Maple Leafs hope shift to grittier identity wins them games in May and June

“Adding a little snot to our game.”

That was John Tavares.

“Bringing a little piss and vinegar. Or snot, I guess everyone’s been saying.”

That was Mitch Marner.

Snot. Piss and vinegar. Whatever it was, the Toronto Maple Leafs lacked the critical amount of it when the Florida Panthers bulldozed them out of the playoffs last May in the second round of the Stanley Cup playoffs. 

The snot went AWOL when Sam Bennett concussed rookie Matthew Knies, ending his season. Its absence was emblemized by the bear-like Radko Gudas, storming Toronto’s crease, screaming in goaltender Joseph Woll’s face when the Panthers’ series-winning goal beat him in overtime of Game 5.

The Panthers had snot to spare. It took them all the way to the Stanley Cup Final as a No. 8 seed in the Eastern Conference. 

The Leafs? They had some, enough to come back from multiple deficits in Round 1 of the playoffs and win three overtime road games to beat the Tampa Bay Lightning and end a 19-year series win drought. But when new GM Brad Treliving took the reins weeks before free agency opened, he saw a team that needed a degree of pushback specific to late-spring hockey. 

In came enforcer Ryan Reaves, hot-blooded left wingers Tyler Bertuzzi and Max Domi and bruising depth defenseman Simon Benoit. While Toronto did lose some major jam and leadership when Luke Schenn left for Nashville as a UFA, the net offseason gains appear to have made this team tougher to play against.

The idea of Toronto’s identity changing to something more rough and tumble was a popular topic of discussion Wednesday at Ford Performance Centre, the Leafs’ practice facility, where Treliving, coach Sheldon Keefe and letter wearers John Tavares, Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner and Morgan Rielly spoke to media on the eve of 2023-24 training camp.

And yes, if you took a drink every time the word “snot” surfaced, you would’ve needed to hand off your keys and find another ride home.

“I should probably have never used the word snot, I’ve heard a lot about that,” Treliving joked. “I don’t know if it was about remaking the identity, as much as it’s, I firmly believe there’s a style you need to play at the very most important times. It’s as much a mentality as it is anything else. I know there’s been lots of talk about the abrasiveness. These are also good players. To me they’re players that can play inside, get to areas that are hard to get to when the games matter the most … we’ve all watched games in April, May and June. It didn’t change 10 years ago, and it’s not going to change in 10 years. There’s no space, it’s a harder game, you’ve got to fight through traffic, and so the more players you can have with that mentality and that skill set, I think it helps you.”

On the ice, the Leafs look better positioned to fight through wars of attrition. Over the past three seasons, among 593 NHL skaters who’ve logged 500 or more minutes at 5-on-5, Reaves sits 13^th in hits delivered per 60 minutes, placing him in the 98^th percentile. Keefe expressed Wednesday that he felt Reaves played his physical role “better than anyone in the league for a long period of time now.”

Reaves’ on-ice contributions can only go so far, however, given he’s unlikely to play more than nine or 10 minutes a night. The Leafs have added heavies to the bottom of their lineup in recent years, from Wayne Simmonds to Kyle Clifford, but their impact was overrated considering how few minutes — if any at all — they logged when the bench shortened in playoff action. You can’t protect your team’s stars from the press box.

That’s where Bertuzzi and Domi come in. They bring the type of moxie that can make more of an impact because they play higher in the lineup. Bertuzzi has eclipsed 20 goals three times and 30 goals once. Domi has topped 20 goals twice and 50 points three times. 

Goons they ain’t. They’re not typically the ones drawing first blood, making opponents cower in fear, but they’re also not the ones cowering. They have the fiery personalities to fight through checks and win ugly battles — just as the Panthers did against the Leafs last spring.

“Max and Bert are two guys who can play anywhere up and down the lineup with a lot of skill, a lot of pace in their game, make a lot of plays around the net,” Marner said.

The additions will change Toronto’s team personality on the ice. The Leafs may not rank in the bottom third of the league in hits and major penalties again this season. But as their leadership group spoke Wednesday, the prevailing enthusiasm pointed toward what the new additions can bring off the ice, especially when it comes to the boisterous Reaves. The Leafs have carried a reputation of running a quiet dressing room. 

While Rielly and Tavares disagreed with the notion Wednesday, insisting Toronto has a tightly knit and hardworking leadership group, Reaves’ voice is undeniably different. It’s possible his dressing room presence has a greater impact on the team than his fists in 2023-24. 

He won’t wear a letter on his jersey, but he might be the one delivering a speech in one of those high-stakes moments the Leafs haven’t been able to conquer in the playoffs.

“Any time you can add a unique personality that brings a different side of the game and different aspects, especially the type of player or role that Ryan plays, we’re excited about that and how he can (lift up) the group in certain areas,” Tavares said. “He’s loud, but he’s a very intelligent guy. He understands the dynamic of the league, of the game, of the locker room, different people, different players. So it’s been fun getting to know him here and being around him.”

And so continues a shift from the tangible to the intangible in Toronto — one that actually started at the trade deadline last season when Dubas was still GM. He moved away from his analytically elite roster and brought in a plethora of grittier players, including Ryan O’Reilly, Jake McCabe and Sam Lafferty; statistically, the Leafs’ two-way play actually worsened after that. But come playoff time, with the whistles pocketed, the commitment to intangibles paid off, and the Leafs finally did come through in the clutch. 

Treliving has adjusted the dial even more this summer. It remains to be seen if the Leafs become a leakier defensive group than we’ve seen in recent seasons as a result, but at the very least, they’re thornier. And they’re amped about it.

“It never hurts to have a little extra muscle in your lineup, so I think they’re going to bring a lot of really positive things to our team, on the ice, off the ice,” Matthews said. “I’m really excited for the opportunity to play with these guys.”