What does a successful 2025-26 season look like for Simon Benoit?

Simon Benoit was the positive surprise of the 2023-24 season for the Toronto Maple Leafs and he followed up by establishing himself firmly as the team’s No. 6 defenceman under Craig Berube’s supervision during the 2024-25 campaign. Benoit’s game took a major leap during Toronto’s road trip in March and he never looked back, culminating in a clutch overtime winner against the Ottawa Senators in Game 3 of the first round.

Benoit’s game, at its best, is predicated on simplicity. He’s tasked with clearing opponents out of the high-danger areas, getting quick exits out of the defensive zone and communicating with Oliver Ekman-Larsson during rush scenarios. It may be unrealistic to expect Benoit to maintain his post-March form, where his game took another leap, but it’s more than reasonable to expect him to cut the unforced errors out of his game during his second year with Berube behind the bench.

The goal: Continue to eradicate undisciplined penalties from his game 

Benoit is a physical defenceman who welcomes contact, and toughness is part of the reason why he was a mainstay in the lineup last year, playing in 78 regular season games and all 13 postseason games. No one wants Benoit to shy away from these elements of his game, but discipline remains the primary issue. Benoit took 22 minor penalties at 5-on-5 last season, tied for the 28th-highest total in the league. When you assess the company Benoit’s in, it’s clear that he’s taking penalties at a much greater rate than some of the star players who play greater than 17 minutes per night.

This is the goal for Benoit: continue to maintain a level of physicality that can help establish the tone for the Maple Leafs, while cutting out undisciplined penalties that are often the result of poor positioning or unnecessarily risky routes to the puck.

The expectation: Maintain his spot as the Leafs’ No. 6 defenceman while clearing opponents from net-front 

We’re not expecting a grand leap from Benoit, but the 26-year-old can still clean up certain elements of his game, and will need to continue to clear opponents out of high-danger areas. Toronto controlled only 40 percent of the expected goals when Benoit was on the ice at 5-on-5, but he sported a plus-10 goal differential as well. This may spell some regression from Benoit, and it’s incumbent upon the veteran defenceman to maintain good habits, while trying to get pucks north.

No one is expecting Benoit to enter the rush with greater frequency or start shooting pucks indiscriminately at the net, but it’s just a matter of playing a simple, mistake-free game, while snarling at his on-ice rivals. Benoit has made leaps during his tenure with the Maple Leafs, and it’ll be compelling to see if he has another half-tier left in his development.