Pre-Game Talk: Game 7: last chance for the core

[egd27]

Hey, I have an idea for Game 7.....let's put Nylander on with 34 & 16 so Montreal only has one line to focus on shutting down.

 

[Racer88]

There are no excuses for Matthews and Marner poor performance this series. They took the F’n money and they need to earn it

 

[Jimmy Firecracker]

I think Dom Luszczyszyn tweeted about it but I can't find it now, but it's something like the Leafs had a .4 percent chance of losing 5 straight opening playoff rounds.

It’s actually 1.4%



Of f***ing course this would be the franchise to pull this off and this would be the universe I live in where this would be a reality.



Jesus f***.

 

[egd27]

Despite all the hot take we've seen here, I think it's not a foregone conclusion that tomorrow is a loss.

I agree, but will even a convincing win make you feel much better about this team?

 

[KaberLeaf]

Sadly if we lose game 7 I dont see any changes happening.

It is a love fest from the president to the GM to the coach and to the players.

No one is going anywhere.

We might switch out the fourth line for other scrubs who make the league minimum. That's about it.

The excuse will be that we were missing Tavares

 

[Westlander]

Kessel always produced in playoffs.

As for shutting down our top line, you pay them the money they make to be good enough to avoid that.

Exactly, great that they’re not bring scored on but they’re not paid to be the second coming of Bill Berg and Peter Zezel (RIP). They demanded and got compensation appropriate to the absolute best players in the game today. Time to just get it done (how many times have we said that now?)

 

[IrishInOntario]

Kessel was terrific in the one playoff series he played with us. I had no problem with him. Marner and Matthews have been very ordinary. You're saying that 2 guys that are making around 22M are not prime time players and they need someone else to insulate them? That's a big f***ing problem. They are supposed to be our Crosby and Malkin.

The guy is missing the point, completely. Kessel couldn't get it done in a starring role. They shipped him to Pittsburgh, where he got to be a support player to Crosby, Malkin and Letang, and he he flourished.

Is his suggestion that we need to add a prime Crosby, Malkin and Letang to our lineup, so that Matthews and Marner can be relegated to support roles, taking the pressure off them, so they can produce in the playoffs?

Maybe Edmonton with trade us McDavid, Florida will trade us Barkov and Colorado will trade us Makar, so that poor Auston and Mitch don't have to be "the guys".

Matthews-McDavid-Marner
Tavares-Barkov-Nylander

Letang / Brodie
Reilly / Muzzin

Maybe that would be enough in his mind?

 

[3blizzard4]

What makes this so hard to swallow is that 100% Montreal isn’t beating us. We are beating ourselves with no shows and fashion walk lazies.

the only guy in our top 6 to show up is Nylander. You can’t have that.

That’s what makes this so frustrating to watch.

 

[pcruz]

This is such a bad take lol.

First of all, Mitch Marner has two delay of game penalties alone in this series. One of them was on the penalty kill mind you, but what other "elite" players have done that fot their team so far in the playoffs?

Secondly, your Kessel comparison is a head scratcher. There is no lesson to be learned from Kessel. Phil was shipped out of town and went to play with elite players in Crosby, Malkin and Letang, who had already won Stanley Cups. He got to be a support player on that team, rather than "the guy" and he thrived in an environment where the pressure wasn't on him. That has nothing to do with Matthews and Marner, unless your suggestion is that Toronto needs to add prime Crosby and Malkin, so that 34 and 16 can become support players to take the pressure off them?

Next you go to the loss of center depth with Tavares being out. Need I remind you that despite thr loss of Tavares, the Nylander-Galchenyuk-Kerfoot line has been the most productive Leafs line in the series? So there, again, your point falls apart. That line has played plenty well enough and produced well enough, for Toronto to win the series. As has Spezza's line, which has chipped in as well. It rests on the top line, playing 25-30 minutes per night, doing absolutely nothing of note, offensively.

Finally, this notion that 34-16-11 aren't scoring because they're being targeted, is laughable. You don't think Florida's goal was to shut down the Kucherov line? You don't think Washington and New York's goal was / is to shut down the Perfection line? You don't think people game plan to shutdown the Mackinnon line?... They do. Guess what? They score anyways because they're simply better than the guys trying to shut them down.

You're talking about people acting like your children, but yours is one of the childish takes I've read yet.

The lesson to learn from the Kessel haters is the same regarding Maryland Matthews.

While people like Trapper might now claim they never were naysayers, it's just not true.

Those claiming that Matthews and Marner are no good in the playoffs are falling into the same hyperbole hole that some people fell into with Phil.

Marner has the delay of game penalties. Not the first line. One of those was given up on the penalty kill with no pressure around him. The other was also a play of little pressure.

Matthews has been on the ice for 1 goal against - a short handed goal resulted from a horrible giveaway. In 6 games.

If every player had only been on the ice for no more than 1 goal against, this team would already be playing Winnipeg.
I mean, Matthews plays 25 minutes a night and doesn't give up more than 2 scoring chances, 0 goals, generates 5+ scoring chances for.
If every line did the same, this is a sweep.

The Habs have scored on the following plays: rushes after giveaways, scramble plays in front of the net, 2 man advantage.

They haven't created a goal for themselves by outplaying the Leafs, instead, they have played full on defense and pounced on breakdowns.

Last night, the shots were 15 in the first period and 16 for the rest of the game. Thats almost 3 full periods with 16 total shots. Hell, they went 45 full minutes with no shots at all.

 

[mikerooooose]

Marner has had to go for a long time. You would be better off with a few more talented 3rd, 4th liners than him on the 1st line.

 

[egd27]

I rarely make fantasy line ups but the Habs have shut down 34 & 16 so let's spread it out

Hyman- Matthews - Foligno
Gally - Kerfoot -Nylander
Spezza - Brooks - Marner
Mikheyev - Engvall - Simmons

 

[Gary Nylund]

Only one regulation time loss in the last 6 games, Leafs on a roll baby!

 

[pcruz]

The guy is missing the point, completely. Kessel couldn't get it done in a starring role. They shipped him to Pittsburgh, where he got to be a support player to Crosby, Malkin and Letang, and he he flourished.

Is his suggestion that we need to add a prime Crosby, Malkin and Letang to our lineup, so that Matthews and Marner can be relegated to support roles, taking the pressure off them, so they can produce in the playoffs?

Maybe Edmonton with trade us McDavid, Florida will trade us Barkov and Colorado will trade us Makar, so that poor Auston and Mitch don't have to be "the guys".

Matthews-McDavid-Marner
Tavares-Barkov-Nylander

Letang / Brodie
Reilly / Muzzin

Maybe that would be enough in his mind?

No, my point is that you and others here trashed Phil for being all kinds of things.

And then he went on to win 2 cups in a starring role.

And now you're doing the same to Marner and Matthews.

It mean, that's what I wrote.

Exactly what I wrote.

If you guys could take this frothing hatred down a notch, you'd be able to read it.

Leafs fans have a thing for blindly hating their superstars.
And then bemoan the lack of stars on the team while feeling a sense of reverence for those same stars they ran out of town.

 

[IrishInOntario]

What makes this so hard to swallow is that 100% Montreal isn’t beating us. We are beating ourselves with no shows and fashion walk lazies.

the only guy in our top 6 to show up is Nylander. You can’t have that.

That’s what makes this so frustrating to watch.

I understand your point, but I actually disagree. I do credit Montreal because they're forcing the series to be played their way. Price has been playoff Price. They're playing a structured, defensive game and they're capitalizing, at a very high level when Toronto makes thr inevitable giveaways that happen in a series. Both the OT winners were Montreal capitalizing at a high level, when a Leafs player made a mistake. Even their first two goals last night were examples of the Habs taking advantage of the Leafs taking penalties and their opponent taking immediate advantage, in a razor tight game.

Montreal has simply been more clutch in this series. They're forcing Toronto to play near perfect and when they dont, they have capitalized, forcing a Game 7.

 

[pcruz]

I rarely make fantasy line ups but the Habs have shut down 34 & 16 so let's spread it out

Hyman- Matthews - Foligno
Gally - Kerfoot -Nylander
Spezza - Brooks - Marner
Mikheyev - Engvall - Simmons

That's a great idea.

Break up the Marner-Matthews connection.
The Labs have given Marner no respect at all with Matthews, maybe if he's on a different line, they have to show a little more.

I would start by swapping 88 and 16 myself. And if that doesn't work, go to 3 lines for a period.

Just do something ffs.

 

[tom leafers]

I rarely make fantasy line ups but the Habs have shut down 34 & 16 so let's spread it out

Hyman- Matthews - Foligno
Gally - Kerfoot -Nylander
Spezza - Brooks - Marner
Mikheyev - Engvall - Simmons

I am absolutely in favour of taking marner off the top line and putting him on the 3rd line.

I would do this however:

foligno-matthews-Nylander
Gally-kerfoot-marner

nylander and matthews have proven chemistry and nylander is an actual threat to shoot the god dam puck. Unlike marner who either drifts into into the goalie trying to dangle, or rips a muffin straight into prices logo

 

[Gary Nylund]

Those claiming that Matthews and Marner are no good in the playoffs are falling into the same hyperbole hole that some people fell into with Phil.

Marner has the delay of game penalties. Not the first line. One of those was given up on the penalty kill with no pressure around him. The other was also a play of little pressure.

Matthews has been on the ice for 1 goal against - a short handed goal resulted from a horrible giveaway. In 6 games.

If every player had only been on the ice for no more than 1 goal against, this team would already be playing Winnipeg.
I mean, Matthews plays 25 minutes a night and doesn't give up more than 2 scoring chances, 0 goals, generates 5+ scoring chances for.
If every line did the same, this is a sweep.

Yeah Matthews has actually been pretty great, not getting the breaks but the guy's playing like a star. Marner though, there's just no excuse for his brain farts.

 

[TheGroceryStick]

We've battled back only to lose.
There's only 1 thing left to do:
Take a sizable lead and squander it ..... make us proud boys woo

Who cares if I get fired, if I'm Keefe I go.

Hyman - Matthews - Nylander
Brooks - Spezza - Mikhayev
Foligno - Kerfoot - Marner
Simmonds - Nash - Engvall

Rielly - Brodie
Sandin - Bogosian
Hutton - Holl

 

[Coachcorner]

I rarely make fantasy line ups but the Habs have shut down 34 & 16 so let's spread it out

Hyman- Matthews - Foligno
Gally - Kerfoot -Nylander
Spezza - Brooks - Marner
Mikheyev - Engvall - Simmons

Think keefe or any head coach would sit joe thornton (last chance to win a cup) for a game seven. Not happenin milord. A guy, who plays for the first pp unit for keefe and malhotra... not a chance.

Other than that, I like the idea of spredding the suckas down sire. Hell, I might play spezza with matthews and Marner/nylander. Foligno is playing injured. Muzzin might play after taking a shot/needle, but lets see. He our key guy too. But yeah, combine the same guys with thornton, and you'll get it right milord.

We WILL WIN GAME 7 NONE THE LESS!

 

[Suntouchable13]

Play with 5 D, it can be done. Use Sandin on the PP only.

 

[Coachcorner]

The guy is missing the point, completely. Kessel couldn't get it done in a starring role. They shipped him to Pittsburgh, where he got to be a support player to Crosby, Malkin and Letang, and he he flourished.

Is his suggestion that we need to add a prime Crosby, Malkin and Letang to our lineup, so that Matthews and Marner can be relegated to support roles, taking the pressure off them, so they can produce in the playoffs?

Maybe Edmonton with trade us McDavid, Florida will trade us Barkov and Colorado will trade us Makar, so that poor Auston and Mitch don't have to be "the guys".

Matthews-McDavid-Marner
Tavares-Barkov-Nylander

Letang / Brodie
Reilly / Muzzin

Maybe that would be enough in his mind?

We also need our captain tavares back so hard sire............ we NEED him on the second round. That we all see clearly now. What a warrior he is. He'll take some cool pressure off marner and matthews.

Nylander's been pretty clutch these playoffs. I like it.

Lets see if muzzin plays with a needle.

 

[All Mod Cons]

Hopefully we start with moving Marner. He's taking the piss out of the organization. Fire Dubas as well. Move everyone not named Hyman, Matthews, Nylander, Brodie or Reilly

 

[1specter]

It’s actually 1.4%



Of faking course this would be the franchise to pull this off and this would be the universe I live in where this would be a reality.



Jesus f***.

We've truly innovated losing.

 

[HammertownHockey]

Play Nylander and Matthew's together. Take marner off the line. He's been useless the entire series.

 

[ULF_55]

Leafs are losing because 1st. line isn't producing.

That's it.