Michael Bunting is the Leafs’ stare master. Don’t look into his eyes

DETROIT If anyone knows how to stare down an opponent, it’s Maple Leafs winger Michael Bunting.

Linemate Mitch Marner figures that’s part of Bunting’s magic. It grates on opponents, and makes him one of the league’s best at drawing penalties.

“I see him stare constantly at people,” said Marner. “A lot of people don’t like getting stared at, I’ve noticed. But he’s a guy that does it to a lot of people.”

Bunting laughed when the topic was brought up before Saturday’s game against the Red Wings.

“I don’t know if it’s a tactic,” he said, “but when I’m engaged in the game and I’m getting into it with somebody, I maybe keep eye contact with them and then try to get in their head. I guess I do that; I don’t really notice I do that.

“Mitch doesn’t let anything slip by him. He’s always on the ball with that kind of stuff. So it’s pretty funny he said that.”

There’s more to Bunting’s talent as the Leafs’ chief pest.

“Everything,” said Marner. “Chirping. He’s around the net. Just constantly being a pest. That’s something that we’re … lucky to have on our team. And doing all that, he’s got himself open around the net a lot, and has his stick on the ice ready to tip pucks and be there to create room.

“He’s a guy that has a lot of energy, runs around the ice, makes a lot of plays happen, and probably he’s annoying to play against.”

Whatever the case, it’s working.

Heading into the weekend, Bunting had drawn 32 penalties, second-most in the NHL behind Connor McDavid’s 35, while taking just 16.

“The big thing with Bunting is that he’s an absolute competitor,” coach Sheldon Keefe said of the winger, in the first season of a two-year deal worth $1.9 million (U.S.). “He gives everything that he has on every single shift and he’s not going to let anyone get a leg up on him. He’s going to compete. And if you do happen to win one shift on him, he’s going to go out and look to win the next one. He’s in everything. He’s involved in everything.”

With 17 goals and 18 assists heading into Saturday night’s game, Bunting has fit in quite well with Marner and Auston Matthews on the first line. Matthews is the goal scorer, Marner the playmaker, Bunting the brawn. But they’re more than that.

Matthews is a candidate for the Hart Trophy, which goes to the NHL’s most valuable player. Marner is in the running for the Selke Trophy for his defensive play. And the 26-year-old Bunting has a shot at the Calder Trophy as rookie of the year.

“He’s got the skill set to match, and when he gets the puck he has the ability to make a play,” Keefe said of Bunting. “He goes to the net. He does all those kind of things. He’s got the personality off the ice to jive with those guys. They’re close off the ice. All those things comes together. Because of the way he competes, and the way he’s involved in everything, he’s usually the most hated guy on the ice. He gets a lot of attention from the other team, and that inspires him to really push.”

All that attention comes with a price. It means not just opponents and referees have an eye on him, but also the league. Bunting was fined $2,000 (U.S.) this past week for diving after getting caught up with the stick of Pittsburgh defenceman Marcus Pettersson. No penalty was called on the play.

“We did get tangled up, but I guess they thought I went down a little easy,” said Bunting. “That’s the league’s decision, and I just kind of move on from it.

“I can’t change my game because I am having success and I don’t want to embellish. I don’t want to be a diver; I don’t want to do any of that. I’ve just got to stick with it and stick to my regular game.”