TORONTO – Randy Carlyle hockey is sure to demand something grittier of the Leafs next fall.
And while the upcoming free agent frenzy does not yield the first-class pivot the organization desires nor the sure-thing in goal, the class of 2012 does boast a selection of potential upgrades, namely to a bottom six lacking in both toughness and size.
Carlyle made it clear when he joined the club in early March that his brand of hockey would be different. The swift offensive attack of Ron Wilson would be dimmed to something approaching a grind while defensively, the strategy would tighten considerably. Much like his boss, Carlyle hockey would also be brash, bold and belligerent.
But as became clear in their second half collapse, the Leafs were not that group or more precisely, lacked the necessary elements to consistently offer such a style. Beyond
Mike Brown (and
Jay Rosehill in limited action), the lineup lacked thump, was not challenging for the most part to play against and swayed heavily toward skill rather than Caryle's accustomed edge. If the free agent class is missing something in excitement – high-end talents are being locked up to long-term deals with increasing frequency – it does offer a variety of bottom six options, some of whom could stand to make the Leafs a more difficult group to oppose, driving the club closer to a Carlyle brand of hockey.
Bottom-Six A terrific faceoff man with a knack for killing penalties,
Paul Gaustad leads the group down the middle, joined by 29-year-old
Jay McClement, Colorado's leading penalty killer last season, former Leaf
Dominic Moore, veteran
Jason Arnott, and
Ryan Carter, Devils playoff hero and a member of Burke's Stanley Cup champion Ducks in 2007. Grinders who might fit the bill along the wall include John Tortorella favourite
Brandon Prust,
Arron Asham, American and Stanley Cup champion
Jamie Langenbrunner, long-time Nashville agitator
Jordin Tootoo,
Adam Burish,
Daniel Winnik and
Joey Crabb, who earned a quick fan in Carlyle with his performance down the stretch. A member of the Ducks for six seasons,
George Parros is also available if the Leafs aspire to fill the tough-guy role as are scrappers such as the aforementioned Prust,
Zenon Konopka and Guelph native Krys Barch.
Top-Six With the acquisition of
James Van Riemsdyk from Philadelphia – the big, scoring winger they long desired – the Leafs have at the very least four firm fits in their top six with
Phil Kessel,
Joffrey Lupul, and
Mikhail Grabovski joining the 23-year-old New Jersey native. Any additional upgrades to this group – which also may include
Clarke MacArthur,
Nikolai Kulemin (restricted free agent),
Tim Connolly,
Tyler Bozak,
Matt Frattin (restricted free agent) and
Nazem Kadri – almost certainly lie in the trade market with few high-end options that fill a need (top centre) available in free agency.
Defence The Leafs probably wouldn't mind upgrading their blueline if the right options arose, but again the class on defence is rather thin. Dealing
Luke Schenn to the Flyers in the Van Riemsdyk swap leaves a possible hole on defence with
Cody Franson (restricted free agent),
Mike Komisarek and
Korbinian Holzer among the internal options. Beyond Suter, the underrated
Matt Carle and ever-popular
Justin Schultz are available joined by a group comprised mostly of depth and veteran experience.
Jason Garrison,
Bryan Allen,
Bryce Salvador,
Adrian Aucoin,
Sami Salo,
Scott Hannan and
Greg Zanon are among the options, none of which scream of an obvious fit, but could provide some much-needed stability to a club that struggled defensively last season.
Goaltenders An already thin goalie market has shrunken to almost nothing on the dawn of free agency.
Martin Brodeur spiced the class up immeasurably with his addition to the pool late this week, but after the future Hall of Famer the group is comprised of back-ups with former Leaf
Scott Clemmensen tops in that respect.
