Sportsnet: JD Bunkis 590 "The days of Nick Robertson being a Maple Leaf are numbered"

[DarkKnight]

God forbid we keep the guy with heart and a motor over vanilla cap eaters. I play him every night, maximize his development for the playoffs, maybe he can contribute.

 

[Leaf Fans]

Our media here is just so cringe. They just can't help themselves. We have no cap space and need good young players on their ELCs. We can't rely on $1m bargin signings ever year to fill out the roster, because we need a warm body.

They need something to feed the demand, so they say hollow phrases and let people run with it it when in reality they used a few words that suggest, but don't actually day anything.

 

[Ianturnedbull]

The difference is really fantasy on the part of a shock talking head on the fan and a known S^&t disturber on this board.

Could the Leafs be taking calls (on all players) ? Sure, I would expect them to. Always looking to make the team better and if an opportunity opens up to make the team better, take advantage, regardless of the player traded.

Do I expect that Robertson will be traded? No, especially when a spot opened up for him in the top 6.

I would argue that Jarnkrok is not meant to play in the top 6 full time. So the spot isn't there for either player. At least not yet.

It's just an opinion though. Maybe Dubas/Keefe want this going forward:

Jarnkrok Matthews Nylander
Robertson Tavares Marner

If I were to bet on this as my top 6 to go deep in the playoffs I would likely lose.

 

[ACC1224]

As opposed to Knies in which they aren't taking calls..

This would be more interesting if they were ‘making calls’ instead of ’taking calls’ which just sounds overly dramatic

 

[Ianturnedbull]

They need something to feed the demand, so they say hollow phrases and let people run with it it when in reality they used a few words that suggest, but don't actually day anything.

What does "days are numbered" mean to you? Hardly a "hollow" phrase to me.

This would be more interesting if they were ‘making calls’ instead of ’taking calls’ which just sounds overly dramatic

It's another buzz phrase.

I see it as "open to the idea of trading" Robertson.

 

[ACC1224]

What does "days are numbered" mean to you? Hardly a "hollow" phrase to me.


It's another buzz phrase.

I see it as "open to the idea of trading" Robertson.

Hardly ground breaking, why wouldn’t they be.

 

[Leaf Fans]

What does "days are numbered" mean to you? Hardly a "hollow" phrase to me.


It's another buzz phrase.

I see it as "open to the idea of trading" Robertson.

It has no substance. It is hallow. The Leafs would be open to trading anyone if they believed they would be a better team afterwards.

 

[LEAFANFORLIFE23]

As he should be available this team is in win now mode.If he can be part of a package for an upgrade then you do it.

 

[kevsh]

think we are getting to a point where, if they can’t find a spot for him, they know it’s probably time for him to go somewhere else.

Makes perfect sense.

Others apparently see more potential in Nick than I do (and perhaps more than the Leafs do), so if there's a GM out there willing to give him a long, honest look in a top 6 role and the return makes sense for the Leafs, Dubas should absolutely do it.

From what I've seen, Nick has a great shot, he's tenacious, he clearly is adapting but there's way too much work to do to round out his game, and though it's not all on him (Covid hurt a lot of player's development for one) he does not look like he's close to being a top 6 talent anytime soon, and outside of more injuries he's not likely to get more opportunity here.

 

[The Hanging Jowl]

I was going to post that the Leafs seem to have a long history of giving up on young wingers then I realized that what I really mean is the Leafs have a long history of giving up on young wingers that go somewhere else and don't really amount to much.

 

[On-the-Fly]

This management group has a history of doing right by the player, no? If Friedman is right, and they are reaching a point where they can't find 89 the right fit, it isn't hard to see them wanting to give him a chance elsewhere.

I guess there is some honor in that, as long they're not short on the return.

I'm not so sure I agree with JD on the fact that 89 can't change his status regardless of how he does with 19 out. What if this kid goes absolutely lights out with this opportunity?

 

[Tlo1]

Robertson makes one mistake in a game he sits the next 3 meanwhile Kerfoot makes multiple mistakes and never misses a shift.

 

[francis246]

As opposed to Knies in which they aren't taking calls..

When it comes to Knies I have this weird feeling. I don’t get a sense of where his head is at. Is he going to sign or is he going to want a trade? It’s a sickening feeling because he is everything we need. I’m hoping he pulls a Jake Sanderson and finally decides to sign. Hopefully they pull out all the stops for him

 

[Ianturnedbull]

Hardly ground breaking, why wouldn’t they be.

I'm more into the idea of Robertson's days being numbered as opposed to Friedman saying that teams' GMs answer their phones. The title of the thread is a lead-in to the main point. Nothing is groundbreaking.

Robertson makes one mistake in a game he sits the next 3 meanwhile Kerfoot makes multiple mistakes and never misses a shift.

Agreed. Thank goodness he can kill penalties. Is Robertson a solid penalty killer?

 

[Oscar Peterson]

When it comes to Knies I have this weird feeling. I don’t get a sense of where his head is at. Is he going to sign or is he going to want a trade? It’s a sickening feeling because he is everything we need. I’m hoping he pulls a Jake Sanderson and finally decides to sign. Hopefully they pull out all the stops for him

Why wouldn’t he want to sign?? He was ecstatic to get drafted by the Leafs, Matthews is his idol as a fellow Arizona player, and he knows he’d have an inside track at a top 6 LW job as that’s our biggest need.

Only reason he didn’t sign at the end of last year was because he thought he needed another year of development… which is actually pretty mature of him.

 

[Face Of Bear]

lol if we trade Robertson that's gonna be a huge L that we regret for 10+ years.

 

[Oscar Peterson]

I've always had Robertson ranked below Amirov and Knies, I don't think I'm as impressed with his play as most around here seem to be, but that being said he has actually been making some good stretch passes and obviously has a good shot even if he's too trigger happy right now, He certainly has potential so I hope we don't give up on him too soon. But I'm not surprised to see him so in and out of the lineup with how he's looked this year.

 

[francis246]

Why wouldn’t he want to sign?? He was ecstatic to get drafted by the Leafs, Matthews is his idol as a fellow Arizona player, and he knows he’d have an inside track at a top 6 LW job as that’s our biggest need.

Only reason he didn’t sign at the end of last year was because he thought he needed another year of development… which is actually pretty mature of him.

I didn’t say he doesn’t want to, but there’s always a risk with NCAA players. The current agreement gives them a lot more control. They can dictate their futures much more than a CHL player. So there’s always an uneasiness or uncertainty with them.

So many instances where it’s happened, Adam Fox for example, Jimmy Vesey

And the leafs have also benefited from it with Zach Hyman.

We’ve also been on the wrong side of it before with Dominic Toninanto and Dakota Joshua, luckily the latter two haven’t had a huge impact in the NHL thus far.

lol if we trade Robertson that's gonna be a huge L that we regret for 10+ years.

Is it? If we can include Robertson in a deal to get Bo Horvat is that an L? If he helps us win multiple rounds and even potentially a Stanley Cup?

 

[keonsbitterness]

JD Roberts > JD Bunkis

Back in the day we called him VD Roberts.

I doubt the Leafs actively want to move Robertson, but I could see him being included in a trade deadline deal.

 

[Doublerum1975]

I honestly don’t think he’s getting traded he’s getting the lily treatment and how did that development work for us?

 

[Darcy Tucker]

San Jose receives:

Robertson , Engvall, Sandin, Kerfoot 3rd Rd pick.

Toronto receives:

Erik Karlsson , Timo Meier , 2nd Rd pick.

T4

 

[Stephen]

God forbid we keep the guy with heart and a motor over vanilla cap eaters. I play him every night, maximize his development for the playoffs, maybe he can contribute.

Couple of things.

I completely agree with you that the Leafs need to commit to Robertson and give him 10-20 games to really find his bearing. Yeah, you want cheap ELC production out of the box but there's a developmental responsibility that is not happening here.

Second, I also understand why the coaching staff thinks that Robertson can be borderline unplayable. There was a 30 second sequence vs San Jose where he toe drags a defenseman, wrists one that misses going in by a couple of inches. Then he inexplicably is covering the point and whilst doing so tries a Marian Hossa style upper cut swing at the puck, puck goes the other way and he fails to contain his guy and get body positioning at the Leaf crease. That's all the risk and reward for him right there.

Third, he may or may not be headed out of town, you'll notice it's basically the Sportsnet crowd pushing this idea.

 

[the squared circle]

Back in the day we called him VD Roberts.

Hahaha

 

[Sypher04]

Robertson isn’t complaining but being upset is not only reasonable, but desirable. It’d be a major red flag if he was satisfied with his usage so far

 

[thewave]

Maybe we can just jerk him around for a while and then create a player with a real chip on his shoulder like Kadri. I mean once he becomes viable, then we can trade him for nothing but not now.