Nik the Trik said:
But a far more important caveat though is that the number also accounts for the terrible production the Leafs have gotten from their defense which, quite frankly, seems like a separate issue and one that, again, seems more attributable to the lousy play of those defenseman more than anything else.
Well, apart from where it comes from (if you can't establish zone time and get the puck back to the D, they're not going to score), the defense is what pushes that combined number to the bottom of the league:
SCORING FROM DEFENSE
25. NY Islanders -- .26 G/gm -- 11% of all goals
26. Minnesota -- .26 G/gm -- 11%
27. Detroit -- .26 G/gm -- 9%
28. Philadelphia -- .24 G/gm -- 11%
29. Montreal -- .23 G/gm -- 8%
30. Toronto -- .13 G/gm -- 5%
So, yeah. That's the bigger problem. But the bottom six forward scoring is in the basement too:
SCORING FROM BOTTOM SIX
25. Toronto -- .47 G/gm -- 17% of all goals
26. Pittsburgh -- .45 G/gm -- 15%
27. San Jose -- .41 G/gm -- 12%
28. Columbus -- .41 G/gm -- 17%
29. Buffalo -- .37 G/gm -- 23%
30. Tampa Bay -- .31 G/gm -- 12%
And, at the top end of the line up, of all teams, Toronto gets the greatest proportion of its total goals (78%) from its top 6. Others nearby: Tampa Bay (77%), Pittsburgh (71%), San Jose (69%). Needless to say, Toronto's roster isn't as cap-heavy in front as those teams, so one would expect them to have more talent further down the line up.