Revised February Schedule Will Push Maple Leafs To Their Limit

The COVID-19 virus pandemic has hurt every NHL team this season, including the Toronto Maple Leafs. Toronto had 10 games postponed in the past handful of weeks because of the virus, but the postponement of the season has ended, and on Wednesday afternoon, the league announced a revised schedule that included makeup dates for all teams. But despite taking advantage of the calendar space that opened up after the NHL’s canceled participation in the 2022 Olympics, the new schedule is punishing in the extreme, and it will test the Leafs’ depth and help determine where they finish in the competitive Atlantic Division.

In a span of 28 days next month, the Leafs have a whopping 12 games to play – eight games on the road, and four at home. That’s basically a game every other night. And on two occasions, they play three games in four nights – first, a trio of road games from Feb. 10-14, against Calgary, Vancouver and Seattle, then again at the tail end of the month (from Feb. 24-28, first hosting Minnesota, then heading out for two road contests against Detroit and Washington). The Leafs are essentially as good at home (where they have a 14-4-1 record) this year as they are on the road (10-5-2), but it’s the constant wear-and-tear, to say nothing of jet lag, that will make Toronto’s life a constant challenge.

For instance, if you can read the updated schedule and fail to understand why the Buds are going to need backup goalie Petr Mrazek, I don’t know what to tell you. Although his physical health will be under intense spotlight, Mrazek may find it’s his mental health that’s at issue; let’s say he has one bad game as Jack Campbell’s understudy; Mrazek might not have any breathing space to recover and regain his confidence, and the Leafs may have no choice but to lean on him in short order. The last thing they want is Campbell burned out physically and mentally when the playoffs begin at the end of April. Balancing Campbell’s schedule will be key for Leafs head coach Sheldon Keefe.

Similarly, if for some reason the Leafs find themselves hurting for offense – and it would take a massive slump from their core-four superstar group consisting of forwards Auston Matthews, William Nylander, John Tavares and Mitch Marner for to happen – Toronto can turn to their American League affiliate Toronto Marlies squad for a new face or two to get a golden NHL opportunity. Maybe that chance opens up for Marlies forward Josh Ho-Sang, or youngster Nick Robertson, when the latter is fully healthy.

Or perhaps the opportunity goes to a player Leafs GM Kyle Dubas acquires before the March 21st NHL trade deadline; Toronto has next to no salary cap space to take on additional cap room, but potential trade partners may be willing to eat a portion of the player’s salary to make him palatable for the Buds. That may involve adding an elite prospect or a high draft pick, but that’s a debate for another column.

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The point is that, in this crossroads of a season for the Leafs, Dubas is likely to go all-in on his current group and add depth at both forward and defense. There may be desperation involved if Toronto has health concerns about a handful of players, but there’s no turning back for Dubas and Keefe at this stage. As we’ve said here a number of times, the Leafs need at least one playoff round series win, if not a series win and a solid showing in the second round, to avoid legitimate calls for significant change.

In some ways, the onerous new schedule is a good thing for the Leafs. They’ll have a very good idea as of the trade deadline as to what they really need to elevate their collective game into a Stanley Cup championship frontrunner, and Dubas will have plenty of evidence and data regarding the holes they still have.

Simply surviving the February schedule crunch won’t be enough for the Leafs. If they’re to put distance between themselves and the fourth-place Boston Bruins, and challenge the Bolts and Panthers for first place in the Atlantic. To do so, Toronto will need to thrive as much as they have through their first 37 games. Otherwise, they’re putting control of their future in the hands of the opposition, and that would be a huge letdown before the playoffs even begin.

So, pay particular attention to the record the Leafs compile in February. If they stumble, March and April will be a bigger problem than they otherwise may have been. But if do well, they can vie for top spot in the Atlantic, and home-ice advantage. It’s still all up to them.

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