Leafs' New Addition Dakota Joshua Compared to Brady Tkachuk After Eye-Opening Stat

Although the trade initially wasn't the flashiest one on the market, the Maple Leafs' acquiring Dakota Joshua has a lot of positives attached to it.

Firstly, he's a strong and gritty forward who plays perfectly with Craig Berube's system, and secondly he's an inspirational story and someone who Toronto fans are going to love.

But he's also got quite an underrated scoring touch and while he didn't hit that production this season, a lot of that can be due to his recovery from testicular cancer.

There's a lot to be excited about, especially after some new stats reveal that Joshua is part of a small group of players who are both physical and productive.

That's right, since 2022-23 only Joshua, Brady Tkachuk and Keifer Sherwood have had more than 650 hits and 35 goals; a unique blend of immense physicality and soft hands.

We've seen those hands from Joshua in the past, and if he and newcomer Nicolas Roy can come together and find chemistry, there's a great chance he'll be able to get back to a higher offensive output.

Couple that with Matthew Knies' abilities and you have two Maple Leafs players who not only deposit punishment, but also pucks in nets. To put into comparison, Joshua's 216 hits on average would be second to Simon Benoit's 222 in the same span.

But remember, Benoit is a defenseman with minimal offensive output; Joshua has an 18-goal season under his belt. It's pretty impressive he can balance both scoring and hitting without sacrificing too much on either end.

Also, to be fair to Sherwood as well; he's an anomaly. He had an NHL-record 462 hits this season; a clear 79 ahead of Jeremy Lauzon's 383 from last season (why Toronto hasn't tried to acquire him is surprising).

Joshua is someone who the Maple Leafs have needed for a while, and while he doesn't jump off the page, his package of intangibles and skills make him a shoe-in for a Craig Berube lineup.

He's not Brady Tkachuk. He's Dakota Joshua.

And he's ready to make an impact. Literally.