Gary Nylund
Registered User
- Oct 10, 2013
- 30,098
- 22,563
I think our best forwards last year were Winnik, Santorelli, and Komorov (and I'd add Kadri to that list but I think he can get better still). Holland I think did pretty well all things considered (like playing with Clarkson).
None of those three (Winnik, Santorelli, and Komorov) are the most talented, or the most skilled. But I think they probably worked the hardest out there and that's what made the difference.
Loading your top 6 up with all your skill players, and having all your bottom 6 players be grinders isn't necessarily the optimal strategy.
If our top line is going up against someone else's top line, maybe we want a guy like Komorov or Winnik on there who can actually play some defense and shut them down. We can't have our top line be a -34 or whatever across the board.
I think we'll make the playoffs this coming year, but even I'll admit that we can't match skill for skill yet against a lot of other teams in the league right now. JVR - Bozak - Kessel got crushed last year and we can't have our top line be that big a minus again. So I think our advantage will come from the fact that we've finally got enough legit NHL players that we can run 4 lines on offense and have 6 good defenders every game. We'll have to win by working harder and using our depth by rolling 4 lines... keeping shifts short... and getting production from everyone in the lineup. Ultimately it will take some good performances by our goalies too... but I'm not too concerned about who's "top 6" and "bottom 6" or whatever. By not having, Kessel, Clarkson, Franson, and Trevor Smith in our lineup... we are already dramatically improved over last season because I think they were our worst players when it came to helping or hurting the Leafs chances of winning games.
You were making sense up to the bolded part ...
Lol this guy is a funny poster but he has to be the biggest troll on our board. But i say that respectfully.
Yes he's doing a pretty good job I must say.