Mike Babcock’s trust hard to gain, easy to keep

Toronto Maple Leafs head coach Mike Babcock has been relying heavily on veterans who are not on top of their game, which is concerning, to say the least.

When the Toronto Maple Leafs lose consecutive games, there’s always lot’s to talk about. But unlike many of the Leafs’ recent skids, a lot of the blame is being placed on the shoulders of Mike Babcock. The head coach has gone away from the run-and-gun style of offence in favour of a dump-and-chase game, which is much more conservative.

The Leafs haven’t scored multiple goals in their last four games. This could very easily be credited to the absence of Auston Matthews, who has missed those four contests.

Leaf fans haven’t been as upset at the lack of offensive production as they have been at the reliance Babcock has in struggling veterans. Another man receiving a heap of criticism recently is winger Leo Komarov.

Once the apple of the Leafs’ eye, Komarov was the team’s All-Star game representative during the dreadful 2015-16 season. He has justified his contract over the past three seasons with his strong play and ability to get under the oppositions skin.

However, for all his solid play in the past, this season has gotten off to a terrible start for Komarov. In 34 games, he has three goals and seven points with 10 PIM. More concerning is the fact that out of those seven points, only one has come at even strength.

Komarov currently sits 17th in scoring for the Toronto Maple Leafs this season. Andreas Borgman, Dominic Moore and Matt Martin are all ahead of the winger in scoring.

This wouldn’t be an issue if Komarov was playing 10 to 12 minutes a game on a fourth line every night. However, he currently sits fourth among Leafs forwards in average ice time, with 16:34 per night.

The question is, how much more leash do the veterans get from Babcock while underperforming this heavily? Luke Fox joined Sportsnet 590 to discuss the opportunities Babcock offers the Leafs vets:

"He’s played the majority of the season with Patrick Marleau or Nazem Kadri. So it’s not as though they aren’t surrounding him with talent. So he has been a bit of a dissappointment.It shows how Babcock views veterans as opposed to younger players. Komarov hasn’t been knocked down the lineup wheras other guys that can’t produce like Nylander or Marner got knocked down when they weren’t playing well.It seems like even if he’s not producing or playing that effective, he hasn’t really been punished for it in terms of ice time or who he’s playing with"

(Mitch Marner and William Nylander have 20 and 21 points respectively despite both going through slumps and being demoted to the fourth line)

Komarov isn’t the only veteran Toronto Maple Leafs fans have been shaking their collective heads at. Roman Polak has been a lightning rod of criticism for Leafs Nation.

There’s only so much you can put blame on Polak though. The Leafs gave him a contract this season, Babcock put him in the lineup and chooses to play him as frequently as he has.

Babcock has made it clear he believes Polak is a safe player. While many have their own definitions of what safe is, Leafs Assistant General Manager Kyle Dubas gave a great explanation of his interpretation of a safe player.

Take into account Polak is an already slow-footed defender, who is coming off a broken fibula. That’s already one problem before he even steps on the ice.

There doesn’t seem to be any light at the end of the tunnel as Polak has appeared in the last 10 games for the Toronto Maple Leafs. For now, it looks like Connor Carrick will remain in the purgatory that is the Maple Leafs press box. There is likely no end in sight for him either, according to Fox:

"For some reason, once you gain Mike Babcock’s trust, it’s hard to lose it. A guy like Polak knows exactly what he brings. He (Babcock) likes the physicality that he has, and for some reason, Connor Carrick is not a Babcock guy. Probably, at this point, it’s hard to see him winning that trust and being a guy that the coach plays."

It’s time for the Maple Leafs to quit leaning on their veterans, because it just hasn’t worked for them. On Friday, Kasperi Kapanen — who was called up from the Marlies earlier in the week — was one of the Leafs’ best forwards. He impressed despite only playing 12:26 on the fourth line.

Would anyone be opposed to seeing him or Josh Leivo on the second line alongside Nazem Kadri and Nylander in the Leafs next game? No? Good.

Of course, if the Leafs had won all three of their previous games, this wouldn’t even be discussed among the fans. But it takes stretches like this to reflect on what is going wrong with the team and fix it before it gets too out of hand.

All you can do is hope for better over the next few games.

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What are your thoughts on Komarov’s play over the course of this season? When will Carrick see the ice next? Let us know your thoughts below in the comments section.