Post-Game Talk: The Arrival of Freddy? | Leafs beat Caps 2-0

[thewave]

Gardiner and Zaitsev are really stepping up as the #1 pair. Gardiner has helped Zaitsev up his game. This also lets Reilly play against lesser competition and he is gaining some confidence. Zaitsev and Hainsey are lights out on the PK.

We have a legit D core when we play with structure.

 

[ULF_55]

Brown should teach Marner KISS - Keep it simple and sustainable.

Sometimes off the boards and out is the best option, mind you Brown can go to the boards and not try and dance everyone to stay on his feet.

 

[ToneDog]

Nobody argues that you don't do it. I just argue people are imperfect and do it. Matthews, Mitch, Brown etc. Pick your player and they will make a mistake if you watch long enough. Its funny how people zone in on that play and when Jake/Nylander makes a mistake but then completely ignore say Bozak or Marner errors. Its actually quite funny really. The frequency of errors was why Marner got demoted, not an agenda. Glad people shut up with the you hate Mitch annoyances though and for that I thank...haha Babcock I guess for basically validating my opinion.

Add: Jake and Nylander carry the puck and are on the puck a lot. Sometimes it won't go well and that normal.

Jake Mistake and Willygafffes are Nothing-burgers.

Highly skilled and confident players tend to make those mistakes. Better that he gets burned in game #6 of the season and learns so that he does not attempt that in a playoff game.

 

[ToneDog]

If Brownie keeps playing well and helps the Bozak line play better D, what do we do with Mitch when he is ready to be released from Bab's dog house ?

 

[Cor]

Awful
Cor - Complete no-show tonight.

100% agreed on Cor for being invisible

Good job Nith

Wow, I took some heat last night

 

[thewave]

Highly skilled and confident players tend to make those mistakes. Better that he gets burned in game #6 of the season and learns so that he does not attempt that in a playoff game.

Think about thinking on the fly... That basically means fly by instinct with no internal debate. How can we write this, you'll see its not so easy.

Puck is on my stick
Opponents @10 and @2 with 6ft between, distance to travel 4ft, their speed is --- and --- my speed is --- I can get to --- speed at --- rate while I guesstimate they can only manage --- and --- to close --- feet if I use this trajectory and it goes on from there bud...

Now that you have read that you probably get my point. You don't actually think all of that consciously. Its instinctively, a sub process that the all best players have running better than others. The ones with good vision are more accurate with their ability to process the game. Sometimes you get let down and when it happens you say..f***! That was stupid of me, you're not actually telling conscious logical thinking brain you off. You are getting pissed off at you instincts and processor lol.

What a mind f*** eh

 

[leburn98]

Was there something wrong with the ice because both teams seemed to battle the puck.

I thought the same. A few players blew tires during the game, especially in front of the benches.

 

[Morgs]

The Leafs are really good at hockey...

 

[MJ65]

What a nifty move by Kadri on this EN - and a beautiful pass by Rielly

 

[Rogie]

I think it was a game we controlled rather well, we looked mostly collected and good defensively and was rather wasteful offensively. It's especially nice to see that we can lock down a lead this season. Now, some people might think the grades are rather low overall considering the score, but I think the Capitals were rather tame to be honest.

Great
Andersen - A shutout is a shutout, and he had a few really great ones, especially when he bailed out Nylander.
Rielly - Morgan had a great game. He transitioned well, joined the rush, jumped into holes and helped us out offensively with creative passing. Had quite a few great defensive play, among others a sprawling poke that probably saved a goal.

Good
Kadri - He's such a key cog for us. Made a terrific job overall in heavy minutes, created a lot despite a rather weak game from his wingers, and got a goal as a reward. Could have just as well drawn two-three more penalties.
Marner - Boy makes me so annoyed at times. He clearly wants to shoot more, but his decision-making on when to shoot has been brutal. At one point he gets the puck on the sideboards, swing around and I'm waiting for some magic. And he shoots a low-percentage shot right on Holtby. The next he gets a ton of net with a clear shot, and elects to pass. I honestly prefer his constant passing to this, but I guess it's a stage he needs to go through. Oh, and he was good.
Gardiner - Good, solid game from Jake. A few times where he had a bit too much ice in his veins, but an all-round solid game with three stretch passes to open up breakaways or odd man rushes for us.

Average
Matthews - Very quiet game by his standards. "Only" one grade A chance, and some unusual mishandles from him.
Nylander - Was flying tonight, and controlled offense so well. I have some issues with him being a bit cute this game, he had a grade a chance that he just elected to ignore, and that turnover was such a no-no that it pushed him down one spot.
Marleau - Pat was ok tonight. Did some good work along the boards, but mostly was just quiet again.
Bozak - I think Tyler was fine tonight. He played with some hustle, played better in his own zone, and gave it a decent effort.
Brown - Got the important goal for us, but I honestly think he had a quite bad night before that. Didn't seem to click with his linemates, and didn't get things working personally either.
Martin - Matt had some jump tonight. Felt like he really wanted to support Marner in that role by jumping into spaces more often, and drove the net quite a bit. In the end, he got limited minutes as usual and had a limited impact as a result.
Moore - Had a nice game, worked hard, even created some. Seemed to click well with Marner, which isn't perhaps that surprising from a smart player.
Zaitsev - I was going to have him higher, but his last 10 minutes were mostly quite bad to be honest. His last few in particular.
Hainsey - Played really big minutes and was mostly good, but he had some really bad shifts on the PK.
Rosén - Got very sheltered, but he did alright this game. Had a beauty poke that broke up a dangerous cycle and got us a rush chance, but otherwise mostly a quiet game for him. That's a step up.

Bad
Hyman - Had a nice rush, some good work, but mostly he felt rather ineffective. Not his strongest night.
Komarov - Had an odd game. Played very difficult for a guy with his skill set. As an example, a behind the back drop pass just outside our blue line. That's not his game.
JVR - Tonight he and Bozak switched places, as JVR played with no intensity at all and wasn't really part of the game in any zone.
Carrick - Didn't really like Carrick tonight. Had a rough first period. He seem to play better with Borgman, his games with Rosén so far has made him seem scrambly.

Awful
Cor - Complete no-show tonight.

I really appreciate your analysis Nith - don't agree with everything (most though), but, just really really appreciate the time and energy you take to provide us with food for thought.

 

[Rogie]

I have to say that the Capitals play-by-play guy just have no feel for the game, he sounds exactly the same no matter what is going on. Doesn't help that he couldn't get the players right every second shift.

I mentioned last year that I very very often prefer to watch and listen to the opp broadcast teams. Some of the teams are very very objective (not all of course) but, I can get a different perspective on how other team's analysts view our best players etc etc etc.

But, back to the point, so, I started watching the Caps broadcast, and on the first shift when Willie broke through and a little later we had another great chance, the Caps broadcaster (forget his name) they just didn't have hardly ANY enthusiasm, and, I was practically out of my chair when Willie broke through the defense.

SO, I changed over to the Leafs broadcast and watched that instead - lol.

 

[Rogie]

As well I just thought of this, I think the reason Marner went to the 4th line not the 3rd is that the coaching staff want Marleau to develop chemistry with his line mates. That being said Kadri seems to be the only guy working hard on that line. I mean sure Komarov is fore checking but he never ends up with the puck. Marleau so far has been one and done, and when he forechecks he also rarely ends up with it. I know it is early, but I think after this week we will see things change. Firstly the center experiment should be over (Babcock kind of slipped post practice and said "we like what we see but not quite there yet, see how the week goes."), take that for what it is worth (literal or not)but I cannot see an "experiment/battle," go into november. That is simply too long. At some point you need to have your all the regulars, playing every single night. That is how chemistry really comes. The guys see tendencies and get a knack for where the other is, I think that may be part of our defensive problem. The other part in the same sense is the Rosen, Borgman competition. It has to end soon. These guys need to play every night to develop. I know our coaching staff knows that, but it has to end soon, and I think by the end of the week (or Monday) we will find out. As I also said before I think our management group has pulled a fast one here. I think they are auditioning Moore/Fehr, at the same time as they are choosing who they want. It is obvious they won't waive the "loser," it will be a trade (packaged with something or solo I dont know). It has been really good for us if that is the case because both have played well enough to get something. Again I feel something is going on, it is just very strange. What other team is doing this? Not just with Fehr/Moore, and not one but two defensemen. I do not think they are showcasing Rosen and Borgman, but then you never do know for sure. I would almost say trade Rosen if the pick Borgman, just because we have Dermott waiting in the wings. If it is Borgman they want to send down, definitely DO NOT trade him, we do not currently have a player like that (well Nielsen but he is kind of further off).

I really really enjoy your posts. Hmmmm, I think we're winning and because of that, there's some (what's the word i'm looking for) latitude that mgmt/coaches are using to keep up some of these so called experiments, such as rotating Rosen and Borgy. But, I wasn't thinking of Moore/Fehr thing is like a tryout still. We've got lots of depth and rookies waiting in the wings BUT not so much at the center position down on the Marlies. But, you might be on to something!

 

[Gary Nylund]

I really appreciate your analysis Nith - don't agree with everything (most though), but, just really really appreciate the time and energy you take to provide us with food for thought.

+1
I find it amazing that he can watch a game on TV and pay close enough attention to have something to say about every player and have people disagree with him as little as they do. And I really appreciate the summaries too, that way I can drink beer and just enjoy the game and then read the summary later to find out what it was that I was watching.

I mentioned last year that I very very often prefer to watch and listen to the opp broadcast teams. Some of the teams are very very objective (not all of course) but, I can get a different perspective on how other team's analysts view our best players etc etc etc.

But, back to the point, so, I started watching the Caps broadcast, and on the first shift when Willie broke through and a little later we had another great chance, the Caps broadcaster (forget his name) they just didn't have hardly ANY enthusiasm, and, I was practically out of my chair when Willie broke through the defense.

SO, I changed over to the Leafs broadcast and watched that instead - lol.

LOL. I can relate to this. It's definitely very interesting to get another perspective but a little enthusiasm is part of the experience too. Reminds me of when I moved to Estonia and was watching Olympic hockey on TV in 2002 I think it was, the Estonian commentators were just as listless as could possibly be, I don't have words to express how boring they were. So I started watching on the Finnish channel, I didn't understand what they were saying but holy moley were they ever excited and into what they were doing, so much fun.

 

[MJ65]

+1
I find it amazing that he can watch a game on TV and pay close enough attention to have something to say about every player and have people disagree with him as little as they do. And I really appreciate the summaries too, that way I can drink beer and just enjoy the game and then read the summary later to find out what it was that I was watching.

That is so true - I am not sure how he do that, honestly I do not have that kind of patience

He look at all the plays so minutely and then transform that in to a very comprehensive summary, the beauty is that he hardly miss out on both the good and the bad side of every individual and every play

Every single comment as per it's merit and justify every single rating

Thanks Nith for your time and effort - we all enjoy your piece of work and are truly thankful for that

 

[Mess]

Based on scoring chances and if players could hit the net on both sides this looked like a 6-5 game the way it started.

Its quite surprising 2 of the highest scoring teams play to a 2-0 game including an empty netter.

 

[Mess]

Well Mess what's your take based on the previous line discussion?
Pretend you're the coach. Do you leave things as is currently? Hard to change things up after a 2-0 win.
Brown and Marner stay where they are for now?

I don't think Babs will even change his socks after that one.

 

[Gary Nylund]

That is so true - I am not sure how he do that, honestly I do not have that kind of patience

He look at all the plays so minutely and then transform that in to a very comprehensive summary, the beauty is that he hardly miss out on both the good and the bad side of every individual and every play

Every single comment as per it's merit and justify every single rating

Thanks Nith for your time and effort - we all enjoy your piece of work and are truly thankful for that

+1
Yeah I really think it takes some special talent to do that. I find if I really want to rate someone's play, I have to concentrate on them as opposed to following the overall play. And even with that, there's 5 skaters on the ice for our team and it's just not possible to follow them all at the same time so bottom line, no matter how hard you try, you absolutely will miss things. So is Nithoniniel just concentrating on rating players or is he trying to just enjoy the watching experience as well? I can only assume he watches for enjoyment as well and is still able to somehow do the amazing review job he does, just amazing!

 

[MJ65]

+1
Yeah I really think it takes some special talent to do that. I find if I really want to rate someone's play, I have to concentrate on them as opposed to following the overall play. And even with that, there's 5 skaters on the ice for our team and it's just not possible to follow them all at the same time so bottom line, no matter how hard you try, you absolutely will miss things. So is Nithoniniel just concentrating on rating players or is he trying to just enjoy the watching experience as well? I can only assume he watches for enjoyment as well and is still able to somehow do the amazing review job he does, just amazing!

Absolutely - even for the profession sports writers it's not easy to concentrate on every single play

 

[The CyNick]

Great game, solid team effort. JVR pissed me off though, watching him in our zone when the other team has the puck is painful. He just stands there above the hash marks with his back to the defenceman and watches the puck. WTF? Does he do that all the time or was that just a Tuesday night special?

You're just trying to shoe horn a narrative.

 

[Gary Nylund]

You're just trying to shoe horn a narrative.

Nope, just saying what I saw last night. If that offends you somehow then I can only guess it's because it doesn't fit your narrative.

It's funny, usually I just watch the flow of the game and don't really concentrate on individual players which is why I rarely comment on the specifics of anyone's performance. Last night though, at one point I just happened to notice something strange and thought - why is that guy standing around in the middle of our zone not covering anyone, not moving his feet and just staring at the puck? And then I saw who it was and thought of course, it all makes sense now, it's JVR.

It obviously doesn't fit your narrative so keep your head buried under the sand, fine with me.

And before you get even more pissy with me, I'll state that JVR is a tremendous offensive talent, so much so that it makes up for his suckyness on defence and he makes our team better. He is a good player no doubt, just not as good as you'd think if all you knew about him was his point totals.

 

[Nithoniniel]

I mentioned last year that I very very often prefer to watch and listen to the opp broadcast teams. Some of the teams are very very objective (not all of course) but, I can get a different perspective on how other team's analysts view our best players etc etc etc.

But, back to the point, so, I started watching the Caps broadcast, and on the first shift when Willie broke through and a little later we had another great chance, the Caps broadcaster (forget his name) they just didn't have hardly ANY enthusiasm, and, I was practically out of my chair when Willie broke through the defense.

SO, I changed over to the Leafs broadcast and watched that instead - lol.

Yeah, I do the exact same thing. And as you mentioned that Willy breakaway, they even continued talking about something else when it happened.

I really appreciate your analysis Nith - don't agree with everything (most though), but, just really really appreciate the time and energy you take to provide us with food for thought.

Thanks, always nice to hear. I stopped doing them last year, but I had some people message me and ask me to pick it up again. To be honest, I quite enjoy it myself. It's a good way to collect your thoughts after a game.

 

[Nithoniniel]

The Leafs are really good at hockey...

Yeah, seeing that makes me feel like I was perhaps a bit harsh on Willy. He needs to start burying his chances though.

Zaitsev average? Harsh. Was easily better than gardiner.

Zaitsev had three-four very weak plays in a row in his last few shifts that really helped Capitals put on some pressure. I might have been a bit harsh due to that due to recency bias, but I don't think so.

 

[Morgs]

Yeah, seeing that makes me feel like I was perhaps a bit harsh on Willy. He needs to start burying his chances though.

Yeah that was one of Nylander's best games. Just one really bad giveaway at the end of the game and couldn't pay to get the puck into the net. He has to be one of the most unlucky players in hockey.

 

[Gallagbi]

Great game, solid team effort. JVR pissed me off though, watching him in our zone when the other team has the puck is painful. He just stands there above the hash marks with his back to the defenceman and watches the puck. WTF? Does he do that all the time or was that just a Tuesday night special?

You want him to ignore the play and just shadow/watch his D?

 

[Eb]

Does anyone have video of Nylander's bad giveaway and Andersen bailing him out?