Giordano shines in first game as a 1D for the Leafs; in fact, he's been superb all season long, as the numbers show
The Toronto Maple Leafs' defensive depth will be heavily tested in the coming weeks. First, Jake Muzzin was injured back in October against Arizona. Next, T.J. Brodie suffered an injury to his oblique, sidelining him for a number of weeks. Then, on Monday night, Morgan Rielly fell awkwardly injuring his knee, landing him on LTIR, meaning he will miss at least 10 games and 24 days of action.
With the Leafs' top three defenders out of the lineup, they turned to veteran defender Mark Giordano to play big minutes in last night's 2-1 victory over the New Jersey Devils. At 39-years-old, Giordano is the oldest skater in the league. Last night, he played a total of 24 minutes and 43 seconds, which is the most he has played all season. Before last night, he was averaging 18 minutes and 39 seconds of ice time per game. Additionally, he blocked 6 shots.
It should not come as a surprise the Leafs are relying heavily on Giordano during this stretch of injuries. He has been fantastic for the team all season. In fact, through 22 games this year, he has only been on the ice for 5 goals against during 5-on-5 play. Additionally, no defensemen who has played at least 200 minutes this season has a better goals against per minute played.
And while it is unfair to expect Giordano to play over 24 minutes a night for an entire season, he proved last night he can do it, at least in the short term, for a few weeks while T.J. Brodie heals up and perhaps for a month and a half or so while Rielly works his way back from his MCL injury. If the Leafs are going to get through the next few weeks, they will likely need to continue to rely heavily on Giordano - and that's just fine with him, as Gio has welcomed the challenge with open arms.
