Craig Berube shouted repeatedly at his Toronto Maple Leafs power play units, with one thing in mind during Friday’s practice: The need for speed.
“Quick strides, quick plays,” the Leafs coach hollered in a drill designed to get players moving the puck in tight spaces.
“Move, move, move,” Berube shouted repeatedly between reps.
Yet for all the urgency demanded during practice, Berube and the Leafs are sticking with what they know with their struggling power play units.
The two groups remained the same, with Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner, William Nylander, John Tavares and Oliver Ekman-Larsson on the top unit and Max Domi, Matthew Knies, Bobby McMann, Nick Robertson and Morgan Rielly on the second unit.
Through a 4-4 start to the season, the Leafs have played some of the most dominant hockey in years. Replicate the performance they put up in a 5-2 win over the Tampa Bay Lightning repeatedly and few in Toronto would be disappointed. They’ve also played some of their most lethargic hockey, like in their last two losses to the Columbus Blue Jackets and St. Louis Blues.
Throughout, one constant has been the team’s continued power play struggles. Their 11.1 percent conversion rate is 27th in the league.
While there have been moments from Dennis Hildeby and Joseph Woll in goal that may have left the coaching staff frustrated, the Leafs’ power play woes remain the most glaring area of concern eight games in. The lack of personnel changes remains curious.
Let’s not forget that essentially the same core of handsomely-paid and depended-on stars converted at just 4.8 percent in their first-round series against the Boston Bruins this past spring. If a few more of their chances with the man advantage were converted, we might be having a different conversation about the team’s first-round woes.
But they didn’t convert those power play chances and a new assistant coach was brought in to take the reigns: Marc Savard. Savard worked under Berube for the Blues in 2019-20 (that power play went 24.3 percent, third in the NHL) and spent one season as the man running the power play with the Calgary Flames last season. The Flames finished 26th in the league with the man advantage.
So far, the power play doesn’t look much more mobile or effective under Savard compared to last season, when Guy Boucher ran things.
But the Leafs don’t seem to be in favour of making drastic changes, at least right now. The belief in the team’s top unit remains high.
“What I’m seeing in the last four games is the chances they’re creating. In saying that, you’ve got to produce and it’s got to go in. A lot of times you switch it up just to switch it up. But I see progression,” Berube said.
The Leafs want their power play personnel to be cleaner on their zone entries to put players in dangerous spots. Immediately after practice on Friday, Savard pulled Matthews, Marner and Nylander aside for separate chats. Berube himself spent time speaking with Tavares, Domi and Nylander as well once a tight and fast-paced practice finished.
They appear to be preaching the same message: The numbers back up keeping the band together.
“(Savard) is good communicating with us individually, as a group. Talking to him after practice, the last four games, if you’re an analytics person, there’s been some good numbers in different areas,” Matthews said. “He’s doing a good job communicating with us and allowing us to communicate back and give our opinions and feedback and just trying to work collectively as a group.”
According to Natural Stat Trick, the Leafs sit tied for fourth in the NHL in High Danger Shot Attempts per 60 minutes on the power play.
“Keep doing what we’re doing,” Marner said when asked about the power play. “Analytics-wise, we’re doing a lot of great things. Just be patient with it, and know that it’s coming.”
As it stands, the Leafs are shooting a measly 6.38 percent on the power play, second-last in the league.
“(The power play) is getting opportunities, it’s not going in. Our shooting is a little off. We can also get pucks into the good area of the ice a little bit more and create some second and third chances,” Berube said.
As much as Berube is preaching patience, how much longer can the Leafs afford to let power play opportunities pass by without finding the back of the net? If accountability is so important under Berube – which it does appear to be given the coach’s vocal efforts to demand more of Matthews on the bench during Thursday night’s loss – shouldn’t standouts be rewarded with more opportunities?
Berube has shown, after all, that he’s willing to tweak along the edges. Swapping Ekman-Larsson in for Rielly on the top unit was one of Berube’s first real changes this regular season.
Changing things up is not a foreign concept for Berube and Leafs management. Brad Treliving specifically brought in an abundance of players to create a competitive training camp and reward those who upped their play with roster spots. Rotating players in and out of the lineup has brought improved play from the likes of McMann and Max Pacioretty. Should the same concept not apply to the power play?
Matthew Knies, for one, looks like he’s been shot out of a cannon to start the season. Whether it’s engaging physically, winning puck battles or consistently driving to the net, the second-year pro has been one of the Leafs’ best players. Yet he remains on the second unit. Would his energy and size bring some gusto to a languishing top unit?
What about a different playmaking threat? Domi leads all Leafs with five even-strength points through eight games. If you keep natural shooters like Matthews and Nylander on the top unit, what’s the harm in giving them a different pass-first player in the hopes of providing a spark?
Organizationally, the Leafs have to be aware of how much a misfiring power play has cost them in the past. And if the Leafs fortunes on the power play don’t change? How long they can stay patient with the personnel as assembled will remain one of the most pressing questions early on in Berube’s tenure with the Leafs.
(Photo: Chris Tanouye / Getty Images)
