Troy Bodie
GP
|
State
|
CF%
|
CFRel%
|
ChF
|
ChA
|
O/20
|
D/20
|
Ch%
|
TOI
|
47
|
ES
|
43.0%
|
0.5%
|
81
|
108
|
4.0
|
5.3
|
42.9%
|
08:36
|
5-on-5 Close
|
40.7%
|
-1.0%
|
45
|
67
|
3.8
|
5.7
|
40.2%
|
05:02
|
In his early season run
with the Leafs, Bodie was one of the worst forwards, with chance percentages
down below 30%. In the second half, though, he was one of the team's few
pleasant surprises, consistently doing well with Kulemin and Raymond. While he's not really of any use offensively,
his defensive numbers have been solid. Partly, this is due to fairly soft
opposition and favourable zone starts, but those indicators have nudged up a
little over the last few weeks. He's never going to be anything special, but as
a cheap depth forward he serves his purpose.
Dave Bolland
GP
|
State
|
CF%
|
CFRel%
|
ChF
|
ChA
|
O/20
|
D/20
|
Ch%
|
TOI
|
23
|
ES
|
44.1%
|
3.1%
|
52
|
71
|
3.6
|
4.9
|
42.3%
|
12:41
|
5-on-5 Close
|
44.0%
|
2.6%
|
26
|
38
|
3.2
|
4.6
|
40.6%
|
07:08
|
A difficult season for
Bolland, who had decent chance numbers, around average for the team, in his
initial games, but was terrible on his return to the team.
Whether he was rushed back to try and provide a boost, I can't say, but it
wouldn't surprise me, as he has not looked good at all. Bolland's early season
offensive flurry, with 9 points in his first 12 games, was misleading, as he
ended up being one of the least offensive players on the team, in terms of
chances. His defensive numbers were quite good, and if you look only at the
pre-injury numbers, he was one of the best defensive forwards. If he can get
back to 100%, he'll be a useful player, but given that he'll likely be searching for a big contract, I'm not convinced that even healthy Bolland is worth a long, large deal.
Tyler Bozak
GP
|
State
|
CF%
|
CFRel%
|
ChF
|
ChA
|
O/20
|
D/20
|
Ch%
|
TOI
|
58
|
ES
|
42.9%
|
0.2%
|
302
|
358
|
6.1
|
7.2
|
45.8%
|
17:05
|
5-on-5 Close
|
42.1%
|
0.8%
|
174
|
212
|
6.1
|
7.5
|
45.1%
|
09:45
|
Bozak is a difficult
player to get a great bead on, partly because he is so closely tied to Phil
Kessel; he's one of a small number of regular NHL forwards who spent more than
90% of their ice time with one teammate. His offensive performance this season
has been excellent with that top line, and he has one of the best offensive
chance rates on the team. He's slightly above average in chances, but he's
behind his two more heralded teammates. His real problem is on the defensive
end, where he is far and away the worst regular Leaf in the rate of chances against
when he's on. While there's no doubt that some less than stellar backchecking
from his linemates contributes to this, seeing people claim that Bozak is a
good defensive centre, as you occasionally do when the '#1 centre' debate comes
up, is bizzare to me. Given how offensively potent that top line is, I think the
Leafs can be successful with Bozak; the question is how much other quality up
front they need to add to make up for the top unit's defensive shortcomings.
David Clarkson
GP
|
State
|
CF%
|
CFRel%
|
ChF
|
ChA
|
O/20
|
D/20
|
Ch%
|
TOI
|
60
|
ES
|
42.4%
|
0.3%
|
183
|
257
|
4.3
|
6.1
|
41.6%
|
14:01
|
5-on-5 Close
|
42.1%
|
1.6%
|
116
|
159
|
4.7
|
6.4
|
42.2%
|
08:17
|
I thought before the
season that David Clarkson would have a poor season; there's been some
good discussion of how he went from a high-possession system in Jersey to maybe
the worst possession team in the league. However, seeing just how miserable
he's beem has been kind of shocking to me. His Corsi numbers aren't bad, a
little above average, and his chance numbers only slightly lag behind the
team's averages. However, he just has been unable to turn that into points, and
had a terrible shooting percentage. One problem for Clarkson is his zone
starts, as Carlyle's usage of him meant that he was one of the most DZone
biased of the Leaf forwards, a contrast
from his role with the Devils, where he was closer to the average.
Peter Holland
GP
|
State
|
CF%
|
CFRel%
|
ChF
|
ChA
|
O/20
|
D/20
|
Ch%
|
TOI
|
39
|
ES
|
42.9%
|
0.7%
|
103
|
162
|
4.6
|
7.3
|
38.9%
|
11:23
|
5-on-5 Close
|
41.6%
|
-0.7%
|
65
|
94
|
5.1
|
7.4
|
40.9%
|
06:31
|
Holland, acquired from
Anaheim in a November trade that saw Jesse Blacker head to Anaheim, is a bit of
a mystery to me. His Corsi numbers are decent, better than the likes of Bozak,
though behind Bolland and Kadri, but his chance numbers have lagged well behind
the Corsi for virtually the entire season. One consistent problem for the
centre is that he's had a lot of troubles defensively. He's been as vulnerable
as the top line players when it comes to chances against, but creates
substantially fewer. This combination means that at ES, he is the worst net
player to have played at least 400 minutes. His numbers are better in the close
sample, but I'm far from convinced that's he's a long-term solution at centre,
particularly if Kadri is moved in the offseason. His offense isn't clearly
strong enough to make up for the defensive weakness on a team that already has
defending from the forwards as an Achilles heel.
Nazem Kadri
GP
|
State
|
CF%
|
CFRel%
|
ChF
|
ChA
|
O/20
|
D/20
|
Ch%
|
TOI
|
78
|
ES
|
45.3%
|
3.7%
|
330
|
384
|
5.7
|
6.6
|
46.2%
|
14:51
|
5-on-5 Close
|
45.2%
|
4.9%
|
190
|
222
|
5.8
|
6.7
|
46.1%
|
08:26
|
Kadri's 2013 season was
a bit misleading, as his sky high shooting percentage and large PDO meant that
even if his play stayed at a similar level, he was likely to have a substantial
falloff in terms of production. Indeed, that's what we saw this season, as
despite being one of the Leafs better forwards in chances and in Corsi, he saw
his numbers go down quite a bit. This included during the time he spent with
Kessek and JVR on the top line as that unit had strong chance numbers, but
hardly produced at all. It's tough to tell how much of Kadri's struggles are
due to problems for him, versus the struggles of linemates like Lupul and
Clarkson, and he will be a key player to watch going into a critical season in
his career, whether it happens in Toronto or elsewhere.
Phil Kessel
GP
|
State
|
CF%
|
CFRel%
|
ChF
|
ChA
|
O/20
|
D/20
|
Ch%
|
TOI
|
82
|
ES
|
44.1%
|
2.1%
|
460
|
517
|
6.4
|
7.2
|
47.1%
|
17:30
|
5-on-5 Close
|
44.2%
|
3.4%
|
255
|
295
|
6.2
|
7.2
|
46.4%
|
09:58
|
Kessel is without a
doubt the team's MVP, as during the periods where he went cold and struggled to
score, the team was absolutely nowhere, most notably in this horrific final
stretch. Only Kulemin among the forwards posted better percentages than Kessel,
and his Corsi numbers were also among the best of the team. At 5-on-5 close,
Kessel's offensive chance numbers were slightly worse than Bozak, but his defensive
numbers were substantially better. His overall point and shooting numbers ended
up looking an awful lot like his 2012 season, despite the fact that his Corsi
number was substantially lower (likely a Carlyle effect), and he had a higher
percentage of defensive zone starts. Kessel had his strongest period in
mid-January, when it seemed like the Leafs had pulled out of a tailspin, only
to fall back and have one of his worst stretches to close out the year.
Nikolai Kulemin
GP
|
State
|
CF%
|
CFRel%
|
ChF
|
ChA
|
O/20
|
D/20
|
Ch%
|
TOI
|
70
|
ES
|
41.3%
|
-2.0%
|
216
|
235
|
4.5
|
4.9
|
47.9%
|
13:34
|
5-on-5 Close
|
40.6%
|
-1.7%
|
140
|
135
|
4.9
|
4.7
|
50.9%
|
08:11
|
Kulemin has been a real
mystery to me this season, as in the
second half of the season he's been one of the most impressive Leafs in terms
of chances, leading the team at both ES and 5-on-5 close, and in fact, being
the only player on the team above even in close chances, far superior to anyone
else. The statistical basis is simple; Bolland is the only regular better than him on
defense, and while Bolland has been poor offensively, Kulemin generated chances
at the same rate as the likes of Lupul and Clarkson. He's slightly below
average in Corsi, but that's no surprise, as only McClement gets tougher zone
starts up front, and he typically got similar levels of opposition to the top
line (in fact, he was very similar at home, but on the road got much easier
opponents). What's also interesting about this is how miserably Kulemin's
season started. He was hurt, and then really struggled on his return, but had a
couple of long stretches where he substantially outchanced his opponents. Given that it seems unlikely he'll stay in Toronto, he it seems like he will make a useful player for another franchise.
Joffrey Lupul
GP
|
State
|
CF%
|
CFRel%
|
ChF
|
ChA
|
O/20
|
D/20
|
Ch%
|
TOI
|
69
|
ES
|
42.5%
|
-1.1%
|
247
|
355
|
4.5
|
6.4
|
41.0%
|
15:59
|
5-on-5 Close
|
40.5%
|
-2.9%
|
142
|
200
|
4.8
|
6.7
|
41.5%
|
08:37
|
After two solid
seasons, Lupul really had a tough time in 2014, finishing with some of the
worst point rate statistics since the beginning of his career. Part of this is
likely down to his role; over the last few seasons, he benefited from getting a
decent amount of icetime with Kessel, and this year he got much less than any
of those seasons. This shows in a substantial drop in his QoT, and while he did
get weaker opponents than the top line, he didn't have much offensive chemistry
with Kadri, or with whoever else played on that line. A couple of the
combinations that featured him, with Kadri and Clarkson and with Holland and
Raymond, were among the worst of the regular offensive lines. His defensive
game was weak, but what really damned him, and in a lot of ways the Leafs as a
whole, was an inability to generate chances. A year like this for an
injury-prone player at 30 is a red flag, and if Lupul can't find his game again
next season, then between him and Clarkson there will be some major trouble on
the wings.
Jay McClement
GP
|
State
|
CF%
|
CFRel%
|
ChF
|
ChA
|
O/20
|
D/20
|
Ch%
|
TOI
|
81
|
ES
|
38.7%
|
-5.0%
|
154
|
231
|
3.4
|
5.0
|
40.0%
|
11:19
|
5-on-5 Close
|
37.3%
|
-5.7%
|
89
|
144
|
3.3
|
5.3
|
38.2%
|
06:45
|
Jay McClement should
not be back with the Toronto Maple Leafs. He was brought in as a shorthanded
specialist and defensive player, and while he got a lot of credit for the large
rise of the Leafs in the SH% ranks during the lockout year, he's got very
little blame for the disintegration of that unit this season. In addition,
while he did have decent defensive rate numbers in chances, he was hapless on
offense, with only Colton Orr worse at generating chances. He was the single
worst regular in Corsi, and the only serious player below 40%, an abysmal
number. To be fair, he was used
extremely defensively, but he wasn't able to hold his own under those
circumstances 5-on-5. One of the major reasons the Leafs struggled without
Bozak was that he was suddenly forced to take a much larger role, one he wasn't
capable of filling. I've heard the argument that McClement should be kept to
prevent an even bigger lack of depth at centre; I'd suggest he's more of a
example of the lack of depth than a solution.
Colton Orr
GP
|
State
|
CF%
|
CFRel%
|
ChF
|
ChA
|
O/20
|
D/20
|
Ch%
|
TOI
|
54
|
ES
|
39.1%
|
-4.3%
|
36
|
56
|
2.5
|
3.9
|
39.1%
|
05:20
|
5-on-5 Close
|
38.7%
|
-3.7%
|
23
|
31
|
2.5
|
3.4
|
42.6%
|
03:21
|
Orr is an odd player to
assess, given that he played extremely little, and usually played against other
fourth lines when he did. He was a low-event player, as he averaged 6.4 chance
events per 20 minutes, with the no other forward discussed here under eight.
Despite getting only a few soft minutes, he was still one of the worst player
in terms of chance percentages and Corsi. Of course, how much any of this
matters is questionable, as Orr is not on the team to be a hockey player.
Mason Raymond
GP
|
State
|
CF%
|
CFRel%
|
ChF
|
ChA
|
O/20
|
D/20
|
Ch%
|
TOI
|
82
|
ES
|
44.2%
|
1.9%
|
274
|
373
|
4.8
|
6.5
|
42.3%
|
14:01
|
5-on-5 Close
|
43.6%
|
2.1%
|
145
|
210
|
4.4
|
6.4
|
40.8%
|
07:58
|
Raymond's point numbers
look a lot better than his last couple of seasons, but getting a good chunk of
effective powerplay time and making it through a season healthy are the main
reasons for that, as his 5-on-5 rate stats look markedly similar. After having
a really poor start in chances, he gradually improved ending up around the team
average at ES, but was substantially worse 5-on-5 close. He faced some similar
problems to Lupul, as he just didn't generate a lot of chances. His Corsi
numbers were pretty solid though, and he could have a future with the Leafs as
a complimentary piece, depending on his price. He's not a player that they
should go to any great lengths to retain, but they could make (and have made) worse
decisions.
James Van Riemsdyk
GP
|
State
|
CF%
|
CFRel%
|
ChF
|
ChA
|
O/20
|
D/20
|
Ch%
|
TOI
|
80
|
ES
|
44.2%
|
1.9%
|
409
|
469
|
6.2
|
7.1
|
46.6%
|
16:27
|
5-on-5 Close
|
44.3%
|
3.3%
|
238
|
279
|
6.2
|
7.2
|
46.0%
|
09:40
|
After showing so much
potential on his Leaf arrival in the shortened season, JVR really showed it
over a full season this year. His combination with Kessel was spectacular, as
the two of them dragged the Leafs into contention for a playoff spot that the
team didn't deserve to be close to. A lot of the details of JVR's season are
similar to Kessel's, with the caveat that they aren't quite as good. He's close
in Corsi, but a little behind 81. The same is true of chances, both ES and
5-on-5 close. From watching him, I think that Van Riemsdyk's defensive game
still needs a fair amount of work, and I'd pick him out, perhaps unfairly, as being
the biggest reason why the top line gives up a lot of chances against. I didn't
really mention it with Kessel, but it holds for him as well; these two played a
lot of minutes for the Leafs this year, as well as in the Olympics, and you
have to wonder if the hectic schedule down the stretch was part of the reason
that they were unable to score to their potential in the last 15 games or
so.
Player
|
GP
|
CF%
|
CFRel%
|
ChF
|
ChA
|
O/20
|
D/20
|
Ch%
|
TOI
|
Kulemin
|
70
|
40.6%
|
-1.7%
|
142
|
135
|
5.0
|
4.7
|
51.3%
|
08:11
|
Kessel
|
82
|
44.2%
|
3.4%
|
255
|
295
|
6.2
|
7.2
|
46.4%
|
09:58
|
Kadri
|
78
|
45.2%
|
4.9%
|
190
|
222
|
5.8
|
6.7
|
46.1%
|
08:26
|
Van Riemsdyk
|
80
|
44.3%
|
3.3%
|
238
|
279
|
6.2
|
7.2
|
46.0%
|
09:40
|
Bozak
|
58
|
42.1%
|
0.8%
|
174
|
212
|
6.1
|
7.5
|
45.1%
|
09:45
|
Orr
|
54
|
38.7%
|
-3.7%
|
23
|
31
|
2.5
|
3.4
|
42.6%
|
03:21
|
Clarkson
|
60
|
42.1%
|
1.6%
|
116
|
159
|
4.7
|
6.4
|
42.2%
|
08:17
|
Lupul
|
69
|
40.5%
|
-2.9%
|
142
|
200
|
4.8
|
6.7
|
41.5%
|
08:37
|
Raymond
|
82
|
43.6%
|
2.1%
|
145
|
210
|
4.4
|
6.4
|
40.8%
|
07:58
|
Bolland
|
23
|
44.0%
|
2.6%
|
26
|
38
|
3.2
|
4.6
|
40.6%
|
07:08
|
Bodie
|
47
|
40.7%
|
-1.0%
|
45
|
67
|
3.8
|
5.7
|
40.2%
|
05:02
|
McClement
|
81
|
37.3%
|
-5.7%
|
89
|
144
|
3.3
|
5.3
|
38.2%
|
06:45
|
