The Toronto Maple Leafs open their 2018-19 training camp with medical examinations on Thursday and three days of drills and scrimmages in Niagara Falls, ON, and while the main focus will be on new addition John Tavares or the ongoing negotiations with restricted free agent William Nylander, head coach Mike Babcock will be concentrating on decisions regarding the makeup of the club’s 23-man roster.
The Leafs are expected to have three position battles during camp. Curtis McElhinney will contend with Calvin Pickard and Calder Cup winner and AHL Goaltender of the Year Garret Sparks for the #2 spot behind Frederik Andersen; blueliners Connor Carrick, Calle Rosen, Andreas Borgman, Justin Holl, Martin Marincin and KHL import Igor Ozhiganov will compete for the bottom pairing spot vacated by Roman Polak; and the fourth line center behind Tavares, Auston Matthews and Nazem Kadri is open.
Fourth line center has been the bête noire of Babcock for the last two seasons. After veterans Ben Smith, Eric Fehr and Dominic Moore failed to provide the level of play he was looking for, the Leafs made two deadline trades giving up second round picks for rentals Brian Boyle and Tomas Plekanec to upgrade the position.
Toronto also looked to address the position with European free agents. Miro Aaltonen was brought in to challenge for the job last summer, but was cut, played the entire season with the Toronto Marlies and re-signed with a KHL club in late June.
The club is going that route once again, signing 26-year-old SHL veteran Par Lindholm while also adding NHL journeymen Adam Cracknell and Josh Jooris this offseason.
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Another player in the mix last year was Frederik Gauthier. Toronto’s first round pick in 2013, Gauthier has played 37 NHL games split over three seasons. When given an opportunity to take the job last January, the 23-year-old scored only one goal in nine games, but more importantly won less than 50% on faceoffs and failed to use his size (6’5” 232 lb) to create problems for the opposition.
Keeping up with the pace has long been a limiting factor in Gauthier’s future prospects. His skating improved working with Leafs consultant Barb Underhill over the years, but a leg injury in the second round of the 2017 Calder Cup Playoffs was a setback.
“Everything is faster (in the NHL), you have to keep moving your feet, you have to keep working hard, you’ve got to be there every night.” Gauthier said at the Leafs practice facility on Tuesday. “Last year I didn’t get a chance (to give my best effort), because I was injured all camp. I’m just going to come here, play my game and bring everything I got.”
Fee-fi-phenomenal!
— Toronto Marlies (@TorontoMarlies) May 6, 2018
Frederik Gauthier with a ridiculous shot to give the #Marlies a 2-1 win in double overtime.#MarliesLive #ThisIsMore pic.twitter.com/Tx3pp1UE1u
After his demotion, “The Goat” finished the AHL season with a career-high seven goals and tied his career-best 18 points in 57 games. He was a key contributor to the Marlies Calder Cup-winning effort, scoring eight points (2 goals, 6 assists) in 20 games and played in a checking role on the club's "Jumbo line" with veteran Colin Greening and rookie Pierre Engvall.
“Every team (Gauthier) plays for seems to win. And he’ll tell you that, too, if you really get to know him.” Leafs GM Kyle Dubas said to TSN’s Bob McKenzie last week. “He is awesome. I’ve really enjoyed my time getting to know Freddy.”
While having a fan in Dubas (who signed him to a two-year contract extension this summer) could help, Gauthier has no waiver exemption remaining, which means his future in Toronto may rest on his ability to step up and give Babcock what he is looking for from a fourth line center.