What does Barrie bring to the Leafs?

[Nithoniniel]

It's a cute sentiment, but when the Leafs lose every year by being exposed for their flaws it's easy to see that they need to consider all aspects of the game.

You didn't get my point. I didn't say they should ignore flaws. I said they should fix those flaws however they can. If our problem is defense and the best available solution is to make us a stronger possession team, then we do that. We don't go for a more expensive, less efficient solution just to plug the holes with different things.

 

[biotk]

Berkshire called him a super Gardiner. Better offensively but worse defensively. If that is the case, he should take over Rielly's spot on the #1 PP and free up Morgs to help with the PK.

I think that the Leafs will continue to run 2 PPs about equally. I think that they will separate Matthews and Marner again - going Tavares/Marner and Matthews/Nylander. Rielly will be on one of the PPs, and Barrie on the other (I would say that Barrie with Matthews and Rielly with Marner is probably the way things will go - I will explain why at the bottom of this post).

and a better fit for one-timers from marner since he shoots right unlike reilly and muzzin

Barrie doesn't shoot a lot from the point on the PP.

Dellow had an article in the Athletic in May 2018 called "How the Leafs’ excellent top power-play unit got even better and what your team should learn from it" where a major reason that was given for Marner's PP being much better in 2017/18 than 2016/17 is that they had subbed out RHD Zaitsev in favour of LHD Rielly. They actually have a clip showing pass after pass from Rielly to Marner that probably wouldn't have worked if the D was right handed.

On the other hand it has been talked about in an athletic article how Matthews would be more effective on the PP (assuming he stays on the left wall - which I think undoubtedly he will) if he had a RHD passing the puck to him. That is how Barrie and MacKinnon were so effective (MacKinnon - a righty - played in Matthews' exact spot). MacKinnon was second in the league in PP shots last season (behind only Ovi - who incidentally also plays in Matthews' spot and has been fed for years by RHD Carlson - and before that RHD Green). But actually a really common sequence was Barrie passing it to MacKinnon on the left wall who royal road passed it across to Rantanen on the right wall who one timed it. Regardless, in the PP videos I have watched with Barrie he seems to have a significant preference for passing on this strong side and towards the left wall. Matthews and Nylander could also experiment with switching sides from time to time (although that was a failed experiment in early 2018).

As Babs is not going to play one PP much more than the other there is no reason to stack one of the PPs.

 

[MagicalRazor]

In a short simple answer he plays babs system . Hes elite at the stretch pass , fast break outs and is elite at the first pass out of the zone . Also hes rounds out the leafs absurd amount of LHD because we are finally gettin a legit top 4 RHD

 

[biotk]

Zone exit percentile last three seasons.

Polak, 3rd percentile
Hainsey, 11th percentile
Zaitsev, 11th percentile
Barrie, 92nd percentile.

Expect Barrie to successfully clear the zone without turning the puck over more in his first season than those three did combined in a Leafs uni.

Ceci, 72nd percentile (also Harpur, who I think will get third pairing minutes either on the right or left side - 67th percentile).

The Leafs went from completely unbalanced to very well balanced over night. (and if they run Rielly-Ceci, Muzzin - Barrie, Dermott - Harpur when healthy the lowest zone exit percentile over the last three seasons would be 67th percentile - which is a complete night and day change from the previous seasons)

 

[Rielly4]

Ceci, 72nd percentile (also Harpur, who I think will get third pairing minutes either on the right or left side - 67th percentile).

The Leafs went from completely unbalanced to very well balanced over night. (and if they run Rielly-Ceci, Muzzin - Barrie, Dermott - Harpur when healthy the lowest zone exit percentile over the last three seasons would be 67th percentile - which is a complete night and day change from the previous seasons)

Just curious where you guys are seeing this? Any links?

 

[biotk]

Just curious where you guys are seeing this? Any links?

See here

 

[Cotton]

I realize you can't have the puck all game, but I think many fans are fixated on "What do we do when we don't have the puck" defence whereas Dubas is fixated on "Let's keep the puck as often as possible" defence.

Maybe he should explain his vision to Babcock, because Babs likes the dump and chase - where we don't have enough "chasers" and it just ends up as a turnover where we are defending. He also likes hail mary passing, which often turns into icings, were a faceoff loss once again has us defending.

 

[Rielly4]

Maybe he should explain his vision to Babcock, because Babs likes the dump and chase - where we don't have enough "chasers" and it just ends up as a turnover where we are defending. He also likes hail mary passing, which often turns into icings, were a faceoff loss once again has us defending.

Dump and chase usually ends up in the other team throwing it off the boards back out to our D men in the neutral zone...if our d cant handle it and generate another zone entry/dump then we cant have continuous pressure.

We have plenty of great chasers. Just because they dont bang the body doesnt mean they arent effective forecheckers. Marner, Hyman, Tavares, Kapanen, Moore are all really good forecheckers.

Most of our hail mary icings were off the sticks of Zaitsev and Hainsey.

Im not trying to say we shouldnt change our system at all..Because i think it could definitely use some tweaks given our roster moves but to take away stretch passes and dump ins would not be ideal. Though i do think we should continue to support our D to give them short passing options as well as long options.

 

[Leafidelity]

The ability to start a breakout from the right side of the ice. Sounds simple but it means teams have make more defensive adjustments against the Leafs. Also means our left handed shots like 34 are going to become better stretch pass options going up the ice.