Chris Tanev is the type of defenceman the Toronto Maple Leafs have been chasing for years, and last summer, they finally landed him.
While the Maple Leafs’ struggles have been attributed to an array of issues, whether that be lack of goal scoring in timely moments, or the need for a goaltender they can rely on, the lack of a strong, shutdown, right-handed presence on the back end has been at the top of the list for the past decade. And despite the fact that Tanev was 34 and had durability concerns when the Maple Leafs acquired him, he made his impact on the defensive corps known almost immediately. What’s funny about this is that the primary need for a right-handed shutdown guy stemmed from needing somebody to play with Morgan Rielly. He started the season with Rielly, the two looked good together, and it seemed like the issue was finally solved. That is, until head coach Craig Berube unearthed what was a dream shutdown pairing with Tanev and Jake McCabe.
The Leafs ended up finding a shutdown partner for Rielly anyway, with the acquisition of Brandon Carlo from the Boston Bruins at the trade deadline, and it’s a good thing that they did because as much as Rielly needed that partner, the McCabe/Tanev pairing was almost too good to be true for the Maple Leafs. Those two ate up more minutes on the penalty kill than anyone else by a long shot, and despite the durability concerns that came with Tanev’s acquisition, he blocked more shots than the next Leaf by a large margin. He finished the season with 189, with McCabe finishing in second on the team with 135. For a team with as blue-collar a fanbase as the Maple Leafs, Tanev appealed to the fans immediately and became a fan favourite for his willingness to throw himself in front of pucks for the betterment of the team. Combine this with his ability to execute a clean breakout pass, and you can see why he was coveted by the team for so long.
Heading into the 2025-26 season, Tanev’s age and durability will need to be monitored and taken into consideration if he ends up suffering any sort of injury or his play dips for whatever reason. However, it’s worth noting that his durability concerns have been somewhat overblown. He played 75 games both last season and the year before, and while he missed some time with injuries the year before that, he had a full 82-game season in 2021-22. Most of his major injury issues came earlier in his career, more specifically while he was with the Vancouver Canucks, so it’s not something that should be taken as a legitimate concern. That said, at age 35, he could very well be prone to injury the longer he plays and the more wear-and-tear his body amasses, so it’s something the team will need to continue to monitor.
The Goal: Stay healthy and help lead team to a Cup
Let’s be real – at this stage of Tanev’s career, any goal he has is team-centric and not related to any personal desires. If he blocks shots at the rate he did in 2024-25, there’s a good chance the Leafs are in a good position and he can say he’s doing his part. It’s not too much of a stretch to say he’s the Maple Leafs’ best defenceman, and if he goes down, the team will struggle without him. Staying healthy and helping bring a Cup home should be the only thing on his mind this season.
The expectation: Lead the team in blocked shots
When you lead your team in blocked shots by a margin of over 50, the expectation is that you’ll do it again, even if it’s not by that many shots. Still, considering how many minutes he logs on the penalty kill and the fearless style of play he has, it’s a safe thing to assume he’ll do it again in 2025-26.
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