The Leafs aren't getting enough secondary scoring; here are 3 players who absolutely need to be better
When you look at a very top-heavy team like the Toronto Maple Leafs, I don't think anyone would be too surprised to learn that the vast majority of the offense is coming from 5 players - and rightfully so, as Matthews, Marner, Tavares, Nylander and Rielly combine for nearly $50M in cap space. However, what is really concerning is that after those top 5 players, along with Michael Bunting, there is a serious drop off in production after that.
Matthews, Marner, Tavares, Nylander, Rielly and Bunting combine for 100 points so far this season. The rest of the roster COMBINED barely reaches half of that total. The team's bottom six and the production from the blueline needs to be better. It's as simple as that.
In terms of how it all breaks down, there are two players in the bottom six who I think are pretty much exempt from scoring in David Kampf and Zach Aston-Reese. To me, those are the guys who are out there protecting your leads. You don't expect those guys to light it up on the scoresheet because of how good they are defensively. The rest of the usual suspects, though, simply haven't been good enough. Here's how the bottom six scoring breaks down (minimum 10 games).
*David Kampf - 7 points*Zach Aston-Reese - 3 pointsCalle Jarnkrok - 5 pointsNick Robertson - 5 pointsDenis Malgin - 4 pointsPierre Engvall - 3 pointsAlexander Kerfoot - 6 points
*=offense is a bonus from these players because of how elite they are defensively
In addition, Wayne Simmonds has 1 point in 4 games and Pontus Holmberg has 1 point in 3 games.
If we break it down a little further, you can give Denis Malgin the benefit of the doubt here. He has had numerous chances, but since he's playing with Kampf and ZAR, he's not exactly cast in an offensive role. For Nick Robertson, he's essentially still a rookie, having played just 26 NHL games in his career. Some growing pains are expected there as he adjusts to the speed and intensity of the NHL.
Jarnkrok, Engvall and Kerfoot, who account for nearly $8M against the cap combined, simply need to be better. Kerfoot, who has also had ample time playing in the team's top 6, is a 50-point player. Right now, he's on pace for 27 points. Not only is that not good enough, it's downright unacceptable.
Jarnkrok and Engvall combining for 8 points in 18 games and combining for $4.35M is not money well-spent either. Last season, Engvall was a 15-goal scorer. Coming into this year, he was very vocal about believing he would score 20 this season. As for Jarnkrok, yes it's a new team, but after 18 games, you simply have to find a way to produce. He has had almost a quarter of the season now, plus an entire training camp with which to build some chemistry with his teammates.
This start from the team's bottom six has been alarming, to say the least. You have to imagine that most of these close games that the team has lost may have been swung in the opposite direction had we had an extra 3 or 4 goals from the bottom six. This next stretch of games are very important in my eyes. If this current iteration of the bottom six can't get it going and provide some additional goal support, it may be time to pursue a deal to bring in someone who can help chip in with the odd goal lower in the lineup.
| POLL | ||
19 NOVEMBRE | 283 ANSWERS The Leafs aren't getting enough secondary scoring; here are 3 players who absolutely need to be better Which player would you trade to try to bring in some additional bottom 6 scoring? | ||
| Alex Kerfoot | 88 | 31.1 % |
| Pierre Engvall | 159 | 56.2 % |
| Calle Jarnkrok | 36 | 12.7 % |
| List of polls | ||
