In the System : Options for the Maple Leafs

This season has not been the start that Leafs Nation was hoping for. With constant pressure from the media, fans and everyone in between, it feels as though Dubas and company are going to be looking at some change. It is very clear that some of the off-season moves are not working out—the Cody Ceci trade is one that comes to mind. When that move was made, I envisioned Ceci on the third line pairing, however Babcock has him playing on the first pairing with Morgan Reilly. The first defensive pairing has been absolutely atrocious! Morgan Reilly was fifth in the Norris Trophy voting last year, and although it can't be solely attributed to Ceci. It is quite obvious that Reilly doesn't have the same confidence he had playing with Ron Hainsey.

     Another off-season move—and definitely the biggest move during the summer—was trading Kadri for Barrie. Leafs Nation went ‘bananas’  when this trade was announced to the media. With the Leafs, the "obvious" favorite for winning the trade, but Barrie has not been playing to his potential at all. Twenty-one games into the season and Barrie has only notched 5 assists and carried around a plus/minus of -6; a major setback from his previous season with the Colorado Avalanches. Collectively,

as a defensive group, the Maple Leafs have not been up to par with the league, and outscoring your opponent 6-4 every night is not a viable option.

So, I think one of three things need to happen to turn this season around:

1. A new coach - This is probably the most obvious of all the options. Babcock has been on the hot seat since the game 7 exit last year against Boston—since then, the dislike towards him has only intensified. With each passing game it feels like the team is not responding to his old school tactics. Maybe a new coach is the kick in the pants the players need.

2. A new game plan- While easier said than done, the Leafs defensive scheme is not in-sync. In their own zone, they are running around like a chicken with it’s head cut off. A fresh scheme could possibly inspire some better play, but with that comes the risk of confusing the players even more.

3. Call up some toughness - With the recent signings of the big 4 (Tavares, Matthews, Marner, Nylander), trading is something that becomes very difficult for the Leafs. Without moving a core player, it’s going to be tough to make a trade with another team who knows their financial situation. So, lets give some kids a chance to play for the big club!

     It seems as though fans have just written off the AHL club in Toronto when in reality, there are some really interesting options for the Maple Leafs. With the media constantly ragging on the leafs "toughness", and their defensive woes, here are some of the players I would possibly give a look at:

Darren Archibald:

6'3 209 LBS - 10 GP - 3 G - 0 A - 3 PTS

Archibald has been bouncing around the AHL and NHL since joining. During this past camp, he came to play for the Maple Leafs in pre-season where he scored 2 goals in 2 games played (Montreal, Detroit). His NHL career totals (6 G , 8 A in 55 GP) don't exactly jump out at you, but his toughness and grit is very impressive. Archibald is not one to back down to fights against some of the bigger guys in the league like John Scott, Cody McLeod, and Brandon Carlo. He also isn't afraid to throw his body around (youtube his hit on Andrew Shaw) and on top of that, he gets in those dirty areas where he thrives. If Dubas and Babcock decide to bring this guy up, I think teams would think twice about trying to hit the Leafs out of the game. In turn, it gives the top end guys the confidence to make those big plays we need right now.

Egor Korshkov:

6'4 214 Lbs - 14 GP - 7 G - 3A - 10 PTS

Egor Korshkov is having a great year with the Marlies (not to mention he's big and powerful weighing in at 214 pounds). In the pre-season he won the heart of Leaf fans, but with a logjam at the forward positions, Korshkov didn't make the NHL squad. With injuries surrounding the Maple Leafs this season there are some open spots for grabs. I would send down Timashov and have Egor play on that 4th or 3rd line. 

Rasmus Sandin:

5'11 183 Lbs - 9 GP -  2 G - 8A - 10 PTS

Sandin is the one defenseman I would absolutely call up. The Leafs’ defense has been their downfall this year, and a fresh face can do one of two things:

 1) Sandin comes up and he has an outstanding season or 2) you motivate your defense to be better by giving away someone else's job.  Harsh? Yes, but the Leafs really need to make a change or have the defense buy into this system. Barrie has been a trainwreck, Rielly looks like a shell of hims former self, and Ceci looks like a deer in the headlights! The defense can't get any worse, so why not make a tweak and see what happens?

The leafs options are very limited this year as far as trades go. After signing Mitch Marner, the Leafs are left with virtually no cap space to do anything; which means we have to give up a significant player to get a good player. If we look inside our own system, we might just find the guy we were looking for all season was right under our noses.