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

Gardiner Belongs In The NHL

After watching last night's 2-1 loss to the Buffalo Sabres, there is no doubt in my mind that the Toronto Maple Leafs need to have Jake Gardiner on their opening night roster. Not since the acquisition of Brian Leetch have the Leafs had a defenseman who is such an excellent skater and has the ability to set up scoring chances even from in his own end of the rink. Moreover, not since Borje Salming can I remember the last time the Leafs had a young defenseman with this much skill.

You might think I'm going overboard with comparisons to Leetch and Salming, but in my mind this kid is special. Often times during Tomas Kaberle's time with the Leafs you waited for him to take over a game. While Kaberle was a fine player in his prime with the Leafs, he did not have the ability to set the pace for the game when he was on the ice. Leetch and Salming had that ability. When they were on the ice they were a threat from anywhere. They also were excellent defensively. I see the same attributes with Jake Gardiner.

Gardiner's long pass to Matt Frattin last night is the type of play that would make Leetch and Salming proud. It was a beautiful tape-to-tape pass that sent Frattin in on Ryan Miller for an excellent scoring chance. Gardiner has the ability to read and react both offensively and defensively. It is very telling that Ron Wilson was not afraid to put this kid out their during penalty-kill situations.

Putting Gardiner down with the Marlies would be a huge mistake. This kid exudes confidence and has special talent. The Leafs need to think long and hard about who the 7 defenseman will be to start the season. It's obviously a forgone conclusion that Dion Phaneuf, John-Michael Liles and Luke Schenn will be on the roster. That leaves Cody Franson, Mike Komisarek, Keith Aulie, Carl Gunnarson and Gardiner. I think Aulie fits in perfectly paired up with Phaneuf and with his size can be a presence in the Leafs end of the rink. He showed his ability last night in preventing a Nathan Gerbe scoring chance in the 2nd period. That leaves 4 D-men with 3 spots left.

For some reason I don't think that the Leafs will send Komisarek to the Marlies. In fact, the big defenseman played well last year when his ice time was scaled back. The Leafs need a big tough defenseman and Komisarek has that ability. It then comes down to Gunnarson, Franson and Gardiner. Of the three, Gardiner is the clear choice to take one of the 2 remaining roster spots and should be on the ice opening night against the Canadiens.

Brian Burke and Company tend to be conservative when it comes to playing rookies. But Gardiner is 21 years old and has excelled in college hockey and looked good in his brief stint last year with the Marlies. The kid has a special ability. You know it when you see it. Every time he touches the puck you have a feeling that something good is going to happen. Gardiner belongs in the NHL and it will be disappointing if he is not on ACC ice come October 6th.