Player Discussion Elias Lindholm

[DKH]

Totally agree. But for him to find true success, I really believe his is paid and slotted as a contenders 2nd line C.

Absolutely

He’s legit 2C

That face -off leading to Peeke goal was money

 

[Coach Parker]

Absolutely

He’s legit 2C

That face -off leading to Peeke goal was money

Quietly, he has improved the faceoff situation in key moments. He will continue to improve.

I'd actually love a deep dive into where and how he scores his goals. Are they 'playoff' style goals that are hard to come by, while Frederic (this is purely an example) is getting a 2 on 1 from the blue line for his goal which is a lot harder to come by?

Is he simply the 'correction' in the sense that when we say 'goals are harder to come by in the playoffs' we see the huge drop off of Zacha's goal production because he scores 'regular season goals'?

People often speak of Marner in these terms. How he scores (or in the past) in the regular season when the Leafs were up by a couple of goals, the pressure was off, or the opponent was inferior.

Suddenly, the Leafs media machine fires up the first round, they face a playoff top calibre team with a strong defensive system (strong enough to make the playoffs) and goals dry up.

BUT, Lindholm continues to score tips and rebounds down in front or drives to the net and takes a hit but brings the opposition D with him into the low slot (creating a screen and traffic in front) and his numbers remain the same.

Will this happen again? We talk about a players game 'translating' to playoff hockey. There's a reason why half of Vancouver would rather keep Miller over Pettersson because one of them showed up last playoffs while the other didn't.

I was at centre ice for the comeback game vs. Edmonton. The name J.T. Miller was screamed and applauded over and over that night.

This is a long explanation as to why I believe the best of Lindholm's game may be on display right now, but it becomes a valuable asset and key role when the rules change in the playoffs.