Although he's adding more offence to the team, Jim Hiller's lineup is already receiving criticism due to the lack of bite in the top-six.
There's been concerns over the Maple Leafs and whether or not they can compete right away especially after so many changes, but if there's one thing you can't argue is that the team at least tried their best to field a winning lineup.
New faces were brought in, long-time players were shipped out, and there's an excitement around the team especially with the addition of Gavin McKenna. After two years of Craig Berube's slow, plodding style, there's hope that Hiller can excite the fanbase once again.
Hiller's lineup is already getting blasted for the lack of bite up front
Though he's better suited to run an offence than Berube, he's not immune to criticism as Anthony Petrielli of Maple Leafs Hot Stove pointed to his lineup construction pointed to his lineup construction being an issue. Not that he's unable to find a working group, but that he doesn't have the necessary bite at the top:
Collectively, the top six is almost all skill. Nick Paul and Easton Cowan aren't exactly prime Wendel, but at least they bring some bite and physicality to the group. I would sooner watch one of them in the top six than run a top six that is pretty much all skill.
One of the big critiques that Hiller has faced is that he overloaded the top-six with a ton of talent. While that's normally not a huge issue, there is one with the fact that his lines don't exactly have a great measure of defence or possession.
Auston Matthews is a very good two-way player, and Jack Roslovic can be a solid secondary piece. Matthew Knies rounding out the top line hasn't been as successful and the lack of real physicality and dog-like mentality from Knies has prevented him from flourishing with Matthews sans Mitch Marner.
Petrielli isn't wrong in his analysis as this was seemingly an issue with Sheldon Keefe years prior, where the Maple Leafs didn't have a ton of bite up front, though at least had that posession-heavy player in Mitch Marner.
It's time for Hiller to make the change no one wants to
Meanwhile that second line of McKenna, Tavares, and Nylander is really not going to spark hope defensively either, and while Tavares is solid in his own right, he's 35 years old and shouldn't be looked at as the defensive anchor or puck hound that they need:
No contender will be overly concerned about that line because it will have proper depth and two-way players to match against it.
That's unfortunate for McKenna if he wants to thrive as he will have to make sure that he can handle both ends of the ice without getting tired out. He might not need to move, but someone does, so here's how the team can potentially line up and add some punch up front:
Paul - Matthews - Nylander
McKenna - Tavares - Cowan
You can have Paul as your Swiss Army knife who does everything at both ends, while taking away responsibility from Matthews and Nylander deserves a shot with the captain given it's worked out several times previously.
The second line is a lot more dynamic with McKenna and Cowan, and besides Cowan being the puck hound we know he can be, its's also setting up future chemistry for two players who could be intertwined for years.
Hiller deserves credit for trying to add some more firepower up front, but he has to be careful not to stack the deck too top heavy because it could lead to things tumbling down later on.
Do you think the Toronto Maple Leafs need more help for Auston Matthews and Gavin McKenna in the lineup?
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