Maple Leafs need more from John Tavares and Mitch Marner in Game 7
In order to win against the Boston Bruins in Game 7, the Toronto Maple Leafs need John Tavares and Mitch Marner to play prominent roles.
Last year, Mitch Marner was terrific against the Boston Bruins while his teammate Auston Matthews was virtually invisible. Funny how things change in a year. Now Matthews is the one leading his team onward and Marner’s the one struggling with John Tavares. If the Toronto Maple Leafs want to win Game 7, they’re going to need more out of their best regular season line.
Tavares scored a career-high 43 goals while Marner emerged as one of the NHL’s most exciting and skilled forwards with 94 points. However, they’ve been a non-factor thus far in the series. Tavares has just one goal, and that one was without a goalie in the net.
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Meanwhile, though Marner has four points in six games, he has just one five-on-five point, a goal back in Game 1. His other three points have come courtesy of the power play and a weird penalty shot goal on the penalty kill.
The reason for the change isn’t that deep. It’s because Tavares and Marner, along with Zach Hyman, are being tasked with playing against Patrice Bergeron and Brad Marchand. Last season, it was Matthews and William Nylander who drew the attention of the Bruins top line.
Doing anything against arguably the best defensive center of all-time and one of the toughest players in the NHL to play against isn’t easy. But life isn’t easy. Bergeron and Marchand have found ways to contribute despite the efforts of Tavares and Marner.
Of course, the loss of Nazem Kadri has hurt too. The Leafs third line could have provided some help with shutting down Bergeron and Marchand. Instead, the heavy lifting has been given to Tavares and Marner, who are far better suited in offensive situations. And when you’re playing against Bergeron and Marchand, offensive situations are about as rare as a unicorn.
Kasperi Kapanen and Andreas Johnson have been non-factors as well. This has put even more pressure on Tavares, Marner, and Matthews to produce. Matthews has arrived in a big way, mostly because he’s been able to avoid the attention of Bergeron and Marchand for the most part.
With Game 7 being in Boston, you have to think the Bruins will put their dynamic duo against Matthews’ line. After all, he’s been arguably their best skater this series and has scored some huge goals for the Leafs.
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If that’s the case, the onus is on Tavares and Marner to lead the way and take advantage of the offensive situations that have been rare under the watchful eyes of Bergeron and Marchand. Some help from Nylander, Johnsson, and Kapanen would make things easier for them. But, as they say, hockey isn’t easy.
The Maple Leafs signed Tavares for this precise moment. They signed him so teams couldn’t just hone in on stopping Matthews. The Leafs signed Tavares so teams would be forced to pick their poison with their top two centers. It’s time for the hometown boy to do what he was signed to do. And it’s time for Marner to prove why he deserves to be paid.