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Even though he was loosely linked to a potential return to Toronto late last week, at this point, it seems very unlikely that we see Mark Giordano back in the blue and white for a fourth season.
To be frank, this is less about ability – even at his age – and more about the numbers game. Even with the uncertainty surrounding Jani Hakanpaa, the math still doesn’t add up in favour of bringing back the 41-year-old. Full credit to Brad Treliving and company, the Leafs seemingly have a myriad of blue line options at their disposal entering the start of training camp next week.
On the surface, I suppose offering Giordano a PTO could make some sense. That’s as far as I would go, though —at least right now.
In the grand scheme of things, injuries do happen. And if I had to handicap things, that’s probably the likeliest pathway I see to Giordano securing another NHL job —whether it be in his backyard of Toronto, or anywhere else for that matter. Patience is a virtue.
Assuming the Leafs are done tinkering with their back end, the top three pairings are essentially spoken for. On top of that, there’s the whole Hakanpaa situation – as mentioned – to iron out as well. In a perfect world, assuming he’s well enough to play, the 32-year-old is expected to push for a bottom pairing position with the likes of Timothy Liljegren. At the very least, he projects to be Toronto’s seventh defenceman. Suffice it is to say, that would be a role earmarked for Giordano, who at this point in his career, is better served being utilized in a limited capacity. He still has game, but indisputably, deployment is everything. He can’t play big minutes anymore, nor can he play every night.
In essence, the only way you would even think about bringing Giordano back is if Hakanpaa is completely out of the picture. Right now, it doesn’t sound like that’s the case at all —according to all the big insiders, at least. Hakanpaa is expected to be present on day one of camp, and to the best of our knowledge, he’s good to go.
Mark Giordano was an awesome Leaf, but unfortunately, there’s no fit to be had right now.
