What’s Wrong With the Maple Leafs’ Power Play?
Something fishy is going on in Toronto. How can a team possibly score 3.62 goals per game (heading into Friday night’s action - 3rd in the league) while converting on only 11.9% of its power play chances (27th in the league)?
Let me point out before I go any further that I’m not a fan of criticizing NHL coaches (I make a willing exception for a few, notably Mike Keenan and Bob Hartley). Anytime I wonder why a team has failed to make this adjustment or change that strategy, I remind myself that I’m watching an NHL game while sitting on my couch and eating nachos. I have just slightly less experience than the man I am about to criticize.
With that out of the way, I have to point out what seem to be some pretty obvious problems with the strategies in use by the Toronto power play.
The Leafs’ power play is run by Mats Sundin and Tomas Kaberle. The two move the puck back and forth, looking for openings for open shots from either themselves or the defenceman on the right point (usually Bryan McCabe, lately Pavel Kubina). Occasionally they also look for the cross-ice pass, though with Darcy Tucker out of the lineup this has not been seen much. While this is a quite legitimate way to run a power play - two legitimate shot threats, two open forwards to look for tips or rebounds, and an alternate threat from the far point - I make out three fundamental flaws with the specifics in the Leafs’ case:
First, the Leafs lack a skilled playmaker down low. Opposition teams know full well the shots are going to come from one of the defenceman or Sundin, and they play those three tightly as a result. When the Leafs do move the puck down low they don’t have a single player in their lineup who poses a significant threat from that angle. Kyle Wellwood normally would fill that role, ideally suited for it given his right handed shot and creative passing skills. Until he returns, there’s just no danger the Leafs can offer from down low.
Second (and related to the first), too many shooters, no passers. While Kaberle can move the puck well, his position is always too well covered (he’s directly between the two credible threats to shoot). Sundin is an excellent playmaker but his job on the power play unit is to shoot as often as possible. If he’s going to be the playmaker he needs to move lower towards the goal line to stretch out the defenders, and the entire power play would change its shape.
Third, the two remaining forwards are underutilized. They aren’t active enough in high danger areas to force the opposition to cover them and they don’t create enough of a threat in front of the net. A shot heavy power play works if and when the forwards in such situations crash the net at every possible opportunity. The best goaltender in the world can’t stop a third or fourth rebound, and the power play team has an extra player on the ice and should get to most rebounds first.
I do understand that Maurice would want to put Blake and Antropov out on the first power play unit (to keep the latter hot and hopefully get the former going), but with such a shooter-heavy fivesome on the ice a crash-the-net strategy seems like the only logical strategy. So why haven’t we seen it yet?
Of course, all of this is somewhat of a moot point. Adding a few power play goals won’t help the Leafs’ woeful goals against average, which is the real problem they’re struggling.