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Size Matters for the Maple Leafs: New Leaf Dakota Joshua Backs Craig Berube's Vision for the Team
Photo credit: David Kirouac-Imagn Images
The Leafs are built to be the NHL's most physical team, but Dakota Joshua says size alone won't do it; the challenge is using it every shift.
With Craig Berube's stamp now fully visible on the Toronto Maple Leafs, last week's revelation that they're officially the heaviest team in the NHL made headlines. But, as any fan knows, being the biggest doesn't automatically make you the toughest.
The Toronto Maple Leafs Now Value Size More Than Ever
Offseason addition Dakota Joshua echoed that exact sentiment, and he's right.
"If everyone's playing to their capability, we should wear teams down and grind the other teams down in a full 60-minute game if everyone's doing their job... You've got to use it to your advantage and make sure you're using it the right way." -Dakota Joshua on the Leafs using their size and strength properly
Maple Leafs fans have seen it before. Take Pierre Engvall, for example: standing 6'6" and weighing just about 210 pounds, he rarely used his size to his advantage.
Had he done so, there's a good chance he'd still be in Toronto, especially under Berube, who values physical, punishing play and heavy hockey as much as any coach in the league.
For Leafs Nation, this shift is a breath of fresh air. After years of being outmuscled and outworked in the playoffs, Toronto finally has a management group and head coach who put a premium on grit and physicality.
Of course, size alone isn't everything; championship teams need elite skill too, but when you blend the two, you become nearly unbeatable, as we've seen over the past two years with the Florida Panthers.
That's the blueprint Berube is building toward, and the early signs are promising. The Leafs were the only team to take Florida to seven games this past spring, and while moral victories don't mean much, that series proved one thing: Toronto isn't an easy out anymore.
If this trend continues, they'll be even harder to play against this season and for many more to come.
| POLL | ||
OCTOBRE 11 | 627 ANSWERS Size Matters for the Maple Leafs: New Leaf Dakota Joshua Backs Craig Berube's Vision for the Team Do you think the Maple Leafs are going to be a harder out in the playoffs for whoever they match up against? | ||
| Yes | 376 | 60 % |
| No | 251 | 40 % |
| List of polls | ||
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