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First 10 Games: HF Leafs' Impressions

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What Grade would you give the Leafs season so far?

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  • Poll closed .
In their own end they seem to send the puck to an area expecting somebody to be there, Good example was last game when JT made a behind the back pass to the front of the Leafs net. Great when it works, but risking a good scoring chance against when it does not.
 
Their defence is much improved.
Andersen has been decent recently with none of his usual softies given up.
However, right now they are a one line team, or perhaps more accurately, two thirds of a line team.
No contribution from their left wingers and ZERO five on five goals from Tavares.
 
I very proudly hold the single A+ in this poll. I’m winning.
Seriously though when they play .750 hockey any time they are getting that A+ every time. Doing it in that condensed timeframe I’m inclined to boom it up some.

A++ :)
Thanks and be well
 
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Wafflewhipper said:
I very proudly hold the single A+ in this poll. I’m winning.
Seriously though when they play .750 hockey any time they are getting that A+ every time. Doing it in that condensed timeframe I’m inclined to boom it up some.

A++ :)
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Reminds me of the HR lady at work who sends out emails like "Good work Jared" when the rest of the team knows Jared did a pretty bad job and almost lost us the account lol.

She also signs her emails with "Thanks and be well" in italics.
 
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Here are the 2nd 5 game stretch stats among teams who played 4 games this time frame.
Record: 4-0-1

5 on 5
CF/60: 45.98(21st out of 26th)
CA/60: 58.1(19th out of 26th)
CF%: 44.18(24th out of 26th)

SCF/60: 23.98(13th out of 26th)
SCA/60: 28.18(22nd out of 26th)

HDCF/60: 10.14(11th out of 26th)
HDCA/60: 14.09(24th out of 26th)

xGF/60: 2.07(15th out of 26th)
xGA/60: 2.87(24th out of 26th)

SH%: 9.52(8th out of 28th)
SV%: .941(7th out of 28th)

So our offensive numbers weren't as bad as expected, but clearly way below where we should be. The regression came defensively so this needs to pick up. Hooefully with rest and more practice time gets us back to where need to be. Our 5 vs 5 play was clearly lacking and was covered up by good goaltending and shooting.


5 on 4 PP
CF/60: 102.43(9th out of 26th)
SCF/60: 78.33(1st out of 26th)
HDCF/60: 36.15(1st out of 26th)
xGF/60: 9.28(1st out of 26th)

SH%: 25.93(3rd out of 26th)

Our PP has been just fantastic. This is the 2nd stretch in a row where our PP has been great by almost every measure. Our SH% isn't by accident. When you set up this many chances, you should score a high amount. The split strategy is working at least for now.

4 on 5 PK
CA/60: 71.76(3rd out of 26th)
SCA/60: 55.02(21st out of 26th)
HDCA/60: 23.92(19th out of 26th)
xGA/60: 5.19(5th out of 26th)

SV%: 76.42(22nd out of 26th)

Reflection of our 5 vs 5 play defensively. Our shot quality is okay, but quality was too high all though not as bad as our 5 on 5 numbers. Needed better goaltending on the PK as well.
 
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I gave them a C.

I know I know our record. But haven't liked the way they have played at 5v5 as well as performed.

I've always been a fan of 5v5 over PP play. It's great their PP is at like 40% but that will come down and if 5v5 play is still crap they will drop like crazy.

That's why I've been so happy about them getting this break to work on plays and strategies at 5v5. Experiment diff lines.

Seeing them defend the 1 goal leads, and win those types has been a pleasant surprise.

A lot of our players can step it up, I hope to see it here starting Thursday.
 
zeke said:
What's funny is that this is true for us but untrue for van/edm/cgy - as the North division is better than the Pacific division was.
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Yeah I haven't looked closely at other teams but I've said it before - it's possible (no, change that to probable) that no team benefits more from this divisional realignment than we do. Based on last years finish by PTS%, our divisional opponents were 12, 17, 19, 20, 24 and 30. Compared to having TB and Boston in our division, this is like winning the lottery. And having the first two PO rounds within our division is a very tasty cherry on top of the cake.

It's highly likely that it's only going to be like this for one season so this is literally the chance of a lifetime and will never happen again. Unfortunately, the way we've been playing it doesn't look exactly like we're poised to pounce on this opportunity. Still a long way to go and I like our roster on paper so I'm not too worried (yet) but people giving them top marks at this point are setting the bar much lower then I am, that's for sure.
 
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Critical91 said:
If this is a B+, what is an A?

xGF%: 24th
xGA/60: 25th
Scoring Chances Against/60: 19th
High Danger Chances Against/60: 27th

We are being buoyed by the power play. Like I said, if our PP goes cold, we will start losing games hand over fist unless something major changes in our 5v5 play.

We mock Edmonton for being bad defensively, they are 10+ spots ahead of us in some of these categories...
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I can just as easily say that if our 5v5 goes hot, we'll start winning games harder, so dismissing a hot powerplay isn't enough to diminish a 7-2-1 start for me.
 
Machinae said:
I can just as easily say that if our 5v5 goes hot, we'll start winning games harder, so dismissing a hot powerplay isn't enough to diminish a 7-2-1 start for me.
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no you can't. It's pretty much a sure thing that the PP won't be over 40% all year. It's not a sure thing that the Leafs will magically get better at 5v5 and on the penalty kill
 
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I just wish that they could at least win the games that they are expected to win. Even though this is a completely changed roster with great players, coach and Management, but they are still as reliable as Ron Wilsons or Randy Carlysle teams were when it come to wining a game against a team that is much weaker and just played the night before while the Leafs are well rested. Good example is losing to the Sens (the Sens only win of the season).

Another example is that there is no reason at all that they shouldn't be able to dominate the Canucks, at least in the first game cause the Canucks will be coming off a B2B against the Habs today and tomorrow and 13 games in 22 days. With the Leafs well rested, this should be a no-brainer but since the Pat Quinn days as coach, no Leaf team has given me that confidence yet for what should be an easy win.
 
Honestly, we can be much better. I think matthews has like 5 other levels that he can reach. Marner is kind of where he is but he can be better. He just racks up points even though he wasnt great. Willy shows flashes but can be much better. Rielly has been borderline bad. Andersen went from bad to great so far. JT has been better than I thought but around where you expect.

Our team can be MUCH better. Especially matthews. I expect mcdavid/mackinnon level from him and he has shown he can do that.
 
B.
I'm glad they are in such a weak division.
Yes, they seem to have another gear - but the other teams as well.
 
CantLoseWithMatthews said:
no you can't. It's pretty much a sure thing that the PP won't be over 40% all year. It's not a sure thing that the Leafs will magically get better at 5v5 and on the penalty kill
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Yes you can. The team played 10 games in 18 nights and looked gassed at the end of games. And whose to say the PP isn't gonna continue at this pace with two number 1 lines? Unprecedented stuff, really. The PP looks dominant and you want to argue it won't last, but the Leafs are not dominant at 5v5 and you're also arguing they can't improve there..
 
Machinae said:
Yes you can. The team played 10 games in 18 nights and looked gassed at the end of games. And whose to say the PP isn't gonna continue at this pace with two number 1 lines? Unprecedented stuff, really. The PP looks dominant and you want to argue it won't last, but the Leafs are not dominant at 5v5 and you're also arguing they can't improve there..
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Honestly he is right. 40% won't last, but our PP is #1 in many metrics, so it should be elite still
 
Nice having 2 potent PP units rather that one potent and one impotent unit. Kudos to the Leaf coaching staff and especially to the one who took over for McFarlane.
 
Vaive50 said:
I just wish that they could at least win the games that they are expected to win. Even though this is a completely changed roster with great players, coach and Management, but they are still as reliable as Ron Wilsons or Randy Carlysle teams were when it come to wining a game against a team that is much weaker and just played the night before while the Leafs are well rested. Good example is losing to the Sens (the Sens only win of the season).

Another example is that there is no reason at all that they shouldn't be able to dominate the Canucks, at least in the first game cause the Canucks will be coming off a B2B against the Habs today and tomorrow and 13 games in 22 days. With the Leafs well rested, this should be a no-brainer but since the Pat Quinn days as coach, no Leaf team has given me that confidence yet for what should be an easy win.
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You can't dwell on that game all season. Since then we beat the Sens, we beat the Jets and the Flams and the Oils. At some point you have to scratch that loss to it being a bad game.
 
LeafsNation75 said:
It was Manny Malhotra who replaced McFarlane is now in charge of the Leafs power play.
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Last year they had marner on the left side wall passing to Matthews for a one timer.
This year he is back to the right side wall where he is more comfortable and making incredible plays.

Freddy is our weakest link. .895 average won’t cut it in this league
 
I used to think preseason went on too long, but this year has really proven that idea long.

The team, like many others so far, has been uneven but I think an awful lot of it comes from thr lack of a proper warmup to the real thing - especially for the multiple new faces to the team. That rustiness will go away with time.

The other issues like lacking 5v5 scoring also won't last.

I'm feeling pretty good about things overall
 
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I gave them a B. Team has been playing well overall but there is definitely room for improvement. We're too hot and cold at times. Not as many constantly good games as you'd like to see.
 
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It's crazy to me that in the off-season when the rumours started, I was like "it'd be cool to see Thornton in a Leafs jersey" as the kid in me remembering what a dominant player he has been throughout his career. But thinking "I don't really see the point of it at this stage of the game". And now when I heard he was skating today, I was genuinely excited. I kinda sorta miss him on that top line?lol is it just me?
 
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