Two Canadian teams on Hockey Night in Canada is what makes hockey so special! The Toronto Maple Leafs and the Ottawa Senators faced off for the final matchup of the Battle of Ontario, which saw the Senators take the season series for the first time in five seasons. Series throughout the season are always fun to watch, but typically, they don’t mean much. There is no rivalry for two teams like the Maple Leafs and Seattle Kraken, so the games tend to be slow and boring. However, when it comes to the Battle of Ontario, it means bragging rights within a province and on social media; these games are ones that fans of both teams look forward to. Unfortunately, the rivalry isn’t as intense as it was in the Mats Sundin/Daniel Alfredsson days. However, it is still fun because of the historical hatred that these two extremely passionate fan bases have for one another.
Related: Maple Leafs Should Deal Their 1st-Round Pick with Caution
The Maple Leafs came out with a strong start; Auston Matthews got them on the board early. Max Domi scored less than five minutes after that, but it was overturned due to an offside call. Which may have been the turning point in the game, it gave the Senators life again; instead of being down 2-0 early, it was 1-0. Claude Giroux scored to tie the game at 1-1. The Maple Leafs made the same horrible defensive mistakes as every other game, leading to them being down 4-2 going into the third. They battled back, though, with Domi finally getting his goal to make it 4-3. The Maple Leafs attempted to tie the game with the goalie pulled but couldn’t get another past Joonas Korpisalo.
Ridly Greig put the game to bed with an empty net goal, or so everyone thought. He decided to slapshot the puck from about five feet from the empty net, which drew the attention of Morgan Rielly, who took it upon himself to get revenge. He cross-checked Greig up high, which hit him in the head and left him injured on the ice. This drew a crowd, and it carried on for a bit after the officials got involved. This hit was given a five-minute major and a game misconduct. Rielly will most likely face supplement discipline for it.
The game ended with Ryan Reaves and Mark Kastelic continuing a previous conversation, and it looked like it would lead to an end-of-the-game scrap, but other players got into the middle, subsequently bringing the game to a close. This game has a lot to unpack, so let’s look at a few takeaways from the contest.
Defensive Struggles, Again
The Maple Leafs’ defensive play has been atrocious this season. They have much talent up front and slowly decrease as you make your way to the goalie. It’s a top-heavy team that’s been known by all NHL fans. Unfortunately, this season, it seems like every defensive blunder is more noticeable, and it is harder on the offense to make up for it. Long story short, they need help fast. Brad Treliving needs to do something, even a smaller move, to help the blue line. The team can’t rely on the offense to force a comeback every night or score goals when the net is empty. It’s not sustainable, especially down the stretch when things tighten up. The best defensive pairing that the team has is Jake McCabe and Simon Benoit; they have quickly become a go-to for the coaching staff. As for other defencemen, Rielly has been as good as usual but lacks a solid partner again.
T.J. Brodie has been a shell of himself, and that is what is hurting the club. He was the one defensive mainstay throughout his time in Toronto, but this season, something is off, and he isn’t himself. His misfortunes started in the first game against the Montreal Canadiens when he slipped and fell, which led to the Canadiens’ first goal. Timothy Liljegren may have proven that he isn’t an everyday top-four defenceman in the NHL. Although he hasn’t had a lot of time in the top four this season, he has struggled. A portion of it could be due to his ankle injury that he suffered early this season. Regardless, we could see a world where he is moved at the deadline to make space for a new acquisition. All in all, tonight’s game against the Senators wasn’t pretty. There were a few turnovers that led to goals, which a team as talented as this just can’t let happen.
Bertuzzi Looks Lost
Unfortunately, there is no other way to put it, but Tyler Bertuzzi looks lost out there. He seems to have lost confidence, and it could even be that he isn’t being used in the right spots. Regardless, something needs to be done to help him find his game, or else his signing will be a waste of money. He signed with the Maple Leafs for one season for $5.5 million. The hype around this signing was huge. Treliving finally addressed an area of need: grit. Sadly, we are 49 games into the season, and he hasn’t shown his “gritty side” since the first game of the season against the Canadiens, where he caused havoc in front of their net. He has had several nights where the coach, Sheldon Keefe, cut his ice time significantly.Â
This could be the reason why he hasn’t worked out thus far in his time in Toronto. It may be an issue between him and Keefe, which would have a huge impact on the player’s morale. At this point in the season, Treliving should have an idea as to why he has been playing this poorly this season and will need to figure out a way to change it quickly. So far this season, Bertuzzi has had six goals and 15 assists for 21 points in 48 games, and in terms of grit, he has had 51 hits and 26 blocks. So now the question starts: should the Maple Leafs attempt to trade him this trade deadline? Or should Keefe change his linemates to put him in another role to succeed?
Related: Maple Leafs Interested In Signing Maxim Tsyplakov
If they trade him, it could be a swap for another player from a contending team. He does carry a full no-move clause, but based on how the season has gone so far, he may be willing to waive it. A team that would be interesting would be a reunion with the Detroit Red Wings. Some players that I would target from the Red Wings would be Klim Kostin or Christian Fischer. Both of them have a lower cap hit than Bertuzzi, which would require some work to make the money even out. If they went the route of changing lines, it may be smart to move him down to the third line with Domi and Calle Jarnkrok when he returns. He would be the primary scorer on the line, but it could also be considered a grind line, which may help build his confidence.
Sadly, we are at the point in the season where points matter. Teams must rack up as many points as possible to help punch their ticket to the playoffs. Unfortunately, they also show the glaring holes within a lineup; the Maple Leafs have many of them. They seem to lack depth in scoring and desperately need help on the blue line. It looks like it is only a matter of time until Treliving puts the trigger on a deal to help his club. If he doesn’t soon, it will leave a lot of fans scratching their heads. Regardless of wins or losses, there are so many holes that will be picked apart when the playoffs start, so the sooner the deals happen, the better.
The Maple Leafs are in action on Tuesday, Feb. 13, at 7:00 p.m. against the St. Louis Blues.