Wanted: Anyone Half Way Skilled on the Left Wing

While Brian Burke and our Toronto Maple Leafs have made some positive acquisitions this off-season, there is much more to be done before any Leafs fan can be confident that a playoff birth is even a potentiality in the upcoming season. Trading for Kris Versteeg was a way of adding what may prove to be some top 6 skill to the team. Then, with Colby Armstrong we can see some added grit from a player TSN has called the Brian Burke prototype. Earlier this summer Burke brought in Mike Brown who, if he makes the roster will give Toronto supplementary strength. However, for the sake of solidifying a quality right wing, Toronto sacrificed Viktor Stalberg’s speed and offensive hockey sense on the left side.

From many of the Leafs blogs I've read and from the conversations I've had with Leafs fans, most have argued that Toronto’s major need is a top line centerman. Many still have a desire to make a trade for Marc Savard, risking his long contract and history of injuries. Personally, I think the Leafs have a much larger problem on the left wing than the center position. Tyler Bozak is closer to being a number one centerman than Kulemin is to a first liner on the left.

From the players we brought in this offseason, only Marcel Mueller is a conceivable LWer and I say that very cautiously. Listing our players by position, I can illustrate the Leafs' strength on the right wing and its weakness of the left. The center position, while still a problem, is less dire and thus can be addressed afterward.

RW: Phil Kessel, Kris Versteeg, Colby Armstrong, Mike Brown, Colton Orr, Joey Crabb...(ha.)

C: Tyler Bozak, Nazem Kadri, Mikael Grabovski, John Mitchell, Brayden Irwin, Christian Hanson (if he is resigned), and Mike Zigomanis...(ha.)

LW: Nik Kulemin, Freddy Sjostrom, Luca Caputi, and Marcel Mueller.

From what I can see, Toronto only has one NHL caliber left-winger. Kulemin, who played first line minutes for much of last season after robbing Alexei Ponikarovski of his spot, has proven himself to be a good two-way player who will help Toronto in the long run. Unfortunately, a Kulemin type player ought not to be on the first line, nor should he play first line minutes.

An argument can be made that Freddy Sjostrom is a second NHL caliber LWer in the Maple Leafs’ roster, but only as a fourth liner who is mostly used for the penalty kill and defensive situations.

Put frankly, Luca Caputi was a disappointment last year. While 9 points in 28 career games is not a horrible statistic for a 21 year old, last season was supposed to be a tryout and he did not prove himself to be good enough for an NHL roster. That being said, this season is a new opportunity. Viktor Stalberg blew us all away last pre-season and was awarded a spot on the team based on that performance. We can all hope Caputi will do the same but it's likely he will need more time to develop.

Finally, we come to Brian Burke's newly acquired Marcel Mueller. There isn’t too much information out there about him, but I do know that he was signed to a two-way contract. This will give Ron Wilson some flexibility, giving him the opportunity to spread out Mueller’s time between the NHL and the farm.

As we can see, Toronto is temporarily troubled on the left wing. However, there is one player I would love to see help solve this problem. Because of the fiscal difficulties in Dallas, James Neal is available for trade. Whether this is where Burke decides to trade Kaberle, a multi-player deal could send some of our lower salary contracts over as well for some additional offensive skill. Toronto has a superfluity of players under contract between the Leafs and Marlies and could therefore put together a package good enough to land a player skilled enough to play alongside Phil Kessel.

Another development in the Kaberle rumors has turned towards LA and Brayden Schenn. As a left wing prospect, he could be a potential player to fill this void. It’s widely speculated that Burke was trying to move up the draft order in 2009 to get Luke’s younger brother on the team. Whether this is an available means to such an end, time will tell.

Personally, I would rather Neal in a Leafs uniform next year since he is older and a proven scorer. Because of Neal’s low salary, a second round pick in 2011 would give Burke the opportunity to offer-sheet James Neal against the financially vulnerable Stars. This would be the best case scenario in acquiring a quality LWer to play with Phil Kessel. It may be a harsh move but at the end of the day, business is business.

Next we can turn to center

-Bone

Leafs Aren't My Best Buds - get it?

I apologize for the long hiatus in posts. I decided to have a long christmas vacation with lots of eat, a bit of drink and a superfluous amount of shinny. Oh the life we life, eh?

When I left off, we had just played Buffalo on December 21st, which might have been the most exciting game of the season. Stalberg was called up and played well only to get injured. Then we lost a lot. Then Carolina actually caught up to us in the standings... and here we are.

The Leafs are starting to get hard to watch. Kessel's slump is just painful at this point, and Hagman's harsh decrease in point production is doing so much that his trade value is even dropping. What to do, what to do? I actually heard talk yesterday of taking Kessel off the power play and at this point, I think that might just be a good idea. Although he's a solely offensive-minded player (with no regard for ANY defense), he struggles to break into the shooting lanes. Even with a quick-release as deadly as his, he's not getting the puck through. If he's not getting the goals, it's because they're putting a lot of emphasis on his side of the ice both at full strength or on the PP. Thankfully, on the other side of the ice we have Ian White or Beauchemin (on the PP). Get them the puck.

We've heard it from all the media: the Leafs are being killed/killing themselves by special teams. They start calling into question Ron Wilson's skill as a coach (and penalty kill specialist) or Brian Burke's criteria for a team but this isn't the way to go about Leafs criticism. I do my best to try to avoid this because Wilson has no one to put out there on a penalty kill and Burke has no one to trade other than draft pi- nevermind.

In regards to the power play, my only advice would be to stop putting on full lines. If they seem to have figured out our first line to the extent every team in the league has at this point, switch it up a bit. With Kessel in his normal spot, the high boards on the goaltender's right hand side, the goalie knows where the shot is coming from. There needs to be more movement instead of a stagnant umbrella set up that feeds Kessel for a shot that's going to be blocked. Leafs need to get it down low, pull a defenseman off the slot area, then push it to the point and get a shot off. It sounds easier than it is, but our opposition does it to Luke Schenn every time he's on the ice.

The penalty kill is a whole other story. Let's look at the power play goal last night by Eric Staal. Who was on the ice? Hagman, Mitchell, White and Exelby. We just have a really weak team. Yes, we could put Kulemin out as a big body to block shots but at the end of the day, neither the Leafs first nor second line PK unit is strong enough to compete. I know it's halfway through the season, but what needs to happen isn't an overhaul of the players, but a mastery of a PK system. If the diamond doesn't work, give small box a shot. If that doesn't work, large box and so on. It can't get any worse can it? I dunno, ask LA a decade ago.

Anyway, Go Leafs G.... oh who am I kidding.
Bone