News Article: Leafs are now identifiable.

[TakeTheBody]

KOSHAN: Maple Leafs have forged identity as well-rounded outfit through 20 games | Toronto Sun

We are in every game because they play a patient/discipline/ solid defense. As this year goes along and next years even this team will play a better complete game. Nice transition to a competitive overall team game. Still need more grit in the lineup is still unfortunately part of this identity on the minor negative with the group. It shows up instantly after Simmonds goes down. Overall I’m pretty proud of the transformation from top management on down to the 13 forward.
They made strides bringing in the right veterans and intangibles but there is work to do on adding a bit more bite.
I’m absolutely impressed on the whole. Keeper goin!

We are in every game because we play in a crappy division. Perfect for what ails the Leafs. Winning games now, not gagging them away and finding a way to lose. Learning to play with confidence late in the game.

It's all about the playoffs. No excuses now. Tampa, Boston hopefully we face them in the semi's or finals. Playing in Toronto and having players like Matthews and Marner the Leafs will always identify in the social media world we live in. Personally I'd rather lay in the shadows and pounce but that's impossible with this team.

I've never cared how the Leafs identify. Loved or hated. I just want to win and go deep in the playoffs.

 

[Wafflewhipper]

We are in every game because we play in a crappy division. Perfect for what ails the Leafs. Winning games now, not gagging them away and finding a way to lose. Learning to play with confidence late in the game.

It's all about the playoffs. No excuses now. Tampa, Boston hopefully we face them in the semi's or finals. Playing in Toronto and having players like Matthews and Marner the Leafs will always identify in the social media world we live in. Personally I'd rather lay in the shadows and pounce but that's impossible with this team.

I've never cared how the Leafs identify. Loved or hated. I just want to win and go deep in the playoffs.

I don’t part take. Thats crazy man. Can’t make anyone see the difference. Wow

 

[Confucius]

The question should be where did all the offence go in the other 3 divisions? This year they have
Kane
JVR
DeBrincat
Backstrom
Huberdeau
Kopitar
Marchand
leading the way
What happened to Panarin, Pastranuk, Mackinon, Kucherov, Eichel, Zibanejed, Carlson, Ovechkin, Stamkos, Crosby?

Whether be injuries or just underperforming the usual high flyers arent flying as high.

 

[zeke]

So the teams are bad because they looked like they improved and what?

.....erm....got pummeled by the leafs therefore they must suck?

 

[zeke]

What happened to Panarin, Pastranuk, Mackinon, Kucherov, Eichel, Zibanejed, Carlson, Ovechkin, Stamkos, Crosby?

Interesting names.....

....Panarin is in Russia.

....kucherov is out for the year

....Pastrnak missed the first month.

....zibanejad was an obvious fluke.

....Ovechkin Crosby just keep getting older.


Seems like a good argument that all those teams are worse than last year.

 

[Confucius]

Interesting names.....

....Panarin is in Russia.

....kucherov is out for the year

....Pastrnak missed the first month.

....zibanejad was an obvious fluke.

....Ovechkin Crosby just keep getting older.


Seems like a good argument that all those teams are worse than last year.

Made me think when I noticed JVR is 2nd behind Kane in points amongst the other divisions. Yeah a bunch of guys down there are having sub performance numbers, for a number of reasons.

 

[Big Muddy]

Makes sense considering the competition.

That's a point worth considering. Facing these six Canadian teams right through to the end of the 2nd playoff round is an advantage. When we get outside of divisional play is when things will get interesting I'd think. I think we could still do pretty well given that our defense is better, but time will tell.

 

[Confucius]

That's a point worth considering. Facing these six Canadian teams right through to the end of the 2nd playoff round is an advantage. When we get outside of divisional play is when things will get interesting I'd think. I think we could still do pretty well given that our defense is better, but time will tell.

Does everybody not have an advantage then? How are the 7 Canadian teams worse then the other divisions?

The Honda west has teams that finished, 22nd, 27th, 28th and 29th, last season. Yep going to be hard to make the top 4 in that division. Talk about an opportunity to pad your stats playing those teams half the year.

 

[Big Muddy]

Does everybody not have an advantage then? How are the 7 Canadian teams worse then the other divisions?

I don't think the other Canadian teams are very good. They aren't very strong and have significant flaws. By contrast, we are considerably better than them. So, I like our chances getting out of the division.

 

[Confucius]

I don't think the other Canadian teams are very good. They aren't very strong and have significant flaws. By contrast, we are considerably better than them. So, I like our chances getting out of the division.

Its easier to make the playoffs out of the honda west. The bottom 4 teams as a whole out there are the worst and its not close.

 

[Big Muddy]

Its easier to make the playoffs out of the honda west. The bottom 4 teams as a whole out there are the worst and its not close.

So, when they get out of the divisional format, that's when the real challenges start to happen, which is what I said.

First thing first. I'm focused on the first step for the Leafs which is make it through all the divisional stuff. I like our chances, which is what I said.

 

[Menzinger]

I have no issue beating up on weaker teams. Its allowing us to keep practicing a style that will make us successful in the playoffs. Look at that game against Edmonton, 4-0!!

Its not easy to shutdown a team like that without your star player. They did it.

The best hockey player on earth was kept off the score sheet. Thats no easy task.

 

[Menzinger]

Some teams like Calgary and Vancouver have had significant turnover... no relationship between this year and last. Zero. Zip, Ziltch.

So has this team, which you seem to not be wanting to give credit for the improvement in defense.

They added a #2- goalie, some more responsible defensive depth forwards,, have a better backup in Campbell and then you have Holl taking the next step into being s proper top foirbD man.

Which seems to run counter to yoursuggestion that the team isnjust winning beacuse of a couple offensive stars

 

[Wafflewhipper]

That’s the identity we want. Edmonton couldn’t generate anything through the neutral zone for 6 periods. We are becoming a good defensive team Leafers.

 

[Le Cobra]

The Oilers identify us as a team they really hate to play against

 

[Le Cobra]

The best hockey player on earth was kept off the score sheet. Thats no easy task.

before these last two shutouts the Oilers led the NHL in Goals For. The whole team is a scoring threat. As a result of our solid defense and goaltending we now have leapfrogged them for the GF crown

 

[Bluelines]

So has this team, which you seem to not be wanting to give credit for the improvement in defense.

They added a #2- goalie, some more responsible defensive depth forwards,, have a better backup in Campbell and then you have Holl taking the next step into being s proper top foirbD man.

Which seems to run counter to yoursuggestion that the team isnjust winning beacuse of a couple offensive stars

Weren't Holl and Campbell on the team last year? Your point is?

 

[Bluelines]

Devil is in the details? You simply ignored what I said.

maybe try again and actually address my point.

the Leafs face some pretty good offences in this division. say their offensive totals are inflated due to "shitty teams" if you like, but I don't see how that applies to defending. Nothing wrong with the offences of the Jets Oilers or Canucks.

Pretty sure I did, the Leafs have faced the Jets once and the Canucks were slumping before they came into town and got thumped by us. The Oil were slumping back in Jan/Feb when we faced them. Not sure you want to pin a badge of achievement on the team for beating teams that were in tailspins at the time we beat them.

It's a good thing we have two world class players, its a great thing they are playing well above their career averages. Only Leaf fans could take a compliment and twist it into an aspersion.

There is not a single team in the North that is a cup contender, except for the Leafs. Beating up on six shitty teams is not the mark of a good defensive team, its a mark of shitty teams getting beat by a good team. Only time will tell when we face Las Vegas, Boston or Carolina.

 

[hobarth]

OK, TO has a new identity but what is it, a team that relies heavily on 6 players, the top 4 forwards, Rielly and goaltending. That's the same identity TO has had for about 4 years now.

The d results are better what was achieved in the immediate past but that's mostly because the goaltending is much better this year.


Shot attempts/60: 55.68 vs 53.67. I do not think that two less shot-attempts every four periods is really going to make a huge difference in goalie performance.

Shots/60: 30.73 vs 28.98 – This year’s Leafs are preventing just over one shot extra per game.

Expected Goals/ 60: 2.33 vs 2.25. If we could take luck out of the equation and work with a large enough sample size, the Leafs this year vs last year would be pretty the same defensively. They would be expected to allow 0.08 less goals this season for roughly every four periods of hockey.

Scoring Chances / 60: 27.50 vs 26.54 – the supposedly great new defense is allowing less than one less scoring chances every four periods or so.

Dangerous Chances / 60: 11.14 vs 10.6 – the narrative is that this version of the Leafs is allowing a lot less chances off the rush – but assuming that those are getting picked up in the dangerous chances category, this simply isn’t true.

Toronto Maple Leafs Success Isn’t Because of Good Defense

Better goaltending makes TO better, not playing Boston, TB or Florida regularly also makes TO better. Is TO better, it's hard to say but TO has done well against the west for years, Ottawa is Ottawa and Montreal, who knows what's going on there.

TO's results have exceeded the metrics which has lead to many of the fancy stat experts to wonder why TO's results are so out of line with the metrics, Colorado won their division one year even tho their metrics didn't support their success. The next year Colorado didn't come close to matching that success.

TO's identity is still basically it can outscore it's problems and that has been made easier this year by superior goaltending.

 

[Wafflewhipper]

Pretty sure I did, the Leafs have faced the Jets once and the Canucks were slumping before they came into town and got thumped by us. The Oil were slumping back in Jan/Feb when we faced them. Not sure you want to pin a badge of achievement on the team for beating teams that were in tailspins at the time we beat them.

It's a good thing we have two world class players, its a great thing they are playing well above their career averages. Only Leaf fans could take a compliment and twist it into an aspersion.

There is not a single team in the North that is a cup contender, except for the Leafs. Beating up on six shitty teams is not the mark of a good defensive team, its a mark of shitty teams getting beat by a good team. Only time will tell when we face Las Vegas, Boston or Carolina.

I watch all of the other teams occasionally. The good teams like ours all look very solid without the puck. That was not us last year for the entire season. Never was it as natural last year. There is a real progress from many players. They want to play this way now. They still score now but it’s not with solely focused offence and caught cheating. They hardly cheat for any reason. In a nut shell they are a fast defensive team. They take the right ice and all it seems second nature. The beginning of a contender now. It looks pretty solid.

 

[Wafflewhipper]

OK, TO has a new identity but what is it, a team that relies heavily on 6 players, the top 4 forwards, Rielly and goaltending. That's the same identity TO has had for about 4 years now.

The d results are better what was achieved in the immediate past but that's mostly because the goaltending is much better this year.


Shot attempts/60: 55.68 vs 53.67. I do not think that two less shot-attempts every four periods is really going to make a huge difference in goalie performance.

Shots/60: 30.73 vs 28.98 – This year’s Leafs are preventing just over one shot extra per game.

Expected Goals/ 60: 2.33 vs 2.25. If we could take luck out of the equation and work with a large enough sample size, the Leafs this year vs last year would be pretty the same defensively. They would be expected to allow 0.08 less goals this season for roughly every four periods of hockey.

Scoring Chances / 60: 27.50 vs 26.54 – the supposedly great new defense is allowing less than one less scoring chances every four periods or so.

Dangerous Chances / 60: 11.14 vs 10.6 – the narrative is that this version of the Leafs is allowing a lot less chances off the rush – but assuming that those are getting picked up in the dangerous chances category, this simply isn’t true.

Toronto Maple Leafs Success Isn’t Because of Good Defense

Better goaltending makes TO better, not playing Boston, TB or Florida regularly also makes TO better. Is TO better, it's hard to say but TO has done well against the west for years, Ottawa is Ottawa and Montreal, who knows what's going on there.

TO's results have exceeded the metrics which has lead to many of the fancy stat experts to wonder why TO's results are so out of line with the metrics, Colorado won their division one year even tho their metrics didn't support their success. The next year Colorado didn't come close to matching that success.

TO's identity is still basically it can outscore it's problems and that has been made easier this year by superior goaltending.

This is the take that drives watchers of games foolish. This is a watcher of stats opinion. Hand pick incomplete cherry picks that just aren’t even close to what you will see. This is a post that is so funny.
It’s so easy to see the difference in so many ways with this team. These stats tell you nothing about how coverage has changed for the team on the whole. Speaks nothing of gap,puck support,coverage. Teams aren’t getting time or looks like before because our defensive coverage is quicker. Amusing and kind of looks like somebody needs to actually watch a game to me. Wow

 

[Sypher04]

before these last two shutouts the Oilers led the NHL in Goals For. The whole team is a scoring threat. As a result of our solid defense and goaltending we now have leapfrogged them for the GF crown

Small thing but it kinda annoyed me during the broadcast how they keep saying it. Saying Edmonton was the leading team in GF is a tad misleading because they'd played more games, but the point you're making still stands. We were always ahead of them in GF/g

 

[WTFMAN99]

I'd say 1-6 defense is quite solid

JT and 88 underachieving although 88 is getting out of the funk.

We've been fairly injured and lots of fluctuation in net.

For the love of god, stop finding reasons to shit on the team. I am glad they're playing better defensively and hard every night. Super proud of the group.

 

[zeke]

OK, TO has a new identity but what is it, a team that relies heavily on 6 players, the top 4 forwards, Rielly and goaltending. That's the same identity TO has had for about 4 years now.

The d results are better what was achieved in the immediate past but that's mostly because the goaltending is much better this year.


Shot attempts/60: 55.68 vs 53.67. I do not think that two less shot-attempts every four periods is really going to make a huge difference in goalie performance.

Shots/60: 30.73 vs 28.98 – This year’s Leafs are preventing just over one shot extra per game.

Expected Goals/ 60: 2.33 vs 2.25. If we could take luck out of the equation and work with a large enough sample size, the Leafs this year vs last year would be pretty the same defensively. They would be expected to allow 0.08 less goals this season for roughly every four periods of hockey.

Scoring Chances / 60: 27.50 vs 26.54 – the supposedly great new defense is allowing less than one less scoring chances every four periods or so.

Dangerous Chances / 60: 11.14 vs 10.6 – the narrative is that this version of the Leafs is allowing a lot less chances off the rush – but assuming that those are getting picked up in the dangerous chances category, this simply isn’t true.

Toronto Maple Leafs Success Isn’t Because of Good Defense

Better goaltending makes TO better, not playing Boston, TB or Florida regularly also makes TO better. Is TO better, it's hard to say but TO has done well against the west for years, Ottawa is Ottawa and Montreal, who knows what's going on there.

TO's results have exceeded the metrics which has lead to many of the fancy stat experts to wonder why TO's results are so out of line with the metrics, Colorado won their division one year even tho their metrics didn't support their success. The next year Colorado didn't come close to matching that success.

TO's identity is still basically it can outscore it's problems and that has been made easier this year by superior goaltending.

Last year ---> This year

#25 ga/60 ---> #4 ga/60
#20 xga/60 -> #17 xga/60
#19 sa/60 ---> #7 sa/60
#21 fa/60 ---> #8 fa/60
#16 ca/60 ---> #7 ca/60
#21 sv% -----> #6 sv%

They've improved by every measure, though for some reason the small improvement in expected goals against is lagging behind the very large improvement in every other stat. Either way, expected goals against is the only defensive stat they're not borderline top-5 in so far this year.

 

[zeke]

The biggest defensive upgrades this year are simply personnel ones.

1. Brodie has drastically upgraded our top pair's defensive ability.
2. Getting rid of Kappy and AJ has ended up turning what was a very weak defensive 3rd line into an excellent defensive 3rd line.