2014-15 LEADING SCORERS
RW Phil Kessel (25 G, 36 A, 61 P)
LW James van Riemsdyk (27 G, 29 A, 56 P)
C Tyler Bozak (23 G, 26 A, 49 P)
LAST SEASON
The Toronto Maple Leafs' 2014-15 season went about as wrong as any season could have gone. It started off the same as the others, they were in a playoff spot and hopes were high, but then everything started going downhill. Midway through the season, they fired head coach Randy Carlyle and hopes were up, with Leafs fans thinking that this would light a fire under the underperforming team, but things only got worse. The Leafs would go on an 11 game losing streak through January and February under interim head coach Peter Horachek, and with underperformances from star players like Phil Kessel combined with the lack of chemistry on the team, nothing would go right for the remainder of the season.
At the trade deadline, it was evident that there was absolutely no chance that the Leafs would be making the playoffs, so they decided to sell at the deadline. They kicked things off mid February when they traded defenseman Cody Franson and forward Mike Santorelli to the Nashville Predators in exchange for a 2015 1st round pick, prospect Brendan Leipsic, and forward Olli Jokinen. They kept unloading players after that, including sending forward Daniel Winnik to the Pittsburgh Penguins in exchange for forward Zach Sill, a 2016 2nd round pick and a 2015 4th round pick. Another big move was a miracle trade pulled off by then-GM Dave Nonis, when he traded the massive contract of David Clarkson to the Columbus Blue Jackets in exchange for injured forward Nathan Horton.
They continued dealing depth, sending Olli Jokinen to the St. Louis Blues in exchange for a 6th round pick and forwared Joakim Lindstrom, trading defenseman Korbinian Holzer to the Anaheim Ducks in exchange for a 5th round pick and defenseman Eric Brewer. Finally, the Leafs finished a season to forget with a record of 30-44-8, finishing 15th in the Eastern Conference and 7th in the Atlantic Division.
This was a season no Leafs fan would ever want to talk about. However, changes were coming to the organization and the team that nobody would have expected at the start of the year.
OFFSEASON
IN
Nikita Soshnikov
Zach Hyman
Martin Marincin
P.A Parenteau
Daniel Winnik
Mark Arcobello
Matt Hunwick
Nick Spaling
Kasperi Kapanen
Scott Harrington
Byron Froese
Shawn Matthias
Taylor Beck
OUT
Greg McKegg
Phil Kessel
Tyler Biggs
Tim Erixon
Brad Ross
Colton Orr
David Booth
Eric Brewer
Joakim Lindstrom
Frazer McLaren
Kevin Marshall
Eric Knodel
Andrew MacWilliam
Troy Bodie
Brandon Kozun
Trevor Smith
Zach Sill
The Leafs easily had the biggest offseason personnel wise compared to other teams. A day after the season ended, President of Hockey Ops Brendan Shanahan was given the green light to undergo a proper rebuild, and Shanahan essentially set fire to Leafs management. GM Dave Nonis and interim head coach Peter Horachek along with the rest of the coaching staff and over 20 scouts were all let go. All that were left were Shanahan, Assistant GM Kyle Dubas, Director of Player Personnel Mark Hunter, and a couple of other members.
On May 20th 2015, the Leafs shocked the hockey world when they landed former Detroit Red Wings head coach Mike Babcock, and signed him to a massive deal worth $50 million over eight years. Babcock chose the Leafs as opposed to several other teams including the Buffalo Sabres, San Jose Sharks, and Philadelphia Flyers. Heading into the draft, the Leafs owned the 4th overall pick and used it to select forward Mitch Marner of the London Knights due to his connection to Hunter and large skill set. Later on in the draft, the Leafs traded their second 4th round pick along with prospect Brad Ross to the Edmonton Oilers in exchange for defenseman Martin Marincin.
There were still big offseason moves to come, however. The biggest one being on free agency day, when the Leafs traded sniper Phil Kessel along with Tyler Biggs, Tim Erixon, and a 2nd round pick to the Pittsburgh Penguins in exchange for forward Nick Spaling, prospects Kasperi Kapanen and Scott Harrington, a 2015 1st round pick and a 2015 3rd round pick. This was a sign that the rebuild had officially begun. They brought in several players on short term deals, including P.A Parenteau, Shawn Matthias, Mark Arcobello, and Matt Hunwick. They also brought back forward Daniel Winnik to mentor younger players on the roster. Later on in July, they traded prospect Jamie Devane to the Nashville Predators in exchange for RFA Taylor Beck, whom they signed shortly after. Aside from that, they didn't lose too many big names, besides veterans such as Troy Bodie and David Booth, they didn't really upgrade or downgrade. Pain was coming to the Leafs in the following season, as head coach Mike Babcock said, and the Leafs were prepared for it.
NEXT SEASON PT 1. OFFENSE
The biggest storyline among the Leafs offense heading into next season is obviously how they will manage without star sniper Phil Kessel. Look for most of the Leafs scoring options to be among James van Riemsdyk, Nazem Kadri, P.A Parenteau, and Shawn Matthias. Another headling is the amount of players that they have who are ready to break out/rebound. Forward Nazem Kadri could never really find a place on the team due to feuds with head coaches and problems with consistency, but after being signed to a $4 million dollar deal and essentially being told he'll be given first line minutes, he knows that he has one last chance or he's toast, so expect a big season from him. Look for P.A Parenteau to try to rebound after a poor season with the Montreal Canadiens. Expect youngsters Casey Bailey, Zach Hyman, and William Nylander to challenge for roster spots as the most NHL ready rookies.
NEXT SEASON PT 2. DEFENSE
The Leafs have a couple of big storylines on their defensive core as well. Captain Dion Phaneuf has been criticized to the max over the years, but look for him to be given less minutes and have coach Mike Babcock get his game up to the way it was pre-2010. With this, top youngster Morgan Rielly will be stepping into a bigger role and expected to play more minutes and take some weight off of Dion Phaneuf's back. Expect Stuart Percy, T.J Brennan, and Scott Harrington to be the front runners for rookies trying to get a roster spot.
NEXT SEASON PT 3. GOALTENDING
Goaltending is the aspect of the team that has caused the most controversy among Leafs fans over the years, on whether James Reimer or Jonathan Bernier should be the starter. Given that Bernier signed a 2 year contract worth $4.2 million per year, expect him to get most of the calls in goal, with Reimer backing him up.
POSSIBLE 2015-16 OPENING NIGHT LINEUP
James van Riemsdyk - Nazem Kadri - P.A Parenteau
Joffrey Lupul - Tyler Bozak - Richard Panik
Shawn Matthias - Peter Holland - Leo Komarov
Daniel Winnik - Nick Spaling - Mark Arcobello
Morgan Rielly - Dion Phaneuf
Jake Gardiner - Roman Polak
Martin Marincin - Matt Hunwick
Jonathan Bernier
James Reimer
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