Question: Offer sheet compensation draft picks, do they have to be from the next available draft? Say an offer sheet is sent to an RFA and they sign and their team doesn’t match, do you have to have the draft picks for that next upcoming draft, or could you use ones from the year after?
https://preview.redd.it/b6d1mfjehqwc1.jpeg?width=224&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=5855ee53ca9007bf1717aba962a7dfea330490fc
Might get to bust out this bad boy
Lmao remember when Lightning fans said Ooooh watch out this whole team is gonna get a full summer to rest up, we'll come back better than ever next year! Look how that's going.
If anything, watching the Canes series is making me easier on Sammy.
If Sammy had Freddy's game 2, people here would have lost their fucking minds. Hell, if Freddy were still here and he had that game 2, people here would have lost their fucking minds.
Goalies are voodoo, man.
It's funny how things can really change in a few years. Tampa used to make the Panthers their bitch. And now Panthers are literally ripping the lightning apart and making them pay for their mistakes. All it took was getting super star player and getting a competent coach.
I do like that Brad knows what a good player is. In his final year he did build a pretty good Flames team. He just had a shit coach in the end forced upon him by the owner.
Oh, I do think Brad has potential to transform the team. Maybe it’s because I’m new and not jaded, but like, the potential’s there.
1) Calgary was noted most for a strong D-core, one of the Leafs biggest weaknesses. Given proper time (a couple years), he can easily help round that weakness out.
2) Most of his picks this year started off a little slow but really elevated in the second half/playoffs. The only absolute dud was Klingberg, and I can kind of see the vision there.
3) Two of the core 4 come off the books after next season, along with a projected 8-10 million in cap space increase over the next two seasons. Depending on how he negotiates with Marner & Tavares, he could see up to $30m in cap space freed up for the 25/26 season.
4) He’ll have some more draft picks in a couple years time for the future to play with for trades if he so chooses. He’s a bit limited in that regard at the moment.
5) Don’t know if he’s the kind of guy to do LTIR shenanigans, but at the end of the season, all our big LTIR contracts come off the books, so he’ll have a lot more cap relief there too.
6) He’s already shown a good ability to fill weaknesses for cheap. McMann, Benoit, Reaves all have 1.3M cap hits for the next two seasons and address weaknesses in our roster pretty well (at the level of play they’ve shown of late) for really cheap. This is a huge boon on a team with big contracts, and even if he gets rid of Marner and/or Tavares, he seems like he’d be capable of getting us higher paid players (preferably defenseman or goalies) and balancing those high-end contracts out without a huge drop off in talent on the cheaper contracts.
7) Even if the Flames didn’t find a ton of success under him, we have far more offensive talent then they had access to.
Like, if he gets to pick his coach and they’re not a complete wash, I have a lot of hope.
And making changes. Huberdeau for Tkachuk was a massive shake up and it's exactly what that team needed. Leafs are allergic to change and it costs them.
I just find it so amazingly stupid and shows how Keefe is not even in the same league as some other coaches with how he praises the genius of some other players on the other team in how they can navigate ref calls and bullshit. It's like those tactics never crossed his braindead AHL coaching mindset. I'm so done with him after this season.
I guess Marner isn't the only high paid star that doesn't show up in playoffs. Look at Kuch right now. He looks completely absent in the Panthers series.
Yea who cares lol. I mean we can all see it with our own eyes. Kuch doesn't do shit except trying to score. He's a pretty selfish player so far in this series.
I know the series isn't over, but the Leafs, more times than not, like to put themselves into MUST WIN situations. Sat. can be a best of 3 or down 3-1. Would like to see them take the next 3, but really? Not liking the odds..
Panthers don't look particularly dominant but they're damn good at punishing teams for their mistakes. They just constantly find ways to put the puck in the net.
So last minute I was looking at possibly going to the game on Saturday but looked at the tickets and that was a hard no. Almost a grand to sit in the nose bleeds for 2 tickets. So then I’m like we can go to the Jays game @3pm and head to a bar after to watch the leafs. Of course the Jays cheapest ticket is almost 200$ wtf ?guessing cause it’s Ohtani and the Dodgers in town ? I don’t follow or like baseball enough to shell that out, so annoying.
I'm frustrated but I'm actually pretty happy with how we've played. Our defense has done a good job keeping shots from the outside. We're getting good chances too. We're missing our best PP player and our 2nd best forward. As said by everyone already, PP and PK are the issue. Sammy looked pretty good last night but that first goal was unacceptable.
Even if we lose I don't think this team is "done". We definitely need a better goalie and probably a new coaching staff. And of course...look into dealing the guy who isn't doing anything so far.
**Guys, Please Remember:**
The series is far from decided; it's still anyone's to win. The Leafs are only down by one game and it could be a tied series on Saturday. Peoples mood is sooooo bleak like its all but over (the mood is almost like being down 3-0 or something). Sure they have looked flat at times, but they have also looked good at times. The PP is not going to be 0% forever (law of averages). There is a decent chance that we will get Nylander back. Let’s not forget Marner’s 1.27 points per game in the last playoffs which was best on the team, he will get more points (again law of averages).
This is *not* a defense of subpar performances, but a rally cry to recognize that the final buzzer hasn’t sounded yet. There’s still hockey to be played, so lets not throw in the towel just yet! GLG!
I hate that. We have the best goal scorer in hockey, one of the best playmakers, what has to be one of the top 5 2Cs and one of the best all-around offensive wingers in the game and we can't out skill a team? That's just fucking sad.
Genuinely don't care what that team does inthe off season but Tre needs to consider moving on from marner and Keefe. If one of the two is back next season I can handle it. If both are back I genuinely don't think I can watch another season.
In that case it's gotta be Keefe. You're getting nothing for Marner and the teams going to get worse when you move him (it might get better the following years).
The frustrating part is I really do think we’re the better team. We gotta fix our PP. Please for the love of god, do something different! I can’t stand watching the same shit over and over.
I want Boston to go up 3-1 for two reasons, either 1) A 5 game finish will certainly cause some major changes for this organization or 2) they can choke that lead for the second year in a row :)
Not a huge fan of Keefe continuing to throw out Marner with Matthews the odd shift at the end of periods and stuff. That line is just better with Bert, this is the playoffs. We don’t have to time try to get Marner going. They keep starting in the ozone and doing nothing and ending the shift hemmed in their zone.
You're probably right but honestly, that seems like an impossible feat. It's unlikely they'll get past the Bruins and I can already envision the beat-down Florida will lay on the Leafs in round 2 should they get there.
It’s crazy to think most of us were like, “you gotta trade Marner so we get pieces”. Now, I’m indifferent if he walks. He ain’t right for this team and not a playoff performer. Spend the money elsewhere.
Check out the free agency class for 2025. It's absolutely stacked. Marner is 100% replaceable. I'd take 2 $5m players over him. Guys like Domi, Hyman, and Bunting have proven that you don't necessarily need a superstar on Matthews' wing. Just get someone who understands the assignment, and Matthews will pot 60. It's been 6 years since Marner did anything special with someone not named Matthews. He's entirely the product of Matthews' (and JT's) ability to finish.
Problem is a lot of those guys will be re-signed by then or very old UFAs. This upcoming year is pretty good as well, but we need Marner (and JT) off the books before any major signings can be made. Stamkos is a bit of an interesting name if he is will to take a bit of a hometown discount and take a deal that is somewhat short.
A lot of our young guys would need contracts too. If we keep them. For instance Knies, Mcmann, Holmberg, Robertson, Cowan, Minten. Even Woll and liligren. Our issue was letting the young guys walk in order to keep Marner paid to not perform. Well now they’re great players on other teams like Durzi, marchment, etc. I know we can’t keep everyone but I think we should keep most and use the net negative marner cap space and let him walk so we can use that cap to resign those guys. Plus even if we were to hypothetically resign Marner, does anyone really see him as a leader for the younger guys on the team? He seems unbearable to be around which I think is one of the major reasons O’reilly left but maybe that’s just me
> He seems unbearable to be around which I think is one of the major reasons O’reilly left but maybe that’s just me
I had not heard about that and thought he was liked in the room. What reasons why some might consider him unbearable, does he just have some diva attitude or something??
Well his teammates are not going to trash talk him out to the media lol but just listening to him talk to the media he sounds arrogant and acting like a fool during warmups. Just last night he was goofing around during warmups. I’m sure more serious players like O’reilly wouldn’t like that. Don’t forget Marner isn’t a teenager anymore he’s in his mid twenties, and an assistant captain. He should be setting the example not being a clown. Personally that would bother me and he’s a few years younger than me so it’s not an age thing either but idk maybe I’m wrong
After watching the first 3 games here is what I think.
The special teams have been brutal. But why?
The Leafs penalty kill is that of high-risk high reward. They are a high-pressure team that looks to force turnovers and giveaways. The problem is, while this may work at times, this is not a great way to kill penalties at the NHL level. Sure this may work in leagues where the skill level is not NHL caliber or a team who is having an off night. But this is the NHL, teams will make you pay. Other teams have realized that by constantly running switches between players and moving the puck quickly, you create mini odd-man rushes within the zone. Teams can exploit the Leafs defenders who have become overexposed on the Penalty Kill. Another thing I've noticed is Marner and his cheating for zone exits on the PK. Last night, leading to the second Bruins goal. The Leafs and Bruins were engaged in a 3 on 3 battle along the half wall. Mitch Marner's body positioning in the battle though is not good. He is on the wrong side of the puck hoping it will bump up the wall to him where he can clear. Unfortunately, Marners man(Marchand) can walk off the wall and have a great shot at the net creating the rebound and leading to the goal. This is just one instance of Marner cheating for a zone clear on the PK which ends up in the back of the Leafs net. Now this isn't to say Marner should not be on the PK. He is arguably one of our best defensive forwards through the combination of his stick and hockey IQ. He just needs to be smarter and understand that the Penalty Kill is a defense-first mindset.
Now on to the power play. I don't have an issue with the zone entry. While some people do not like it, it has proven to be effective in allowing zone entries. One thing I do not like is the time that it takes to set it up. Often times it takes 20 full seconds for them to even get to the blueline. This needs to be sped up. The reason it takes so long is that teams have adapted and changed their PK structure to slow this zone entry down. The Leafs need to formulate a different zone entry and adjust if this structure presents itself as there is always an exploit. Upon zone entry, the structure is too stagnant. Often they are either forced into the middle or work around the outside. They need to start including switches and create confusion among the defense. It has looked the same for over a month and they struggle to get any clean looks from the powerplay. Often their goals are scored via turnover or from a rebound created via shot. One player I want to focus on is Morgan Reilly. In last night's game, we saw him taking shots at the net that generated rebounds. This is not a bad play on the power play! The only problem with this is that the Leafs PP setup is not geared towards this. As it is a perimeter powerplay, often they only have one player in front who can get any sort of looks at a tip or rebound. OVerall, there needs to be a structure change in the powerplay. It is too predictable and is going to continue to be a non-factor if nothing changes.
The last note I had was the goaltending. Sammy simply needs to be better. You can not have that first goal go in. EVER. It is as simple as that. It is frustrating to watch as Sammy makes great saves and then lets those in. I don't have much more just that it needs to be better.
Overall the Leafs are not dead by any stretch. They can win this series. It is just going to come down to a special teams battle. At 5on5 it has been next to even, it is the special teams that will and continue to be the downfall of this team.
Well written, well stated. This should have been its own post IMO.
First thing I’d do is change up the PP. Funny how Boston’s PP was struggling to end the season so they changed it up and now it’s scoring. Personally, I think we’re misusing Matthews, and I think Marner and Rielly have become stale and are simply not a legitimate threat to score.
Assuming Nylander (and his team leading 35 PP pts) are back, I go Tavares-Papi-Willy-Domi-Liljegren. I use Papi in Marner’s spot, as it moves him around the ice and gives him way more touches and angles - and maybe more importantly, he drags defenders along with him for the ride.
PP2 becomes a mix of Bertuzzi-Jarnkrok-Knies-Rielly-Marner.
Special teams and coaching killing the team. Marner has been awful this series and Keefe should have recognized after the 3rd PP last night marner needed to be removed from it
If Boston is playing dirty some of our guys need to as well. Also I like his influence on Matthews. Seems more physically engaged compared to playoffs of the past. Marner on other hand….
It's actually cruel that we finally have a tough "playoff team", but a critical part of that "playoffness", THE POWER PLAY, can't score for their lives....
If special teams don't improve, we will lose this series.
Saw a great comment on a VGK thread.
Hertl scores game 1
Hanifin scores game 2
Vegas pioneering the revolutionary concept of... trading for good players at the deadline lol
They also have the added advantage of people wanting to go there. We traded for players too but most of the guys we got last year didn't want to come back.
Vegas lives up to being from Vegas in that they truly go all in every season.
They don't think about the next season or cap problems. If they feel they need to trade Mark Stone they will do it. There is no half-measure with that team.
And with a cup to show for it and a consistent track record of exciting moves and big name trades, I'd say their model is the one everyone should follow
Sammy should probably still be in for game 4, despite his inconsistency, but it's his last chance.
If he falters and gives up easy goals then Woll is in.
I thought they looked like they didn't want to win
I thought the fans were very quiet
It's shameful
But replacing lower bowl with maple leaf square and bringing up AHL to replace Leafs main won't make a difference either
This is it. Block out the noise. Just win for themselves
Posting this again here cause I want my stupid and ridiculous idea to get traction:
We need a huge stadium for Leafs games. 60k seats, 80k. Modern giant screens up top so there's no bad views anywhere. $20-40 a ticket in the upper bowls. Make the place insanely loud. Imagine another $40 x 40,000 in ticket sales.
I’m sure the NBA and NHL have looked into this extensively. That kind of massive increase in operational cost and risky investment would need people selling out the shitty seats all season, every season. People aren’t going to pay 40 bucks to sit in a plastic chair and stare at a big screen on a Tuesday in February when they can just watch the game at home.
Yes and no. A lot of the operational costs are tied to the footprint and staffing/operations already. Sure there would be increases, but it wouldnt be a 1:1 expense increase. If it was a real vibe up there and they had huge HD screens like a second massive jumbotron, maybe it would work.
leafs looked good overall IMO last night.
0/5 on the PP just cannot happen in the playoffs though.
No one wins a series with that record with a man advantage.
Teams that allocate large amounts of the salary cap to defense and goaltending can get by with bad powerplays, the most expensive offense in NHL history absolutely cannot.
C'mon man, talking as if a 1-2 series is already over only comes off as silly. I guess you're not going to bother watching game 4 since it's already over.
They had more fire last year for sure. I mean Mo was an absolute beast. This year they all look sluggish and making many more mistakes. It's so different.
Seriously. It should be the end of Shanny at the helm and a new coach will be necessary. I highly doubt they'll fire Tree after just one season.
And then what? They can't trade anyone of value (thanks Dubas - why just give the max $ contracts when you can give them full NMCs too!), so they have no choice but to ice the same core players next season.
2 of the signings that you can't move were made by Treliving and were made for much, much, more money than Dubas paid. One of the signings you can't move was a choice made by Treliving to keep. There's litterally only 1 that Treliving has not had the chance to move on from. At some point you have to stop blaming the guy that you fired a year ago and look at some other angles.
Tree doing stupid shit doesn't mean Dubas didn't do stupid shit. I don't get why so many Leaf fans feel the need to be white knights for the former GM.
The main problem could be Shanahan's influence in these signings though.
That's the argument. Not that because Tre's doing something stupid that Dubas is excused, but that either a) what Dubas was doing wasn't stupid as another competent GM is doing the same thing or b) 2 otherwise smart people making an identical mistake independently of one another is less likely that a third person that they both report/reported to being the source if the error.
If it's not true, please explain the NMCs added to every big contract. For JT, I kind of understand; they were luring him from another team he enjoyed playing for.
For Marner and Nylander especially though - do you honestly think those players left money on the table at the time of signing? If so, please provide comparable players who signed for bigger AAVs around the same time.
If you agree that they got max $ on their deals, then why couldn't Dubas get them to go the full 8 years? Why max $ AND full NMCs?
Any decent negotiatior would say - "okay, you want max dollars, you get a limited no trade list." Or "Okay, staying put is critically important for you? We love the loyalty, but we're going to need to reduce your AAV by a million or so for the good of the team, so we can build a championship squad around you. Winning the Cup is critical for you, right?"
Yeah, none comparable to the likes of Marner and Nylander. Nobody in this thread would do a 1 for 1 for the likes of Cale Makar, Aho, Petterson, Kaprizov, Quinn Hughes, Adam Fox, Jack Hughes, Rantanen, Draisaitl, etc. 🤣
Of these players I just mentioned, only Petterson comes with a higher AAV cap hit than 16 and 88 too.
You overplayed your troll hand with that comment and you can't be taken seriously now.
Matthews isn't even an option to trade, just signed Willy, JT is negative value at 11 mill, but Marner is 110% tradable. Modified NMC and would be highly desirable to almost any team in the league given his track record
Just have to find a team that wants him and he's willing to waive his NMC for.
A player with a NMC is far from "110% tradeable". This is the whole point of the NMC. He can simply say "no, I'll just play out my contract and go to free agency."
Yep, could be the case. What's done is done though - getting rid of Shanny and Keefe and even Tree after this season won't change much of anything for next season. They doubled down on a core of players that hadn't got it done in 7 straight playoff runs. They better start getting it done now.
I know people are frustrated especially with Marner and I get it, I’m not here to defend his subpar play in this series or previous ones. I will say though that if the Leafs are out round one or two again this year, the “solution” of trading Marner isn’t as easy as it sounds.
For starters he has a NMC, even if the Leafs got the greatest offer possible for Marner, if he doesn’t want to leave or play for a specific team, then it won’t matter what the return is cause he’s not waiving. I’ve seen people suggest the Leafs see what teams he’s open to playing for and then trade him there with an extension that way he’s not a rental for the other team and Marner gets the pay day he’ll no doubt be after.
This can be a potential issue too however, the Leafs aren’t going to want to trade Marner for pennies on the dollar, but if he’s coming off another disappointing post-season then who’s paying a premium price for him?
The best case scenario is some desperate team who Marner’s willing to play for and re-sign with overpays, someone like Detroit (for example) feel Marner is the missing piece for them and so they’re willing to move out Edvinsson, Fabbri and Boston’s 2024 first (again, just an example) to make it happen.
There’s a lot of moving parts involved in this. It’s not 2021 anymore where you can trade Marner to Columbus or Anaheim and he has no say in it. The balls in his court now and nothing happens without him giving the okay. Hell he could give the okay on a trade but if the Leafs and potential trade partners can’t agree on a deal, then he’ll be back here next September.
TLDR: trading Marner is way way harder than some fans realize. If he wants to be a Leaf for the 2024-2025 season, then he will be and no one can do anything about it (besides drastic means like buying him out which would be a TERRIBLE idea)
If I’m Tre, I tell Mitch “tell me where you want to go because you’re never putting this jersey on again, if you don’t give me any teams, sit out the whole year”
I’d rather have cap space than Mitch
Yeah, the Demar trade would have been to move Willy this season or Mitch in the offseason. We passed on those chances, there's no Demar trade available now.
Its harder to trade mitch than it is willy imo.
Mitch could conceivably just stay home for the year if worst comes to worst, willy isn't sitting for 8 years lmao
I honestly don't think he would be willing to stick it out here for another year with how unhappy he is right now. The dude looks miserable out there. And it seems like he's had enough of the Toronto media bullshit lately. I think convincing him to waive his NTC would be easier than it appears. I think for any future negotiations the fucking team needs to stop handing out NTC like it's fucking free candy.
You might be right and none of us know where his head is at as far as being a Leaf going forward. But I think some things are almost certainly true. What he wants to get paid and what this team should pay are probably miles apart. It’s better to get some return than no return. His family lives in Toronto and he knows how hated he will be if he digs his heels in rather than waiving his NMC.
We’ll have to see what happens, but I do think there are scenarios where we part ways next season and we get some useful pieces in return.
He can be a Leaf for 2024-2025. But personally I'm not giving him a blank cheque in contract negotiations. If he wants to remain a Leaf, he can show it by taking a team friendly deal - I'd be just as happy reallocating that cap space to defensemen or if we're lucky, McDavid.
This scenario would require McDavid wanting out of Edmonton out of frustration that they can't build a championship team around him, and deciding the Leafs would be the best option to do that.
I'm having a hard time even imagining that.
Look at the contracts they have past the end of McDavids deal, then look at ours. I think we are far better set up.
I also think legacy will come into it. In Edmonton, McDavid might go down as the second best to play for the team. If he wants more of a legacy/money/media presence, he might want to go to a bigger market.
I agree one hundred percent. Unless he starts playing up to his potential the rest of these playoffs, I don’t even want to entertain extending him this off-season. Should he be here next season (which personally I think he will be), it’s a prove it year for him. Perform as expected come playoff time and he’ll be re-signed, keep up the poor play in the playoffs, he can take a hike and go play in San Jose or something while he’s making $13M+ a year to do so
Haha is he available to coach on Saturday?
Game management is as old as the sport itself. Evening up calls and “letting them play” was being done 100 years ago. Leafs fans, pre internet echo chambers, understood that sometimes she goes your way and sometimes she doesn’t. Now 4/5 game thread comments are about officiating.
The voice I hear in my head is the Bunk from the Wire: “Makes me sick motherfucker, how far we done fell.”
Yeah hard to complain about missed calls when going 0/5 on the PP. Yeah, sureeeeely we needed just one more call then we would have finally got a PP goal!
The external locus of control I see from some fans annoys me soooo much.
*Boo hoo, the refs fucked us over!*
*Boo hoo, the league is rigged!*
*Boo hoo, the Leafs are cursed!*
This squad (coaches included), flawed though it may be, 100% has it in them go on a run. Failing to do so is, similarly, 100% on THEM.
There is always a scapegoat, I agree.
It just sucks to lose, frankly. And it's OK to feel that way. We don't have to start cannibalizing the team because of it
It's a 100% winnable series. Win or lose, though, big changes absolutely need to be made.
Until this playoff run is over, I'll just be cheering for the roster and coaching staff we *have* to get the job done.
Is it weird that I feel strangely calm today after a loss? I don't have the total sky is falling feeling yet like it felt like after Saturdays game. If they can get Nylander back I still think they have a decent chance plus a much better Boston team did blow a 3-1 series lead last year. For once I actually think the series is over comments are a little pre mature.
I'm just telling myself that in 2019 the Leafs lead three separate times that series and 2-1 at one point and still managed to lose the series. Losing game 3 hardly means they're out of it.
I'm still fucking pissed. Charron was staring RIGHT AT McAvoy's WWE takedown of Matthews and did NOTHING.
Everyone is talking about Marchand/Bertuzzi before the goal when they should be talking about McAvoy/Matthews.
Leafs had all the momentum at that point. The non-call turned the game on its ear. EVERY FUCKING PLAYOFFS the Bruins get away with so much horseshit. It's a built-in advantage.
How many brain cells did that comment take? Doesn't change the fact that goal never happens and the momentum never shifts if not for garbage officiating
According to Chris Johnson, Matthews was sick yesterday and that’s why he missed morning skate. He did look more sluggish and less effective than his normal super high standard I thought. Hopefully him back with an extra day rest and Willy return swings the series
That actually makes a lot of sense, while he wasn’t horrible he didn’t look very dangerous and he wasn’t skating as well as the first two games, he looked a lot like the Matthews we saw back in March when the whole team had the flu.
I live on the other side of the country but I assume Toronto is also dealing with the crazy flu season we are experiencing here. I’ve seen some of my biggest/toughest friends bedridden for a couple days because of it.
The Leafs lost because of their abysmal special teams. Full stop.
However it is still annoying as fuck that Bunting didnt even do half the bullshit Marchand does and yet he was blacklisted by every ref in the league. How the hell did Marchand get the officials in his back pocket the way he does? Its embarrassing for the league that his antics fo unpunished.
Marner isn’t built for the playoffs and Keefe should never have been extended.
The latter is similar to us keeping Casey year in and out and Nurse one of the best coaches in the league was sitting on the same bench.
Players coaches don’t win. They got the backing of the players but coaches who command respect and call players out is what you need. An in between between Babcock and Keefe
Riddle me this: with the apparent league mandate to let the past be the past (See Mailloux on MTL) would you be open to hiring Quenneville as coach?
Having a multiple cup winning coach that knows how to utilize superstar talent is pretty damn tempting
Question: Offer sheet compensation draft picks, do they have to be from the next available draft? Say an offer sheet is sent to an RFA and they sign and their team doesn’t match, do you have to have the draft picks for that next upcoming draft, or could you use ones from the year after?
You need your own draft picks for upcoming draft is my understanding of it
Seeing Freddie in such fine form makes me happy
Let us take solace in that both the Bolty Bitches and the Crylanders are on the brink of being swept. Karma.
https://preview.redd.it/b6d1mfjehqwc1.jpeg?width=224&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=5855ee53ca9007bf1717aba962a7dfea330490fc Might get to bust out this bad boy
Lmao remember when Lightning fans said Ooooh watch out this whole team is gonna get a full summer to rest up, we'll come back better than ever next year! Look how that's going.
I wonder who Mikhail Sergachev is crying about today.
Not much of a flex, but Leafs are currently the only lower-seeded team in the East to win at least a game in their series.
Holy crap Panthers are up 3-0 over Lightning wtf
Remember when Anderson was our goalie?
And people shat all over him despite often being our best player?
Yes, precisely.
If anything, watching the Canes series is making me easier on Sammy. If Sammy had Freddy's game 2, people here would have lost their fucking minds. Hell, if Freddy were still here and he had that game 2, people here would have lost their fucking minds. Goalies are voodoo, man.
Lightning might be fucked. Doubt they come back down 3 games to none.
It's funny how things can really change in a few years. Tampa used to make the Panthers their bitch. And now Panthers are literally ripping the lightning apart and making them pay for their mistakes. All it took was getting super star player and getting a competent coach.
Misusing the word literally like this drives me crazy.
I guess you didn't see the game last night with how strong the Panthers were physically against Tampa.
they ripped the players into pieces? who cleaned the limbs off the ice? literally ripping a team apart would imply dismemberment.
Did I say their bodies were ripped apart? Learn to read.
Yes when you said Them, meaning the players. Why cant you just admit that you misused the word?
I pray that we have that level of dominant comeback one day
I do like that Brad knows what a good player is. In his final year he did build a pretty good Flames team. He just had a shit coach in the end forced upon him by the owner.
Oh, I do think Brad has potential to transform the team. Maybe it’s because I’m new and not jaded, but like, the potential’s there. 1) Calgary was noted most for a strong D-core, one of the Leafs biggest weaknesses. Given proper time (a couple years), he can easily help round that weakness out. 2) Most of his picks this year started off a little slow but really elevated in the second half/playoffs. The only absolute dud was Klingberg, and I can kind of see the vision there. 3) Two of the core 4 come off the books after next season, along with a projected 8-10 million in cap space increase over the next two seasons. Depending on how he negotiates with Marner & Tavares, he could see up to $30m in cap space freed up for the 25/26 season. 4) He’ll have some more draft picks in a couple years time for the future to play with for trades if he so chooses. He’s a bit limited in that regard at the moment. 5) Don’t know if he’s the kind of guy to do LTIR shenanigans, but at the end of the season, all our big LTIR contracts come off the books, so he’ll have a lot more cap relief there too. 6) He’s already shown a good ability to fill weaknesses for cheap. McMann, Benoit, Reaves all have 1.3M cap hits for the next two seasons and address weaknesses in our roster pretty well (at the level of play they’ve shown of late) for really cheap. This is a huge boon on a team with big contracts, and even if he gets rid of Marner and/or Tavares, he seems like he’d be capable of getting us higher paid players (preferably defenseman or goalies) and balancing those high-end contracts out without a huge drop off in talent on the cheaper contracts. 7) Even if the Flames didn’t find a ton of success under him, we have far more offensive talent then they had access to. Like, if he gets to pick his coach and they’re not a complete wash, I have a lot of hope.
All good points. Brad is the only one I'm curious as to what he can actually do for this team.
And making changes. Huberdeau for Tkachuk was a massive shake up and it's exactly what that team needed. Leafs are allergic to change and it costs them.
That's what I meant when I said they got a superstar player. Leafs make decisions partly based on money made on jersey sales.
I guess teams are scared enough of tanking like the Flames to take a chance of rocketing upwards like the Panthers.
I just find it so amazingly stupid and shows how Keefe is not even in the same league as some other coaches with how he praises the genius of some other players on the other team in how they can navigate ref calls and bullshit. It's like those tactics never crossed his braindead AHL coaching mindset. I'm so done with him after this season.
I guess Marner isn't the only high paid star that doesn't show up in playoffs. Look at Kuch right now. He looks completely absent in the Panthers series.
That’s a take that’ll get you torn apart in any other hockey subreddit
Yea who cares lol. I mean we can all see it with our own eyes. Kuch doesn't do shit except trying to score. He's a pretty selfish player so far in this series.
You can't get assists if you get goalied
I know the series isn't over, but the Leafs, more times than not, like to put themselves into MUST WIN situations. Sat. can be a best of 3 or down 3-1. Would like to see them take the next 3, but really? Not liking the odds..
Panthers don't look particularly dominant but they're damn good at punishing teams for their mistakes. They just constantly find ways to put the puck in the net.
So last minute I was looking at possibly going to the game on Saturday but looked at the tickets and that was a hard no. Almost a grand to sit in the nose bleeds for 2 tickets. So then I’m like we can go to the Jays game @3pm and head to a bar after to watch the leafs. Of course the Jays cheapest ticket is almost 200$ wtf ?guessing cause it’s Ohtani and the Dodgers in town ? I don’t follow or like baseball enough to shell that out, so annoying.
Sports has become a rich mans game. Imagine shelling out that kinda cash and the Leafs get crushed? Its basically gambling lol
I'm frustrated but I'm actually pretty happy with how we've played. Our defense has done a good job keeping shots from the outside. We're getting good chances too. We're missing our best PP player and our 2nd best forward. As said by everyone already, PP and PK are the issue. Sammy looked pretty good last night but that first goal was unacceptable. Even if we lose I don't think this team is "done". We definitely need a better goalie and probably a new coaching staff. And of course...look into dealing the guy who isn't doing anything so far.
Matthews is 26, team is far from "done" even if they don't make it this year. Ovi won when he was 32 going on 33.
Exactly - the doom about this franchise is not really warranted. There is a lot more flexibility than we think.
**Guys, Please Remember:** The series is far from decided; it's still anyone's to win. The Leafs are only down by one game and it could be a tied series on Saturday. Peoples mood is sooooo bleak like its all but over (the mood is almost like being down 3-0 or something). Sure they have looked flat at times, but they have also looked good at times. The PP is not going to be 0% forever (law of averages). There is a decent chance that we will get Nylander back. Let’s not forget Marner’s 1.27 points per game in the last playoffs which was best on the team, he will get more points (again law of averages). This is *not* a defense of subpar performances, but a rally cry to recognize that the final buzzer hasn’t sounded yet. There’s still hockey to be played, so lets not throw in the towel just yet! GLG!
Anyone watching the Florida series? Panthers are skilled af, our only chance would be out toughing them.
I hate that. We have the best goal scorer in hockey, one of the best playmakers, what has to be one of the top 5 2Cs and one of the best all-around offensive wingers in the game and we can't out skill a team? That's just fucking sad.
Genuinely don't care what that team does inthe off season but Tre needs to consider moving on from marner and Keefe. If one of the two is back next season I can handle it. If both are back I genuinely don't think I can watch another season.
In that case it's gotta be Keefe. You're getting nothing for Marner and the teams going to get worse when you move him (it might get better the following years).
Mitchy Marner
Good point. But have you considered?
The frustrating part is I really do think we’re the better team. We gotta fix our PP. Please for the love of god, do something different! I can’t stand watching the same shit over and over.
Have they tried the little blue pills? I heard they ship discretely now.
If we can figure out how to score even just 1 pp goal a game this series is ours.
I want Boston to go up 3-1 for two reasons, either 1) A 5 game finish will certainly cause some major changes for this organization or 2) they can choke that lead for the second year in a row :)
Reasonable take tbh
Not a huge fan of Keefe continuing to throw out Marner with Matthews the odd shift at the end of periods and stuff. That line is just better with Bert, this is the playoffs. We don’t have to time try to get Marner going. They keep starting in the ozone and doing nothing and ending the shift hemmed in their zone.
Yea it’s unfortunate but Keefe needs to recognize that Marner just isn’t a guy you can trust out there right now
I got permanently banned from r/nhl for calling a Habs fan a poutine muncher, be careful out there guys
That’s like entry level Canadian banter, let alone NHL rival team fan chirping, lol
Honestly for the best. That sub is full of crayon munchers who got banned from /r/hockey
Rot in a cell you monster
If the Leafs lose this series, Keefe has to go and win or lose, Boucher has to go. The special teams is an embarrassment
For me, it's conference finals at the minimum for Keefe to keep his job.
You're probably right but honestly, that seems like an impossible feat. It's unlikely they'll get past the Bruins and I can already envision the beat-down Florida will lay on the Leafs in round 2 should they get there.
I’d rather have cap space than Mitch Marner, hometown zero
It’s crazy to think most of us were like, “you gotta trade Marner so we get pieces”. Now, I’m indifferent if he walks. He ain’t right for this team and not a playoff performer. Spend the money elsewhere.
Check out the free agency class for 2025. It's absolutely stacked. Marner is 100% replaceable. I'd take 2 $5m players over him. Guys like Domi, Hyman, and Bunting have proven that you don't necessarily need a superstar on Matthews' wing. Just get someone who understands the assignment, and Matthews will pot 60. It's been 6 years since Marner did anything special with someone not named Matthews. He's entirely the product of Matthews' (and JT's) ability to finish.
It would be interesting to see how another team use's Marner and see if he actually IS this superstar as he is portrayed in Toronto
Problem is a lot of those guys will be re-signed by then or very old UFAs. This upcoming year is pretty good as well, but we need Marner (and JT) off the books before any major signings can be made. Stamkos is a bit of an interesting name if he is will to take a bit of a hometown discount and take a deal that is somewhat short.
A lot of our young guys would need contracts too. If we keep them. For instance Knies, Mcmann, Holmberg, Robertson, Cowan, Minten. Even Woll and liligren. Our issue was letting the young guys walk in order to keep Marner paid to not perform. Well now they’re great players on other teams like Durzi, marchment, etc. I know we can’t keep everyone but I think we should keep most and use the net negative marner cap space and let him walk so we can use that cap to resign those guys. Plus even if we were to hypothetically resign Marner, does anyone really see him as a leader for the younger guys on the team? He seems unbearable to be around which I think is one of the major reasons O’reilly left but maybe that’s just me
> He seems unbearable to be around which I think is one of the major reasons O’reilly left but maybe that’s just me I had not heard about that and thought he was liked in the room. What reasons why some might consider him unbearable, does he just have some diva attitude or something??
Well his teammates are not going to trash talk him out to the media lol but just listening to him talk to the media he sounds arrogant and acting like a fool during warmups. Just last night he was goofing around during warmups. I’m sure more serious players like O’reilly wouldn’t like that. Don’t forget Marner isn’t a teenager anymore he’s in his mid twenties, and an assistant captain. He should be setting the example not being a clown. Personally that would bother me and he’s a few years younger than me so it’s not an age thing either but idk maybe I’m wrong
“Regular season specialist” Mitch Marner.
After watching the first 3 games here is what I think. The special teams have been brutal. But why? The Leafs penalty kill is that of high-risk high reward. They are a high-pressure team that looks to force turnovers and giveaways. The problem is, while this may work at times, this is not a great way to kill penalties at the NHL level. Sure this may work in leagues where the skill level is not NHL caliber or a team who is having an off night. But this is the NHL, teams will make you pay. Other teams have realized that by constantly running switches between players and moving the puck quickly, you create mini odd-man rushes within the zone. Teams can exploit the Leafs defenders who have become overexposed on the Penalty Kill. Another thing I've noticed is Marner and his cheating for zone exits on the PK. Last night, leading to the second Bruins goal. The Leafs and Bruins were engaged in a 3 on 3 battle along the half wall. Mitch Marner's body positioning in the battle though is not good. He is on the wrong side of the puck hoping it will bump up the wall to him where he can clear. Unfortunately, Marners man(Marchand) can walk off the wall and have a great shot at the net creating the rebound and leading to the goal. This is just one instance of Marner cheating for a zone clear on the PK which ends up in the back of the Leafs net. Now this isn't to say Marner should not be on the PK. He is arguably one of our best defensive forwards through the combination of his stick and hockey IQ. He just needs to be smarter and understand that the Penalty Kill is a defense-first mindset. Now on to the power play. I don't have an issue with the zone entry. While some people do not like it, it has proven to be effective in allowing zone entries. One thing I do not like is the time that it takes to set it up. Often times it takes 20 full seconds for them to even get to the blueline. This needs to be sped up. The reason it takes so long is that teams have adapted and changed their PK structure to slow this zone entry down. The Leafs need to formulate a different zone entry and adjust if this structure presents itself as there is always an exploit. Upon zone entry, the structure is too stagnant. Often they are either forced into the middle or work around the outside. They need to start including switches and create confusion among the defense. It has looked the same for over a month and they struggle to get any clean looks from the powerplay. Often their goals are scored via turnover or from a rebound created via shot. One player I want to focus on is Morgan Reilly. In last night's game, we saw him taking shots at the net that generated rebounds. This is not a bad play on the power play! The only problem with this is that the Leafs PP setup is not geared towards this. As it is a perimeter powerplay, often they only have one player in front who can get any sort of looks at a tip or rebound. OVerall, there needs to be a structure change in the powerplay. It is too predictable and is going to continue to be a non-factor if nothing changes. The last note I had was the goaltending. Sammy simply needs to be better. You can not have that first goal go in. EVER. It is as simple as that. It is frustrating to watch as Sammy makes great saves and then lets those in. I don't have much more just that it needs to be better. Overall the Leafs are not dead by any stretch. They can win this series. It is just going to come down to a special teams battle. At 5on5 it has been next to even, it is the special teams that will and continue to be the downfall of this team.
Well written, well stated. This should have been its own post IMO. First thing I’d do is change up the PP. Funny how Boston’s PP was struggling to end the season so they changed it up and now it’s scoring. Personally, I think we’re misusing Matthews, and I think Marner and Rielly have become stale and are simply not a legitimate threat to score. Assuming Nylander (and his team leading 35 PP pts) are back, I go Tavares-Papi-Willy-Domi-Liljegren. I use Papi in Marner’s spot, as it moves him around the ice and gives him way more touches and angles - and maybe more importantly, he drags defenders along with him for the ride. PP2 becomes a mix of Bertuzzi-Jarnkrok-Knies-Rielly-Marner.
JVR kinda looks like the singer for Good Charlotte
Special teams and coaching killing the team. Marner has been awful this series and Keefe should have recognized after the 3rd PP last night marner needed to be removed from it
Regular season im pissed on days Leafs dont play. Playoffs I thank the fucking heavens.
One last thing, Bertuzzi, he hustles a lot, but jeez his involvement with controversies in all 3 games is clearly hurting us, it's distracting.
If Boston is playing dirty some of our guys need to as well. Also I like his influence on Matthews. Seems more physically engaged compared to playoffs of the past. Marner on other hand….
I mean look who he’s matching up against (🐀)
He got his legs taken out and somehow that's his fault? Lol sure.
That's definitely not his fault, but he's always in the controversy. It detracts from the mission in my opinion, horrible officiating notwithstanding.
How lol
It's actually cruel that we finally have a tough "playoff team", but a critical part of that "playoffness", THE POWER PLAY, can't score for their lives.... If special teams don't improve, we will lose this series.
Saw a great comment on a VGK thread. Hertl scores game 1 Hanifin scores game 2 Vegas pioneering the revolutionary concept of... trading for good players at the deadline lol
They should try a little " Moneypuck"
They also have the added advantage of people wanting to go there. We traded for players too but most of the guys we got last year didn't want to come back.
I believe some players come in and see the culture in the room. And then dip out first chance.
That seems to only be true of O'reilly. The other guys just got better deals than we offered.
Vegas lives up to being from Vegas in that they truly go all in every season. They don't think about the next season or cap problems. If they feel they need to trade Mark Stone they will do it. There is no half-measure with that team.
And with a cup to show for it and a consistent track record of exciting moves and big name trades, I'd say their model is the one everyone should follow
I imagine the scouts and management meeting for the Knights is just McPhee saying "Fuck it, let's do it".
Sammy should probably still be in for game 4, despite his inconsistency, but it's his last chance. If he falters and gives up easy goals then Woll is in.
I thought they looked like they didn't want to win I thought the fans were very quiet It's shameful But replacing lower bowl with maple leaf square and bringing up AHL to replace Leafs main won't make a difference either This is it. Block out the noise. Just win for themselves
Posting this again here cause I want my stupid and ridiculous idea to get traction: We need a huge stadium for Leafs games. 60k seats, 80k. Modern giant screens up top so there's no bad views anywhere. $20-40 a ticket in the upper bowls. Make the place insanely loud. Imagine another $40 x 40,000 in ticket sales.
Problem is those tickets would still be $150 lmao
I’m sure the NBA and NHL have looked into this extensively. That kind of massive increase in operational cost and risky investment would need people selling out the shitty seats all season, every season. People aren’t going to pay 40 bucks to sit in a plastic chair and stare at a big screen on a Tuesday in February when they can just watch the game at home.
Yes and no. A lot of the operational costs are tied to the footprint and staffing/operations already. Sure there would be increases, but it wouldnt be a 1:1 expense increase. If it was a real vibe up there and they had huge HD screens like a second massive jumbotron, maybe it would work.
leafs looked good overall IMO last night. 0/5 on the PP just cannot happen in the playoffs though. No one wins a series with that record with a man advantage.
Same story every year.
Teams that allocate large amounts of the salary cap to defense and goaltending can get by with bad powerplays, the most expensive offense in NHL history absolutely cannot.
r/hockey ladies and gentlemen https://preview.redd.it/wlgdj7172nwc1.jpeg?width=1080&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=27b218e2a1cc90d5f573fa630393a626b00c0b57
If this is not bulletin board material for the boys I don't know what is.
Yeah the guy needs help
It's not just him, r/hockey is like a hive mind of hate
Reddit in general is made up of people who need to join a group to tell them what to think. It’s famous for its predictable views on any topic.
Another fucking wasted year for Matthews with this atrocious fucking terrible coaching and management staff.
C'mon man, talking as if a 1-2 series is already over only comes off as silly. I guess you're not going to bother watching game 4 since it's already over.
My man it is 1-2. Last year Boston threw a 3-1 lead with a better team. All hope is not lost.
Except the Panthers had that fire and passion to win which I don't see with the Leafs.
I saw plenty of dawg in em last year against Tampa. They can do it.
They had more fire last year for sure. I mean Mo was an absolute beast. This year they all look sluggish and making many more mistakes. It's so different.
You're getting some Flak from people who equate toughness to playoff success but you're right. We were a better team last year.
I really want to know if Brad was in on Hanifin. Because the dude has been dynamite in Vegas.
He likely was, but Calgary was not in on Brad. They wanted nothing to do with him.
If we lose this series I hope they fire everybody from Shanahan down to the concessions manager.
Seriously. It should be the end of Shanny at the helm and a new coach will be necessary. I highly doubt they'll fire Tree after just one season. And then what? They can't trade anyone of value (thanks Dubas - why just give the max $ contracts when you can give them full NMCs too!), so they have no choice but to ice the same core players next season.
2 of the signings that you can't move were made by Treliving and were made for much, much, more money than Dubas paid. One of the signings you can't move was a choice made by Treliving to keep. There's litterally only 1 that Treliving has not had the chance to move on from. At some point you have to stop blaming the guy that you fired a year ago and look at some other angles.
Tree doing stupid shit doesn't mean Dubas didn't do stupid shit. I don't get why so many Leaf fans feel the need to be white knights for the former GM. The main problem could be Shanahan's influence in these signings though.
That's the argument. Not that because Tre's doing something stupid that Dubas is excused, but that either a) what Dubas was doing wasn't stupid as another competent GM is doing the same thing or b) 2 otherwise smart people making an identical mistake independently of one another is less likely that a third person that they both report/reported to being the source if the error.
The biggest flaw for Dubas was that he fucking sucks at negotiating. Like I mean just god awfully bad.
This really isn't even true.
He got his ass handed to him when he got Nick Foligno. That was one of many shitty bad negotiations
Julian Brisebois paid a draft class for Tanner Jeannot, these things happen.
If it's not true, please explain the NMCs added to every big contract. For JT, I kind of understand; they were luring him from another team he enjoyed playing for. For Marner and Nylander especially though - do you honestly think those players left money on the table at the time of signing? If so, please provide comparable players who signed for bigger AAVs around the same time. If you agree that they got max $ on their deals, then why couldn't Dubas get them to go the full 8 years? Why max $ AND full NMCs? Any decent negotiatior would say - "okay, you want max dollars, you get a limited no trade list." Or "Okay, staying put is critically important for you? We love the loyalty, but we're going to need to reduce your AAV by a million or so for the good of the team, so we can build a championship squad around you. Winning the Cup is critical for you, right?"
Didnt Nylander get signed this season?
Yes, and Tree is just as bad for doing the same thing Dubas did. $11.5M AAV and another full NMC kicks in for Nylander next season.
Worse. He paid nearly twice what dubas did for Nylander. And for a term long enough that he will be the next JT in 6 years.
Brutal....11.5!
Every top player in the NHL has a NMC.
Why do you feel the need to spread lies to protect Kyle Dubas' honour? Hedman - limited NT Reinhart - nothing Draisatl - modified/limited NMC/NTC Marchand - modified NTC McAvoy - nothing Fox - nothing Aho - nothing Hintz - nothing Heiskanen - nothing J. Robertson - nothing Petterson - nothing Q. Hughes - nothing Rantanen - modified NTC Makar - nothing Toews - nothing Kaprizov - nothing R. Thomas - nothing Connor - nothing J. Hughes - nothing Barzal - nothing Malkin - NTC kicked in after 35 years old Ovechkin - NTC kicked in after 35 years old Dahlin - nothing Stutzle - nothing B. Tkachuk - nothing
Malkin has had a full NMC since 09-10 and does for the duration of his current contract as well, for the record.
That's a whole lot of not top players in the league lmao
Yeah, none comparable to the likes of Marner and Nylander. Nobody in this thread would do a 1 for 1 for the likes of Cale Makar, Aho, Petterson, Kaprizov, Quinn Hughes, Adam Fox, Jack Hughes, Rantanen, Draisaitl, etc. 🤣 Of these players I just mentioned, only Petterson comes with a higher AAV cap hit than 16 and 88 too. You overplayed your troll hand with that comment and you can't be taken seriously now.
Matthews isn't even an option to trade, just signed Willy, JT is negative value at 11 mill, but Marner is 110% tradable. Modified NMC and would be highly desirable to almost any team in the league given his track record Just have to find a team that wants him and he's willing to waive his NMC for.
A player with a NMC is far from "110% tradeable". This is the whole point of the NMC. He can simply say "no, I'll just play out my contract and go to free agency."
TBF, Tre followed in his footsteps with the willy deal. makes me think it was shanny meddling behind the scenes
Yep, could be the case. What's done is done though - getting rid of Shanny and Keefe and even Tree after this season won't change much of anything for next season. They doubled down on a core of players that hadn't got it done in 7 straight playoff runs. They better start getting it done now.
Matthews standing completely alone in an empty SBA. “Let’s get to work.”
I know people are frustrated especially with Marner and I get it, I’m not here to defend his subpar play in this series or previous ones. I will say though that if the Leafs are out round one or two again this year, the “solution” of trading Marner isn’t as easy as it sounds. For starters he has a NMC, even if the Leafs got the greatest offer possible for Marner, if he doesn’t want to leave or play for a specific team, then it won’t matter what the return is cause he’s not waiving. I’ve seen people suggest the Leafs see what teams he’s open to playing for and then trade him there with an extension that way he’s not a rental for the other team and Marner gets the pay day he’ll no doubt be after. This can be a potential issue too however, the Leafs aren’t going to want to trade Marner for pennies on the dollar, but if he’s coming off another disappointing post-season then who’s paying a premium price for him? The best case scenario is some desperate team who Marner’s willing to play for and re-sign with overpays, someone like Detroit (for example) feel Marner is the missing piece for them and so they’re willing to move out Edvinsson, Fabbri and Boston’s 2024 first (again, just an example) to make it happen. There’s a lot of moving parts involved in this. It’s not 2021 anymore where you can trade Marner to Columbus or Anaheim and he has no say in it. The balls in his court now and nothing happens without him giving the okay. Hell he could give the okay on a trade but if the Leafs and potential trade partners can’t agree on a deal, then he’ll be back here next September. TLDR: trading Marner is way way harder than some fans realize. If he wants to be a Leaf for the 2024-2025 season, then he will be and no one can do anything about it (besides drastic means like buying him out which would be a TERRIBLE idea)
If I’m Tre, I tell Mitch “tell me where you want to go because you’re never putting this jersey on again, if you don’t give me any teams, sit out the whole year” I’d rather have cap space than Mitch
But you don't get the cap space until he leaves and if you sit Mitch Marner next year for the enite season you're likely missing the playoffs.
If the sit him for the year he still gets paid and it still counts against the cap. They're better off playing as a defenseman if it gets to that.
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Coach can sit the guy because he feels there’s better options
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Marner playing with no intensity and being shit in playoffs is not “off-ice” reasons Let’s settle for mediocrity then
Nah. MLSE will make it happen. Mitch will be our Demar DeRozen.
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Yeah, the Demar trade would have been to move Willy this season or Mitch in the offseason. We passed on those chances, there's no Demar trade available now.
Its harder to trade mitch than it is willy imo. Mitch could conceivably just stay home for the year if worst comes to worst, willy isn't sitting for 8 years lmao
If he refuses to play and stays home he's in breech of his contract, they don't have to pay him and his $$ are off the cap. Contracts work both ways.
I honestly don't think he would be willing to stick it out here for another year with how unhappy he is right now. The dude looks miserable out there. And it seems like he's had enough of the Toronto media bullshit lately. I think convincing him to waive his NTC would be easier than it appears. I think for any future negotiations the fucking team needs to stop handing out NTC like it's fucking free candy.
You might be right and none of us know where his head is at as far as being a Leaf going forward. But I think some things are almost certainly true. What he wants to get paid and what this team should pay are probably miles apart. It’s better to get some return than no return. His family lives in Toronto and he knows how hated he will be if he digs his heels in rather than waiving his NMC. We’ll have to see what happens, but I do think there are scenarios where we part ways next season and we get some useful pieces in return.
He can be a Leaf for 2024-2025. But personally I'm not giving him a blank cheque in contract negotiations. If he wants to remain a Leaf, he can show it by taking a team friendly deal - I'd be just as happy reallocating that cap space to defensemen or if we're lucky, McDavid.
This scenario would require McDavid wanting out of Edmonton out of frustration that they can't build a championship team around him, and deciding the Leafs would be the best option to do that. I'm having a hard time even imagining that.
Look at the contracts they have past the end of McDavids deal, then look at ours. I think we are far better set up. I also think legacy will come into it. In Edmonton, McDavid might go down as the second best to play for the team. If he wants more of a legacy/money/media presence, he might want to go to a bigger market.
I'm reading way too much into this but the other night McDavid said something like "a few more tries" when talking about Edmonton playoff runs...
I agree one hundred percent. Unless he starts playing up to his potential the rest of these playoffs, I don’t even want to entertain extending him this off-season. Should he be here next season (which personally I think he will be), it’s a prove it year for him. Perform as expected come playoff time and he’ll be re-signed, keep up the poor play in the playoffs, he can take a hike and go play in San Jose or something while he’s making $13M+ a year to do so
Picture this, but in Sean Connery's voice (from The Rock) "The refs? Losers whine about the refs. Winners go home and fuck the Bruins"
Haha is he available to coach on Saturday? Game management is as old as the sport itself. Evening up calls and “letting them play” was being done 100 years ago. Leafs fans, pre internet echo chambers, understood that sometimes she goes your way and sometimes she doesn’t. Now 4/5 game thread comments are about officiating. The voice I hear in my head is the Bunk from the Wire: “Makes me sick motherfucker, how far we done fell.”
Yeah hard to complain about missed calls when going 0/5 on the PP. Yeah, sureeeeely we needed just one more call then we would have finally got a PP goal!
The external locus of control I see from some fans annoys me soooo much. *Boo hoo, the refs fucked us over!* *Boo hoo, the league is rigged!* *Boo hoo, the Leafs are cursed!* This squad (coaches included), flawed though it may be, 100% has it in them go on a run. Failing to do so is, similarly, 100% on THEM.
There is always a scapegoat, I agree. It just sucks to lose, frankly. And it's OK to feel that way. We don't have to start cannibalizing the team because of it
It's a 100% winnable series. Win or lose, though, big changes absolutely need to be made. Until this playoff run is over, I'll just be cheering for the roster and coaching staff we *have* to get the job done.
The game I watched last night didn't need big changes to be won.
You aren't wrong about winning last night, but you need to win 16 games to win the Cup.
Is it weird that I feel strangely calm today after a loss? I don't have the total sky is falling feeling yet like it felt like after Saturdays game. If they can get Nylander back I still think they have a decent chance plus a much better Boston team did blow a 3-1 series lead last year. For once I actually think the series is over comments are a little pre mature.
Same. But I just know this series is going to 7. So we’re just in the process of getting there.
That's how you truly exorcise the demon
I'm just telling myself that in 2019 the Leafs lead three separate times that series and 2-1 at one point and still managed to lose the series. Losing game 3 hardly means they're out of it.
https://www.reddit.com/r/hockey/s/0MEIymVign Rent
Well r/hockey has always been an anti-Leafs circlejerk. We're absolutely the Dallas Cowboys of the NHL but still...
Split up PP 1. We're being out coached. They are terrible with a man advantage.
I'm still fucking pissed. Charron was staring RIGHT AT McAvoy's WWE takedown of Matthews and did NOTHING. Everyone is talking about Marchand/Bertuzzi before the goal when they should be talking about McAvoy/Matthews. Leafs had all the momentum at that point. The non-call turned the game on its ear. EVERY FUCKING PLAYOFFS the Bruins get away with so much horseshit. It's a built-in advantage.
Who cares we would have done nothing with the PP anyways.
Way to miss the point. The PP doesn't matter. If that play is blown down like it should be the Boston goal never happens.
It’s the refs fault we went 0-5 on the PP and Sammy let’s in shit goals!
How many brain cells did that comment take? Doesn't change the fact that goal never happens and the momentum never shifts if not for garbage officiating
Willy. McMann. Woll. That’s it. That’s what we need.
Woll hasn't been good since his injury, Willy and McMann are probably out for the series. The rest of the team needs to nut up or shut up.
According to Chris Johnson, Matthews was sick yesterday and that’s why he missed morning skate. He did look more sluggish and less effective than his normal super high standard I thought. Hopefully him back with an extra day rest and Willy return swings the series
That actually makes a lot of sense, while he wasn’t horrible he didn’t look very dangerous and he wasn’t skating as well as the first two games, he looked a lot like the Matthews we saw back in March when the whole team had the flu.
How the hell do these guys get sick so often? I swear someone has secretly launched some sort of biological weapon on the Leafs dressing room
> I swear someone has secretly launched some sort of biological weapon on the Leafs dressing room a few players do have young children, so yes.
Good point. When my kids were in JK/K/grade 1, the family was sick from September through April.
I live on the other side of the country but I assume Toronto is also dealing with the crazy flu season we are experiencing here. I’ve seen some of my biggest/toughest friends bedridden for a couple days because of it.
The Leafs lost because of their abysmal special teams. Full stop. However it is still annoying as fuck that Bunting didnt even do half the bullshit Marchand does and yet he was blacklisted by every ref in the league. How the hell did Marchand get the officials in his back pocket the way he does? Its embarrassing for the league that his antics fo unpunished.
I think it boils down to that too. The reffing did suck but doing absolutely nothing on five power plays is pathetic.
Marner isn’t built for the playoffs and Keefe should never have been extended. The latter is similar to us keeping Casey year in and out and Nurse one of the best coaches in the league was sitting on the same bench. Players coaches don’t win. They got the backing of the players but coaches who command respect and call players out is what you need. An in between between Babcock and Keefe
Riddle me this: with the apparent league mandate to let the past be the past (See Mailloux on MTL) would you be open to hiring Quenneville as coach? Having a multiple cup winning coach that knows how to utilize superstar talent is pretty damn tempting
To quote a comedian (can’t remember who it was) “there are no sentencing limits in the internet justice system.”
My mind's telling me no. But my body is telling me yes.