The Leafs' TOI leader may shock you
At the beginning of November, with the Leafs having struggled through the entire month of October (4-4-2), the Leafs were playing at home and the "boo birds" were out in full force. Justin Holl can attest to their early season presence, as every time he touched the puck or was on the ice, the boos weren't hard to hear.
The Leafs, like last season, did not get off to the best start but have been on fire and currently sit third overall in the standings and are ranked fourth in goals against. Surprising for a team that has been without Jake Muzzin for the entire season and Morgan Rielly, Timothy Liljegren and T.J. Brodie for extended periods. With all of those injuries, much of the credit has gone to Rasmus Sandin and Liljegren for their improved play and tougher minutes. However, it has been Justin Holl who has been the Leafs' most used and trusted blueliner the entire time.
Not only does Holl lead all Leaf defensemen in time-on-ice, he leads the entire team in that category. At a salary of just $2M and entering free agency, Holl will be in line for a massive pay raise this summer. He may end up over budget for the Leafs, but he has been worth every penny of the $2M he has been making and then some. Holl has played 3 minutes more on the season than the next closest Leaf (Mitch Marner), with most of those minutes coming against the opposition's top talent.
Holl has been effective at 5-on-5, as pointed out by Justin Bourne, but he is also the Leafs' best penalty killing defenseman in terms of powerplay goals against per 60, next to Morgan Rielly, whose sample size is much smaller.
While some of you may be annoyed with him (myself included at times), Holl is as steady as they come on the blueline and although playing with Mark Giordano has certainly helped, he is more than capable of being a top-4 defensive defenseman. in this league moving forward. We sort of take him for granted in a lot of ways. This may be a classic case of "you don't know what you've got 'til it's gone" after this summer comes and goes.
| POLL | ||
JANVIER 5 | 104 ANSWERS The Leafs' TOI leader may shock you Are you surprised that Justin Holl leads the team in TOI this season? | ||
| Yes | 65 | 62.5 % |
| No | 39 | 37.5 % |
| List of polls | ||
