Impact of Clarkson's return

[Mapleleafs Fan*]

Even if all the teams in the league says we overpaid him, I don't believe it. This guy earns what he deserves. Also he refused many offers to play in Toronto due to his family. This guy has earned all the respect those 80% voters are giving him for.

If I would be a GM, I would always love to have a guy like this in my team no matter what.

 

[Phion Keneuf]

He's been pretty invisible so far

Huh? Did you watch the game??!

some u guys dont no crap bout hockey or just want attention, u literally notice this guy every shift...always moving, looking for body, finish checks, goes hard into boards and corners, always looking to get infront of net...love what im seeing so far

This, he has been awesome thus far. Making solid defensive plays and laying some (much needed) hits

 

[HellasLEAF]

the contract talk grows tiresome. of course he's a bit overpaid. most July 1st signings are.

I'm still trying to figure out if he's a legit top 6 forward and is gonna really help this team.

A much better game from him against Pitts but we need more.

 

[Confucius]

the contract talk grows tiresome. of course he's a bit overpaid. most July 1st signings are.

I'm still trying to figure out if he's a legit top 6 forward and is gonna really help this team.

A much better game from him against Pitts but we need more.

He may well be a tad overpaid but it is only the first year of a 7 year deal. He didn't cost us any assets to obtain that has to be worth something. I'd much rather slightly overpay than give up picks and or players to fill a hole. In two or three years his salary will seem more than fair. Heck in 5, 6, and 7 years he'll be a steal.

 

[thewave]

He may well be a tad overpaid but it is only the first year of a 7 year deal. He didn't cost us any assets to obtain that has to be worth something. I'd much rather slightly overpay than give up picks and or players to fill a hole. In two or three years his salary will seem more than fair. Heck in 5, 6, and 7 years he'll be a steal.

We pay 1m-1.5m bonus per year to
Have the luxury of Clarkson. If you look at it that way we paid 7m over 7 yrs to save a first rd pick. Only way I can justify it myself. It's like going tag shopping for a name. Cost were irrelevant the name was to be got.

 

[SprDaVE]

Clarkson has done very well. I do expect more offense from him but if he can keep playing that hard nosed game, I'll be happy.

He's been great along the boards as well. So many puck battles won that has created chances for his line. We desperately need that in the lineup.

 

[darrylsittler27]

Let's talk in 10 games.

He needs the time to play catch up but will be fresher now in the playoffs.

 

[Mess]

the contract talk grows tiresome. of course he's a bit overpaid. most July 1st signings are.

I'm still trying to figure out if he's a legit top 6 forward and is gonna really help this team.

A much better game from him against Pitts but we need more.

Clarkson like all players when absent need time to get their timing back and also being a new team will need time to find his place and best fit with new teammates.

So far his return has been solid and it should become more impactful in time after the adjustment period and new surroundings are behind him.

 

[notdoneyet]

We pay 1m-1.5m bonus per year to
Have the luxury of Clarkson. If you look at it that way we paid 7m over 7 yrs to save a first rd pick. Only way I can justify it myself. It's like going tag shopping for a name. Cost were irrelevant the name was to be got.

is shea weber worth the 37M(something like that dont know the exact totals)
for his body of work in one year.

They also owe him another big bonus (and i mean big in the tens of millions)Even though he might be a top five dman in the league is he worth that amount of money. No one is.

Anyone who signs as a UFA in most years are overpaid. Thats the rule of business
and its a matter of supply and demand.

i think you are worrying about something that hasnt happened yet. In five years
you can have your two cents worth and we will have a clearer picture of what
this contract really looks like.

Please dont let the buyout of grabo blind you to a sense of reason. I always enjoy reading your posts but to me to criticize this contract this early is crying
chicken little

Its no different than the posters who say he will be worth every penny of his contract for the seven years. They also have no idea.

 

[Caroline Says ll]

He was very noticeable on Saturday. Not just for his hitting, but also had some chances offensively. Beside the net he tried JVR's signature move, he had a nice pass to Raymond who shot high with the glove save by Fleury, and he had the spinning pass beside the net which was blocked by a sprawling Penguins player.

 

[Gary Nylund]

lol
Does that include Fridays loss to Columbus?

I'd say that since Clarkson's return, the leafs played a little lousier than usual one game, and a little better than usual the next.
And I think in regards to both games, it had very little to do with one overpaid 3rd line player who's "good on the boards".

It's so ridiculous.
The leafs are 7 and 3 without Clarkson even in the lineup... and now that the leafs win a game with him in the lineup, it's because Clarkson "changed the culture of the team".
Only in leafland...

Come on guys... I know you're all literally humiliated to tears over Clarkson's psychotic contract... but let's try to look a little less desperate as we claw at ways to try and rationalize it.

My 2c:

I have to disagree, I think Clarkson had a lot to do with the way we played Saturday.

I didn't know much about Clarkson, but I hated the signing. I would have been more than happy to be millions under the cap limit, saving the money to sign some of our guys who will need raises in the near future (Kessel, Phaneuf, Franson, Kadri, Gardner etc.) and then hopefully have something left over to sign a valuable piece via free agency. I didn't think Clarkson was "the piece" we needed and didn't like commiting all that money to him. I especially didn't like the 7 yr. term mostly because someone with his style of play tends to deteriorate faster then the avg. player so I could see his contract being a waste of money say 4-5 years down the line and in the cap era, I don't want to waste a penny if I don't have to.

Having said all that, Clarkson impressed the crap out of me Saturday. We out-hit PIT by a good margin and Clarkson set the pace. I LOVED the way he was in Crosbie's face not to mention everyone else who's face he was in. That was probably the best game we played this year, I'm pretty sure we haven't outhit anyone by a margin like we did this year and we shut down Crosby (which is not easy to do). Too early to say that he has changed the culture of the team but when we look back on this game in the spring, that might turn out to be a fair statement after all. It's just one game, but for that one game, the Leafs looked like the team that last year was a huge pain to play against, they haven't looked like that team all year and I want to be that team again. If Clarkson ends up being a big part of that happening then ...

Having played a little hockey myself, I have to agree with those who say that you have to have played a little yourself to appreciate what he brings to the table. If he keeps playing this way, he will earn every penny he makes this year and I don't care if he doesn't score a goal all year. Also, I didn't realize he was a fitness freak. It certainly isn't out of the question that a guy like that could still play at a high level 5-6-7 years from now (think Gary Roberts). The cap will go up, who knows, 5 years from now his contract might actually look like a bargain.

Cliff notes:
I hated the signing at first. I like it a lot better now. Time will tell. Let's give it a little more time than LOL 2 games before we coming to a verdict.

 

[Tyler Biggs*]

Bolland and Clarkson were machines! Which one was it that had something ridiculous like 5 hits in one shift ? Van Reimsdyk's skills are absolutely sick, stick handling around and between his legs then passing to Kessel for an open net tap in! This team is fun to watch for all the right reasons.

The Mimico boys did their job effectively.

 

[notdoneyet]

My 2c:

I have to disagree, I think Clarkson had a lot to do with the way we played Saturday.

I didn't know much about Clarkson, but I hated the signing. I would have been more than happy to be millions under the cap limit, saving the money to sign some of our guys who will need raises in the near future (Kessel, Phaneuf, Franson, Kadri, Gardner etc.) and then hopefully have something left over to sign a valuable piece via free agency. I didn't think Clarkson was "the piece" we needed and didn't like commiting all that money to him. I especially didn't like the 7 yr. term mostly because someone with his style of play tends to deteriorate faster then the avg. player so I could see his contract being a waste of money say 4-5 years down the line and in the cap era, I don't want to waste a penny if I don't have to.

Having said all that, Clarkson impressed the crap out of me Saturday. We out-hit PIT by a good margin and Clarkson set the pace. I LOVED the way he was in Crosbie's face not to mention everyone else who's face he was in. That was probably the best game we played this year, I'm pretty sure we haven't outhit anyone by a margin like we did this year and we shut down Crosby (which is not easy to do). Too early to say that he has changed the culture of the team but when we look back on this game in the spring, that might turn out to be a fair statement after all. It's just one game, but for that one game, the Leafs looked like the team that last year was a huge pain to play against, they haven't looked like that team all year and I want to be that team again. If Clarkson ends up being a big part of that happening then ...

Having played a little hockey myself, I have to agree with those who say that you have to have played a little yourself to appreciate what he brings to the table. If he keeps playing this way, he will earn every penny he makes this year and I don't care if he doesn't score a goal all year. Also, I didn't realize he was a fitness freak. It certainly isn't out of the question that a guy like that could still play at a high level 5-6-7 years from now (think Gary Roberts). The cap will go up, who knows, 5 years from now his contract might actually look like a bargain.

Cliff notes:
I hated the signing at first. I like it a lot better now. Time will tell. Let's give it a little more time than LOL 2 games before we coming to a verdict.

I always enjoy reading this little tidbit

please give me a list of names of players who have played this type of game and
gets worn out faster than a star player

I can give you just as many soft players who have had injuries that have had their game deterioates just as bad.

This is absolute nonsense to say a player who plays a "hard" game deterioates
faster than a "soft" player.

many other factors deteemine the length of a players career, such as major injuries
and these could happen to anyone.

I just never buy that arguement about styles of play. just doenst make sense

 

[Damisoph]

Come on guys... I know you're all literally humiliated to tears over Clarkson's psychotic contract...

You're projecting. You seem to be the only one always worried about being humiliated or embarrassed.

Saying that, Clarkson played good and physical, had a few chances but I don't know that he had that big an effect in either game.

 

[Gary Nylund]

I always enjoy reading this little tidbit

please give me a list of names of players who have played this type of game and
gets worn out faster than a star player

I can give you just as many soft players who have had injuries that have had their game deterioates just as bad.

This is absolute nonsense to say a player who plays a "hard" game deterioates
faster than a "soft" player.

many other factors deteemine the length of a players career, such as major injuries
and these could happen to anyone.

I just never buy that arguement about styles of play. just doenst make sense

I suppose I could name a few, then you could name a few but where would that get us? To prove the point either way you'd have to do a much more thorough analysis. Intuitively, the argument always kind of made sense to me though.

Like I said though, if Clarkson is a fitness nut, that changes everything.

 

[thewave]

is shea weber worth the 37M(something like that dont know the exact totals)
for his body of work in one year.

They also owe him another big bonus (and i mean big in the tens of millions)Even though he might be a top five dman in the league is he worth that amount of money. No one is.

Anyone who signs as a UFA in most years are overpaid. Thats the rule of business
and its a matter of supply and demand.

i think you are worrying about something that hasnt happened yet. In five years
you can have your two cents worth and we will have a clearer picture of what
this contract really looks like.

Please dont let the buyout of grabo blind you to a sense of reason. I always enjoy reading your posts but to me to criticize this contract this early is crying
chicken little

Its no different than the posters who say he will be worth every penny of his contract for the seven years. They also have no idea.

You're right, I should probably wait a little before I go out on the limb.

 

[zeke]

One interesting thing here is that it seems like Raymond has already stolen Clarkson's spot on the 2nd PP unit.

And if Clarkson doesn't get PP time, then that's a guarantee he'll only be a ~15gl/30pt type guy.

It's only in the seasons where he's had big PP minutes where he's been able to add the ~10gl/15pts to his offense and become a ~25gl/45pt type guy.

 

[zeke]

D.Clarkson ES Scoring:

12-13: 48gms, 9gls, 16pts, 14:01 (82gms, 15gls, 27pts)
11-12: 80gms, 22gls, 30pts, 13:17 (82gms, 23gls, 31pts)
10-11: 82gms, 11gls, 16pts, 11:56 (82gms, 11gls, 16pts)
09-10: 46gms, 8gls, 18pts, 12:04 (82gms, 14gls, 32pts)
08-09: 82gms, 13gls, 26pts, 10:30 (82gms, 13gls, 26pts)
07-08: 81gms, 9gls, 20pts, 11:27 (82gms, 9gls, 20pts)
06-07: 7gms, 1gls, 2pts, 14:45 (82gms, 12gls, 23pts)

D.Clarkson PP Scoring:

12-13: 48gms, 6gls, 8pts, 3:33 (82gms, 10gls, 14pts)
11-12: 80gms, 8gls, 16pts, 3:03 (82gms, 8gls, 16pts)
10-11: 82gms, 1gls, 2pts, 1:39 (82gms, 1gls, 2pts)
09-10: 46gms, 3gls, 6pts, 2:22 (82gms, 5gls, 11pts)
08-09: 82gms, 4gls, 6pts, 1:31 (82gms, 4gls, 6pts)
07-08: 81mgs, 0gls, 2pts, 0:33 (82gms, 0gls, 2pts)
06-07: 7gms, 2gls, 2pts, 2:16 (82gms, 23gls, 23pts)

 

[Mess]

One interesting thing here is that it seems like Raymond has already stolen Clarkson's spot on the 2nd PP unit.

And if Clarkson doesn't get PP time, then that's a guarantee he'll only be a ~15gl/30pt type guy.

It's only in the seasons where he's had big PP minutes where he's been able to add the ~10gl/15pts to his offense and become a ~25gl/45pt type guy.

Raymond is a perimeter player while Clarkson is a crease crasher and net presence. I hardly see Raymond stealing Clarkson's spot in front of the net screening the goalie on the PP.

Raymond is there now because Lupul and Bozak are out from our top 6 forwards.

 

[zeke]

well, no, in practice yesterday, the 2nd pp unit was Raymond-Bolland-Lupul, with Clarkson sitting out.

I don't invent things off the top of my head like some people, I'm just dealing with facts.

As of right now, Randy's first choice is raymond on the pp instead of clarkson. We'll see if that changes.

 

[GordieHoweHatTrick]

the contract talk grows tiresome. of course he's a bit overpaid. most July 1st signings are.

I'm still trying to figure out if he's a legit top 6 forward and is gonna really help this team.

A much better game from him against Pitts but we need more.

He keeps things simple. He helps our possession numbers HUGE because he plays well in the neutral zone. With possession he finds openings in the neutral zone then slows things down and makes the simple play. He's excellent on the forecheck and along the boards as well. If he can score 20+ that would be huge but I like all the little things he does on the ice.