He said “For everyone that thought I was a liability in the playoffs you can kiss my ass.” Dubas traded him as "We had a need, and from our view as a management team, we owe it to our forward group and [Frederik] Andersen in net to round it out as best we can and put the best possible team on the ice, particularly with defensemen who can move the puck effectively and efficiently to our forward group,"
I don't know of anyone who has sat out a year. But $7.5 is caving to me. And there really was little point in signing him when Dubas did. He missed 1/3 of the season, took him another 1/3 to get in shape, and the final 1/3 he was garbage. I suppose there was no way to know in advance he would be garbage for that final stretch, but the out of shape part could have been predicted.
Par, no. They aren't that far away though either. Better coach and goaltending puts them much closer.
I distinctly remember Willie standing motionless on the ice sucking for wind while the play went on around him. You're 22 years old for gods sake and you can't workout while holding out. Willie had a way of disappointing me in those days.
They have shown growth over the last 5 years while the Leafs have shown none. The Avs had enough room to be able to add the necessary pieces to put them over the top. The Leafs had enough room for Giordano and Blackwell. None of the Avs stars are making anywhere near what the top 3 Leafs are making. Sorry, I'd rether have Sakic.
Yeah, 34 goals and 80 points though and that's playing with slow a** Tavares. He long left Ehlers in the dust as his comparable. I can't really complain too much. That one play where he pulled up was pretty inconsequential but the optics were terrible.
Nothing suggests he caved though, that was reportedly his offer the whole time and it sounds like he stood firmer than most GMs who havent taken it to that point.
If Willie was asking for even more, than he was even more in need of an attitude adjustment that sitting out the year might have helped him obtain.
Im not suggesting Nylander was reasonable at that time, but everything suggests the Leafs were willing to lose him that year if he didnt come down to their offer at the last minute.
You don’t pay non core guys 11 million.
Do you think Kadri’s playoff suspension factored into the decision to pick him as the trade bait?
It was a bad trade because we didn’t get what we needed long term.
I suppose he was core that first year he played for Toronto. He surprised me how well he played. I've never been a fan of his, but he was probably the best player on the team that year. I personally would never pay that much for a guy that skates as bad as he does. It's an absolute requirement for me that you're a good skater to be considered for that kind of money.
The number he settled for was more than he was worth, especially given the time missed. Willie agreeing to be overpaid instead of stupid overpaid was still a win for him although calling it a cave for Dubas at that point doesn't feel quite right. They had just traded for JT so were expecting a Cup run that year. Is possibly losing a year out of your window over $1M good business? I know current Dubas would have had a different approach, just not sure if anything other than trading the prick before the season started would have worked.
I think he was overpaid for the cap hit signed, my benchmark was 6.5, but thats a different topic than whether our GM caved or not.
I know hindsight is 20/20, but many people said a few years ago move Nylander for a solid D.
Therefore, Dubas is included in the arse kissing group.
