Maple Leafs' Zach Aston-Reese Making Case for Playoffs Roster Even With Possible Arrival of Matthew Knies

Indeed, the Leafs added three new forwards in Ryan O'Reilly, Noel Acciari, Sam Lafferty and three new defensemen in Jake McCabe, Erik Gustafsson and Luke Schenn. Aston-Reese, who joined the Maple Leafs in September on a professional tryout before signing a one-year, $840,630 deal, used the time to work on his game with the skills and development staff to work on some weaknesses.

"I don't know if there's a stigma that you suck when you're a healthy scratch but it's not always the worst thing, especially here," Aston-Reese said. "I think you look here and every time a guy sits out and gets healthy-scratched and they come back here they're playing with a lot of confidence. I know the few times I've been healthy-scratched and I've come back I've either scored or got a point. With the amount of skill work here, they don't give you a chance to get rusty."

One of the messages hammered home to Aston-Reese was to be more physical. He had worked with assistant coach Manny Malhotra on finding that balance in his game. Lately, it appears he has found that mix. 

A finger injury to O'Reilly opened the door for Aston-Reese to return to the lineup and he seems poised to stay there. On Wednesday, Aston-Reese scored twice to pick up his career-high 10th goal of the season in a 4-2 win against the Columbus Blue Jackets. 

"He’s scoring the right kinds of goals for a guy like him," Keefe said of Aston-Reese's game of late. "He’s not cheating for offense. He’s not getting odd-man rushes or anything like this. He’s working for it. He’s around the net, whether it’s pucks hitting him or he’s tipping it. He’s finding pucks in the slots. It’s all coming from a really good process of working hard, being above the puck and being physical all while giving up nothing defensively."

With O'Reilly set to return against the Boston Bruins, Aston-Reese will stay in the lineup due to his improved play and established chemistry with center David Kampf. 

But Where does this leave Matthew Knies?

Toronto's second-round pick (53rd overall) in the 2021 NHL Draft, Matthew Knies' collegiate season will end either after Thursday or Saturday depending on how far his University of Minnesota Golden Gophers get in the Frozen Four. Should the Arizona native sign with the Leafs, he'd be able to join the teams for a handful of regular season games.

But is he good enough to be in the playoffs with a fully healthy roster? That's the difficult question here. Jumping from college hockey to the NHL this late into the season on a top team will be difficult. If there are injuries, Knies can certainly be thrust into action for the playoffs. But is it likely he'd be able to beat out any of the 12 forwards (or 11 if they go that route) on their current roster?

The skilled power forward is a finalist for the Hobey Baker Award and has been lauded for his sharp hockey IQ. He could very well be Toronto's top-six forward of the future but the Leafs are about right now and it's not clear if he has the foot speed necessary to stick without more development.

And if Knies isn't good enough to beat anyone else, are the NHL playoffs the right time to develop? Nick Robertson debuted for the Maple Leafs in the 2020 playoffs, but those were exceptional circumstances where nobody had been playing hockey until the summer due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Given the way things have been going, Aston-Reese has made himself a must for the playoffs. The Maple Leafs wanted a different look for their fourth line after last year's playoff series loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning and he is bringing that combination of physical edge with a scoring touch they have been searching for at just the right time.

"I know they expect me to be physical and finish hits. And it doesn’t have to be blowing up guys every night but just being stiff and aggressive on the puck and getting in front of guys," Aston Reese said. "Hitting guys, I think I’ve been doing that well lately, I’ve been moving my feet and skating and I think all that stuff is just tying into the production right now.