Keefe says one young defenseman has earned his spot on the team and it's not who you might think
Dealing with multiple injuries on the blueline, the Toronto Maple Leaf swung a deal with the Arizona Coyotes to acquire defensemen Conor Timmins. Timmins had seemingly fallen out of favour with the Yotes, largely due to his lengthy injury history, and was never able to find his footing in the desert.
When the Leafs acquired Timmins, the deal felt like a temporary fix and just some additional depth on the blueline. But when Kyle Dubas spoke about the acquisition and called Timmins a piece that fits into both the team's current AND future plans, it became apparent that his role in Toronto would be more significant than originally thought. Now, through six games with the blue and white, Timmins has proven to be so much more than additional depth.
Leafs head coach Sheldon Keefe was asked last week about Timmins and was very complimentary of the 24-year-old's play, stating that he has been a real nice addition to the team's blueline and that he has made a difference for the team offensively He also sees no reason to remove him from the lineup.
For a guy to just find sticks and finds plays for us � on the offensive side of the red line, especially � has really helped us out, and he's been getting rewarded. His confidence is growing."
- Sheldon Keefe on the addition of Conor Timmins
Through six games with the Buds, Timmins has posted six assists while averaging 17 minutes and 9 seconds of ice time per game. Since arriving, he has been earning the coaches trust more and more each game. In his first three games with Toronto, his ice time was in the 13 - 16 minutes per game range. In his last three, he has not dropped below 18 minutes.
With the Leafs' blueline getting healthier, one has to wonder if he has earned a permanent top six role on the blueline when the team is at full health. And while we don't have that answer just yet, it is certainly a good problem for the team to have.
| POLL | ||
DECEMBRE 19 | 277 ANSWERS Keefe says one young defenseman has earned his spot on the team and it's not who you might think Has Timmins earned a permanent top six role on the Maple Leafs blueline? | ||
| Yes | 181 | 65.3 % |
| No | 20 | 7.2 % |
| Temporarily - but I need to see more | 76 | 27.4 % |
| List of polls | ||
