I see there's a hard core entitled few that think they own this forum, I don't mind being ignored by them, I don't know why only cheerleaders are allowed on this forum by these challenged individuals and since I do get messages from others that feel that their whining is simply bullying, I think this forum will be the next to end up in a scrapheap.

I would like to invite people to participate in healthy debate/discussion about the Leafs, I think that this would be the best way to keep this forum going and the Benders/Guilt Trips should be ignored as I will be doing.

I also think that if the intimidated won't participate because of the bullying then that should be something that the mods should be doing something about to keep this forum interesting and compelling.

Maybe I'm not understanding the purpose of this forum, maybe I should be first clearing my posts with the entitled before I submit them as they seem to have absolute control over all topics about the Leafs and I have been warned about responding to their BS by a mod.

 

Objection! Argumentative.... Sustained.

Republican, I presume.

I see there's a hard core entitled few that think they own this forum, I don't mind being ignored by them, I don't know why only cheerleaders are allowed on this forum by these challenged individuals and since I do get messages from others that feel that their whining is simply bullying, I think this forum will be the next to end up in a scrapheap.

I would like to invite people to participate in healthy debate/discussion about the Leafs, I think that this would be the best way to keep this forum going and the Benders/Guilt Trips should be ignored as I will be doing.

I also think that if the intimidated won't participate because of the bullying then that should be something that the mods should be doing something about to keep this forum interesting and compelling.

Maybe I'm not understanding the purpose of this forum, maybe I should be first clearing my posts with the entitled before I submit them as they seem to have absolute control over all topics about the Leafs and I have been warned about responding to their BS by a mod.

 

I didn't like what TO did last year during the summer, it seemed like TO was trying to become a Nashville clone, all defense, and was expecting that 5 players only were going to provide all of the offense, TO's regular season was again great, with the 5 player strategy, but the lack of offensive depth was again exposed during the playoffs. It wasn't only that the additions last year were very one dimensional but they didn't/couldn't help TO in the possession game which I think is the foundation of superior teams.

This year's summer strategy hasn't been the best, 3 years of Reaves, the Kampf extension but then TO signed Bertuzzi, Domi and Klingberg. The later 3 can perhaps contribute towards both offense, some physicality and possession, they aren't perfect but they do provide dimensions that's sorely been missing in Leaf teams since the beginning of the Matthews era.

Conventional wisdom has always stressed the importance of defense in the makeup of championship teams and TO's d was exceptional last year but conventional wisdom should also stress the point that the team that outscores the opposition wins and we have seen that TO's constant inability to score enough to win in the playoffs is a depth issue.

Maybe, we have a better balance that can continue to win during the regular season but also become more successful in the playoffs.

the idea of Austin and/or Nylander Pking is a great idea. No shot blocking, that's probably the least effective way to PK.   

Anyone care to guess which forward led the entire league in shots blocked last season?

Anyone care to guess which forward has pretty well been compromised going into just about every playoff since he's become a Leaf, I wonder if useless things like shot blocking might be a significant factor in the constant injury problems.

As far as spreading out the talent on 3 separate lines, the idea seems plausible except if the team doesn't have enough talent to compliment the superior player on each line. The opposing team will be able to target the better player if his linemates don't also have the talent to somewhat carry on without the superior player.

Another option I think would be to stack a line, much like Boston had with Bergeron, Pastrnak and Marchand. In the past Keefe would put Matthews, Marner and JT together for 1 or 2 shits if TO was behind, why not put them together to establish and maintain a lead? I don't know how many ineffective games the top 4 forwards have played when only 2 of them are on 2 separate lines, that ineffectiveness has seemed very pronounced in the playoffs. Keefe obviously is not a fan of this as he's never allowed a line like the one I've mentioned stay together for any true length of time, I would think that a line comprised of 3 of TO's top 4 forwards might only need to be together enough to establish a rhythm/cohesiveness that might make them far more effective, far more often.

I like that some thought is being given to the idea of MM, WN and AM Pking, I think it might have tremendous possibilities, I'll be surprised that spreading out the superior talent will be as effective. Pitts did the spreadout in the playoffs with Kessel, Malkin and Crosby and they won the Cup, I don't consider TO's superior talent in the same level as Pitts and they only did this in the playoffs, 20 games not 80 plus.   

Nylander, JT, Marner and Matthews on 3 separate lines means less icetime for at least one of these players which isn't a solution to anything, the idea of Austin and/or Nylander Pking is a great idea. No shot blocking, that's probably the least effective way to PK.   

I was hoping BT's drafting with Calgary was better than TO's since 2017(inclusive) so I checked, no such luck as a matter of fact TO's record is without doubt better, lovely.

How is Dumba, a defensemen, an upgrade over two forwards?

How isn't it?

Matt Dumba signed with Arizona for $3.9 mil. for 1 year, I wonder if he'd have signed for even less to possibly be on a Cup contender?

I think he would be viewed as better than Klingberg overall, he's had decent stats and plays physically, he has been compared to Phanny but he's smaller.

Let's just say that TO might have been able to sign him for $3mil., and also let's say Kampf was resigned for $1.5 mil. which matched his previous contract, that would be the same money TO will be paying out for Kampf and Jarnkrok this year.

I'm pretty sure Dumba would be an upgrade on either of those two while also being more physical, this is the types of possibilities TO will miss in the future because of bad contracts. Dumba by the way is a RD, I could easily see him replacing Brodie or Lily.

Rielly/Dumba

Brodie/Klingberg

Gio or Tim/McCabe

This looks more like a Cup contending d, not perfect but promising, I say.

Sheldon Keefe has been resigned, this was a toughie to understand, TO does well/great in the regular season, come playoff time not so great.

Resigning Keefe suggests to me that the powers that be are satisfied, this surprises me because of the potential gate revenue that could be realized if TO did better in the playoffs, this would be an issue with most clubs?

I've read that supported coaches elicit greater responsibility from players, I'm talking about a coach that has security which extending Keefe provides, sort of.

Wouldn't extending a coach mean also that everyone is content so the players themselves can also be content, wouldn't not extending Keefe conversely also mean that things aren't perfect and that he and the players are being held to a greater future or else?

I believe Keefe still had this year left on his contract so what was the hurry to extend him, what message does that truly send. 

[Let's start with looking at David Kampf, who most recently is coming off an absolutely brutal 11-game playoff stretch. The Leafs' defensive specialist had a 41% Corsi For, 45% Goals For, and 39% Expected Goals For in the playoffs. All numbers were significantly down from what he had in the regular season. Some of the change has to do with linemates and utilization. The regular season largely had Kampf in that third-line role with Pierre Engvall and Zach Aston-Reese as his most frequent linemates, Alex Kerfoot being the next most significant player. The Engvall trade meant Kampf was playing with someone new and he didn't find an immediate groove with Sam Lafferty as Pierre Engvall's replacement. Other than that, the linemates were fairly similar, but at times Kampf would be deployed as the fourth line rather than the third depending on how O'Reilly was being utilized. Interestingly enough the defensive unit of Brodie and McCabe that Kampf worked with most frequently in the playoffs was an upgrade over Giordano and Holl, but given that Brodie also struggled in the playoffs, maybe it's more of a team effort when it came to the decline than hanging it on just one or two players.

Still, Kampf looked a bit exposed as a potential shutdown centre and the case has to be made that he likely needs to be right-sized away from at least top lines as well as stronger second lines going forward, and this is what has me questioning if Kampf is still the right 3C option.

https://theleafsnation.com/news/do-maple-leafs-try-something-different-with-3c-spot/quote]

Kampf was only credible as TO's #3 center with Engvall, his results without him screamed I'm not a #3. Resigning Kampf was a brutal decision, resigning him to even more $s was insane, $2.4 mil. for an at best #4 center, is a prime example of why TO's bottom 6 can't support a true Cup contender.

If TO continues to use Kampf as the #3 center, I will be surprised if he can get half of the points he had last year and I'll truly be surprised if he can again post positive +/- numbers. Engvall was the reason for the success of that 3rd line last year with Jarnkrok and Kampf.

It going to another sweet year because of the top 4 forwards and another brief playoff appearance.   

SDA leaving is a tough break for the Marlies but I think his NHL odds were still fairly low. He's probably 2 years away at best anyway so maybe playing in the KHL would be good for his development and the Leafs can revisit him when he's 24.

Is 2 years in the KHL better or even good at all for him, a lot of prospects(Leafs and others) play a very small amount of TOI in the KHL mostly because KHL teams don't feel they need to develop potential NHLers over their own/undrafted and even less talented players.

I wonder if the KHL is even as good as the A, the KHL will have 2 or 3 name players that are usually beyond their prime then the quality of the players might not even match AHL quality.

I would always think that if a team sees true potential they should do their best to get those players to play in the A for proper development, players that are allowed to leave are probably already written off by the NHL teams that drafted them. Eemeli Rasanen is a prime example, he signed in the K and TO didn't looked to disappointed even tho he was a 2nd rounder. The Leaf sites like PPP and Leaf Nation thought that his further exposure to better quality opposition should be a good thing for the Leafs but I doubt TO wasted any or very little time or energy on him after he signed in the K.
 

I don't think the NHL teams are just letting their top prospects walk.
You can't really blame a player who's making 70k in the AHL for walking to the KHL for 400k

Not sure where AHL salaries are published but TO like most teams will pay marginal NHL/AHL players a minimum NHL salary then park them in the A for injury insurance, I would think that if a prospect is a true prospect TO would offer them enough money to stay in North America. A true prospect should be properly groomed, allowing them to sign in the K isn't any kind of guarantee they will be properly groomed for a possible NHL future. I assume that TO allowing prospects to go to the K basically means that TO no longer considers them true prospects.
 

According to Cap Friendly, SDA's estimated salary over the 5 years since being drafted is $487k. That includes $240k in signing bonuses and $210k in minors salary(70k per year). I can't find the exact numbers for his contract in the KHL, but it was rumoured to be a 3 year deal worth 1.5m USD.

If he felt he was a sure fire NHLer, I'm sure he'd still be here. But, he sees the writing on the wall, and he may as well make good money while he's able to. And who would the Leafs be to deny him that? If he's not happy here, how would you expect to get the best development out of a middle of the road forward prospect with a very small chance of being a contributing member of your NHL team(now or in the future)?

I'm pretty sure there's no argument here, I've said that if TO saw a future in SDA they would/should do their best to keep him here in North America to properly groom him, since his future doesn't look so bright he's signing with the highest bidder which TO isn't because TO doesn't see an NHL future in him.

Dubie's biggest problem was letting go, TO would come up to the TDL with all 50 spots full so he couldn't add much to the lineup, that was because he seemed to sign far too many players whether they had NHL futures or not.

SDA leaving is a tough break for the Marlies but I think his NHL odds were still fairly low. He's probably 2 years away at best anyway so maybe playing in the KHL would be good for his development and the Leafs can revisit him when he's 24.

Is 2 years in the KHL better or even good at all for him, a lot of prospects(Leafs and others) play a very small amount of TOI in the KHL mostly because KHL teams don't feel they need to develop potential NHLers over their own/undrafted and even less talented players.

I wonder if the KHL is even as good as the A, the KHL will have 2 or 3 name players that are usually beyond their prime then the quality of the players might not even match AHL quality.

I would always think that if a team sees true potential they should do their best to get those players to play in the A for proper development, players that are allowed to leave are probably already written off by the NHL teams that drafted them. Eemeli Rasanen is a prime example, he signed in the K and TO didn't looked to disappointed even tho he was a 2nd rounder. The Leaf sites like PPP and Leaf Nation thought that his further exposure to better quality opposition should be a good thing for the Leafs but I doubt TO wasted any or very little time or energy on him after he signed in the K.
 

I don't think the NHL teams are just letting their top prospects walk.
You can't really blame a player who's making 70k in the AHL for walking to the KHL for 400k

Not sure where AHL salaries are published but TO like most teams will pay marginal NHL/AHL players a minimum NHL salary then park them in the A for injury insurance, I would think that if a prospect is a true prospect TO would offer them enough money to stay in North America. A true prospect should be properly groomed, allowing them to sign in the K isn't any kind of guarantee they will be properly groomed for a possible NHL future. I assume that TO allowing prospects to go to the K basically means that TO no longer considers them true prospects.

I don't know how many players that continued to play in Russia after TO drafted them became actual NHL players but I'm pretty sure the number is extremely small, Sosh is the only one I can think of.

There have been other players that were drafted by TO yet continued to play in Europe after being drafted like Engvall and Leo, I've wondered why wouldn't TO intervene in their careers and groom them so they might have become better players earlier in their careers by playing a more NHL similar game in the A.

I don't understand why any organization/team in the NHL will spend so much money scouting players to draft then basically seemingly leave them to other teams to help them progress, what really perplexes me is that these other teams in Liga, Sweden, K plus others don't have the same level commitment that TO should have because they know if the player is good enough they don't have a future in their leagues.   

Bertuzzi-$5.5 mil. per for 1 year- This is possibly a great signing, he has the right qualities to help TO considerably in the playoffs however his ability to remain healthy has been an issue his entire NHL career. 30 points, last year, in 50 games were his lowest PPG total in 4 years, his type of game takes a toll on his body so this is a definite we'll see signing. LW/RW, TO needs quality LWs so I expect he'd be best with JT and Marner.

Reaves-WTF?

Domi-$3 mil. for 1 season- I, like most Leaf fans, wanted TO to draft him, at the pay level TO will pay him I think TO should be alrite. Keep hearing how crappy he is at defending but I see he's had seasons of +20 and +8 so it looks like his results are like most players, dependent on who he plays with. He's more set up man than goal scorer and he's listed as a LW so I wonder if he'd be a good fit with AM and Willie?

Klingberg-$4.15 mil. for 1 year- Is this an overpay, it's less than he's made in 7 years. He has trouble playing 70 games and the word is he's declining rapidly and defending has never been his forte but his offense has made up for this. I do see that when he was younger his d stats were far better and that was basically with the same team. It's going to be interesting with him, will he become the new Gardiner.

Except for Reaves, I don't mind these signings, the Gambrell and Jones signings are depth signings so hopefully will have little affect on TO. 

The forwards left over from the ones I've mentioned are Kampf, Jarnkrok, Lafferty, Knies, Holmberg with Gambrell and Reaves also available in the bottom 6 forward lines, not the types of names/games that will scare opponents in any way, it's a weak group, we need Knies to develop rapidly. 

SDA leaving is a tough break for the Marlies but I think his NHL odds were still fairly low. He's probably 2 years away at best anyway so maybe playing in the KHL would be good for his development and the Leafs can revisit him when he's 24.

Is 2 years in the KHL better or even good at all for him, a lot of prospects(Leafs and others) play a very small amount of TOI in the KHL mostly because KHL teams don't feel they need to develop potential NHLers over their own/undrafted and even less talented players.

I wonder if the KHL is even as good as the A, the KHL will have 2 or 3 name players that are usually beyond their prime then the quality of the players might not even match AHL quality.

I would always think that if a team sees true potential they should do their best to get those players to play in the A for proper development, players that are allowed to leave are probably already written off by the NHL teams that drafted them. Eemeli Rasanen is a prime example, he signed in the K and TO didn't looked to disappointed even tho he was a 2nd rounder. The Leaf sites like PPP and Leaf Nation thought that his further exposure to better quality opposition should be a good thing for the Leafs but I doubt TO wasted any or very little time or energy on him after he signed in the K.
 

I guess that's not totally fair to Matthews, he did and probably will continue to have considerations about his contract demands, unfortunately for us his only considerations will probably be of himself.

Except that according to the reports out there, Matthews is willing to take a lower AAV on a shorter deal in order ensure that the team is more competitive around him.

https://ca.sports.yahoo.com/news/maple-leafs-auston-matthews-would-consider-taking-less-money-151004985.html

But I guess that doesn't fit your narrative.

My understanding from the media is that TO is observing total silence on any Leaf issue, I haven't read the article you've referred to but there is little to no credible info about the Leafs, especially in regards to contract specifics.
Servalli is a credible source I'd say but I'd like to know where he got this info from. I don't know why people think that any of this is my narrative, I simply have stated what I've seen, AM & MM are paid over $10. mil per, I can't think of another player that is getting so well paid at such an early time in their careers without better personal/team results.

Like I've said and I guess I need to again, I don't think any of TO's core 4 is overpaid, I think they as a group are overpaid and shouldn't receive pay raises until they provide better results at all times, especially during the playoffs. When players like TO's core 4 are so well paid they need to be accountable every game, every shift, at all times, they're paid like they're generational players, pretty well as good as McDavid, then they need to be McDavids, anything less at all times isn't acceptable.

JT has earned his pay, he should've been paid as well as he is now while he was with the NYI but most teams will pay their better players based on what they've done in the past with some idea that they can still be productive in the future, JT matches all of these criteria.

I felt thru most of the Florida series that AM & MM were missing in action, I mostly noticed MM when he was PKing but you know penalty killers generally don't get hit or roughed up, that's the types of games/scenarios that both MM & AM thrive, we've seen that year after year, playoff game after playoff game, maybe they can be supported by the right types of players that will enable them to play at the level commensurate of their pay but they get paid so much that that type of support is fiscally out of TO's reach. These guys should be far better on the PP but neither would go anywhere close to the opposition's net even tho the success rate of TO's PP during the playoffs left a lot to be desired, they needed to get into the trenches for TO to have any chance to win, they didn't and hadn't in previous years.

Is the code of silence that envelops the Leafs for real, Klingberg's, Bertuzzi's and Domi's signings were mostly a total surprise to us and the media, the legend of LL still permeates the Leaf's organization.