Line Combos: Our Lineup When We're a Consistent Playoff Team

[showtime8]

Ewww, you have Bozak as the top line C again. That's not a playoff team either. Once Matthews and Nylander develop into a bona fide #1-2 C tandem + when we get some D help, that's when we'll be a consistent playoff team. None of this Bozak being the #1 C crap.

My bad, I didn't intentionally have him there.

My first choice is to have Mathews there.

Bozak and Kadri can be swapped.

I don't see Nylander as a centreman.

 

[D3ADLY]

When we are a consistent playoff team our lineup will look different from what it can be today. We can be a playoff team as early as this year if we go on a tear but i think starting next season you will see Leafs in playoffs with regularity. I think for that to happen the lineup should look something like this.

JVR(Trade?)- Matthews - Marner
TRADE/UFA - Kadri - TRADE/UFA
Komarov - Nylander - Kapanen
Martin - Adam Brooks - Hyman
Brown
We are still at least 2 top 6 away from being consistent in competing day in day out.

Reilly - UFA/DRAFT/TRADE #1D
Gardiner - Zaitsev
Nielson - TRADE/UFA
Carrick
#1D and a very good stay at home #4-5D is what we need here our 2nd pairing is pretty much set.

Andersen
Trade/UFA
I think we have a good enough goalie to take us to promise land he just needs proper rest and a proper back up.

 

[indigobuffalo]

I really believe Hyman is a long term thing, people getting their hopes up of him being placed properly he will still be on Matthews wing.

He looks really good on the Matthews Nylander line.

People have this loopy idea that the line would be better with a Marner instead of Hyman.

But if you actually watch the game, Hyman is the guy on the forecheck creating turnovers and banging around behind the net and in the corners.

Marner wouldn't be able to handle that. It would force Nylander to do it, and he's not very good there either.

They need a guy that will do that.

Now, maybe there is a better option in a few years, like Leipsic, or Timashov, or Dzierkals. Those guys are all in the same vein.

Hyman is just a smidgen under-producing. His role isn't to pot goals but if he could just be a tiny bit better deflecting pucks on goal...

Like if he was JVR but with the grit to fight in the corners that he has, oooh boy. He'd be a legit force.

 

[FreeBird]

Predict what our lines will look like when all of our player/prospect shuffling has settled down in a few years
For mine I'm choosing to use the players we have now, not worrying about draft picks or free agents, to keep it simple. Feel free to project draft picks/trades/free agents if you like.
IMO

JVR - Matthews - Marner
Brown - Nylander - Kapanen
Leipsic - Kadri - Soshnikov
Hyman - Gauthier - Rychel
Martin

Nielsen - Rielly
Gardiner - Zaitsev
Dermott - Carrick
Valiev

Andersen
Bibeau/Woll

A lot of the guys named won't be on the roster when we are a consistent playoff team. We might have about eight guys who will be regulars from the present roster and farm system and draft picks in Europe. It will be another three to five years that we have a consistent playoff contender. Andersen is screwing us over we're going from a top five in the draft to a top fifteen because he's just to damn good.

 

[jaric1862]

Soshnikov-Matthews-Marner
Komarov-Nylander-Kapanen
Rychel/Leipisic-Kadri-Brown
Martin-Gauthier-Hyman
Leipisic/Rychel-XXX

Rielly-Manson
Gardiner-Zaitsev
Nielsen/Valiev-Carrick
Marincin

Andersen-Ramo

 

[Kingstonian84*]

sosh-matthews-marner
kapanen-nylander-jvr
brown-kadri-hyman
martin-gauthier-leo


rielly-zaitsev
gardiner-unknown upgrade
carrick-nelsen

andersen

 

[Menzinger]

A lot of the guys named won't be on the roster when we are a consistent playoff team. We might have about eight guys who will be regulars from the present roster and farm system and draft picks in Europe. It will be another three to five years that we have a consistent playoff contender. Andersen is screwing us over we're going from a top five in the draft to a top fifteen because he's just to damn good.

I'd say the scoring of the Leafs big three and Kadri/JVR may also have a thing or two about it as well....

 

[Leafling]

Agree with people leaving out bozak but he will definitely land us a good winger or defence prospect

I'm not sold on nylander as a centre though so i hope we land a decent 3rd centre through trade or prospect pool.

 

[Leafling]

When we are a consistent playoff team our lineup will look different from what it can be today. We can be a playoff team as early as this year if we go on a tear but i think starting next season you will see Leafs in playoffs with regularity. I think for that to happen the lineup should look something like this.

JVR(Trade?)- Matthews - Marner
TRADE/UFA - Kadri - TRADE/UFA
Komarov - Nylander - Kapanen
Martin - Adam Brooks - Hyman
Brown
We are still at least 2 top 6 away from being consistent in competing day in day out.

Reilly - UFA/DRAFT/TRADE #1D
Gardiner - Zaitsev
Nielson - TRADE/UFA
Carrick
#1D and a very good stay at home #4-5D is what we need here our 2nd pairing is pretty much set.

Andersen
Trade/UFA
I think we have a good enough goalie to take us to promise land he just needs proper rest and a proper back up.

I can't imagine what we may draft or trade for your second line but until then shosh and brown may look good with Naz.

Agree with almost evrything else u said

 

[zeke]

we're making the playoffs this year, and won't miss again for a long while.

 

[NarcoPolo]

Predict what our lines will look like when all of our player/prospect shuffling has settled down in a few years
For mine I'm choosing to use the players we have now, not worrying about draft picks or free agents, to keep it simple. Feel free to project draft picks/trades/free agents if you like.
IMO

JVR - Matthews - Marner
Brown - Nylander - Kapanen
Leipsic - Kadri - Soshnikov
Hyman - Gauthier - Rychel
Martin

Nielsen - Rielly
Gardiner - Zaitsev
Dermott - Carrick
Valiev

Andersen
Bibeau/Woll

That defense is already much better than what we currently have.. Our bottom pair is absolutely atrocious. If rielly can become anywhere between a Letang, Keith, or Brodie level of defensemen, and if Nielsen can be a top pairing defensemen than that would help obviously. Probably too optimistic though.

 

[LeafingTheWay]

My bad, I didn't intentionally have him there.

My first choice is to have Mathews there.

Bozak and Kadri can be swapped.

I don't see Nylander as a centreman.

There's a difference between Bozak and Kadri, so much so that a 'swap' is a pretty big change.

I agree that I don't see Nylander as a C either, but it will work anyways if he does play there. I think he'll be a LW/C type of player like Zetterberg. Nylander (Zetterberg) can move to LW beside Matthews (Datsyuk) if need be or be the 2C.

And also another big point is that moving Nylander to the C position allows us to free up a top-6 position for one of Kapanen, Timashov, Bracco, etc to fight for.

JVR - Matthews - Marner (All purpose unit)
Leipsic - Kadri - Timashov/Brown (Give him Leipsic on the LW and Timashov/Bracco/Brown and watch the magic two-way)
Soshnikov - Nylander - Kapanen (Sheltered role)
Martin - Gauthier - Hyman/Brown

I'd say this is what I see for next year.

 

[klamla]

we're making the playoffs this year, and won't miss again for a long while.

I am optimistic to think this but hopefully starting next year. If not, the year after.

 

[Apotheosis]

Okay, ideally for me, we get either Liljegren or Mittelstadt in next year's draft. The players in the farm who I think will make a big impact and could potentially be elite of make impacts; Nielsen, Kapanen, Dermott and Leipsic. Possibly Korshkov too, but he's a project right now.

I feel by the time we are contending, JVR, Bozak and Gardiner will be gone. Will make at least one D signing/trade (for this I believe either Stone or Manson).

Korshkov - Matthews - Marner
Brown - Nylander - Kapanen
Grundstrom - Kadri - Leipsic
Hyman - Gauthier - Soshnikov

Rielly - Zaitsev
Nielsen - Liljegren
Dermott Carrick

Andersen
some guy signed in FA who's decent

On the flip side, if we got Mittelstadt instead...

Mittelstadt - Matthews - Marner
Korshkov - Nylander - Kapanen
Grundstrom - Kadri - Leipsic
Hyman - Gauthier - Soshnikov

Rielly - Manson/Stone
Nielsen - Zaitsev
Dermott - Carrick

Andersen
some guy signed in FA who's decent

 

[Community]

JVR - Matthews - Marner
XXX - Nylander - Kapanen
Komarov - Kadri - Brown

4th line: Soshnikov, Hyman, Martin, FA, prospects

Rielly - XXX
Gardiner - Zaitsev
Carrick - XXX

Nielsen, UFA, etc. to fill out the pairings

Andersen
XXX (Could be anybody)

JVR might be moved in the (near) future plus something else for that top pairing RHD, but then we have to figure out what we're doing with the top 6 LW slots. Could see a UFA like Sharp filling one of those for a few years, but I have no idea who the Leafs think could fit there atm.

 

[jaric1862]

Even like a short term signing like Berglund to play on Nylander's Left Wing would be smart. A verteran guy who can take some faceoffs and help alleviate some of the pressures that Nylander may face as a center next . Help him ease into the Position a bit more

 

[Pi]

Our team when we're a consistent playoff team won't have half those players.

Only Matthews, Marner, Nylander, Rielly, Zaitsev, Gardiner, Kadri and Freddie. Everyone else we have no clue about.

 

[Magic Man]

2017-2018

Kapanen - Matthews - Nylander
JVR - Marner - Brown
Leipsic - Kadri - Komarov
Martin - Hyman - Soshnikov
ex. Rychel

Rielly - Zaitsev
Gardiner - XXX - (Trade/FA)
Marincin - Carrick
ex. XXX - (Trade/FA)

Andersen
XXX - (Trade/FA)

 

[Visnovsky]

x-Matthews-Marner
Johnson-Nylander-Korshkov
Grundström-Kadri-Brown
Martin-Gauthier-Soshnikov

Rielly-Tanev
Valiev-Zaitsev
Nielsen-x

Andersen
Bibeau/Sparks

Something like this at the start of 18/19.

 

[jaric1862]

2017-2018:

Right before expansion draft: JVR for Manson+ (Expecting Anahiem to buyout or waive Bieksa and protect Lindholm,Fowler and Vatanen on D)

EXPANSION DRAFT

Protect 4F 4D
Kadri
Bozak
Leipisic
Brown


4D
Rielly
Gardiner
Manson
Carrick

Las Vegas takes: Komarov (or might pick Rychel)

Roster:

Soshnikov-Matthews-Marner ----> Matthews and Marner work Magic, Soshnikov is the gritty one w speed
Kapanen-Bozak-Nylander ----> Nylander gets Transtioned into Playing Center, Secondary Scoring
Leipisic-Kadri-Hyman ----->Shutdown/agitator line with some offense (Kadri+Leipisic), Hyman for size/motor
Martin-Gauthier-Brown---> 4th line w brown to provide some offense and drive play (instead of Hyman)
Rychel-XXXX(Maybe Leivo)

Rielly-Manson
Gardiner-Zaitsev
Valiev-Carrick
Marincin

Andersen-Ramo

 

[LEAFANFORLIFE23]

Love Brown but he won't be on the 2nd line

Bibeau will not be the backup

And I am starting to wonder if Nylander won't be a winger long term

 

[sxvnert]

After TDL moves, roll four lines evenly:

Kapanen Matthews Marner
Leipsic Nylander Soshnikov
JVR Bozak Leivo
Hyman Kadri Brown
Moved Leivo to RW

Rielly Zaitsev
Gardiner Carrick
Valiev (Dump)

Anderson
(Dump)