Sheldon Keefe has Found the Perfect Defensive Pairing for the Playoffs

Since being acquired from Chicago, Jake McCabe and Sam Lafferty have only played in 13 games for Toronto. Since his arrival to Toronto, McCabe has become more comfortable, and has had some great performances since he took Morgan Rielly's spot on the first line with T.J. Brodie. Last night, the pair dominated during their shift, throughout the last five games, the Leafs have won McCabe's 5-on-5 minutes by expected goals, this was pointed out by Kevin Papetti.

Keefe Has Found the Perfect Defensive Pairing

During the 13 games that McCabe has played with the Leafs, McCabe has the highest corsi for percentage with 52.55, and the second-lowest expected goals against at 10.05 on 5-on-5. McCabe also has the highest expected goals for defensemen in his 13 games, he has 10.33. The next closest defenseman is down by 2 expected goals. These two figures are also at 5-on-5.


It appears that Sheldon Keefe has found a reliable defensive pairing with McCabe and Brodie, he has also allowed Rielly to play a more sheltered game against lesser competition, which has been beneficial for Rielly, it also proves that fans were right about Rielly not being a legit top pairing defenseman. Leafs fans will get to see this pairing grow because both McCabe and Brodie are signed for more than one season.

As seen on Mapleleafsinsider - Leafs may have found their top defensive pairing for playoffs and it doesn't include Rielly