This is an Original Six team trying to get over the hump. “It’s more about the seven-day grind of running D into the boards, getting in people’s faces,” Reaves added. Fighting usually dries up in playoffs, so teams have to think outside the boxing. Toronto has struggled in that area, losing so many post-season series, until beating Tampa Bay, then losing to Florida. You need a couple up and down who can run around, intimidate the D and add that intensity to the series.” “For a deep playoff run, you need grit through the lineup, you just can’t have one guy. I just felt on the ice, in our room and around our team, talking to the staff, we need a bit more noise.” “It’s not about fighting and the rest of it. “I remember (Reaves’ previous GM in Minnesota) Billy Guerin told me you need character on your team - and some characters,” Treliving said. Last season with the Wild and New York Rangers, he put up five goals and 10 assists in 73 games. Reaves is a 6-foot-2, 225-pound larger-than-life personality, a Manitoba native who ranks eighth among active NHLers in penalty minutes. “(But) there were certain levels we could go to, notwithstanding other business (signing Auston Matthews and William Nylander to extensions and retaining restricted free agent goalie Ilya Samsonov).” “We had some goals walk out the door today,” Treliving admitted.

While praising Dubas’ work at last year’s trade deadline that netted all of the above but Bunting, Treliving was bequeathed scant financial resources to sign new players. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.

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Wild thing you make my heart sing sign