Kyle Dubas defends Ceci from Leafs fans

On July 1st 2019, the Toronto Maple Leafs agreed to a 6-player trade with the Ottawa Senators. In return of defenceman Nikita Zaitsev, forward Connor Brown and prospect Michael Carcone, the Leafs obtained d-man Cody Ceci, prospects Ben Harpur and Aaron Luchuk as well as a 2020 3rd round pick.

Cody Ceci has been playing on Toronto's first defensive pair alongside Morgan Reilly for most of this season, much to the dislike of many Leafs faithful. Ceci is mostly criticized for making costly defensive mistakes as well as lacking the speed and the offensive upside necessary for a top-2 defenceman. The Ottawa-born 25 year old has 1 goal and 3 assists for 4 points in 20 games so far with the Maple Leafs. 

Many do not understand how and why Babcock persists on giving Ceci so much ice-time, while the recently acquired Tyson Barrie who is playing on the 2nd pair is known for his speed and offensive abilities. Although Barrie only has 5 points this season which isn't much better than Ceci's 4 points, Barrie is coming off two 50-plus point seasons. In comparison, Ceci has never reached the 30 point mark.

It seems that the fans' criticism of Cody Ceci has reached the ears of GM Kyle Dubas who proceeded to defend his recent acquisition adamantly. "(...) every tiny thing that he does becomes a referendum on whether he (Ceci) is good or not.", noticed Dubas before adding that it is " mind-boggling" to him.

The Leafs' GM says that Ceci is a solid defenceman who gets tasked with shutting down their opponents' best offensive players. "Every defenceman that plays that much and plays in that role is going to make mistakes. You play against the best players in the league, they're good players.", explained Dubas.

Dubas even goes as far as saying that Ceci has exceeded expectations so far, which is why he is so surprised about all the criticism that he has been getting. He realizes that Ceci is a polarizing player in Toronto but he thinks that Toronto fans are being too subjective. "I think he's been a good addition for us and has played above expectations from when we acquired him and we’re very happy with him."

Some of Dubas' comments hint at the possibility of Tyson Barrie eventually playing on the first defensive pair. "He continues to show signs of what his form can be and what we knew when we were acquiring him and we just want him to continue to work and get comfortable here. I think in the last number of games he's shown more and more of that and I'm excited about the rest of the season for him.”