Series Talk: All-purpose around the league playoff talk thread.

tmlms13

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IMO, there is no preferable way to lose.

Remember the blue jays orioles game when Edwin hit the walk off?
Orioles all Star closer in the bullpen while they used a starting pitcher in relief?

showalter got hammered by media for that. If you lose with your best I'm okay with that. If your best is sitting on the bench as you lose with your middle players you feel pretty empty inside.
 
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Randy Randerson

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As of now RFA contracts look like there going to take an exponential jump, especially as relates to the higher end guys

The fact that Marner isn't even negotiating and wants the Matthews contract (reportedly) says that he and his agent think the RFA market has been significantly altered

Now you and I can debate if we think there ******* nuts (they are imo) but it does show where they believe the new market is
I don't think there's any evidence of a jump beyond $9.5M for wingers, and that's Kucherov & Stone who had a lot more leverage. I hear the buzz about Marner's expectation being Matthews' money, but there hasn't been a signing in that range other than centers.

I do wish we had drafted Matthews/Marner/Nylander/etc 2-3 years earlier so we could have gotten MacKinnon/Barkov/Pastrnak pricing though

fingers crossed on low numbers for Rantanen and Point
 
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Kiwi

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I don't think there's any evidence of a jump beyond $9.5M for wingers, and that's Kucherov & Stone who had a lot more leverage. I hear the buzz about Marner's expectation being Matthews' money, but there hasn't been a signing in that range other than centers.

I do wish we had drafted Matthews/Marner/Nylander/etc 2-3 years earlier so we could have gotten MacKinnon/Barkov/Pastrnak pricing though

That would have been nice, unfortunately we have helped this insanity along with some of the contracts we've dolled out

This year's crop of RFA wingers will be market setters and if you look at how they haven't signed early with there agents millitant talk (especially Marner's) I think we're about to see all hell break lose in the market

Unfortunately we need this sorted early, we can't build a team with Marner hanging out there so if he's not signed to something acceptable by the draft i think you have to seriously explore trading him

You can't have other teams deciding you cap structure for you in our situation so that means you can't risk and offer-sheet
 
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Randy Randerson

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That would have been nice, unfortunately we have helped this insanity along with some of the contracts we've dolled out

This year's crop of RFA wingers will be market setters and if you look at how they haven't signed early with there agents millitant talk (especially Marner's) I think we're about to see all hell break lose in the market

Unfortunately we need this sorted early, we can't build a team with Marner hanging out there so if he's not signed to something acceptable by the draft i think you have to seriously explore trading him

You can't have other teams deciding you cap structure for you in our situation so that means you can't risk and offer-sheet
agree that Dubas has hurt himself. I do think that Marner/Rantanen getting $9.5Mx8 would be setting the market, Kucherov got that after a better year than either of them with just one year of RFA left so he could sit at home for a year and walk to free agency, so I think his position was quite a bit more valuable than either of these guys. I don't know if that will hold, but on a comparable basis I think that Marner/Rantanen should be closer to $8.5M against the Kucherov signing. Don't get me wrong, given the media whispers I won't be surprised if that ends up being $10.5Mx8 for either of them but I think Dubas & Sakic have a lot of ammo to get them for less...in a world where this was decided by an arbitrator, it would be a lot less

I'm willing to risk the offer sheet honestly, there's so few teams that could afford him at something that we wouldn't match that are any good. If a bad team is willing to hamstring it's cap situation and give us four 1st rounders in the process, I'll take that and build a team that peaks lower but is still really good for much longer by virtue of continual high ceiling reinforcements from those picks

or, see if NJ would give you Hughes for him
 

Kiwi

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agree that Dubas has hurt himself. I do think that Marner/Rantanen getting $9.5Mx8 would be setting the market, Kucherov got that after a better year than either of them with just one year of RFA left so he could sit at home for a year and walk to free agency, so I think his position was quite a bit more valuable than either of these guys. I don't know if that will hold, but on a comparable basis I think that Marner/Rantanen should be closer to $8.5M against the Kucherov signing. Don't get me wrong, given the media whispers I won't be surprised if that ends up being $10.5Mx8 for either of them but I think Dubas & Sakic have a lot of ammo to get them for less...in a world where this was decided by an arbitrator, it would be a lot less

I'm willing to risk the offer sheet honestly, there's so few teams that could afford him at something that we wouldn't match that are any good. If a bad team is willing to hamstring it's cap situation and give us four 1st rounders in the process, I'll take that and build a team that peaks lower but is still really good for much longer by virtue of continual high ceiling reinforcements from those picks

or, see if NJ would give you Hughes for him

I don't think there's a rational argument for either guy getting more than Kucherov, there also isn't one for the Matthews contract either but we all know how that went and RFA'S do seem more willing to go to the matt at the moment which usually means contract increases

Those two guys will set the new RFA winger mark imo, by a fair bit I'm guessing

I don't think you can let him hold out or invite an offer-sheet

It will be toxic

If he joins late like Nylander it could screw his season anyway

We can't eat that high cap hit year 1 next season like the Nylander contract last season (no cap space)

If we let him walk with an offer-sheet the fan base will go crazy

We need to know Marner's cap hit when we're working out the Johnsson and Kapanen's contracts (or trades)

We need to know this stuff sooner rather than later, you can't have a 10M cap hole on the team just in case Marner decides to sign, considering you need to throw bodies overboard to make that hole in the first place
 

Randy Randerson

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I don't think there's a rational argument for either guy getting more than Kucherov, there also isn't one for the Matthews contract either but we all know how that went and RFA'S do seem more willing to go to the matt at the moment which usually means contract increases

Those two guys will set the new RFA winger mark imo, by a fair bit I'm guessing

I don't think you can let him hold out or invite an offer-sheet

It will be toxic

If he joins late like Nylander it could screw his season anyway

We can't eat that high cap hit year 1 next season like the Nylander contract last season (no cap space)

If we let him walk with an offer-sheet the fan base will go crazy

We need to know Marner's cap hit when we're working out the Johnsson and Kapanen's contracts (or trades)

We need to know this stuff sooner rather than later, you can't have a 10M cap hole on the team just in case Marner decides to sign, considering you need to throw bodies overboard to make that hole in the first place
a quick Rantanen signing at something $10M or less would be a godsend to really narrow Marner's range and hopefully get him under contract in a hurry.

I think you're right about the fanbase/media reaction to either a holdout or offer sheet signing, but I really think that either of those avenues are salvageable in terms of building a winner, and if there's one thing this fanbase is good at it's dealing with disappointment and coming back. I don't think it will come to him not being a Leaf, and very likely it gets done before July 1st like Dubas said but I'm in favour of playing hardball within reason.

the cap crunch is really only this year at least in this round, so a month long Marner sit-out would actually have some pretty serious cap benefits even if it looked bad
 
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Kiwi

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a quick Rantanen signing at something $10M or less would be a godsend to really narrow Marner's range and hopefully get him under contract in a hurry.

I think you're right about the fanbase/media reaction to either a holdout or offer sheet signing, but I really think that either of those avenues are salvageable in terms of building a winner, and if there's one thing this fanbase is good at it's dealing with disappointment and coming back. I don't think it will come to him not being a Leaf, and very likely it gets done before July 1st like Dubas said but I'm in favour of playing hardball within reason.

the cap crunch is really only this year at least in this round, so a month long Marner sit-out would actually have some pretty serious cap benefits even if it looked bad

That situation would be a God send, honestly I'd sign him right now to 10M×8 even though it's on the high end just for the cap certainty so I could start working on the rest of the roster

I'd happily let him hold out if I thought I could screw down his cap hit to something resonable, unfortunately Marner's situation effects the rest of the team

You need to know what he's getting so you can allocate cap resources towards our wing situation (Johnsson Kapanen) and the defensive unit which looks thin, team's tend to trade around the UFA and draft period so we need to be in a position to be active then to take advantage of possible opportunities which will be difficult if Marner hasn't signed and we don't know for sure our cap situation

If he pulls a Nylander and signs at the last minute were ******, Nylander has a cap hit of 7M for the duration of his contract but a 10M cap hit this year because of his holdout, what's that on a 10M contract? A 13M-14M one off hit on next years cap? Thats great for the lifetime of the contract but horrendous next season with how tight we are to the cap

I don't see how we fit that and ice a competitive team, I hope Marner's ties to the team and area will help him see sense and work with us so we can keep him into perpetuity, he could force himself out of town (unlikely) I just hope he doesn't want to go down that road
 

Randy Randerson

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That situation would be a God send, honestly I'd sign him right now to 10M×8 even though it's on the high end just for the cap certainty so I could start working on the rest of the roster

I'd happily let him hold out if I thought I could screw down his cap hit to something resonable, unfortunately Marner's situation effects the rest of the team

You need to know what he's getting so you can allocate cap resources towards our wing situation (Johnsson Kapanen) and the defensive unit which looks thin, team's tend to trade around the UFA and draft period so we need to be in a position to be active then to take advantage of possible opportunities which will be difficult if Marner hasn't signed and we don't know for sure our cap situation

If he pulls a Nylander and signs at the last minute were ******, Nylander has a cap hit of 7M for the duration of his contract but a 10M cap hit this year because of his holdout, what's that on a 10M contract? A 13M-14M one off hit on next years cap? Thats great for the lifetime of the contract but horrendous next season with how tight we are to the cap

I don't see how we fit that and ice a competitive team, I hope Marner's ties to the team and area will help him see sense and work with us so we can keep him into perpetuity, he could force himself out of town (unlikely) I just hope he doesn't want to go down that road
sorry you're right about the holdout cap hit, for some reason I had it in my head that it discounted off whatever portion he didn't play. I guess angling for a holdout is off the table

agree on the $10Mx8 too, if that's out there just get it done so we can plan around the core, then pray that Marleau waives so we can look at something longer term for Johnsson too and hope for an Arvidsson type result - another Rielly/Kadri type long term value contract would be nice to balance out the overpayment on Matthews/Marner/Nylander. I do like the situation that we're in to be able to replace the Johnsson/Kapanen/Hyman/Brown pieces internally if we need to, but I think Johnsson might be a really good one and Kapanen is useful in a lot of capacities

I actually don't mind the defense, I think Dermott turns into a top pairing dman and will be a passable partner for Rielly this year if he's deployed that way. The bottom pairing ends up being a bit of a gamble, but Rosen looked good while he was up and then I guess we keep our fingers crossed for Holl/Borgman. I'm surprised that we let Ozhiganov leave though, he and Rosen as a bottom pairing wouldn't worry me
 
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KMNRB

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When you play Boston, you play the refs too. They'll always be a tough out.

I agree. Somehow they always get those crazy calls that shift a game's momentum, more so than any other teams.

The way Hamilton got called for doing nothing while at the same play Kuraly crossed check Svechnikov behind the play (but right in front of the referees) is totally ridiculous. The Canes were dominating the Bruins after 2 periods and then 6 straight minute of penalties totally shifted the game's score and the momentum.

Probably that's why Bruins has such a good powerplay. They probably work on it more than other teams knowing that they can rely on many refs to give them pp opportunities at the critical moments as long as it is a close game.
 

LeafsOHLRangers98

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When you play Boston, you play the refs too. They'll always be a tough out.
That Hamilton call was a joke. Boston literally reverse hits like that on every entry and the high guy interferes as much as they can on dump ins. That call changed the game and the Canes have a right to be furious.
 
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1specter

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I agree. Somehow they always get those crazy calls that shift a game's momentum, more so than any other teams.

The way Hamilton got called for doing nothing while at the same play Kuraly crossed check Svechnikov behind the play (but right in front of the referees) is totally ridiculous. The Canes were dominating the Bruins after 2 periods and then 6 straight minute of penalties totally shifted the game's score and the momentum.

Probably that's why Bruins has such a good powerplay. They probably work on it more than other teams knowing that they can rely on many refs to give them pp opportunities at the critical moments as long as it is a close game.
Kuraly is a douche bag. Can't stand that guy
 

Guided by Veseys

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Boston knows how to get every ounce out their lineup. Hopefully two straight years of getting seasoned against those schmucks will pay off next year.
 
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Nooodles

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Boston knows how to get every ounce out their lineup. Hopefully two straight years of getting seasoned against those schmucks will pay off next year.

The team has been getting seasoned against Babcock the past two years.

Hopefully it will pay off sometime in the next 10 years.
 

Al14

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Jul 13, 2007
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Ugh, Boston is going to win the Stanley Cup.


We are literally going to have handed them the cup in games 6 and 7.


I hate my life
Game 2, totally rigged in favor of Boston, is where our Leafs lost that series IMHO.

The NHL, after seeing the Leafs win easily in game 1, stepped in to assist the Bruins BIG TIME.

Kadri did nothing to deserve an offsetting penalty with DeBrusk. DeBrusk, and DeBrusk ONLY, deserved a penalty on that play. Giving Kadri an undeserved penalty there, was abysmal IMHO. It also set up Kadri for his mental breakdown later in the game.

It was stupid of Kadri to give the NHL any reason to suspend him. Giving them a reason to suspend him, and thus, weaken our Leafs, was just icing on the cake for Boston and the NHL.

The NHL could have acknowledged the poor reffing by fining Kadri only. However, they took every opportunity weaken our Leafs.

I could go on, however, it is what it is!

Welcome to the BBHL, where there is one rule book for the Bruins, and, one for the rest of the League!
 
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willmma

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ShaneFalco

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thewave

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Game 2, totally rigged in favor of Boston, is where our Leafs lost that series IMHO.

The NHL, after seeing the Leafs win easily in game 1, stepped in to assist the Bruins BIG TIME.

Kadri did nothing to deserve an offsetting penalty with DeBrusk. DeBrusk, and DeBrusk ONLY, deserved a penalty on that play. Giving Kadri an undeserved penalty there, was abysmal IMHO. It also set up Kadri for his mental breakdown later in the game.

It was stupid of Kadri to give the NHL any reason to suspend him. Giving them a reason to suspend him, and thus, weaken our Leafs, was just icing on the cake for Boston and the NHL.

The NHL could have acknowledged the poor reffing by fining Kadri only. However, they took every opportunity weaken our Leafs.

I could go on, however, it is what it is!

Welcome to the BBHL, where there is one rule book for the Bruins, and, one for the rest of the League!

I am waiting for the Lunatic fringe, conspiracy theorist posts to start. I love the explanations that make no sense the best.
 

Mr Hockey

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Because Kadri does the occasional dumb thing and gets suspended, we should do revenge suspensions on other players? lol
 

gamer1035

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Babcock cost us a real shot at the cup. It should be us going to the Stanley Cup final, not Boston.

This talented of a team should have the best PP and our PK was unacceptable, worst in history. Time management of stars was also insane.

We are wasting our talent due to this coach.
 

Mr Hockey

Toronto
May 11, 2017
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Babcock cost us a real shot at the cup. It should be us going to the Stanley Cup final, not Boston.

This talented of a team should have the best PP and our PK was unacceptable, worst in history. Time management of stars was also insane.

We are wasting our talent due to this coach.
Game 4, Game 6, and Game 7... Rask beat Andersen in all 3 for the win ...
 

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