Takeaways Before The Break & Excitement Heading Out Of It.

Well, Leafs’ Nation, we are officially beginning the final push into the playoffs. The All-Star break is the last “break” before the long haul towards the playoffs. Lots of Leafs’ fans were thinking we were going to be heading into this break with no momentum whatsoever. Luckily, we were all wrong! This team, on the back of two very strong performances against tough Western Conference opponents have them, and us, feel going about their play. I was sceptical that the Leafs were going to get more than 2 points out of the 4 before the break. Boy, was I wrong! The Leafs started off with a dud of a period in the 1^st game against Chicago, and turned it on from there. They looked very solid in the final 2 periods against a great Blackhawks team stricken with a ton of bad luck, and even better vs arguably the hottest team in the NHL (outside of Boston) on their way to back-to-back (YEP! Back-to-back) wins, something we always feel is never going to happen. On the Eve of the All-Star break, I’m going to take a look at some of the good from the final two games, and a few things I’m excited for after the break. (I know I’ve done this a few times, but it’s the easiest way to get points across, and it’s super fun to do. Plus it allows me to talk about multiple things at once, and if you knew me, you’d know that’s something I tend to do. Easily distracted, like a puppy)

1. Leafs D will soon be set:

With Reilly out, Jake Gardiner has stepped up, and shown us that he is more than capable of filling in as the #1 guy alongside Hainsey. Connor Carrick (who I previously said was done) seemed to have gained some extra trust from the coach, and is playing his best hockey to date. Travis Dermott has gotten better each and every game. His breakouts are beautiful, his skating is graceful, his IQ is sky-high, and he seems to have the patience of Job all the while playing great defense with whoever he is paired with. Roman Polak has even stepped up and played a lot less terrible than usual, though he is still as slow as molasses running up hill. Andreas Borgman has seemed to take a step back, but not so much to say he’s played himself out of a spot once the Leafs’ D is healthy, but the fact is that others have outplayed him, and may have forced him out. I wouldn’t be surprised to see him sent down sometime after the break, as the following line-up seems to be the way Babcock is headed

Gardiner-Hainsey

Rielly-Zaitsev

Carrick-Dermott

Polak

That actually doesn’t look too bad on paper, and if anything goes wrong, Borgman can be called up anytime, and preform very well.

2. Don’t change anything:

We all know this isn’t Babcock’s strong suit, whether or not you’re in the #Babcult or otherwise, it isn’t, but this needs to remain untouched. Babs has gone on record saying that he wants to go back to the old lines at home, he shouldn’t. This team has shown now, two games in a row, that this is the optimal line-up. Fans were calling for it; Babs delivered and then so did the team. It shouldn’t be touched. It gives the Leafs 4 lines to roll that are good at any time. Matt Martin can be subbed in some random games, but overall this is the team to go with. Leo looks (somewhat) better, Kappy is a player, and having Marner with Kadri has turned 43 back into Nifty Mittens. Babcock is a smart coach, and he will tweak things up again, and that’s fine, but this is, overall, the guys you go with.

3. Late Season Gardiner has arrived:

People love to hate this guy. I feel like he’s John Cena or Roman Reigns in the fact that he’s supremely talented, but does dumb things to make everyone hate him. Then it just becomes a fad, and people who like him hate on him just because.

@Oak_Leafs tweeted out the prefect description of Jake ever (you can see below) & I highly suggest you follow him if you don’t.

Jake is the type of player that consistently does things you love, and hate, but he does the thing you love more than what you hate, unless you’re extremely bias. It’s time to accept that and move on.  He has, year in and out, proven to be a great defender for the Leafs who puts up big numbers. Each year he starts out slow, and each year he goes on a Norris like tear to end the season, and into the playoffs to make you want him to never leave the team, then the next season starts and it’s groundhog day all over again. It’s time to accept Jake as the real deal he is, be thankful we have him, and move forward

4. Matt Martin’s Days seem numbered:

I’ve been a big fan of Martin since he came here, not so much his contract but that’s a whole different story. The book is out on Martin, he is what he is, and what he is, is a 4^th liner who may score you 10-15 points a season, throw some hits, and have some fights. Not much else outside of being a Mitch Marner’s Dad. Babcock had cut his minutes game by game, and scratched him the last 2 games where the Leafs dominated play. Martin will still get games this season, but it wont be as many as he likes, and unless he turns into a PK machine, he may not be on this team next season. If that’s a trade or a buy-out or who knows what, I’m not sure. Babcock likes whom he likes, and plays who he likes, and he isn’t playing Matt Martin, even when Matt Martin plays. No way Shanny, Lou & Dubas keep a guy who makes 2.5 on the bench or in the pressbox when that money could be moved elsewhere. Don’t be shocked if/when he is no longer a Maple Leaf.

5. Refs + Goalie Interference = WHAT THE F***:

Seriously, how is this so bad?! Two games, 1 brutal missed call (and an even worse one before that) Plus the refs blowing a clearly still live play dead denying a Brown goal. It’s awful, the whole system including the refs need a major overhaul. I’ll keep this one short and sweet because it’ll piss me off to the point where I have to delete everything else just to have this.

6. Offense has seemingly woken from its slumber:

3 wins in their last 4 games, including the 2 during the most recent back-to-back. 13 goals scored in those 4 games, 4 coming in the final 2. Goals coming from guys like Kadri, Marner, Nylander, Marleau. All guys who have had some extended period of an offensive drought, plus guys like Gardiner picking it up, Leo getting some primary points, Bozak keeping his pace for 40 points in tact, it’s nice to see when this should be offensive juggernaut is playing as such. Hopefully it continues!

Now lets take a look at some of the thing I’m looking forward to down the stretch of the regular season, and it should be something we are all looking forward to.

1. The Outdoor Game:

I may be alone in this, as many have grown sick of these games, but they are always fun to watch. Battling the elements, cool new jerseys, and the players always seem to get up for them, and when you have 1 of the best players in the World who gets up for every game, a special game is something even more special. It’s going to be a great evening of great hockey of two teams who seem to have a bit of rivalry growing.

2. A healthy team:

Lets be honest here, this team hasn’t been fully healthy here for quite some time. Matthews, Rielly, Zaitsev just to name a few have been some of the guys who either missed time, or played dinged up. That’s something we didn’t get last year, and a big reason for the success we had. We definitely knew something like that wouldn’t happen two years in a row, and it hasn’t, but we’ve done a pretty amicable job during those times, and once we get healthy, watch out. Unfortunately it might not be enough to catch either Boston or Tampa, but it’ll be soon enough to get us some much needed momentum!

3. 17 Divisional games left:

This one is actually huge, 17 divisional games left. With the separation we already have between us, and the space winning some, or most of those games would give us would guarantee only birth into he playoffs. 10-7, 10-5-2 or something like that would be enough to get us in. Obviously we want the best possibly record, but to think something like that can get us in, is very exciting.

4. The #Babcult:

It pains me a bit to say this, as I’m not a huge supporter of the #Babcult, but seeing them/reading their tweets (as long as they actually stay positive) is something I look forward to. I’m cynical, I believe that in order to be the best version possible you need to continue to grow & improve, and when that doesn’t happen I lash out. Seeing these people, and their unwavering faith in the coach we should all have faith in, can be nice to see. We all need to trust the shanaplan a bit more, and stop riding Babs’ so hard. He finally seems like he is optimising the lineup, and even if he reverts back to his norm, the team will still give it’s best effort, and now that they are out of this dry spell, whether or not its got to do with the lineup changes or just us freaking out over small sample sizes who knows, we could see a team go on a run regardless of lines. And like I said, as long as it’s positive and not slandering anyone, I’m looking forward to seeing their tweets, and when the time comes, always up for some good debates!

Enjoy the break everyone!

Active Stick on Twitter

We just have to accept that Jake is like that drunk uncle who brings you cool gifts but calls you for bail money but hooks you up with a great job but crashes your car but saves you from getting ...

https://twitter.com/oak_leafs/status/956731790940454912