The Maple Leafs are only two months into the 2022-23 season, but I thought I’d give you my early season grades, starting with forwards:
Mitch Marner-A+
I’m giving Marner an A+; not much else to say; he’s on a 22-game point streak and is the biggest factor for success at the moment in the month of December. Keep it up, Mitch!
Auston Matthews-B+
Auston, on the other hand, has had a bit of a slow and disappointing start, especially after his 60-goal season and his hart trophy win. But as of late, the star has picked it up, scoring a goal against the Flames, Saturday and is looking to be closer to the usual Auston Matthews we love and know.
John Tavares-A-
I’m giving the captain an A- the reason being when Matthews struggled to produce early in the season, Tavares was dominating when he was on a line with Mitch Marner, and while times were tough, the captain did his job.
William Nylander-A
Willy styles is doing what we all know he can do, score goals, and my goodness, he has a filthy shot, scoring two against the Flames Saturday not much to be surprised about.
Michael Bunting-B-
Bunting has been on-and-off so far. He has the nasty edge everybody knows, but in terms of scoring, it hasn’t been like last year early in. There’s nothing to worry about, though, as, like Matthews, he seems like he’s getting into a rhythm as of late.
David Kampf-B+
David Kampf is doing what we all expect: He is a defensive genius. He has done his job shutting down scorers, and I think we can agree all Leafs fans love Kampf.
Denis Malgin-C+
Coming into the season, fans didn’t really know what to expect from the Leaf, who came back from Europe after being traded for Mason Marchment. Well, Malgin impressed many, including myself playing with John Tavares and William Nylander in the preseason, so he earned an opening day spot on the roster. So far, it has been a little disappointing from the forward, only having 2G, and 2A for 4 points in 20 games. He does have a good upside, though, so we shall see.
Pierre Engvall-C-
Pierre Engvall has struggled so far after inking a one-year deal in the offseason. He had more expectations going into the season after a pretty solid 2021-22 season. He just served a one-game suspension for slashing Kings defenceman Sean Durzi. So hopefully, Pierre can turn things around, like he did last season.
Alex Kerfoot-D+
Tough to say, but Kerfoot has been the most disappointing so far in terms of forwards. Fans were calling for GM Dubas to trade Kerfoot’s $3.5M salary, he faced some heat keeping Kerfoot into the season, and the results just haven’t come at all for Alex. I hope he turns it around.
Zack Aston-Reese-B
Just like Kampf, ZAR has done what he was brought in for, to shut down the top forwards. Playing on a line with Kampf, the two have done a very solid job at preventing goals, giving lots of confidence to head coach Sheldon Keefe to start them in high-pressure situations, for example: Starting them both in OT Saturday.
Calle Jarnkrok-C+
A little bit of a tough decision, as Jarnkrok is currently out with a groin injury. But from what I have seen, a little slow start, but picked it up right before the injury. As we saw in the preseason, Calle has a very good shot which he needs to use more. He could possibly snipe 20+ if he uses that more often.
Pontus Holmberg-B
Sheldon Keefe has nothing but very good things to say about Pontus Holmberg, and I don’t either. Holmberg has been overall pretty reliable defensively, but hasn’t had a top 6 opportunity yet, so that’s why the scoring hasn’t been too high but overall, not much to complain about.
Wayne Simmonds-D
Tough to write this because I know Wayne gives it all his effort every night, but he simply isn’t the player he used to be. Wayne is a solid locker room guy and can be a physical presence, but lately, he has taken too many costly penalties, making it hard to want Wayne Simmonds in the lineup.
Defense:
Mark Giordano-A
Gio has been really reliable ever since he was acquired from the Seattle Kraken at the trade deadline last season. Stepping up after Morgan Rielly deals with an injury does a really good job of making it seem normal. Have nothing to complain about with Gio. He has passion, and he really wants to win. Good job, Gio!
Morgan Rielly-B-
Obviously, at the time writing this, Rielly is out with a knee injury, but grading on what I have seen so far has been a little disappointing. Morgan has been himself offensively and, no doubt, is a good leader when he’s in, but he has to work on his defense.
Justin Holl-B
Justin has faced the most criticism out of anyone in Toronto, and rightfully so, as he had a disappointing first couple of weeks, but as of the last 3-4 weeks, Holl has genuinely been solid. He’s been solid on the PK and can block shots. So Holl deserves credit for the last couple of weeks.
TJ Brodie- B+
Honestly, TJ has just been doing TJ Brodie things. He’s been solid defensively and been quiet on basically every front, which is good (because he’s a defenceman). Keep it going, TJ!
Rasmus Sandin-B
Like many, a rough start for Sandin, who was a turnover machine to begin his season and was hard to watch but again, he’s turned it around like many. He always will have a good upside. He’s figured it out as of late.
Timothy Liljegren-A
He is another quiet player I haven’t seen amazing or bad from, but like Brodie, he’s a defenseman which is a good thing because if it’s bad, you aren’t doing your one job (to defend). I’m giving Timothy an A.
Goalies:
Matt Murray-A+
Wow, I mean, wow. Other than the game against the Flames Saturday, Murray has been straight-up excellent for Toronto. GM Dubas faced so much criticism for this move, but those haters are quiet so maybe bringing in the two-time Stanley Cup champion was a good idea. I hope he can keep it up!
Ilya Samsonov-A
Like Murray, Ilya has kept Toronto in the game, giving them chances to win every night. Signing Samsonov to a one-year-$1.8 M prove it deal seems like it’s worked out so far. Because he’s only 25. Yep, 25.
Erik Kallgren-B+
I was debating if I should give Kallgren a grade, but yes, I will. When Murray was injured, Kallgren as a string goalie, did more than you would expect from a 3rd string goalie. Yes, he struggled to begin with, but before Murray came back, he proved he can be trusted when an injury pops up.
Well, that wraps up my early season grades for the Toronto Maple Leafs (I must have played 10+ games to be graded). I will do mid-season and end-of-season grades so things can change. Thanks for reading, if you enjoyed it I would really appreciate if you could follow my Instagram, and Twitter: Leafsdailynews for both. Stay tuned on Inside The Rink for more…
Preseason Debut – All New Blue – Leafs Late Night
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