A report surfaced via Uffe Bodin this morning that the Toronto Maple Leafs are expected to win the 20-team sweepstakes for 26-year-old SHL center Par Lindholm.
According to Bodin, the 5’11, 187-pound left-handed pivot started his SHL career in lower-roster roles before moving onto a top scoring line in the past few seasons for Skellefteå AIK. Lindholm played over 19 minutes a game in 2017-18, primarily on a line with Oscar Moller and Joakim Lindstrom, and amassed 47 points (18g,29a) in 49 games to finish fourth in the SHL scoring race. He then added a further 11 points in 12 playoff games. He also represented Sweden in the Olympics in South Korea in February, notching one goal in four tournament games.
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After adding Calle Rosen, Andreas Borgman and Miro Aaltonen last year, and Nikita Zaitesv the year prior, the Leafs are expected to announce this Lindholm signing as well as the addition of 25-year-old right-handed defenseman Igor Ozhiganov from the KHL this summer. It’s another instance of the Leafs scouring Europe for added depth and the theme is consistent as far as the positional needs – center and defense (where they’re particularly needy on the right side).
In regards to Lindholm, the important part for the Leafs is that they find a solution for the fourth-line center role this offseason without expending further draft picks of significant value come the trade deadline, which they’ve now done two years in a row with the Brian Boyle and Tomas Plekanec deals. The issue during Babcock’s time here that has led management to expend assets for outside help has been two fold: 1) The organization’s center depth has been a work in progress; 2) The head coach has specific requirements when it comes to the 4C role.
If Lindholm can meet Babcock’s standards for the role, it’s a positive to have the 4C spot filled with a cheap entry-level contract, and even better if it’s a player with the upside and talent to move up in the lineup when need be.
One reason why it’s been a tough role to crack for a young player like Miro Aaltonen or Frederik Gauthier, however, is that Babcock has been consistent about needing a seasoned draw taker and penalty killer as his fourth-line center (neither player appeared ready for full-time NHL duty either, in fairness). This is made necessary by the fact that the team does not currently use its top centers in penalty killing situations like many teams around the league are now doing. Nazem Kadri, the team’s matchup center, has rarely touched the ice in shorthanded situations under Babcock, and the same goes for its best draw taker in Tyler Bozak.
Lindholm’s Elite Prospects profile describes him as an intelligent 200-foot player who can contribute on special teams, and as a versatile forward who has been counted on in a variety of situations in the SHL. But we’ll have to see if he passes the test when it comes to Babcock’s requirements for the role.
One anticipates that Lindholm is going to compete with Aaltonen — if they bring him back/if he stays in Toronto, as he’s a pending RFA — for a spot as well as, potentially, an added veteran depth piece this summer, similar to what the Leafs did with Dominic Moore last July 1 (which didn’t work out for reasons that weren’t entirely based on on-ice performance, seemingly).
The Leafs’ overall center position beyond Auston Matthews and Nazem Kadri is in flux this summer, with Tyler Bozak potentially pricing himself out of town, Tomas Plekanec unlikely to stay in Toronto, and Moore almost a certainty to move on after never gaining Babcock’s favour this season. Whether the Leafs choose next Fall as the time to transition William Nylander to center full time is the question that looms large over the overall picture down the middle of the ice, and that will inform how aggressive Leafs management will be about trying to keep Bozak in Toronto or finding an external solution for his top-9 replacement.
