Post-Game Talk: Leafs Book Their Tickets for Game 7 [MOD WARNING in OP]

[PanniniClaus]

Yeah, but Stolarz has never played this many games back to back. Ottawa knows to shoot at him for rebounds.

Switch it up. Give him some rest. See what we have in Woll. If he loses, you now have a rested Stolarz in Game 7.

This is Ottawa, the weakest team the Core 4 have ever played, they should be able to win with their backup goalie.

I honestly cannot believe you are calling for Woll. The anti Woll man.

If Woll goes in , I support him 100% but you absolutely overlook every other aspect of the game. Your tunnel vision is incredible.

 

[Stephen]

And the Sens were 2 shots away from having this series wrapped up!

Way closer than it should be imo. If the Leafs are as good as they think they are, this series would be over.

On a macro level I think the Leafs have overcompensated on the goaltending and defensive commitment while short circuiting their offense. The idea that we need to hard check a team that has less talent on paper makes very little tactical sense. It’s a race to 3-2 every game by design but we should have the horses to win 5-2, 5-3, 5-4 or otherwise whatever situation it calls for. But we just want to disrupt and take the whole offensive game offline. I don’t agree with it but it’s too late to course correct. They either just win this one by the skin of their teeth and no one is happy, or we see a historic choke job and at that point you drive everyone to the airport, eff off don’t come back.

 

[Buds17]

Imagine I told you through 5 games in the series, where the Leafs allowed less than 20 shots a game, that our goalie would have under .900 goaltending throughout the series.

Imagine I told you in game 4 with the Leafs up 3-0 in the series, that the Leafs would score 3 goals in regulation and allow 14 shots in 60 minutes and lose the game.

Would you suggest switching goalies?

The SV% for Stolarz has gone down as he has faced fewer shots (which isn't altogether overly surprising). I perhaps could've understood the argument for starting Woll in Game 5 tonight, though the outcome probably wouldn't have been too different if the offence still failed to show up. Stolarz giving up a pair of goals tonight wasn't entirely awful (SV% be damned).

 

[LeafEgo]

Blowing the 3-0 series lead to see it at 3-2 is basically downgrading this team from a potential dark horse run and a credible threat in the second round, ECF is possible, to if we get to the second round and get the doors blown off that will already be a success.

General sports fandom keeps us going but we've been chasing bad money for a long time.

What a devastating game, even if it didn't offer anything new.

 

[TheGreenTBer]

Team gets shut out.

Leafs fans: it was our goalie choking.

Get real.

It's not the goaltending and it hasn't been for years.

It's the overpaid whipped egg whites upfront.

 

[MSZ]

They care but they simply don't hate losing enough.

Ding ding ding, we have the answer here.

These guys have made way too much money and they don't seem to care about losing.

 

[Divine]

I honestly cannot believe you are calling for Woll. The anti Woll man.

If Woll goes in , I support him 100% but you absolutely overlook every other aspect of the game. Your tunnel vision is incredible.

I'm calling for Woll for multiple reasons

1.) If you don't start him in Game 6, you cannot start him in Game 7.
2.) Stolarz has never played this many consecutive games in his career.
3.) Ottawa has the book on Stolarz, shoot for rebounds or shoot high.

I'm giving Woll a chance to change the rhythm. If he gets a shutout, he can start Game 1 in Florida. Stolarz goes Game 2. The better goalie goes Game 3.

If you start Woll and he sucks and allows his typical bad goal, now you have a rested Stolarz for Game 7.

 

[ZEBROA]

If they got a ahl goalie, we got beer league snipers.

Google momentum and u will see a gang of smiling toothless hockeydudes with ottawa gear on.

Maby put all my savings on a 7 game loss?

 

[Stephen]

Imagine I told you through 5 games in the series, where the Leafs allowed less than 20 shots a game, that our goalie would have under .900 goaltending throughout the series.

Imagine I told you in game 4 with the Leafs up 3-0 in the series, that the Leafs would score 3 goals in regulation and allow 14 shots in 60 minutes and lose the game.

Would you suggest switching goalies?

I wouldn’t switch goalies but the smothering defensive coverage plus Stolarz backstop is no longer the security blanket they thought it was. Stolarz’s goals against are bad timing, odd bounces breakdowns. Not his fault but it has become an exploit the way Vasi became in Tampa in 2023.

 

[Rare Jewel]

This where Berube earns his paycheque. A vet coach who can deliver under pressure and hopefully that translates to the roster. We find out Thursday if it happens

Can he score on the PP, though?

 

[Buds17]

Should have put Robertson in .. he would have had his token goal and that could have changed the trajectory of the game

Wouldn't surprise me now for a team that looks to be in need of the offence.

 

[Rob Brown]

I'm calling for Woll for multiple reasons

1.) If you don't start him in Game 6, you cannot start him in Game 7.
2.) Stolarz has never played this many consecutive games in his career.
3.) Ottawa has the book on Stolarz, shoot for rebounds or shoot high.

I'm giving Woll a chance to change the rhythm. If he gets a shutout, he can start Game 1 in Florida. Stolarz goes Game 2. The better goalie goes Game 3.

If you start Woll and he sucks and allows his typical bad goal, now you have a rested Stolarz for Game 7.

Don’t think it’s happening, my man.

 

[TheGreenTBer]

Ding ding ding, we have the answer here.

These guys have made way too much money and they don't seem to care about losing.

Is that a SLS in.your avatar?

 

[MSZ]

Is that a SLS in.your avatar?

McLaren SLR

 

[Stephen]

General sports fandom keeps us going but we've been chasing bad money for a long time.

What a devastating game, even if it didn't offer anything new.

I definitely don’t enjoy the emotional commitment and investment in an emotionally devastating experience with players I don’t trust year after year.

 

[Divine]

I wouldn’t switch goalies but the smothering defensive coverage plus Stolarz backstop is no longer the security blanket they thought it was. Stolarz’s goals against are bad timing, odd bounces breakdowns. Not his fault but it has become an exploit the way Vasi became in Tampa in 2023.

I don't necessarily agree that Stolarz goals have all just been odd bounces. The first shot of this game beat him, but because Rielly cleared it off the line everyone forgot about it. There were quite a few bad rebounds where their player had an open net but our defencemen got there first.

 

[wingman75]

On a macro level I think the Leafs have overcompensated on the goaltending and defensive commitment while short circuiting their offense. The idea that we need to hard check a team that has less talent on paper makes very little tactical sense. It’s a race to 3-2 every game by design but we should have the horses to win 5-2, 5-3, 5-4 or otherwise whatever situation it calls for. But we just want to disrupt and take the whole offensive game offline. I don’t agree with it but it’s too late to course correct. They either just win this one by the skin of their teeth and no one is happy, or we see a historic choke job and at that point you drive everyone to the airport, eff off don’t come back.

Can't disagree. That is why this becomes so dicey... Game 6 will be the same low event, low scoring roll of the dice. It feels unnecessary.

I have always been a believer in being able to win more than one way at any given time. We are not seeing that here at all.

 

[TheGreenTBer]

McLaren SLR

I hope you have a big wallet*



(Says the guy whose favorite car ever is the Lexus LFA)

EDIT: I bet I could afford this car if I bet against the Leafs in elimination games

 

[6ix]

You can keep changing the chef (coach), or spices (depth players) but if you keep using the same main ingredients (core players) you’re going to get the same final dish. The sample size is no longer too small, the main ingredients are rotten.

 

[Stephen]

The SV% for Stolarz has gone down as he has faced fewer shots (which isn't altogether overly surprising). I perhaps could've understood the argument for starting Woll in Game 5 tonight, though the outcome probably wouldn't have been too different if the offence still failed to show up. Stolarz giving up a pair of goals tonight wasn't entirely awful (SV% be damned).

Goalies often heat up if they’re facing a lot of volume with clear sight and can get involved in the game. Blocking everything and smothering everything and never going on the attack doesn’t make sense when you’re the better team on paper. You either go for it or you concede all initiative to the other team - which is what we’ve done since going up in the series.

 

[kevsh]

For those poor souls out there clinging to the belief that the Leafs will close this out in 6, or 7 I have one question for you:

After seeing this team fail repeatedly & consistently for the past 9 years, and then watching that absolutely embarrassing display tonight, getting shut out on home ice, missing chance after chance, with a PP that is now ice cold, watching Mitch & Auston completely disappear (right on cue) for the second straight game, another game where they showed exactly zero killer instinct or even a desire to win, what are you smoking and where can I buy some?

 

[Evilhomer]

I'm calling for Woll for multiple reasons

1.) If you don't start him in Game 6, you cannot start him in Game 7.
2.) Stolarz has never played this many consecutive games in his career.
3.) Ottawa has the book on Stolarz, shoot for rebounds or shoot high.

I'm giving Woll a chance to change the rhythm. If he gets a shutout, he can start Game 1 in Florida. Stolarz goes Game 2. The better goalie goes Game 3.

If you start Woll and he sucks and allows his typical bad goal, now you have a rested Stolarz for Game 7.

Berube isn't much for dramatic change. He'll put Robertson back in the lineup, but that is the only change I expect.

 

[TheGreenTBer]

For those poor souls out there clinging to the belief that the Leafs will close this out in 6, or 7 I have one question for you:

After seeing this team fail repeatedly & consistently for the past 9 years, and then watching that absolutely embarrassing display tonight, getting shut out on home ice, missing chance after chance, with a PP that is now ice cold, watching Mitch & Auston completely disappear (right on cue) for the second straight game, another game where they showed exactly zero killer instinct or even a desire to win, what are you smoking and where can I buy some?

There's a difference between hope and faith.

I have hope. I think they have a chance of winning G6, but if they don't there is ZERO faith they'll win a G7.

 

[Evilhomer]

Can't disagree. That is why this becomes so dicey... Game 6 will be the same low event, low scoring roll of the dice. It feels unnecessary.

I have always been a believer in being able to win more than one way at any given time. We are not seeing that here at all.

Isn't the whole Eastern conference basically playing this same way? Maybe Carolina is the exception.

 

[PanniniClaus]

I'm calling for Woll for multiple reasons

1.) If you don't start him in Game 6, you cannot start him in Game 7.
2.) Stolarz has never played this many consecutive games in his career.
3.) Ottawa has the book on Stolarz, shoot for rebounds or shoot high.

I'm giving Woll a chance to change the rhythm. If he gets a shutout, he can start Game 1 in Florida. Stolarz goes Game 2. The better goalie goes Game 3.

If you start Woll and he sucks and allows his typical bad goal, now you have a rested Stolarz for Game 7.

I can buy the argument.. What you really want is a shutout.. So we are ignoring the main problem and hoping Woll can get a shutout. Woll's best has been better than Stolarz best so maybe it happens.