Poignant Discussion*
I tell it like it is
I have watched the Leafs for 40+ years, we have never had a young player like Matthews drafted and developed by us. This is a first and going to be a heck of a ride
Not a problem at all. I'm guessing you did read those arguments, and I'm also guessing they came from Finnish posters who look to tear down Matthews every chance they get in the name of pumping up their boy Laine.
I would agree that he does lack absolute top-end speed (if by top-end you mean McDavid/Eichel/Larkin level of speed) but his shot is absolutely top-end. His wrister has been compared to Sakic's.
Don't worry us Leafs fans are grinding our teeth waiting for the season to start. It's been so long since we've had a player of Matthews' caliber.
Where did you hear that? The Finnish Five?
That move he does at 2:24 just blows my mind.From watching that video, what stood out the most to me is just how good he is at navigating with the puck through tight traffic. His hands are much better than I thought they were.
We've seen the few amazing plays that have been gif'd so far today, but how about:
The amazing kick pass at 10:45
The great stick work to keep the puck going up the ice at 11:45
The hand eye and co-ordination and skill to bat the puck down out of mid-air, and get immediate control of the puck at 13:25
Matthews looks like a phenomenal prospect. It really sucks that he's going to be a Leaf.
Future top 3 player in the league imo.
Also, all the reports year round about him being better then eichel are true
A 6'5, 230 pound beast with a wicked backhand and was impossible to knock off the puck. No centerman has ever reached his level at a height of 6'5 or taller. He was truly one of a kind.
(Cue the "Lemieux is 6'4" comments)
I think Lemieux may have been closer to 6'5, 6'4 1/2 I think. That's what I've heard, and it certainly appeared like he was 6'5. As far forwards who are actually listed at 6'5 though Sundin was likely the best.
Mostly off topic but he sooooo should have been a Coyote.![]()
Yeah, I made that post in jest. Obviously, it's not the biggest deal whether you're 6'4 or 6'5, when you have the talent of Lemieux. I just think it's a nice piece of trivia that no other center of Sundin's caliber or better has ever been listed at 6'5 or taller.
Just thinking about Sundin makes me depressed. I miss him badly.
I'm obviously a huge Sundin fanatic, and I think of Matthews as a Sundin+ kind of player...I think you can safely say goodbye to the post Sundin depression era my friend![]()
I think Lemieux may have been closer to 6'5, 6'4 1/2 I think. That's what I've heard, and it certainly appeared like he was 6'5. As far as forwards who are actually listed at 6'5 though Sundin was likely the best.
Future top 3 player in the league imo.
Also, all the reports year round about him being better then eichel are true
I also find Matthews skating looks improved so far from the last time I seen him (not that it was bad prior). He's been very impressive, Leaf fans should be very happy to have him. I know our Oilers coach thinks highly of him and is showing lots of trust in him, I believe he was playing one of the D points on the PP last game.
Does anyone know if he's been focusing on his skating this offseason? His acceleration looks better to me, anyone else notice this too?
On one pad, Matthews and his group worked with Leafs skating coach Barb Underhill. The group looked at times like synchronized swimmers performing carefully choreographed movements, only on skates.
Underhill quickly noticed a flaw in Matthews’ stride: his left shoulder wasn’t coming across enough.
“She definitely paid close attention to it so I’ll try and work on it throughout the week,†Matthews said.
Mostly off topic but he sooooo should have been a Coyote.![]()
https://www.thestar.com/sports/leaf...ws-gets-skating-tips-from-barb-underhill.html
That was at prospect camp.
Thanks. It's definitely noticeable, glad I was right in picking up on it. I've got a keen eye.
As a leaf fan I'm not complaining, but it would've been pretty cool if he was a few days older and made the draft. Him leading the Arizona rebuild while simultaneously introducing the game to a bunch of people in Arizona would've been cool.