Around the League, 2018-19 Edition

[AngelDuck]

The Leafs are one piece away from being the favorites next season. Will be a lot of pressure on Freddie now

 

[Masch78]

The Leafs are among the favorites to me. If they add a #1D they are the clear fav. I mean they have 3 30 goal center right now. With JT and Mattews they likely have two 40g center at 1 and 2 while they have Kadri at their #3 slot. To me this is by far the best center group in the league. Add Marleau, Marner, Nylander and Kapanen and you have an insane forward group. It will all come down to D, if they can overcome the deficits. I think they will. There are not many teams that can control two lines that good. But when you face a Kadri line with your 3rd pairing ...

Freddie is for sure a good enough goalie to win the cup.

The Islanders are a lottery team again imho. And JT will be the highes paid player the next 3 years.

 

[Paul4587]

The Leafs are among the favorites to me. If they add a #1D they are the clear fav. I mean they have 3 30 goal center right now. With JT and Mattews they likely have two 40g center at 1 and 2 while they have Kadri at their #3 slot. To me this is by far the best center group in the league. Add Marleau, Marner, Nylander and Kapanen and you have an insane forward group. It will all come down to D, if they can overcome the deficits. I think they will. There are not many teams that can control two lines that good. But when you face a Kadri line with your 3rd pairing ...

Freddie is for sure a good enough goalie to win the cup.

The Islanders are a lottery team again imho. And JT will be the highes paid player the next 3 years.

Tavares has never hit 40, it’s not likely he magically hits it at 28.

And their centres are not even close to Crosby Malkin Brassard. I would argue the Caps trio is also better.

Freddie has also been an incredibly unclutch goalie.

The leafs are absolutely stacked up front but they still have the same flaws they always did. We will see if their forwards are enough to overcome how bad their D is. Tampa are still the clear favorites in that division.

 

[anezthes]

I actually like Toronto. The media and some of their fans (as with any fanbase) can be a bit annoying, but it honestly doesn't bother me that much.

That said, I'd take Crosby/Malkin/Brassard and even McDavid/Draisaitl/anybody over Tavares/Matthews/Kadri.

 

[Masch78]

Tavares has never hit 40, it’s not likely he magically hits it at 28.

And their centres are not even close to Crosby Malkin Brassard. I would argue the Caps trio is also better.

Freddie has also been an incredibly unclutch goalie.

The leafs are absolutely stacked up front but they still have the same flaws they always did. We will see if their forwards are enough to overcome how bad their D is. Tampa are still the clear favorites in that division.

He could, he will not face the top notch D pairings. Matthews likely will.

 

[JabbaJabba]

Blues did some nice moves, very deep offense and still have that solid defense. Too bad their goalies are pretty meh.

 

[Paul4587]

He could, he will not face the top notch D pairings. Matthews likely will.

Tavares and Marner will draw more attention from other teams top defensive players than Matthews and Nylander. The former is currently the more dangerous offensive pair.

 

[Masch78]

Tavares and Marner will draw more attention from other teams top defensive players than Matthews and Nylander. The former is currently the more dangerous offensive pair.

In the end of the day both will benefit from it imho.

 

[The Midnight Burrito]

The Leafs are among the favorites to me. If they add a #1D they are the clear fav. I mean they have 3 30 goal center right now. With JT and Mattews they likely have two 40g center at 1 and 2 while they have Kadri at their #3 slot. To me this is by far the best center group in the league. Add Marleau, Marner, Nylander and Kapanen and you have an insane forward group. It will all come down to D, if they can overcome the deficits. I think they will. There are not many teams that can control two lines that good. But when you face a Kadri line with your 3rd pairing ...

Freddie is for sure a good enough goalie to win the cup.

The Islanders are a lottery team again imho. And JT will be the highes paid player the next 3 years.

It's rare in the cap era that the team who makes the biggest ufa splash wins the cup, because generally those teams had huge holes to begin with. You don't win the cup on the strength of your offense or talent alone. I like Babcock a lot but Toronto was and still is a very flawed team.

 

[bsu]

Voynov cleared to play in us and Canada.... Kings got a lot better this off season

 

[Pennaduck]

Voynov cleared to play in us and Canada.... Kings got a lot better this off season

Pagnotta's been pretty on point lately so I've no reason to doubt this. LA should get a decent asset in return though.

 

[AngelDuck]

I doubt it. This guy hasn’t played in the NHL in 4 years and comes with a ton of backlash. Maybe get a 2nd round pick

 

[mightyquack]

Pretty sad state of affairs that a wife beater can just breeze back into the NHL like it's nothing (not that this is an NHL only problem of course.....). I'd be embarrassed as a fan to see him lace them up for my team, that's for sure.

 

[AngelDuck]

Pretty sad state of affairs that a wife beater can just breeze back into the NHL like it's nothing (not that this is an NHL only problem of course.....).

Well, he didn’t breeze back really. Took him 4 years, deportation, etc.

And the backlash is still going to be significant for him

 

[mightyquack]

Well, he didn’t breeze back really. Took him 4 years, deportation, etc.

And the backlash is still going to be significant for him

I mean, this was the earliest he could come back legally and he'll easily find an NHL job (hence breeze back). I find it all pretty pathetic to be honest, but it is what it is.

 

[Pennaduck]

Pretty sad state of affairs that a wife beater can just breeze back into the NHL like it's nothing (not that this is an NHL only problem of course.....). I'd be embarrassed as a fan to see him lace them up for my team, that's for sure.

Bertuzzi nearly killed a guy and still played for the Canucks and four additional NHL teams afterwards (including ours). Everyone is entitled to their own opinions on players and I certainly did not care to have him on our team, and would not care to bring in Voynov, but NHL teams aren't going to hold back from bringing in a 28 year old 2nd pairing RD that would cost next to nothing. I bet there is at least 5 or 6 GMs calling LA right now inquiring about his rights. Toronto is probably one of them.

 

[Anaheim4ever]

The only teams I can see surviving the backlash of Voynov is Carolina & Florida, maybe Arizona since no one even goes to their games. Carolina's draft picks will be high ones & they seem like they want to Tank so why would they want Voynov ?

 

[Paul4587]

Do the Kings still own his rights?

 

[The Mighty Duck Man]

Do the Kings still own his rights?

Yup, and I'm mildly surprised they didn't just release them already. I guess they might take whatever for a return but I think I'd rather have the PR(and keep people forgetting how they wanted him back after he was arrested).

 

[AngelDuck]

I mean, this was the earliest he could come back legally and he'll easily find an NHL job (hence breeze back). I find it all pretty pathetic to be honest, but it is what it is.

Okay but deportation for 4 years was a big price to pay. I don’t consider him breezing back into a job.

I don’t like him and don’t want him on our team or even in the league but he paid 4 years of NHL time in his prime for what he did. I’m not going to pretend he didn’t still make his money in Russia but it’s still a big price to pay

 

[The Midnight Burrito]

Well, he didn’t breeze back really. Took him 4 years, deportation, etc.

And the backlash is still going to be significant for him

Deportation is not much of a deterrent when you can just go be a millionaire somewhere without consequence. Voynov isn't some Guatemalan peasant where going might have meant an actual step down in quality of life.

Besides which, other than the criminal expungement I haven't seen anything suggesting ICE is interested in granting him a visa. Maybe his lawyers have already worked something out, but for the general human being, it is difficult as f*** to get a work visa with a criminal conviction as serious as his.

 

[AngelDuck]

Deportation is not much of a deterrent when you can just go be a millionaire somewhere without consequence. Voynov isn't some Guatemalan peasant where going might have meant an actual step down in quality of life.

Besides which, other than the criminal expungement I haven't seen anything suggesting ICE is interested in granting him a visa. Maybe his lawyers have already worked something out, but for the general human being, it is difficult as **** to get a work visa with a criminal conviction as serious as his.

Well, I agree with that, but the NHL can't prevent another league in a different country from paying him a lot of money. They also can't put him in jail. I don't think that's on them

 

[The Midnight Burrito]

Well, I agree with that, but the NHL can't prevent another league in a different country from paying him a lot of money. They also can't put him in jail. I don't think that's on them

I didn't say it was. My point is, Slava Voynov is a convicted felon whose crimes include repeated, vicious, smash em up beatings of his wife. All of this uncontested in open court. His "punishment" was to go a country club jail for two months and then he had to go home, where he was treated as a national hero and paid a king's wage. That sounds pretty f***ing breezy to me.

 

[snarktacular]

Something something where's that wall to keep the criminals out?

 

[AngelDuck]

I didn't say it was. My point is, Slava Voynov is a convicted felon whose crimes include repeated, vicious, smash em up beatings of his wife. All of this uncontested in open court. His "punishment" was to go a country club jail for two months and then he had to go home, where he was treated as a national hero and paid a king's wage. That sounds pretty ****ing breezy to me.

So throw him out of the league forever. Fine with me. I guess my point is if you believe in second chances this is the only way it can be done. If he were American he would have got suspended for half the season and then gotten his job right back probably just like every NFL player. It’s disgusting