Mailbag: Peace out, Boston

Good afternoon.

The Boston Bruins have been eliminated from the playoffs. Does that make you feel better? Worse?

In a way too simplistic analysis, no x4. It’s no surprise the Leafs need to upgrade their defence, but I think you might be targeting the wrong names.

Jack Johnson has never posted positive possession numbers, and at age 31, is showing no signs of getting better.

Sustr might be okay as a stopgap bottom pairing option, but I’m not solely convinced he’s any better than the Leafs’ internal options.

Calvin de Haan was a mediocre defender on a bad defensive team with negative possession results in a sheltered role and no real offensive production, and lastly, was even worse possession wise with slightly better offence than de Haan.

Unless the Leafs find a serious upgrade on the market, RFA Connor Carrick’s likely back in the lineup instead of any of these four.

Hey, we (our old buddy Jeff Veillette) tackled that exact issue about a year ago, and to be honest, not much has changed.

The biggest key to doing things like the Penguins is, well, you need everything to be clicking just right. In the Leafs’ playoff run this year, it’s safe to say Auston Matthews or Frederik Andersen having just a little more success could’ve swung the series in their favour, but hey, we got an ugly roll of the dice this go around and that’s just the way she goes sometimes.

Hopefully. Hopefully we can keep Punch Imlach’s ghost, too.

It never really goes away, does it? If it makes you feel better, a team that didn’t even exist this time last year might win the Stanley Cup, so we might as well just cancel the NHL anyway.

Far too long away. Consider another hobby, like getting owned by LeBron James, or baseball. Either works to pass the time.