Post-Game Talk: Leafs at Canucks - That was embarrassing to watch

[Muston Atthews]

I was at work last night but from what I watched the refs were all over us and I saw the canucks diving all over the place. Oh well

 

[blindpass]

Kassian doing the Cooke was good too. Kassian seems to like to injure players.

It wasn't anything like the Cooke/Karlsson play because Kassian's skate blade never rises more than 4 inches off the ice. It is awful that Bolland got a serious injury but it wasn't caused by any carelessness on Kassian's part and it wasn't a dirty play.

The elbow headshot to Kadri was much worse, you should be talking about that since I think there was clear intent to injure there.

In any case, here's to a speedy recovery for Bolland.

 

[TacitEndorsement]

Let's just say Canuck fans shouldn't want a winter classic or the cool winter breeze may knock many Nucks off their skates quite easily. And I'm really not sure why some Nuck fans think it's revelation about the cheapness, diving, fakery, etc. Nucks have kind of rightfully so built a rep on that sort of stuff.

I dunno, I just didn't see the same thing. If you're specifically talking about the boarding penalties, boardings a hard one to avoid. It's not the same as a tripping or hooking dive in my opinion.

Other than that, there was a puck over the glass, two high sticks, and an unsportsmanlike that were pretty impossible to not call.

Just one of those games rather than a ref bias. I think.

 

[Liminality]

The defence on this team has been bad before this game. I was waiting for one of these games to happen. We need to be much better.

Last nights effort was embarrassing.

I think Carlyle was waiting for one of these type of games to happen also. Timely scoring and relying on your special teams and goaltender can only get you so far. He's been saying they've got to play better but they keep on winning so it's not worth criticizing the win. They finally lose and hopefully it's a wake up call. You've got to play hard for 60 minutes and outwork the other team to be a top team in the league. Carlyle knew this was going to happen and now he can use this game as an example.

They've been playing weaker teams for a bit now so when they finally face Vancouver their same old song and dance doesn't work against a team like that. Can't give them 40+ shots and lots of PP time without feeling the heat of giving up a couple of goals.

I think they'll bounce back and to be honest I think a game like this is good for them. They played physical and they played with emotion. They've got to up that effort level on a consistent basis to get anywhere this year.

 

[colchar]

We haven't played the Bruins yet. Also, Tampa is playing very well. Habs although we make fun of them is a well coached team, fast and skilled.

Over the 82 game schedule do you think getting out shot always relying on your goalie is the best systerm?

Bruins, Lightning are gonna feast on us if we keep playing like this.

You mean the same Bruins who lost to the Islanders last night?

 

[ULF_55]

I dunno, I just didn't see the same thing. If you're specifically talking about the boarding penalties, boardings a hard one to avoid. It's not the same as a tripping or hooking dive in my opinion.

Other than that, there was a puck over the glass, two high sticks, and an unsportsmanlike that were pretty impossible to not call.

Just one of those games rather than a ref bias. I think.

Questionable unsportsmanlike on a questionable boarding.

It would not have made a difference in the game, IMO, but that doesn't make the poor officiating good.

Many of us knew the team wasn't playing well, and was getting by on facing poor keepers and having Bernier and Reimer steal games.

 

[TacitEndorsement]

Questionable unsportsmanlike on a questionable boarding.

It would not have made a difference in the game, IMO, but that doesn't make the poor officiating good.

Many of us knew the team wasn't playing well, and was getting by on facing poor keepers and having Bernier and Reimer steal games.

Man, that unsportsmanlike was as deserved as any I've seen. You have to admit.

A referee is not going to let a player like McLaren embarrass him in front of an entire stadium. Tom Sestito would have been given similar treatment.

The only players I could see getting away with that are respected veterans. Somebody like St. Louis or Alfredsson.

You just can't try to show up a referee like that. It will be called 10 times out of 10.

 

[Proto]

Canucks fan here. I'm not looking to start an argument, but it's silly to complain about diving when this happened in the game:

Regardless, Tortorella is working hard to change the embellishing atmosphere that the Canucks established in previous season's under Vigneault. Understandably, it may not be something you'd notice after a tough game, but the team seems a lot less likely to embellish this season. Just my two cents...

I think hockey's a lot more interesting when the Leafs are competitive, so good luck the rest of the season.

 

[BayStBullies]

Canucks fan here. I'm not looking to start an argument, but it's silly to complain about diving when this happened in the game:

Regardless, Tortorella is working hard to change the embellishing atmosphere that the Canucks established in previous season's under Vigneault. Understandably, it may not be something you'd notice after a tough game, but the team seems a lot less likely to embellish this season. Just my two cents...

I think hockey's a lot more interesting when the Leafs are competitive, so good luck the rest of the season.

What are we looking at here? JVR had a stick swung at his leg and felt it?

Now post GIFs for all the penalties in the favour of Vancouver; I'll wait here.

I think hockey is a lot more interesting when diving is out of the game, so good luck to Tortorella the rest of the way, trying to improve Vancouver's embellishment culture.

 

[LeafsMonster]

What are we looking at here? JVR had a stick swung at his leg and felt it?

Now post GIFs for all the penalties in the favour of Vancouver; I'll wait here.

I think hockey is a lot more interesting when diving is out of the game, so good luck to Tortorella the rest of the way, trying to improve Vancouver's embellishment culture.

To be fair, JVR sold it a little bit

 

[pcruz]

I think we're looking at a clear video of embellishment.

The point being, it was going both ways.


Also, just saw this. Looks to me like an elbow thrown at Sedin's head, which actually hilariously hits a Toronto player. Thoughts?

I was out at an event, but was keeping track of the game. After the first period I check and was greeted with a summary of the period. Kessel - fighting (5 minute major).... And thought "what the hell is going on in the game. Thank God I'm recording it"

I watched the game when I got home and between the good, but short ceremony to one of my favourite players, the awful performance of the team in the first period, the Canucks 2nd goal coming when a Leaf player is obviously seriously injured, the 3rd goal being extremely soft, I stopped the play and erased the game.

How the Leafs got a 2 man disadvantage on a play where the Canuck player intentionally left himself prone to getting hit, I have no clue. How the play wasn't blown dead with Bolland injured, I have no clue.

The rest of the game didn't even matter. All I needed to watch were those few plays to give me a synopsis of the game.

And yes, that reaction from JvR is selling the slash. It's still a slash to a player's knee that likely isn't called unless he reacts that way.

 

[Get North]

I was at work last night but from what I watched the refs were all over us and I saw the canucks diving all over the place. Oh well

Go Leafs go.

 

[pcruz]

Did Burrows get an instigator on the fight with Kessel? It was 100% clear that he went into the hit with the intent to start a fight.

After a normal hit, the player skates away, you know, back to the play. He didn't, he challenged Kessel, who for once (twice actually) didn't back down. Isn't that the textbook description of "instigation"?

Or did the refs look at that play and think, "well Kessel has been into fights before after being hit, so it's likely just that"?

 

[Man Bear Pig]

Did Burrows get an instigator on the fight with Kessel? It was 100% clear that he went into the hit with the intent to start a fight.

After a normal hit, the player skates away, you know, back to the play. He didn't, he challenged Kessel, who for once (twice actually) didn't back down. Isn't that the textbook description of "instigation"?

Or did the refs look at that play and think, "well Kessel has been into fights before after being hit, so it's likely just that"?

Bieksa was also holding JVR and instigating him behind Vancouvers net on a PK when the puck was 200 feet away in the Leafs zone. The refs were awful, they weren't the reason we lost but there's no doubt it was one-sided officiating.

 

[Tonka]

To be fair, JVR sold it a little bit

And why wouldn't he considering the cheap Pejorative Slured tactics of the same old Nucks getting away with their fake stuff. Only a matter of time someone from the opposing team tries embellishing.

Anyone remember that bunny dive Erhopp took at the ACC a few years ago? Funny I don't see him do that sort of stuff too often on the Sabres.

 

[pcruz]

Vancouver played the game perfectly.

Use the home town advantage the refs naturally offer in every single game. Not much, but they do tend to overlook small things on the home team and penalize the visitors more.

Get Phil Kessel out of the game towards the end of the first period when the Leafs are starting to wake up, by forcing him to fight...........

Take out one of the key players on the team and score at the same time.
Score a soft goal immediately afterwards when the Leafs are still reeling from the injury to a key player.

And then don't let the Leafs back into the game by not getting any penalties called against, and getting power plays of your own.

The main reason the Leafs lost, they played poorly. If you can't score, you won't win a single game all season long. Everything else is just gravy.

 

[Lindgren]

And yes, that reaction from JvR is selling the slash. It's still a slash to a player's knee that likely isn't called unless he reacts that way.

Canucks fan here. I think you're absolutely right. JVR sold the slash, but if he doesn't the penalty isn't called. The way to stop embellishment and diving, the stuff all teams do regularly, is to enforce the rules so that the soccer stuff isn't necessary.

 

[sommervr]

Leafs got punked last night. The nucks called our "tough guy" bluff. Kessel rolling around on the ice dodging
punches. JVR getting punked. Bolland in a hospital bed.

An what exactly did our supposed tough guys do? Orr fights a plug and loses and MacLaren does nothing.

Time for some new goons that understand how this is supposed to work.

 

[bobermay]

Bieksa was also holding JVR and instigating him behind Vancouvers net on a PK when the puck was 200 feet away in the Leafs zone. The refs were awful, they weren't the reason we lost but there's no doubt it was one-sided officiating.

I'm just going to say, its one game. Just suck it up, and hope that the leafs can rally together in the midst of the injuries in our weakest position (center).

That said, the reffing didn't help... these examples were good ones, but the one that caught my eye (when it was still a 1-0 game), was a clear boarding on Ranger from one of the Sedin's in the first which goes uncalled, and then seconds later Ranger retaliated and got a cross-checking call.. So where we should have gone on the PP in the late first in a one goal game, we go on the PK. Killed any momentum we could have built going into the first intermission.

 

[jimmycarter]

hard to decide who the bigger vancouver homers were: the CBC announcers or the refs.

 

[Green Snow Storm]

hard to decide who the bigger vancouver homers were: the CBC announcers or the refs.

Honestly it's becoming hard to stomach listening to the CBC commentators every Saturday who clearly have bias against the Leafs, continually take cheap digs at our team.

 

[bobermay]

Honestly it's becoming hard to stomach listening to the CBC commentators every Saturday who clearly have bias against the Leafs, continually take cheap digs at our team.

... and barely gives credit to the team where credit is due...

 

[bsjezz]

hard to decide who the bigger vancouver homers were: the CBC announcers or the refs.

hughson loves the canucks. healy and simpson it's hard to tell. they always sound depressed and negative - in any game i've watched them commentate - and their focus was doom and gloom about toronto's play. it was never "higgins placed a beautiful shot!" it was "moan, reimer would love to have that back."

so yes, it was terrible commentary, but it was far from canucks fan service

 

[pcruz]

Wasn't Jim Hughson the guy "hosting" the jersey retirement celebration? And then, as was mentioned on air, "ran up to the booth next to the jersey"?

Well, that seems completely normal. It can only lead to objectionable commentary and non-biased feelings during the game. I mean, the guy obviously has no attachment to the Canucks organization.

 

[The Bob Cole]

I was out at an event, but was keeping track of the game. After the first period I check and was greeted with a summary of the period. Kessel - fighting (5 minute major).... And thought "what the hell is going on in the game. Thank God I'm recording it"

I watched the game when I got home and between the good, but short ceremony to one of my favourite players, the awful performance of the team in the first period, the Canucks 2nd goal coming when a Leaf player is obviously seriously injured, the 3rd goal being extremely soft, I stopped the play and erased the game.

How the Leafs got a 2 man disadvantage on a play where the Canuck player intentionally left himself prone to getting hit, I have no clue. How the play wasn't blown dead with Bolland injured, I have no clue.

The rest of the game didn't even matter. All I needed to watch were those few plays to give me a synopsis of the game.

And yes, that reaction from JvR is selling the slash. It's still a slash to a player's knee that likely isn't called unless he reacts that way.

1) Play wasn't going to be called until Leafs gained possession of the puck. Same for any game with any team, you can't complain about that one.

2) The "slash", or tap, came because JVR threw a late hit from behind on Higgins into the boards as he was going for a line change.

Bieksa was also holding JVR and instigating him behind Vancouvers net on a PK when the puck was 200 feet away in the Leafs zone. The refs were awful, they weren't the reason we lost but there's no doubt it was one-sided officiating.

3) Those kinds of plays were happening all night for both sides. That was one that CBC showed, but there were several others that they never showed on TV (I was at the game and watched the tape) of both teams obstructing or challenging players behind the play.

Good to see everyone is handling the loss like men, The Canucks were diving head first into the board all game!, the refs were biased!, no the leafs were outclassed last night it's just one game and I'm sure they'll rebound.

4) Don't care how ridiculous you want to get, but no one dives head first into the board on purpose. Leafs players were frustrated at how the game was going and at several points got over-aggressive and made border-line and dangerous hits. Most were called appropriately, no major's or misconducts were handed out, just 2 minute minors.

All 3 of those boardings (actually, one was just called a cross-check) were handed out well after the 3-0 lead by Vancouver. They didn't have nearly as big of an impact as maybe some people would like to believe. Powerplays in the first were 2 for Toronto, 3 for Vancouver.