Pre-Game Talk: Leafs @ Flames Nov 28 9pm ET

[Brobust]

Unless there is a ton of penalties it's almost a certainty that Bozak will play over 7 ES minutes. That's less then half his average ice time. Let's keep our comments based in reality.

He averages about 11-12 minutes even strength a game. Even less when they use Marleau at centre. So, yes, my comment was an expectation based in reality.

 

[stickty111]

And some of the credit has to go to Babs.

Babcock is too good of a coach for the team to continue to play like this. He will get them playing better. All though when that happens, PuckMagi will say"oh its because the team is so good, Babcock is still bad, and blah blah blah". The great thing is that he doesnt destroy players(what ever thats supposed to mean)
Babcock is still a trememdous coach. Some fans agenda doesnt change that fact.

 

[LEAFANFORLIFE23]

Read my post again, I didn't say there were a dozen teams as good as we are. It sounds like you want to say the contenders are Toronto and every team better than us. Sorry but I just don't see the logic in that.

No there are teams "better" than Toronto, at least as far as the current standings say that I don't see as cup contenders, an example of that would be NJ, they currently lead the Metro, but I wouldn't take them in a series against Toronto, TB, the Pens or the NYR I think all those teams are more suited for playoff hockey than NJ.

The NYI are another one, they are only one point back but personally I'm not sold on them just yet, even if they make the playoffs I think they lose to the same teams NJ does

to me the top 2 teams, as far as the east goes are Tampa and Toronto those 2 are the best bets to come out of the east

 

[Pi]

What else can you do but laugh at this point

It's a shame. Auston Matthews on any other team is getting more ice time on ES and the PP and is probably competing for the Art Ross.

I just hope Babcock's tactics lead to playoff wins, because if they don't, what's the point of such a weird line up every night?

No there are teams "better" than Toronto, at least as far as the current standings say that I don't see as cup contenders, an example of that would be NJ, they currently lead the Metro, but I wouldn't take them in a series against Toronto, TB, the Pens or the NYR I think all those teams are more suited for playoff hockey than NJ.

The NYI are another one, they are only one point back but personally I'm not sold on them just yet, even if they make the playoffs I think they lose to the same teams NJ does

to me the top 2 teams, as far as the east goes are Tampa and Toronto those 2 are the best bets to come out of the east

Pittsburgh isn't playing great hockey right now but betting against a team that has won back to back seems silly.

 

[LEAFANFORLIFE23]

It's a shame. Auston Matthews on any other team is getting more ice time on ES and the PP and is probably competing for the Art Ross.

I just hope Babcock's tactics lead to playoff wins, because if they don't, what's the point of such a weird line up every night?



Pittsburgh isn't playing great hockey right now but betting against a team that has won back to back seems silly.

They would be #3 because they are the pens, but at this point I have TB and the Leafs better than them

 

[Leaf of the Mind]

Babs took a lot of heat in Sochi for his decisions, from the entire country. People said Bouwmeester was done and Kunitz was the Hyman of that tournament. Lo and behold the entire tournament all the guys people said didn't belong there were the ones who stepped up. Sometimes his stubbornness or vision or whatever you want to call it, does pay off.

All coaches are going to have some tendencies that drive you crazy. It's been said many times on here but bears repeating, the people calling Babcock a joke or worst coach would be complaining about any coach. They want someone with a long track record of success who is willing to throw away what makes them successful on a dime, in the name of innovation. If or when we start being more consistent I expect these same people to move the goalposts again, suddenly Babcock isn't good unless we win the cup this year, or the big three all have career years, or some other unlikely metric. It may be as simple as "we're winning sure but player X is still in the lineup so coach is still bad."

There's the same strange malaise in the Raptors online fandom, the team is now a perennial playoff team, trying to figure out how to take it to the next level, after being a straight up joke for 20 years. There's a vocal section of fans who would rather return to joke status if it meant the coach being fired or certain players off the team, or certain players finally getting more playing time. There are probably people here who would burn this team down by firing Babcock if it meant getting Hyman or Bozak out of here.

I can't imagine what a daily hell life must be for sports fans like that, because most years you aren't winning the championship. You have to learn to appreciate the team's good and bad in some balanced way. And no, "balanced" doesn't mean loving everything management and the coach does, it just means getting a grip sometimes on the stuff you are about to write. Most of it is just joking, empty raging. But just know that the few people who are serious with their hot takes like that probably overlap with the people who sent threats to Reimer's wife, or harass Lupul.

 

[Gary Nylund]

No there are teams "better" than Toronto, at least as far as the current standings say that I don't see as cup contenders, an example of that would be NJ, they currently lead the Metro, but I wouldn't take them in a series against Toronto, TB, the Pens or the NYR I think all those teams are more suited for playoff hockey than NJ.

The NYI are another one, they are only one point back but personally I'm not sold on them just yet, even if they make the playoffs I think they lose to the same teams NJ does

to me the top 2 teams, as far as the east goes are Tampa and Toronto those 2 are the best bets to come out of the east

You're entitled to your opinion of course, seems a little "homerish" to me though, maybe even a lot.

It's a shame. Auston Matthews on any other team is getting more ice time on ES and the PP and is probably competing for the Art Ross.

I just hope Babcock's tactics lead to playoff wins, because if they don't, what's the point of such a weird line up every night?

I don't think Babcock cares about the Art Ross, he's just doing what he thinks is best for the team in the long run.

Pittsburgh isn't playing great hockey right now but betting against a team that has won back to back seems silly.

Yup.

 

[zeke]

Pittsburgh isn't playing great hockey right now but betting against a team that has won back to back seems silly.

But even if you add PIT top the list of "teams Leafs would be big underdogs against in a playoff series"....that list is still pretty dang short.

 

[zeke]

There's the same strange malaise in the Raptors online fandom, the team is now a perennial playoff team, trying to figure out how to take it to the next level, after being a straight up joke for 20 years. There's a vocal section of fans who would rather return to joke status if it meant the coach being fired or certain players off the team, or certain players finally getting more playing time. There are probably people here who would burn this team down by firing Babcock if it meant getting Hyman or Bozak out of here.

I can't imagine what a daily hell life must be for sports fans like that, because most years you aren't winning the championship. You have to learn to appreciate the team's good and bad in some balanced way. And no, "balanced" doesn't mean loving everything management and the coach does, it just means getting a grip sometimes on the stuff you are about to write. Most of it is just joking, empty raging. But just know that the few people who are serious with their hot takes like that probably overlap with the people who sent threats to Reimer's wife, or harass Lupul.

I tried to warn everyone the last couple of years that the negativity would only get worse the better the Leafs got. This is the way it has always worked in toronto.

But it's not quite the same as the Raps - the malaise with the raptors is legit, because even though they're good, they simply don't possess the star talent to win a championship, and have a GM that has somehow failed to add even one impact starter in his 5 years at the helm.