Leafs ramping up physicality as playoffs loom
Since the end of the Brian Burke «truculence» era, the Leafs have been regarded as a soft hockey team. They don't hit, they rarely fight, and they don't start or get into many scrums after the whistle. That's starting to change.
Since taking over as Leafs GM, Kyle Dubas has done exactly what he said he would do from the start. Build a core of high skilled players, then add grit and toughness around them. It started with the acquisition of Jake Muzzin, then came Kyle Clifford, Wayne Simmonds, Clifford again, and now Ilya Lyubushkin.
Unfortunately, having two or three players on the roster willing to throw a hit isn't good enough. Team toughness isn't about having one enforcer, it's an attitude that all 18 skaters have to embrace.
In the past few games, we've finally seen a glimpse of that team toughness that many fans have been clamouring for. The Leafs' last 3 games have seen them throw 42, 30 and 31 hits, respectively. This marks the first time in over 6 years that the Leafs have thrown 30+ hits in 3 straight regular season games.
We've also seen Auston Matthews, Ilya Mikheyev, Michael Bunting and Morgan Rielly in particular standing up for themselves and their teammates. These are all positive signs that the Leafs are finally getting sick of being pushed around.
Leading the charge in the hitting department has been newcomer Ilya Lyubushkin, he's racked up 33 hits, including a beauty on Dallas' Jason Robertson, in his 11 games since being acquired from Arizona.
The Leafs still aren't an overtly tough team, but seeing them push back harder and more often can only bode well for the fast approaching playoffs.
