When it comes to players that fans of the Toronto Maple Leafs love to criticize, there is no greater target than Jake Gardiner. For as long as he has been a member of the Blue and White, Gardiner has been regularly scrutinized for his play, which is baffling.
It is true that he makes a bunch of high-risk plays (which can lead to turnovers), but he has long been one of the team’s most dependable defenders, especially since Mike Babcock arrived. There have been low-points during his time in Toronto, but he’s mostly had a positive impact. The fact is, all high risk/ high reward defenseman can give their coaches and fans fits, but in the aggregate, the giveaways don’t matter when a player has a positive differential in every major stat catagory (shot-attempts, scoring chances, shots and goals against).