Plenty of blame to pass around

How many passes does Kyle Dubas get for his mistakes by blaming Mike Babcock. Cap problem — 100 per cent Dubas. Lack of defence — 100 per cent Dubas. Lack of grind — 100 per cent Dubas. Bad goaltending — 100 per cent Dubas. 100 per cent failure. But then Brendan Shanahan would have to admit he blew it. If Babcock is gone, it’s still the same team. — Stephen F. To be fair, Dubas has never blamed Babcock. But your point is taken. Is the time rapidly approaching when Dubas will have to remove Babcock as head coach? Can Babcock bring out the best of this talented team? This year, not so much, and he is running out of time. Unlike Barry Trotz, who gets the best out of his players, Babcock relies too much on systems that other teams strategize and nullify … Are you ready Sheldon? — D.W. Is it rapidly approaching? I’d say the heat will be on by Christmas if the Leafs don’t have a good run till then. But if they get through that, the heat won’t be on until the playoffs. And Sheldon Keefe’s Marlies are off to another good start. Whatever happened to playing a winning goalie until he needs a break?— B. Smith I know, right? But it’s all about load management for goalies. Teams that have won the Stanley Cup have not overplayed their top goalie. There is no doubt the success or failure will be determined by goaltending. Currently the drop-off from Frederik Andersen to the backup is massive and when you compare the Bruins’ 1-2 netminders, this is a huge concern. I pay little attention to the standings until April, but if Andersen should go in the IR for a substantial period of time, Babcock could be joining Don Cherry. — Brian S. And weirdly, if backup goaltending is ultimately the difference, it won’t be Babcock’s fault. Assembling talent is Dubas’s job. With all the recent talk about resting star players to save them for later in the season and playoffs, highlighted by Kawhi Leonard and now superstars of every sport, is “rest” and minutes of play something that is negotiated and built into contracts? — Madis K. Not as far as I’m aware. Promises may be made by the GM or coach, but not in a contract. In basketball, I suspect Leonard and other stars work out their playing schedules now that the Raptors’ use of “load management” worked out so well. The top teams can afford to do it, because there’s a dropoff. It’s a ripoff for fans, in my view. Hockey players tend to have different mentality. If they could, they’d argue for more guaranteed playing time. And just look how close the standings are. No team can afford to rest its top players. It seems to me Mitch Marner’s style of play would be more suited for centre and Auston Matthews’ style more suited for the wing. What do you think? — Frank B. Marner is the creative one, Matthews the finisher, so you’re not wrong. It has more to do with defence that Matthews is a centre, not that he’s been all that great with it.

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