Are the Leafs being disrespectful to veteran Marleau?

First of, we know we cannot blame an NHL team to make the appropriate changes to their lineup, especially in the last stretch of the season to make sure the team is strong and confident ahead of the playoffs. 

However, we wonder how head coach Mike Babcock has handled the demotion of veteran forward Patrick Marleau this week, as Travis Yost of TSN brilliantly pointed out that the Toronto Maple Leafs appear to be quietly pushing him down the lineup. 

Yost starts off by saying he did suggest the Leafs should move Marleau down earlier this season, and it seems like Toronto has made that same decision since their quiet trade deadline: 

"At any rate, I’ve been following Marleau’s usage since that trade deadline piece and am left to conclude one of two things: either the Maple Leafs recognized that Marleau was playing too many minutes relative to what he was adding, or they are resting the veteran for important miles come playoff time."

Maple Leafs fans will prefer the second option, and any NHL fan would to. On Wednesday night against the Philadelphia Flyers, Marleau played in his 1,652nd career game, passing Chris Chelios and tying Mark Recchi for the 5th-most games played in NHL history. 

On Monday, he recorded his 16th goal of the year, which now gives him a total of 37 points in 77 games this season. 

The man is a legend no doubt. We just wonder if Babcock and he had a conversation about his ice time decreasing and if the veteran it is all to rest him ahead of an expected intense postseason. 

We all know how well Babcock can handle these things... However, we are pretty sure the head coach would have a logical answer, similar to the one he gave his star goalie Frederik Andersen earlier this week when he commented about fatigue and playing a lot of game. 

“He’s not 12, he’s a man. That’s why we have a goalie coach. We talked to him about it.”

Marleau is a man and has been in the league long enough to know how it works. And Babcock has always been clear about the fact that he does not coach children. 

So, let's hope the chemistry with Marleau on the bench is still there and that the veteran is only getting ready to explode in the postseason.