tonytalkssports My Take on Sports, particularly the Yankees, Maple Leafs and Browns

Leafs Making The Right Moves

The opening of the NHL season is a little over 24 hours away and the direction of the Toronto Maple Leafs under new GM Dave Nonis seems to be directed toward youth and for me it's the right move. On Wednesday evening, the Leafs moved Matthew Lombardi to Phoenix for a 2014 fourth round draft pick which could turn into a third round pick if Lombardi re-signs with the Coyotes at the end of this season.

To further clear up space for young players, the Leafs yesterday put Tim Connolly on waivers. Connolly was one of the worst free agent signings by Brian Burke. The oft-injured center hardly made an impact last year playing like a third or fourth line center as opposed to being the guy to center Phil Kessel and Joffrey Lupul. On Wednesday, Coach Randy Carlyle indicated that he was not happy with Connolly's effort in practice. It's highly unlikely that anyone will claim Connolly with his $4.75 million salary cap hit which could mean that he will find himself playing with the Marlies.

These moves would indicate that Nonis is ready to give more younger players a chance to excel in the NHL. It would appear that Nazem Kadri would be a lock to start with the Leafs. It was reported in the Toronto Star that Kadri was paired with newly acquired James Van Riemsdyk and Leo Komorov. Komorov is the type of player that the Leafs have been looking for as he is a banger who will go into the corners and be a real pest to an opponent. The Leafs haven't had that since Darcy Tucker. Van Riemsdyk is a big body who likes to go to the net and has a good scoring touch. Take these two and add them with the offensive skills of Kadri and the Leafs could have a very talented high energy third line. The other factor to consider: this line is young. Komorov is the oldest at 25, while Van Riemsdyk is 23 and Kadri is 22.

Who is kept on the defense corp is also going to be interesting. It appears that Jake Gardiner is close to coming back from his concussion. Obviously, Dion Phaneuf, John-Michael Liles and Carl Gunnarsson will anchor the blue line along with Gardiner. It would seem that Cody Franson will also be a part of the team's defense corp. The competition will be for the sixth and seventh spots. Based on reports, Marlies Mark Fraser and Mike Kostka have outperformed veteran Mike Komisarek. Would the Leafs send Komisarek down to the Marlies?? What is also interesting is whether or not Korbian Holzer has a shot of making the big team.

The Leafs must get their roster down to 23 by 3pm today and it will be interesting to see who makes the trip to Montreal. Tomorrow, I will share what my expectations are for the upcoming 48 game schedule and the goaltending situation. Go Leafs Go!!!