Pre-Game Talk: Sunday guaranteed: Toronto Maple Leafs vs Vancouver Canucks

[IPS]

Keefe specifically said that Nylander didn't break any protocols and that he appreciated how open and honest he was about the situation. No need to continue this baseless speculation

No doubt.

What a pointless attempt to stir up pointless drama.

 

[Subway Schenn]

No doubt.

What a pointless attempt to stir up pointless drama.

People are idiots, just ignore it and move on.

 

[Bedards Dad]

Uh. I only hope that our players would not get COVID somehow despite tests and precautions. That would be terrible outcome of this nhl decision.

Honestly this is my biggest concern. I'm shocked this game is happening.

 

[robertmac43]

Still going to be surprised if this game goes ahead as planned. From everything I have read the Canucks need more time off and I think the league will step in and be on their side when all is said and done.

 

[Ciao]

Let’s me get this Willie thing straight.
He met someone who later tested positive(and not already positive) but didn’t spend enough time with that person together to spread COVID, thus that’s why the rest of the team didn’t need to quarantine like him.
His new nickname got to be Minute Will. Am I right?

I am assuming he was in close personal contact, which is not just a fleeting encounter, and was at risk of catching COVID. Since then, he's tested negative through a reasonable incubation period and they think he is clean.

 

[Ciao]

Win or lose, I'm happy if the Leafs come out of these two games healthy and without COVID.

I would be just as happy if the Leafs skipped Vanvouver entirely and forfeited these two. The four points aren't worth the risk.

 

[Isaac Nootin]

I think Robertson needs to be the sparks plug on the 4th line.
Unless they dress the HEM line and move Kerfoot to C-Spezza and Simmonds/Jumbo, Robertson should stay.

Robertson is not a 4th line player. He needs to be in the Top 9, or else send him to the AHL to get top line minutes.

No use in wasting an ELC year playing 7 minutes a night.

 

[Mess]

We have to be able to win these next 2 games against a team that was wiped out by Covid and has barely been on the ice in 2 weeks.

I'm expected a pair of lopsided wins here to get us back on track for winning the Div.

 

[Marshy]

We have to be able to win these next 2 games against a team that was wiped out by Covid and has barely been on the ice in 2 weeks.

I'm expected a pair of lopsided wins here to get us back on track for winning the Div.

Way to keep the bar of expectations high. Go Leafs Go.

 

[Teeder Keon]

Robertson is not a 4th line player. He needs to be in the Top 9, or else send him to the AHL to get top line minutes.

No use in wasting an ELC year playing 7 minutes a night.

Applause applause applause !!!!!!

 

[Sypher04]

This should be a win, by all accounts. This is the definition of a trap game previous Leafs teams would fall into. Here's hoping we get the proper effort and result

Anything less and the pitchforks will be out in full force here and the mockery neverending on the mainboards I'm sure

 

[Judas Tavares]

Haven't read through the thread, and my number 1 concern for all involved is health and safety.

But. If this game goes on. Anyone getting an Ayers vibe? A beat up team working harder than the Leafs and winning? That would be another folk hero type story. I just get those vibes.

 

[Coaches Coroner]

we will lose because we will throw away the puck if they get within 6 feet of one of our players, and won't defend individual players within a 6 foot radius

 

[Sypher04]

Any word on Matthews and Nylander coming back tonight? And I'm thinking Foligno is what, 2 more games from joining the team?

 

[Coaches Coroner]

Back from the road and "I met somebody".

Perhaps I'm reading too much into the actual words, but aren't we supposed to be trying to avoid "meeting" anyone?

seems Willy was lead to exposure by his willy

 

[TheGreatOne11]

This should be a win, by all accounts. This is the definition of a trap game previous Leafs teams would fall into. Here's hoping we get the proper effort and result

Anything less and the pitchforks will be out in full force here and the mockery neverending on the mainboards I'm sure

The hate and mockery on the main boards will never end. We are Leaf fans, the biggest franchise in all of hockey, which means we have more great fans and more idiots that follow us.

They focus on the bandwagoners to prove their false narrative that we are all idiots and terrible people. But we know the truth.

So let them have their B.S on the main boards to help with their inferiority complex.

We all know whose gonna be raising the cup at the end of the season .

 

[Nylander88]

Old GTA boys line together tonight if all goes as planned.
Thornton-Spezza-Simmonds
I kind of like it...and it could work. Cycle game will be their strong suit. All big bodies that hang on to the puck well. Anyone else notice that Thornton seems to be more aggressive the last couple of games? At least to my eye test he's been laying the body, I don't know the actual stats. Maybe he is feeling the heat of maybe losing his job. But I think a veteran like him will be valuable come playoff time. Same goes for Simmonds. Their real value will show in the playoffs when push comes to shove. Even Spezza (been great all year) dropped the gloves last playoff series. Robertson has looked great, but at full health I think they have a hard time sitting Thornton

 

[AngryScotsman]

Thornton needs to come out of the line up.

 

[Wafflewhipper]

The speed off the rush is not good enough/ consistent enough 5v5 and even strength. Mikheyev getting slipped in to the top 6 from shift to shift in-game and going to the net with his speed would be interesting to see.

Speed off the rush has never caught up to the new defensive structure they implemented. Maybe they can’t do it within the particular system.I don’t know. It’s killed by the DROP pass to a large degree anyway. After that it’s just not good enough.

 

[Nylander88]

Any word on Matthews and Nylander coming back tonight? And I'm thinking Foligno is what, 2 more games from joining the team?

Yeah I think we see Foligno Thursday vs the Jets. Which will give him 10 games with us before playoffs. Don't think he'd qualify/ be ready for Tuesday vs Vancouver but I could be wrong. Trade happened last Sunday, just not sure when he actually got here for his 7 day quarantine

 

[Legion34]

Why are people concerned that the leafs will get Covid from people who have recovered from Covid and been cleared by doctors.

Matthews had Covid right before return to play.

were players scared of him? Did fans want him to sit out?

 

[flying v 604]

no disrespect dude, I think you're dreaming if you think the Canucks wanna play till the end of the year. JT was the only one on the team with a set of balls to say anything. He isn't saying what he said to the media if he is alone in that thought. These guys communicate despite being quarantined. I can all but guarantee they are all dreading coming back to a 2nd worst division record and having to play 19 games in 30 days to undoubtingly go nowhere in the standings. I'm from the city, and I am well aware of how much talent that team has. But under the best of circumstances the Canucks will go .500 the rest of the way. They play like 19 games in 30 days lol. I'll gladly eat crow if I'm wrong. I'd peg their o/u on pt total in that span to 13pts. And I'll take the under. Hit me up if/when I'm wrong.

Every player was given the option to opt out, every player said no. Listen I get how unlikely it is but unlike most Nuck fans I refuse to use Covid as an excuse, when they play the Sens next week they will have had 5-6 practices, 2 games and should be fully healthy and well rested. These 2 games could get ugly but at the same time I've watched many games where the Leaf's playdown to their competition and the leafs haven't looked all that good for a month, even their victories have had some pretty bad games.
Either way nice to have hockey back good luck in the playoffs but we win 4-3 in ot. Cheers

 

[Sypher04]

These 2 games could get ugly but at the same time I've watched many games where the Leaf's playdown to their competition and the leafs haven't looked all that good for a month, even their victories have had some pretty bad games

The Leaf do play down to their competition at times, no debate, but I don't see the pretty bad games you're referencing. During our 9-0-1 stretch we definitely had some games where the team took a period off completely and that needs to stop, but then they'd turn around and dominate one or both of the other periods, so I think it'd be really hard to make a solid argument the Leafs haven't looked good in a month.

 

[Wafflewhipper]

Old GTA boys line together tonight if all goes as planned.
Thornton-Spezza-Simmonds
I kind of like it...and it could work. Cycle game will be their strong suit. All big bodies that hang on to the puck well. Anyone else notice that Thornton seems to be more aggressive the last couple of games? At least to my eye test he's been laying the body, I don't know the actual stats. Maybe he is feeling the heat of maybe losing his job. But I think a veteran like him will be valuable come playoff time. Same goes for Simmonds. Their real value will show in the playoffs when push comes to shove. Even Spezza (been great all year) dropped the gloves last playoff series. Robertson has looked great, but at full health I think they have a hard time sitting Thornton

The unfortunate thing about that line is that when Keefe limits their ice time and he will, Spezza gets painted with the same brush. Spezza could still play top six minutes the way he’s been playing. Thornton and Simmons have basically both done nothing since both have come back. Nash and Foligno should theoretically push out Thornton and Simmonds.

Neither do what Nash and Foligno do and we need the acquisitions all round play killing penalties and hard forchecking more than we need two guys that do nothing. They do nothing. I personally would prefer the defense awareness attributes and physical play replacing these two guys. It seemed like a good idea and we all agreed on Simmonds at least. Unfortunately both aren’t contributing much.

Spezza does not have to ever come out unless he requests it because he’s dealing with something and it gets prospect in for a look or something. Anyways Spezza will lose ice time with these guys. It’s Keefes way of taking them out of the lineup without actually taking them out of the lineup. 9 minutes per game tops could be likely.

 

[egd27]

This should be a win, by all accounts. This is the definition of a trap game previous Leafs teams would fall into. Here's hoping we get the proper effort and result

Anything less and the pitchforks will be out in full force here and the mockery neverending on the mainboards I'm sure

IMO if you have lost 3 in a row, there is no game that should be considered a trap game.