Darren Raddysh’s goal total hasn’t matched the splash he made a year ago, but the Maple Leafs aren’t sounding alarms.
After putting up 70 points, including 22 goals, in 73 games for Tampa last season, Raddysh arrived with the expectation that the offense would travel with him. So far, the scoring has been quieter. That hasn’t changed how the Leafs view his overall impact.
Raddysh addressed the topic after Tuesday’s morning skate at Scotiabank Arena, ahead of Toronto’s home game against the Utah Mammoth.
“Whatever you did last year, that’s in the past,” Raddysh said. “If I don’t score a goal all year and we go on a long run and win the Stanley Cup, I’m OK with that.”
The Leafs would still love more from him in the offensive zone, especially with the kind of point shot he owns. But through the early part of the 2026-27 season, the bigger story has been how well he’s handled everything else.
Much of the talk when Toronto signed Raddysh centered on his power-play production. He delivered there for Tampa, scoring 10 goals and adding 16 assists with the man advantage, and he also chipped in at five-on-five with nine goals and 23 assists last year.
This season, coach Jim Hiller says the Leafs are seeing a different kind of value from him.
“I don’t know if we expected him to be this strong defensively, playing some of those hard minutes against top players,” Hiller said. “We like his game overall.
“Our power play is pretty effective (sixth in the National Hockey League at 30%). He has been an excellent distributor, more than a shooter, on the power play so far.
Some of his best looks have been blocked in desperation plays by the opposition. I’m not necessarily concerned with that.”
Raddysh does have 35 shots on goal, which ties him for third among Leafs players, but even he admits there are moments when he could be more aggressive.
“There are times when maybe I’m passing it too much, or I do shoot it and no one’s at the net front, so that’s not a good shot for me,”Raddysh said. “I just try to keep doing doing what I do. Try to go about my business, and eventually one will fall.”
The Mammoth, of course, know exactly what can happen if he gets a clean look from the point.
“When you get caught out in a bad spot and you have to block that thing, it’s not a fun one,” Utah forward Anders Lee said. “He knows how to find that space.
“It’s not just utilizing the shot, it’s not just powerful and accurate, it’s his ability to think the game and himself in position where that shot is getting through.”
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