Not just physical depth defenseman, but tough D. I miss the presence of a Mark Fraser esque blueliner. Yes, he was/is a career bottom pairing defenseman, and yes, his final stretch with the Leafs warranted him being let go. However, this team's lack of punch spanning the past two seasons is embarrassing. Now, i'm not advocating the recall of Orr & McLaren to reunite the bluebombers line, but the Leafs need an old fashioned defenseman who puts it all on the line. Fraser fought every and any heavyweight that posed a threat, he put his body on the line and stood in front of every shot (skull fracture). It was a treat watching that Fraser-Franson pairing, especially in the playoffs versus Boston; when sheltered, a depth player can be extremely effective.
Polak is a monster and a great mentor, but he's not overly mean; he has to be pushed to his limits for the cap to go off. Brewer is a shell of his former self and has lost his physical edge. MacWilliam, despite having a reputation as being a massive open ice hitter, lacks confidence to execute hits, can't fight, and isn't overly mean.
Last night during the Edmonton-Los Angeles game, the crew touched on how important the presence of Keith Aulie has been for the Oilers over the past few weeks. The Oil are constantly beat and battered, teams take liberties on their star players on a nightly basis (namely Hall over the past four seasons). Aulie has stepped in, with some increased minutes, and provided a much needed spark. He's a pretty garbage player skill-wise, but his minutes are sheltered, and he's effectively laying the boom on star players, defending his stars, fighting the rats, and giving his team an identity.
Boston has McQuaid, LA has guys like McNabb, St. Louis has Bortuzzo, New York has McIlrath (part-time), Anaheim has Stoner, and the list goes on. Go check out Alex Steen's recent interview on Robert Bortuzzo. He literally gushes over the guy and stresses how important he's been in developing momentum, protecting teammates, etc.
If the Leafs are going to commit to a rebuild, I don't want Marner or Strome taking a slap shot post-whistle from the opposition without the Toronto bench batting an eye. In 2013/14, all it took was for Kaleta to take an extra step in a hit on Franson for Fraser to come over the launch him down the ice. Noone went near the crease, and the captain didn't have to lead the team in fighting majors whilst having a broken hand. I'm all for giving ice-time to young, deserving Marlies players, but redundant pieces like Brewer, Erixon, etc. need to be disposed of for a player like Fraser, in my opinion. Obviously the goal is to get players of high quality with this grit, but going forward with this rebuild, it's much easier and more realistic to acquire a cheap player of this ilk who can create some sense of security and push back out there. This team is gutless.
You think this guy would let Thornton jump the rookie MacWilliam without answering the bell later that game?...
Polak is a monster and a great mentor, but he's not overly mean; he has to be pushed to his limits for the cap to go off. Brewer is a shell of his former self and has lost his physical edge. MacWilliam, despite having a reputation as being a massive open ice hitter, lacks confidence to execute hits, can't fight, and isn't overly mean.
Last night during the Edmonton-Los Angeles game, the crew touched on how important the presence of Keith Aulie has been for the Oilers over the past few weeks. The Oil are constantly beat and battered, teams take liberties on their star players on a nightly basis (namely Hall over the past four seasons). Aulie has stepped in, with some increased minutes, and provided a much needed spark. He's a pretty garbage player skill-wise, but his minutes are sheltered, and he's effectively laying the boom on star players, defending his stars, fighting the rats, and giving his team an identity.
Boston has McQuaid, LA has guys like McNabb, St. Louis has Bortuzzo, New York has McIlrath (part-time), Anaheim has Stoner, and the list goes on. Go check out Alex Steen's recent interview on Robert Bortuzzo. He literally gushes over the guy and stresses how important he's been in developing momentum, protecting teammates, etc.
If the Leafs are going to commit to a rebuild, I don't want Marner or Strome taking a slap shot post-whistle from the opposition without the Toronto bench batting an eye. In 2013/14, all it took was for Kaleta to take an extra step in a hit on Franson for Fraser to come over the launch him down the ice. Noone went near the crease, and the captain didn't have to lead the team in fighting majors whilst having a broken hand. I'm all for giving ice-time to young, deserving Marlies players, but redundant pieces like Brewer, Erixon, etc. need to be disposed of for a player like Fraser, in my opinion. Obviously the goal is to get players of high quality with this grit, but going forward with this rebuild, it's much easier and more realistic to acquire a cheap player of this ilk who can create some sense of security and push back out there. This team is gutless.
You think this guy would let Thornton jump the rookie MacWilliam without answering the bell later that game?...
