If you take a cursory glance at the Toronto Maple Leafs’ offensive leaders through the opening week, a few things will certainly catch your eye. Max Domi leads the three with three points in all situations, but what really stood out to me is how Oliver Ekman-Larsson leads the team with nine shots at 5-on-5 (T19th in the NHL prior to Tuesday’s games) while ranking second in all situations behind Auston Matthews, who hasn’t converted yet on 15 shots on goal.
Ekman-Larsson’s offensive inventiveness has really stood out during the first three games of the season and it’s provided a new wrinkle for the Maple Leafs’ defence corps that was badly needed. Although Toronto led the NHL in 5-on-5 goals last season, it received the fewest contributions from defencemen of any team in the NHL, feeding into the ideology that the Maple Leafs are a top-heavy team that lacks secondary scoring. He’s produced one assist through three games, but Ekman-Larsson is building great habits for a Maple Leafs team that needs more scoring from their blue line beyond Morgan Rielly’s offence, and it appears to be paying dividends, as he’s line to quarterback the team’s first power play unit ahead of Wednesday’s contest against the Los Angeles Kings.
What stands out immediately about Ekman-Larsson is that he doesn’t hesitate to attack the net. During the opening night loss against the Montreal Canadiens, Ekman-Larsson comes crashing down from the point to attack the back post and calls for the puck, as Mitch Marner surveys the ice before whipping in a cutting pass.
OEL: I’m a forward now! pic.twitter.com/dpwghNNfqC
— Omar (@TicTacTOmar) October 9, 2024
Ekman-Larsson was unlucky to convert on that sequence — as were the Maple Leafs overall, as Montreal’s Sam Montembeault balled out in a 48-save shutout — but it’s the intent that matters, the goals will come and we’re dealing with small samples here. During the second period against the Canadiens, Ekman-Larsson wired a shot off the post and no one could get to the rebound.
Most people will remember Ekman-Larsson’s ill-fated breakaway attempt, where he simply didn’t realize how much time he had, and fired off a harmless wrist shot during Toronto’s best chance of the night. It was a tough outcome for Ekman-Larsson, sprung alone after coming out of the penalty box and a frustrating sequence, but he largely did a ton of things well for the Maple Leafs, on a night where they deserved more than a few goals.
Ekman-Larsson isn’t hesitating to shoot, and he’s not shooting merely for the sake of it, there seems to be a direct intention to draw rebounds for his teammates. In this third-period sequence against the Canadiens, William Nylander dishes the puck off to Ekman-Larsson, who immediately fires it towards John Tavares for a high-danger chance in the slot. It was of no avail, but the idea was clever and will portend better results.
Nylander to OEL to Tavares pic.twitter.com/ytgCgoiQn8
— Omar (@TicTacTOmar) October 10, 2024
Here’s another sequence from Ekman-Larsson, this time against the Pittsburgh Penguins during the home opener, where he tries to catch the opponent off guard in transition, feeds Matthew Knies, who then finds a cutting Matthews for a golden chance in the first period.
“He was always one of those guys that could really sift that puck through and get it through all the time,” Berube said on Monday via The Hockey News. “We like that he’s looking to shoot a lot too, which is good. He had a bunch of shots and a bunch of attempts last game.”
Ekman-Larsson has earned a promotion to the team’s power play unit, which has been a source of frustration after a 0-for-9 start through three games.
“He’s run power plays for a long time in Arizona and stuff,” Berube said post-game Saturday, when asked about what stands out about Ekman-Larsson on the man advantage. “Shoots the puck from the point. He establishes that shot. Pretty fluid at walking the line and seeing the ice.”
Ekman-Larsson is Toronto’s most-used player, averaging 22:07 in ice time, while the Maple Leafs boast a plus-14 shot differential when he’s on the ice. The 33-year-old has produced an 68.7 percent share of the expected goals at 5-on-5 — which can be manipulated in a small sample, but it’s indicative of where he’s trying to attack the ice — and he may operate as the team’s true power play quarterback, which should pay dividends, if only to give Rielly some rest as the year continues.
It’s still early of course, but Ekman-Larsson is already showing that his stellar results against bottom-six competition for the Florida Panthers are translating in all situations for the Maple Leafs. It’s a much-needed wrinkle for the team and it seems apparent that his role may expand while he’s in excellent form to begin the year.
