Jumbo Joe is a point per game player appreciation thread

[Mickey Marner]

In Leafs 100 history Joe Thornton is the oldest Leaf player to ever dress for a game and record a point.

Oldest skater. Johnny Bower recorded an assist on his 43rd birthday!

Johnny Bower 1967-68 Scoring Log | Hockey-Reference.com

Edit. It also appears Allan Stanley, who scored the goal Bower assisted on, was also older than Thornton. Bizzare coincidence.

 

[Stephen]

Ultimately, I'm still not sold on the idea that he should be on that line. It's a mix and match situation where sometimes Thornton will make more sense, but there will be times when Hyman is the better option.

Or, if we are getting truly line mix crazy, I don't think we've seen a lot of Tavares at LW, Matthews at C as a combo, so maybe there could be an experiment where that works and Thornton is bumped to a line to center Nylander. Or something.

 

[Muston Atthews]

He needs to gain symmetry on his line and the PP. notice he’s missing some passes by expecting guys to be in spots they’re not

 

[Notsince67]

I my end it wasn't hate.
I just think it is a waste having Hyman playing in the 3rd line.
He does things that Joe didn't .
Drinking to the net his work in the corners and along the wall are incredible.
Joe would even be better in the third line with less minutes.

I really like hyman. He has a great motor and work ethic. That said, 80% of his contribution could be done without a stick. His hand are kind of made of stone and would prefer someone with better hands to gell on that line.

 

[Notsince67]

The critiques of Thornton have been a bit overblown.

Hes been slow (which we new was the case before the signing). But he's not a liability on the ice and usually makes 2-3 pretty good set up attempts every game.

Id like to see him get some shifts with Kerfoot and Soup

He has a really good puck possession history and there is some tremendous upside if that line can find good chemistry.

 

[Cap'n Flavour]

i don't have problem with joe. many leaf fans need to stop expecting EA Sports line construction.

I don't know what exactly what you mean by EA Sports line construction but Thornton-Matthews-Marner seems to match my interpretation of that phrase pretty well.

 

[Gabriel426]

So far-3 games. Jumbo on the top line is okay. I don’t think his lacks of speed is hurting AM and Marner, if anything, Jumbo’s speed is teaching AM and Marner that you can be effective even at a slower pace. Jumbo thinks the game better than both of them and once AM and Marner realize that, this line could be scary.

 

[horner]

I really like hyman. He has a great motor and work ethic. That said, 80% of his contribution could be done without a stick. His hand are kind of made of stone and would prefer someone with better hands to gell on that line.

21 goals last I think.

Over 82 games
33 goals
60 pts

I would say stone hand.

Every season he has gotten better.

 

[The90]

I'm not saying itll happen but... imagine in a shortened season at his age he puts up 40 plus points and at that price ... thatd be one of the better signings in years for most teams.

It could be big time wishful thinking and way to early to say but still... be cool to see.

He was on pace for 36 last year if he played 82. And riding shotgun with marner and Matthews. Doesn’t seem very improbable does it

 

[Stephen]

Thornton looks really good in the Blue and White. Feels like it ought to have happened a lot sooner than it did.

 

[Critical13]

Why are people so insistent on getting Hyman back in the top 6 when his 3rd line is the best revelation of the season so far?

 

[Buds17]

Why are people so insistent on getting Hyman back in the top 6 when his 3rd line is the best revelation of the season so far?

It felt like a waste considering Hyman is a top six forward IMO. Realistically, his TOI/G is well above that of a third line forward and the team is winning more than it is losing, so...

 

[leaffaninvancouver]

It’s a bit ridiculous how big he is compared to other players.

 

[horner]

Why are people so insistent on getting Hyman back in the top 6 when his 3rd line is the best revelation of the season so far?

Because he will make the top line even better .
It will allow them to keep the opposition team hemed up in there own zone longer which puts less pressure on the defensive zone .
Besides they were one of the better lines last year .

3rd line
Joe Kerfoot and mik

 

[hotpaws]

21 goals last I think.

Over 82 games
33 goals
60 pts

I would say stone hand.

Every season he has gotten better.

6 were into an empty net and the overwhelming number of the others were him standing on top of the crease hoping a shot hits him on the way in or he can whack in a rebound

and saying he has has stone hands does a disservice to stone

 

[horner]

6 were into an empty net and the overwhelming number of the others were him standing on top of the crease hoping a shot hits him on the way in or he can whack in a rebound

and saying he has has stone hands does a disservice to stone

Then trade the idiot .
Iam sure other teams appriciate him more than you.

 

[Stephen23]

One thing I have noticed with Jumbo is his brilliance play along the boards and how good he is at protecting and ending up with the puck. Comes with his size and experience.

 

[The Blueprint]

I'd like to see him stay on the top line for a bit longer. I think he can bring some of the same elements Hyman brought, strong board play, buys time and space for Matthews and Marner to find open ice.

He's obviously not a puck hound like Hyman but get the puck to Joe down low, find some open ice, and he will find you.

Unlike Hyman he's much better at finding lanes and executing short passes, has way better vision to get the puck on the stick of the other 2 in close.

Hyman on the 3rd line adds another threat to our team, we've already seen the Mik Kerfoot Hyman line get some really good cycles/zone time going in the first 3 games.

 

[Notsince67]

Then trade the idiot .
Iam sure other teams appriciate him more than you.

Im not sure what everyone is getting excited about. Hyman is a decent player for sure. The problem is this...if you noticed the last game, the Matthews line was absolutely dominant from a possession perspective. That line beat Ottawa down at every end of the ice. There was no need to retrieve a puck. Trying to take a puck away from a 6'4 player of Thortons experience is a chore for any player in the league. Hyman holds no advantage there. He is a dump and chase player who had enough sense to capitalize with some elite help and generate points the last couple of years. Thorton is almost the anti-Hyman. He offers up a different look that could mean all the difference. The experiment is intriguing and it holds promise. Hyman gets shifted every now and then to give Thorton a rest so I guess we shall see if there is a big difference between the 2 over time.

 

[Man Bear Pig]

One thing I have noticed with Jumbo is his brilliance play along the boards and how good he is at protecting and ending up with the puck. Comes with his size and experience.

I'm enjoying watching opposition players try and hit him and just bouncing off of him. He's a big man, reminds me of Sundin a bit in how you'll never beat them by trying to shove them or out-muscle them.

 

[BAM]

The more I think about it, the more I like Hyman on the 3rd line making it his. Since Thornton can't/shouldn't play the minutes that Matthews and Marner get, Hyman just fills in the balance. As the top 2 lines continue creating chemistry having Hyman go at 3rd pairing matchups and maintain puck possession at the very least is vital.

Against the majority of the league Tavares-Nylander and Matthews-Marner will have their way so it's vital that our 3rd line is a positive so they're not giving back whatever the top 6 produces.

 

[tom leafers]

Doesn't look slow IMO, always makes the right pass when he has some time.

Thornton and Spezza are honestly much faster than i expected. I mean i was expecting a Colton Orr level of fast so my expectations were rock bottom to start but still

 

[Rants Mulliniks]

I'm enjoying watching opposition players try and hit him and just bouncing off of him. He's a big man, reminds me of Sundin a bit in how you'll never beat them by trying to shove them or out-muscle them.

As much as I always hated a cycle game (what I mean by that is it isn't overly fun to watch guys play the whole game in the corners or along the boards just endlessly rotating until an opportunity surfaces), Ponikarovsky-Sundin-Antropov were very good at this. Good luck getting the puck from them. Allison was another one of those guys who, while slow as molasses, good luck getting the puck from him.

 

[Wafflewhipper]

He is already setting leaf records

Lol he’s beating “old” records

 

[Wafflewhipper]

6 were into an empty net and the overwhelming number of the others were him standing on top of the crease hoping a shot hits him on the way in or he can whack in a rebound

and saying he has has stone hands does a disservice to stone

Yeah he was just standing there in the paint sipping juice&Gin