Nick Robertson being given a huge opportunity with Jarnkrok's injury
The Leafs seemed to have found a combination that was very effective when they slotted veteran forward Calle Jarnkrok in next to captain John Tavares and elite playmaker Mitch Marner. Unfortunately, Jarnkrok suffered a groin injury on Wednesday night and could not finish the game against San Jose.
During the game against the Sharks, once Jarnkrok went down with the injury, Leafs bench boss Sheldon Keefe gave 21-year-old Nick Robertson the first crack at playing those top-6 minutes alongside JT and Marner. Robertson largely looked okay and it appears as though Keefe wants to give that line an extended look.
At practice on Friday, Keefe had Robertson in top-six blue as opposed to the bottom-six white or extras grey that he had been donning for a few weeks now. This is a huge opportunity for the Pasadena, CA native, as he will see more than the 6-12 minutes per night that he has been seeing in recent weeks - and he'll do so playing next to two of the best offensive forwards on the team. This could be Robertson's golden ticket to remain in the Leafs' lineup on a more consistent basis and in a position that will allow him to produce more consistently on offense.
Having said that, Robertson still has his work cut out for him. Keefe will want to see Robertson playing a smart two-way game and will also be looking for the youngster to play sound positional hockey, much like what we're seeing from rookie Pontus Holmberg. Perhaps you'll recall, earlier in the week, Keefe had stated that with young players, the Leafs try to show them video on their mistakes to help them learn. He revealed that he couldn't find any mistakes in Holmberg's game and that has, in turn, led to Holmberg remaining in the lineup on a nightly basis, while Robertson spent much of his season in the press box as a healthy scratch.
Keefe does not need Robertson to shoot the lights out. It would be nice if he did, but the goal here is to win hockey games. You do that by not failing your assignments. The goal for Nicky Bobby here is likely simply to be aggressive on the forecheck, win puck battles, make clean passes, get some shots towards the net with JT posted up in front and to play responsibly on the defensive side of the puck. If he can do these things, I'd imagine that he'll get a long look in the top six while Jarnkrok is out.
| POLL | ||
DECEMBRE 2 | 265 ANSWERS Nick Robertson being given a huge opportunity with Jarnkrok's injury Will Nick Robertson score his first goal since his season debut against the Bolts on Saturday? | ||
| Yes | 125 | 47.2 % |
| No | 140 | 52.8 % |
| List of polls | ||
