Speculation: August 8th. Whats your thinking now thread...

[Wafflewhipper]

I need a thread to just do a all encompassing generalization of some basic views on where the team sits without hitting up multiple threads with varying degrees of viewpoint.

So have it yourself and i will do my best to give my view of how i see the team going forward.

- we don't need to trade for a so called #1 right shot defenseman at present.

**** i am perfectly fine with bear hugging assets and have a good long look at how this defense plays for a long stretch with a training camp and prospect evaluation.

-We definitely should not trade or even talk about trading Kadri.

****Its just not worth looking at this early in a contract that is one of the very best in the Nhl.

- Should Willy, Mitch, and Auston simply be given NMC in their contracts???

* the last expansion NMC were fully exempt so I think giving the 3 of them long term deals with the clause is feasible and actually smart if we want to maybe bring along Grundstrom and Lilly a bit early towards the end of this season. First and second year pros are exempt but the expansion team (Seattle) could start in the 2020/21 season.

Gardiner is a good defenseman. Hopefully he doesn't price himself out.

****There is no cap crunch coming for us!! We simply have enough depth to move in on ELC's and remain competitive in the bottom 6 of the line up and on defense

I think we will score closer to the same as ladt season, only with a betterment on our gf/ga differential.

This is a far better defensive team than is expected by the majority.

Just keep the assets and keep developing and drafting and avoid the trade talk of impatience... )

Thats about it for me, I'm confident in keeping to the process thats been good to us so far.

Have at it and remember its a personal viewpoint, so be courteous and respectful to that.

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[nsleaf]

Stay the course, it's working so far. Leafs top 3 lines, mixed and matched will compete with any team in the league. So many options available.

 

[8816 others]

It's days like these I'm glad I have a 2min walk to the beach. I can sit there with a grin on my face as I listen to TSN 1040 discuss how Matthews wants to leave now that Tavares is in TO.

 

[CantLoseWithMatthews]

i'm excited for Liljegren to be a leaf

 

[Wafflewhipper]

i'm excited for Liljegren to be a leaf

I'm curious about just how well he might show in camp.

 

[mulefarm]

Can’t wait to get Gardiner signed long term and finally get him a reliable partner!

 

[Leafsman]

I started rewatching last season by watching 3 "Game In Six" videos every day.

Some things I've noticed so far:

Zaitsev had a very decent start. Not sure when he fell off.

Marleau played very well with Matthews during the first few games. Not sure why they changed the line.

Anderson had some brutal early games.

Gotta love Nylander. Marner and Matthews.

Forgot that Marner was dropped down to the 4th line so early.

Brown was a lot better than I remember.

I don't think it will be hard to replace JVR and Bozak. Except for the area 5-10 ft from the net, JVR is somewhat useless everywhere else.

 

[nobody]

After hitting a personal low as a Leaf fan in 2010-2011, I will not complain about what we have going and who we have in charge. In Shanny I trust. Hockey gods willing, we will win a cup in the near future and I hope that we throw the biggest and baddest party the world has ever seen. I will bathe in the salty waters rolling from the eyes of the haters. Especially my boy @The Winter Soldier. We all know he's going to be out there on the streets wasted out of his mind. For all the wrong reasons.

 

[rent free]

NMC's weren't exempt last expansion draft. A team must protect a player with a NMC unless that player waives it or that player is hurt, making him exempt.

 

[Boutette]

Only a month to go till the rookie tourney, when we will get a better measure of what we saw from our top prospects in late June's prospect's camp!

 

[bluumax]

Thoughts right now......

- We are not in "win now" mode, i don't think you will ever see Dubas act like we are in "win now" mode- he's going to develop and adjust where necessary. Success doesn't have a timeline or a set formula, it could be another 5 years of small offseason adjustments before we see a true contender. But the core is there now, for the most part.

- Zaitsev is gonna bounce back, no hes not gonna be the second coming of Orr, but i do think he will be worth his contract, maybe more.

- We're not a contender until we hit the half way point and are a "dominant" team, not based on points, based on playing style.

- If we know there is a market for Gardiner and that his contract demands are higher than we can reasonably afford (basically the JVR situation), we should trade. None of this "a 100pt team doesnt trade at the deadline" bullshit- building the team and keeping an eye on the future doesn't stop because you sign JT or see success in the regular season, it took the Caps over a decade to find the right formula, we must prepare for the same.

- Id like to see us steer clear of deadline day trash pickups- i wasn't a fan of the Plekanec trade

 

[MattySnipes]

Thought the 'Shannyplan' as Lou liked to call it was too good to be true all those years ago but with competent management, a bit of love from the lotto, and some good karma the Maple Leafs are back baby!

Love the road we're headed on. Keep staying patient with our prospects and let's enjoy man. Been a hell of a long time coming. Year three coming up with Matthews on the squad. Time flies.

Go Leafs Go!

 

[BodaciousBeefBazooka]

I cant wait for them to get help on the back end

 

[Mess]

I cant wait for them to get help on the back end

Preach !!!

Although your preaching to the choir here.

 

[Marshy]

How awesome would it be to hit on a homegrown Parayko or Slavin to exceed draft position and come into the top 4 on a sweet ELC? A man can dream....

 

[Wafflewhipper]

I cant wait for them to get help on the back end

Hey we are one of two teams that had two defensemen with over 50 points last year. Thats not a bad problem to have is it!!!

Zaitsev is a solid dman that was having a outlier year. Polak and his worst in the league defensive stats are gone and so is his obligatory penalty per game minimum.

Carrick replaces him but only with some of the best defensive metrics on the entire team and very good league wide.

Black hole undefensive forwards in bozak and Jvr ate gone. Replaced by real good wheels and defensive forwards in Tavares and Johnsson and the best wheels on the team in Kappy. Tyler Ennis will be good too.

The team structure defensively is way underrated. Too much made of it without a evaluation of several months.

 

[Wafflewhipper]

How awesome would it be to hit on a homegrown Parayko or Slavin to exceed draft position and come into the top 4 on a sweet ELC? A man can dream....

The possibility is in the system with Sandin and lilly already. Sandin is very good and has the right hockey mind between his ears.

Thats what some reports say anyways. I tjough it was encouraging when i read on Sandin. Lilly is developing his defense and worrying about transitioning to the north american rink and the system. Its just a matter of patience and he will break out.

Maybe this year he will because Keefe apparently really likes his work and will reward him with opportunity by adding responsibilities. He actually will reward him i believe.

The big right shot finn is playing pro in the Khl. Thats only going to help him or expose him. I hope he does right good. )

 

[BodaciousBeefBazooka]

Hey we are one of two teams that had two defensemen with over 50 points last year. Thats not a bad problem to have is it!!!

Zaitsev is a solid dman that was having a outlier year. Polak and his worst in the league defensive stats are gone and so is his obligatory penalty per game minimum.

Carrick replaces him but only with some of the best defensive metrics on the entire team and very good league wide.

Black hole undefensive forwards in bozak and Jvr ate gone. Replaced by real good wheels and defensive forwards in Tavares and Johnsson and the best wheels on the team in Kappy. Tyler Ennis will be good too.

The team structure defensively is way underrated. Too much made of it without a evaluation of several months.

I get what you are saying and you definately make some valid points. Rielly can put up points and is still defensively aware and defensively sound for the most part. Gardiner is all offence and all show but his defensive capabilities are horrid-so in my mind Gardiner is a wash because what he lacks in defense he makes up in points. Everyone else are interchangeable and for the most part will barely crack a competitive NHL roster. That's my 2 cents. We still need help. We cant out score our problems. JVR and bozak leaving who are defensively incompetent will be beneficial so we will see how things balance out.

 

[Morbo]

How awesome would it be to hit on a homegrown Parayko or Slavin to exceed draft position and come into the top 4 on a sweet ELC? A man can dream....

It's the only way that sort of thing is happening. I think Dermott is going to cement that second pair LD position. time to move Gardiner while the movin's good.

 

[Le Cobra]

I'm curious about just how well he might show in camp.

If he can make the cut or come close to it, what a promising outlook that would be!

 

[tom leafers]

Thought the 'Shannyplan' as Lou liked to call it was too good to be true all those years ago but with competent management, a bit of love from the lotto, and some good karma the Maple Leafs are back baby!

Love the road we're headed on. Keep staying patient with our prospects and let's enjoy man. Been a hell of a long time coming. Year three coming up with Matthews on the squad. Time flies.

View attachment 133871

Go Leafs Go!

god what a beautiful man

 

[A1LeafNation]

I’m think which line will cooper try to match up against our lines

Hyman Tavares Marner
Will play Palat Point Johnson
Hedman Stralman

Marleau Matthews Nylander
Will play Miller Stamkos Kucherov
McDonagh Sergachev

Johnsson Kadri Kapanen
Will play Killorn Gourde Cirelli
Coburn Girardi

Can you imagine if we just roll 3 lines in the third period, and our top lines get to play against 4th lines.

 

[LEAFANFORLIFE23]

Just get the Nylander contract done already, it's the last thing on the summer checklist

 

[Polaris1010]

I need a thread to just do a all encompassing generalization of some basic views on where the team sits without hitting up multiple threads with varying degrees of viewpoint.

1. This team is stacked up front. It has the best 1-2-3 center combination in the entire league. Marner, Marleau, and Brown need to have big years scoring goals, otherwise the wing could look thin at times. You cannot count on Nylander.

2. Defense wins championships. However, in the NHL, your actual group of defence-men, alone do not win championships, it is a team effort. Is the Leafs defensemen good enough to support the forwards. I would say yes at the moment. They do not suck. Does that mean the Leafs can win the cup? Not exactly. The Edmonton Oilers had a really stacked forwards group in the 1980's. First time they got to the finals, it was 4 straight because they were not good at playing team defense.

3. The onus will be on the coach this season. His coaching will reveal who belongs and who does not. The coach will find out who is committed to winning, and who just wants to win. The way they lost game 7 last season, that was bad. They better learn from that.

4. The management team surprises. Just one comment on Dubas. Seems like he uses the analytics to get noticed, and once he wins the power struggle, he's himself, he's entirely old school. Signing Tarves is exactly what Pat Quinn would have done, and Dubas lead the charge. Draft shmraft as Cliff Fletcher use to say.

 

[Wafflewhipper]

1. This team is stacked up front. It has the best 1-2-3 center combination in the entire league. Marner, Marleau, and Brown need to have big years scoring goals, otherwise the wing could look thin at times. You cannot count on Nylander.

2. Defense wins championships. However, in the NHL, your actual group of defence-men, alone do not win championships, it is a team effort. Is the Leafs defensemen good enough to support the forwards. I would say yes at the moment. They do not suck. Does that mean the Leafs can win the cup? Not exactly. The Edmonton Oilers had a really stacked forwards group in the 1980's. First time they got to the finals, it was 4 straight because they were not good at playing team defense.

3. The onus will be on the coach this season. His coaching will reveal who belongs and who does not. The coach will find out who is committed to winning, and who just wants to win. The way they lost game 7 last season, that was bad. They better learn from that.

4. The management team surprises. Just one comment on Dubas. Seems like he uses the analytics to get noticed, and once he wins the power struggle, he's himself, he's entirely old school. Signing Tarves is exactly what Pat Quinn would have done, and Dubas lead the charge. Draft shmraft as Cliff Fletcher use to say.

Wooo slow down there big rig. Take that bag off)