Giordano excited to take on a more prominent role in the Leafs' defense this season
Maple Leafs defenseman Mark Giordano was noticeably out of gas in the playoffs, particularly against the Florida Panthers. Giordano, the NHL's oldest active player, recognized that and made changes in the off-season to ensure it didn't happen again this year. He changed his training regimen and his diet and came into camp down five pounds. It was something that Leafs head coach Sheldon Keefe also noticed at the start of the season.
With an injury to Jake McCabe, and John Klingberg struggling in a top-four role, Giordano was moved into the Leafs' top-four alongside Timothy Liljegren, who he has mentored since being acquired from the Seattle Kraken at the trade deadline a couple of seasons ago. So far, Giordano and Liljegren have played very well under tougher minutes. For many fans, having Giordano playing more minutes seemed like a nightmare, just due to his age and that he is slower than most of teams' top-six forwards, but Giordano believes that is when he is at his best.
Prior to McCabe's injury, Giordano was playing the least amount of minutes among Leaf defensemen, but has played 18 and 20 minutes respectively in each of the last two games and even scored against Nashville Saturday night. With McCabe out for Tuesday's game against the LA Kings, Giordano will be tasked with slowing down the number one offense in the NHL as the Kings are averaging 4.38 goals per game.
| POLL | ||
31 OCTOBRE | 143 ANSWERS Giordano excited to take on a more prominent role in the Leafs' defense this season Should the Leafs be cautious with playing Giordano so much? | ||
| Yes | 90 | 62.9 % |
| No | 53 | 37.1 % |
| List of polls | ||
