Former Leaf putting together an insane run over the last 4 games with his new team
This summer, we saw the Toronto Maple Leafs change nearly their entire supporting cast, watching the likes of Ryan O'Reilly, Michael Bunting, Justin Holl and Alexander Kerfoot, among others, walk as unrestricted free agents.
For many of these names, their start to this 2023-24 season has been a bit of a mixed bag. However, for Alex Kerfoot, he really appears to have carved out a nice role for himself with his new team in Arizona. With 15 points in 24 games thus far, he really seems to be making the most of his opportunity.
Kerfoot was never much of a goal scorer, but has shown himself to be a capable playmaker in the past. However, what he has shown over the course of his last 4 games is far beyond what anyone, likely even himself, was expecting. Through his last 4 games with the Coyotes, Kerfoot has amassed 9 points, including 3 multi-point games. He's also a +8 over that span.
Not only is Kerfoot producing at a higher rate than expected in Arizona, he's also averaging a lot more ice time there than he ever did in Toronto - or even in his entire NHL career for that matter. Kerfoot's previous career high for average time on ice (ATOI) per game was 15:12 back in 2021-22. His career average is 14:40. This season, however, Kerfoot has averaged 16:28 of ice time per game.
The Coyotes appear to be using Kerfoot in a similar fashion to what he had been accustomed to in Toronto - as a bit of a Swiss Army knife. He has spent time at both wing and center for the Yotes this season and is also a feature penalty killer. In addition, he is also receiving more time on the power play this season, though much of his production is actually happening at 5-on-5.
We can't possibly look at this and declare it as a huge loss for the Leafs, because Kerfoot was given ample opportunity to succeed in Toronto and, for whatever reason, things just didn't click. Now, in Arizona, Kerfoot is being relied upon a lot more than he would have been in Toronto. However, it's wild to consider the fact that Kerfoot's 15 points this season would have him sitting 6th in Leafs scoring, behind only Nylander, Matthews, Marner, Tavares and Rielly.
Since it doesn't make much sense to pile on him and criticize him for not doing more during his time in Toronto, we should be happy for Kerfoot for finding himself in a favourable position with the Yotes and doing well in the role he's been cast in. The added bonus is that if he does enjoy a lot of success this season, we won't have to listen to the Toronto media inflating his value and projecting a $5M-$6M cap hit on his next deal.
| POLL | ||
DECEMBRE 5 | 886 ANSWERS Former Leaf putting together an insane run over the last 4 games with his new team Were the Leafs wrong to allow Alex Kerfoot to leave via free agency? | ||
| Yes, they should have re-signed him | 307 | 34.7 % |
| No, they did the right thing letting him walk | 288 | 32.5 % |
| They should have traded him for an asset or 2 | 291 | 32.8 % |
| List of polls | ||
