THN's NEW prospect report (Toronto)

[Commander Clueless]

What do you find so amusing about a fwd core of

MacKinnon - 18
Landeskog - 21
Duchene - 23
ROR - 23

Landeskog is roughly equal to JVR in my mind, with an edge to Landy in the physical department.

Duchene and MacKinnon look to be in a territory that only Kessel can surpass right now.


The major difference in my mind is that Colorado has better two-way forwards than the Leafs to go with a bit more firepower. They are certainly much stronger down the middle, while the Leafs are more focused on the wings.

Leafs have a better defense on paper (barely, and it's an area both teams really need to work on) and better goaltending IMO.


Still, hard to argue with Colorado's results. But let's not pretend like the Leafs haven't made strides. It takes good drafting/developing, cunning, and no small amount of luck to raise a team from the gutter, and Burke/Nonis haven't done half bad.

Bad contracts....but in terms of trades they have been very good. Drafting has been decent.

Still a ways to go.

A big testament to Nonis' ability as GM will be his willingness to admit his mistake and do something to correct it if Clarkson bombs again next year. That's not saying I want him to fail, though, just to be clear: I'm rooting for him being the player we expected.

 

[Stats01]

You are only as good as your scouts.

Half these guys I have never heard of. But compared to some teams, we have a lot of them.

Steve Kasper Director, Professional Scouting
Dave Morrison Director, Amateur Scouting
Mike Penny Pro Scout
Tom Watt Pro Scout
Rob Cowie Pro Scout
Mike Palmateer Amateur Scout
George Armstrong Amateur Scout
John Lilley Amateur Scout
Garth Malarchuk Amateur Scout
Alan Power Amateur Scout
Gary Harker Amateur Scout
Scott Carter Amateur Scout
Pierre Rioux Amateur Scout
Roy Stasiuk Amateur Scout
John McMorrow Amateur Scout
Darryl Stanley Amateur Scout
Bud Stefanski Amateur Scout
Dave Shyiak Amateur Scout
Pat Dapuzzo Amateur Scout
Joe Gibbs European Scout
Thommie Bergman European Scout
Jari Gronstrand European Scout
Peter Ihnacak European Scout
Nikolai Ladygin European Scout

As we should, there's no excuse to NOT have the most scouts in the league. There is no cap concerning staff so hire as many as we can. We only make 8 figure profits every year...

 

[Stats01]

Landeskog is roughly equal to JVR in my mind, with an edge to Landy in the physical department.

Duchene and MacKinnon look to be in a territory that only Kessel can surpass right now.


The major difference in my mind is that Colorado has better two-way forwards than the Leafs to go with a bit more firepower. They are certainly much stronger down the middle, while the Leafs are more focused on the wings.

Leafs have a better defense on paper (barely, and it's an area both teams really need to work on) and better goaltending IMO.


Still, hard to argue with Colorado's results. But let's not pretend like the Leafs haven't made strides. It takes good drafting/developing, cunning, and no small amount of luck to raise a team from the gutter, and Burke/Nonis haven't done half bad.

Bad contracts....but in terms of trades they have been very good. Drafting has been decent.

Still a ways to go.

A big testament to Nonis' ability as GM will be his willingness to admit his mistake and do something to correct it if Clarkson bombs again next year. That's not saying I want him to fail, though, just to be clear: I'm rooting for him being the player we expected.

There is a double standard when it comes to the Leafs. I remember reading an article on SN or somewhere else that mentioned TB as contenders in the East but failed to mention Toronto. It's laughable that a team with a young goalie like us, a suspect defence can be considered contenders but we're not. Bishop is having a hell of a season but Bernier is on his level, Stamkos can be compared to Kessel IMO we have the firepire that TB has, with probably the same D or a bit better. It is laughable that Toronto gets absolutely no credit for anything they do. They don't get any credit for the good trades they make, they get no credit for turning things around from having literally 0 prospects, to the cupboard becoming full. It has taken time, patience and hard work but our franchise has turned things around. We have as much of a chance as Colorado, TB or any other semi-contending team does. We can beat anyone in the East IMO. We don't have a chance against any West team, but even Pitt and Boston are beatable in a playoff series.

Our drafting has been good. Unless you have a top 5 pick it usually takes 3-4 years for a new group of kids to be ready. For us it'll be Josh Leivo, Matt Finn etc. after that it'll Carter Verhaeghe, Gauthier etc...the prospects are there, they just need time. After Gauthier and Verhaeghe and that bunch then it will be this upcoming class. Just like in the restaurant business you have to be able to "turn tables" meaning you have to be able to have prospects ready after each turn so you're always replenishing the system.

Matt Finn a 2nd round pick is destined IMO to be a top 4 D-man that is a great pick. Josh Leivo who was a 3rd round pick could be a top 6 winger again a very good pick. Our scouting is very good, just keep the picks and let them do their job.

 

[Mowerman]

Seeing as we're in a Leafs thread, what do you think? Who is it you watch?

Morgan Rielly would be sporting a gold medal too if he was on that team, Duchane wasn't a force by any means. And the other Ave's Olympians are in the Kulemin category, as in they didn't win gold so nobody gives a ****.

The "last few NHL seasons" they've accomplished missing the playoffs and tanking enough to draft Landskog and MacKinnon, no hardware beyond Landskogs Calder which many thought Gallagher should have won, and have had no ppg players.

What am I missing?

However Morgan Rielly wasn't on the gold medal team. Do you think they brought Duchene and played him for a laugh? Do you think Landeskog was playing for Sweden for a laugh? These players earned Olympic roster spots on the top two teams in the tournament on merit. You don't get to brush that aside because it isn't convenient for your little hardware blabber. Last time I checked Olympic medals counted as hardware.

The Leafs were accomplishing missing the playoffs to draft Rielly and getting humiliated in the first round to such a degree they quite literally set new league records. So even if team success was the main metric the Leafs wouldn't be any further ahead.

Outside of one year where he was plagued by injuries Matt Duchene has played and produced like a first line centre over more than a large enough sample size. On what basis does near Tavares level of production coupled with an Olympic gold medal not constitute being a proven commodity?

Landeskog is 3 years younger than JVR and they have the exact same point total this season. If Landeskog isn't proven what does that make JVR? Landeskog is a captain, a leader, plays a more rounded game and won the calder.

Oh yeah and 18 year old MacKinnon also has that point total (safe to say you can add another Calder, eh?)

23 year old ror also has that point total while universally considered as being a very proficient two way player. He can also play wing or centre effectively in the nhl. Two things that JVR can't do.

Avs may be missing defence, but so is Toronto. The difference is the Avs have a lot more time to build up the core on the back end and they have one of the most impressive young forward cores in the league.

Leafs win goaltending with Bernier (Reimer is not better than Varly).

 

[Cotton]

What assumptions did he make make ?

Are you actually arguing that Kadri is on the same level as MD or that McKinnon isn't looking like a elite player in the making ?

Or is it you think JVR is a better two way player than Landeskog or maybe you don't think ROR is a quality two way player ?

Please enlighten us to what assumptions you think he's making .

"Landeskog will be better than JVR" Assumption

"Duchene is and will be better than Kadri" Assumption

Opinions are fine, but when you use definitives like Duchene WILL be better then so and so is when you take a left-hand turn off the rail, Kadri's ceiling is elite, for all we know he may jump to an Art-Ross calibre player in the next couple years, and for all we know Duchene will regress once again.

I realize people have been trained to simply crap upon Leaf players and hold every other teams top guy's in high regard, but you can't use absolutes regarding projections. I also believe another poster put up stats from the last two seasons that pretty much state Kadri and Duchene are comparable offensively.

Answer your question?

 

[hotpaws]

Landeskog is roughly equal to JVR in my mind, with an edge to Landy in the physical department.

Duchene and MacKinnon look to be in a territory that only Kessel can surpass right now.

The major difference in my mind is that Colorado has better two-way forwards than the Leafs to go with a bit more firepower. They are certainly much stronger down the middle, while the Leafs are more focused on the wings.

Leafs have a better defense on paper (barely, and it's an area both teams really need to work on) and better goaltending IMO.


Still, hard to argue with Colorado's results. But let's not pretend like the Leafs haven't made strides. It takes good drafting/developing, cunning, and no small amount of luck to raise a team from the gutter, and Burke/Nonis haven't done half bad.

Bad contracts....but in terms of trades they have been very good. Drafting has been decent.

Still a ways to go.

A big testament to Nonis' ability as GM will be his willingness to admit his mistake and do something to correct it if Clarkson bombs again next year. That's not saying I want him to fail, though, just to be clear: I'm rooting for him being the player we expected.

I agree with you but i haven't said we didn't make strides , I just don't believe we made the strides we could have .

 

[hotpaws]

"Landeskog will be better than JVR" Assumption

"Duchene is and will be better than Kadri" Assumption

Opinions are fine, but when you use definitives like Duchene WILL be better then so and so is when you take a left-hand turn off the rail, Kadri's ceiling is elite, for all we know he may jump to an Art-Ross calibre player in the next couple years, and for all we know Duchene will regress once again.

I realize people have been trained to simply crap upon Leaf players and hold every other teams top guy's in high regard, but you can't use absolutes regarding projections. I also believe another poster put up stats from the last two seasons that pretty much state Kadri and Duchene are comparable offensively.

Answer your question?

Who the **** is craping on our players . Just because i think there may be better players out there ( unlike yourself it seems ) doesn't mean i think our players are crap.

 

[Cotton]

However Morgan Rielly wasn't on the gold medal team. Do you think they brought Duchene and played him for a laugh? Do you think Landeskog was playing for Sweden for a laugh? These players earned Olympic roster spots on the top two teams in the tournament on merit. You don't get to brush that aside because it isn't convenient for your little hardware blabber. Last time I checked Olympic medals counted as hardware.

The Leafs were accomplishing missing the playoffs to draft Rielly and getting humiliated in the first round to such a degree they quite literally set new league records. So even if team success was the main metric the Leafs wouldn't be any further ahead.

Outside of one year where he was plagued by injuries Matt Duchene has played and produced like a first line centre over more than a large enough sample size. On what basis does near Tavares level of production coupled with an Olympic gold medal not constitute being a proven commodity?

Landeskog is 3 years younger than JVR and they have the exact same point total this season. If Landeskog isn't proven what does that make JVR? Landeskog is a captain, a leader, plays a more rounded game and won the calder.
Oh yeah and 18 year old MacKinnon also has that point total (safe to say you can add another Calder, eh?)

23 year old ror also has that point total while universally considered as being a very proficient two way player. He can also play wing or centre effectively in the nhl. Two things that JVR can't do.

Avs may be missing defence, but so is Toronto. The difference is the Avs have a lot more time to build up the core on the back end and they have one of the most impressive young forward cores in the league.

Leafs win goaltending with Bernier (Reimer is not better than Varly).

1. Right, Rielly wasn't on the team, he could conceivably of had as much an impact on the Gold win as Duchene did, but he wasn't on the team so the argument is a moot point, Duchene has a gold which makes him way better then anything Toronto has, because thats the argument right... Kunitz over JVR too, and hey, Bernie has a Cup ring, he must rule over Lundqvist.

2. I disagree, i think the Leafs, who everyone and their mothers besides us real Leaf fans assumed would be swept, showed hart and determination and fought their butts off to a seventh game win over the Boston Bruins, they lost that lead for obvious reasons. But after all was said and done, us Leaf fans weren't humiliated, proud of our guys, pissed off at the result, but not humiliated. Even Bruins fans were impressed with the Leafs effort, they gave them the toughest competition throughout the entire playoffs... I'm assuming you were embarrassed though.

3. Team success isn't the point however, the leafs having nothing compared to Duchene/Landskog/O'Reilly and MacKinnon is.

4. What's option B for Colorado? because he wasn't their 1C last year, their 1C wasn't a 1C either, in the same way Bozak isn't a true 1C.

I never said he isn't a proven commodity, I said I personally wouldn't trade Rielly for anything Colorado has, and i made sure to state that was my own opinion on the matter. Kadri out scored Duchene last year, if not for a sophmore-like slump they'd likely be on par point wise, and he's shown enough in his short career that stating something like Duchene WILL be better is stupid.

5. Once again Ave's fan, i never stated Landskog isn't a proven commodity, it's almost like you took my fandom for Rielly as a personal attack on all your favorite Avalanche players.

JVR isn't a captain because we have several captain material guys what with Neuf/Lupul/JMac/Bolland. The Aves threw the C on a rookie in the same way Pitts did to Crosby, has more to do with the media and market then true leadership, but i'll give Col got it right with Landskog because he actually a leader and they had no other real option.

JVR has 16 points, including 10 goals in his last 3 post seasons, that's what he has. He preforms in the playoffs in a way you only hope Landskog will.

6. Varlamov better then Reims? (Notice how I use the nickname when it's my teams player, kinda like how you do with the Aves), I guess i'll give it to you, mostly because this conversation is boring, he's having a good year on a good team and posting a .925, Reims had a .924 last year as a starter, Varlamov profited on Was the same way Theodore did when he had something like a 26-7 record with them. Reimer on the other hand hasn't had much D help thus far in his career.

 

[Cotton]

Who the **** is craping on our players . Just because i think there may be better players out there ( unlike yourself it seems ) doesn't mean i think our players are crap.

"unlike yourself it seems" Assumption, you understand what that mean's yet? because you sure didn't before.

Course there are better players, I disagree with bold statements that guarantee Duchene and Landskog will be better then Kadri/JVR, that's pretty much it.

If you want to sit around on a Leaf thread and devalue Leaf players then kindly tip-yourself out my ****ing thread

Or PM ave's fan about about how much better the Ave's are, or me, if you want to beef, because the topic's gotten way off track anyway.

 

[johnny_rudeboy]

JVR isn't a captain because we have several captain material guys what with Neuf/Lupul/JMac/Bolland. The Aves threw the C on a rookie in the same way Pitts did to Crosby, has more to do with the media and market then true leadership, but i'll give Col got it right with Landskog because he actually a leader and they had no other real option.

Landeskog have been a captain or alternate captain since he first laced up. In Sochi he was also given an A a head of more experienced players like Steen, L Eriksson, Sedin and Backstrom who all are alternate captains for their respective NHL teams. Sure it was a bit of a gimmick to give the C to such a young player but he is a very serious young man. A bit like the winger version of Toews.
Stasny have been an alternate captain since 2008 and then you had Hejduk as well who had the C for a while until Landeskog took over so it was not like Colorado was with out options, O´Reilly was also an option.

 

[Holymakinaw]

The grass is indeed ALWAYS greener.

Anyway, back to the original topic......we obviously don't have the best farm system in the NHL, but as has been said, we traded picks for Kessel, and had some key graduations, and it's now down a bit, but hardly "horrible".

Since 2008, we've at least added many good kids from our 1st and 2nd rounders.......Luke Schenn(now JVR), Kadri, Ryan, Blacker, Ross, Biggs, Percy, Rielly, Finn, Gauthier.

That should all pay off nicely.

 

[Cotton]

I checked my mail and found I received a new Hockey News mag last night which was their annual prospect report issue, and I thought I would share were we are league wide.

Notes:
-The top-50 prospects are considered A-prospects, 51 to 75 are considered B-Prospects and the rest are C's and D's.
-Your average NHL player would be rated a C.
-This year 17 NHL scouts and various GM's contributed.
-Players who have played, or are playing enough quality minutes to assume they will play 50 NHL games are not considered prospects any more, so guys like (Trouba/Maata/Lindholm and Rielly) aren't included, otherwise i'm sure Rielly, who was formerly 14th, would be near the top this year.
-The grading system has to do with a teams entire pool of prospects, so a team like Pits with two A prospects sits 19th overall while Florida with only one A level prospect can sit 3rd, or Carolina with ZERO A or B level prospects sits 6th.

TORONTO MAPLE LEAFS (Rank 28th)

"No risky business; Leafs haven't hit one out of the park, but they've restocked bare cupboards.

If you were to pick one word to describe the Toronto Maple Leafs' philosophy at the draft, it would have to be "Safe". After years of trading away picks and prospects, the organization's focus has been to restock the cupboards by taking low-risk, low-reward players instead of trying to swing for the fences. That was certainly the case with 2013 first-round pick Frederik Gauthier, who the Leafs project as a No.3 center. 'You have to rate the risk-reward factor versus a guy you know is going to be an asset," said Dave Morrison, Toronto's director of amateur scouting. "He might not be flashy, but you know he'll be an asset."

Our Top-10 Prospects

#1 Frederik Gauthier, C, 18, Rimouski (QMJHL) Ranked 61st of top 75
Teams can overvalue their prospects. But the Leafs are realistic about Gauthier's future. "Is he going to be a big scorer in the NHL?" Morrison said. "Probably not. But he's going to help us win hockey games." Gauthier projects to be a third line center. That might not sound like much for a first-round pick, but it was the role he played for Canada at the world juniors, where he killed penalties, took defensive zone faceoffs and was used in a shutdown capacity.

#2 Matthew Finn, D, 19, Guelph (OHL)
A year ago, Finn finished outside the top 30 among OHL defenseman in scoring. This year, he is in the top three. What's the difference? "He's healthy," said Morrison. Finn missed 27 games and played through Mononucleosis last season. Now the Guelph captain is on his way to joining Morgan Rielly and Jake Gardiner on a young Leaf blueline. "He's having a terrific year on a terrific team," Morrison said. "He has the potential to be on the power play."

#3 Andreas Johnson, LW, 19, Frolunda (Swe.)
The Leafs do not take many chances, but they took a gamble on Johnson when they selected him in the seventh round. So far, it's paying off. The forward, who recently made the jump to the Swedish League, is having a breakout year after helping his country reach the final at the world juniors. "He's a small player, but protects the puck well and has a high IQ," Morrison said. "He has the ingredients that will help him over here."

#4 Connor Brown, RW, 20, Erie (OHL)
When the Leafs selected Brown in the sixth round, all anyone talked about was his minus-72 rating. Two years later, he was the first to reach 100 points in all of major junior. While playing with projected 2015 top pick Connor McDavid has helped, the two have been split up for half the season. "I don't think it's just McDavid," Morrison said. "In Browns draft year, he had 53 points as a 17-year old out of tier-II. So, it's not unexpected."

#5 Petter Granberg, D, 21, Toronto (AHL)
You'd think Granberg, who matched up against Steven Stamkos at the world championship, would be an NHL'er by now. But the Leafs have been patient, keeping him in Sweden for three years before bringing him to North America. Now, it is just a matter of waiting for a roster spot. "A year ago, he looked like he was going to be an NHLer," Morrison said. "We didn't know how long it would take to make the transition. By the looks of it, it won't be long."

#6 Andrew MacWilliam, D, 23, Toronto (AHL)
The stay-at-home defenseman's game is about punishment. "He hits to hurt," Morrison said.

#7 Greg McKegg, C, 21, Toronto (AHL)
Ice time limited during the lockout, but McKegg is aiming to become a point-per-game scorer in the minors.

#8 Josh Leivo, LW, 20, Toronto (AHL)
A right-handed left winger like Joffrey Lupul. Toronto sees top-six potential with this power forward.

#9 Tyler Biggs, RW, 20, Toronto (AHL)
Compared to Milan Lucic on draft day, Biggs is developing into more of a fourth-liner.

#10 Stuart Percy, D, 20, Toronto (AHL)
Doesn't hit or score, but he possesses sufficient hockey IQ to become another Carl Gunnersson.

My opinion...

#1 Finn
#2 Gauthier
#3 Brown
#4 Leivo
#5 Johnson
#6 Percy
#7 Granberg
#8 MacWilliam
#9 McKegg
#10 Biggs

 

[Cotton]

The grass is indeed ALWAYS greener.

Anyway, back to the original topic......we obviously don't have the best farm system in the NHL, but as has been said, we traded picks for Kessel, and had some key graduations, and it's now down a bit, but hardly "horrible".

Since 2008, we've at least added many good kids from our 1st and 2nd rounders.......Luke Schenn(now JVR), Kadri, Ryan, Blacker, Ross, Biggs, Percy, Rielly, Finn, Gauthier.

That should all pay off nicely.

Would you put him ahead of Biggs?

 

[johnny_rudeboy]

The grass is indeed ALWAYS greener.

Anyway, back to the original topic......we obviously don't have the best farm system in the NHL, but as has been said, we traded picks for Kessel, and had some key graduations, and it's now down a bit, but hardly "horrible".

Since 2008, we've at least added many good kids from our 1st and 2nd rounders.......Luke Schenn(now JVR), Kadri, Ryan, Blacker, Ross, Biggs, Percy, Rielly, Finn, Gauthier.

That should all pay off nicely.

I am not to worried that we lack high end talent in the system. The focus in recent drafts have been towards players who play both ends of the ice (even some of our most defensive prospects can at least skate and make a good first pass), who have leadership qualities, are serious, determined and a have good hockey sense. Together they will form a really good and strong team that will be very hard to play against and if it can be spiced up with some really good offensive talent (like the guys currently on the team or who ever will be there 3-5 years from now) I think we have a bright future.

Just that the Leafs actually made changes to get the best use out of the Marlies is a big step in the right direction. It is no longer just a team where young players are left alone, there is actually development going on.

 

[Holymakinaw]

Would you put him ahead of Biggs?

No not at all. Just listing 1st and 2nd round selections we've made since 2008.

 

[Mowerman]

1. Right, Rielly wasn't on the team, he could conceivably of had as much an impact on the Gold win as Duchene did, but he wasn't on the team so the argument is a moot point, Duchene has a gold which makes him way better then anything Toronto has, because thats the argument right... Kunitz over JVR too, and hey, Bernie has a Cup ring, he must rule over Lundqvist.

You are the one who wants to talk about proven vs unproven in the first place, no? Duchene earned a spot on the Canadian Olympic team based on the quality of his play. That Canadian Olympic team won gold and as a result Matt Duchene won gold. What sort of drivel is this?

2. I disagree, i think the Leafs, who everyone and their mothers besides us real Leaf fans assumed would be swept, showed hart and determination and fought their butts off to a seventh game win over the Boston Bruins, they lost that lead for obvious reasons. But after all was said and done, us Leaf fans weren't humiliated, proud of our guys, pissed off at the result, but not humiliated. Even Bruins fans were impressed with the Leafs effort, they gave them the toughest competition throughout the entire playoffs... I'm assuming you were embarrassed though.

I wasn't humiliated. The Leafs were humiliated. I was disappointed.

3. Team success isn't the point however, the leafs having nothing compared to Duchene/Landskog/O'Reilly and MacKinnon is.

Again with the victim complex. Colorado's core is better based on any sort of objective measure I can see. Either provide one or cut it out. Toronto still has a very good core.

4. What's option B for Colorado? because he wasn't their 1C last year, their 1C wasn't a 1C either, in the same way Bozak isn't a true 1C.

You are just plain ignorant. He was their number one centre last year and he is their number one centre this year. Duchene has scored at a virtual ppg pace consistently ever since the lockout. In what insane world is he not Colorado's number one centre or a legitimate number one centre?

I never said he isn't a proven commodity, I said I personally wouldn't trade Rielly for anything Colorado has, and i made sure to state that was my own opinion on the matter. Kadri out scored Duchene last year, if not for a sophmore-like slump they'd likely be on par point wise, and he's shown enough in his short career that stating something like Duchene WILL be better is stupid.

Kadri "outscored" Duchene by a point. He has since regressed. You don't get to say "well if Kadri hadn't regressed he would be as good as Duchene". That's nonsense. Duchene has a significant sample size of sustained production. Kadri was in the ahl When duchene was scoring 30 goals and 67 points his sophmore season.

5. Once again Ave's fan, i never stated Landskog isn't a proven commodity, it's almost like you took my fandom for Rielly as a personal attack on all your favorite Avalanche players.

You are quite literally oblivious.

JVR isn't a captain because we have several captain material guys what with Neuf/Lupul/JMac/Bolland. The Aves threw the C on a rookie in the same way Pitts did to Crosby, has more to do with the media and market then true leadership, but i'll give Col got it right with Landskog because he actually a leader and they had no other real option.

Yeah because JMac and Lupul are more captain material than Stastny, Hejduk blah blah blah. I love Mc (probably because hes an ex Av ) but the guy is a fourth liner.

They gave Landeskog the C because he has conducted himself like a perfect captain from the moment he was drafted and had a mic stuck in his face. He's been a captain and a leader every moment of his hockey life. There's a reason that rookie Swede was captain in Kitchener too.

Go look up a few Landeskog interviews if you want to figure out what a captain looks and sounds like. He gives intelligent, eloquent interviews and always maintains the composure of a consummate professional. He's apparently even better in the room and on the bench. You can say the latter about the Leafs current captain but you can't say the former that's for sure. So you can proudly tout off about all of the potential captains on Toronto but Landeskog has proven that he does a better job already.

Show me a single clip of Landeskog giving a bad interview or doing something that suggests he was not ready for the captaincy. The guy who compared his demeanor to Toews was right on the money. Was naming Toews captain a gimmick too?

JVR has 16 points, including 10 goals in his last 3 post seasons, that's what he has. He preforms in the playoffs in a way you only hope Landskog will.

Considering Landeskog does everything JVR does except with more grit and physicality I don't think anybody is too concerned with his ability to perform in the playoffs.

6. Varlamov better then Reims? (Notice how I use the nickname when it's my teams player, kinda like how you do with the Aves), I guess i'll give it to you, mostly because this conversation is boring, he's having a good year on a good team and posting a .925, Reims had a .924 last year as a starter, Varlamov profited on Was the same way Theodore did when he had something like a 26-7 record with them. Reimer on the other hand hasn't had much D help thus far in his career.

Is Varly profiting with Colorado's D? They might have the worst blueline outside of Edmonton bud.

 

[Cotton]

You are the one who wants to talk about proven vs unproven in the first place, no? Duchene earned a spot on the Canadian Olympic team based on the quality of his play. That Canadian Olympic team won gold and as a result Matt Duchene won gold. What sort of drivel is this?


I wasn't humiliated. The Leafs were humiliated. I was disappointed.


Again with the victim complex. Colorado's core is better based on any sort of objective measure I can see. Either provide one or cut it out. Toronto still has a very good core.


You are just plain ignorant. He was their number one centre last year and he is their number one centre this year. Duchene has scored at a virtual ppg pace consistently ever since the lockout. In what insane world is he not Colorado's number one centre or a legitimate number one centre?


Kadri "outscored" Duchene by a point. He has since regressed. You don't get to say "well if Kadri hadn't regressed he would be as good as Duchene". That's nonsense. Duchene has a significant sample size of sustained production. Kadri was in the ahl When duchene was scoring 30 goals and 67 points his sophmore season.


You are quite literally oblivious.


Yeah because JMac and Lupul are more captain material than Stastny, Hejduk blah blah blah. I love Mc (probably because hes an ex Av ) but the guy is a fourth liner.

They gave Landeskog the C because he has conducted himself like a perfect captain from the moment he was drafted and had a mic stuck in his face. He's been a captain and a leader every moment of his hockey life. There's a reason that rookie Swede was captain in Kitchener too.

Go look up a few Landeskog interviews if you want to figure out what a captain looks and sounds like. He gives intelligent, eloquent interviews and always maintains the composure of a consummate professional. He's apparently even better in the room and on the bench. You can say the latter about the Leafs current captain but you can't say the former that's for sure. So you can proudly tout off about all of the potential captains on Toronto but Landeskog has proven that he does a better job already.

Show me a single clip of Landeskog giving a bad interview or doing something that suggests he was not ready for the captaincy. The guy who compared his demeanor to Toews was right on the money. Was naming Toews captain a gimmick too?


Considering Landeskog does everything JVR does except with more grit and physicality I don't think anybody is too concerned with his ability to perform in the playoffs.


Is Varly profiting with Colorado's D? They might have the worst blueline outside of Edmonton bud.

Uh-huh