Pontus Holmberg’s Rise in Tampa Highlights a Familiar Maple Leafs Misstep
If you’ve followed the Toronto Maple Leafs long enough, you’ve seen this movie before. A young player shows promise, doesn’t quite get the runway in Toronto, and ends up thriving somewhere else. This time, it’s Pontus Holmberg playing the lead-and Leafs fans are left watching the credits roll with that all-too-familiar feeling.
Let’s be clear: Holmberg didn’t light it up in Toronto, but he also never really got the chance to. The Leafs chose not to qualify him, and just like that, he was gone. Tampa Bay saw the opening, scooped him up, and now he’s playing regular minutes, producing at a career-best pace, and-just to twist the knife a little more-he’s representing Sweden at the Olympics.
From Depth Piece to International Contributor
Holmberg’s stat line in Tampa tells the story: nine goals, eight assists, plus-9 through 48 games. That’s not just respectable-it’s the kind of production that makes you wonder what could’ve been if he’d been given a more defined role in Toronto.
In Tampa, he’s not just surviving-he’s thriving. And he’s doing it the hard way: killing penalties, playing responsible minutes, bringing energy in all three zones.
He’s skating alongside names like Gabriel Landeskog and Alex Wennberg for Team Sweden, holding his own on a big stage. That’s not just a glow-up-it’s a validation.
Holmberg didn’t change his game. He just landed in a system that knew how to use it.
Toronto’s Ongoing Struggle with Depth Development
The frustration for Leafs fans isn’t just about Holmberg. It’s about a pattern that keeps repeating itself.
Toronto has no issue identifying and rewarding its top-tier stars-Auston Matthews, William Nylander, Mitch Marner, and the like. But when it comes to the middle-six forwards, the grinders, the glue guys who round out a contending roster, the Leafs continue to misfire.
Holmberg was the kind of player Toronto claimed to be looking for this past offseason: a responsible two-way forward, honest on every shift, willing to do the dirty work. They had him. And they let him walk for nothing.
That’s the part that stings. He didn’t become a different player overnight. He just landed in an organization that understood how to use him.
A Familiar Feeling for Leafs Fans
Watching Holmberg succeed elsewhere while the Leafs continue to search for answers in their bottom six is a tough pill to swallow. It’s not about one player-it’s about a development system that hasn’t consistently turned young depth talent into reliable NHL contributors.
Tampa Bay, on the other hand, has made a habit of finding value in players other teams overlook. They saw something in Holmberg, gave him a real role, and now they’re reaping the rewards.
Meanwhile, Leafs fans are left with that familiar sigh. The hope is always that this will be the wake-up call.
That Toronto will start giving its young players a real shot before moving on. That they’ll stop flipping the lights on and off and start building something sustainable from the ground up.
Because right now, it’s hard not to notice: other teams are taking Toronto’s cast-offs and turning them into contributors. And the Leafs are still trying to figure out why their depth keeps coming up short.