Do you like this team?

[capfit9]

I think he has changed his vision, I done think 2 years Simmonds and Bogosian would be Leafs, Brodie probably would be but I think if this were 2018 he'd target Vatanen over Bogosian because skill.

But I think the ALL pure skill vision has changed, I think Simmonds and Bogosian are proof of that, as was the Campbell trade that also brought Clifford even if Clifford left

See draft, he's not changed.

It's awfully hard to trade for functional grit (Dubas' own words) when you don't take a chance on them early on. He seems to lack building a team with balance.

 

[Myopic]

Rielly is a #1 D

He stinks defensively, so no he's not a #1 defenseman. He is a #1 on this team but that is irrelevant.

He doesn't even have an NHL caliber slapshot from the point.

Folks get carried away with his great skating and offense, but do really want Rielly on the ice in the closing minutes to protect as lead?

Jake Gardiner was so bad it took the spotlight off of Rielly for many years. Morgan was almost as bad as Jake in his own end. I personally would not resign him unless it was in the 4.5M-5M range. That's not what #1 d-men earn BTW.

 

[LEAFANFORLIFE23]

He stinks defensively, so no he's not a #1 defenseman. He is on this team but that is irrelevant.

He doesn't even have an NHL caliber slapshot from the point.

Folks get carried away with his great skating and offense, but do really want Rielly on the ice in the closing minutes to protect as lead?

Yes, they may not have wanted his past partner out there though.

But as somebody who has seen A LOT of Brodie because I live in Alberta that's about to change

 

[sxvnert]

Its improved but not complete.

On the backend: They are still missing another top four RD. Holl & Bogosian are at best 5/6 D's.
Up front: Missing a reliable #3 center. Kerfoot is at best a decent winger and a passenger up the middle.

 

[Myopic]

Yes, they may not have wanted his past partner out there though.

But as somebody who has seen A LOT of Brodie because I live in Alberta that's about to change

For years I've watched Rielly rush back to the boards with forwards bearing down on him, and not come up with the puck ----so often---- I don't see how Brodie will help that segment of his game.

I could see a better partner taking some of the stress level down so that should help. We'll have to see. I'm reading a lot of Brodie = Jake Gardiner. I hope that means Jake's skating & offense and NOT Jake's defensive mistakes.

 

[swint]

I like it. Dubas has stuck to his word and made them a harder team to play against. That being said, this team will live/die based on the production of the core. If Marner plays like he cares this year and the defense can stay healthy, this is a dangerous team.

 

[varano]

If Lehtonen is a top four player then I think it's a good team. Also alot of addition by subtraction getting rid of Ceci and Barrie.

 

[MagicalRazor]

Probably are best team dressed in the last 15-20 years I don't see how you don't like this team

1# Hyman Matthews Nylander A legit top line was one of my favourtie lines to watch previously hope they bring it back

2# Mikheyev J.T Marner Only reason I have Marner with J.T over Matthews is because that's when J.T played the best when he was getting fed by Marner

The back half needs some twerking and I think getting rid of Kerfoot would be the best thing for us

3#Roberson Kerfoot Simmonds Not a bad line little soft in the middle I feel like Spezza would be a better option at 3 C but you're not paying 3.4 M for a 4C so kerfoot there for now

Engvall Spezza/Vessy KorshKov Korshkov killing the KHL currently Big body dude who plays hard I like him on the leafs

D pairing

Rielly Brodie
Muzzin - Bogosian
Holl - Lehton I think Lehton will move up to play top 4 After he gets use to North American ice for a few games
Dermott at 7 Dermott might be traded for cap reasons seeing how tight this team all ready is and he's a UFA

Anderson # 1 goalie all day
Campbell # Stole the show last year and honestly looks like a 1B goalie I don't even consider him a back up , He looked like a starter to me.

How can you not love this team right now . We fixxed our D problems . we have 2/3 Young D prospects that are looking like gems . Robertson is looking like a real deal winger . Our top 6 Is one of the best in the league , we got toughness and size in the off season we look frigging good . IM SO EXICTED to watch this roster iced

 

[thusk]

He stinks defensively, so no he's not a #1 defenseman. He is a #1 on this team but that is irrelevant.

He doesn't even have an NHL caliber slapshot from the point.

Folks get carried away with his great skating and offense, but do really want Rielly on the ice in the closing minutes to protect as lead?

Jake Gardiner was so bad it took the spotlight off of Rielly for many years. Morgan was almost as bad as Jake in his own end. I personally would not resign him unless it was in the 4.5M-5M range. That's not what #1 d-men earn BTW.

Take giordano remove brodie of him and send him barrie or ceci to playing with... He will look awfull defensivly because hes an elite offensive dman playing with an awfull d defensive side of the puck. At the end, he stay a pretty good #1 d who won norris 2 years ago

Rielly when he was playing with hainsey was looking pretty well and was in consideration for norris trophy, just imagine with a partner caliber of brodie...

 

[LeafsNation75]

He stinks defensively, so no he's not a #1 defenseman. He is a #1 on this team but that is irrelevant.

He doesn't even have an NHL caliber slapshot from the point.

Folks get carried away with his great skating and offense, but do really want Rielly on the ice in the closing minutes to protect as lead?

Jake Gardiner was so bad it took the spotlight off of Rielly for many years. Morgan was almost as bad as Jake in his own end. I personally would not resign him unless it was in the 4.5M-5M range. That's not what #1 d-men earn BTW.

Rielly has scored one timer goals with a slapshot from the point.

 

[TakeTheBody]

I'll always like the team. But if the goal was/is to make the Leafs harder to play against. I'm not sure that's been achieved. Yet.

 

[Coachcorner]

I like it. Dubas has stuck to his word and made them a harder team to play against. That being said, this team will live/die based on the production of the core. If Marner plays like he cares this year and the defense can stay healthy, this is a dangerous team.

I also liked the fact he kept his word sire I always like that and love dat. That's the code. This time, its so important to keep the legendary (worlds most) maple leafs fans also happy. It ain't no more just about the winning sire. Y'all already know. ITS NOW ABOUT LOSING IT THE RIGHT WAY TOO. We bout to win some lose some, but also bout to lose in the most hardest ways. Going out like a soulja.

 

[seanlinden]

Things to like:

Additions on D
The Leafs got the 3rd best UFA defenceman on the market, an ideal partner for Morgan Rielly, while taking advantage of the depressed economic situation in signing him to a deal that has very little long term risk. They also added a veteran who plays with tenacity & physicality (something that they otherwise lack) -- who should complement the 4-5 guys ahead of him and few behind him very well. Overall, a defensive group consisting of Rielly, Brodie, Muzzin, Holl, Bogosian, Dermott, Liljegren, Sandin and Lehtonen may not be the league's best, but is really solid 1-6, with a ton of depth & upside.

Cap Savings Up Front
The Leafs had to drop money somewhere, and subtracting from the 3rd line wings seems like a really good place to do it. Between the 2 of them (albeit mostly Kapanen), they got a fairly substantial haul of futures (Amirov, Hallander, Anderson), and have replaced them with Vesey & Simmonds. Vesey may put up the same numbers as either of these guys, and Simmonds will bring a lot of the battle that this group has lacked in recent years.

Overall Cap Management
The Leafs could have "gone big" and signed Alex Pietrangelo instead of TJ Brodie. It would have cost them Alex Kerfoot, Wayne Simmonds, and Pierre Engvall (on top of Kap & AJ). While that may have worked this year, it would have put them in a position next year where they must trade a Marner or Nylander in order to fill out the roster.

The way they've position this team from a cap standpoint, Wayne Simmonds & Zach Bogosian's expiring contracts give way to a raise for Zach Hyman. You can realistically start working on an extension for Rielly next summer.

Things to not like (or missed/potentially missed opportunities):

The "Big 4" up front - Dubas set a new market in how he paid RFAs Marner & Matthews, with huge deals, but not getting 8 years out of them. Expecting a rising cap, he signed the top UFA forward 2 years ago to a huge 7 year deal, one that's only really been eclipsed by Panarin last year. The result is having 3 of the top 7 paid players in the league.

IMO, the Leafs "core" has been affected by COVID-19 more than other team, simply because they were tied up for so much money. The cap is projected to be flat (or close to it) for the next 2-4 years. While this year may not have been the year to try and "cash out" on one of these guys, it did seem to be the year where you can really get guys at substantially discounted prices. I look at a guy like Tyler Toffoli as an example, who the Leafs couldn't even consider talking to without the mindset of moving one of those 4 pieces up front.

3rd Line Centre - There seemed to be a decent amount of checking / 3rd line centres out there. It strikes me that this would be an opportunity to get a guy that fits better in this role than Kerfoot at a deeply discounted price, while getting 2-3 years worth of security. So far we haven't seen that happen.

Clogging up the development of defencemen: The Leafs have 4 high upside defencemen that all need to play (Dermott, Liljegren, Sandin, Lehtonen). They've got 2 spots (one of which is the #7 spot) to put these guys. The only one who can really benefit from AHL experience is probably Lehtonen, but he's also the oldest, and will be in mid-season form. I believe that the Leafs need to find a way to "cash out" on the value that 1-2 of these guys posses.

Not Sure What To Think

Goaltending - Frederik Andersen is better than any goalie that changed hands this season, except maybe Jakob Markstrom who you'd be splitting hairs over, and he was of course more expensive... so it's tough to be upset over not making a change.

However, I don't believe Andersen is the long term solution in Toronto (especially considering that he's going to look at Markstrom's contract and say me too), and it seems like a missed opportunity to have him walk as a UFA rather than be used for value and the crazy market this year to find a guy that could be a long term solution.

 

[ITM]

Like it? Haven't seen it play. Our annual rush to excitement about new players and a new season is like the sound of CNN...complete and utter deceptive noise.

When they play, then we'll know. If the same core doesn't push past comfort, what difference will these signings make?

I'm more excited (though still not by much) to see what Jack Campbell can do with a heavier workload. IF there's one position that might change the climate in the room, it's the goaltender.

 

[robertmac43]

Love the balance of the team, hoping we can find some success this week!

 

[Coachcorner]

Like it? Haven't seen it play. Our annual rush to excitement about new players and a new season is like the sound of CNN...complete and utter deceptive noise.

When they play, then we'll know. If the same core doesn't push past comfort, what difference will these signings make?

I'm more excited (though still not by much) to see what Jack Campbell can do with a heavier workload. IF there's one position that might change the climate in the room, it's the goaltender.

Well sire, you have seen some of our fools play, other of our newest thug players You have seen play in other teams and for other teams. But like you said, we haven't seen "it" play like in the stephen king novel "It." That's more of a "Thing".... a well put film by the classic John Carpenter. But I'm already sure you was talking bout these and directing it to these thangs.... We haven't seen "It" move yet, nore made an impact. As we are directing the converstation more into an organic being. A team yeah, but these are all the same. We are all the same right now too. You might be a fighter and I might a Jake LaMotta type, we might face to face in a ring and be in a boxing match. In the end, as punching each other, we are still the same. It's ironic also at the same time sire.

 

[jaric1862]

I like this team a lot more than the team last year.

 

[LeafGrief]

I like the team, but I liked the team last year for different reasons. I think that all of these changes are pretty good, but their biggest problems were mental and that change doesn't happen on paper.

 

[Man Bear Pig]

Rielly has scored one timer goals with a slapshot from the point.

Who even gives a shit about slapshots anymore? Dmen barely use them nowadays.

 

[Notsince67]

Im pretty happy. I think vessy is a waste of time but will be happy to be proven wrong. Johnsson couldnt cut top 6 and has no snarl for other lines. Simmons and Bogo might not be top players but they will give opposing players a bad night. Brodie is very decent in his class of dmen. The leafs D now have some mentors for their youth.
Just get rid of holl and lose marincins number.

 

[LeafsNation75]

Who even gives a shit about slapshots anymore? Dmen barely use them nowadays.

Apparently @Myopic cares about them since he or she said Rielly is not able to score goals that way.

 

[Man Bear Pig]

Apparently @Myopic cares about them since he or she said Rielly is not able to score goals that way.

I'll take a 72 point Rielly over a dman with an above-average clap bomb.

 

[LeafsNation75]

I'll take a 72 point Rielly over a dman with an above-average clap bomb.

I completely agree because we saw how great Rielly was in the 2018-19 season when he got those 72 points and was 100% healthy. It's still a shame he wasn't a Norris Trophy finalist because he should have not been voted 5th that year.

 

[OptimusReim]

I like the team more, we got some more physical tough guys, while getting rid of some of the soft ones.

Ideally, replace Kerfoot with a shutdown 3rd line C, hope 2 or 3 of our wildcard defence man workout, and we should see progress.

 

[Man Bear Pig]

I completely agree because we saw how great Rielly was in the 2018-19 season when he got those 72 points and was 100% healthy. It's still a shame he wasn't a Norris Trophy finalist because he should have not been voted 5th that year.

Its bizarre that some dont think hes a #1. You dont need to be Pronger or Chara to be a #1.