Jake Gardiner

[Stephen]

He's got a great hockey IQ, skates like the wind and fits in nicely in the dressing room, Jake will have a great career with all of his upside, learning how to play both sides is just going to make him that more deadly on the ice.

I think he has great offensive instincts but not necessarily good hockey IQ. He needs to refine his game with a bit more simplicity and deliberateness and urgency, often he plays like he can Jedi mind trick his opponent or deke someone out standing still. Lead the rush if you must, but don't go 100% into a blockade, give up on the play and get stranded.

 

[SteveV*]

Leafs are really struggling to generate shots on net and creating scoring chances often being doubled nearly in the shot for and against ratios by opponents.

Gardiner is one if not the best Leafs puck rushers and as such Carlyle is using him more now to try and generate more team offense. His ice time might be more reflective of Leafs situation then his own play as a result of the coach believing his play has been stellar.

That said he has certainly been better recently then at the beginning of the season, particularly when it comes to give-aways.

I actually think he's been good defensively, especially positioning and clearly the zone.

 

[Wami]

I got mad love for the kid. He's a young Dan Boyle. Guy has future all-star written all over him.

 

[diceman934]

I agree and have thought similarly that Rielly at 19 seems more composed and better positionally than Gardiner at age 23 in games.

Rielly is just as capable at spearheading the rush as Gardiner is but he has been making better decisions when to join and when to sit back.. Gardiner seems to get into his own head wanting to rush regularly but then when the coach tells him to pick his spots he becomes hesitant to find timing and balance and struggles with self confidence..

The 4 years extra hockey and life experiences Gardiner has certainly doesn't seem to reflect the gap in their ages and current play accurately. IMO

Truth be told Gardiner might have been better a couple years back in his rookie season when he made the NHL All-Rookie team then he is playing today at various times.

Gardiner missed most of the short season last year his first with Carlyle as the coach....Carlyle has been working with him on his body position and puck support when we both have the puck and without the puck in our zone. He has improved vastly this year, and he is a lot better then he was his first year.

Gards was often seen above the puck in our zone when we did not yet establish possession as well as when he was to be the staggered puck support man. He was to anxious to go on the attack. The other thing was his soft stick checks another thing that has been improving...

Stay or traded he is a talented young D man who is benefiting from the instruction he is receiving from Carlyle. I would prefer we keep him as to have two young stud D man on our team moving forward is a area of strength that most teams will not have. You trade other prospects like Percy etc to stock other areas of concerns or a Franson or Gunnar....not a player like him unless you are getting back a over payment.

 

[Beleafer4]

Ill never get the logic of "rielly is playing as good as gardiner so lets ship gardiner"

Rielly is a top 5 pick, our scouting staff had him first overall. He is paired with a better Dman imo in franson. Yes Rielly is playing well.. I dont see how that equates to us needing to shop gards.

Most good teams usually have at least 2 puck rushing/ puckmoving D. Phaneuf and franson are good OFD but they have lead feet. You need guys who can move around in the back end. Lets just let the situation sort itself out over the season or even two seasons.

If it were up to me, Id trade franson. He has a lot of quantifiable tangibles (stats, hits, now ice time) and is closest to his highest value which makes him easier to trade. If by 60 games into the season he is at a 60-ish point pace his value will be pretty high. He is also due for a massive pay increase (probably around 5 mil), one which we might not be able to afford. Unlike gards, who at this point seems like he will only get a 1-2 million dollar raise. I just think it makes more sense. I also think gards is only worth around a 2nd-ish more than franson. So the returning value will be pretty similar.

Then I would bring up brennan who plays pretty much the exact same game. Obviously wont be as good, but he will be 5x cheaper (starting next year)

 

[A1LeafNation]

Gardiner is a keeper.

 

[Rob11]

I'm confused why he doesn't shoot more.

He has the lowest shots on goal of all our defenders. 7 games played without a shot on goal.

Phaneuf 18
Franson 17
Rielly 18
Ranger 11
Gunnarsson 8
Gardiner 7

I'm not sure if its because hes been focusing on playing better in his own end?

I'd like to see him registering shots every single game!

Shoot the puck gardiner and use that offensive flair that we have seen before.

 

[Kyle Doobas*]

I'm not sure if its because hes been focusing on playing better in his own end.

It's definitely not that.

 

[Rob11]

It's definitely not that.

Very insightful and helpful comment....

Why not?

He's been much more sound defensively and carlyle had spoken to him one on one a few times about positioning. Gardiner has talked about needing to play better in his own end and he has been.

If he's playing steadier hockey in hope to play better defensively then he's going to take less risks, shoots less, and not be as offensive.

 

[Rielly4]

Riellys offensive potential is a lot more then hes showing, so is Gardiners point wise. We can look forward to them both in the future putting up big numbers. They are two completely different players and we should keep both of them as they are both really skilled and gems.

 

[Atomos2]

This is a prime example of a situation where point totals don't tell the whole story. Gardiner has been playing great. I agree with everyone else that he's been the leafs 2nd best dman.

 

[Atomos2]

I'm confused why he doesn't shoot more.

He has the lowest shots on goal of all our defenders. 7 games played without a shot on goal.

Phaneuf 18
Franson 17
Rielly 18
Ranger 11
Gunnarsson 8
Gardiner 7

I'm not sure if its because hes been focusing on playing better in his own end?

I'd like to see him registering shots every single game!

Shoot the puck gardiner and use that offensive flair that we have seen before.

I don't know if its happened a lot in the games before, but last game I know at least 3 of his shots were blocked or didn't reach the net.

 

[jmart21]

This is a prime example of a situation where point totals don't tell the whole story. Gardiner has been playing great. I agree with everyone else that he's been the leafs 2nd best dman.

I agree that point totals don't tell the whole story but I completely disagree that he's been playing great.

 

[darrylsittler27]

Carlyle teaching him a different game.

Niedermayer,Pronger won cups with him. Gardiner ensures Reilly's future.

 

[SteveV*]

Guess who has the least amount of giveaways by a Leafs D and it's not even close?

 

[Duffman955]

This guy has been rock solid defensively recently.

I hope he learns to bring this type of defense consistently while keeping creativity in the offensive zone.

After Phaneuf, He has been our most reliable defender.

 

[The Winter Soldier]

I agree that point totals don't tell the whole story but I completely disagree that he's been playing great.

Gardiner's been safer of late, agree there, however, I have hardly seen anything great in his game. Not sure why we are so willing to throw around superlatives for players that are just playing to the bare minimum of their ability.

I will give Jake the credit for reducing the giveaways, as he seems to have taken RC's direction to heart. Note, he does play with a weak partner. But still expecting more from him.

 

[Leaf Rocket]

Strongly disagree with whoever says he's been defensively weak. He's been heads above others this season, and last year I was bashing him in this area.

Only one who's been better than him in the D-zone is the obvious choice, Dion Phaneuf.

 

[ponder]

Kid has a tonne of talent, he's already a pretty decent NHL dman, and will be a very good one in the future. Who knows exactly when it all "clicks" for him, but he's so talented that it's just a matter of time. I really hope we can keep all of Gardiner, Rielly, Phaneuf and Franson, because that's going to be an outstanding d core for many years. Phaenuf is the only one out of those 4 who is in his prime, the others are IMO going to get a lot better, especially Rielly and Gardiner.

 

[TML 13]

Kid has a tonne of talent, he's already a pretty decent NHL dman, and will be a very good one in the future. Who knows exactly when it all "clicks" for him, but he's so talented that it's just a matter of time. I really hope we can keep all of Gardiner, Rielly, Phaneuf and Franson, because that's going to be an outstanding d core for many years. Phaenuf is the only one out of those 4 who is in his prime, the others are IMO going to get a lot better, especially Rielly and Gardiner.

I hope so too. That core is solid. If Rielly Franson and Gardiner hit their ceiling (Phaneuf has hit his and it's great), then it's a dangerous D core

 

[Backhandshelf81]

I think Gardiner has been getting better progressively, but I will agree with those that say his offensive game is nowhere near where it was in the playoffs.

However, I think it's important to remember who he's currently paired with. In the last few games especially, it's been pretty obvious how hard Gardiner has had to work to cover up for Ranger's miscues.

When Fraser comes back, maybe we can try Gardiner-Franson again, or even Gardiner-Phaneuf. I think both of those situations could make it a lot more likely for us to see playoffs Jake again

 

[hullsy47]

Gardiner missed most of the short season last year his first with Carlyle as the coach....Carlyle has been working with him on his body position and puck support when we both have the puck and without the puck in our zone. He has improved vastly this year, and he is a lot better then he was his first year.

Gards was often seen above the puck in our zone when we did not yet establish possession as well as when he was to be the staggered puck support man. He was to anxious to go on the attack. The other thing was his soft stick checks another thing that has been improving...

Stay or traded he is a talented young D man who is benefiting from the instruction he is receiving from Carlyle. I would prefer we keep him as to have two young stud D man on our team moving forward is a area of strength that most teams will not have. You trade other prospects like Percy etc to stock other areas of concerns or a Franson or Gunnar....not a player like him unless you are getting back a over payment.

had this discussion with a scout at a windsor spitfire game .......gardiner is more of a proto type US born hybrid defenseman that wasnt allowed all thru his minor hockey and development ages .....a player like reilly has been alllowed to be creative and it shows .....soon you ll see more games where reilly outshines many others .be more frequent .

 

[darrylsittler27]

Have to agree.

Fraser's return may spell the end of Ranger as Gardiner's partner. There is something missing from his game and I think it is because of overly being cautious of Ranger's play. The chemistry doesn't seem right and Gardiner's potential is being wasted. Fraser plays that stay at home in your face defense that better suits Gardiner's game.

 

[ironrhcp]

Gardiner needs to learn to harness himself and learn to pick his spots when to attack and when to hold defensive positioning and awareness.

Every time he gets the puck the instinct is to lead the rush up ice, but depending on the score and the game time, it should be done only when its required. The throttle doesn't need to be down to the floor every shift.

As a result he gets into Carlyle's doghouse and he calls him out publicly as a result of giving up odd man rushes and scoring chances against by his aggressiveness and desire to push the puck forward.

No one questions his offensive skills but he needs to learn to play the position of defense better realizing that he has responsibilities at both ends of the rink to keep in mind.

Obviously you havent watched this year because the throttle has not been down every shift. If anything he is picking his spots more then ever and some people say he has not been skating with the puck enough. He obviously most effective when hes skating with the puck. This guy plays in the NHL and you are trying to tell him how to play hockey...really?

 

[Joey Hoser]

Guess who has the least amount of giveaways by a Leafs D and it's not even close?

Surely not Gardiner, just based on general observation. If the stats say otherwise, it's not suprising since it's been pretty well established that the guy counting Leafs' turnovers for half the games is on crack.