member 300185
Guest
As much as it pains me to say this, but the Leafs will make the playoffs and likely be booted out in the first round....again.
The team is an anomaly. It is hollow. The team is filled with skill, talent and speed, but we dont have one player that is tough. We dont have enough size on the back end and most of our D are soft too.
Trust me, I am much happier about the team today than say....the last 50 years or so. Except for a few years like 93'. This team has no legs. They have consistent terrible starts going back 3 years. First periods are not the Leafs strong suit, and I realize that is coaching. There have been periods where the team just flat out looks unbeatable by any other NHL team. But most of the time, we are very beatable. And I dont think the team is fit enough either.
Teams know how deadly the PP is so they change their game plan to make sure they don't take penalties, and the proof is on NHL.com as the Leafs are the lowest team in the entire league with regards to getting PP's.
Again, the team is striated. We are a Ford Pinto in a Ferrari shell. If you have visions of grandeur for playoff success, forget about it. No one on the Leafs can put the fear of god on another team. D men on other teams do not need to panic for fear of getting hurt on a forward coming in. Sure, we steal a lot of pucks because of our speed, but opposing D dont have to fear of getting plastered. The team is a shell. No substance, all flash.
The fix: Dubas needs to make some moves, even if we overpay in assets. We need guys like Simmonds on offence and a guy like Hedman on defence. We are not just 2 of those players short. We need like 2 powerforwards and 2 tough nosed D men who can be counted on.
Forwards to keep: Matthews, Kapenen, Tavares, Marner and possibly Kadri. Everyone else can be shipped out and re-organized on forward. Many of these guys can be packaged together and shipped out for bigger talented players.
Defencemen to keep. Rielly, Dermott and the rest are butter soft. Gardiner seems to get a lot of love this year. I just dont see it. He holds the puck far too long before making a decision. He is bad defensively. We have exactly 2 guys that can stay. I must use caps here but THE REST OF THE D ARE TOO SOFT AND PLAY TOO SOFT. Our D corp is brutal. Freddy cant keep this up into the playoffs where this team will surely collapse again. The playoffs are a totally different beast. Its a different game all together.
Teams that win in the playoffs are blood and guts teams and are willing to pay a price to win. The Leafs have like 4 guys that are like that. How will Matthews shoulder hold up when all bets are off and players will hit him in the shoulder every shift.
Sure, we have offensively gifted forwards. But that dont mean squat in the playoffs.
Nope, we are short 2 tough as nails guys up front that can play a top 6 role and short 4 guys on defence that are tough as nails and can play defence.
Thoughts?
The team is an anomaly. It is hollow. The team is filled with skill, talent and speed, but we dont have one player that is tough. We dont have enough size on the back end and most of our D are soft too.
Trust me, I am much happier about the team today than say....the last 50 years or so. Except for a few years like 93'. This team has no legs. They have consistent terrible starts going back 3 years. First periods are not the Leafs strong suit, and I realize that is coaching. There have been periods where the team just flat out looks unbeatable by any other NHL team. But most of the time, we are very beatable. And I dont think the team is fit enough either.
Teams know how deadly the PP is so they change their game plan to make sure they don't take penalties, and the proof is on NHL.com as the Leafs are the lowest team in the entire league with regards to getting PP's.
Again, the team is striated. We are a Ford Pinto in a Ferrari shell. If you have visions of grandeur for playoff success, forget about it. No one on the Leafs can put the fear of god on another team. D men on other teams do not need to panic for fear of getting hurt on a forward coming in. Sure, we steal a lot of pucks because of our speed, but opposing D dont have to fear of getting plastered. The team is a shell. No substance, all flash.
The fix: Dubas needs to make some moves, even if we overpay in assets. We need guys like Simmonds on offence and a guy like Hedman on defence. We are not just 2 of those players short. We need like 2 powerforwards and 2 tough nosed D men who can be counted on.
Forwards to keep: Matthews, Kapenen, Tavares, Marner and possibly Kadri. Everyone else can be shipped out and re-organized on forward. Many of these guys can be packaged together and shipped out for bigger talented players.
Defencemen to keep. Rielly, Dermott and the rest are butter soft. Gardiner seems to get a lot of love this year. I just dont see it. He holds the puck far too long before making a decision. He is bad defensively. We have exactly 2 guys that can stay. I must use caps here but THE REST OF THE D ARE TOO SOFT AND PLAY TOO SOFT. Our D corp is brutal. Freddy cant keep this up into the playoffs where this team will surely collapse again. The playoffs are a totally different beast. Its a different game all together.
Teams that win in the playoffs are blood and guts teams and are willing to pay a price to win. The Leafs have like 4 guys that are like that. How will Matthews shoulder hold up when all bets are off and players will hit him in the shoulder every shift.
Sure, we have offensively gifted forwards. But that dont mean squat in the playoffs.
Nope, we are short 2 tough as nails guys up front that can play a top 6 role and short 4 guys on defence that are tough as nails and can play defence.
Thoughts?
