The Toronto Maple Leafs are trying something different on the blue line, and the timing makes sense. Through five games, the start to the 2026-27 season has been uneven - good enough to show life, messy enough to show why the defense keeps coming back into focus.
They’ve erased three-goal deficits. They’ve also coughed up three-goal leads.
That kind of swing leaves one obvious pressure point: the back end.
A trade for a top-four defenseman still hasn’t materialized, even with plenty of noise around general manager John Chayka to find a puckmover who can also bring physicality and defend. That unicorn hasn’t shown up, so head coach Jim Hiller has turned to the one thing he can control right now: the pairings.
At Friday’s practice, ahead of Saturday night’s game against the Colorado Avalanche, the Leafs put a new look on the ice. Per TSN’s Mark Masters, the defense pairs were:
Jake McCabe -- Darren Raddysh
Morgan Rielly -- Chris Tanev
Oliver Ekman-Larsson -- Troy Stecher
That’s a notable shift from the more role-heavy setup Hiller had been using. Earlier, McCabe and Tanev were the shutdown pair, while Rielly and Raddysh were grouped together to supply more offense.
In theory, it gave each duo a clear identity. In practice, it hasn’t delivered the kind of balance Toronto needs.
McCabe and Tanev did what was asked of them, but there was always a built-in concern with Tanev’s workload. He’s 36, he’s defense-first, and he’s been taking the brunt of heavy shot-blocking duties for years.
That’s starting to show. As for Rielly and Raddysh, their first few games together were rough, though Raddysh has settled in enough that the pairing at least began to stabilize.
The new alignment looks built to spread things out more naturally. McCabe and Raddysh is the kind of combination many expected to see before the season started: McCabe, who led the Leafs in ice time last year, paired with the newcomer who is expected to log major minutes and add more offense from the back end. In that setup, McCabe can cover for mistakes, and Raddysh can give Toronto a little more production from the blue line.
Then there’s Rielly with Tanev, a pairing the Leafs already know can work. The numbers cited around that duo since 2024-25 back up the eye test: 56% of the goals, 64% of the expected goals and 55% of the shot attempts. That’s a strong track record for the longest-tenured Leaf alongside the steady, defense-first Tanev.
The hope is simple enough: keep a puckmover on the ice at all times and give a forward group that has already started well even more room to operate. After the first five games, that feels less like a luxury and more like a requirement.
In Other News...
Maple Leafs Face One Trade Question That Could Reshape Their Blue Line
The Maple Leafs have already added to their roster since the offseason, but the blue line still looks like the spot that could most use another swing. A high-impact left-side defenseman would fit the kind of upgrade Toronto has been circling, and Simon Edvinsson has emerged as an intriguing name because of his age, size and upside. For a team trying to harden its back end without sacrificing future value, he checks a lot of boxes on paper.
What makes the situation worth watching is the possibility that Detroit could be open to moving him under the right circumstances. Edvinsson has the profile of a player who would draw interest across the league, and Toronto would make sense as one of the clubs keeping tabs if the Red Wings decide to listen. For the Maple Leafs, the question is whether they want to push in now for help on the left side or trust the current group to carry the load a little longer. [Read more 🡒]
Nylanders Honest Take On A New Leafs Arrival Will Get Attention
William Nylander has been one of the Maple Leafs early catalysts this season, piling up six points in five games, but the conversation around him in a recent interview with The Athletic drifted beyond the scoreboard. Nylander touched on the arrival of Sergei Bobrovsky, a major new presence in Torontos mix, and also opened up about the people and players who shaped him growing up, giving a more personal glimpse into the winger behind the production.
There was also some notable honesty in the way Nylander discussed his connection to former Leafs star Mats Sundin, since the relationship has long carried extra weight for Toronto fans. Nylander revisited his upbringing and the hockey influences that mattered most to him, a reminder that even for a player entrenched in the present, the past still helps frame how he sees a changing Leafs roster. [Read more 🡒]
Maple Leafs Make Unusual Avalanche Lineup Move With One Big Decision Looming
The Maple Leafs are making a slightly unusual adjustment against the Colorado Avalanche, sliding Nick Blankenburg into the lineup as John Tavares steps out for the birth of his child. Head coach Jim Hiller said the club will dress seven defensemen and 11 forwards, a wrinkle that gives Toronto some extra flexibility while also opening the door for Blankenburg to get his first action of the season after being a healthy scratch through the first five games.
Blankenburg arrived on a one-year deal after a strong training camp, so this is a useful early look at how he fits once the games start to count. There is still one notable piece left hanging ahead of puck drop, though, because Hiller declined to name the starting goaltender, leaving Torontos final call in net as the other decision worth watching before the matchup begins. [Read more 🡒]