Craig Smith of the Nashville Predators holds onto Nazem Kadri of the Toronto Maple Leafs during the first period at the Air Canada Centre on November 18, 2014 in TorontoGetty Images
He was tied for second on the team in power-play points a year ago, with 18 despite only 2:22 minutes a game on the man advantage.
Now Nazem Kadri may not be getting even that.
The Toronto Maple Leafs practised without Kadri on the second power play unit on Tuesday in advance of their game in Pittsburgh, a new look facilitated mainly by the return of Joffrey Lupul from a broken hand.
While the team's top unit has been red hot, the second one hasn't generated hardly anything, and Kadri doesn't have a PP point through 21 games.
Still, removing him from the mix is curious given he was 20th among NHL forwards in points per minute on the power play last season, tops on the Leafs.
Over his career, Kadri has also been more dangerous on the man advantage than first unit players Tyler Bozak and James van Riemsdyk.
"That's beyond me," Kadri said of his lack of power play production this season in about 53 minutes. "I think I'm still being pretty effective bringing the puck up the ice and setting up. I was explaining the other day about third assists and having impacts on plays. I know there's a few of those.
"I'll be ready to go any time," he added of not being on the unit which was made up of Lupul, Peter Holland and David Clarkson at practice. "We're going for a little bit of a different look, but it's not a big deal. Hopefully it works out."
Part of his success a year ago came when Bozak was injured for two stretches and Kadri was bumped to the top unit with Kessel, but the other thing that's changed is the absence of Mason Raymond, who brought a nice element of unpredictability on the wing.
With Lupul hurt and Raymond now in Calgary, the Leafs have been running Kadri with Clarkson and Holland on the second unit and it hasn't worked.
Combined, those three have three PP points.
The man advantage hasn't really been a weakness for Toronto, but it hasn't necessarily been a strength either. At 19.2 per cent, it sits 16th in the NHL prior to Tuesday's games.
They're also top 10 in shot attempts there, so they're getting zone time. Converting simply hasn't been as easy as it was a year ago.
Kadri said he was trying to focus on the other parts of his game, including on the draw, where he's improved to better than 50 per cent after sitting around 45 much of last year.
He also continues to lead Leafs forwards in possession (minimum 10 games played) at even strength and his points per minute at 5-on-5 is improved from a year ago.
"I know I have that offensive part of my game," Kadri said. "I'm just kind of rounding out everything else: the defensive side, the faceoffs. That's my goal."
In addition to Lupul coming back, David Booth is expected to make his Leafs debut on Wednesday, rounding out a veteran fourth line that is one of the better ones Toronto has been able to ice in years.
"It gives us some strength on those lines," assistant coach Peter Horachek said. "If you're matching up against a third pair, you might have the ability to take advantage of that."
Leafs projected lineup for Wednesday
JVR – Bozak – Kessel
Komarov – Kadri – Santorelli
Winnik – Holland - Clarkson
Booth – Smith – Lupul
Phaneuf – Franson
Rielly – Robidas
Gardiner – Holzer
Bernier
(Reimer)