Where will the real toughness up front come from for the Leafs when things get difficult?

It would be hard to argue that Brian Burke has not pretty effectively re-vamped the Maple Leaf roster in his now three plus years in charge.  Or that he has done anything but made it more skillful and certainly faster while also  developing significant depth at all positions throughout the organization- on and off the ice.

Against many teams this season, the Leafs have demonstrated that they can play and compete very well—and win more often than not.  And I well realize that given the current lofty status in the Eastern Conference standings, the easiest thing when talking about the team is to simply focus on how much better they are than they were five years ago, or even two seasons ago.  But having watched this franchise for so long, and seen how little it takes to create near euphoria when they win a few games (or a particular guy plays well for a while) my antenna goes up when things seem, well, better than perhaps they really are.

I take nothing away from what the Leafs have achieved in the first third of the current NHL season.  It has been well-earned, especially overcoming an injury to their number-one goaltender as they have.

For me, though,  the “hold-up” may be that, come spring, when the games are less free-wheeling and more of a grind, I’m not quite sure if the Leafs are built to sustain their modest early-season success.

Burke has made it clear in the past that he has little interest in building a team simply to make the playoffs and then be gone after a quick 'four and out'.  He wants (as Leaf fans want) a team that the city will enjoy watching all season long- and then will be tough to play against come playoff-time.

So yes, it has been tremendous to see Lupul and Kessel bond.  It's been a pleasure to witness what Connolly can do with the puck.  And I have marvelled at how Jake Gardiner has not only proven me wrong (for those who have not been here before, I had often opined early this season that I would like to see him develop with the Marlies and get lots of ice time, since the Leafs have plenty of other NHL-ready defensemen available like Franson and Aulie) with his calm on-ice demeanour and obvious skill, but some nights is actually playing more minutes than even Phaneuf on the Leaf blueline.

And, of course, we have Reimer in goal while we wait for Grabovski and Kulemin to regain the form that made them one of the better forward combinations in the NHL just a season ago.  Our agitator (Armstrong) is ready to return to the line-up.  There are youngsters aplenty like Frattin, Colborne and Kadri ready to make an impact as they develop and find their way at this level.

And when Mike Brown is healthy, he provides energy and physicality beyond just being able to fight.  Orr and Rosehill have that role too, though Brown provides more minutes and some shot-blocking willingness, too.

My thought, though, is this: beyond the trio I just mentioned, and yes, Joey Crabb, where does the Leaf front-line toughness come from come playoff time?

Yes, we have some of that on the backline.  Schenn can take people out of the play with authority.  Phaneuf does too, at times, though I’ve never thought he was quite as consistently “tough” as his reputation.  (He’s certainly not a fighter, and while he does provide the occasional big hit, like the one recently at Madison Square Garden, I don’t know that he is feared.  I'm guessing some of you will tell me that I am wrong on this one...).  Komisarek can play tough, though again I’m not sure he causes opposing teams to worry about him when they are about to face the blue and white.

But up front, who will crash the net come April?  Who will win the battles in the corner and in front of each net?  Who will have the size and the determination to win those crucial one-on-one battles more often than not—when each battle means puck possession and a possible scoring chance come playoff time?

Who will deliver the crunching, big-time hits?

Right now, I see a team that has speed (when the opposition doesn’t get on top of the Leafs and therefore lets them wheel…) and can make sweet passes and cause problems for their opponent in quick transition.  And, when they are firing on all cylinders, they can surely be a handful for the run-of-the-mill competition they often face in the Eastern Conference.  (We shouldn’t kid ourselves, the Florida Panthers are near the top of the standings and that’s not a typo…)

I know we have all over-used terms like truculence, belligerence, etc. since the early days of the Burke regime.  But frankly I don’t much care what we call it.  Come playoff time, it’s never about fighting.  It’s about having the strength—and the will—to win battles all over the ice.  Every inch matters.  By the time you get to the “final four” every year, the teams that are remaining not only have speed and skill, but resilience, grit and a brand of toughness that is way beyond the ordinary.

And right now, I see a Leaf team that, when things are rolling their way, are pretty good in a lot of areas.  They come from behind, they can score goals and make plays.  They can win games with their goaltending, too.

But when space dries up starting in March (and through to June, when the playoffs end), it’s inevitably a different game.  When I think of really good teams in the past, I think of players and lines who were really hard to play against.  Jarvis, Gainey and Roberts in Montreal, Tikkanen’s line in Edmonton.  Claude Lemieux with various teams, including New Jersey and Colorado.  Draper, McCarthy and Matlby in Detroit, more recently.

Wingers like Kevin Dineen and Pat Verbeek were tremendous all-around players in their day.  And of course, Gary Roberts always comes to mind when we're having this conversation.

But it's a a fair question, I think.  Who will win the physical battles for Toronto come spring?  Connolly?  Bozak or Kessel?  No, that’s not their “job”, but it is someone’s job, isn't it?

I doubt Rosehill or Orr will play in the playoffs.  We will likely need more than Mike Brown and Armstrong to provide grit—that much is certain.

Will the Leafs have what it takes?

Right now, I’m not sure they do.  I could well be wrong, but I just don’t see that in their game—yet.

Your thoughts?