2018/19 Toronto Maple Leafs Preview
Oct 10, 2016 8:48:27 GMT -5
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Post by agrimsley on Oct 10, 2016 8:48:27 GMT -5
Predicted starting lineups
Leipsic - Nugent-Hopkins - Foligno
Tkachuk - Khokhlachev - Engvall
Staal - Mattheos - Soshnikov
Twarynski - Phillips - Radulov
Rielly - Maniscalco
Troncinsky - Percy
Cole - Vaakanainen
Bibeau - Demchenko
Goalies
The biggest upheaval for the Maple Leafs during this offseason has been with the netminding crew. Experienced veterans Ryan Miller and Andrew Hammond were both released to free agency with just foreign import Vasili Demchenko being brought in. Antoine Bibeau who made 4 starts in net during the 2016 season has been anointed the succesor with Demchenko as the provisional backup. Last season's waiver pickup, Jean-Francois Berube, will start for the Marlies and be the first man to be called up should any injuries occur. Further down the ranks, young Stuart Skinner will move up from the junior leagues to start for the Orlando Solar Bears. He has a very good rounded skill set for such a youthful goalie and with a little focus on his positioning could push for a call up in the near future.
Defense
Morgan Rielly will once again lead this group as he entered the final year of his contract however the Maple Leafs are taking no chances and have already had the young blue liner commit to a further two year deal. With Dion Phaneuf's play faltering in 2017, he finished with a team worse -39 rating, the Leafs signed two experienced guys in Ian Cole and Marek Troncinsky. Cole had a solid season with the Capitals and will bring a defensive presence to the ice for Toronto while Troncinsky's game will be better used for transition having scored almost a point per game over the past 3 years in his native Czechia. Stuart Percy will also return having put up 40 points and shown improvement to his all round game.
The competition then gets tough with a number of talented youngsters staking a claim to a roster spot. Rookies Josh Maniscalco and Urho Vaakanainen, both drafted in 2017, have spent a year playing in the juniors and honed their skills. Maniscalco was drafted as a defensive player but his offensive skills have improved such that he is now considered a real two way player. He has developed one of the hardest shots on the team and can pick a pass but his youth still shines through with a number of mental errors. Vaakanainen is a polished two-way blue liner who should also get extended time in camp to make his mark. Others on the bubble include Joe Morrow, Haydn Fleury, Noah Juulsen and Dominic Schmiemann.
Offense
Ryan Nugent-Hopkins is the stand out star of the group having received some MVP considerations on what was a struggling team. He looks to lead the top line between Nick Foligno and Brendan Leipsic. Foligno's experience really helped to mature RNH and despite Leipsic's slow start, the unit started to gel as the season progressed. The fans and management alike have high hopes for the production on the top line.
Seasoned veterans Eric Staal and Alexander Radulov will provide more leadership to an otherwise young group which will also see Matthew Tkachuk embark on what is hopefully his first full season. Struck down by a training camp injury, Tkachuk missed the majority of last season and then struggled to get going in the 11 games he played. With a full camp ahead of him, 2018 should prove to be a much better judge of his true potential.
Alexander Khokhlachev has improved drastically since joining the Maple Leafs as an early waiver claim in the 201/17 season. He played every game last season and finished with 50 points, easily his best career return. If he continues to develop at last season's rate then the center duo of him and RNH could become a real strength of the team.
A number of youthful rookies are looking ahead to training camp as their platform to cement a roster spot. They include 2017 draftees Stelio Mattheos and Matthew Phillips along with Carsen Tawrynski and Pierre-Luc Dubois. The talented Dubois has spent the past 3 seasons playing for the Screaming Eagles in Cape Breton where he scored 209 points in 193 games. His versatility to play on both wings may serve him well but he will need to develop quickly if he is to stay with Toronto in 2018.
Summary
The future of the Maple Leafs franchise lies in the massive investment that the organisation have poured into the new generation. The considerable number of draftees the Leafs have selected over the past 3 years should now begin to develop into worthwhile assets. The next few years could be exciting times in Toronto once again.
Leipsic - Nugent-Hopkins - Foligno
Tkachuk - Khokhlachev - Engvall
Staal - Mattheos - Soshnikov
Twarynski - Phillips - Radulov
Rielly - Maniscalco
Troncinsky - Percy
Cole - Vaakanainen
Bibeau - Demchenko
Goalies
The biggest upheaval for the Maple Leafs during this offseason has been with the netminding crew. Experienced veterans Ryan Miller and Andrew Hammond were both released to free agency with just foreign import Vasili Demchenko being brought in. Antoine Bibeau who made 4 starts in net during the 2016 season has been anointed the succesor with Demchenko as the provisional backup. Last season's waiver pickup, Jean-Francois Berube, will start for the Marlies and be the first man to be called up should any injuries occur. Further down the ranks, young Stuart Skinner will move up from the junior leagues to start for the Orlando Solar Bears. He has a very good rounded skill set for such a youthful goalie and with a little focus on his positioning could push for a call up in the near future.
Defense
Morgan Rielly will once again lead this group as he entered the final year of his contract however the Maple Leafs are taking no chances and have already had the young blue liner commit to a further two year deal. With Dion Phaneuf's play faltering in 2017, he finished with a team worse -39 rating, the Leafs signed two experienced guys in Ian Cole and Marek Troncinsky. Cole had a solid season with the Capitals and will bring a defensive presence to the ice for Toronto while Troncinsky's game will be better used for transition having scored almost a point per game over the past 3 years in his native Czechia. Stuart Percy will also return having put up 40 points and shown improvement to his all round game.
The competition then gets tough with a number of talented youngsters staking a claim to a roster spot. Rookies Josh Maniscalco and Urho Vaakanainen, both drafted in 2017, have spent a year playing in the juniors and honed their skills. Maniscalco was drafted as a defensive player but his offensive skills have improved such that he is now considered a real two way player. He has developed one of the hardest shots on the team and can pick a pass but his youth still shines through with a number of mental errors. Vaakanainen is a polished two-way blue liner who should also get extended time in camp to make his mark. Others on the bubble include Joe Morrow, Haydn Fleury, Noah Juulsen and Dominic Schmiemann.
Offense
Ryan Nugent-Hopkins is the stand out star of the group having received some MVP considerations on what was a struggling team. He looks to lead the top line between Nick Foligno and Brendan Leipsic. Foligno's experience really helped to mature RNH and despite Leipsic's slow start, the unit started to gel as the season progressed. The fans and management alike have high hopes for the production on the top line.
Seasoned veterans Eric Staal and Alexander Radulov will provide more leadership to an otherwise young group which will also see Matthew Tkachuk embark on what is hopefully his first full season. Struck down by a training camp injury, Tkachuk missed the majority of last season and then struggled to get going in the 11 games he played. With a full camp ahead of him, 2018 should prove to be a much better judge of his true potential.
Alexander Khokhlachev has improved drastically since joining the Maple Leafs as an early waiver claim in the 201/17 season. He played every game last season and finished with 50 points, easily his best career return. If he continues to develop at last season's rate then the center duo of him and RNH could become a real strength of the team.
A number of youthful rookies are looking ahead to training camp as their platform to cement a roster spot. They include 2017 draftees Stelio Mattheos and Matthew Phillips along with Carsen Tawrynski and Pierre-Luc Dubois. The talented Dubois has spent the past 3 seasons playing for the Screaming Eagles in Cape Breton where he scored 209 points in 193 games. His versatility to play on both wings may serve him well but he will need to develop quickly if he is to stay with Toronto in 2018.
Summary
The future of the Maple Leafs franchise lies in the massive investment that the organisation have poured into the new generation. The considerable number of draftees the Leafs have selected over the past 3 years should now begin to develop into worthwhile assets. The next few years could be exciting times in Toronto once again.