2011–12 Toronto Maple Leafs season

At the 2011 NHL Entry Draft, general manager Brian Burke fulfilled his pledge to trade up in the first round, trading the 30th (Rickard Rakell) and 39th (John Gibson) picks to the Anaheim Ducks in exchange for the 22nd pick, which was used to select Tyler Biggs. The Leafs also selected Stuart Percy with the 25th pick.

The Leafs made two key free agent additions, adding centers Tim Connolly from the Buffalo Sabres and Philippe Dupuis from the Colorado Avalanche. The Leafs also added to their blue line by trading Brett Lebda and prospect Robert Slaney to the Nashville Predators in exchange for Cody Franson and center Matthew Lombardi.

The Leafs suffered no major losses during the off-season, however Tim Brent, who had an impressive season with the Leafs, was signed by the Carolina Hurricanes and veteran goalie Jean-Sebastien Giguere was acquired by the Colorado Avalanche. Other Leafs to depart the team included Danny Richmond (to the Washington Capitals), Christian Hanson, (to Washington) and Fabian Brunnstrom (to the Detroit Red Wings).

On October 4, the Leafs traded their fourth round pick at the 2012 NHL Entry Draft to the New Jersey Devils in exchange for centre Dave Steckel.

Prior to the beginning of the regular season, the Leafs unveiled new alternate jerseys, similar to the ones they used when they last won the Stanley Cup in 1967.

The Maple Leafs went 4–4 in pre-season play.

The Maple Leafs got off to a fast start, winning their first three games and seven of their first ten, finishing October in first place in the Northeast Division, second in the Conference. Phil Kessel was the NHL's leading points scorer with 18, and leading goal scorer with 10. James Reimer was the starting goaltender for the first five games, but was injured in his next start when the Montreal Canadiens' Brian Gionta struck Reimer in the jaw while fighting for the puck. Early in the season, the Leafs' power play has dramatically improved, with a 21.6% conversion rate, good for third in the league as of December 17, 2011. However, when short-handed, they had been less efficient, with a 73.0% kill rate, the worst in the NHL.

On February 9, 2012, the NHL announced that the Leafs would play the Detroit Red Wings at Michigan Stadium for the 2013 NHL Winter Classic on January 1, 2013. It would later be postponed to 2014 due to the lockout.

With the Leafs falling out of the playoff race and in the midst of losing 10 of their last 11 games, including a six-game losing streak, head coach Ron Wilson was fired and replaced by Randy Carlyle on March 2, 2012.[2] The Leafs went 6–9–3 under Carlyle to end the season.

The Maple Leafs attempted to finally qualify for the Stanley Cup playoffs for the first time since the 2003–04 season. The Hockey News predicted that the Leafs will place tenth and miss the playoffs.[3] The Maple Leafs were ultimately eliminated from playoff contention.

Final stats[4]

Updated March 27, 2012.[13]

#	Nat	Player	Pos	S/G	Age	Acquired	Birthplace
9		Colby Armstrong (A)	RW	R	37	2010	Lloydminster, Saskatchewan
37		Carter Ashton	RW	L	29	2012	Winnipeg, Manitoba
42		Tyler Bozak	C	R	34	2009	Regina, Saskatchewan
18		Mike Brown	RW	R	34	2010	Northbrook, Illinois
12		Tim Connolly	C	R	39	2011	Baldwinsville, New York
46		Joey Crabb	RW	R	37	2010	Anchorage, Alaska
4		Cody Franson	D	R	32	2011	Salmon Arm, British Columbia
39		Matt Frattin	RW	R	32	2007	Edmonton, Alberta
51		Jake Gardiner	D	L	30	2011	Minneapolis, Minnesota
84		Mikhail Grabovski (A)	C	L	36	2008	Potsdam, East Germany
36		Carl Gunnarsson	D	L	33	2007	Örebro, Sweden
50		Jonas Gustavsson	G	L	35	2009	Danderyd, Sweden
81		Phil Kessel	RW	R	32	2009	Madison, Wisconsin
8		Mike Komisarek (A)	D	R	38	2009	West Islip, New York
41		Nikolai Kulemin	LW	L	33	2006	Magnitogorsk, Soviet Union
24		John-Michael Liles	D	L	39	2011	Indianapolis, Indiana
15		Matthew Lombardi	C	L	38	2011	Montreal, Quebec
19		Joffrey Lupul	RW	R	36	2011	Fort Saskatchewan, Alberta
16		Clarke MacArthur	LW	L	35	2010	Lloydminster, Alberta
3		Dion Phaneuf (C)	D	L	35	2010	Edmonton, Alberta
34		James Reimer	G	L	32	2006	Morweena, Manitoba
38		Jay Rosehill	LW	L	34	2009	Olds, Alberta
40		Jussi Rynnas	G	L	33	2010	Pori, Finland
2		Luke Schenn	D	R	30	2008	Saskatoon, Saskatchewan
20		Dave Steckel	C	L	38	2011	West Bend, Wisconsin

The Maple Leafs have been involved in the following transactions during the 2011–12 season.

Trades Date Details June 24, 2011[14] To Colorado Avalanche 2nd-round pick in 2012 To Toronto Maple Leafs John-Michael Liles June 24, 2011[15] To Anaheim Ducks 1st-round pick (30th overall) in 2011 2nd-round pick in 2011 To Toronto Maple Leafs 1st-round pick (22nd overall) in 2011 June 24, 2011[16] To Anaheim Ducks 6th-round pick in 2011 To Toronto Maple Leafs 6th-round pick in 2012 July 3, 2011[17] To Nashville Predators Brett Lebda Robert Slaney Conditional 4th-round pick in 2013[lower-alpha 1] To Toronto Maple Leafs Matthew Lombardi Cody Franson Conditional 4th-round pick in 2013[lower-alpha 2] October 4, 2011[18] To New Jersey Devils 4th-round pick in 2012 To Toronto Maple Leafs Dave Steckel January 3, 2012[19] To Anaheim Ducks Luca Caputi To Toronto Maple Leafs Nicolas Deschamps February 27, 2012 [20] To Tampa Bay Lightning Keith Aulie To Toronto Maple Leafs Carter Ashton February 27, 2012 [21] To Anaheim Ducks Dale Mitchell To Toronto Maple Leafs Mark Fraser Condition satisfied. Condition satisfied. Free agents acquired Player Former team Contract terms Tim Connolly[22] Buffalo Sabres 2 years, $9.5 million Philippe Dupuis[23] Colorado Avalanche 1 year, $650,000 Spencer Abbott[24] University of Maine 1 year, $925,000 entry-level contract Free agents lost Player New team Contract terms Alex Foster[25] Sparta Prague 1 year Tim Brent[26] Carolina Hurricanes 2 years, $1.5 million Jean-Sebastien Giguere[27] Colorado Avalanche 2 years, $2.5 million Danny Richmond[28] Washington Capitals 1 year, $525,000 Christian Hanson[29] Washington Capitals 1 year, $525,000 Fredrik Sjostrom[30] Farjestad BK undisclosed Brett Lebda[31] Springfield Falcons Professional try-out Claimed via waivers Player Former team Date claimed off waivers Lost via waivers Player New team Date claimed off waivers Darryl Boyce[32] Columbus Blue Jackets February 25, 2012 Lost via retirement Player Player signings Player Date Contract terms Kenny Ryan[33] May 26, 2011 3 years, $2.07 million entry-level contract James Reimer[34] June 9, 2011 3 years, $5.4 million Carl Gunnarsson[35] June 14, 2011 2 years, $2.65 million Luca Caputi[36] June 28, 2011 1 year, $525,000 Jay Rosehill[37] June 30, 2011 1 year, $600,000 Ben Scrivens[38] June 30, 2011 1 year, $600,000 Clarke MacArthur[39] July 5, 2011 2 years, $6.5 million Tyler Bozak[40] July 6, 2011 2 years, $3 million Matt Lashoff[23] July 7, 2011 1 year, $600,000 Michael Zigomanis[41] July 12, 2011 1 year, $650,000 Darryl Boyce[42] July 14, 2011 1 year, $700,000 Joey Crabb[43] July 19, 2011 1 year, $750,000 David Broll[44] July 29, 2011 3 years, $1.8675 million entry-level contract Luke Schenn[45] September 16, 2011 5 years, $18 million Stuart Percy[46] November 22, 2011 3 years, $2.775 million entry-level contract John-Michael Liles[47] January 25, 2012 4 years, $15.5 million contract extension Mikhail Grabovski[48] March 6, 2012 5 years, $27.5 million contract extension Brad Ross[49] March 20, 2012 3 years, $2.12 million entry-level contract Sam Carrick[50] March 31, 2012 3 years, $1.895 million entry-level contract Draft picks Toronto's picks at the 2011 NHL Entry Draft in St. Paul, Minnesota. Round Pick Player Position Nationality Team (League) 1 22 (from Anaheim) Tyler Biggs RW  United States U.S. National Team Development Program (USHL) 1 25 (from Philadelphia) Stuart Percy D  Canada Mississauga St. Michael's Majors (OHL) 3 86 (from Philadelphia) Josh Leivo LW  Canada Sudbury Wolves (OHL) 4 100 Tom Nilsson D  Sweden Mora IK (Swe-2) 5 130 Tony Cameranesi C  United States Wayzata High School (USHS-MN) 6 152 (from Edmonton) David Broll LW  Canada Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds (OHL) 6 173 (from Anaheim) Dennis Robertson D  Canada Brown University (ECAC) 7 190 Garret Sparks G  United States Guelph Storm (OHL) 7 203 (from Anaheim) Max Everson D  United States Edina High School (USHS-MN) See also 2011–12 NHL season References National Hockey League (2010). The National Hockey League Official Guide & Record Book/2011. Triumph Books. p. 123. ISBN 978-1-60078-422-4. Carlyle Replaces Wilson As Leafs Head Coach "NHL Season Preview: Northeast Division". The Hockey News. October 5, 2011. Archived from the original on October 20, 2011. Retrieved October 6, 2011. "2011–2012 Regular Season Stats – Points – Toronto Maple Leafs – Statistics". Toronto Maple Leafs. Retrieved February 24, 2017. Kessel, Tavares, Lehtonen earn 'Three Stars' honors Kessel, Lehtonen, Khabibulin are October's stars Thomas, Toews, Lupul are November's Three Stars "2012 NHL All-Star Game – four Ottawa Senators, one Toronto Maple Leaf, one Boston Bruin – ESPN". Espn.go.com. January 5, 2012. Retrieved August 18, 2012. "NHL names remainder of All-Star Game roster – 2012 Tim Hortons NHL All-Star Game". Nhl.com. Retrieved August 18, 2012. "Benn, Lupul, Anderson earn Three Star honors – NHL.com – News". NHL.com. Retrieved August 8, 2012. Grabovski, Rinne, Alfie named week's 'Three Stars' Gagner, Kovalchuk, Reimer named week's 'Three Stars' "Toronto Maple Leafs – Team – Roster". Toronto Maple Leafs. Retrieved March 27, 2012. Leafs Acquire Liles From Avalanche Leafs Make Two Selections In First Round Defensemen deals highlight draft weekend trades Leafs Acquire Lombardi And Franson From Predators Leafs Acquire Steckel From Devils Leafs Acquire Deschamps From Ducks Maple Leafs Obtain Ashton From Lightning Leafs Obtain Ashton & Fraser In Two Trades "Leafs Sign Tim Connolly". "Leafs Sign Lashoff And Dupuis". "Leafs Sign Spencer Abbott". "American and Slovak Bližňák Foster will play for Sparta" (in Czech). HC Sparta Praha. June 7, 2011. Retrieved June 7, 2011. "Hurricanes Agree to Terms with Tim Brent". "Avalanche Signs J.S. Giguere". "Capitals Sign Defenseman Danny Richmond". Capitals Sign Center Christian Hanson "Sjöström klar för Färjestad" (in Swedish). eurosport.se. July 29, 2011. Retrieved July 29, 2011. "FALCONS SIGN LEBDA TO PTO CONTRACT". Archived from the original on January 2, 2013. Retrieved January 20, 2012. Columbus Blue Jackets Claim C Darryl Boyce Off Waivers from Toronto Maple Leafs Leafs Sign Kenny Ryan To Entry-Level Contract Reimer Signs Contract With Leafs Leafs Sign Gunnarsson To Two-Year Deal Leafs resign Caputi Leafs Re-Sign Rosehill Leafs Sign Ben Scrivens Leafs Sign MacArthur Leafs Sign Tyler Bozak Leafs Sign Zigomanis To One Year Contract Darryl Boyce Signs With Maple Leafs Crabb Signs With Maple Leafs Maple Leafs Sign David Broll Maple Leafs Agree To Terms With Luke Schenn Leafs Sign Stuart Percy To Three-Year Deal Leafs Sign Liles To Four-Year Extension Grabovski Signs Contract Extension With Leafs Leafs Sign Brad Ross Leafs Sign Carrick To Entry Level Contract