Post-Game Talk: Leafs fall again.

[Trapper]

Second game in two nights. Almost meaningless game for the Leafs, very important game for the Canes. A week before the playoffs begin.

Couldn't care less about this one. Ignore list or rather whiner list with a lot of new entries today.

That’s a poor attitude and one that can creep in and set your identity if that’s how you look at things.

Not the loss itself but the feeling of it’s meaningless.
You have 3 games before the playoffs. Getting in form is not meaningless. Other players still have things to show for their career. Sparks is trying to show why he should stay as backup moving forward.

Players like Rosen, Moore, etc. are trying to show why they are viable options to be on this team moving forward. They should play hard when the rest of the team could care less? Great example.

Players like Matthews/Tavares are looking to close in on 40/50 goals.

Nylander getting demoted to the 4th line is not something that should be ignored. That’s a major fail 3 games out.

It’s all poor excuses for a team that has a laundry list of them.

 

[Nithoniniel]

What baffles is me is not upgrading the position at the trade deadline. You had nearly a full season to see more of Sparks. He failed. People can defend him all day and say how the team never plays well in front of him, but that should explain everything there. If a team doesn't trust it's goalie, and knows it can't take any chances offensively because more often or not it'll end up in the net, they won't play well.

I don't think a backup is worth giving up assets for. If Andersen is healthy, he'll play every single game in the playoffs. If he isn't, no available backup would save us.

Say what you will, but this team looks completely different when Sparks is in the net. 3 goals last night, 2 from below the goal line and one clean shot from 20 feet out. A nice shot sure, but it's saveable. He wasn't even close. It deflated the team. They had pressure on, and the line changes seemed to give them a boost. Matthews/Marner nearly tied it a number of times and they had lots of momentum. Then bang, 3-1 game over.

The second goal I would not hold against him at all. He was stretched out after absolutely bailing out Zaitsev and Hainsey who apparently didn't think the slot was worth defending. It's not really a situation where you can expect a goalie to be airtight against the post. The first is completely on him, and the third was of the type that you should save maybe four out of five. But that's pretty much what Sparks did.

The skaters got run over for half the game. If you want to win, or at least to feel like the goalie let you down, you can't do that.

 

[Mugzy97]

Sparks has 14 career wins and 18 career losses as a Maple Leaf back-up with a 3.09 goals against average. Its essentially a 44% win loss ratio when he is between the pipes. It is almost a guaranteed loss when he is in net lol

44% win ratio isn't even close to a "guaranteed loss" lol

Well I personally think statistics speak for themselves. You can beat around the bush all you want but those are big variables when factoring in how stable a goalie is for the team. I understand the team thoroughly lacks 2 way play and a defensive acumen from top of the lineup to the bottom but it is what it is I guess....o well

You're factoring in 17 games from 3 years ago when the team was trash. You're also talking about a rookie goalie who plays the back half of back-to-backs all of the time. Context is easy to forget when your agenda is glaringly obvious.

 

[ACC1224]

Love how most of the blame is on Sparks, when a team comprising of Tavares, Matthews, Marner, Nylander, Kadri, Rielly put up a whole 2 shots in the 1st period against the Carolina Hurricanes of all teams.

Yes, even more reason not to let shots in from behind the net.

 

[ACC1224]

Sparks is 2-9 in his last 11. He is complete and utter trash.

It really says alot about those that go to these extreme lengths to defend him.
How you can be a fan of the Team and not want something better is beyond me.

 

[Nineteen67]

The Leafs are 8-16 in 24 games against top the 10 D teams.

 

[RLF]

I haven't read through this thread, but I am sure Sparks will get lots of blame. Yes, the first goal was just brutal. The second he made a great save and Hamilton tried to bank it on off him and succeeded. Third is hard to blame him on an open shot in the slot. He made some good saves as well. He wasn't great, but he is a back up. I am not a Sparks fan, but we aren't going to win many games that you only score one goal and only play the last 30 mins of the game.

 

[TmlHockeyFan]

It really says alot about those that go to these extreme lengths to defend him.
How you can be a fan of the Team and not want something better is beyond me.

If we wanted to be a lottery pick team then Sparks is perfect.

 

[Trapper]

I haven't read through this thread, but I am sure Sparks will get lots of blame. Yes, the first goal was just brutal. The second he made a great save and Hamilton tried to bank it on off him and succeeded. Third is hard to blame him on an open shot in the slot. He made some good saves as well. He wasn't great, but he is a back up. I am not a Sparks fan, but we aren't going to win many games that you only score one goal and only play the last 30 mins of the game.

When you get pinned in your zone for 40 + seconds at a time, bad things will happen.
Sparks or Andersen. Andersen will just bail you out longer but eventually will fall.

 

[deletethis]

NHL goalies aren't expected to stop every great scoring chance, that's when goals are expected to happen, and at a higher rate for backups than starters. Also pucks that are deflected or screened are expected to occasionally find their way through. However you're expected to never allow what would be considered a bad rec league goal, let alone two.

 

[Not My Tempo]

Why are these boards always so toxic after a loss? I get being upset, but the hate boners some of you have for some players/coaching staff/management is so weird. Like how do you some of guys find it fun to be this angry all the time?

 

[Marshy]

Same old same old.. the Hurricanes are a vastly superior team. They would eliminate the Leafs in 5 games. Fact is Leaf fans always seem to over rate their team. They are really not very good.. and are going absolutely nowhere. Dubas made an enormous error by keeping Sparks. He's a minor league goalie at best. I'll bet he is out of hockey in 4 years. McIlhenney on the other hand was a premium back up. They also erred in signing Nylander, tunnel visioned little puck hog... and in not shoring up their defence. They are a bunch of fancy Dans, and we all know how long they last against the heavy hockey of playoff contenders like Tampa, Washington and Boston... So, Leafers better cancel the parade again this year (for the 52nd straight time) ......On and on it goes..

7 likes in 7 years. You seem like a likeable fellow.

 

[Trapper]

NHL goalies aren't expected to stop every great scoring chance, that's when goals are expected to happen, and at a higher rate for backups than starters. Also pucks that are deflected or screened are expected to occasionally find their way through. However you're expected to never allow what would be considered a bad rec league goal, let alone two.

Your starting goaltender should stop all the shots a regular goalie should stop plus a few that shouldn't be stopped. And at the critical time.

A backup should stop all the shots a regular goalie should stop. It's up to the team to make sure there aren't many that shouldn't be stopped.

 

[PuckMagi]

I don't care that we lost. Meaningless game.

 

[leaffaninvancouver]

Same old same old.. the Hurricanes are a vastly superior team. They would eliminate the Leafs in 5 games. Fact is Leaf fans always seem to over rate their team. They are really not very good.. and are going absolutely nowhere. Dubas made an enormous error by keeping Sparks. He's a minor league goalie at best. I'll bet he is out of hockey in 4 years. McIlhenney on the other hand was a premium back up. They also erred in signing Nylander, tunnel visioned little puck hog... and in not shoring up their defence. They are a bunch of fancy Dans, and we all know how long they last against the heavy hockey of playoff contenders like Tampa, Washington and Boston... So, Leafers better cancel the parade again this year (for the 52nd straight time) ......On and on it goes..

Oh look it’s another one of our “fans” who only post to run down the team. Nothing remotely suspicious about that.

 

[leaffaninvancouver]

Why are these boards always so toxic after a loss? I get being upset, but the hate boners some of you have for some players/coaching staff/management is so weird. Like how do you some of guys find it fun to be this angry all the time?

Some of them only ever post when bad things happen. Frankly I doubt their posting in good faith.

 

[Mugzy97]

Why are these boards always so toxic after a loss? I get being upset, but the hate boners some of you have for some players/coaching staff/management is so weird. Like how do you some of guys find it fun to be this angry all the time?

I 100% agree with you. It's mind boggling really.

 

[Mugzy97]

Same old same old.. the Hurricanes are a vastly superior team. They would eliminate the Leafs in 5 games. Fact is Leaf fans always seem to over rate their team. They are really not very good.. and are going absolutely nowhere. Dubas made an enormous error by keeping Sparks. He's a minor league goalie at best. I'll bet he is out of hockey in 4 years. McIlhenney on the other hand was a premium back up. They also erred in signing Nylander, tunnel visioned little puck hog... and in not shoring up their defence. They are a bunch of fancy Dans, and we all know how long they last against the heavy hockey of playoff contenders like Tampa, Washington and Boston... So, Leafers better cancel the parade again this year (for the 52nd straight time) ......On and on it goes..

Average of less than 6 posts a year and this is one of them. You must have been really mad about this one!

 

[LeafsOHLRangers98]

Matthews and Marner looked amazing though.

Put all three together then when down by a goal.

Hyman-JT-Kapanen looked fine, then make a third offsensive line out of the rest.

 

[rdogg]

Oh my god. The sky... it is falling

 

[Marshy]

I'd like to hear more about how we're no good.

What did some of these people do during the really lean years? I mean, did they stick with the embarrassing no playoff years and now that we are on the other side of that - NOW they are going to REALLY start complaining.

 

[sxvnert]

Put all three together then when down by a goal.

Hyman-JT-Kapanen looked fine, then make a third offsensive line out of the rest.

Roll two lines until they score.

Matthews Tavares Marner
Kadri Nylander Kap/Johnsson

 

[LeafsOHLRangers98]

Roll two lines until they score.

Matthews Tavares Marner
Kadri Nylander Kap/Johnsson

Those 7 would dominate any D-core. I have no idea why we never try it when down in a game.

Seems to work well for Tampa when they load up the top 6.

 

[yubbers]

You think a 50% success rate when dealing with assets is worth it? I'm gonna go out on a limb and guess you're not in investing.

I understand why they kept him. You don't risk losing the AHL goalie of the year on waivers to keep a 35 year old backup. Perhaps they should have looked at trading him when his value was somewhat decent, but hindsight is 20/20.

What baffles is me is not upgrading the position at the trade deadline. You had nearly a full season to see more of Sparks. He failed. People can defend him all day and say how the team never plays well in front of him, but that should explain everything there. If a team doesn't trust it's goalie, and knows it can't take any chances offensively because more often or not it'll end up in the net, they won't play well.

Say what you will, but this team looks completely different when Sparks is in the net. 3 goals last night, 2 from below the goal line and one clean shot from 20 feet out. A nice shot sure, but it's saveable. He wasn't even close. It deflated the team. They had pressure on, and the line changes seemed to give them a boost. Matthews/Marner nearly tied it a number of times and they had lots of momentum. Then bang, 3-1 game over.

It was so obvious this was a bad move. No hindsight was necessary. Agree trading him when his value was high was the way to go. Just awful asset and team management. No reason to take that risk and it off course blew up in our face

 

[Nineteen67]

I wasn’t able to watch the game last evening, so I just watched the Williams goal. Sparks has to be intentionally letting those in, right?