One of the Toronto Maple Leafs’ recent lineup adjustments has been the move (is it a demotion?) of John Tavares to the team’s third line. This move comes after Tavares’ prolonged struggle to generate five-on-five production. In fact, for the first time in his long and solid NHL career, Tavares could not score. He had a 26-game goal five-on-five drought in that situation. [If you read The Athletic, there’s a great article on the topic this morning by Jonas Siegel. Follow the link above.
Despite having star wingers William Nylander or Mitch Marner alongside him, Tavares was unable to find the back of the net playing at even strength. In addition, he was also taken off the team’s No. 1 power-play unit, which was a significant shift in his role within the lineup.
Do the Maple Leafs Have the Players to Support That Move?
The decision to move Tavares down to the third line raises several questions. First, how effective can Max Domi be in Tavares’ place? Domi, who replaced the Maple Leafs’ captain as the team’s second-line center, has been good the odd time he’s played in the team’s top-six units. However, can he keep up his performance?
Specifically, can Domi handle the tougher competition typically associated with playing in a top-six spot? Some hockey pundits have suggested that a Domi-led top-six unit would struggle. However, he had a strong season with the Chicago Blackhawks in 2022-23 in just that role. Can he generate offence against top opposition?
Would Tavares Have the Linemates to Make a Third Line Work?
Another key to such a move is whether Tavares would have strong enough linemates to support his move to the third line. There he would face lighter competition and would also have a chance at some well-needed load management. However, his move to such a line also presents challenges in terms of linemates and offensive opportunities.
Currently, he’s been playing alongside young wingers Bobby McMann and Nick Robertson. While McMann showed some recent offensive jump and Robertson is known to be a scorer, will his partnership with these younger players significantly drop his offensive impact? The team needs to take full advantage of Tavares’ offensive productivity. Now the question is, how can they do that?
Despite Tavares’ proven track record as a top NHL scorer, the reality is that his age suggests that expectations will be lowered as he gets older. The team might not be able to rely on Tavares to lift his linemates as he once did. Finding a place where he can shine as he ages will be key for the Maple Leafs given the current stage of his career.
How Can the Maple Leafs Get Tavares Going on Offense?
The Maple Leafs coaching staff made several wise moves with lineup adjustments during the team’s six-game winning streak. Was that a short-term fix caused by the team’s adrenaline-pushing covering for players out from suspension (Morgan Rielly), injury, or illness? When things settle back to normal, the effectiveness of these line combinations will be under scrutiny.
While certain partnerships have shown promise in generating quality offensive opportunities, others have not. The latter includes the team’s new third line that features Tavares, McMann, and Robertson. All this said I can’t imagine that the team will seek a trade deadline option. Instead, the Maple Leafs will need to fix this from the inside.
There will be no addition of another center who could alleviate pressure on Tavares and offer the team more versatility as they aim for postseason success. Maple
Leafs head coach Sheldon Keefe must figure this one out himself.