Babcock reveals plans for key free-agents

When the Toronto Maple Leafs announced they had signed veteran defenseman Ron Hainsey to a deal on July 1st, most Leafs fans were happy with the depth addition. When they announced they had signed veteran forward Patrick Marleau the very next day, those same fans were loudly applauding the work of the team’s management staff. Separately, Hainsey and Marleau may not be the impact players that they once were, but together the pair can provide a young Leafs team with the veteran perspective that they need to be successful.

NHL.com correspondent and Leafs insider Dave McCarthy recently caught up with Leafs head coach Babcock, where the latter revealed his plans for Hainsey and Marleau in 2017-18. Check it out:

Spoke with Mike Babcock for upcoming preview piece.

Said he intends to partner Ron Hainsey with Morgan Rielly; Gardiner / Zaitsev#Leafs
— Dave McCarthy (@DaveAMcCarthy) August 7, 2017

Babcock: "We feel Rielly's a real, real good player. We want him to be upper echelon in the League so we needed a partner for him." #Leafs
— Dave McCarthy (@DaveAMcCarthy) August 7, 2017

Babcock said he feels Marleau "can score 20 goals for sure" & "can play on any one of the top 9 spots."

Loves his versatility#Leafs #NHL
— Dave McCarthy (@DaveAMcCarthy) August 7, 2017

Sound like a plan, Leafs fans? I don't think anyone would have predicted Ron Hainsey to be paired with Morgan Rielly to start the season, but the pairing actually makes sense when you look at things from Babcock's perspective. What do you think? How do you see the Leafs' roster shaking down in 2017-18?