For the Toronto Maple Leafs, the power play used to be one of the easiest things to trust. In the Auston Matthews-William Nylander years, it was a hammer. Last season, though, that edge dulled fast.
Toronto finished 15th in the league on the man-advantage in 2025-26, which marked the club’s worst power-play ranking of the past decade. It was also the fourth straight season the Leafs slid backward in that category. After finishing fourth in 2022-23 at 24.1 percent, they dropped to 23.4 percent, then 23.1 percent, and finally settled at a flat 21.3 percent last year.
That decline came with some obvious missing pieces. The Leafs no longer had Mitch Marner’s setup ability, and they also lacked a true threat from the point. Matthews and Nylander combined for just 12 power-play goals, their lowest total together since 2017-18, when Nazem Kadri and James Van Riemsdyk were doing most of the damage on special teams.
But there’s reason to think that changes now. During John Chayka’s first offseason as general manager, Toronto added two players who should give the power play a much-needed jolt: hard-shooting defenseman Darren Raddysh and first-overall pick Gavin McKenna.
Raddysh arrived in a sign-and-trade with the Tampa Bay Lightning after Chayka moved goaltender Joseph Woll. McKenna, meanwhile, brings the kind of playmaking touch the Leafs have been missing. Together, they give new head coach Jim Hiller a different kind of top unit to work with.
The fit starts with Raddysh’s shot. Toronto has not had a point man like this during the Matthews-Nylander era, and the numbers back up the hype.
Raddysh led the NHL last season in 90+ MPH shots, and it wasn’t close. The “Raddysh Ripper” showed up 97 times.
The next closest was Evan “Bouch Bomb” Bouchard at 51.
That kind of blast changes the geometry of a power play. It should force penalty kills to respect the blue line, which in turn opens more room for Matthews and Nylander on the wings. Raddysh also scored 10 of his 22 goals on the power play last season, so the production is there too.
McKenna brings a different ingredient. Toronto’s dip without Marner wasn’t just about losing a name; it was about losing vision and playmaking. McKenna is expected to help fill that gap with his hockey IQ and passing ability, even as a rookie.
There will be an adjustment period. McKenna has to get comfortable in the NHL, and Raddysh will need time to build chemistry with his new teammates.
But the pieces are obvious. If those two click quickly with the Leafs’ core stars, a unit that went stale last season could become one of the team’s most dangerous weapons again.
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Maple Leafs May Be Eyeing The Blue Line Swing Fans Fear And Crave
Daniel Alfredssons arrival as an associate head coach has already given the Maple Leafs a new layer of intrigue, and it naturally invites a look at how Toronto might try to use that connection to its advantage. Alfredsson spent years on the other side of the rivalry as the face of the Senators, so his presence behind the bench gives the Leafs a familiar name with real weight in any conversation about improving the blue line.
The idea is complicated, though, because any move of that size would have to clear both roster and financial hurdles, and Toronto would be dealing with a player on a major contract who is still set to hit free agency next summer. Even before the Maple Leafs get to the hockey fit, they would have to decide how much they are willing to part with from a defense corps that already has its own structure, which is why this remains more of a tantalizing possibility than a simple next step. [Read more 🡒]
Maple Leafs Added Two Underrated Names With Real Paths To Matter
The Maple Leafs have added a pair of low-risk, potentially useful names in Ryan Tverberg and Samuel Hlavaj, both on one-year contracts as part of recent roster movement. Tverberg, a forward, comes off a role in the Marlies Calder Cup run, while Hlavaj brings a goaltenders resume that includes international work for Slovakia and another season in the AHL.
For Toronto, the appeal is obvious: these are players who are not being handed anything, but who can push for real consideration if they carry their momentum into camp and into the fall. Tverberg has already shown he can help in a winning environment, and Hlavaj arrives with enough experience to make the goaltending picture worth watching, even if both still have to prove they belong in the Leafs conversation. [Read more 🡒]
Maple Leafs May Have Found The Young Winger This Top Six Needs
Trade chatter around Buffalo has given Toronto another name to think about as it looks for a winger who can help the top six. The appeal is easy to see: a young forward coming off a career-best season, with enough production to suggest there may still be another level to reach, and enough age to fit with a team trying to balance present urgency with longer-term value.
Quinn is also in the final year of his contract, which only adds to the intrigue for a Maple Leafs front office that has spent plenty of time weighing fit, cost and upside on the wing. Nothing has been reported officially, but the idea of adding a player with his scoring touch and room to grow is the kind of conversation Toronto will keep circling as it looks for ways to deepen its forward group. [Read more 🡒]