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Matthew Knies signed to ELC

herman

herman

Well-known member
https://twitter.com/mapleleafs/status/1645183899687874561

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https://twitter.com/darrendreger/status/1645157062698057729

https://twitter.com/capfriendly/status/1645177209181618177

https://twitter.com/joesmithnhl/status/1645057280574988288
Why do you hate the environment (because you love your teammates)
 
I'm impressed by this guy Drain ? his writing and analysis.  No rose-colored glasses.

Effective spot-duty seems to be the likely short-term upside for this kid.  Which would be good enough.
 
Britishbulldog said:
Not sure if it best for him to join the Leafs this late in the year and go to the playoffs against Tampa
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I see it this way: the bench is deeper now

Is Knies in the top 12? Maybe. We can find out more by having him (still in playoff mode) play out the regular season string basically risk-free, aside from health. He can give key bodies some extra rest down the stretch regardless of how effective he ends up playing.

Armed with that knowledge, the depth chart is deepened either way. If he slots top-6 (miraculously), then a Kerfoot/Jarnkrok makes the bottom 6 more effective. Knies-Acciari/Kerfoot-Jarnkrok could actually be a fun third line. If he slots bottom 6, then we have another legit NHLer in the press box in case of injury (Lafferty, Aston-Reese, Simmonds, Holmberg, etc).
 
I thought there was a decent chance he might have pushed ZAR out of the line-up since I think all 4 of ZAR, Kampf, Acciari, and Lafferty are all probably best off playing on the 4th line and ZAR a few weeks ago would have seemed like the most expendable player of that bunch. But with his recent burst of offence he's probably solidified a spot for game 1.

So yeah barring injury I doubt we'll see Knies early in a playoff series, which is fine obviously. Still excited to see what he can do in his short late season audition.
 
My expectations are low, it is another Matthew, 6 foot 3 centre from Arizona, so I am expecting a 4 goal debut, at least.

 
Kaberle15 said:
My expectations are low, it is another Matthew, 6 foot 3 centre from Arizona, so I am expecting a 4 goal debut, at least.
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Anything less and total


mid_00034703_001.jpg
 
I'm all for giving him a look in the last couple games but I'm not confident that having him replace Aston-Reese or to a lesser extent, Lafferty would be the right move for the team. Aston-Reese has been a play driver for the last month. Lafferty looks to finally be figuring it out. I think it would be extremely difficult for Knies to adjust to the team dynamics, the game's speed, or the systems being implemented after 3 games. I still see it in O'Rielly and the other additions who have been in the NHL for years. They are often caught out of position simply because they're not sure where to be. A college kid will be even more lost IMO.

I'm all for him proving me wrong. But I don't have very high hopes of that happening.
 
Kaberle15 said:
My expectations are low, it is another Matthew, 6 foot 3 centre from Arizona, so I am expecting a 4 goal debut, at least.
Click to expand...

Like Matthews, he grew up dreaming of one day playing in the vaunted Mullett Arena...scoring and hearing the crowd of many dozens of people cheering him on.  It used to be a dream, but soon it'll be a dream no more.
 
I'm intrigued by this situation. It is tough to expect a lot. But there is some sort of a chance he could help.

Height and weight stats are not the most reliable. He's tied for 2nd among the Leafs skaters in height at 6'3". He is tied for 3rd among the forwards at 209lbs. No question he is big enough. A lot of young players are not. So that enhances his chances. It will be a heck of a lot different playing against NHL players.

He skates pretty well. Doesn't mind the puck battles. Has some vision. Offensively, he could probably help. We'll find out soon enough. He doesn't have much time to fit in.

Wing in the NHL is the shortest learning curve. That is where he'd play.
He's a left winger which is the Leafs weakest forward position. That helps his chances.

Some of it depends on how they configure the lines. If O'Reilly or Tavares play left wing, it is hard to see where he would fit in. If Matthews, Tavares, O'Reilly & Kampf are the centers, he probably has a better chance.

It will likely be his defensive game that concerns Keefe. He'll be on a very short leash.

No question that he helps provide depth to their weakest position.

It's going to be fun to watch.
 
Frank E said:
Kaberle15 said:
My expectations are low, it is another Matthew, 6 foot 3 centre from Arizona, so I am expecting a 4 goal debut, at least.
Click to expand...

Like Matthews, he grew up dreaming of one day playing in the vaunted Mullett Arena...scoring and hearing the crowd of many dozens of people cheering him on.  It used to be a dream, but soon it'll be a dream no more.
Click to expand...


Many  dozens LOL
 
https://twitter.com/RinkRatReport/status/1646929911720845320
Doing really well for someone who has not truly had a practice with the team yet, so this is all just situational instincts/training of putting pucks in good ice, and his veteran linemates adjusting to take advantage.
 
Matthew Knies had to go down the tunnel because he was injured after blocking a shot in G5. He missed about half a period.

Memes be damned: when Knies actually plays a full game, the Leafs are 7-0-0.
 
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