By Alex Hobson
Back when Brian Burke was still running the show, he made many questionable moves, but he also made a couple that ended up greatly benefiting the team in the future. One of these moves was a 2011 trade sending defenseman Francois Beauchemin to the Anaheim Ducks in exchange for Joffrey Lupul and rookie defenseman Jake Gardiner. Lupul would remain as a starting forward in each year with the Leafs following the trade, recording points at a steady pace when healthy, and Gardiner would have a solid rookie season, recording 30 points in 72 games. In this article, however, let's focus mainly on Gardiner.
The first thing you'll notice after watching Gardiner play for a bit is his offensive ability. He knows how to rush the puck and he's a great player to have on the powerplay. That being said, lots of people have questioned Gardiner's defensive ability and his hockey iq when it comes to making defensive plays. Gardiner had many turnovers and his head didn't seem into it over several games in 2014-15. Given the fact that he's still young at 24 years old, the Leafs haven't decided to make a move just yet. He was a trading chip in 2014-15, but the Leafs weren't aggresively shopping him. Gardiner will have a stellar coach to play under in Mike Babacock, and he won't have a coach who he doesn't get along with in Randy Carlyle. Gardiner is a swift, puck moving defenseman who is arguably the best skater on the Leafs, competing with Morgan Rielly, and he has a great offensive upside. Towards the end of the 2013-14 season, Gardiner broke out when the team was failing, recording 14 points in 18 games. All in all, Gardiner is still young and there is still reason to believe that Gardiner can rebound and blossom into a top four defenseman like everybody expected him to.
STATUS: AVAILIBLE FOR THE RIGHT PRICE
Much like Jonathan Bernier, Gardiner could be availible if given the right offer, but nothing is imminent, and they're likely going to give him time this year to prove himself.
2015-16 ROLE: TOP 4 DEFENSEMAN
The way the defensive core is looking this year, it's entirely possible that the Leafs could slot in Gardiner on the top four pairing, potentially along somebody like Roman Polak, a right hand shooting tough defenseman. It's uncertain where everyone could end up, for example Gardiner could be bumped down to the top six to make room for fellow young defenseman Martin Marinin, or Morgan Rielly even. It's extremely hard to predict at this point but a top four position seems most likely.
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