Liljegren impresses in top pairing role in season debut against the Atlantic Division leading Bruins
Last night, Leafs defensemen Timothy Liljegren made his season debut against the Boston Bruins. In addition to a Leafs win, the team played extremely well, particularly defensively. The buds only allowed 21 shots against. Liljegren was a big part of that. The 23-year-old also had an 81% expected goals while playing 15 minutes and 50 seconds of ice time.
This is not the first time Liljegren has excelled in a more advanced stat. Last season, from January 1st onward, the Swede was ranked sixth in points per 60 minutes (averaging 1.74 points per sixty minutes played) among all defensemen who played a minimum of ten games. For reference, reigning Conn Smythe winner Calle Makar was ranked fifth, averaging 1.81 points per sixty minutes played. This is part of the reason why so many Leafs fans are so excited for what Liljegren can become for this team.
Liljegren was originally drafted by the Leafs in the first round (17th overall) of the 2017 NHL entry draft. He played the majority of the following four seasons with the Toronto Marlies until establishing himself as a full time NHLer last season. In 61 games last year, he posted a total of 23 points (5 goals & 18 assists).
| POLL | ||
NOVEMBRE 6 | 244 ANSWERS Liljegren impresses in top pairing role in season debut against the Atlantic Division leading Bruins Should Liljegren remain on the top pair moving forward? | ||
| Yes | 151 | 61.9 % |
| No | 22 | 9 % |
| Move him around as needed | 71 | 29.1 % |
| List of polls | ||
