If you take a look at social media or listen to the insiders after Toronto’s 7-3 loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning on Tuesday, there are two schools of thought from most Leafs Nation: The official was the one responsible, or this was on Michael Banting getting another stupid penalty And he became Nazim Qadri 2.0 in Toronto.
**Update: Banner has been suspended for three matches.
Bunting goes through a hearing with the NHL DoPS for his elbow to Erik Cernak who took Cernak out of the game (likely the series) and came up with a game penalty to Bunting and ended his evening. It was a dumb and premature play by Bunting that seemed to fit perfectly with the reputation he’s built for himself this season as a bumbling artist, cheap entertainer, and target for NHL officials.
Of course, all of this comes at the worst possible time for Bunting. He is UFA pending at the end of the season and is expected to be one of the coveted targets for a number of teams in need of a striker in the non-deep free agent category. The Bunting play performed on Tuesday is a type of play that GMs take notice of, and usually not for the right reasons. Even in Toronto, there is talk of how much ice time Bunting would see if he went back in time to play more games. Can he be trusted to walk the line and not cross it? There is real doubt about that.
That’s not to say that one game makes Bunting any less desirable to other GMs who might want to consider him this summer. But this is not just one play. This is a series of decisions from a talented player, Nick Kyprios said, “It was a huge struggle for Michael Ponting to find his place.” Justin Bourne took it one step further and suggested that he’s struggling to find his place in the league.
Kypreos argued that Bunting had not quite figured out when to push and pull, when to step in and when to back off, that he did not know what the task was and that feeling was getting the better of him. Kypreos wanted to know who from the Maple Leafs was watching and who was in his ear trying to keep him on track. He said that more responsibility was required of the team to keep Bunting in check. But, is that fair? Should his teammates and organizations have to dump him?
More importantly, would another team want to do this? What is the value of someone you have to pay millions of dollars for and take care of the kids? Someone will inevitably take this contract. Perhaps like my destiny, Ponting finds out. But will teams rush to the altar to marry a long-term contract player who might be seen as a liability?
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