The Toronto Maple Leafs have established a significant 3-0 advantage in their playoff series against the Ottawa Senators. Remarkably, despite Ottawa holding statistical edges in metrics like shot attempts and possession time, Toronto has appeared consistently in control throughout these games, two of which were decided in overtime.
Let`s delve into some of the underlying reasons for this perceived dominance and consider what lies ahead for the Maple Leafs in this initial round of the playoffs.
1. Toronto Utilizes Its Entire Roster Effectively
While every NHL team dresses a full complement of players each game, not all teams possess the flexibility or confidence to consistently deploy every member of the lineup. Hockey is often described as a “weak link” sport, where defensive structure and overall team strength depend on the reliability of every player, contrasting with “strong link” sports like basketball where a few stars can dominate. This season, the Maple Leafs seem to have a greater belief in every player`s ability to perform their role effectively during the playoff run.
Compared to the 2023-24 playoffs where 21 skaters were used (19 in that series), some depth forwards saw limited ice time (e.g., Ryan Reaves averaged 7:52, Noah Gregor 8:05, Nick Robertson 9:52 over their games played).
In the current series, however, every Toronto forward has averaged over 10 minutes of ice time per game, with all but one exceeding 11 minutes. This indicates a more balanced workload and trust across the forward group.
A similar pattern is observed on the defense. Last year, among the seven defensemen used in the playoffs, several averaged less than 18 minutes (Ilya Lyubushkin 16:30, Simon Benoit 17:04, TJ Brodie 17:10, and Timothy Liljegren 17:52).
So far in this series against Ottawa, every single Maple Leafs defenseman is averaging over 18 minutes of ice time.
Perhaps most significantly, last year`s leading defenseman in ice time, Morgan Rielly, averaged 24:50 per game. This series, the top ice-time earner is Jake McCabe, but at a more moderate 21:51 per game. This reduction of nearly three minutes for the top player, coupled with increased minutes for depth defensemen, highlights a more even distribution of responsibility and reliance on the full defensive unit.
Tristan Blackwood