3 Reasons the Maple Leafs Got Worse This Offseason

The Toronto Maple Leafs did some good things this offseason, but they did not get better.

It’s easy to say that criticism follows the Maple Leafs from everywhere in the NHL, but it’s hard to believe that they have been considered a team that had one of the strongest offseasons in terms of improving their team, when they didn’t.

Drafting Gavin McKenna, bringing in Nick Paul, and adding Darren Raddysh as their new number one defender were all good moves this summer, and deserve praise considering how strong the fits seem to be, but those are where the positives end.

In this article, we take a look at a few reasons why the Maple Leafs didn’t get better this summer, and why they actually got worse.

Signing Sergei Bobrovsky Was a Mistake

It’s hard to ignore what Sergei Bobrovsky did with the Florida Panthers, helping backstop them to two straight Stanley Cups.

Not only was giving a 37-year-old goaltender a three-year deal for $7 million annually a bad decision, but his stats don’t defend him as a true starter that can help the Maple Leafs get back to the playoffs next season.

With the Panthers last season, Bobrovsky posted a 3.07 goals-against-average (GAA) and a .877 save percentage (SV%). I don’t love using those stats, since they both don’t factor in shot speed, shot difficulty, or other things that are important when looking at a goaltender’s true strength, so let’s look at something else.

Goals-saved-above-expected (GSAX) factors in everything from shot difficulty to speed to who is shooting the puck. Last season, Bobrovsky had a -12.2 GSAX, which was 9th-worst in the NHL according to MoneyPuck.

Dennis Hildeby, whom they traded away, posted a 10.5 GSAX. Now, they did get Paul back in the trade, but they ruined their goaltending situation in the process. Anthony Stolarz, their backup behind Bobrovsky heading into the 2026-27 season, posted a -6.7 GSAX.

This isn’t to say that they should’ve put all of their eggs in one basket and trusted that Hildeby could be their guy this season, but it does say that they shouldn’t have traded him away unless they had a better option available to them.

In short, they downgraded between the pipes this offseason. Bobrovsky has slowly been declining, which showed in his GSAX over the years. He had a +15.6 GSAX in the 2023-24 season, and a +7.2 GSAX in the 2024-25 season, and it finally went off the rails last season as the Panthers struggled with injury issues.

A strong Panthers team protected a declining Bobrovsky, and considering the Maple Leafs’ defensive depth is nowhere near how good the Panthers’ was over their two championship runs, Bobrovsky will likely be exposed again.

Jim Hiller Was an Awful Coaching Hire

I was genuinely shocked to see any positive feedback on the hiring of Jim Hiller as the new head coach of the Maple Leafs.

There is an argument to be made that Hiller makes sense behind the bench as an assistant coach, but not as a head coach whatsoever. During his tenure with the Los Angeles Kings, where they lost to the Edmonton Oilers in the first round of the 2025 postseason, it was Hiller’s fault that they couldn’t close the deal, with some of his mind-boggling decisions.

Hiller often shifted to a defensive shutdown style early in games, which, against the Oilers in the playoffs, didn’t work, and when he saw it wasn’t working, he had no idea how to react to that. On top of that, he decided to play Adrian Kempe on defense instead of trusting his actual defenders to play on the blue line.

As someone who keeps up with the Oilers and watched every minute of that previous series, seeing Hiller make the Kings try to play dump-and-chase hockey was laughable. The Oilers were able to react accordingly, and fight their way back into the series, leading to them eventually winning and moving onto the second round.

Hiller’s record last season was abysmal, where the Kings won 24 games under Hiller out of 59, before they fired him.

The Maple Leafs need to find a way to produce more offensively, and that’s why Jay Woodcroft made a lot more sense and seemed to be a slam dunk decision for them, but they went to Hiller, who focuses on a defensive, shutdown style of hockey to try and help his team win games.

So, not only did the Maple Leafs downgrade between the pipes, they got worse behind the bench, too. Craig Berube wasn’t a great fit, and they needed to move on from him, but if I had to choose between Hiller and Berube, I would choose Berube every single time.

Bottom-Six Forward Group Lacks Offensive Depth

As I have said several times in this article, adding Paul from the Lightning was a solid addition, and one I think helps the Maple Leafs’ overall depth, but some of their other additions makes me question things.

Trading Nick Robertson was a mistake, but the fact that they decided to fill out their forward group with Jack Roslovic, Colton Sissons, Teddy Blueger, and Brandon Duhaime is a catastrophic failure.

Roslovic is inconsistent, Sissons was overpaid, Blueger and Duhaime are solid guys to have around the team, but none of them can provide consistent production throughout the season.

The Maple Leafs’ top-six forward group is solid, but there is still a giant question mark beside Easton Cowan’s name, considering he hasn’t been able to find offensive consistency either, but is poised to play a second-line role this season.

The lack of offensive depth is terrifying, especially under a defensive-minded coach who loves to take a one-goal lead and start playing the most boring hockey anyone has ever watched.

The Maple Leafs did some good things this offseason, but they got worse. They should not be considered a lock for the postseason, and they should not be considered a team that can win their division.

It wouldn’t shock me if they’re in the running to pick first overall in the 2027 NHL Entry Draft.

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