Preseason is finally here, and before you know it, the regular season will be underway.
We’ve spent a lot of time setting up preseason battles over the past few weeks, and the forward group is currently receiving the lion’s share of attention because that’s where changes were made.
On defense, essentially the same personnel remains. The top-six group that played the entire playoffs together is slated to start the 2025-26 regular season. It’s a solid veteran group that helped the Leafs‘ goaltending duo finish second-best five-on-five save percentage and the team finish eighth in goals against per game, but it’s not without its warts, either.
When the 2024-25 season ended, Brad Treliving was asked about his defense unit and noted the following:
Treliving: “In today’s game, I like the length of our defense. I like the makeup of our defense. But you still have to be able to get up and down the ice. There are things we can do in terms of closing quicker and taking away space… In today’s game, you need your D to be active, right? We need to get more offense from our defense — not just goals, but creating. It is not necessarily going out and turning guys into 20-goal scorers, but we can maybe get some more volume the other way.”
The Leafs‘ defense unit scored the fewest goals in the league in 2024-25, which isn’t incredibly surprising, given the team largely ran a five-forward top power play unit. They were slightly better in total points — 18th in the league — but this was also a team that was seventh in the league in goals per game, so a defense will pick up points along the way when the forwards regularly shoot the lights out.
Over the offseason, though, the Leafs didn’t make any real changes to the unit. They added Henry Thrun, who is in a battle to make the roster and is in a very tough spot to beat out an incumbent.
In fairness, the UFA market wasn’t overflowing with quality options this past summer. The big UFA contracts went to defensemen Vladislav Gavrikov, Ryan Lingren, Brian Dumoulin, Cody Ceci, and Dmitry Orlov. None of those players would have made any sense for the Leafs to pay. There is maybe an argument for the 40-year-old Brent Burns, who signed for $1 million in Colorado after a 29-point season in Carolina. If nothing, Burns can still shoot and is right-handed, but at his age, it wasn’t exactly a slam dunk.
Otherwise, it appears that the Leafs‘ only actual change on defense is moving OEL to the left and Simon Benoit to the right. Craig Berube recently discussed the benefits of OEL on his strong side:
“I think you will see more offense, right? Any time a defenseman with offensive abilities plays their strong side, it is a lot more comfortable. It is just easier in the offensive zone. That is really where it boils down to — pulling pucks off the wall, you are on your forehand right away. When you are on your backhand, it is a lot more difficult.
We will see how it plays out. So far, Simon Benoit has been okay on the right. We have talked to him earlier in the summer about working on things. That is where he might start. He has done a good job, too, but from the offensive side of things, I think you might see more production from Ekman-Larsson.”
Overall, though, it’s not a lot of change for a defense unit that struggled to move the puck up the ice cleanly at times and struggled to produce enough offense. They appear to be banking on OEL providing more from the left, Morgan Rielly bouncing back, and Brandon Carlo playing better in a full season with the club compared to the combination of Conor Timmins’ 51 games plus Philippe Myers’ 36 from last season.
In the playoffs, the defense did show real signs of life offensively. Across 13 playoff games, their blue line scored eight goals. Morgan Rielly scored half of those. Brandon Carlo profiles as the type of partner Rielly has generally succeeded alongside, and it’s fair to believe Carlo will also perform better now that he’s starting with the team from the beginning of the season. Those are some fair bets, to be sure, but it’s still a group that lacks a truly dynamic or top-end defenseman.
For all the concern about the forward group replacing Mitch Marner, there are two stars in their prime leading the charge up front and an emerging third one. They aren’t perfect, but there are horses to carry the load. On defense, we can’t really say the same.
There are rock-solid veterans, and there is genuine depth on the blue line, but the unit lacks any sort of real star power. It’s a defense-by-committee approach, and again, they do defend genuinely well, which is the main part of their job. However, against the top teams, the Leafs will need to be able to move the puck cleanly up the ice through pressure.
Brad Treliving acknowledged it and knows it. They are looking for internal solutions to improve it, but we’ll see if they’re eventually forced to search for outside help.
Notes on Preseason Game #1
– I am not sure if it means anything, but Philippe Myers played the first preseason game, while Matt Benning lined up alongside OEL back in Toronto, while Simon Benoit was out with an upper-body injury. We’ve flagged this a few times, but if it weren’t for injuries, Benning would still be a no-doubt NHL defenseman. He was a solid everyday player until injuries derailed his career. He has the added benefit of shooting right-handed as well. We will see if he can impress.
– I thought Philippe Myers was solid in his preseason debut. His partner, Henry Thrun, had some really tough moments, including a giveaway up the middle to start the night, and Myers closed space and defended well afterward. At one point, Thrun, with time and space to clear the puck on the penalty kill, somehow shot it into the far-side bench for another defensive-zone faceoff. Some odd things were going on beside Myers all night, but he showed well, and even went on a 2v1 with Robertson when shorthanded (where he made a wild decision to keep the puck and shoot, instead of passing it to Robertson through the neutral zone and skating up). Myers cleared the net well on a few sequences, and he got in the way with his size.
– I liked Marshall Rifai taking a run at Ridly Greig and subsequently answering the bell against Zack MacEwen. I thought he otherwise struggled at times; on one shift, he lost his stick in the defensive zone, he took a penalty trying to cover Brady Tkachuk in front, and he gave it away up the wall for a scoring chance. The hit and fight appeared to get him going; he defended hard, and he has an edge to him.
– William Villeneuve scored on the power play, and his ability to move the puck and provide some offense is why we highlighted him entering the preseason. However, he struggled at times defensively against the Senators’ top-six forwards. He did tie up Brady Tkachuk nicely on a backdoor play off the rush, but he struggled to move it cleanly against the forecheck. In general, the Leafs’ defense was ringing the puck around the boards frequently rather than making crisp, tape-to-tape breakout passes to their outlets.
– The leader in ice time on the Leafs’ defense in the first preseason game was Dakota Mermis. He presumably received a two-year contract so that the Leafs can (hopefully) slide him through waivers, but it’s been clear for a year now that they quite like his game. He was effective in this game; he’s mobile, unafraid to pinch and activate, and he brings some speed to the unit.
– After playing pretty well the entire season last year on the right wing, Nick Robertson played the first preseason game on his left side… and scored from there. His two best snipes last season came down the left — one off the rush against Jeremy Swayman, and the other against Andrei Vasilevskiy. For a player who struggles on the wall, they only make his life more difficult on the off-wing, and it’s not like he has shown himself to be a real threat on his off-wing on the rush (even though you’d think he would be with his calibre of shot). If the practice line of Robertson, Laughton, and Lorentz starts the regular season, can’t Lorentz play the right?
– Jacob Quillan’s path forward to the NHL is likely as a bottom-six center. On Ottawa’s first goal, he was cleaned out on a defensive-zone faceoff, then completely skated away from his man (center Ridly Greig), who then easily scored in front. It sounds harsh to single him out like this, but that’s his job. As much as people think he can readily replace a player like David Kampf, that’s a routine sequence he wouldn’t misplay so badly.
– Luke Haymes picked up a point in the game and played nearly 15 minutes, but I’m still curious about his prospects as a centerman. His faceoff percentage on the night was 11.1%. His best touches are generally along the wall, rather than the middle of the ice, and he tends to play conservatively at five-on-five down the middle (he picked up his point on the power play, and feasted on the man advantage in the rookie tournament). We’ll see how his development plays out.
– Bo Groulx played a solid game, seeing over 17 and a half minutes of ice time and feathering a nice pass on the Matthew Barbolini stinker of a goal. He’s a year removed from playing 45 games in the NHL (two points) and looked comfortable in an NHL environment. Only Kampf and Calle Jarnkrok played more minutes than him.
– I thought goaltender Artur Akhtyamov was excellent in his half of the game. He was really good to start last season with the Marlies, then the pro season grind took its toll. He’s one to watch in year two.
Quotes
“I’ve always worked in pairs more than lines. So I think Knies and Matthews are a good pair and it might be popping guys in and out of there in different situations sometimes. We gotta test it out in camp and see where we’re at… And keeping Willy with (John Tavares), I really like that pair too… With Roy and Joshua coming aboard, I do believe we have better matchups that way. Roy and Joshua played in that situation before, quite a bit. But at the same time, (Matthews) is gonna go head-to-head against top players.”
– Craig Berube
The outline for the Leafs’ lineup up front is pretty clear:
Knies-Matthews
Tavares-Nylander
Joshua-Roy
Lorentz-Laughton
From there, fill in the blanks and move players around based on performance.
“I’ve just got to be a worker. I’ve got to be a hound. Get pucks in, get pucks out, play simple. Because, you know, me and the Leafs organization know that if I do that, my offence will take over. So, just focus on defence first and the offence will come.”
– Easton Cowan
Through Easton Cowan’s rookie tournament game and first preseason game, he very much looks to me like a player who is thinking about what the coaching staff wants him to do rather than playing his game. He’s not looking to take charge and initiate offense with his talent; he’s looking to play it super safe and avoid mistakes that a veteran, win-now team wouldn’t appreciate.
Cowan needs to find his game at the pro level, and so far, it’s pretty clear that all parties are best served for it to happen in the AHL with the Toronto Marlies to begin the season.
“I want to kinda get it done with as soon as possible, especially before the season starts. You know, I’ve been through free agency three times now, so it’s nothing new to me. So, I’m gonna continue to go out there and play… But if there’s something that we can get done before the season, I think that would probably be best.”
– Pending UFA Anthony Stolarz on his contract status
It’s pretty clear that Anthony Stolarz wants to stay, the Leafs want to extend him, and there’s a deadline here to get it done. Unless the numbers get out of hand, it makes sense for everyone involved to find a solution over the next week.
Tweets of the Week
Here's the full breakdown from Leafs training camp compared to the player's listing from last year's camp (or previous team if acquired since).
Notables include:
• Morgan Rielly slims down to 219. He's been at 220+ for as long as I can remember
• Easton Cowan at 6-foot, 190 https://t.co/plxijg6gX2 pic.twitter.com/wrB0WU55Kk— Kyle Cushman (@Kyle_Cush) September 17, 2025
Morgan Rielly downplayed the weight loss as something he didn’t set out to do. Maybe he wasn’t — and maybe it doesn’t matter — but he did look slower to me last season, and his whole game is predicated on his skating ability.
Matias Maccelli gaining 11 pounds is also a big bump the other way. He experienced a really bad season in 2024-25, and this is a huge opportunity for him in Toronto. It’s nice to see he was grinding away in the gym, adding muscle.
London Knights alum Easton Cowan & Landon Sim not giving an inch at Leafs camp @LondonKnights pic.twitter.com/HJFeF5tBpo
— Mark Masters (@markhmasters) September 18, 2025
I mentioned Landon Sim in the rookie tournament and liked him in his first preseason game as well. He is pesky and drew a penalty at one point. He’s involved physically, and he’s annoying in a good way (when he’s on your team). I like that there are a few players like this in the organization, but if he’s ever going to find a way into the NHL, he will need to develop into an elite forechecker who can grind in the offensive zone.
Studies of pro hockey leagues consistently show more left shot than right shot defensemen. Here is the left shot vs right shot split percentage by league from published reports:
NHL: 70% – 30%
AHL: 65% – 35%
ECHL: 59% – 41% (actual percentage as of today)— ECHL Stats (@EchlStats) September 12, 2025
The value of right-handed players is hard to overstate. It really helps Ben Danford; he is smooth and makes a good outlet pass as it is, but his right-handedness is a major benefit, especially on defense. He took a few penalties in the first preseason game, including a poor over-the-glass play, but he was their best defenseman at making crisp breakout passes in that game. Proper righties on the backend are such an advantage.
5 Things I Think I’d Do
1. I think the Leafs’ forward logjam and some of the conversation regarding Calle Jarnkrok specifically sort of reminds me of a few years ago in Brad Treliving’s first preseason when he traded Sam Lafferty away for nothing. I was critical of that move at the time as the team elected to run a super green Fraser Minten at 3C in an experiment that went nowhere. Minten played four games with the Leafs, looked overwhelmed, and we never saw him again. Meanwhile, Lafferty scored 13 goals for Vancouver, while the Leafs ended up running — and trading for — a fourth line of Dewar – Kampf – Reaves that combined to score 13 goals. It objectively made them worse, and it was unnecessary.
2. Now, I think the decision is slightly different this year in that the Leafs have 12 legitimate NHL forwards who may rank ahead of Jarnkrok based on the initial lines. However, I don’t think the Leafs have 12 forwards who are all better than Jarnkrok right this second. Steven Lorentz just tied a career high with 19 points in 80 games, which would be the worst-ever season for Jarnkrok — a dependable double-digit goal scorer when healthy — by a mile.
Jarnkrok is also a quality penalty killer, which he showed again in the first preseason game, and the Leafs’ penalty kill was largely mediocre last season. They stiffened up in the playoffs, and he was part of the reason why.
Plus — and this is important in the context of the Leafs’ forward group — Jarnkrok is actually right-handed. The Leafs only have two other right-handed forwards right now: William Nylander and Nicolas Roy. Both of those players are staples, and then it’s all lefties.
If we look down the depth chart, no real right-handed solutions are coming either. Travis Boyd and Vinni Lettieri are veteran journeymen who are right-handed, but the Leafs’ three best forward prospects on the Marlies (Cowan, Haymes, and Quillan) are all left-handed as well. Handedness is important and sets players up for success.
3. That said, I think, if another team offers something of notable value (it can’t be lower than a third-rounder), it’s probably a different story. However, it seems rather unlikely at this point in the season. Given that the Leafs aren’t facing a cap crunch for once, there is no need to jettison a useful player who can help the team over the 82-game season, one who brings something a little different to the mix (right-handed, good penalty killer, can chip in double-digit goals in the bottom six).
4. Conversely, I think David Kampf is a different story. Perhaps most importantly, he’s signed for another year beyond this one. Clearing that money off the books ahead of next offseason is valuable in and of itself.
Looking at the depth chart, Kampf is currently slotted as the fifth center. It’s fair to debate the 5C spot; I think Laughton is better on the wing, and they could have Laughton and Roy together on a pure checking line, which would mean they need a 4C.
When Kampf has played with proper linemates, he has been solid. When he has played with Ryan Reaves, he has struggled to be effective. But the Leafs have him fifth in the pecking order, Max Domi can also play center if need be, they acquired a better overall checking center in Roy over the offseason, and they like two of their left-handed center prospects in Quillan and Haymes. Moving on is a lot more understandable, even though I think Kampf is a fine depth center to have in the rotation, salary aside.
Ultimately, the Leafs don’t have to do anything; they can afford all 14 forwards, and so far, nobody is really banging down the door to take their jobs. It would only be about freeing up the cap space with Kampf.
5. We will see over the next week if anyone makes a real push, but I think the Leafs’ top 14 forwards are pretty clear, short of moving out salary with Kampf, or acquiring draft capital to restock the cupboards by moving players such as Jarnkrok or Robertson. The goalie tandem is set, and the top six defensemen are as well. There’s a battle for the seventh defenseman spot, and the incumbent, Myers, is likely in the lead.
For all the talk of competition, a lot of the preseason is about internal jockeying unless someone bangs down the door this week. We’ll see if anybody can force management’s hand.
