Justin Holl appears to have gotten the message sent by Sheldon Keefe
Justin Holl has been nothing if not underwhelming this season for the Toronto Maple Leafs. On Monday night however, he played a key role in the victory for the Buds and posted his second consecutive multi-point game since returning to the lineup this weekend.
Holl notched a goal and an assist in the Leafs' 5-3 win in Washington, increasing his production to 5 points in the last two games. The undrafted blueliner also tallied an assist in each of his previous two games on February 19th and 21st, bringing his total to 7 points in his last 4 games.
With a new defensive partner in T.J. Brodie, Holl has felt a little more comfortable jumping up into the play in the offensive zone, which has led to a spike in his offensive output, which could prove invaluable to the Leafs - especially in the postseason.
Perhaps the best example of Holl's newfound confidence was the way he read the play on Rasmus Sandin's game-winning goal. Captain John Tavares may have done most of the work down low, but Holl finding some open ice while also taking note of a steaking Rasmus Sandin on the left side of the ice and hitting him with a crisp pass in the slot was a hugely important in the Buds' win.
If Holl can continue this level of play -- even if he's not producing like this every game -- he can become yet another threat in an already potent Leafs' offense.
The 30-year-old right-shot defender is now up to 13 points in 42 appearances after a very slow start for the Leafs this season. As it stands, Holl should have no problem topping his career-best 20 points from last season.
| POLL | ||
MARS 1 | 363 ANSWERS Justin Holl appears to have gotten the message sent by Sheldon Keefe Should the Leafs trade Justin Holl? | ||
| Yes | 156 | 43 % |
| No | 58 | 16 % |
| Only if they can upgrade | 149 | 41 % |
| List of polls | ||
