether it was an act of foresight or just downright good luck, Maple Leafs general manager Brian Burke stocked the Maple Leafs cupboard with eight NHL-calibre defensemen to start the season—which means the loss of Phaneuf, while serious, can be softened.

Tomas Kaberle, Luke Schenn, Mike Komisarek and Francois Beauchemin will continue to be the Maple Leafs' top four, with Carl Gunnarsson and Brett Lebda left to fight it out for that coveted fifth and sixth man roster spot. In a pinch the Maple Leafs could call up Jeff Finger from the Marlies, but that may be a stretch.

For my money, I like the idea of throwing Gunnarsson out on the power play—but I am also very aware that Lebda is probably the more polished defenseman right now.

Either way—whether the Maple Leafs start Lebda or Gunnarsson—both players are capable of logging upwards of 15 minutes per game, which is more than enough to cover the minutes Phaneuf was getting.

Better yet, why not ask the likes of Kaberle, Schenn and Komisarek to step up their minutes? All three are more than capable of absorbing another minute or two, which would help ease the reliance on Lebda or Gunnarsson to come up big.

To be honest, as much as the Maple Leafs will miss Phaneuf’s tenacity and leadership, he wasn’t exactly lighting it up. Through 11 games Phaneuf had amassed a total of four points (all assists) and a minus-six rating, averaging 22:44 per game (which is skewed a bit due to his playing just 12:30 against the Ottawa Senators last night and just 15:01 against the Philadelphia Flyers on October 23rd where he was benched for much of the game).

Of the Leafs' big five, Mike Komisarek should see the biggest increase in ice time. Through 11 games Komisarek has averaged a paltry 13:49 of ice time—clearly, even with his shortcomings, Komisarek can do more.

What the Maple Leafs really need is for their defense to start contributing a little on offense. Through 11 games Maple Leafs defensemen have a total of two goals between them, none of which have come on the power play.

Heading into the game against the Washington Capitals, Phaneuf was leading the Maple Leafs in shots on goal with 37 on the season. While not the most accurate guy in the world, many of Phaneuf’s shots have been well placed—somebody is gonna have to make up for the loss of Phaneuf’s shots, and you know damn well it ain’t gonna be Thomas Kaberle!

Whatever the case may be, it appears as if the Maple Leafs will be just fine without Phaneuf. After all, it was just a few games ago that the Maple Leaf fans were booing Phaneuf and just a few games before that that head coach Ron Wilson benched him against the Philadelphia Flyers.

Time will tell which player(s) step up their play. For my money, despite all the criticism directed toward Brian Burke for bringing in all those defensemen, it appears as if his  foresight will be paying off.....or will it?

Until next time,

Peace!