But if that door to the top six ever opens, Kase could bust right through and be a pleasant surprise for Leafs Nation. Bunting, at least, is also off to a fast start with the Leafs. "I think he's going to challenge some of our guys in the top six," Keefe said.įor that to happen, you'd think Kase would need to move to the left wing and bump either Ritchie or Bunting from their top-six roles. This follows an interesting quote in the pre-season about the player. When Keefe was asked about Pierre Engvall's impact - Toronto's first goal scorer of the season - after the Leafs' first game, the coach also mentioned Kase, unprompted, as a standout performer. And he's done that with only third-line minutes. But after two games, who is Toronto's leader in 5-on-5 shots and scoring chances? Why, Kase, of course. As a right winger, he has to play behind Marner and William Nylander. Kase has started on Toronto's third line.
Now with the Leafs, he has another opportunity to break out and, as long as he's healthy, the conditions might be perfect. Injuries have slowed Kase, though, and a concussion limited him to just three games for the Bruins last season. Kase played six games for them until the pandemic forced a pause - in the playoffs he suited up 11 times and led the Bruins with four primary assists at 5-on-5. In 2019-20, the Boston Bruins recognized this potential and evaluated it was worth spending a first-round pick on to acquire at the trade deadline. In Kase's first three years in the league, he wasn't getting top-line minutes with the Anaheim Ducks, but his 5-on-5 goal production indicated the potential to be an impact player with an expanded role. Turning 26 next month, Kase has been around as long as Ritchie, and flashed the same breakout potential (or more) as Bunting. Ritchie is the seemingly perfect big-body complement to those two who will replace Zach Hyman's sandpaper and, perhaps, has 20-goal upside (he scored 15 times in 56 games with the Bruins last season).īut it's Ondrej Kase who could possibly have the greatest upside here. Auston Matthews will slide in there when he returns. He'll turn 26 in December and starts with the cushy spot on Line 1 with Mitch Marner and (for now) John Tavares. Nick Ritchie has much more of a track record, with six NHL seasons under his belt. Bunting has played so few games that he's actually still a rookie now and potential Calder candidate. Michael Bunting is a 26-year-old breakout candidate after we saw him put up 10 goals in a 21-game "rookie" season with the Arizona Coyotes in 2020-21. The Toronto Maple Leafs spent the summer at the bargain bin, searching for affordable talent to surround their big-money stars with.
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