Prospect Info: Zach Hyman: Best New Two-Way Forward On The Leafs?

[hotpaws]

something tells me that leivo will be marners trigger man next season, just a hunch

I'd like to see Levio get a chance but i don't see him being with the team , Babs doesn't seem to like him for whatever reason and if he did he would have played him more this season .

 

[saltming]

I'd like to see Levio get a chance but i don't see him being with the team , Babs doesn't seem to like him for whatever reason and if he did he would have played him more this season .

I agree with this.
So weird to think he doesn't get a shot. All he's done is produce. Maybe he has the nhl summer babs wants? I do remember a quote from babcock saying josh has been skating his but off and is coming along well. Maybe next year?

 

[White Shadow]

I'd like to see Levio get a chance but i don't see him being with the team , Babs doesn't seem to like him for whatever reason and if he did he would have played him more this season .

I'm assuming a few things happen over the summer:

We trade a forward or two for defense which opens up spots for new blood
Leivo reads the tea leaves and works his ass off hoping to get faster and PK time.
Leivo doesn't end up in Vegas or Europe

 

[Faltorvo]

He would be very good at that imo.
Who is their centre in your hunch?

bozak or nylander

it's impossible to know "how ready" babs thinks nylander is for C atm

 

[Faltorvo]

I'd like to see Levio get a chance but i don't see him being with the team , Babs doesn't seem to like him for whatever reason and if he did he would have played him more this season .

oh i think babs sees leivo as a ok replacement for JVR , skills sets very similar IMO.

considering who and what we have in the system atm

 

[ACC1224]

I'd be very surprised if Leivo is a Leaf next year.

Hyman will lineup beside Matthews until a better replacement comes along.
ie. same work ethic but better hands.

 

[saltming]

bozak or nylander

it's impossible to know "how ready" babs thinks nylander is for C atm

Latter half of the season and in the playoffs Willie has been taking some faceoffs. Also when Boyle went out Willie played the 4th line C the most iirc that game, except the defensive zone draws.
He might not start the year at C but it looks like he will be there sooner rather than later.

I would really like to see a kapanen nylander Johnsson line.
Maybe bump Marner up with Matthews and put leivo with bozak as you suggest.

 

[saltming]

I'd be very surprised if Leivo is a Leaf next year.

Hyman will lineup beside Matthews until a better replacement comes along.
ie. same work ethic but better hands.

Josh will really have to do some major work to break through. No doubts there.
To compound his plight Rychel and Leipsic will need to clear waivers next year and both skate better than him.

 

[White Shadow]

Josh will really have to do some major work to break through. No doubts there.
To compound his plight Rychel and Leipsic will need to clear waivers next year and both skate better than him.

Good call, it is a team built for speed.

 

[Faltorvo]

Josh will really have to do some major work to break through. No doubts there.
To compound his plight Rychel and Leipsic will need to clear waivers next year and both skate better than him.

we are losing one of them to vegas


if my hunch is right, boyle,bozak,JVR are not here to start next season

thats 3 slots to fill

one of rychel/leipsic to vegas

leivo/ and one of them covers 2 of the open slots.

 

[Faltorvo]

Latter half of the season and in the playoffs Willie has been taking some faceoffs. Also when Boyle went out Willie played the 4th line C the most iirc that game, except the defensive zone draws.
He might not start the year at C but it looks like he will be there sooner rather than later.

I would really like to see a kapanen nylander Johnsson line.
Maybe bump Marner up with Matthews and put leivo with bozak as you suggest.

as for willi playing C it comes down to 2 things

does babs think he is ready and has lou traded boz

both of those things will have to happen

 

[saltming]

as for willi playing C it comes down to 2 things

does babs think he is ready and has lou traded boz

both of those things will have to happen

Agreed. I think bozak goes by the trade deadline. He might go over the summer if a team call because they don't want to lose a defensman for nothing at the expansion draft, but barring that I think we see him next season.
Sad thing is I wouldn't mind if he played wing for a while, bozak.

 

[johnny_rudeboy]

And when Bozak is gone we might wanna find a veteran center with good face off capabilities who can provide secondary offense and that wont cost and arm and a leg to get with a solid short term contract.

I mean, in case there is injuries or if Nylander is not 100% ready to be a C (I do think he is).

In other words. Why not keep Bozak for the reminder of his contract? We got him for free and he can leave for free seeing as he is more valuable to us then any picks and prospects he would get us.

 

[Faltorvo]

And when Bozak is gone we might wanna find a veteran center with good face off capabilities who can provide secondary offense and that wont cost and arm and a leg to get with a solid short term contract.

I mean, in case there is injuries or if Nylander is not 100% ready to be a C (I do think he is).

In other words. Why not keep Bozak for the reminder of his contract? We got him for free and he can leave for free seeing as he is more valuable to us then any picks and prospects he would get us.

wow wow wow

1 more year of boz is, (what i bolded)?

sheesh, such little faith in our scouts.

maybe Eric Fehr as your 4th line C

 

[burpsalot]

Josh will really have to do some major work to break through. No doubts there.
To compound his plight Rychel and Leipsic will need to clear waivers next year and both skate better than him.

I like Leipsic, but the problem with him is we have lots of players who are similar. We need more skilled big body players like Leivo & Rychel. Last year in the playoffs Leivo was probably our best forward & Leipsic was somewhat disappointing. Having said that, Leipsic came into this season flying, depending how he does in the playoffs may decide his fate with the Leafs.

 

[johnny_rudeboy]

[/B]

wow wow wow

1 more year of boz is, (what i bolded)?

sheesh, such little faith in our scouts.

maybe Eric Fehr as your 4th line C

What is one year of Bozak really worth? A 2nd from a playoff calibre team? It is not bad and no I am not undervaluing our scouts. Just that the situation we are in with plenty of solid prospects and such a young core, we really need to keep a couple of veteran guys like Bozak around.

 

[Narow]

Hyman! Our lord and savior. Tonight is the night you put yourself in leafs hall of fame. You shall stress thy enemies and you shall strike fear into them with your holy stats of shorthanded goals and amaze with your epic boardbattles.

Tonight you will show them why babs is in love with you and not the other scrubs.

Godspeed Hyman

 

[Mess]

Hyman and Holtby must be close buddies and friends, because every shift Zach has, he seems to park himself in the blue paint and only inches from Braden Holtby.

They're almost inseparable at times. They even wrestle and jostle with each other during the course of the play like a couple of kids on a school playground & roughhousing for fun.

While Zach is constantly getting reacquainted, Auston and Willie are putting the puck in the net.

 

[saltming]

Hyman and Holtby must be close buddies and friends, because every shift Zach has, he seems to park himself in the blue paint and only inches from Braden Holtby.

They're almost inseparable at times. They even wrestle and jostle with each other during the course of the play like a couple of kids on a school playground & roughhousing for fun.

While Zach is constantly getting reacquainted, Auston and Willie are putting the puck in the net.

I'm pretty sure Holtby thinks he's zach's proctologist

 

[White Shadow]

Hyman and Holtby must be close buddies and friends, because every shift Zach has, he seems to park himself in the blue paint and only inches from Braden Holtby.

They're almost inseparable at times. They even wrestle and jostle with each other during the course of the play like a couple of kids on a school playground & roughhousing for fun.

While Zach is constantly getting reacquainted, Auston and Willie are putting the puck in the net.

On Friday's lone goal Zach draws 2 Caps players to him while the puck works free to Matthews. All 3 forwards doing yeoman's work on that goal.

 

[Mess]

On Friday's lone goal Zach draws 2 Caps players to him while the puck works free to Matthews. All 3 forwards doing yeoman's work on that goal.

Hyman's amazing net front presence battling in the crease is providing for easy 2 foot birdie puts for goals with 1/2 a net to shoot at for Matthews.

He causes havoc in front of Holtby and his teammates benefit from his never ending disruptive presence to the opposition.

 

[nuck]

bozak or nylander

it's impossible to know "how ready" babs thinks nylander is for C atm

Absolutely. Does Nylander handling the league so well as an NHL rookie mean he has already passed the test, after all he was a successful center in the AHL? One thing Babcock said last year was Nylander would need to learn to "bring it every game". Has he now done that? Or does he actually need to have gradually more time at center to own a spot?

Babcock last March:
“I had this great plan, it looked good on a napkin, but when everyone got hurt …†Babcock said. “Lots of centres come to the league and they play a couple of years on the wall and then they end up in the middle. This is a different situation. We don’t have centres.â€

Or not more prep time at center necessarily, but to show further growth in his 200ft game as a winger and then they just move him in?

This was Babs from early December
“The reality is, for him to play center in the N.H.L., he’s going to have to get way better defensively, way more competitive,†Babcock said.

If I had to guess, I would say the fact he hasn't played much at center this year isn't that meaningful. When his game as a winger is ready he well be moved.

Babcock from March 10th "He can really shoot that puck. Willy’s got great edges and great understanding of the game, but the most impressive thing about what Willy is doing is he’s competing way harder. He’s better without the puck. He’s more competitive each and every night. So, he’s becoming a more complete player, which obviously makes us a better team.

Does this seem like he wants to wait another year? ^

 

[ShaneFalco]

He's been impressive in the playoffs to me

 

[Bullseye]

Really good effort in the playoffs. Played his role perfectly. Did not disappear as predicted by many.

That being said, I would love to see Kappy play the wing for Matthews next season.

 

[burpsalot]

Really good effort in the playoffs. Played his role perfectly. Did not disappear as predicted by many.

That being said, I would love to see Kappy play the wing for Matthews next season.

Looked better than I thought he would. A goal on his shot in front would have been beauty. He does have an exceptional work ethic, sustaining it is the question mark.