The Maple Leafs won a division title last season and let a top-line winger, No. 1 goaltender and third-pairing defenceman walk out the door in free agency.
And yet they appear to have gotten better.
There’s much road still to run in the NHL’s third straight COVID-interrupted campaign, and therefore plenty of unknowns about how Kyle Dubas’s team will manage playing 51 times in 114 days, but so far they look superior to the squad that claimed the North in 2021.
They’re currently playing at a 116-point clip that would establish a franchise record, racking up a .710 points percentage after going .688 through last year’s 56-game, intra-division campaign.
They’ve done it while producing elite five-on-five shot and expected goals metrics and becoming a group that excels in both specialty teams. The recent COVID outbreak forced eight games to be rescheduled, but also allowed the Leafs to return from the holiday break with a completely healthy complement of forwards for the first time all season.
Jack Campbell continues to establish his own credentials as a No. 1 with a sparkling .939 save percentage and four shutouts.
Even factoring in the challenges of a sluggish first two weeks and the recent Omicron outbreak, it’s gone about as well as Dubas and coach Sheldon Keefe could have hoped.
Assuming good health between now and the March 21 trade deadline — an admittedly big assumption given the rigorous nature of the sport — it’s hard to imagine the Leafs being major shoppers in the market.
Cap space is non-existent and the futures cupboard is pretty bare after last year’s spending spree. The Leafs own just three draft picks in 2022.
An upgrade to their blue line makes sense and should be considered priority No. 1, but there aren’t many other crying needs with the roster.
We’ve known since the buzzer sounded on last year’s Game 7 loss to Montreal that the success of this season will hinge entirely on the spring. That hasn’t changed. But over a difficult opening stretch to the campaign the Leafs look worthy of big expectations yet again.
That wasn’t necessarily assumed, remember, after waving goodbye to a couple of popular players in Zach Hyman and Frederik Andersen, and making some value buys around the fringes.
Much of the improvement has come from within, which is an encouraging sign given what’s on the horizon.
Seattle special
Meet Nadia Popovici, a hero and the protagonist in the most heartwarming hockey story we’ve heard this side of the pandemic.
It only took a few hours after the Vancouver Canucks put out the call for the young woman who helped save assistant equipment trainer Brian (Red) Hamilton’s life before Popovici was located on Saturday.
Here’s what she did: The 22-year-old med student managed to get Hamilton’s attention during an October game at Climate Pledge Arena and alerted him to the fact a mole on the back of his neck might be cancerous.
That proved to be a fateful act since Hamilton had type-2 malignant melanoma. The mole was removed before the cancer penetrated the skin, which is why the Canucks staffer decided to go public before his team’s second visit on Saturday. He wanted the chance to thank Popovici in person.
Not only did they share a pre-game hug and conversation, but the Canucks and Kraken also surprised Popovici with a $10,000 gift toward her medical school costs. The sheer joy in her reaction to that news was priceless.
Here’s how Hamilton summed up the situation: “She extended my life, she saved my life. She didn’t take me out of a burning car like the big stories, but she took me out of a slow fire. The words out of the doctor’s mouth were that if I ignored that for four to five years, I wouldn’t be here. I didn’t know (the mole) was there. She pointed it out. How she saw it boggles my mind. It wasn’t very big. I wear a jacket, I wear a radio on the back of my jacket that hooks on, so the cords are there. Like, she’s a hero.”
That’s life-affirming stuff right there.
Chicken soup for the hockey fan’s soul.
#AskCJ
Something I’ve always wondered. How do teams communicate with their players? Do teams have corporate email address that players get assigned, or is it all done through texts and messages on personal accounts? Is there the equivalent of JTavares@tml.com?
— @EngineerJoshB
The group text is a way of life in the NHL. That’s most often how plans are made, and how travel and practice schedules are communicated among the group. For example, when William Nylander was late for a team meeting last season it came on a day when there was a massive disruption to cell service in Canada. NHL teams typically don’t issue corporate email addresses to their players like they do with other employees. Some players use an email account provided to them by the NHLPA, and at least one star player has his with yahoo.ca.
Do you think the NHL will still be able to have a full 82-game season?
— @Pucks_and_Polls
A new year calls for optimism, so I’m going to say yes. Seeing the isolation period for positive COVID cases reduced from 10 days to five should cause a lot less schedule disruption, and the reintroduction of taxi squads will help teams manage their rosters, too. Plus a significant percentage of the league is now carrying antibodies heading into the second half of the season.
How much rope does (Dave) Tippett have left in Edmonton?
— @jaredflett19
The seat is heating up. This is an incredibly important season for the Oilers and they’ve been in a prolonged tailspin. Which begs the follow-up question: If Ken Holland decides to make a change, would his first phone call be to old friend Mike Babcock?
Over/under on big trades from now until TDL: 0.5?
— @DanKnightly
I’ll take the over here. Trades are going to be challenging to pull off ahead of the March 21 deadline because of the NHL’s flat cap environment, but I’m contractually obligated to predict we’re going to see some fireworks. Make sure you watch our trade deadline coverage on TSN!
Is Mikheyev feeling OK with his role on the Leafs this year, or does he still want a fresh start elsewhere? Question from a Cobourg lifer, and former Mark Trip wholesaler!
— @Upytime
Given his long injury absence to start the season, all signs point to Ilya Mikheyev being content with where he’s at for now. The early indications suggest that he’ll be given a more prominent power-play role than in the past, and there could be an opening for more minutes at five-on-five as well. This is a big half-season for Mikheyev with unrestricted free agency looming this summer.
Would the current CBA arrangements allow the players to participate in the Olympics should they be delayed to 2023?
— @DarthGravid
Absolutely. The agreement calls for the NHL and NHLPA to participate in the 2022 and 2026 Olympics, subject to negotiation of terms with the IIHF and IOC. Should the Games be delayed a year, it’s extremely likely that NHL players would be there.
Will our Cowboys get to the NFC championship game?
— @ian_mendes
You know it, Ian! This is OUR year.
What is your New Year’s resolution?
— @samantha_cass
I’m planning to do everything in my power to spread as much joy as possible this year. We can all use more of that after these last 21 months.
Tidbits
My TSN colleague Pierre LeBrun reported Sunday that the Montreal Canadiens have received permission to speak with Mathieu Darche, Roberto Luongo and Daniel Brière about their vacant GM position … The NHL was forced to reschedule 91 of the first 681 games this season … After exiting COVID protocol, players are given a 90-day “holiday” period where they’re not tested … The NHL is still planning to go ahead with next month’s all-star weekend in Las Vegas … Expect the IIHF to make a serious effort to reschedule the 2022 world junior tournament this summer … The Canucks have earned 17 points in Bruce Boudreau’s nine games behind the bench after banking just 18 points in 25 games under Travis Green … Sheldon Keefe’s tenure with the Leafs is already longer than 19 of his peers … James Neal was placed on waivers Sunday after scoring two goals in 17 games for the St. Louis Blues … Connor McDavid scored 52 goals and 157 points during his 87 games in 2021 … Auston Matthews led all players with 61 goals in the calendar year. Even more crazy? He accomplished that in just 79 games … The official attendance for Saturday’s Leafs-Senators game at Scotiabank Arena was 989 — almost 18,000 less than the last NHL game played there on Dec. 11.
C.J.’s Top Five
They braved the elements to play the Winter Classic at Minnesota’s Target Field over the weekend. Here are my top five most memorable outdoor games:
1. Toronto at Detroit
Winter Classic, Jan. 1, 2014
The sight of 105,000 fans painting the Big House red and blue during a snowstorm was incredible.
2. Detroit at Chicago
Winter Classic, Jan. 1, 2009
A game played in the shadow of Wrigley Field’s famous ivy between two of the league’s best teams.
3. Washington at Pittsburgh
Winter Classic, Jan. 1, 2011
The hype for an outdoor game featuring Sidney Crosby and Alex Ovechkin in their primes was off the charts at Heinz Field.
4. Winnipeg vs. Calgary
Heritage Classic, Oct. 26, 2019
The home of the CFL’s Saskatchewan Roughriders was a great host for a game played in between the cities where the teams are based.
5. Detroit at Toronto
Centennial Classic, Jan. 1, 2017
An overtime winner from rookie Auston Matthews at BMO Field was one of the high points of a season that signalled the fortunes of the franchise were turning.
Parting thought
You’d be wise to be betting overs right now with a number of NHL teams shaking off the rust from an extended COVID hiatus. Since the holiday break ended, we’ve seen scores of 8-7, 8-5, 9-3, 7-4 and 6-5. The league looks like it turned the clock back to the 1980s.
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