News Article: Leafs are now identifiable.

[Confucius]

Blues?

No Petro this year but anyway look at the bottom 4 there. Much worse than the bottom 4 in the North

 

[Bluelines]

Average points per team last year reorganized into this years divisions
North is better than Central and pretty well tied with West

Scotia North 76.29
MassMutual East 82.5
Discover Central 75.4
Honda West 77.1

Meaningless.

 

[Notsince67]

Meaningless.

So you base your assessment on.....?

 

[Confucius]

So....

vCGY (4gms): +0.00 gdiff/gm (.750pts%)
vOTT (5gms): +0.60 gdiff/gm (.700pts%)
vEDM (5gms): +0.80gdiff/gm (.700pts%)
vMTL (4gms): +1.00gdiff/gm (.750pts%)
vWPG (1gms): +2.00gdiff/gm (1.000pts%)
vVAN (3gms): +3.33gdiff/gm (1.000pts%)

Only Calgary has stopped the leafs from scoreboard dominance...and I think we all know that Rittich had something to do with that.

Interestingly the leafs' dominance isn't built on taking advantage of Ottawa, the weakest team in the division.

Too funny 5 of Ottawas 7 wins came against us and the Habs.

 

[Confucius]

So you base your assessment on.....?

The bottom 4 teams in the west are easy pickings based on how they finished last season with worse records than Edmonton, Vancouver and Calgary. And probably Winnipeg and Toronto but I haven't bothered checking that.

 

[Gary Nylund]

I wasn’t specific enough i keyed in on the sv% and didn’t ask directly. Forgot to say sv%. Doesn’t matter.
Biggest stat for me right now i would like to see improvement in is PK. It’s not good enough. Shots on goal stat is way down and thats awesome.

+1

 

[Bluelines]

So you base your assessment on.....?

Some teams like Calgary and Vancouver have had significant turnover... no relationship between this year and last. Zero. Zip, Ziltch.

 

[zeke]

Some teams like Calgary and Vancouver have had significant turnover... no relationship between this year and last. Zero. Zip, Ziltch.

Most outsiders thought that pretty much every Canadian team improved their roster this offseason, aside from Vancouver.

 

[AcerComputer]

I feel like when the Leafs traded away Kadri lost their identity. This year they made some good signings in Simmonds, Thornton, Brodie, Bogosian. Internal development from Holl and Dermott. Further development from Matthews and Marner to lead the team. The game is much easier when you have the puck a lot and get good goaltending, which leads to winning lots of games. The real test is when they go on a losing streak, and to see whole folds.

 

[Gary Nylund]

I feel like when the Leafs traded away Kadri lost their identity. This year they made some good signings in Simmonds, Thornton, Brodie, Bogosian. Internal development from Holl and Dermott. Further development from Matthews and Marner to lead the team. The game is much easier when you have the puck a lot and get good goaltending, which leads to winning lots of games. The real test is when they go on a losing streak, and to see whole folds.

What makes you say that?

 

[Jojalu]

Some teams like Calgary and Vancouver have had significant turnover... no relationship between this year and last. Zero. Zip, Ziltch.

So, according to your train of thought, it doesn't matter if teams in the North were decent last year because of turnover, while any team outside the North that were good last year regardless of turnover are still good.

Calgary on paper got better with Markstrom and Tanev.

Vanouver is the only team you can say regressed. Edmonton finished higher than the Leafs, Montreal at least won their play in and added some decent pieces.

The Leafs had more turnover than any team in the North and have drastically improved their 200ft game. Adding to their success, is that to your point Matthews and Marner are having a fantastic start.

 

[Wafflewhipper]

I feel like when the Leafs traded away Kadri lost their identity. This year they made some good signings in Simmonds, Thornton, Brodie, Bogosian. Internal development from Holl and Dermott. Further development from Matthews and Marner to lead the team. The game is much easier when you have the puck a lot and get good goaltending, which leads to winning lots of games. The real test is when they go on a losing streak, and to see whole folds.

On a team play basis Keefe has formed the identity with the top players as defense first. I can’t even call them a counter punch team because they have the puck so much. They know how to get a puck back better sums them up for me.

 

[Bluelines]

Most outsiders thought that pretty much every Canadian team improved their roster this offseason, aside from Vancouver.

Looks like most outsiders were wrong in the short term.

 

[zeke]

Looks like most outsiders were wrong in the short term.

Why?

 

[Bluelines]

So, according to your train of thought, it doesn't matter if teams in the North were decent last year because of turnover, while any team outside the North that were good last year regardless of turnover are still good.

Calgary on paper got better with Markstrom and Tanev.

Vanouver is the only team you can say regressed. Edmonton finished higher than the Leafs, Montreal at least won their play in and added some decent pieces.

The Leafs had more turnover than any team in the North and have drastically improved their 200ft game. Adding to their success, is that to your point Matthews and Marner are having a fantastic start.

Sometimes it works, sometimes it does not, sometimes it takes time for others to gel with their new teams. It takes time to learn new systems, time to get comfortable in your new city. Leafs lost insignificant under performing parts does that matter in your equation or is just body in body out for you?

 

[notDatsyuk]

They aren’t playing us either. Should go check their easier teams they beat. No but they play weak teams and I’m not sure they have had a easier or harder schedule. Main thing is we win the President trophy and go from there

I think you missed my point. The teams in our division this year (that we have a 10-2-1 record against) aren't as good as the teams in our division last year (that we had a 6-7-0 record against).

Who Boston, Tampa, et al, play this year is irrelevant. (In Boston's case, except for Tampa, they may be in tougher than last year, and are doing fine, except for going 0-3 against the Isles.)

But I do think we are better this year, and will win our first playoff series since 2004. In fact, we should win our division, although I'm not confident beyond that.

 

[Bluelines]

Why?

Results?

 

[zeke]

Results?

Which results?

The North division is .500 just like every other division.

 

[Notsince67]

Some teams like Calgary and Vancouver have had significant turnover... no relationship between this year and last. Zero. Zip, Ziltch.

All teams have seen turnover

 

[WTFMAN99]

I kind of think it really comes down to AM and MM playing elite elite elite world class hockey. If they are playing near their career averages I think we are a middle-ish of the pack team. Just eye balling AM would have about 5 or 6 less goals and MM would have about 2 or 3 less goals, combined 7 to 9 fewer goals means 2 to 4 less wins, 4 less point means we are in 2nd behind Edmonton, 8 less points means we are in 3rd 2 points ahead of 4th.

If we had such a great team system, the production would be spread out better, the 2nd and 3rd lines have been disappointing, the 4th line has produced better than I expected. I think this years team is better than last years team but its way too soon for the Leaf's or the media to be blowing sunshine up the backsides of the fandom.

If JT is shooting anywhere near his career normal then we look that much better.

On top of that, we have Matthews and Marner for this reason...should we apologize we have world class players?

 

[Notsince67]

Looks like most outsiders were wrong in the short term.

So the teams are bad because they looked like they improved and what?

 

[Jojalu]

Sometimes it works, sometimes it does not, sometimes it takes time for others to gel with their new teams. It takes time to learn new systems, time to get comfortable in your new city. Leafs lost insignificant under performing parts does that matter in your equation or is just body in body out for you?

I think the players who came in were more significant than the players that went out.

Brodie over Barrie for example makes the Leafs a better team. Kap and AJ I wouldn't call insignificant, but more of the same.

Thornton, Simmonds replacing them adds a different element and they don't try to play run and gun.

Even though JT/ Willy line isn't producing as much this year, they are giving up next to nothing when on the ice.

 

[Wafflewhipper]

I think you missed my point. The teams in our division this year (that we have a 10-2-1 record against) aren't as good as the teams in our division last year (that we had a 6-7-0 record against).

Who Boston, Tampa, et al, play this year is irrelevant. (In Boston's case, except for Tampa, they may be in tougher than last year, and are doing fine, except for going 0-3 against the Isles.)

But I do think we are better this year, and will win our first playoff series since 2004. In fact, we should win our division, although I'm not confident beyond that.

Atta boy . I think we are better. Boston is lesser and we gained on the top teams in overall play

 

[notDatsyuk]

Atta boy . I think we are better. Boston is lesser and we gained on the top teams in overall play

And we don't play Boston for at least two rounds!

 

[Morbo]

Devil is in the details, 'Nucks beat Ottawa 7-1, 5-1, 4-1 piling up on bad teams makes your GF look great. We have played Winnipeg once this year.

Almost half of our GF/GA diff is because of Vancouver.

Nearly half, 45% of our GF is because of 2 teams, Vancouver and Ottawa.

	GP	GF	GA	Delta
Calgary	4	9	9	0
Edmonton	5	16	12	4
Ottawa	5	20	17	3
Montreal	4	15	11	4
Vancouver	3	15	5	10
Winnipeg	1	3	1	2
Total	22	78	55	23

[TBODY] [/TBODY]

Devil is in the details? You simply ignored what I said.

maybe try again and actually address my point.