TORONTO

Nazem Kadri says his once scrawny body is catching up with his age, which is a good sign turning 25 on the eve of your fourth regular-season opener.

Kadri, perhaps in line for a higher-profile role at centre, looked sturdy on Monday during an informal team workout. Last year he was listed at six feet, 188 pounds, but what everyone wants to know, from club boss Brendan Shanahan, to new coach Mike Babcock to the patience-weary patrons in the purples, is will his maturity level keep a better pace? Babcock has said he expects Kadri to be "an elite player" this year.

"There was no playing around this summer, it was right to work," Kadri said. "I was just trying to improve on my weaknesses. I want to continue to start doing that, becoming more professional and kind of handling myself the right away.

"There have been ups and downs and that's just how it is. Obviously in Toronto there is a lot of speculation and a lot of scrutiny. Sometimes that's hard for young players, but as time goes on, the maturity comes into play. You start to realize this is what you really want."

After protracted talks, the RFA did get a million-dollar raise up to $4.1 million US, but not the multi-year pact he had been negotiating at mid-season.

Given his disciplinary issues in the second half of last season, separate suspensions by the team for off-ice matters and by the NHL for reckless play, he didn't exactly help his cause. His 39 points were below the career numbers the former No. 1 pick posted in 2013-14.

He's in the same boat with many other Leafs, on one-year deals with a limited window to show Babcock they can contribute. Babcock will be Kadri's fourth Leafs coach and each mentor has found reason to offer praise, but also needed to push him to do better. With training camp two weeks away, Kadri insists he's ready to show Babcock he can be trusted.

"This off-season has been my best. Physically, it has been easier. My body is catching up with me and it's easier to get stronger and I can work on those areas that I have to, a lot of explosive movements, agility, a lot of footwork. I'm continually working on speed and obviously strength. I think my lower body is a whole different ball game. I've become stronger and that's what you need to keep up with all the best players."

Gardiner firmly planted

Defenceman Jake Gardiner took part in his first summer workout on Monday after arriving from a busy training session of his own.

It included a quick visit to Halifax and the facility run by Andy O'Brien. O'Brien has worked with Sidney Crosby and John Tavares and the Pittsburgh Penguins thought enough of O'Brien to hire him as director of sport science and performance. The Pens lost 343 man-games to injury last season and are fourth in the NHL in that unflattering category since 2009-10.

"I played in the world championships (for Team USA), then trained with Andy, then trained in Minnesota," said Gardiner. "It should be a good year. I'm ready to step up and be one of the leaders on the team now."

Like Kadri and other Leafs, Gardiner was shocked by the sweeping changes around the ACC as the summer went on.

"I expected a few -- and obviously they're pretty drastic," Gardiner said. "There are a lot of new faces. The first couple of weeks will be important just to get to know everybody. I'm excited for it.

"I've talked to (Babcock) maybe four or five times, checking in, just getting to know him. I'm sure it's going to be a lot different. I don't know if it will be the same way Detroit played or not. I can't imagine it would be, because we have different personnel. So we'll see."

Will Lou lift Leafs?

No one is sure how much of a voice Lou Lamoriello will have in a hockey department featuring three strong-willed individuals in himself, Babcock and Shanahan. As general manager in New Jersey for 28 years, Lamoriello ran his own show, while Babcock is firmly in command behind the bench and Shanahan doesn't intend to be on the periphery as president during this rebuild.

Former Devils defenceman Ken Daneyko wrote a piece for The Players Tribune underlining what Lamoriello brought to the table of their downtrodden team when he first arrived in the late 1980s.

"One of the biggest things I've learned about Lou over the years is that there's always a method to his madness," Daneyko said. "It's not always apparent at the time, but it all makes sense once you see the big picture."

Daneyko mentioned how the Devils were at their nadir when Lamoriello arrived from Providence College, having been branded a "Mickey Mouse" outfit by Wayne Gretzky.

"Right away he had a vision of not only the type of hockey we needed to play, but also the type of men we needed to be in order to play it. He wanted to make us tougher. Remember, this was when Philadelphia's Broad Street Bullies and Boston's Big Bad Bruins were terrorizing the league.

"I've never told anyone this, but during the second game of Lou's tenure, we were in Toronto, and they were really giving it to us (in a 5-2 loss). One of Lou's biggest frustrations wasn't just that we weren't all that good, but that we'd get beat up and pushed around too much. In general, we didn't carry ourselves in a way that demanded respect.

"At some point, Claude Loiselle received an elbow to the head by Wendel Clark, It looked bad, and Claude was woozy coming to bench."

On Daneyko's next shift, he challenged Clark to a fight. He reckons it was a draw with the hard-punching Leafs winger.

"Afterwards Lou came up to me and stuck his hand out to shake mine, and I noticed he was gripping a couple of $100 bills. My eyes kind of widened and I looked at him seriously and said, 'What's this for'?

He goes, 'I like what you did tonight. You stuck up for a teammate. Now take this and get yourself something nice. I said, 'That's not necessary, this is my job'.

"Then Lou got a little hot, looked me in my eye and said (minus the expletives), 'I want this team to understand that we're in this together, thick and thin, on and off the ice. Read between the lines!'"

"I don't remember every detail of my career, but I'll never forget that moment."

Loose Leafs

Bruce Peter has been hired as the fourth member of the Leafs hockey research and development department (analytics). Peter was formerly with the Saskatoon Blades, the first WHL junior team to hire an analytics specialist ... Among the most recent arrivals for the summer skates is 6-foot-4 Slovak defenceman Martin Marincin, acquired in an early summer trade with Edmonton. The second-round pick of the Oilers in 2010 played 41 games last year ... The team has established Club Maple Leafs for pre-teens to "create an early love for the game and foster the next generation of Leaf fans." Details are at mapleleafs.com/clubmapleleafs.

lance.hornby@sunmedia.ca