The Toronto Maple Leafs finally scored on the power play in their fourth game of the season—Wednesday night against the Los Angeles Kings. Of all the quirky, and often unfortunate stats that define the Leafs’ success and failures during the Auston Matthews era, the power play has often been at the centre of the conversation. Given the cap cost of the top unit, the star talents on the team, and at times dominant performances with the numbers advantage, expectations are always high.
The truth is that the Leafs’ power play often dries up when it matters most. Granted, early regular season games are not the most consequential, but pressures were still high when the Leafs opened in the season with no power play goals through three games.
Through the years—essentially since John Tavares joined the team—the personnel has been stagnant. Meanwhile, the power play coach has been something of a revolving door. Currently at the helm is Marc Savard. The role itself might be doomed, cursed by the weight of expectations against results. Let’s take a look at the state of the power play and some potential solutions for better performance.
Issues on the man advantage
After the season-opening loss to the Montreal Canadiens coach Craig Berube spoke about his power play not being direct. The Leafs players themselves clearly show a preference for a possession-based power play, carrying the puck into the zone in transition, or patiently working the outside during in-zone attacking. There is clearly enough skill, but there is not enough balance.
From a broad perspective, it is understandable for the new coach to frame the issue as a matter of intent rather than schematics. For fans, who have lived the status quo for much longer, the scope is understandably larger. There is a chance that the current setup will catch fire, and perhaps even deliver in the spring, through execution alone. Berube and Savard did win a Stanley Cup in the same roles, though Savard’s 2023–24 Calgary Flames power play does not exactly inspire as much confidence.
Perhaps “more direct” execution or intent from the players will be enough. Savard will have to thread a needle, adjusting minutiae to perfection. Either way, between what has, is, or could be, this is clearly an area that the Leafs will need to rely on. The stakes are high, the problem defined, and the path to solution alluded to. What options might there be to realising the vision of a dangerous Leafs power play?
Stay the course
For now, the Leafs do have some rotation, though it would seem that Mitch Marner is playing the bumper position in the slot. John Tavares, who might be a natural bumper player in his own right, is at the net front, where he is still effective. With Matthews in his spot, on his strong side left flank, William Nylander on his strong side right flank. Though Oliver Ekman-Larsson is new to the top unit, the point spot has been mired in a tepid dance between Morgan Rielly and whoever else for several years now.
The bumper spot is an area where Marner could find success, though he will need to be quicker. The bumper is named aptly, as players need to be able to give smart one-touch passes and tips in the heart of the penalty-killing structure.
This is a stark contrast to the flank, where players have more time to possess the puck and attack with agility. Ekman-Larsson is better at finding shooting lanes than Reilly, or at least is more willing to, though their styles are similar in this context. For his part, Ekman-Larsson is rejuvenated after some tougher years since leaving the Arizona Coyotes all those years ago.
In all honesty, the Leafs might have several other defencemen who can offer a similar level of play. Timothy Liljegren and Conor Timmins are perfectly capable power play two options, just as Reilly and Ekman-Larsson might be described. There is a chance that new roles for Ekman-Larsson and Marner can lead to the unit being more direct overall. Some long-shot prospect options are Topi Niemela, who might be pushing to become a more effective version of Liljegren, and Nicholas Mattinen, who might be the best one-timer threat from this spot in the organisation.
On the other hand, maybe there are more extreme solutions on the horizon. Many across Leafs Nation might prefer a commitment to a more radical solution, which can go in two basic ways.
Marner to the point
Hardly a brand new idea, but there might be some rationale behind playing a Marner on the point. Defencemen often handle a lot of the puck movement on the power play, in transition and in the offensive zone. With Matthews, Marner, and Nylander all puck-dominant power players, a union between the three might require it. Shifting one of the three to the point allows for greater diversification opportunities. Though unconventional (something Berube is not often described as), there is logic.
Unlike the other two, Marner is not a shooting threat from the flank, and the Leafs rarely use anything but sneaky wristers from the point. Marner took shifts on the blueline on an emergency basis, as he has many of the required skills and traits to succeed. For the armchair psychologists, this might be an exciting challenge that sees Marner engaged in running with it. While a full-time switch to the blueline is a bit much, a power play role as a defenceman has some legs.
This would allow the Leafs’ other stars to be in ideal positions. Tavares in the bumper, still able to crash closer to the net circumstantially. Marner could maintain his style, providing him with an opportunity to grow the legacy of his defensive game. It would allow another forward to join the ranks as well. Some traits that would be appreciated here would be a forechecking presence, a net-front presence, and ultimately a player who can thrive on minimal touches.
Instantly Matthew Knies, Max Pacioretty, and even Bobby McMann come to mind. Knies is the higher profile player, and though lacking Pacioretty or McMann’s shooting distance, he is a better fit at the net-front. In transition Knies being able to make quick passes off the wall will be crucial. Playing together at even strength, Knies developing a give-and-go game with Matthews would go a long way as well. Knies does have the agility and puck control to make quick plays in traffic. Some occasional forechecking could go a long way, allowing for the occasional dump and chase to keep the penalty kill’s entry defence honest.
A conspiracy theory is that the Leafs might wait until Knies is signed to an extension to put him in this spot. He could be a big addition to the unit, increase their directness, and his production would greatly benefit. Altogether, Knies might do more for the core four than Reilly or Ekman-Larsson do.
Two balanced units
The other dramatic solution to the power play is to go with two units. This may seem counterintuitive, but theoretically, it does give opponents more to think about. Ideally, the Leafs could ride the hot hand, overlapping perfectly. In reality, it might not be so simple, perhaps defying egos, logic, and convention.
For starters, it would be worth considering that Auston Matthews essentially plays on both units. Though his teammates are talented, Matthews is on a different level. Any power play with Matthews is dangerous. It might be worth having a backup option for the last 30 seconds or so, but it should be conceded that taking Matthews off the power play is a different conversation.
The purpose here is to give Nylander and Marner their own units, playing the right-side flank and primary puckhandling. Perhaps the space to lean into their strengths will be more natural for both of them. Reilly and Ekman-Larsson are already close to being interchangeable. Max Domi plays with Nylander and Tavares for now, while Nicolas Robertson and Knies are quality options with Marner. Putting it all together is complex, and even messy, but there is enough talent to make it all work.
A sore spot to open the season
The first weeks of the season are the perfect time to get acclimated to a new power play coach, but the players should know each other more than well enough to execute on the man advantage regardless of who’s behind the bench.
A power play with this much talent shouldn’t go multiple power plays without scoring, but at least they finally broke the seal. We’ll see how the Leafs adjust over the coming games, whether by a change in tactics or actually executing strategies already in place.
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