Leafs make surprising scratch just 2 hours before puck drop tonight
Following another loss to a bottom-feeder in the Columbus Blue Jackets last night, Toronto Maple Leafs head coach Sheldon Keefe was very blunt in his media availability. A frustrated Keefe not only ripped apart Ilya Samsonov's play but also wasn't impressed with his skaters, saying that there is no reason for them to be making some of the mistakes they are.
Ahead of tonight's game against the Carolina Hurricanes, Keefe has decided to begin holding players accountable for their mistakes, starting with David Kampf, who will be scratched tonight in favour of Pontus Holmberg. Keefe said that there will be less tolerance going forward when it comes to defensive mistakes. For someone that prides himself on his defensive play, Kampf has struggled mightily lately and his turnovers and missed assignments have led to a number of goals against, especially last night.
While Keefe says that there will be more accountability going forward, it remains to be seen if that will include benching one of his stars for the same reasons he is benching Kampf tonight. If he doesn't, then the issue goes deeper than just player mistakes. It will be interesting to see how long of a leash spme of the other players get before they find themselves in the press box like Kampf is tonight.
| POLL | ||
DECEMBRE 30 | 873 ANSWERS Leafs make surprising scratch just 2 hours before puck drop tonight Do you think the Leafs should try to trade David Kampf and his $2.4M cap hit for 3 more seasons? | ||
| Yes | 460 | 52.7 % |
| No | 413 | 47.3 % |
| List of polls | ||
