TORONTO, ON - March 31 In the second period, Toronto Maple Leafs defenseman Jake Gardiner (51) complains to referee for being called for cross-checking. The Toronto Maple Leafs took on the Winnipeg Jets at the Air Canada Centre in NHL hockey action. March 31, 2018 (Richard Lautens/Toronto Star via Getty Images)

Jake Gardiner plays for the Toronto Maple Leafs and, honestly, that is a good thing.

When it comes to players that fans of the Toronto Maple Leafs love to criticize, there is no greater target than Jake Gardiner. For as long as he has been a member of the Blue and White, Gardiner has been regularly scrutinized for his play, which is baffling.

It is true that he makes a bunch of high-risk plays (which can lead to turnovers), but he has long been one of the team’s most dependable defenders, especially since Mike Babcock arrived. There have been low-points during his time in Toronto, but he’s mostly had a positive impact. The fact is, all high risk/ high reward defenseman can give their coaches and fans fits, but in the aggregate, the giveaways don’t matter when a player has a positive differential in every major stat catagory (shot-attempts, scoring chances, shots and goals against).

Fresh off a career year, Gardiner is smack dab in the middle of his prime and will once again play a pivotal role on the Leafs blueline. This is a comforting thought considering how lacklustre the defence would be if he wasn’t there.

Let’s take a look at why Gardiner deserves some more love.

Solid numbers all around

As previously stated, Gardiner is coming off his best season statistically. It goes without saying that the numbers don’t lie regarding the 28-year-old.

He registered 14 powerplay assists, 33 even strength assists, and 52 points (one of only two Leafs defenseman last year to reach the mark). He also posted a 50.7% Corsi-for (5v5), a 42% SThr, and was on the ice for only 2.4 GA/60.

Going further, this SKATR chart shows Gardiner matches up well with John Carlson, who is fresh off of a massive new contract. That also holds true in this Player Traits Tool chart and this Player Similarity chart shows his comparables are some of the best in the league.

Of the 16 players who scored over 50 points last year from the blueline, most lack Gardiner’s defensive impacts, which is sort of ironic given his reputation.

It seems clear that Gardiner has blossomed into one of the better defenders in the NHL and his numbers reflect his importance to the Toronto Maple Leafs. So then, why is he still prone to criticism? He’s a whipping boy left over from a bad era and many fans seem reluctant to admit they were wrong about him.

Giveaways

If you watch Gardiner play, you tend to notice how good of both a skater and puck handler he is a majority of the time. There are instances, however, where these strengths become his weakness and when they do, they are very noticeable. But giveways that lead to goals end up on highlights packages and sometimes they are the only thing people see. This gives them more weight then they actually deserve, and leads to a confirmation bias effect whereby people are able to confirm their predetermined ideas. What you don’t see in the highlights packages is that clean zone exists, the crisp breakout passes and the fact that the Leafs play less defense and have the puck more when he plays.

One of Gardiner’s biggest flaws is that he turns the puck over a lot, which is not only observable by the eyes, but on the stat sheet, too. Last season alone he registered 105 giveaways and has a career average of roughly 80 per season. This might seem bad on the surface, but it’s a trait common to all puck moving defenseman – the exact kind that teams prioritize having. The NHL has changed and its no longer unusual for teams to have four or five puck-moving, fast skating defenseman whereas, ten years ago, they’d have had only one or two.

He has built an unfortunate reputation of sometimes giving the puck over to the other team, which sometimes leads to goals. But that’s just it: it happens sometimes . Larry Murphy, Brian McCabe……Jake Gardiner. Toronto Maple Leafs fans have a type when they choose an unwarranted whipping boy – that is undeniable.

He deserves some love

Gardiner is one of the better defensemen in the league today and the Leafs would be in a tough spot without him. Sure he makes some mistakes on occasion, but he is nearly unstoppable when on his game.

Let’s not kid ourselves here, Gardiner didn’t have a great showing in Game 7 in last spring’s playoffs and it’s unfortunate it happened at the worst possible time. Even he admitted it was tough recovering from the aftermath of that game as per Chris Johnston of Sportsnet.

There is a distinct possibility that Gardiner’s time in Toronto may be coming to a conclusion because he has only one year left on a team-friendly deal as per CapFriendly. This isn’t because the Toronto Maple Leafs won’t want him, but possibly due to the fact the team is due for a cap crunch soon.

He could get re-signed for a reasonable amount in the coming months or he will depart the team in a few probable scenarios. Either way, fans should appreciate what Gardiner does well because you may not realize his value fully until he’s gone.

So don’t just hate on Gardiner because he makes a few mistakes some nights. Show him some love because his strengths definitely overshadow his weaknesses.

Thanks for reading!

All stats unless otherwise noted are from Hockey-Reference.com.