Post-Game Talk: Willy Wild Styles 2-1 OT

[leafan11]

Hopefully this is Matthews taking it easy in the regular season and going ham in the playoffs.

Agreed save it for the playoffs he has nothing to prove in regular reason.

 

[al secord]

Gangsta steal and power play by Nylander on OT
Thats hard right thurr. We was the smarter team too, even though evason is a thug

This.

 

[HarrisonFord]

I honestly think Nylander has been the Leafs best player this year

 

[Clark4Ever]

All due respect to our other top players, but Nylander is having an MVP worthy season thus far.

 

[Burnie97]

Great win.
Awful game.

Not awful because it wasn't executed well... Minny know how they have to play to win against a team like ours. Just absurdly low chance and slow paced. BUT...

...loved the patience and stick-to-it-ness that the boys showed. I thought we were loose with the puck at times, but really didn't allow much, and even the goal against was a fluke.

This Leafs team has the makings of a we-can-play-any-way-you-want-to-play and still beat you. If they choose to do so.

I hope so but we've all been here so many times. Still plenty of games until the playoffs to convince us but we all know it's the starting of game 1 and that same mentality that wins a series. Can they do it???

We'll see

 

[al secord]

I honestly think Nylander has been the Leafs best player this year

No doot aboot it

 

[Leaf Rocket]

1:25

funny how no star will ever come here....
Tavares...Giordano...Spezza...but sure

 

[HarrisonFord]

Jesus, Willy. The Wild have families.

After that goal he’s part of all their families. He’s their dad now

 

[BayStBullies]

Willy haters have been suspiciously quiet. He scored both times Matthews was not out with him.

 

[TimeZone]

Some day I hope Nylander will be good enough to qualify for the All Star game.

He seems to have a pretty high ceiling, but time will tell.

 

[Bomber0104]

Willy haters have been suspiciously quiet. He scored both times Matthews was not out with him.

He has haters?

 

[Teeder Keon]

Drinking game:
Take a shot every time Kerfoot shakes his head on the bench.

See you boys at the bar Sunday.

Every time after failing in sone way or another …
GLG

 

[Stephen]

Hopefully this is Matthews taking it easy in the regular season and going ham in the playoffs.

I would kind of prefer that Matthews is dealing with some nagging low level issue than not having the motivation to compete in the regular season. That's not a trait I want in my franchise player that he's just not into it that much.

 

[ClarkSittler]

 

[CabanaBoy5]

Tough game to win but the Leafs persevered and it’ll be a good lesson as to how they have play in the playoffs.

Minnesota is very strong on the puck, especially along the boards. They don’t give you a lot of room out there.

Samsonov very good. Nylander great OT. Matthews great defensively but he has to find a way to get himself open so he can get a good shot off. Interesting that Engvall was benched in the third. He was lacking drive and urgency in the first two periods.

 

[thusk]

Well it’s the problem that has been created. When he looks at the other 3 amigos…

Matthews is a center playing a great 200 feet game and one of most dangerous shooter

Marner made everyone playing with him better offensivly in his carreer, its an amaizing defensive player

Jt is a little bit overpay for sure and will stay in toronto

For me nylander is more like the new leafs phil kessel...

If leafs have to choose between matthews, marner and nylander, the choice will be pretty easy and its probably be the case if he asking 10M+

 

[Gabriel426]

Get Willie with it.

Lalalallalalalallalala

 

[therealkoho]

Willy having a career year. He's going to be key if we want to go far this year.

since game 1 of the pre-season

If hes asking 10M+ hes gone

why? if he's putting 40+ pucks into the net on avg per year it's the going rate in this league,

the real problem as I see it is you'll have to make a hugely difficult choice and move one of those guys

it won't be JT, not only because of the C and the NTC, but because he was offered that money, and I can't see it being Mitch just because he respected the idea that JT is supposed to be the highest paid of the Leafs. It may end up having to be Reilly but he'll be hard to move I think, which only leaves 1 and in which case Willie will finally be tasked to play in the middle.

I have to agree with Duffie. That was "the best goal to end the worst game of the season."

it was truly one of the best goals of the year

The Leafs may have 4 of the top 10 goals of the year and 5 if they include the one that didn't count

 

[Al14]

Tight game!

Thank You Nylander for the GWG and extra point.

 

[Stephen]

Further to the Matthews injury idea, if I were to take an uneducated guess, I might guess it's a wrist flare up. His puck control has been off and you see the puck rolling on him a lot. I wonder if it's concentration but maybe it's full range of wrist movement.

The other thing I noticed and didn't like is when they pulled the goalie in the last 2 seconds it was new guy ROR who they trusted to take the draw. Not Tavares, but neither was it Matthews. His FO wins totals have been way down since the Chicago game. And it was ROR who took the opening draw in OT, and Nylander who took the offensive zone FO in OT with Matthews out there. They just seem to be keeping him off center duties, not the way you would expect them to roll with their number one center.

 

[Stephen]

If hes asking 10M+ hes gone

He would switch salaries with Tavares.

 

[TimeZone]

He has haters?

The guy was arguably the most hated Leaf several years ago.


There weren't many on this board that stood by his side, I was one of few.

I'll forever have my qualms with Nylander, and he's definitely even exceeding my expectations as a huge fan this year, but his gigantic ceiling has been there since the U18's the year he was Drafted.

I remember there being a large camp in favor of Nylander/Ehlers and then another large camp massively in favor of Nick Ritchie in 2014. Good times.

 

[saffronleaf]

lets not forget that sweet assist from nylander on kampf's goal

 

[Optimist]

Willie is the best offensive zone puck possession player in the league. He really knows how to use that wide stance to keep his opponents at bay. And I haven't heard too much talk about Samsonov's glove so I'll say it here. He's got a beauty.

 

[therealkoho]

its even better in slow mo