Analysis: Toronto Maple Leafs fans owe Mark Giordano a huge thank you
Mark Giordano is going to put up at least 50 points this season for the Toronto Maple Leafs. He’s going to be a major cog at even strength and chip in on the power play. And fans should be lining up daily outside the Ford Performance Centre to thank Giordano after practice.
Why? Because he took one of the biggest sweetheart deals in recent memory to play in his hometown of Toronto. Giordano is set to make just $800,000 this season and in 2023-24 for the Maple Leafs.
He might be turning 39 on Oct. 3, but Giordano is just three seasons removed from winning the James Norris Trophy as the NHL’s top defenseman. And I don’t think he’s lost much of a step – if any.
Giordano began last season with the expansion Seattle Kraken and quickly was named the first captain in team history. After spending more than a decade and a half with the Calgary Flames organization, it was a major change of scenery. Yet Giordano continued to produce on the ice.
In 55 games with a weak Kraken team, Giordano had 23 points. Right about at his career pace of half a point per game. And he kept it up after being dealt to Toronto at the 2022 NHL trade deadline.
What really impressed me about Giordano’s shift over to the Maple Leafs was how quickly he was integrated. I wasn’t sure how Toronto head coach Sheldon Keefe was going to utilize the former Richmond Hill Stars standout. I thought there was a chance that Giordano might be used in a complementary role or as a power play specialist.
That didn’t happen. Keefe utilized Giordano pretty evenly in all situations, including the penalty kill. Which I believe is a true test of a coach’s trust in a player. And in Giordano’s case, it helped to have more than 1,000 NHL games under his belt.
I believed – and still do – that Giordano’s skill level is elite among NHL defensemen. His skating is better than a lot of people realize. But it’s his mind that makes him so efficient. Giordano has such strong hockey intuition.
His game sense was on display during Saturday night’s preseason matchup against the Ottawa Senators. Giordano had three assists and led all Maple Leafs defense with 3:30 of power play ice time.
Granted it was preseason. Neither the Maple Leafs or the Senators iced their best roster. And especially of note for Toronto was the absence of Morgan Rielly, who will undoubtedly play a huge role on the team’s power play and take away minutes from Giordano.
But take a look at these clips. I see the same player that was a stalwart on the Calgary blueline, especially from an offensive standpoint.
This goal by Toronto’s Justin Holl was preceded by Giordano putting on a masterclass in creating time and space. His quick decision to walk the blueline and get to the far side of the ice gets Ottawa in motion. And Giordano is constantly shifting his body, feet, and stick blade. He’s creating deception.
But what really makes this play sing is when he throws on the brakes and goes back towards the middle, which allows Maple Leafs teammate Wayne Simmonds to drive through the middle of the ice. Giordano now has a clean passing lane to Holl, who beats Senators goaltender Cam Talbot.
This time it’s Alex Steeves scoring for the Maple Leafs on a redirection at the side of the net. And once again, Giordano makes the play happen by being quick on his edges and decisive with the puck.
It’s a set play off the draw. And Giordano executes it flawlessly. He’s quick to open ice. He pivots quickly. And he busts to the far side of the ice, opening up in preparation for the one-timer.
Giordano gets through the entire sequence so fast because his skating, especially in transition, is superb. Both of these clips demonstrate how powerful he can be.
But none of that matters without game sense. Giordano has it in spades. And that’s why I think he’s going to have a big year for the Maple Leafs. It might not be the 74 points he put up during the 2018-19 campaign with the Flames. But I fully expect Giordano to hit the 50-point mark so long as he stays healthy.
With all the firepower that Toronto possesses at forward, Giordano likely won’t be on the first power play unit. Rielly will for sure. And I’d be surprised if Keefe didn’t send four forwards over the boards to join him. But even on the second power play unit, Giordano can create on his own. And there’s no shortage of offensive talent for the Leafs.
But I really see Giordano driving play at even strength. Even if he’s logging lower minutes than in his past, I can’t see his production dwindling with this Toronto team. I see it increasing.
Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner, and John Tavares will all be wearing the same blue and white sweater as Giordano. And it reminds me of an old teammate of mine named Eric Selleck that loved this line: “Just give me the puck and put your hands in the air!”
Now, for Selleck, it was intentionally ironic. His fists did most of the talking. But with the firepower in the Leafs lineup, that quote is very real. Give Matthews the puck. Put your hands in the air. Repeat as desired.
I’m not willing to say Giordano is the magic bullet for Toronto. The Maple Leafs still lost in the first round of the 2021-22 Stanley Cup playoffs with him in the lineup. But I do think having that familiarity, and a full training camp with the team, will equal greater personal results for Giordano.
When you look at last season’s Leafs team, there was a sharp dropoff in offensive production from the defense after Rielly’s 68 points. Next was T.J. Brodie at 28. And to me, that’s where Giordano will bridge the gap. Slot him in for 50 points. But what I think makes Giordano invaluable is that he can do it responsibly.
And again. That cap hit. $800,000. It’s the biggest hometown discount I can remember. Giordano isn’t a spare part. Yet he’s playing for next to nothing. And I sure hope Leafs fans remember that and appreciate it. It’s not often a player has the chance to call his own shot on where to play. And very few are willing to knock a few million dollars off the asking price.
Maybe I’m just old. And maybe I’m just pulling for a guy that I shared a few days of Omaha Ak-Sar-Ben Knights AHL training camp with back in 2005. But I really think Giordano is set for a big year in TO.
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