Post-Game Talk: Leafs def. Canucks - 3-1 (Pettersson)

ProstheticConscience

Check dein Limit
Apr 30, 2010
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Canuck Nation
The Leafs basically spotted the Canucks the first two periods, then decided to win and cranked it up just enough to do that. Yes, a top team is teasing out just how little effort they need to expend beating the Canucks.

Is that better than the last two games...? I don't even know.

--Hoglander continues to be a bright spot. Good for the kid to enjoy it while he can before playing on the Canucks for a year or two crushes his spirit like all the other young guys.

--Juolevi I thought was okay...for him. A definite step up from Chatfield, which really isn't saying much, but still. You can still see some snippets of what Benning saw to draft him so moronically high, but if he can't learn to deal physically with the NHL, he's done.

--Top six I thought played with a lot more urgency, but everyone good on the team is still wallowing in individualistic play too much of the time. You see a lot of good plays halfway executed that fall apart with miscues and giveaways. Horvat's wearing the C like Superman wears a kryptonite rope chain. I feel bad for the guy being stuck with that in this mess.

--Bottom six still mostly useless aside from the occasional shift here or there. Sutter looks done. Roussel and Beagle continue to coast downhill on their golden parachutes. Virtanen's clearly going nowhere here. Anything that can be recovered from any of these players should be considered found money.

--D continues to flounder without Tanev. Literally nobody is defensively reliable enough to anchor a pairing. Edler's too old and fragile, Hughes is too small and already over-relied upon for all the offence, Schmidt is too new and probably wondering what the hell he got himself into, Benn's barely a #6 guy, and the rookies are barely able to function at the NHL level.

--Holtby again the 2nd best goalie in the game.

--How long before the house cleaning comes? Hopefully it comes soon.

Enough already. This team's not winning shit with Benning, Weisbrod, Green, Brown and f***ing Nolan Baumgartner running the show.
 

Ben White

Registered User
Dec 28, 2015
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It’s beyond me why Hughes is executing that poor shot of his continuously when EP is open on the power play. A few of those league leading amount of goal posts being in goal instead and a pp QB who actually plays to setup the best shooter instead of trying to pad his own stats (for no reason as Hughes can’t score from the point to save his life) and EP would’ve scored a lot of goals this season.​
 

December5th

Registered User
Feb 5, 2021
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It’s beyond me why Hughes is executing that poor shot of his continuously when EP is open on the power play. A few of those league leading amount of goal posts being in goal instead and a pp QB who actually plays to setup the best shooter instead of trying to pad his own stats (for no reason as Hughes can’t score from the point to save his life) and EP would’ve scored a lot of goals this season.​

he has been shooting to often this year but he actually got a few goals from slappers last year. hes just doing it to much this year they pass around for 30 seconds and then he shoots it instead of our snipers
 
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Bougieman

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Nov 12, 2008
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It’s beyond me why Hughes is executing that poor shot of his continuously when EP is open on the power play. A few of those league leading amount of goal posts being in goal instead and a pp QB who actually plays to setup the best shooter instead of trying to pad his own stats (for no reason as Hughes can’t score from the point to save his life) and EP would’ve scored a lot of goals this season.​

I really like Hughes shot, actually. It's not hard at all, but it's very accurate, and if the guys in front can get to it, they're tippable and you're gonna get a lot of muckymuck garbage goals. The guys in front aren't executing, though.
 
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Index

Fillmore, I'm on it!
Mar 24, 2013
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that's laughable. we could have added such things if we didn't spend $ on garbage.

not to mention, benning's ability to get creative in these situations is non-existent.
I agree, but that was just the shitty position we were in thanks to him. Nothing could have been done
 

IslandBeast

Registered User
Apr 19, 2015
1,378
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We were a chihuahua nipping at a K-9 and it finally bit back when it had had enough. Super embarrassed as a fan right now



But...Leafs still can't say jack cause they can't win a playoff series lol
 

M2Beezy

Objective and Neutral Hockey Commentator
May 25, 2014
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m9

m9
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Jan 23, 2010
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Random Player Specific Game Thoughts:

Juolevi - Mentioned earlier, but I liked his game. More specifically I thought he had a few smart offensive plays. I still have some concerns about his defensive play as he's really slow around the edges and teams are catching on. Remind me of a another high-pick named Olli in that regard, Olli Maata. He did make a nice play on the 1-on-1, however he did setup the 1-on-1 with a poor clearing attempt. Overall it was a good outing and is an upgrade on Chatfield at this point.

Edler - Thought you had a very motivated version of Edler tonight. Looked tougher on the puck and played a stronger, physical game.

Beagle - There have been a ton of problems on the team this year, but Beagle isn't really one of them. Putting aside salary for a second, this version of Beagle is a capable 4th line center. Will be interesting if he can keep it up without Motte.

Bailey - His speed jumps out compared to how slow the rest of the team is. Before Motte went out I was hoping to see a Motte/Gaudette/Bailey line which would have the wheels to give other teams some trouble.

Roussel - At this point you really have to wonder what he brings to the team. If there's a guy that should be an under-the-radar trade candidate, it's him. Getting that contract off the books for next year should be a massive priority for this team right now which will open up a spot for someone like Podkolzin in the bottom six.

----

What you're really seeing this year is exactly what "replacement level" means in the bottom six forward group and the bottom of the D. Not much difference on D between guys like Myers, Juolevi, and Benn. If you've been asleep for a week you can throw Chatfield in that group too. Not much difference up front between guys like Roussel, Bailey, Eriksson, Gaudette, Virtanen, MacEwen. All bring some different things but you can name a couple pros and a few cons for each guy and none of them should have a price tag longer than 6 digits.
 

Fatass

Registered User
Apr 17, 2017
21,951
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Random Player Specific Game Thoughts:

Juolevi - Mentioned earlier, but I liked his game. More specifically I thought he had a few smart offensive plays. I still have some concerns about his defensive play as he's really slow around the edges and teams are catching on. Remind me of a another high-pick named Olli in that regard, Olli Maata. He did make a nice play on the 1-on-1, however he did setup the 1-on-1 with a poor clearing attempt. Overall it was a good outing and is an upgrade on Chatfield at this point.

Edler - Thought you had a very motivated version of Edler tonight. Looked tougher on the puck and played a stronger, physical game.

Beagle - There have been a ton of problems on the team this year, but Beagle isn't really one of them. Putting aside salary for a second, this version of Beagle is a capable 4th line center. Will be interesting if he can keep it up without Motte.

Bailey - His speed jumps out compared to how slow the rest of the team is. Before Motte went out I was hoping to see a Motte/Gaudette/Bailey line which would have the wheels to give other teams some trouble.

Roussel - At this point you really have to wonder what he brings to the team. If there's a guy that should be an under-the-radar trade candidate, it's him. Getting that contract off the books for next year should be a massive priority for this team right now which will open up a spot for someone like Podkolzin in the bottom six.

----

What you're really seeing this year is exactly what "replacement level" means in the bottom six forward group and the bottom of the D. Not much difference on D between guys like Myers, Juolevi, and Benn. If you've been asleep for a week you can throw Chatfield in that group too. Not much difference up front between guys like Roussel, Bailey, Eriksson, Gaudette, Virtanen, MacEwen. All bring some different things but you can name a couple pros and a few cons for each guy and none of them should have a price tag longer than 6 digits.
I liked OJ too. Every NHL d man gets beat wide at some point. OJ needs to play more. He’s smart, and will figure out his gaps better. Would be nice if his partner would sneak over on that play and blow up the Leaf heading to the net. If we have a system in place with actual back pressure from our forwards, the offside d can do such things.
 

m9

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I liked OJ too. Every NHL d man gets beat wide at some point. OJ needs to play more. He’s smart, and will figure out his gaps better. Would be nice if his partner would sneak over on that play and blow up the Leaf heading to the net. If we have a system in place with actual back pressure from our forwards, the offside d can do such things.

It would be nice if this team had a true top-4 they could count on and then you could actually develop Juolevi in a 3rd pairing sheltered role for 10-12 minutes a night with a safe option. I also don't think it would be bad to get him some 2nd unit PP time and get him used to handling the puck a bit more.
 
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I am toxic

. . . even in small doses
Oct 24, 2014
9,352
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Vancouver
Random Player Specific Game Thoughts:

Juolevi - Mentioned earlier, but I liked his game. More specifically I thought he had a few smart offensive plays. I still have some concerns about his defensive play as he's really slow around the edges and teams are catching on. Remind me of a another high-pick named Olli in that regard, Olli Maata. He did make a nice play on the 1-on-1, however he did setup the 1-on-1 with a poor clearing attempt. Overall it was a good outing and is an upgrade on Chatfield at this point.

Edler - Thought you had a very motivated version of Edler tonight. Looked tougher on the puck and played a stronger, physical game.

Beagle - There have been a ton of problems on the team this year, but Beagle isn't really one of them. Putting aside salary for a second, this version of Beagle is a capable 4th line center. Will be interesting if he can keep it up without Motte.

Bailey - His speed jumps out compared to how slow the rest of the team is. Before Motte went out I was hoping to see a Motte/Gaudette/Bailey line which would have the wheels to give other teams some trouble.

Roussel - At this point you really have to wonder what he brings to the team. If there's a guy that should be an under-the-radar trade candidate, it's him. Getting that contract off the books for next year should be a massive priority for this team right now which will open up a spot for someone like Podkolzin in the bottom six.

----

What you're really seeing this year is exactly what "replacement level" means in the bottom six forward group and the bottom of the D. Not much difference on D between guys like Myers, Juolevi, and Benn. If you've been asleep for a week you can throw Chatfield in that group too. Not much difference up front between guys like Roussel, Bailey, Eriksson, Gaudette, Virtanen, MacEwen. All bring some different things but you can name a couple pros and a few cons for each guy and none of them should have a price tag longer than 6 digits.

Well said.

Luke Schenn would have (did) pair well with Hughes, at a fraction of the cost of Myers, freeing up Schmidt to pair with Edler (oh no! we can't have a RHD play the Left side, the universe will implode!).

Hutton and Stecher would make an excellent 3rd pairing, Stecher for sure has demonstrated he can successfully cover top4 duties in a pinch. Bur our coach prefers garbage over actual NHL players, unfortunately.

I won't go into forwards, but Gaunce was better than half our bottom 6 - wait, he was also better than several players who aren't even playable. Again at a fraction of the cost.

All predicted in advance. No hindsight, no waiting and seeing.
 

Fatass

Registered User
Apr 17, 2017
21,951
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It would be nice if this team had a true top-4 they could count on and then you could actually develop Juolevi in a 3rd pairing sheltered role for 10-12 minutes a night with a safe option. I also don't think it would be bad to get him some 2nd unit PP time and get him used to handling the puck a bit more.
Second unit PP is a very good idea. Play OJ and Schmidt together.
 

Dab

Registered User
Apr 17, 2017
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Well said.

Luke Schenn would have (did) pair well with Hughes, at a fraction of the cost of Myers, freeing up Schmidt to pair with Edler (oh no! we can't have a RHD play the Left side, the universe will implode!).

Hutton and Stecher would make an excellent 3rd pairing, Stecher for sure has demonstrated he can successfully cover top4 duties in a pinch. Bur our coach prefers garbage over actual NHL players, unfortunately.

I won't go into forwards, but Gaunce was better than half our bottom 6 - wait, he was also better than several players who aren't even playable. Again at a fraction of the cost.

All predicted in advance. No hindsight, no waiting and seeing.
Gaunce was bad, and I wasn’t a huge Hutton fan but your post is a thought provoking one. All considered would I prefer Beagle or Gaunce?

To improve the defence Benning needed to add Schmidt to a group that had Tanev and Stecher.
 
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Fatass

Registered User
Apr 17, 2017
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Gaunce was bad, and I wasn’t a huge Hutton fan but your post is a thought provoking one. All considered would I prefer Beagle or Gaunce?

To improve the defence Benning needed to add Schmidt to a group that had Tanev and Stecher.
And add second round picks, that he actually uses to draft D. Woo might be a player, but Romanov got picked right afterwards. Extra second round picks can hit some really good d, but a team needs lots of swings.
Plus, missing on OJ was disastrous. Sergachev and Chychrun look pretty darned good. Every team misses though. JB just trades away so many top picks it magnifies his misses.
 
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geebster

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OJ looked like a significant upgrade over Chatfield to me. But that probably means he gets stapled to the taxi squad again and Chatfield is on the top pairing given how Green likes to do things. I'll never understand why offensive zone faceoffs after commercial breaks always have to be Sutter or Beagles line and never the top guys.
 

Samzilla

Prust & Dorsett are
Apr 2, 2011
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And add second round picks, that he actually uses to draft D. Woo might be a player, but Romanov got picked right afterwards. Extra second round picks can hit some really good d, but a team needs lots of swings.
Plus, missing on OJ was disastrous. Sergachev and Chychrun look pretty darned good. Every team misses though. JB just trades away so many top picks it magnifies his misses.

but he drafts better with less picks :sarcasm:

just imagine how poor our drafting would be if he had more picks!
 

4Twenty

Registered User
Dec 18, 2018
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Luke Schenn’s 5 games with Hughes they were actually outplayed just happened to not give up goals to 3/4th lines.

If you want Hughes to play against 1/2nd lines he needs a real partner that can do this well.

Not Myers, Schenn, Benn etc
 
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EpochLink

Canucks and Jets fan
Aug 1, 2006
59,501
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OJ looked like a significant upgrade over Chatfield to me. But that probably means he gets stapled to the taxi squad again and Chatfield is on the top pairing given how Green likes to do things. I'll never understand why offensive zone faceoffs after commercial breaks always have to be Sutter or Beagles line and never the top guys.

No, that means owns ownership and management will tell Green to play Chatfield because he has ‘swagger’ and ‘upside’.

If I’m Green I’d tell both of them to shut the f*** up.
 

Burke's Evil Spirit

Registered User
Oct 29, 2002
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San Francisco
Well said.

Luke Schenn would have (did) pair well with Hughes, at a fraction of the cost of Myers, freeing up Schmidt to pair with Edler (oh no! we can't have a RHD play the Left side, the universe will implode!).

I get the thing with Schmidt - there's evidence that shows he's more effective on the left in Vancouver than the right. Fair enough.

Think about how easy it would be to run a left-side loaded, "Tampa lite" blueline. Schmidt-Hughes-Edler down the left side, Myers-Schenn-Stecher down the right. And they couldn't even do that.
 
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