Sorry , we are the softest team in the NHL

[ToneDog]

Anybody who prefers a strong, physical fourth line over a small, soft, "skilled" fourth line is just a clueless boomer......or something like that.

You mean an ancient dinosaur.

 

[Pilky01]

You mean an ancient dinosaur.

Boomers are actually older than ancient dinosaurs.

Ancient dinosaurs were actually very progressive. They only died because boomers were so careless.

 

[deletethis]

Anybody who prefers a strong, physical fourth line over a small, soft, "skilled" fourth line is just a clueless boomer......or something like that.

Dubas is like an honorary boomer as he's spent all of money and left little for the future.

 

[IPS]

We do not have a player to stand up to Chara, Marchand, Domi, DeBrusk, Backes, Krug, Carlo, Kuraly etc. Not many players will engage with Chara anyway but you have to at least have a threat against others or they will take your lunch money every time.

All it is going to do is put us in the penalty box even more. We've already witnessed this multiple times. I just told you Jake Gardiner tried to stand up for his teammate and he literally got punched in the face and HE HIMSELF went to the penalty box.

Your solution of acquiring more toughness to combat the Bruins - IMO - is going to lead to us losing in less than 7 games because it is clear as day that we do not operate under the same rules as them.

Our own media didn't even say jack shit when Chara sucker punched Tavares. Our own media did however say something when Chara punched Crosby in the face (toronto sun and many other media outlets).

Not much to say. Chara commits multiple suspend-able offenses to us and the league refuses to do anything about it. Our own boy Kadri tries to fight fire with fire and they throw him out instantly.

Do you think Shanahan can't see this? You know the kind of player Shanahan was back in the day, right? Why would he ever be rubber-stamping these Dubas philosophies about the team?

The story is much more complex than a lot of you like to believe.

 

[JT AM da real deal]

I’ve never understood this mentality of encouraging and or condoning players to continue to do poorly so that Management has an upper hand in negotiations .
You always want every single player , coach and anyone involved with your organization to do and be their best at everything and every turn no matter what the cost , you then deal with the positive results that it brings when the time comes .
I hear that a lot and it’s absolutely mind boggling to say the least .

I concur. But here's the thing. Barrie was skating outstanding before camp at Ford. Now he looks dreadful. My guess is this entire issue is Babs. and Babs telling him how he wants him to play. Instead of taking his best attribute which is taking puck and flying up ice with it he is trying to teach him defense. and Babs defense which is proven terrible.

 

[deletethis]

You mean an ancient dinosaur.

Dinosaurs are just large chickens. Maybe not so out of place in the current lineup.

 

[rumman]

We do not have a player to stand up to Chara, Marchand, Domi, DeBrusk, Backes, Krug, Carlo, Kuraly etc. Not many players will engage with Chara anyway but you have to at least have a threat against others or they will take your lunch money every time.

It is an eye for an eye, teams have to know that if you take a run at 34,91, 16 or 44, we are going to take a run at your stars.

and for good reason, I can still picture him rag dolling McCabe as if he was a child's teddy bear!

 

[rumman]

I am being serious when I ask this:

Toronto has tons of money to hire the best trainers, and consultants. Could Shanny/Dubas hire a toughness consultant or trainer? What could be the harm in someone teaching these guys how to be more mean and edgy? Perhaps self-defense or hockey fight tips? What could be the harm? It'll only help them.

you can't make a lamb into a wolf, but you could hope the lamb has it in him to defend himself when the wolf comes calling. This is why having muscle (that is actually capable of playing hockey) on the team is so important.

Don't hold your breathe, the GM doesn't believe this and the President who knows the GM's wrong lets it happen.

 

[ToneDog]

All it is going to do is put us in the penalty box even more. We've already witnessed this multiple times. I just told you Jake Gardiner tried to stand up for his teammate and he literally got punched in the face and HE HIMSELF went to the penalty box.

Your solution of acquiring more toughness to combat the Bruins - IMO - is going to lead to us losing in less than 7 games because it is clear as day that we do not operate under the same rules as them.

Our own media didn't even say jack **** when Chara sucker punched Tavares. Our own media did however say something when Chara punched Crosby in the face (toronto sun and many other media outlets).

Not much to say. Chara commits multiple suspend-able offenses to us and the league refuses to do anything about it. Our own boy Kadri tries to fight fire with fire and they throw him out instantly.

Do you think Shanahan can't see this? You know the kind of player Shanahan was back in the day, right? Why would he ever be rubber-stamping these Dubas philosophies about the team?

I am assuming the playing field is only slightly tilted against us. If it is tilted as bad as you say and Shanny knows it and does nothing, it is all a moot point; we are not beating the Bruins.

Also I am not asking for a team of thugs. I want the next dman and/or forward Dubas acquires (and I am guessing he will acquire at least the dman), to be another Muzzin. It would also help if we had another veteran or two but that might be asking alot.

 

[Pilky01]

Dubas is like an honorary boomer as he's spent all of money and left little for the future.

 

[IPS]

I concur. But here's the thing. Barrie was skating outstanding before camp at Ford. Now he looks dreadful. My guess is this entire issue is Babs. and Babs telling him how he wants him to play. Instead of taking his best attribute which is taking puck and flying up ice with it he is trying to teach him defense. and Babs defense which is proven terrible.

He wasn't the type of defensemen that Babcock wanted to begin with.

I'm 90% sure that Babcock wanted another Polak but he got the exact opposite. Babcock will not cooperate with getting the opposite of what he wanted.

 

[rumman]

Boomers are actually older than ancient dinosaurs.

Ancient dinosaurs were actually very progressive. They only died because boomers were so careless.

damn it, I'm responsible for the extinction of the dinosaurs too, please don't let that little Swedish girl know, she'll go on one of her psychotic rants, and the last thing we need is to give her a bigger platform to shame everyone.

HOW DARE YOU....................

 

[IPS]

I am assuming the playing field is only slightly tilted against us. If it is tilted as bad as you say and Shanny knows it and does nothing, it is all a moot point; we are not beating the Bruins..

I sometimes think that too, but then I look back to the officiating horror-shows like game 2 from last year and game 5 from 2018 and begrudgingly realize that they're willing to stoop very low to tilt the playing field against us to a very large degree.

 

[rumman]

Dubas is like an honorary boomer as he's spent all of money and left little for the future.

future Walmart greeter?

 

[JT AM da real deal]

I really want to be wrong about the American Association of US Ice Hockey Teams and Bettman's pursuit of a fat US TV deal so the Sunbelt and Dixie NASCAR area teams can get off of gate revenue, but I don't think I am, and that is one reason to fear toughness and the resulting penalty box parade for Canadian teams. (The AAUSIHT needs to assure the US TV networks they need not fear Canadian teams having deep playoff runs)

And the fighting needs to go as the AAUSIHT has hit the ceiling. There is no more growth as long as there is what is wrongly perceived as professional wrestling in hockey. Fighting needs to be weird.

I am all in favour of the Leafs taking out any player admiring their pass as they skate through center ice, but I am willing to bet the Leafs are far more likely to get 5 and a game for it than their opponent.

Gggggreat post. The results under Bettman's watch no Canadian team has won a Cup. and fewer canadian teams per year have been in playoffs than any other commish ever. I have said it for years it was a MASSIVE mistake to take this NYC lawyer and give him the key to hockey. and now they control the BOD thru Boston's owner Jacobs so we are totally screwed. The only way out is the gang of thieves ticks off the Rangers and Dolan who is a loose cannon sides with Leafs and Habs and they break off to form a super elite league. Take away all the best talent with the big money and leave Canada alone with the stonger US teams.

 

[Mess]

Anybody who prefers a strong, physical fourth line over a small, soft, "skilled" fourth line is just a clueless boomer......or something like that.
.

I could type Osborne - -Zezel -- Berg and any longtime Leaf fan would know how big an impact that legendary trio had on a game and success of the team regardless of goals and assists they produced.

If the Leafs had a line like that at the expense of Nylander, Kerfoot, and Kapanen types this team combined with Leafs current top 6 players would be a significantly better team with increased Cup contender.

Sadly these type of players wouldn't be welcomed in Leafs current team building of today.

 

[JT AM da real deal]

He wasn't the type of defensemen that Babcock wanted to begin with.

I'm 90% sure that Babcock wanted another Polak but he got the exact opposite. Babcock will not cooperate with getting the opposite of what he wanted.

Babs is smart and hard working. But it is time for him to be put to pasture.

 

[AreBe]

Chara has a deep history of being a dirty violent player. He didn't even get suspended for almost ending Pacioretty's career, and he didn't hear a god damn peep from any media about running around punching our star players in the back of the head.

If you want to stay blue-pilled about all of this, do your thing. I'm not gonna sit here and try to convince you of anything.

We do not have a player to stand up to Chara, Marchand, Domi, DeBrusk, Backes, Krug, Carlo, Kuraly etc. Not many players will engage with Chara anyway but you have to at least have a threat against others or they will take your lunch money every time.

It is an eye for an eye, teams have to know that if you take a run at 34,91, 16 or 44, we are going to take a run at your stars.

It's much worse #1: You're both right! Boston and American teams are allowed sucker punching Canadian teams in the playoffs and the American teams would be fools not to do so if the American Association of US Ice Hockey Teams continues to have a duty and an obligation to show US TV networks that they not fear a deep playoff run by a team in the Canadian Branch Plant Division of the AAUSIHT. It does not take long for coaches to figure out that they can get away with something like sucker punching the other team, that the other team cannot get away with it, and that they best get going on it while the invitation to do so is open. And you keep going until it stops. See game 2 from last year- a true credibility killer for the AAUSIHT,

It's much worse #2. Rogers paid billions for the TV rights, and I understand are getting decapitated for it, Bell and Rogers have TV and Radio networks devoted to the AAUSIHT. You think they are going to be talking about a pro US TV network officiating is at the expense of the Canadian Branch Plant Division in the AAUSHIT any time soon?

It's much worse #3. It's not Watergate, the Suez crisis or the Cuban Missile crisis. It's some sports thing- so the journalism is not so hard hitting. That is not to say that the Leafs beat and the around the clock coverage of all things Leafs is not real, or that if a player screws up it's the news cycle until the next game etc (Really, really good reason for free agents not to come here) but they are not going to shoot themselves in the head and put hockey coverage somewhere after pro wrestling,

It's Much, much worse #4- the answer, the way around it, is not a penalty box parade, but to build a Soviet Red Army team and roll 4 lines of high speed, postionnless, shinny hockey and for this we need analytics and speed and skill..

 

[Teeder Keon]

I could type Osborne - -Zezel -- Berg and any longtime Leaf fan would know how big an impact that legendary trio had on a game and success of the team regardless of goals and assists they produced.

If the Leafs had a line like that at the expense of Nylander, Kerfoot, and Kapanen types this team combined with Leafs current top 6 players would be a significantly better team with increased Cup contender.

Sadly these type of players wouldn't be welcomed in Leafs current team building of today.

I’ve always felt the same about these 3

 

[GoonieFace]

It's much worse #1: You're both right! Boston and American teams are allowed sucker punching Canadian teams in the playoffs and the American teams would be fools not to do so if the American Association of US Ice Hockey Teams continues to have a duty and an obligation to show US TV networks that they not fear a deep playoff run by a team in the Canadian Branch Plant Division of the AAUSIHT. It does not take long for coaches to figure out that they can get away with something like sucker punching the other team, that the other team cannot get away with it, and that they best get going on it while the invitation to do so is open. And you keep going until it stops. See game 2 from last year- a true credibility killer for the AAUSIHT,

It's much worse #2. Rogers paid billions for the TV rights, and I understand are getting decapitated for it, Bell and Rogers have TV and Radio networks devoted to the AAUSIHT. You think they are going to be talking about a pro US TV network officiating is at the expense of the Canadian Branch Plant Division in the AAU**** any time soon?

It's much worse #3. It's not Watergate, the Suez crisis or the Cuban Missile crisis. It's some sports thing- so the journalism is not so hard hitting. That is not to say that the Leafs beat and the around the clock coverage of all things Leafs is not real, or that if a player screws up it's the news cycle until the next game etc (Really, really good reason for free agents not to come here) but they are not going to shoot themselves in the head and put hockey coverage somewhere after pro wrestling,

It's Much, much worse #4- the answer, the way around it, is not a penalty box parade, but to build a Soviet Red Army team and roll 4 lines of high speed, postionnless, shinny hockey and for this we need analytics and speed and skill..

This is actually insane

 

[KuleminFan41]

Dubas is like an honorary boomer as he's spent all of money and left little for the future.

They have 15 million next year and the cap will go up with the US TV deal, Seattle franchise , and sports gambling will drive revenue up increasing the cap. While its tight right now, if anything , Dubas is rather forward thinking about the cap as it likely goes up pretty significantly in the next few years.

 

[Trapper]

You mean an ancient dinosaur.

Unfortunately just because you dislike parts of hockey doesn’t mean it’s not there. And isn’t the Dubas philosophy to use everything at your disposal?
It’s like I only like vacuuming the carpet but not cleaning the toilet. So I pretend it isn’t there. After 5 years what will my toilet and our ability to play aggressive have in common. I reckon they are both pretty s**tty.

 

[Trapper]

But somebody said we led the league is stick checks last year. Is there such a stat and who was the last team in the NHL to lead the league in stick checks and win the cup? Inquiry minds want to know.

This Id like to see.

 

[rumman]

Unfortunately just because you dislike parts of hockey doesn’t mean it’s not there. And isn’t the Dubas philosophy to use everything at your disposal?
It’s like I only like vacuuming the carpet but not cleaning the toilet. So I pretend it isn’t there. After 5 years what will my toilet and our ability to play aggressive have in common. I reckon they are both pretty s**tty.

having a chrome plated wrench in your toolbox sure is pretty, but without a hammer, rusty set of vice grips, chisel, pry bar, or paint scraper you won't get much fixed around the house.

 

[Erdinger]

and for good reason, I can still picture him rag dolling McCabe as if he was a child's teddy bear!

Have to give McCabe credit for trying. Not one p***y in this lineup would go near an old man version of Chara