Early State of the Union Address

So the 4-0-0 start is now a 4-1-1 start and the parade planners have now decided to hold off planning the final route. That being said, Leafs fans still have to be happy with and encouraged by the way this season has gone thus far. No one expected the Leafs to finish atop the Eastern Conference, but there was great pre-season debate as to whether this team would battle for a playoff spot. Based on what we've seen so far and as I predicted before the season started, this team is good enough to compete for one of the final three playoff spots in the East. Here's a look at some of the positives and some of the gaps that need to be filled:

1. Positives

(a) Defence

Some may say that the most impressive players thus far have been Kessel and Macarthur. With all due respect to their early season success, the most impressive player on our roster thus far has been Luke Schenn. He's playing solid defensively and, playing alongside Kaberle, he has shown some offensive flare and an ability to control and move the puck. With the sophomore jinx behind him, he has solidified his spot in the top 4 and is showing why he was a top 5 pick.

Much of Schenn's early season success can be attributed to playing with Tomas Kaberle. Kaberle seems to have put the offseason drama behind him and is playing as well as he ever has.

Kabs and Schenn have been our best two defencemen, but props have to go out to Phaneuf as well. He hasn't played exceptionally well, but for a guy with the world on his shoulders, he has been good enough and is a true leader out there. Once the Leafs figure out their powerplay, Dion will start putting up much stronger numbers.

One the downside, Komisarek hasn't looked great, but attribute much of his problems to his defensive partners. Gunnarson seems to have caught the sophomore jinx and Lebda has failed to impress. Although overpaid to be a 5-6 dman, I still think Komi is a decent player and a great character guy to have in the lineup. If Gunnar gets back into the lineup and can get back into form, I believe Komi's play will drastically improve.

Overall, the Leafs have given up an average of just over 2 goals per game over the first six games. Thus far, the defence gets at A-.

(b) Goalies

Toskala's gone and thinks were bound to get better. Neither Gus nor Jiggy have played great games, but both have made some great saves during critical moments. In particular, in the first game versus the Rangers, Jiggy made a save with 10 seconds left that saved the game (which the Leafs won in OT). Later that week, Gus made a couple of game-saving stops at the end of the Pittsburgh game.

Overall, both goalies have brought stability to the Leafs net and the team is confident that soft goals will generally not be let in. The goalies deserve just as much credit as the D for the low goals against. They get an A- as well.

(c) Forwards

There was a lot of concern as to whether this team was capable of scoring. Notwithstanding 5 goals from each of Kessel and Macarthur, with the rest of the team combining for 8 goals, there is sill some cause for concern here; but also a reason to be optimistic.

First off, the positive - Kessel is playing as well as he ever has and with 5 goals in 6 games, he's likely to hit the 40 to 50 goal mark. With Macarthur's 5 goals, he's shown what he's capable of but he also has a reputation of being a streaky scorer. He will not match Kessel's pace, but for a second line winger with 5 goals thus far, he should be able to crack 20 goals - and for a $1.1m signing, that's more than what we could have hoped for.

Versteeg was brought in to score goals and, although he only has one thus far, he has had his opportunities. It's only a matter of time before he starts popping them in and 25 to 30 goals from this guy is a reasonable expectation.

Bozak has been relatively quiet, but he has not played poorly. It's yet to be determined whether he's a legit first line centre, but it's early in the season. Lets see where he stands after 20 games before making any rash decisions.

Kulemin and Grabo both have 4 pts through 6 games and have played well. Both are skating hard and controlling the puck down low. Along with Macarthur, they've been a solid second line.

The bottom 6 have done their job. The early season hype surrounding Tim Brent has died down and I still think Christian Hanson would be far more valuable in this slot, with Sjostrom and Armstrong on his wings.

Brown has been a solid addition to the 4th line, Zigomanis has been great on faceoffs and Orr has done his job thus far.

Thererfore, the offence gets a B thus far. There's still much room for improvement, but they've skated hard (for the most part) and shown they are capable of putting pucks in the net.

Overall, I give the Leafs a B+ thus far. They've won four games and salvaged a point against the Isles, but they haven't been a dominant team. This is a team that must keep its legs moving for 82 games if it wants a playoff spot.

I still think that, before the season ends, Christian Hanson and Luca Caputi need to be added to this lineup. If those guys crack the lineup and play up to expectations, then not only will the Leafs be a playoff team, but they'll be able to contend when they get here. Fast, rough and tough wins playoff games and that's exactly what this team is.