Are the Leafs legit contenders? Carlyle comments on play.

[ACC1224]

Really good question especially considering our overflowing D prospect pool. One or two of Finn/Percy/Blacker/MacWilliam will be available along with a pick or two at the deadline and should reel in a nice rental piece if we're still contending by the deadline.

Yep, it'll be great to be buyers at the deadline again. Been a long time coming.

 

[Confucius]

I beLeaf

First you must believe in yourself. There is no fricken way I'm sitting on the outside as a naysayer. If and when we win I want to say I believed it possible all along. I also believe there is no way we're favorites

 

[jajpan]

No, their motivation song is "we can't stop" Miley Cirus, just saw on tsn2. When they change the song and healthy, we will go as far as bernier or Reimer take us

 

[Pi]

The Leafs actually match up very well with Boston and Pittsburgh in the event of a playoff series. Not sure about Detroit, that remains to be seen.

Games against Detroit are always a toss up...I wouldn't expect that to change in the playoffs.

I think we match up well with Boston, Pittsburgh and Detroit...

I don't think we match up well with teams like Tampa, Carolina, NYI etc...as weird as it sounds.

 

[Garbs]

We took the Stanley Cup finalist to game 7 overtime, and by most accounts outplayed them in that series, and should have won.

Do we get past Pittsburgh last year? Who knows, but I do know we can compete in any series in the East.

 

[Garbs]

On a side note, we will absolutely destroy Boston if we play them again. Dead serious. Everyone in that room desperately wants that match up again.

I'm not saying we'll be the team to come out of the East. But we win beat Boston if we play.

 

[Stephen]

The Leafs are indeed legitimate contenders.

They have two guys who can provide great goaltending.

They have a ton of speed and skill up front which allows them to be a very opportunistic offensively with the counter-punch.

Their scoring is pretty spread out: Kessel, JVR, Lupul, Kadri, Raymond, Clarkson, Kulemin, Bozak, Bolland, etc that's a lot of random guys who can jump in the way the LA Kings were back in 2012 on their cup run.

Phaneuf, Franson, Gardiner, Rielly are all great on the transition game.

We have big bodies: Clarkson, Kulemin, JVR, Orr, McLaren, Fraser, Phaneuf, Ranger, Ashton, Devane, Broll who can wear down another team in a best of seven.

 

[Stephen]

People keep imagining there are all these perfect teams out there with air tight defenses, devastating offensive punch, all world goalies and consistent effort every night. Where are they?

We stood toe to toe with Boston and did pretty well for ourselves last year, and they came within 2 games of winning the cup. Who else should we be afraid of? Prognosticators were really pumping up teams like Ottawa and Montreal and I think they're all so beatable by this group. I'm also not very afraid of Detroit. Nobody in the Metropolitan Division is scary, not even Pittsburgh. The West? Well, we have to get to the finals first.

 

[Daisy Jane]

On a side note, we will absolutely destroy Boston if we play them again. Dead serious. Everyone in that room desperately wants that match up again.

I'm not saying we'll be the team to come out of the East. But we win beat Boston if we play.

Please, Santa and the Easter Bunny - make this so.

honestly, if not Boston, I'd like to draw Detroit - for the same reasons i stated last year: the team will learn so much more playing against Detroit/Boston than they would playing against Montreal/Ottawa.

 

[TheProspector]

The Leafs should make the ECF, unless they run into a finalist in the first round like last year.

But right now? Leafs are the team to beat. Best special teams in the league, best goaltending tandem, and in the conversation for best top-9 forwards, particularly at wing.

Weaknesses are team defense and the #1 C position.

Inferior teams have won it all, though (Carolina, New Jersey, Tampa).

 

[JackJ]

Still want the Leafs/Habs matchup. 25+ years and counting.

 

[The_Chosen_One]

The Leafs are indeed legitimate contenders.

They have two guys who can provide great goaltending.

They have a ton of speed and skill up front which allows them to be a very opportunistic offensively with the counter-punch.

Their scoring is pretty spread out: Kessel, JVR, Lupul, Kadri, Raymond, Clarkson, Kulemin, Bozak, Bolland, etc that's a lot of random guys who can jump in the way the LA Kings were back in 2012 on their cup run.

Phaneuf, Franson, Gardiner, Rielly are all great on the transition game.

We have big bodies: Clarkson, Kulemin, JVR, Orr, McLaren, Fraser, Phaneuf, Ranger, Ashton, Devane, Broll who can wear down another team in a best of seven.

We were pretty legitimate last year as well. I think we've gotten a lot better, and our D core doesn't require radical changes.

 

[Goonface2k14]

Interesting.

In the Chicago Blackhawks Cup winning season in 2009-2010, they were 5-1-1 after their first seven regular season games, good for 11 points out of a possible 14. The games themselves went like this:

OTL 3-4
W 4-0
L 2-3
W 4-3
W 6-5
W 4-3
W 3-1

The Leafs so far this season are 6-1-0, good for 12 out of a possible 14 points, and and their games have gone:

W 4-3
W 3-1
W 5-4
L 1-2
W 4-0
W 6-5
W 4-1

That's 26-19 for the 2009-2010 Hawks vs their opponents, and 27-16 for the 2013-2014 Leafs vs theirs.

In the season prior to that, the Hawks made the playoffs for the first time since 2001-2002.

Hmm.

 

[BIitz]

This reminds me of a thread a couple years ago where the title was like "95% of teams in the playoffs by December make it!" I can't remember the exact statistic or date, but we were in the playoffs. Anyways the thing then became a percent thread, and at one point we were at like 99% to make the playoffs.

LOL

 

[pooleboy]

inb4 corsi/stats guys coming in here saying leafs will drop off by december.

 

[Stephen]

We were pretty legitimate last year as well. I think we've gotten a lot better, and our D core doesn't require radical changes.

As ****** as people think our defense corps is, the team is still a +11 in goals differential, good for third overall in the league. Our GA is just outside the top ten and we've played more games than a lot of teams. Add to that we're missing between two and three top six-nine guys, two of which (Kulemin and Clarkson) are pretty good defensively, not to mention our most stay at home defenseman, I think it's safe to say there's a lot of internal factors that will round out our game.

 

[Stephen]

On a side note, we will absolutely destroy Boston if we play them again. Dead serious. Everyone in that room desperately wants that match up again.

I'm not saying we'll be the team to come out of the East. But we win beat Boston if we play.

This is my feeling as well. Kind of like the Leafs are now grown up and ready to seek revenge against our old tormentors.

 

[EtoDemerzel]

Statistics are great because you can really use them in an endless variety of ways to prove almost any point you're trying to argue (especially with a sport like hockey, where it's so rich with statistics from players to coaches to teams).

What I don't understand is why we need to compare ourselves to anyone at all. Our team is what it is, so in my opinion the only 2 valid comparisons are:

- Leafs past performance (i.e. this season vs last)

OR

- Comparing the impact a coach has with current organization to his past organization(s) in order to draw any common denominators


That being said, no matter what it is that you're trying to compare, the current season's sample size is way too small. I think looking at anything with less than 35 games (meaning that you likely had a chance to play most of the teams in the league) worth of data, is quite a stretch.

 

[pooleboy]

People keep imagining there are all these perfect teams out there with air tight defenses, devastating offensive punch, all world goalies and consistent effort every night. Where are they?

We stood toe to toe with Boston and did pretty well for ourselves last year, and they came within 2 games of winning the cup. Who else should we be afraid of? Prognosticators were really pumping up teams like Ottawa and Montreal and I think they're all so beatable by this group. I'm also not very afraid of Detroit. Nobody in the Metropolitan Division is scary, not even Pittsburgh. The West? Well, we have to get to the finals first.

tbh i am keeping quite around people but i believe this team can go to the stanley cup finals this year... they are that deep. Detroit is a good team, but no team wants to play us in a series... and most teams are scared of playing us in a 7 game series. Who would u rather play the smurfs where they use there speed more or us who will grind down the other team. i think this is a very scary lineup and will be for a lot of years,

 

[Goonface2k14]

Statistics are great because you can really use them in an endless variety of ways to prove almost any point you're trying to argue (especially with a sport like hockey, where it's so rich with statistics from players to coaches to teams).

What I don't understand is why we need to compare ourselves to anyone at all. Our team is what it is, so in my opinion the only 2 valid comparisons are:

- Leafs past performance (i.e. this season vs last)

OR

- Comparing the impact a coach has with current organization to his past organization(s) in order to draw any common denominators


That being said, no matter what it is that you're trying to compare, the current season's sample size is way too small. I think looking at anything with less than 35 games (meaning that you likely had a chance to play most of the teams in the league) worth of data, is quite a stretch.

Kane Kessel
Toews Lupul
Hossa JVR
Sharp Kadri
Keith Reilly
Seabrook Franson
Bolland Bolland
Versteeg Raymond
Ladd Kulemin
Brouwer Bozak
Big Buff Phaneuf
Campbell Gardiner
Huet Reimer
Niemi Bernier

Sorry I can't help it. Especially on an off night.

 

[Faltorvo]

People keep imagining there are all these perfect teams out there with air tight defenses, devastating offensive punch, all world goalies and consistent effort every night. Where are they?

We stood toe to toe with Boston and did pretty well for ourselves last year, and they came within 2 games of winning the cup. Who else should we be afraid of? Prognosticators were really pumping up teams like Ottawa and Montreal and I think they're all so beatable by this group. I'm also not very afraid of Detroit. Nobody in the Metropolitan Division is scary, not even Pittsburgh. The West? Well, we have to get to the finals first.

My greatest concern is strength up the middle, it's very rare for a team to win the cup without great Cs or Cs playing great at their given roles.

Very comfy with Bolland,Maclem as 3,4, feeling ok but need to see PO #2c from Kads.

Bozo is gonna have to got into Bergeron mode.

 

[EtoDemerzel]

Kane Kessel
Toews Lupul
Hossa JVR
Sharp Kadri
Keith Reilly
Seabrook Franson
Bolland Bolland


Sorry I can't help it. Especially on an off night.

Sorry, just so I follow, are you saying that Leafs have the same structure and playing style as Hawks?

 

[ULF_55]

http://www.tsn.ca/toronto/blogs/jonas_siegel/?id=434312

"When we review and review and review there's just some areas that we're really absent in," Carlyle said. "It's a nervous time in the coaches' office because of the shot differential and the quality of chances that we're giving up."

"I think what Randy's talking about and what we feel in here is we just lack the consistency right now in the strong team game that we had last year," McClement said. "We just haven't had it for I don't think for more than a period or two here and there this year."

But with their sparkling record, Carlyle can only push so hard for change.

"You can hide behind 6-1 and 4-1," he said of his team's record and most recent victory. "And rightly or wrongly that's what athletes do."

 

[The_Chosen_One]

As ****** as people think our defense corps is, the team is still a +11 in goals differential, good for third overall in the league. Our GA is just outside the top ten and we've played more games than a lot of teams. Add to that we're missing between two and three top six-nine guys, two of which (Kulemin and Clarkson) are pretty good defensively, not to mention our most stay at home defenseman, I think it's safe to say there's a lot of internal factors that will round out our game.

Well said. Once Clarkson, JVR and Kulemin are back, we're going do a lot better in maintain puck possession. Our so-called D problem have a lot to do with our forwards. I think with McLaren back and Fraser, we'll be the toughest in the league.

 

[Faltorvo]

Well said. Once Clarkson, JVR and Kulemin are back, we're going do a lot better in maintain puck possession. Our so-called D problem have a lot to do with our forwards. I think with McLaren back and Fraser, we'll be the toughest in the league.

Gotta admit, i'm unsure what many are going on about, that Nash game was a damn solid,smooth win, ya sure we padded 2 extras from the 5 min maj, but so what?, we gonna moan over a 2/0 win?

Burns did nothing special in that game, it was not a "tender stealer".