With Justin Holl and Travis Dermott recently making their NHL debuts, a lot of people have opined that the Toronto Maple Leafs don’t really need to trade for a defenseman. Those people are wrong: they do. But that’s not the only problem.
Travis Dermott has been excellent, but he’s still a rookie who allows 34 shots-against/ 60 minutes. This is an improvement over the abominable Roman Polak, and it’s offset by his impressive 41 shots-for / 60, but it’s still too much.
And to be sure this isn’t just a problem with the defense. Nylander, Hyman, Matthews….