First place in the Atlantic Division at the midway point.
The Maple Leafs are in an enviable spot through 41 games in the 2024-25 regular season.
Top to bottom, starting with the work that general manager Brad Treliving did last summer up to the overtime win against the Philadelphia Flyers on Sunday night, the Leafs have been full marks for their success.
And with that in mind, we present our mid-term report card, with marks out of 10. No one is perfect, but many are deserving of their lofty grades.
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General manager Brad Treliving — 9.0
The majority of Treliving’s off-season additions — coach Craig Berube, goalie Anthony Stolarz, defencemen Chris Tanev and Oliver Ekman-Larsson and forwards Max Pacioretty and Steven Lorentz — have been vital in their own way to the Leafs’ success. Only defenceman Jani Hakanpaa, whose knee trouble the Leafs knew would likely be an issue, has not worked out. We’re not going to hold that against the GM. In trading an unhappy Timothy Liljegren at the end of October for depth defenceman Matt Benning and two draft picks, Treliving didn’t let an uncomfortable situation boil over. There’s work to be done before the March 7 NHL trade deadline (adding a centre, at least), but there’s no debate with what Treliving has done to to this point.
Coach Craig Berube — 9.0
The different voice that Treliving sought behind the bench has made a large difference. The Leafs are structurally sound and are playing with more forechecking authority than they have in the past. Teams take their lumps against the Leafs. Berube, who can be self-deprecating during his media sessions, has nicely put his NHL experiences, both as a Stanley Cup-winning coach and a player who skated in more than 1,000 NHL games, to use. Berube can be blunt, but he also has seen everything and there’s a clear respect between coach and players.
GOALTENDERS
Anthony Stolarz — 9.0
When Stolarz departed the game against the Anaheim Ducks on Dec. 12 with what later revealed by Treliving to be a knee issue, he was leading NHL goalies with a .927 save percentage. His save percentage of .863 on high-danger chances at five-on-five is fourth among NHL goalies who have played at least 17 games. Before he was hurt, Stolarz was demonstrating that he could be a No. 1 goalie in the NHL after years of backing up the likes of Sergei Bobrovsky in Florida and John Gibson in Anaheim. We’d expect the same once he returns.
Joseph Woll — 8.2
After a bit of a dip, Woll has won his past four starts. His .914 save percentage is an improvement over what he posted in a career-high 25 games last season, when he finished with a .907 mark. At 19 games, Woll is closing in on a career-high and has the right frame of mind to continue to succeed with the greater work load. The Leafs are in good hands with Woll as Stolarz continues to recover from his knee procedure.
DEFENCEMEN
Morgan Rielly — 7.6
Tied with Mitch Marner in most ice time among Leafs (21 minutes 26 seconds a game), Rielly ended a 26-game goal drought when he scored in overtime against Philadelphia. With 19 points, he’s on pace for 38, which would be his lowest total since he had 35 in 55 games in 2020-21. Rielly has to make better decisions in the defensive zone, though the confidence the coaching staff has in him remains.
Chris Tanev — 9.3
It’s rather clear why Treliving wanted a reunion with Tanev after the two worked together in Calgary. From the first game of the season, Tanev has been the driver on defence as the Leafs settled in to Berube’s enhanced structure. The NHL-high blocks speak to some of Tanev’s impact, but not all of it. When you’re talking Tanev with his teammates, it’s all about his positional play and poise. The Toronto native has been a rock.
Jake McCabe — 8.8
The Leafs are hopeful that McCabe isn’t out for long-term after he suffered an upper-body injury against the Flyers during a fight with Garnet Hathaway. Why? Because the 31-year-old has been playing the best hockey of his NHL career. McCabe has security after signing a five-year extension in October and has formed an effective shutdown duo with Tanev.
Oliver Ekman-Larsson — 7.5
The Leafs might be getting more out of the veteran defenceman after signing him to a four-year contract. He’s playing nearly 21 minutes a game — more than 2 1/2 minutes more than what he averaged last season in helping Florida win the Stanley Cup — and has done so with a bit more bite than might have been expected. His long reach has been effective.
Simon Benoit — 7.3
The 26-year-old is the Leafs’ most physical defenceman, leading the corps with 106 hits. He provides what a team needs in a depth D-man: Reliability and a simple way of going about his business. One area to clean up: Minor penalties. Benoit and Ekman-Larsson have 14 each, most among Leafs.
Philippe Myers — 7.2
Myers was patient though the first couple of months and has been in the lineup more often than not since the start of December. His physicality is welcomed and, partly as a result, was rewarded with a two-year extension last week.
Conor Timmins — 7.0
More recently, Timmins has been a healthy scratch. But when he has played, he has done enough to keep himself on Berube’s good side. His play early on made Liljegren expendable.
FORWARDS
Matthew Knies — 8.0
With 15 goals in 39 games, Knies has tied his rookie total of last season — in 41 fewer games. Is there a Leafs youngster with as much potential, especially in Berube’s system? No. Knies has the tools — hands, physicality, size, desire — to become a prime power forward in the NHL. He’s top-six material, no questions asked.
Auston Matthews — 7.8
Matthews’ back-and-forth with his upper-body injury caused him to miss 15 games and that has played a role in his production dip, but he has looked much closer to his usual self in the past couple of games. Load management should be the way to go in the second half for the captain, but that’s OK. The Leafs need him to be as healthy as possible once the playoffs start in April.
Mitch Marner — 9.5
If we’re talking Hart Trophy candidates, Marner is that guy for the Leafs. He has consistently been Toronto’s best player. Only Colorado’s Nathan MacKinnon and Mikko Rantanen, and Edmonton’s Leon Draisaitl had more than Marner’s 56 points through Sunday. Marner leads NHL forwards with 31 takeaways. He’s a vital cog on a Leafs penalty kill that is eighth in the NHL. Contract pressure? Nothing approaching a hint of that. Marner has been excellent.
Max Pacioretty — 7.4
Hardly a game goes by where Pacioretty isn’t crushing an opponent into the boards. The veteran’s grasp on a physical role has endeared him to the coaching staff and it says something about Pacioretty’s desire when he is doing what he is doing at the age of 36. An uptick in production and avoiding injuries are the second-half goals.
John Tavares — 8.5
The former captain has turned the clock back to an extent and been consistently good. He has 23 points at five-on-five play when, after last season, he had 35 points at five-on-five in 80 games. As usual, he’s one of the top faceoff men in the NHL. Playing on an expiring contract, Tavares is proving that he should be a Leaf well beyond this season.
William Nylander — 8.6
After flirting with the notion that he could score 50 goals, Nylander hasn’t scored in the past seven games and now is on pace for 46. Still, that would beat his career-high of 40, done twice. When he has the puck on his stick, Nylander has been a threat on most shifts in the offensive zone, often putting his patience on display.
Bobby McMann — 7.7
With six goals in the final 10 games of the first half, McMann was demonstrating more that he can be an effective power forward. He’s fifth among Leafs with 82 shots on goal and, considering the way he gets the puck off his stick, the club would love to see him use it even more. In McMann, the Leafs have their third-line winger.
Max Domi — 7.2
Domi didn’t score a goal in his first 22 games, undoubtedly bothered by a lower-body injury that caused him to miss eight games in late November and early December. For now, there is some good work being done as the third-line centre between McMann and Nick Robertson, but we’ll be curious to see where Domi lines up for the Leafs after the trade deadline.
Nick Robertson — 6.9
There’s no arguing with Robertson’s effort, but will it be enough to impress Berube in the long-term? We’ll see. Robertson has to continue to find ways to get himself into better scoring areas. He was hot for a bit, but has fallen off again in terms of production.
Steven Lorentz — 7.4
We’ve not encountered many players who are as openly happy to be in the NHL as Lorentz and that translates in his enthusiastic play. It’s remarkable that Lorentz hasn’t taken a single penalty, yet leads the Leafs with 109 hits. That’s a skill, folks. You have to think a contract extension for the Kitchener native can’t be too far off.
David Kampf — 6.7
Kampf’s guile makes him an effective penalty killer and, though you might want a tad more offence from your fourth-line centre, his reliability is key. After missing 12 games with a lower-body injury, Kampf is back to being accountable.
Connor Dewar — 6.3
Dewar throws his body around with gusto, but doesn’t provide anything in the way of offence. No goals and three assists in 23 games, to be exact. He has had some chances lately, but nothing to show for them.
Ryan Reaves — 6.2
Despite his enthusiasm, Reaves can’t keep a consistent spot on the fourth line. It was telling, to a degree, when Berube didn’t make any lineup changes for Sunday’s game against Philadelphia following the win against Boston on Saturday. Reaves was among those scratched for both. His physicality is a bonus, but that’s the extent of his impact.
Pontus Holmberg — 6.3
The odd opportunity for Holmberg to play in the top six because of injuries only proved that he didn’t belong there. If the Leafs are fully healthy at forward once the playoffs start, and keeping in mind another forward or two could be added via trade, we don’t see Holmberg being in the lineup.
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