Sheldon Keefe is a pretty good coach.

[Gnova]

The Maple Leafs are a juggernaut. Why their schedule strength has little to do with it

Please respond to the facts listed in this article.

Post a paywall article and only want to argue point from that article lol.

 

[ViewsFromThe6ix]

Post a paywall article and only want to argue point from that article lol.

It's $1 a month. Good grief. Or get a free trial.

 

[GOilers88]

I feel like the issue is that you can't win with just elite talent alone. That's why the Leafs are globetrotting so hard this year, they have both elite talent and good depth. If you match up McDavid/Draisaitl with Matthews/Tavares and then can still throw out Marner, Nylander and such, you're going to smack teams around.

Pretty much every other team in that division has some sort of massive roster flaw that the Leafs don't have anything even close to. The biggest hole the Leafs had was filled with signing Brodie last off-season.

I agree they have better depth. But I don't think Winnipeg and Calgary are really far behind. Calgary has vastly underperformed and despite being the lone team to lack the elite offensive output, they have a very well rounded roster, at least on paper, and I don't know of anyone who expected them to be so bad this year. Winnipeg gives up the 5v5 chances but overall from the net out they're a solid team.

It's definitely the elite talent that separates teams who are otherwise close, but I still really feel like teams are being heavily downplayed in the division despite having good regular season success the last handful of years and seriously shitting the bed in this short season so far.

All credit where it's due to the teams who are rolling. But I really think the lack of a preseason and exhibition games coming in the form of real games this year has had a major impact on why things look like they do, much like the covid cup.

 

[Rants Mulliniks]

You should be excited the leafs look like a great team this year. I still think the north is a weak division but I don’t say that intending to discredit Toronto. I think the people “discrediting” the leafs do it on purpose because we have to hear about them so much on the main board.

I know I’ve been taking some heat for saying it’s a weak division but that really isn’t related to my opinion on Toronto as again, I think they look great thus far. Just get tired of threads about routine things being at the top of the main board because it’s leafs if that makes sense

You know you and you alone choose which threads you open, right?

 

[Sidney the Kidney]

I agree they have better depth. But I don't think Winnipeg and Calgary are really far behind. Calgary has vastly underperformed and despite being the lone team to lack the elite offensive output, they have a very well rounded roster, at least on paper, and I don't know of anyone who expected them to be so bad this year. Winnipeg gives up the 5v5 chances but overall from the net out they're a solid team.

It's definitely the elite talent that separates teams who are otherwise close, but I still really feel like teams are being heavily downplayed in the division despite having good regular season success the last handful of years and seriously shitting the bed in this short season so far.

All credit where it's due to the teams who are rolling. But I really think the lack of a preseason and exhibition games coming in the form of real games this year has had a major impact on why things look like they do, much like the covid cup.

Calgary strikes me as one of those teams that has a decent collection of parts, but those parts don't really fit together to make an impressive whole.

Also, any team with Sean Monahan as their 1C likely will never fully reach their potential.

 

[NyQuil]

Calgary strikes me as one of those teams that has a decent collection of parts, but those parts don't really fit together to make an impressive whole.

That's in line with what I said in my prediction before the season. "Clunky" was the term I used.

 

[Three On Zero]

*looks at rosters and other coaches in the weak North division*. Is anyone really surprised?

 

[KeithIsActuallyBad]

*looks at rosters and other coaches in the weak North division*. Is anyone really surprised?

The recycle bin division.

 

[HockeyVirus]

@Empoleon8771 I feel like your entire arguement is easier to defeat than has been said so far.

Andersen has played all but 7 of 24 games. He has a .909 sv%. If we were being carried by goaltending, that makes no sense.

 

[RealisticLeaf55]

No idea how mr Keefe is doing, but after the years of reta*dness in Toronto, it does seem like they have upped their game significantly.

My guess is that it's not just his leadership, but also the good attitude that guys like Spezza and Thorton have brought.

Honestly, you nailed it on the head.

Babcock turned the locker room against each other and punished players for small errors.

Keefe plays based on player strength and trust in his veterans.

Thornton and Spezza have been crucial to player development.

 

[Kalamazoo Wings]

I really don't like the Leafs but it seems they've got a good one. Happy for a youngish guy to come in and do so well in such a tough market. He clearly knows what he's doing and is getting the best out of a very good group. Jack Adams potential!

 

[Empoleon8771]

@Empoleon8771 I feel like your entire arguement is easier to defeat than has been said so far.

Andersen has played all but 7 of 24 games. He has a .909 sv%. If we were being carried by goaltending, that makes no sense.

I mean in the other 7 games, the Leafs goaltending has averaged nearly a .950 save% and they're at a .920 save% overall.

I was also talking about 5v5 save% there. Andersen's 5v5 save% is substantially better, it's at a .931.

 

[GOilers88]

Calgary strikes me as one of those teams that has a decent collection of parts, but those parts don't really fit together to make an impressive whole.

Also, any team with Sean Monahan as their 1C likely will never fully reach their potential.

I think so far this year has shown you're probably right about Calgary. That said I don't think it's fair to call them a garbage team unless the only thing we're looking at is 20 games this year.

 

[Fisticuffer]

I’ll admit I didn’t think Keefe was a great choice at the time. He’s made me a believer. I thought a different veteran coach would be needed to dial that team into playing a complete game but he’s pulled it off very nicely. They may actually reach their potential this postseason. Any team that looks past them in the playoffs will be playing a very dangerous game.

 

[Menzinger]

The divisional quality debate is getting to be pretty tedious.

A good team, and a well coached one at that would be expected to dominate a weaker division. Which is exactly what the Leafs are doing.....

The spin to try make this seem like a negative is perplexing

 

[Rants Mulliniks]

Honestly, you nailed it on the head.

Babcock turned the locker room against each other and punished players for small errors.

Keefe plays based on player strength and trust in his veterans.

Thornton and Spezza have been crucial to player development.

This is the bread and butter of great coaches. They maximize strengths while minimizing weaknesses and get people to buy in to their roles. Probably the last great Leaf coach I saw at doing this was Pat Burns and we all know how much he got out of his team.