Berube Weighs in on Troy Stecher's Debut With the Maple Leafs

The Toronto Maple Leafs have dealt with potentially more man games lost to injury this season than any other team in the NHL.

While defense was already a struggle this season, losing Chris Tanev and Brandon Carlo, the team's two most defensive-minded blueliners, left the Leafs in a precarious position and in need of an extra body on the back end.

Thankfully, the Edmonton Oilers had the answer to the Leafs' problems, as they waived defenseman Troy Stecher on Friday, leading to a Maple Leafs waiver claim on Saturday afternoon.

Leafs bench boss Craig Berube was a fan of the acquisition, and was very complimentary of Stecher before he had even played a game for the Leafs. However, until a game was played we didn't really know what Stecher would add to this group.

Following last night's win, Berube spoke with the media and had nothing but good things to say about the 31-year-old defender.

Stecher finished last night's contest with 1 shot on goal, a +1 rating and 1 hit in 13:31 of ice time in his Leafs debut, playing on the 3rd pair with fellow veteran Dakota Mermis.

The Leafs don't need Stecher to come in and steal the show. They don't need him to produce much of anything offensively. They just need him to come in and play responsible hockey and be competitive to help bridge the gap until the Leafs get one or both of Carlo and Tanev back.

For Stecher, this is a good opportunity to prove himself as an NHL defenseman. He's not pushing anyone in Toronto out of a job, but if he can give the team quality minutes and not be a defensive liability, he may find himself with a great opportunity with another NHL team if he does go back on waivers in the coming weeks.