Toronto Maple Leafs Send Clear Message To Timothy Liljegren With Recent Signing

On Monday, Toronto signed defenseman Jake McCabe to a five-year extension worth roughly $23M after deferrals and how the contract is structured. McCabe is a solid shutdown defenseman who can offer some offensive upside as well and since arriving in Toronto has been one of the bright spots in the ever-revolving door of defenders who come to the Maple Leafs.

Toronto has its Top-4 set in stone, and with a group of prospect defensemen waiting in the wings, it seems like the writing is on the wall for Timothy Liljegren with a stern message: There's no spot for you.

If he wasn't able to get into the lineup after all of the tinkering that head coach Craig Berube has done, it would take a miracle for Liljegren to be a part of this roster going forward. While he's been solid defensively for Toronto, oftentimes he makes a critical error or two that costs the Maple Leafs and hasn't shown the supposed elite playmaking ability he possesses.

Liljegren has been comparable to McCabe too, with both men showing solid defensive metrics while also doing enough offensively. He's shown a decent sample size but hasn't enticed either Sheldon Keefe or Craig Berube to give him a ton of time to play. He's only played 197 games in six seasons, averaging just under 33 games per, definitely not enough to get acclimated. But again, it's enough of a sample size to see that Liljegren's 65 points in those games is a dismal amount.

So it begs the question, why did Brad Treliving choose Jake McCabe over Liljegren? McCabe is older and is going to decline faster than Liljegren would. However, McCabe has a much more consistent game and does more physically than Liljegren does. Even though they are basically the same size, McCabe overwhelms Liljegren in the hits and for their career averages, Liljegren is slacking (though McCabe has 400 more games to help him out).

There must be an underlying issue when it comes to Timothy Liljegren whether it's an attitude problem, a lack of motivation on the ice, or the fact he's simply not gained the favor of his coaches. Either way, you put it, Toronto paid McCabe for something Liljegren could do while younger. But for Brad Treliving and Craig Berube, grit matters, and when you provide the intangibles; you earn the spot.