DESERVING STARTERS

Nick De Cicco

With the NHL regular season creeping up on everyone’s calendar and Leafs Nation erupting at Scotiabank arena soon, we take a look at some prospects and PTOs that should be making the opening night roster for the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Firstly, a lot of these slotting are due to injuries and might be short-term solutions for the Buds in the near future. John Tavares suffered an oblique injury that has been nagging him for some time now. Gaudette sustained a shoulder injury during a preseason game, but has since returned to practice. Defensively, Jake Muzzin and Timothy Liljegren were scratched for the preseason with their respective injuries.

Jordie Benn and Carl Dahlstrom were hurt at the beginning of the preseason and are sidelined for 3 weeks and 6 months respectively. A depleted defensive core and a veteran captain on the shelf would be a cause for concern in many hockey markets, but the Leafs’ depth could save them from a disastrous start to the new campaign.

With injury scares knocking on the front door, the Leafs were extremely cautious to avoid further holes. A few offensively-oriented players attempted the defensive duties and tried their hands at the new role.

Anyways, I believe that Nick Robertson, Alex Steeves, Dennis Malgin and Bobby McMann have impressed the coaches and management enough to earn a roster spot. Nick Robertson had a great showing in the offensive zone. Robertson showed his improvement in confidence and skating from the previous time we’ve seen him. Nick has had quite a few setbacks in the early stages of his young career and has overcome them all. Through injuries and Covid-related difficulties, Nick Robertson has displayed his resilience in fantastic fashion.

He played exceptionally well in these games and showed off his confidence in shooting the puck in important areas of the ice. Bobby McMann, Dennis Malgin and Alex Steeves also played to their strengths, their respective lines were clicking on all cylinders. Their physicality and offensive presence could be very beneficial throughout the Leafs lineup.

The late bloomer has impressed me with his individual effort to create space for himself and teammates on his line. Dennis’ significant changes from when we last saw him in a Leafs jersey are as a result of his performance in the European leagues.

Another player that had some experience on the Leafs fourth line and could crack the season-opener is Nick Abruzzese. Nick was in the shadows against the Senators, but really shined in the spotlight. In Particular, Abruzzese scored on the power play and looked pretty dialed in throughout the preseason.

In terms of players that attended the Leafs training camp and preseason games, Zach Aston-Reese is the most deserving of a roster position. The former Pittsburgh Penguins star showed off his physicality and finishing checks in the corner. The gritty mindset that the Leafs have been trying to accomplish for years can be achieved by Aston-Reese’s abilities with his body. Zach’s net-front presence throughout was fantastic and he played a critical part in the preseason.

When the Toronto Maple Leafs take the ice on October 12th in Montreal for the season-opening game of the 2022-23 regular season, the lineup should look very different from years past. Despite the changes that not everyone might agree with, the Leafs are back in action to entertain the fans and play some hockey!