It's customary for the Toronto Maple Leafs to honor former players making their return to Scotiabank Arena and it was no different for Detroit Red Wings defenseman Justin Holl, who the Maple Leafs acknowledged during the first television timeout on Sunday.
Holl was one of the more polarizing defensemen during his tenure in Toronto. Initially signed to an AHL-only contract by the Toronto Marlies, Holl worked his way to becoming somewhat of an everyday player with the Maple Leafs. During the 2021 season, he became a mainstay on the team's second pair of defense, but at times would struggle in the playoffs. He bounced up and down the lineup during his last couple of seasons. He also became a symbol (fairly or unfairly) of what the Maple Leafs lost when Toronto elected to protect the defenseman during the 2021 NHL Expansion Draft.
Instead of protecting newly-acquired forward Jared McCann and going with the seven forwards and three defenseman protection approach, Toronto opted to protect four defensemen and four forwards. McCann, who had just been acquired in a trade with the Pittsburgh Penguins just a day before the Draft, was lost to the Seattle Kraken, where he led the team with 50 points. He also recorded 40 goals in his second season with Seattle.
Holl became the target of a lot of social media discourse and it appears Mitch Marner noticed.
"I think he got a lot of hate (from fans) not deserved," Marner said on Sunday when asked about the acknowledgement for Holl. "I think he was a very good player for us. Things that a lot of players really don’t like and that’s sacrificing your body for plays, hits. Made some big plays. It was good to hear the fans give him some love. He deserves it"
The 31-year-oll Holl signed a three-year, $10.2 million contract with the Red Wings in the summer. His season got off to a solid start and at one point he was the NHL's early leader in plus-minus.
That has since come back down to earth.
Holl, has been in and out of the lineup this season for Detroit. He has five assists in 29 games and helped Detroit defeat Toronto 4-2 at Scotiabank Arena on Sunday. The Minnesota native had returned to Scotiabank Arena for a pre-season game, but this was the first meaningful game where Holl returned to his former home
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