Pre-Game Talk: Edmonton @ Toronto V2 | Friday @ 7pm

[MattySnipes]

Thats what happens when you chase for grit, and as a result we look worse offensively and slower.
The grit group on this board isn't looking good right now.

When McDavid made Rielly national news last year it seems Keefe really got scared. So scared that he decided to play it safe. I hope he changes his gameplan Friday. Very ugly game to watch.

 

[Stephen]

Keefe needs to give Lehtonen a real chance here. He looked very dynamic in very limited play. Clean puck handling, assertive, heads up. I would guess he could give us Dermott level play no problem. We just need an understanding of what we have here.

 

[Stephen]

When McDavid made Rielly national news last year it seems Keefe really got scared. So scared that he decided to play it safe. I hope he changes his gameplan Friday. Very ugly game to watch.

I honestly don’t mind playing that nasty game again. Just make sure Vesey’s scoring on the Edmonton net and we’re the ones walking out with a 3-1 win.

 

[IPS]

When McDavid made Rielly national news last year it seems Keefe really got scared. So scared that he decided to play it safe. I hope he changes his gameplan Friday. Very ugly game to watch.

Well Rielly definitely isn't doing himself any favors to not make that happen again because some of the stuff he was doing out there last night looked awful.

 

[MattySnipes]

I honestly don’t mind playing that nasty game again. Just make sure Vesey’s scoring on the Edmonton net and we’re the ones walking out with a 3-1 win.

If they can go hard to the net and create some secondary chances, sure. But everything seemed perimeter and done. Can't expect too much from Vesey tbh. Need JT and Willy to carry that line, and need Mitch to get in the game to help Auston.

In a game like this with not much space, I thought Mitch and Nylander games were ineffective as a result.

 

[MattySnipes]

Well Rielly definitely isn't doing himself any favors to not make that happen again because some of the stuff he was doing out there last night looked awful.

Agreed. He very easily could've been national news again. Brodie saved him few times.

 

[Clark4Ever]

We better get used to the revolving door lineup this season. Every team will have to deal with it at some point.

This is where our depth will be put to the test.

 

[Stephen]

If they can go hard to the net and create some secondary chances, sure. But everything seemed perimeter and done. Can't expect too much from Vesey tbh. Need JT and Willy to carry that line, and need Mitch to get in the game to help Auston.

In a game like this with not much space, I thought Mitch and Nylander games were ineffective as a result.

Nylander has that power move where he’ll cut into traffic and shield a defender with one arm while one handing the puck in the other, but he almost never cuts to the front of the net, opting for the behind the net option.

Marner still needs to work on his physical maturity. Not asking for a power forward game but he needs to be able to handle those heavy traffic situations better.

 

[FlareKnight]

Hopefully they get going in the next game. You have to take top guys like McDavid seriously in order to win the game. But you can't just kill your entire attack in the process. Oilers kept them and the Leafs allowed themselves to be kept to the perimeter and it lead to nothing. Yeah, the defenders might get a bit tired out, but just skating around them for a couple minutes isn't doing that much besides getting their legs good exercise.

Props to Vesey. This failing upwards thing is working out for him so far.

 

[Brobust]

It's funny, before the season started there was all this talk about taking the regular season seriously and then they come out look putrid against the damn Sens and Oilers.

 

[Ciao]

This core just doesn’t care; they do the same shit year in, year out, say they’ve worked on it and improved but then come out again the next year looking like this.

It just seems nothing motivates this group. Not the excitement of winning a cup for the most Cup starved city in the world, not for the best/most loyal fans, and definitely not even the embarrassment of being labeled chokers. If they really cared, I think we would already be seeing a tangible difference but they really don’t and don’t seem like they ever will. Still really early in the season but they better blow this shit up if they choke again

I’m not excited to watch this team play anymore.

It's a tough league to play in, and changes are incremental.

I don't think the Leafs are doing too badly this year. Every single team has their own issues, and in the big picture the Leafs are doing exactly what they should be doing -- working on things game-by-game.

Last night sure as hell wasn't a barn-burner, but it could have gone the other way and been a good, boring win too.

Let's see what tomorrow brings.

 

[Nineteen67]

Thats what happens when you chase for grit, and as a result we look worse offensively and slower.
The grit group on this board isn't looking good right now.

They didn’t add grit.

 

[34]

Start Campbell please

Starting Campbell is the right move, but Keefe won’t do it. Another loss coming. The Leafs are going to go 0-4 against Edmonton in these first 4 games with them.

 

[Suntouchable13]

It's a tough league to play in, and changes are incremental.

I don't think the Leafs are doing too badly this year. Every single team has their own issues, and in the big picture the Leafs are doing exactly what they should be doing -- working on things game-by-game.

Last night sure as hell wasn't a barn-burner, but it could have gone the other way and been a good, boring win too.

Let's see what tomorrow brings.

I see where you're coming from. It was a good sign they did not get lit by McDavid and Drai. Baby steps. It's not about who is the best team after 56. If you finish 1st place in this division but out in 1st or 2nd round, it wouldn't mean shit.

 

[stickty111]

That goes against the tweet earlier. Bogosian might be out if Keefe doesn't do 11 and 7

 

[Clark4Ever]

As per Keefe, Matthews left practice because he wasn't feeling well. Doesn't sound like an injury, so hopefully he'll be ok soon.

 

[Coachcorner]

As per Keefe, Matthews left practice because he wasn't feeling well. Doesn't sound like an injury, so hopefully he'll be ok soon.

Yeah that was been talkin bout at tsn. I think this ain't nothing. This type of thing is very common in sports and show business.

 

[Byron Bitz]

Thats probably the most ideal lineup. I get the hesitance going with a young 3rd pair but they are better then the others.

I want to try out a Liljegren-Muzzin pairing

 

[Farsailor]

If they can go hard to the net and create some secondary chances, sure. But everything seemed perimeter and done. Can't expect too much from Vesey tbh. Need JT and Willy to carry that line, and need Mitch to get in the game to help Auston.

In a game like this with not much space, I thought Mitch and Nylander games were ineffective as a result.

Thought Nylander had his best game since game one.

 

[Ciao]

I think the Leafs' roster is very much in transition and the coaching staff are deep in the process of separating the wheat from the chaff.

I think the top-four D of Rielly-Brodie and Muzzin-Holl is the most stable part of the roster.

After that, nothing is settled. Dermott will be exposed in the expansion draft and isn't getting much in the way of development. Lehtonen is an unknown quantity that can't yet be played in critical situations. Bogosian is a stop-gap with no upside, and Sandin is an ace in the hole with nothing but upside.

I wouldn't mind seeing more of Lehtonen-Dermott with Bogosian as a seventh D, and Sandin in reserve for addition to the roster in due course -- in case of injuries, or at worst after the expansion draft. His day will come.

The Andersen-Campbell situation is interesting too. Andersen is the most reliable goalie the Leafs have had in a while, but still needs to prove his worth as an aging, pending UFA. The answer next year could be either, both or neither of them, and I expect this year to be a year-long audition of the star and the understudy. Absent injury, I expect Andersen to get the bulk of the work with a good share to Campbell.

The forward group is almost too complex to comment on. Matthews, Tavares, Marner and Nylander are top-six fixtures. Hyman, Kerfoot and a few others are assured of long-term roster spots, depending on contract status. Thornton and Spezza are guest performers invited for cameo appearances. Mikheyev, Engvall, Brooks, Vesey and a few others are disposable parts that will be used according to their immediate utility. Simonds is the plumber who will be kept on staff until the leaks stop in the bump-and-grind department. Robertson is the golden-haired boy with a promising long-term future. But for the top-four and Robertson, everyone else is disposable and I wouldn't rule out any roster changes among that group. It is very fluid.

 

[MattySnipes]

Thought Nylander had his best game since game one.

Nylander looked better than JT, but JT wasn't going. When he isn't going you need Willy to put the line on his back and go hard. Or use speed to draw a call. Something. I know he's the whipping boy among others, but I'm definitely not blaming him solely. Lots of ppl to blame. But I'm trying to stay level headed considering the fab game they played against Jets

 

[Skolman]

 

[Brobust]

Nylander looked better than JT, but JT wasn't going. When he isn't going you need Willy to put the line on his back and go hard. Or use speed to draw a call. Something. I know he's the whipping boy among others, but I'm definitely not blaming him solely. Lots of ppl to blame. But I'm trying to stay level headed considering the fab game they played against Jets

Both were awful last night. The thing that really irritated me about them was the fact that Keefe did a lot to keep them sheltered, going so fair as to give Kerfoot a bunch of shifts against Draisaitl.

And they responded by doing absolutely nothing.

 

[MapleLeafs77]

Because hockey is entertainment. Last night was not entertainment. It was worse than watching paint dry. Id rather watch my clock and see the seconds tick by which had more action than the entire game. Heck the commercials were more entertaining

 

[LEAFANFORLIFE23]

Starting Campbell is the right move, but Keefe won’t do it. Another loss coming. The Leafs are going to go 0-4 against Edmonton in these first 4 games with them.

No they aren't don't be ridiculous, it's not Freddy's fault the offense took the night off