TSN Toronto reporter Mark Masters checks in daily with news and notes from Maple Leafs practices and game-day skates. The Maple Leafs held an off-ice workout and optional skate at HarborCenter in Buffalo on Sunday.
* Nikita Zaitsev is playing his first full season in North America and currently owns the worst plus-minus ratio on the Leafs (-21). So, making a long-term commitment to the 25-year-old KHL product may seem like a risk. Mike Babcock doesn't see it that way. The Leafs head coach has consistently handed Zaitsev big minutes (22:16 TOI/G) and usually matches him against the other team's top forwards.
"If you look at it from the outside and you're not around you can say, 'He's been a minus player,' but I think he's been an unreal player," Babcock argued. "I think he puts out tons of fires. You know, for a rookie to step into our league and do what he's been able to do is fantastic. Unbelievable person, unbelievable pro. I'm hoping he's going to be a Leaf a long time, because he's an upper-echelon player in our league."
It appears as though Babcock will get his wish.
"I'm really excited to be in Toronto for a long time," Zaitsev said, "but I don't think about it right now. I'm just thinking about our games and I'm so excited about the playoffs." Zaitsev played three seasons with CSKA Moscow before signing with the Leafs last Spring.
He would be a restricted free agent after this year.
"It was a little bit tough to start here, to play here, because it was all new," he said. "I can be better, I think. I will think about it this summer. This is different. Different league. The intensity of the games and intensity of the schedule is harder." One reason Babcock likes the idea of getting Zaitsev locked up long-term is he believes the defenceman has yet to reach his potential. "He's just getting used to the league and the size of the surface and how we play," the coach noted. "The structure of the game is way different for him so I think he's got a ton of upside. He's ultra-competitive, ultra-smart."
Zaitsev said the biggest difference between his first game and now is he's much more confident. Despite the adjustment period early in the season, Zaitsev has still racked up 35 points putting him just four behind Börje Salming for the franchise rookie scoring record by a defenceman.
Off the ice, this season has also been a big adjustment for Zaitsev, who didn't realize just how hockey-mad Toronto is. "I used to play in Moscow where there's 2,000 people at the rink for the playoff games. Here, everyone is crazy. I was surprised with that. When we had the military (appreciation) night, everybody came to me and talked to me about how I'm doing this year. I was like, 'All these guys are watching our games?' So it's crazy." While the attention can be tough for some players, Zaitsev seems to feed off of it. "I meet people like everywhere and they tell me, 'Are you going to make the playoffs this year?' So, that's why you come to work every day and enjoy that."