TORONTO – They had just gathered for what has to be one of the more unique team photos in NHL history. The Toronto Maple Leafs – what was left of them – only had 19 players to line up before the cameras Sunday at the conclusion of a season where they dressed 46.
And yet, even with a last-place finish top of mind and so many essential elements still missing, there was an undeniable buoyancy in the halls at Air Canada Centre.
That this team will eventually develop into a contender is now a matter of when, not if, according to those in charge. A few players even mentioned the possibility of pushing for a playoff spot as soon as next season, which would require a daunting 25- to 30-point improvement.
“I would say that collectively, we’re ahead of where we thought we might be,” said president Brendan Shanahan.
“The only thing I know is that what we’re doing is the right thing and we’re going to just keep doing it,” said general manager Lou Lamoriello.
Mike Babcock spoke the strongest of all, saying “I like the position we’re in better than a lot of teams in the National Hockey League.”
“A lot,” he repeated for emphasis.
It has been a new experience for those manning the pulls and levers of this operation after building gold-plated resumes elsewhere. Expectations had to be adjusted, and reimagined, and Babcock said other than a few game nights he enjoyed his first season behind the Leafs bench more than he thought he would.
The good feelings come from a prospect pipeline that appears to be jammed full and the possibility of a long Calder Cup playoff run by the Marlies. They also own 12 draft picks in June, the first of which will be no lower than fourth overall.
In the last year the Leafs have hired Babcock and Lamoriello, while clearing long-term cap space with the Dion Phaneuf and Phil Kessel trades, and it is in the big picture that the organization finally believes it has figured things out.
“At the end of last season we really wanted to change the culture here; on the ice and off the ice,” said Shanahan. “We wanted to do a complete about-face, a 180.”
Now they will really start drilling down on the details. The Leafs plan to turn the keys over to several kids next season and hope to be active in the trade and free-agent markets. There are those in the organization who believe an injection of talent into Babcock’s system will come with an immediate jump in the standings.
The salary cap looms as a tricky issue for the coming season – with $54.5 million already committed to 18 players, not including Morgan Rielly and Nazem Kadri – but this management group has proven remarkably adept at finding creative ways to stay under the upper limit.
Joffrey Lupul (sports hernia surgery) and Stephane Robidas (lower body) were notable exclusions from Sunday’s team picture, a sign that neither might be part of the plans for next season despite being under contract.
Asked about the health outlook for those players, Lamoriello said it was “an unknown.”
Brooks Laich emerged from his exit meeting believing that he would be back in 2016-17. The veteran forward is equally as optimistic about the future as his bosses, dismissing a suggestion the team might be a bottom-feeder again.
“I don’t see it that way,” said Laich.
Why not?
“Just a real quiet belief and confidence,” he said. “I’ve been through the process (in Washington) before. I’ve seen it done one way; I’m seeing it being done a different way here, a way that I think is going to go a lot quicker.”
This is not the kind of talk you expect to find around the NHL’s 30th-place team on locker clean-out day. It will no doubt be the source of snickers in some corners of the hockey world.
But essentially this is what the Leafs bought when they hired Babcock to oversee the factory floor of the rebuild – with the team making significant possession gains while icing a makeshift lineup throughout his first season.
“I think this year more than ever we really have an idea of where we’re going,” said Rielly. “We have a direction.”
The performance of the prospects in March sealed P.A. Parenteau’s belief. He’s a pending unrestricted free agent who might not be back, but believes the Leafs will be in the playoff conversation immediately.
“(Zach) Hyman, (Connor) Brown, (Nikita) Soshnikov – these guys are NHL-ready, I think personally,” said Parenteau. “You inject that in the lineup it makes a big difference, you sign a couple D-men and there you are – you’ve got a team that can compete in this league very quickly here.”
And so the expectations have been set.
The Leafs earned a free pass during a 29-42-11 campaign, but they will be judged by a completely different standard starting in September. While there were no firm timelines put on the process – signing Steven Stamkos and/or drafting Auston Matthews would change the outlook dramatically – Babcock said he’s not eager to sit out the Stanley Cup playoffs against next season.
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He is part philosopher-king, part hockey coach. He is also a big believer in the power of positive thought.
“The future is bright here and it’s going to bright for a long period of time,” said Babcock. “Now, is it going to happen as quickly as we all want? Probably not, never usually does in life, but it’s going to happen.”
The coach was unequivocal. So were the GM and president.
“I think it’s going to be fun to be a Maple Leaf,” said Babcock. “I really do.”
Imagine that.