Post-Game Talk: Leafs win 3-1 against the Canes

[SeaOfBlue]

He racks up the points because he just passes it a few meters to his left or right and let’s them work their magic.

As for familiarity, well yeah, since we know that this is all he is capable of it would be wise to try options that would add to the power play (like Sandin and Lilly).

It is a little bit more complicated than that. There are times when his pass was more important than the guy who had the primary assist.

He handles the puck a lot better at the blueline than Sandin, and that is far more important than having a bomb from the point. I would not be against giving Liljegren a chance on the PP, but it should come over Sandin, not Rielly.

Now obviously we need Rielly to be more involved than just being a safety valve for Marner, because that is when our PP is at its best, but that is a deployment issue.

 

[Stephen]

What these two games proved is that our overall defensive game is better than previous yrs. Our forwards and defense are more committed . We aren't scoring as much but our defensive coverage is better. This was a playoff weekend.
The only thing we need to be concerned about is goaltending.

What’s encouraging about the win vs Carolina is they really played within themselves, and held their own against a pretty big team with relentless forechecking. Vegas will be more of the same tomorrow.

 

[ITM]

Ebb and flow being what it is, I hope management sees this present momentum as an opportunity to reaffirm that change for the better has to be top of mind for the club.

It's right to move Kerfoot in the slump, it's right to move him (because it makes the most sense for any number of reasons) now.

Still going to need a bruising defenceman or two. I floated a number of names last season (Dubas doesn't take my calls) so I'll float one again since Middleton was moved to Minnesota: Carson Soucy.

I think the offset is a net of $750K for us in salary. Both are UFAs.

I don't know what the base would look like, but if we could get a larger deal with Seattle going to bring in Tanev, Soucy and Geekie, that's the sort of injection our club needs as we're picking our heads up off of the floor.

 

[Slyfox]

Malgin and Robertson should both never be scratched/taken out of the lineup. Both were instrumental esp Malgin.

 

[leafers]

It is a little bit more complicated than that. There are times when his pass was more important than the guy who had the primary assist.

He handles the puck a lot better at the blueline than Sandin, and that is far more important than having a bomb from the point. I would not be against giving Liljegren a chance on the PP, but it should come over Sandin, not Rielly.

Now obviously we need Rielly to be more involved than just being a safety valve for Marner, because that is when our PP is at its best, but that is a deployment issue.

How many times is his involvement anything else than dishing it to Marner or Matthews? Far too few for the amount of minutes he plays.

And I disagree, imo Sandin not only handles the puck better, but he makes faster decisions with it and has a better shot. I believe he has better offensive instincts than Rielly.

 

[Twine Tickler]

This past weekend has restored a bit of hope for me. As busy as the month of October was for our club, the quality of competition was actually very easy. We undoubtingly should have had a better start then 4-4-2. I was happy with the win against Philly, but I also saw signs of that same sloppy play that we had been accustomed to all season. However, this past weekend the boys really locked it down against 2 cup contending teams. Playing 4/6 periods with their 3rd string tendy. Gotta give credit where credit is due.

it is massively concerning that we cannot seem to elevate our games against lesser opponents, but at the end of the day I'd rather have a quality record against contending teams like we did last season.

Credit to Keefer for making the in game adjustments. It really shifted that game in our favor once that happened. Also I am really really liking the play of this new 4th line. Malgin has been excellent, and he just seems to elevate the play of Kampf and ZAR. We've had consistent issues with our 4th line for years. I am really hoping we've found something with that trio. It could be a huge difference maker for us to have 4 reliable lines. Just having the ability to roll lines, especially on B2B's is going to be huge. It will keep our big boys fresh and it also makes it easier to manage last change on the road. Having 4 lines that we can trust to throw out there in any situation will be huge. So hopefully we can see that continue.

 

[SeaOfBlue]

How many times is his involvement anything else than dishing it to Marner or Matthews? Far too few for the amount of minutes he plays.

And I disagree, imo Sandin not only handles the puck better, but he makes faster decisions with it and has a better shot. I believe he has better offensive instincts than Rielly.

Not really sure what you are seeing, but sure.

 

[Brown Dog]

Lol Freddy being Freddy.

I don't pretend to know what the answer is for this confounding Leafs team, but I know one thing for sure: Freddy ain't it.

 

[diehardleafsfan9878]

Yup he got bit in season 8, Rick left in season 9

Spoilers, freak off

 

[mapleleaf979]

It is a little bit more complicated than that. There are times when his pass was more important than the guy who had the primary assist.

He handles the puck a lot better at the blueline than Sandin, and that is far more important than having a bomb from the point. I would not be against giving Liljegren a chance on the PP, but it should come over Sandin, not Rielly.

Now obviously we need Rielly to be more involved than just being a safety valve for Marner, because that is when our PP is at its best, but that is a deployment issue.

Reilly has never been involved in that PP, Reilly has proven he can not run the PP. He does not shoot the puck, he telegraphs his passes. Sandin doesnt hesitate to shoot, nor does Liljegren. Sandin is more deceptive than Liljegren and Reilly. Reilly is the most over rated Leaf, his hockey sense is not top of the food chain, his skating/puck carrying skills are his bread and butter, it kind of ends there for me.

 

[Brad C]

Good game after the first period

Some good sticks in the passing lanes

 

[Fogelhund]

A couple of notes...

Denis Malgin has been on the ice for ZERO goals against, 5v5.
Giordano has been on the ice for ONE goal against 5v5.

Robertson has been on the ice for a team high 4.0 GF/60 5v5, while also have the THIRD lowest GA/60 at 1.6 (For forwards with three or more games)

Our team is now 8th in GA/60 in the league. PP is 8th in the league. PK is only 23rd, GF/60 22nd.

It would have been hard to predict, that we'd be a top 10 team in GA/60, while bottom 10 in GF/60... If we can continue our strong defensive play, and improve our output, that would be great.

 

[meefer]

He racks up the points because he just passes it a few meters to his left or right and let’s them work their magic.

As for familiarity, well yeah, since we know that this is all he is capable of it would be wise to try options that would add to the power play (like Sandin and Lilly).

That's an interesting interpretation. One might then suggest that McDavid and Drai are benefitting in the same way, and that Barrie's numbers, (one year here, Colorado for one and his 3rd in Edmonton - lucky fellow that), has had his numbers substantially inflated due to playing with all the offensive talent from 3 teams. Tyson Barrie has feasted on the PP: 6th in overall points with .3 points per game, at 3:17/g he's 32 seconds more per game. Or more methodically, .026 more points per game than Morgan. That, over 82 games, measures out to 2.1 points more for the player per year. Draw your own conclusions. But back to McD and Drai for a second. They are 1 and 2 for scoring on the PP over the last 5 years. Auston and Mitch: 18 and 24, with JT sliding in at 28. However, combined we're still lagging the point totals from our fellas that work the "magic" when compared to the duo from Edmonton. McD and Drai score more than our top 3. Where's the magic? One could argue we had one of the most dominant PPs of all time, last year. And they'd be right! We did. So why don't we score more? I'd argue, and please forgive me as I don't have the reference to back up this truth, the Leafs receive fewer PP opportunities than just about anybody in the league. I'm sure I remember that Colorado is number 1, but almost 100% we receive fewer PP than any other team. The reasons, I'll leave to others, but Morgan Rielly's perceived effectiveness - however you wish to measure from what I can find - is largely based on the fact that he has fewer chances to shine, and in fewer minutes to do so, than just about any top tier PP defenseman in the league. Tangible results, points, time on ice, opportunities, MATH...he ain't the best, but we could do a lot worse.

Edit: There is no evidence that Sandin and Lily, and I like both, would be an improvement over Rielly on the PP. There is hope they'd succeed, but no numbers they have produced to date in the NHL suggest that they'd by anything but a downgrade. Nothing.

 

[ZEBROA]

This past weekend has restored a bit of hope for me. As busy as the month of October was for our club, the quality of competition was actually very easy. We undoubtingly should have had a better start then 4-4-2. I was happy with the win against Philly, but I also saw signs of that same sloppy play that we had been accustomed to all season. However, this past weekend the boys really locked it down against 2 cup contending teams. Playing 4/6 periods with their 3rd string tendy. Gotta give credit where credit is due.

it is massively concerning that we cannot seem to elevate our games against lesser opponents, but at the end of the day I'd rather have a quality record against contending teams like we did last season.

Credit to Keefer for making the in game adjustments. It really shifted that game in our favor once that happened. Also I am really really liking the play of this new 4th line. Malgin has been excellent, and he just seems to elevate the play of Kampf and ZAR. We've had consistent issues with our 4th line for years. I am really hoping we've found something with that trio. It could be a huge difference maker for us to have 4 reliable lines. Just having the ability to roll lines, especially on B2B's is going to be huge. It will keep our big boys fresh and it also makes it easier to manage last change on the road. Having 4 lines that we can trust to throw out there in any situation will be huge. So hopefully we can see that continue.

Ive been yellimg on Keefe for not doing enough in game changes. So that was fantastic to see. Great game from him.

 

[AvroArrow]

Malgin and Robertson should both never be scratched/taken out of the lineup. Both were instrumental esp Malgin.

But but Robertson sucks because he can't crack the lineup regularly ! Trust me some dudes who've never seen him play a single game on the mains told me so !

Both were huge yesterday, love how Keefe shuffled the lines up. I hope he keeps Marner with Tavares and Robertson for a little while longer, they were so dominant. Had a slow start to the game but from the 2nd period onward I felt we were the much better team. Robertson is way too good to be scratched again, legitimate top 6 winger on a low cap hit

 

[Gary Nylund]

Up front what an outstanding play on one of NHL's best defenders Slavin .. da game changing SPEED and da skill required to flag down a shot 4 ft off ice and da hands and feet to stick check and deflect a puck .. OMG that was WORLD CLASS maybe he and McJesus and MAC only 3 guys in league who can make da play .. watch it again folks you may not see another play like that one all year .. Willy has ALL DA TOOLS .. and much as i don't like Malgin for playoff type hockey I gotta admit he drove pace and tilted ice for us at points during game .. and one last shot out to Mitch wow da hand eye skill and vision required on his play i think it is only him and Marchand and Kuch who can use their edges and hands in small space like that .. anywho Willy Malgin and Mitch deserve special kudos

OK this made me watch is again just now and you're right, I had it as the play of the game but it was even prettier than I remember. Maybe it's something about Nylander, he's so fast and so skilled that you have to watch really close to realize how freaky good he really is, not sure. But yeah in any case sure, Andersen should have had that but other than that, everything about that play was a thing of beauty.

Do yourself a favour guys - if you didn't see this goal, check it out and if you have seen it, take another look anyway. Here's a highlights link, start watching at about the 7:50 mark. And the best part - after the goal goes in, be sure to wait a few seconds as first they show the CAR coach, then Slavin and the look on Slavin's face is priceless. It's like he just can not comprehend what the hell just happened. Though to be fair, a lot of that might be him thinking come on Andy, how did you not get that one but still, Nylander showed elite skill on this one.

That's an interesting interpretation. One might then suggest that McDavid and Drai are benefitting in the same way, and that Barrie's numbers, (one year here, Colorado for one and his 3rd in Edmonton - lucky fellow that), has had his numbers substantially inflated due to playing with all the offensive talent from 3 teams. Tyson Barrie has feasted on the PP: 6th in overall points with .3 points per game, at 3:17/g he's 32 seconds more per game. Or more methodically, .026 more points per game than Morgan. That, over 82 games, measures out to 2.1 points more for the player per year. Draw your own conclusions. But back to McD and Drai for a second. They are 1 and 2 for scoring on the PP over the last 5 years. Auston and Mitch: 18 and 24, with JT sliding in at 28. However, combined we're still lagging the point totals from our fellas that work the "magic" when compared to the duo from Edmonton. McD and Drai score more than our top 3. Where's the magic? One could argue we had one of the most dominant PPs of all time, last year. And they'd be right! We did. So why don't we score more? I'd argue, and please forgive me as I don't have the reference to back up this truth, the Leafs receive fewer PP opportunities than just about anybody in the league. I'm sure I remember that Colorado is number 1, but almost 100% we receive fewer PP than any other team. The reasons, I'll leave to others, but Morgan Rielly's perceived effectiveness - however you wish to measure from what I can find - is largely based on the fact that he has fewer chances to shine, and in fewer minutes to do so, than just about any top tier PP defenseman in the league. Tangible results, points, time on ice, opportunities, MATH...he ain't the best, but we could do a lot worse.

Edit: There is no evidence that Sandin and Lily, and I like both, would be an improvement over Rielly on the PP. There is hope they'd succeed, but no numbers they have produced to date in the NHL suggest that they'd by anything but a downgrade. Nothing.

Great post! I should be used to it by now I guess, but I'm not. My mind is blown every time I read yet another post about how average skilled and overpaid Rielly is.

 

[m1ker]

Rielly doesn’t really add anything to the power play. No creativity, no shot, nothing really. Sandin or Liljegren would be better options than him.

Ya but Rielly is by far our best option for keeping the puck in the zone because he's fast and can recover the puck quick or catch it along the boards. Sandin, Gio, or Muzzin are all slow. That in itself is why he's our best option.

 

[Rants Mulliniks]

Ebb and flow being what it is, I hope management sees this present momentum as an opportunity to reaffirm that change for the better has to be top of mind for the club.

It's right to move Kerfoot in the slump, it's right to move him (because it makes the most sense for any number of reasons) now.

Still going to need a bruising defenceman or two. I floated a number of names last season (Dubas doesn't take my calls) so I'll float one again since Middleton was moved to Minnesota: Carson Soucy.

I think the offset is a net of $750K for us in salary. Both are UFAs.

I don't know what the base would look like, but if we could get a larger deal with Seattle going to bring in Tanev, Soucy and Geekie, that's the sort of injection our club needs as we're picking our heads up off of the floor.

Were you reading Facebook this morning?

 

[m1ker]

Tavares substantially improves his game and mood when he's playing with Marner. He turns into a sniper with 99 positioning.

Holl was a beast on that first goal

 

[Punch Drunk Loov]

How was Sandin in this game?

 

[Stigma]

Malgin and Robertson should both never be scratched/taken out of the lineup. Both were instrumental esp Malgin.

I love Malgin's attitude. Demoted to the 4th line? No problem....no complaints. Just works like a beast and has proven to be very effective, providing the spark to the line that was need. This is the type of player you win with in the playoffs.

 

[Matthews4Calder]

Ya but Rielly is by far our best option for keeping the puck in the zone because he's fast at tracking the puck. That in itself is why he's our best option.

What about a deal for Chychrun involving Morgan. I've always liked Reilly but too soft for me and still makes some bone headed decisions and don't care for him on the PP either mostly due to his shot. Leafs PP would be even better with a guy that could shoot. One thing about Morgan is he's a team guy first and kudos to him for taking a discount on his contract not like some others. Anyway Chychrun would add another element to the PP, is 4 years younger and his contract is great. Thoughts and maybe some other pieces.

 

[ITM]

Were you reading Facebook this morning?

No. I don’t have a FB account.

Archives here will show I was calling for Middleton, Soucy and a few others in proposals last season; Same with candidates like Husso and Lankinen (and Lindgren) for goaltending…Dubas never picks up.

 

[JT AM da real deal]

OK this made me watch is again just now and you're right, I had it as the play of the game but it was even prettier than I remember. Maybe it's something about Nylander, he's so fast and so skilled that you have to watch really close to realize how freaky good he really is, not sure. But yeah in any case sure, Andersen should have had that but other than that, everything about that play was a thing of beauty.

Do yourself a favour guys - if you didn't see this goal, check it out and if you have seen it, take another look anyway. Here's a highlights link, start watching at about the 7:50 mark. And the best part - after the goal goes in, be sure to wait a few seconds as first they show the CAR coach, then Slavin and the look on Slavin's face is priceless. It's like he just can not comprehend what the hell just happened. Though to be fair, a lot of that might be him thinking come on Andy, how did you not get that one but still, Nylander showed elite skill on this one.




Great post! I should be used to it by now I guess, but I'm not. My mind is blown every time I read yet another post about how average skilled and overpaid Rielly is.

OK this made me watch is again just now and you're right, I had it as the play of the game but it was even prettier than I remember. Maybe it's something about Nylander, he's so fast and so skilled that you have to watch really close to realize how freaky good he really is, not sure. But yeah in any case sure, Andersen should have had that but other than that, everything about that play was a thing of beauty.

Do yourself a favour guys - if you didn't see this goal, check it out and if you have seen it, take another look anyway. Here's a highlights link, start watching at about the 7:50 mark. And the best part - after the goal goes in, be sure to wait a few seconds as first they show the CAR coach, then Slavin and the look on Slavin's face is priceless. It's like he just can not comprehend what the hell just happened. Though to be fair, a lot of that might be him thinking come on Andy, how did you not get that one but still, Nylander showed elite skill on this one.




Great post! I should be used to it by now I guess, but I'm not. My mind is blown every time I read yet another post about how average skilled and overpaid Rielly is.

Freddy is Freddy what can anyone say .. Mr unclutch .. but give Willy his due .. like i said very very few can move at that PACE and use their feet and make a stick deflection like that one .. i still remember da game last year in our barn where Freddy screwed up late in game to Mitch to lose another one .. best move Dubie made unloading both freddy and soup .. you don't win playoff games with guys like that

 

[meefer]

What about a deal for Chychrun involving Morgan. I've always liked Reilly but too soft for me and still makes some bone headed decisions and don't care for him on the PP either mostly due to his shot. Leafs PP would be even better with a guy that could shoot. One thing about Morgan is he's a team guy first and kudos to him for taking a discount on his contract not like some others. Anyway Chychrun would add another element to the PP, is 4 years younger and his contract is great. Thoughts and maybe some other pieces.

Why on earth???

Chychrun: 219 games over the last 5, 108 points, -34, .49 points/game, 31 PP points, 28.7% PP points
Rielly: 279 games played, 211 points, +54, .75 points/game, 67 PP points, 31.8% PP points.

Rielly is more durable, scores more on both 5x5 and pp, JC plays 23 seconds less on the PP and 15 seconds less on PK, and 1:15 less TOI. At 3 M less the MR, Jacob is a downgrade as number 1 LD (if involving Rielly), a higher risk to be injured, less productive on the PP and PK, and increases the need to play our 2nd and 3rd pairing LDs more. I don't get it, swapping out the two.