In the six seasons prior to the NHL lockout in 2004-2005, the Toronto Maple leafs qualified for the playoffs every year, even making it to the conference final both in ‘99 and ‘02. Since the NHL resumed play in the 2005-2006 season, the Leafs have failed to make it to the postseason. They finally hit rock bottom last year when they finished last in the Eastern Conference after an abysmal October and nagging injuries throughout the rest of the season. The Leafs are looking to make a big turnaround this season, bringing in a group of talented youngsters to help the Blue and White reach the postseason for the first time in six years.
Offense: C+/B- The Maple Leafs are without a doubt most sparingly talented in their top six forward group. Brian Burke remains unapologetic about the Phil Kessel trade a year ago, and for good reason. Kessel has the potential to be a perennial 40 goal scorer, with perhaps even the chance for a 50 goal season one of these years if Burke finds a legitimate number one center to feed him the puck. Tyler Bozak will likely start the year with that job, and with the opportunity to play an entire NHL season expect him to vastly improve upon his numbers from last year. Slightly pressuring him for his job will be Lebanese-Canadian 2009 first round draft pick, Nazem Kadri. Kadri will most likely end up on the second or third line to start the year and he will be given every opportunity to advance. Nikolai Kulemin will also see time on the first line, hoping to improve on his 36 point season in ‘09-‘10. Offseason acquisitions Colby Armstrong, Clarke MacArthur, Kris Versteeg, and Mike Brown will provide even more of Brian Burke’s signature mixture of size, skill, and grit to an already hard hitting Leafs roster.
Defense: A+ One would be hard pressed to find a deeper blueline in the East than that in Toronto this coming season. A first line pairing of Dion Phaneuf and Francois Beauchemin will face much of the top end talent that teams have to offer such as the Alex Ovechkins and Sidney Crosbys of the league. After a long and drawn out controversy over the fate of veteran defenseman Tomas Kaberle he is back in Toronto and will provide a level of intelligence and puck movement that the rest of the Maple Leafs blueline seems to lack. Mike Komisarek will be paired with the Czech defender after missing most of last season due to injury. Luke Schenn is looking to bounce back from a forgettable sophomore season and will most likely be paired with fellow sophomore Carl Gunnarsson, who possesses a lethal slapshot from the point.
Goaltending: B A bright spot in the Maple Leafs future is their depth at goaltending. Jonas Gustavsson, a 6’3” monster in the net will do his best to move past an injury riddled season and rebound with a strong performance this year. Burke also brought in Jean-Sebastien Giguere from his days as a GM in Anaheim, as well as Francois Allaire, the goalie guru who coached Giguere to a Conn Smythe Trophy and a Stanley Cup Championship in consecutive seasons. In the pipeline, the Leafs have 6’5” Swedish netminder Jussi Rynnas. Rynnas will more than likely spend the season adjusting to the North American game in the AHL.
Key Acquisitions: Nazem Kadri, Kris Versteeg, Colby Armstrong Key Losses: Viktor Stalberg