Toronto Maple Leafs assistant coach Steve Spott joined the Jeff Blair Show on Wednesday morning to talk about the Leafs’ dominant 4-0 win over the lowly Buffalo Sabres.
The Sabres mustered just 10 shots on goal on Tuesday night. The Leafs coaching staff took the opportunity to mix up some line combinations and the results were rather impressive.
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Nazem Kadri and Joffrey Lupul moved up to the top line to skate with Phil Kessel, and Spott talked about the impact of playing with the five-time 30-goal scorer can have on his linemates.
“When they [Kadri and Lupul] saw the change there’s an obligation there now to elevate your game because you’re playing with arguably one of the best scorers in the National Hockey League,” said Spott. “It was a shot of inspiration for Naz and Lupes. Although those guys didn’t get on the board with goals I thought they played great. They definitely did elevate their speed and pace of the game.”
LISTEN: Steve Spott talks with Jeff Blair
One player who was a topic of discussion following the Leafs lackluster showing versus the Boston Bruins on Saturday was Jake Gardiner. Gardiner’s physical play came under fire following a soft effort on a third period shorthanded goal by Gregory Campbell.
Gardiner scored his first goal of the season on Tuesday night and played a big role on the power play. Spott discussed what Gardiner brings to the team and how his skill set can be best utilized.
“The hardest thing at this level is getting the puck in the zone. Teams are so good at defending their blueline that even on a power play breakout there are times you have to dump the puck in and earn it back. One thing Jake Gardiner can do is skate the puck up the ice. He can transport the puck from our end to the offensive zone and get us set up if there’s not a passing option,” Spott said of the 24-year old defenceman.
“His passing is elite, I believe he’s one of the top passers in the league,” Spott added. “The challenge for Jake is to be a little more selfish in a positive way, where he’s willing to shoot the puck when he has an opportunity to get to the net with the likes of JVR standing at the net.”
The Leafs are off for two days before playing a back-to-back in Columbus on Friday and Chicago on Saturday.
