Leafs defense just plain sucks1

[bodechek]

Until Dubas makes changes on the blueline, this team will not go anywhere. Just expect another first round exit. This issue has been ongoing for years and never really addressed. And waiting for often injuried Muzzin to come back to solidify the blue line is not the answer. Liljegren is not an NHL defenseman, but they keep putting him out there. They are running out of time and another first round exit should be the end of Dubas' tenure as the Leafs GM. Keefe can go too

Click to read more...

 

[Mugzy97]

In b4 lock

 

[Stephen]

The Leafs seem to be a one line team with a lot of average parts behind them. The second line used to be advertised as a second big line but it looks like an average second line. The third line is a good checking line but won't move the needle unless other good things are happening up the lineup. The fourth line is very vanilla and has no personality. The defense appears to be an average collection of okay individual defensemen but they don't cohere into a functional group. Mrazek is a sub NHL level embarrassment, and so was Campbell, but he may have been injured.

 

[Dave92]

Should just write this season off and let this group do what they do on the playoffs. Let a new GM start in the summer

 

[CabanaBoy5]

Here is the problem. You have a goalie(s) who cannot bail out a poor defence. One of Liljegren or Sandin cannot play...pick one, they're both not ready right now. Holl is horrible, Rielly is poor defensively, Brodie is in a funk. Muzzin was having a poor season. Yeah, our defence sucks but the bigger issue is the backbreaking goals that sieve Mrazek is letting in.

 

[Mickey Marner]

If you want to play CCCP-style hockey, you have to have CCCP-level skills.

 

[BertCorbeau]

Great goaltending masks a lot of issues.

Awful goaltending makes things look worse than they appear.

 

[Shooter2x]

There exists a loop hole that as long as Mrazek does something worse than them after their misplay, they are free of any blame. And oh boy does Mrazek deliver.

That's the rule the board set, don't care anymore to fight it. Just have to hope actual team doesn't agree.

*Mrazek/Campbell

 

[LEAFANFORLIFE23]

Until Dubas makes changes on the blueline, this team will not go anywhere. Just expect another first round exit. This issue has been ongoing for years and never really addressed. And waiting for often injuried Muzzin to come back to solidify the blue line is not the answer. Liljegren is not an NHL defenseman, but they keep putting him out there. They are running out of time and another first round exit should be the end of Dubas' tenure as the Leafs GM. Keefe can go too

It's not the defense, like at all, it's 1000000% the goaltending

 

[AvroArrow]

Weird way to spell goaltending

 

[BertCorbeau]

Also can’t undersell how much poor goaltending can impact team’s mentality when defending.

 

[SeaOfBlue]

Great goaltending masks a lot of issues.

Awful goaltending makes things look worse than they appear.

100% the case right now, and why the "eye-test" as people love to trust is so off-base.

Sure, a defense is going to look bad if most of their mistakes (and some that are not) end up in the back of their net. Do that to the top defense in the league and people will think they are trash too. All people remember are the ones that go in, or look really awful. If a goalie saves it, or even bails them out, they don't remember it (unless the goalie has to do it all night).

Right now, the expectation is that the Leafs defense needs to be perfect, and that there is some combination of players that we are not having which can achieve those results. There really is not. We can add Chychrun, Lindholm, Oleksiak, or whatever flavour of the month is on defense right now and I can guarantee that the results are going to look the exact same as they are right now unless it coincides with our goaltending performing to at least passable standards.

 

[Shooter2x]

Also can’t undersell how much poor goaltending can impact team’s mentality when defending.

This wasn't true last game. Coyotes first goal was very nonchalant D coverage. Galchenyuk could have went into the slot and started doing the Fortnite dance and none of them would have noticed.

 

[Jimmy Firecracker]

Defensive gaffes are magnified by having minor league goaltending the majority of the season. There are obvious issues playing two inexperienced guys full time and missing out “best defensive defenseman” in Muzzin due to injury (and quite possibly age since he looked bad even when he was here) but Jesus f*** if it wouldn’t be nice for the goalie to bail out a guy one of these times.

 

[Havoc]

There exists a loop hole that as long as Mrazek does something worse than them after their misplay, they are free of any blame. And oh boy does Mrazek deliver.

That's the rule the board set, don't care anymore to fight it. Just have to hope actual team doesn't agree.

*Mrazek/Campbell

This isn't true. A lot of people agree with your opinion we're just more lone shark objective accounts that don't do the whole gang thing so it's an illusion you're alone. Keep fighting dude, we're reading.

 

[Holls Blackmail]

Dubas is incapable of fixing this team. The next GM will.

 

[Stephen]

Great goaltending masks a lot of issues.

Awful goaltending makes things look worse than they appear.

Totally.

Great goaltending can elevate the Leafs to be a pretty special team, since they can go out and play their puck possession game. But when you get AHL level goaltending, it also exposes and force multiplies the fact that the Leafs are very average in a lot of different areas throughout the lineup.

 

[Lightsol]

Dubas is incapable of fixing this team. The next GM will.

Goodbye Matthews! Goodbye Marner! Goodbye Nylander! Guess we'll build around the corpse of John Tavares. After all, there's a very good chance the next GM does the "Remember the Over-The-Hill gang? Let's do that!" thing, like the Leafs have done over and over again since the 60's.

 

[DraftSchmaft]

I find it interesting our PK isn't affected by the (I'm honestly running out of hurtful adjectives to use for the goalies) goaltending.

Last year when Fred destructed our PK took the biggest hit. Didn't matter how well it played, Fred leaked goals.

Our PK is elite. Structurally sound, well positioned, players well adapted to implementing the strategy the coach (not Keefe, the PK coach) wants. Our goalies have the 6th best save % in the league on the PK.


Goes without saying the goalies are the main issue, but 5v5 I think there's more to the story. Goalies are a smoke screen to it. People need to relax when others try to investigate. They're doing the dirty work for you.

*since jan 1st, sorry.

 

[ULF_55]

Mrazek made some good saves and allowed at least one horrible goal.

Leafs goaltenders are not good enough for their team structure.

Leafs goaltenders are not good enough to cover up for their passive coverage.

 

[Mickey Marner]

There exists a loop hole that as long as Mrazek does something worse than them after their misplay, they are free of any blame. And oh boy does Mrazek deliver.

That's the rule the board set, don't care anymore to fight it. Just have to hope actual team doesn't agree.

*Mrazek/Campbell

Case in point on the third goal. Mrazek lets in a stinker and people forget that Sandin made the Gardiner-esque drop-pass to nobody in the dzone that caused the turnover.

 

[cannucky]

It is both obviously . no goalie in the league stops the Sabres first goal nobody picked up the trailer and nobody played the passing lane . the goalie gets frozen playing the puck carrier and bingo the right shot in the right spot , The goalie coaches in Toronto have ruined a steady stream of NHL goalies most of whom go on to have decent years with other teams , same can be said for Dmen so at what point do we change the real problems instead of chasing symptoms ? Management and Coaches have to go , the experiment failed .

 

[SeaOfBlue]

I find it interesting our PK isn't affected by the (I'm honestly running out of hurtful adjectives to use for the goalies) goaltending.

Last year when Fred destructed our PK took the biggest hit. Didn't matter how well it played, Fred leaked goals.

Our PK is elite. Structurally sound, well positioned, players well adapted to implementing the strategy the coach (not Keefe, the PK coach) wants. Our goalies have the 6th best save % in the league on the PK.


Goes without saying the goalies are the main issue, but 5v5 I think there's more to the story. Goalies are a smoke screen to it. People need to relax when others try to investigate. They're doing the dirty work for you.

*since jan 1st, sorry.

I think our PK makes it really easy for our goalies. I don't remember many times when the goalie has had to make huge saves on our PK. It is either fairly routine, or it is a goal against.

It seems kind of stupid to say, but even 6th seems like it is not as good as it should be TBH. I feel like it should easily be top 3, if not challenging for top of the league like our PP.

 

[Shooter2x]

delete mistake

 

[Stephen]

I find it interesting our PK isn't affected by the (I'm honestly running out of hurtful adjectives to use for the goalies) goaltending.

Last year when Fred destructed our PK took the biggest hit. Didn't matter how well it played, Fred leaked goals.

Our PK is elite. Structurally sound, well positioned, players well adapted to implementing the strategy the coach (not Keefe, the PK coach) wants. Our goalies have the 6th best save % in the league on the PK.


Goes without saying the goalies are the main issue, but 5v5 I think there's more to the story. Goalies are a smoke screen to it. People need to relax when others try to investigate. They're doing the dirty work for you.

*since jan 1st, sorry.

I've thought about that a little bit and one the reasons I keep coming back to is the Leafs puck possession game. On the PK, they're pretty straight forward about getting the puck out and taking it north as far as they can in straight lines. On 5 on 5 they just get chaotic on the breakout moving up the ice with high risk lateral plays, regroups, drop passes, etc. On the offensive end they're a little too wild on pinching and holding the blueline which when it goes wrong creates some crazy odd man rushes.