The Toronto Maple Leafs are soft. And that will be a problem in the playoffs

Mike McKenna
Mike McKenna(MikeMcKenna56)
The Toronto Maple Leafs are soft. And that will be a problem in the playoffs

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“Get him!!!”

I’m sure plenty of Toronto Maple Leafs fans were screaming it at their televisions Wednesday night when New York Rangers defenseman K’Andre Miller buried Toronto blueliner Timothy Liljegren into the boards midway through the first period.

And for good reason. Miller’s hit was dangerous. Liljegren had his back turned well in advance of impact. And the Leafs defender was in a precarious position just feet from the dasher boards. 

The replay is pretty bad. Miller is staring at Liljegren’s numbers and decides to crush him anyway. Hitting from behind is a no-no regardless of age or playing level. And it’s obvious why: Liljegren impacts the boards with his head and shoulder at a scary angle. Had his neck hit the top of the dasher it could have been catastrophic.

Now I do think it’s worth noting that it appears Miller attempted to go shoulder-on-shoulder with the hit. But with Liljegren in such a compromised position near the boards, Miller shouldn’t have finished the check with such a forceful follow-through.

What happened next, I think, was noteworthy. Leafs forward Mitch Marner casually glided over, grabbed Miller’s arm, and then…let him go. A big old nothingburger after a Toronto teammate was just sent flying into the boards at a terrible angle.

Now, I’m not the guy who calls for street justice at every slight indiscretion that occurs. I actually can’t stand it when a big, clean bodycheck is laid in open ice and the player who delivered the hit is forced to fight. To me that’s just a lot of posturing.

But Miller’s hit – despite not being penalized – wasn’t clean. And it was exactly the type of play that should have warranted a pointed reaction from the Maple Leafs.

That didn’t happen. Instead, it looked like Marner just gave it the old “Come on, man” to Miller. And then he completely let him off the hook. Miller skated away without a care in the world.

I didn’t like it. And I’m not tough by any imagination. I had one fight in my professional career, against goaltender Tom Lawson of the San Diego Gulls. It was during my time in the ECHL with the Las Vegas Wranglers. And it resembled two polar bears dancing for 15 seconds before tumbling to the ice. I threw two punches and they both missed the mark by at least a foot. Thankfully the fight happened in 2005 before YouTube was really a thing, because the entire ordeal was pretty embarrassing.

And that word – embarrassing – is the best way to describe the Leafs’ response to Liljegren getting clobbered at center ice. Judging from the replay, it looks like at least two Toronto forwards, Marner and Auston Matthews, see what happened to their teammate. Michael Bunting: probably not. He turns his head right as the puck leaves Liljegren’s stick. But Bunting’s linemates can’t plead ignorance.

I think someone on Toronto needed to do something. Without any response, it sends a message to the Rangers – and the entire NHL for that matter – that the Leafs can be pushed around. And that’s powerful knowledge for any potential opponent in Stanley Cup playoffs.

Maybe the Leafs have a mantra to stay out of the fray and avoid confrontation. Maybe they are determined to get revenge on the scoreboard, like they did Wednesday night when they beat the Rangers 3-2 in overtime. And guess what? Liljegren had a goal and an assist. Marner scored the game winner.

But I would argue this is bigger than one game or one instance. And the Leafs have tried to address it in different ways. Wayne Simmonds and Kyle Clifford are under contract. Yet neither has been utilized extensively by head coach Sheldon Keefe. Jordie Benn is there. But teams really don’t want defenders fighting.

And that’s what I’m really getting at. The Leafs didn’t have to fight Miller. But the Rangers defenseman needed to be put on notice and feel nervous. Whack him. Slash him. Push him. Tell him what will happen if he does it again. Any of which would have been better than Marner’s caress of Miller’s arm.

It was soft hockey. And soft teams, no matter how skilled, have a big bullseye on their back when the Stanley Cup playoffs begin. The Leafs didn’t have to take a retaliatory penalty. That’s not smart hockey. But they needed to push the message to Miller right up to the edge of legality.

If there’s any player on the Leafs who could use a dose of aggression, it’s Matthews. And I understand there are limiting factors. He’s had wrist problems. And given he’s the reigning Hart Trophy winner, the Leafs need him on the ice. But Matthews, by nature, shies away from the rough stuff. It’s just not in him.

Matthews is 6-foot-3, 208 pounds. He’s strong as an ox. And he’s a leader for Toronto. With his size and strength, Matthews could utterly dominate opponents physically if he wanted to. Both during play and after the whistle. But he chooses to let teammates take care of it. And I think that’s a weakness for the Maple Leafs.

Miller’s hit on Liljegren wasn’t the worst thing I’ve ever seen. And yeah, the Leafs won the game. But I worry about a team like Toronto that’s scared to mix it up.

Toronto would be wise to develop a nastiness to its game. Or else I think this team will have a really difficult time getting past their inevitable first-round opponent – the Tampa Bay Lightning. That’s a team that can bring the fire when called upon. The Lightning know that, over the course of a seven game series, intimidation can play a major role. And the Leafs have yet to prove anything when the intensity ratchets up.

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