Speculation: 2024-25 Roster thread

[Frosted Tips]

Fowler back at practice.

Ah yes, because Z on Mac's wing has always been my go-to combo as well. Sprinkle that with a little bit of a corpse of Killorn and I don't know how any of this wouldn't result in a handful of goals.

 

[hockey webcomics]

I think it'll be a little bit before we see Leo again

dude got injured by friendly fire :/

 

[Mr Rogers]

Mctavish has been weird this year, although maybe not quite as bad as the overall sentiment - it's bizarre because he looked like our best player in preseason. I refuse to believe he isn't good because he was really solid last year and even the year before. He's like a band member in a marching band who's constantly out of step. Hopefully he finds it at some point, but it may not come this year.

 

[TheGoodShepard1]

Mctavish has been weird this year, although maybe not quite as bad as the overall sentiment - it's bizarre because he looked like our best player in preseason. I refuse to believe he isn't good because he was really solid last year and even the year before. He's like a band member in a marching band who's constantly out of step. Hopefully he finds it at some point, but it may not come this year.

Cronin's refusal to put him back with Strome and Vatrano drives me up the wall. It appears to me that those two want to try and play a cycle game down low, and he's really the only one of the young forwards who can at least semi-consistently maintain it.

 

[Hamilton Bulldogs]

Cronin's refusal to put him back with Strome and Vatrano drives me up the wall. It appears to me that those two want to try and play a cycle game down low, and he's really the only one of the young forwards who can at least semi-consistently maintain it.

It was such a good line last year and all three guys aren’t exactly killing it being separated.

 

[Firequacker]

Mctavish has been weird this year, although maybe not quite as bad as the overall sentiment - it's bizarre because he looked like our best player in preseason. I refuse to believe he isn't good because he was really solid last year and even the year before. He's like a band member in a marching band who's constantly out of step. Hopefully he finds it at some point, but it may not come this year.

This is why I want to see him on the wing for a bit tbh. I'm not down on him long term, but right now they've tried nearly everything else to get him going and it doesn't seem to be working. Jumping him between the fourth and first line gets silly at some point. Why not at least try reducing his responsibility to let him focus on getting back in step?

The worst case scenario is that he's not as good on the wing and/or doesn't like playing there, both of which we know are not deal breakers for the org (see one Zegras, Trevor). Prioritizing him at C over Zegras given their relative performances this year is what I don't get.

 

[Mr Rogers]

This is why I want to see him on the wing for a bit tbh. I'm not down on him long term, but right now they've tried nearly everything else to get him going and it doesn't seem to be working. Jumping him between the fourth and first line gets silly at some point. Why not at least try reducing his responsibility to let him focus on getting back in step?

The worst case scenario is that he's not as good on the wing and/or doesn't like playing there, both of which we know are not deal breakers for the org (see one Zegras, Trevor). Prioritizing him at C over Zegras given their relative performances this year is what I don't get.

I agree. I can't stand when they put him with 4th line guys.

With Leo out, i can see why they would want them out there together - might as well load up a bit rather than put them on separate lines - but yeah you could just as easily put Zegs at C and MM on the wing. I still think Mctavish is a centre as well but he needs to play with wingers like Strome or Terry. I don't think he's a guy who is gonna consistently drive play create chances for shoot-first wingers. But if one of Zegs and MM has to go to the wing, MM is my choice.

 

[ZegrassyKnoll]

The McTavish hate has gotten out of hand IMO.

Some of y’all are starting to sound like Instagram commenters lol

 

[LuGBuG]

The McTavish hate has gotten out of hand IMO.

Some of y’all are starting to sound like Instagram commenters lol

The hate for basically everything in here is over the top. It’s painful.

 

[LuGBuG]

I’d like to see this with Leo out. I know we won’t though.

Cutter-Zegras-Leason
Vatrano-McTavish-Terry
Strome-Lundestrom-Killorn
Johnston-Harkins-Colangelo

 

[Smirnov2Chistov]

The hate for basically everything in here is over the top. It’s painful.

I mean.. the GM and Head Coach gave out a piss-poor effort in nearly every aspect of building this team. So yeah, the hate/disappointment is warranted

 

[LuGBuG]

I mean.. the GM and Head Coach gave out a piss-poor effort in nearly every aspect of building this team. So yeah, the hate/disappointment is warranted

Not saying disappointment isn’t warranted at times. It’s still painfully negative and quite often not objective at all. Some of the takes are ridiculous.

 

[HanSolo]

Am I crazy? Like sure the comments that Mac is the new Ritchie are too far but what has Mac done this year to make him immune from criticism? He routinely makes poor decisions with the puck on his stick and looks worse at that aspect than he did last year. From what he showed last season, this was a year he should have taken a meaningful step forward with his play but instead he looks like he's regressed.

It's not hate to want a high draft pick with promise to live up to his potential and have serious concerns that he may not have the hockey IQ to do it. Or maybe he's languishing under Cronin. Point is he's a cornerstone piece of what is supposed to be a future core that lifts this team out of the rebuild and he hasn't shown that he's on the right track this year. Concern about that is not the same thing as hate and equating fan concern to fan hate isn't productive.

 

[WhatTheDuck]

Am I crazy? Like sure the comments that Mac is the new Ritchie are too far but what has Mac done this year to make him immune from criticism? He routinely makes poor decisions with the puck on his stick and looks worse at that aspect than he did last year. From what he showed last season, this was a year he should have taken a meaningful step forward with his play but instead he looks like he's regressed.

It's not hate to want a high draft pick with promise to live up to his potential and have serious concerns that he may not have the hockey IQ to do it. Or maybe he's languishing under Cronin. Point is he's a cornerstone piece of what is supposed to be a future core that lifts this team out of the rebuild and he hasn't shown that he's on the right track this year. Concern about that is not the same thing as hate and equating fan concern to fan hate isn't productive.

All things considered (what they've shown, potential upside, potential trade value etc) out of our cornerstone forwards - Terry, Z, McTavish, Carlsson, Gauthier, Sennecke - if we are putting together a package for a star player, McTavish is the guy I'd be offering or who I think makes the most sense to move in that scenario.

But again that's talking about moving someone for much needed guaranteed star talent, I'm not down on McTavish or any of them enough that I'm nearly to the point of giving up on them.

 

[TheDarkWingThatDucks]

The hate for basically everything in here is over the top. It’s painful.

It’s frustrating to have to vocal majority on this board constantly complain about Ownership, Verbeek, Cronin all the f***ing time. We are on pace for 78 pts this year. After failing to crack 60 the past 2 years. If I told you the same exact roster as last year 59 pt season was coming back basically exactly the same, and we were on pace for 78 pts thru 1/4 of the season most people would be happy.

Especially since it took us 12 games to even find anything close to an identity.

Here are the fans here: We win ugly, yeah but we looked like shit, goalies can’t save you forever, gotta fire Verbeek and Cronin before they ruin player development.

We lose but look like the better team, yup Verbeek and Cronin sucks, these guys would win if those 2
Weren’t around, but our cheap owners won’t fire them because they are cheap.

We are on pace to add 19 total pts to our season total from last year, this is what we call improvement (granted I said we were so injured last year this jump was all but guaranteed, but apparently injuries aren’t an excuse for why your team played bad all year).

It’s just all doom and gloom here, and it is in my opinion because our fan base is a bunch of whiny entitled, impatient cry babies, who suffer from the Dunning-Kruger Effect.