I don't think anyone ever questioned Kadri's passion for being a Leaf... it was his inability to keep his game in check when the emotions got high. You can't hit Tommy Wingels when he's on his knees, facing the boards.... and you cannot cross check a guy in the face, especially not if you're Nazem Kadri with a long list of disciplinary action.
Yeah, it was a stupid trade, but you look at just how good that Leafs team was the year they had Tavares (47 goals), Matthews and Kadri up the middle.... the matchup problems that trio created for Boston... and how neutered the lineup became after the suspension, and you can't really blame them for deciding it was time to move on.
Except you can, other players do stuff like this and face no repercussions for said behaviour.
This is what I mean that a bunch of folks here don't seem to get, when they blame it all on Kadri saying that he was just a selfish player or an undisciplined hothead etc. Bennett, Marchand, Wilson etc have done some really egregious things that have been just as bad if not worse, and have received far less punishment in return. The league's lack of consistency with these things created an imbalance and it seemed like Kadri got targeted more, perhaps because he was also a Leaf on the biggest stage with the most attention, and in general what seems to be Parros' dislike for this team.
What made Naz unique was that he played with passion and intensity, and that was what gave him an edge and made him an invaluable player. He towed that line, but everyone wants a guy like that on their team. What really 'neutered' the team in the end was removing a cost controlled piece who was beloved in the room and had that extra edge, and not only did the Leafs lose that element but in the process Dubas also ripped out a key leader of the team and a heart and soul guy and brought in another soft, defensively weak guy on an expiring deal as the primary piece coming back.
Well, this thread is going about how I figured...
What I would say is that this whole Kadri hurt the team thing, while not incorrect, seemingly fails to acknowledge that no one else had the balls to do anything against Boston, so instead of playing tough as a team, it just manifested as an explosive and bad hit made out of frustration in 2018.
The fact that management didn't realize this address was another mark against them for failing to realize the causality of the first event.
Yup, this is exactly what I'm trying to convey. Do I wish Naz had just dropped the gloves instead? Yes, but it seemed like out of our star / impact players, the onus was always on him to be the sparkplug and guy who asserted physicality. The only other one who would step in at times would be Morgan Rielly. The culture here has been embarrassing and it was propagated by management and coaching. They tell the team to 'play clean' and not get penalized, but when they realized this approach made them too soft, they then wanted them to mix it up more and get more physically involved, and tried to do this by bringing in replacement level bruisers to round out the edges of the roster with Simmonds, Clifford etc or making deadline acquisitions like Foligno who weren't part of the team's nucleus. But then you watch in scrums where Matthews, Marner, Nylander, JT don't stand up for themselves or just show a spine. I am not asking these guys to fight or even be a dirty thug like Marchand, but simply just show some f***ing backbone. Stamkos / Kuch / Point weren't afraid to get involved or be agitating despite their smaller size and being branded as skilled players. Ovi, Sid, MacK etc as well learned to fight back and not shy away from the physicality of the game. It is important to establish that identity and show that you won't get pushed around easily, every single team that has won has pretty much had this element. You don't need to be goons or fighters, just play with some god damn pride.
People blamed Kadri, demanded he be traded etc, then they clamor for the exact same qualities and type of player he was later on when they saw how gutless this group was.