Technically the player longest affiliated with the Toronto Maple Leafs currently on the roster, Leo Komarov‘s has quickly become a favourite in his time at the Air Canada Centre.
“Uncle Leo” has proven not only be a fan favourite, but also a valuable member of the Leafs. While Komarov’s offensive numbers were disappointing a year ago, his defensive play more than made up for the weak numbers in the offensive zone.
Toronto Maple Leafs Roster Preview, 50-in-50: Leo Komarov
Drafted in the sixth round of the 2006 NHL Entry Draft, it’s impressive that Komarov has made it as far as he has in the Leafs organization. He didn’t make his North American debut until 2013 and has only played four seasons in Toronto.
In 2015-16, Komarov broke out offensively on the lowly last place Maple Leafs team. After just 12 goals previously in his NHL career, Komarov nearly led the team in goal scoring with 19, registering 36 points in 67 games. In fact, he represented the Leafs at the NHL All-Star Game that year.
Regressing Offensively, Progressing Defensively
Coming off of easily the best season of his career, the 29-year old suddenly found himself in a much more defensive role in 2016-17 than the year previous. With an influx of so much young talent up front, including Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner, and William Nylander, Leo Komarov was no longer needed to score goals. Rather, he was to prevent them.
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And that’s exactly what he did. Komarov established himself as one of the best defensive forwards in the NHL in 2016-17, posting an incredible 4.3 Even Strength Defensive (ESD) Goals Above Replacement (GAR). He was in the 98th percentile of all NHL forwards, a truly remarkable stat that shows how good Komarov is in his own zone.
He was also very disciplined, taking few penalties. This is impressive for an agitating player such as Komarov who, in his younger years, took far too many penalties (he had 144 PIM in 56 games during the 2008-09 SM-Liiga season). Uncle Leo recorded just 31 PIM last year, five of which were in a fight against Derek Dorsett in the Vancouver-Toronto gongshow.
Although his defensive numbers were superb, Komarov needs to produce at a better rate offensively. Playing all 82 games for the first time in his career, the Estonia born Finn scored 14 goals and 32 points. Those are decent numbers for a third-line player, but Komarov’s linemate Nazem Kadri scored the same amount of goals as he did points.
Going into 2017-18, more scoring from Komarov would be preferred, but the focus remains on his spectacular defensive play for the Maple Leafs.
Profile (via EliteProspects)
Age: 30
Position: LW/RW
Height: 5’11”
Weight: 209 lbs
NHL Draft: Sixth Round, 180th Overall in 2006 by Toronto
Contract (via CapFriendly)
Leo Komarov is entering the final year of a four-year, $11.8-million contract signed back on July 1, 2014. The deal is quite simple, with no signing or performance bonuses. He receives a base salary of $2.95 million, which is also his cap hit. Komarov will be an unrestricted free agent come year end.
2017-18 Season
Likely to be paired with Kadri again, Leo Komarov will once again be leaned on as the Leafs best defensive forward. He will be a vital component of the penalty kill while helping shut down the opposition’s top scorers.
Komarov, Kadri, and Connor Brown comprised a formidable shutdown line for Toronto last year. The line’s performance a season ago likely means they will be back together next year unless head coach Mike Babcock moves Brown elsewhere.
In a contract year, Leo Komarov will look to continue his defensive dominance while taking a step in the right direction offensively. His points per game dropped from just over half a point a game in 2015-16, at 0.54, to a disappointing 0.39 in 2016-17. Komarov will look to raise his offensive numbers and hopefully hit the 40 point milestone for the first time in his career.
Main Photo: Embed from Getty Images
