GDT: Leafs @ Habs -- pre-season game 4 -- 7PM

[Rude Dog]

Parros definately set an interesting precedent for vigilante justice.

I am sure he defended it as a hockey play somehow

 

[notDatsyuk]

Why is everybody talking about Xhekaj not getting suspended while conveniently ignoring the fact Pare stuck his leg out and destroyed Montreal's newly acquired star player's knee.

That was no accident. It wasn't a deliberate intent to injure. But it was a careless play that resulted in bodily harm to another player.

No different than checking someone from behind into the boards.

A dangeous play that should require supplemental disciplining. The fact Pare isn't good enough to ever serve that suspension is besides the point. The fact remains he stuck his knee out and into Laine's.

Then ran away when it came time to answer the bell.

Xhekaj gave Pare the opportunity to stand up for his actions and he did not. It was a classic case of a hit and run by someone too afraid of the punishment he knew was deserved and coming. If the situations were reversed I have no doubt there would be a contingent of fans calling for Pare's head on a stake saying he did it on purpose.

For proof you can read through the JT injury thread and see for yourself how many people were happy Foligno dummied Perry.

People are talking about Xhekaj not getting suspended because he didn't get suspended.

People are not talking about Pare sticking his leg out and destroyed Montreal's newly acquired star player's knee because he didn't, and Laine isn't a star player.

 

[TMLBlueandWhite]

Debatable

https://x.com/i/web/status/1840175349763633310

I see Laine gliding towards Pare, with his legs three feet apart, Pare shifting his upper body to stop Laine from walking around him, in that situation Pare had two choices, flamingo and let Laine skate around him or shift his upper body to push Laine off his path. If Laine was not gliding into a defender flat on his heals, that play would have never happened. Not sure I'd put 100% of the blame on Pare, could Pare let Laine by? Sure but hockey is a contact game and if Laine had lets say dumped the puck into the corner that play never happens, when you try to walk players, contact happens. Pare is not that type of player.



Exactly, Pare's intent is debateable, Zhekaj's intent is not.

Out of all the replies to my comment yours is the only one with any chops.

The rest are just argumemtative for the sake of arguing. I commend you for taking the high road and debating on the merits of intent. I don't see a deliberate attempt to injure but rather a split second decision by someone who got beat to stick his leg out and clip the opponent in attempt to slow him down.

The fact the shoulder contact came so much later after the knee I tend to believe Pare was leading with the knee, but I'm no expert, and I agree with you it's debateable what the actual intent was here.

Just combed through the first few pages of that thread and I didn’t see anything of the fight itself

Almost everyone was talking about how they hope JT is ok, how it was a freak play…etc

Very very small minority said things like, perry could’ve tried harder to avoid it or that he’s a prick, but most people in agreement it wasn’t his fault l

I put the mods comments first for a reason.

Foligno did the right thing. Any teammate who ends up in a heap in game action in catastrophic condition is typically going to be the spark for a fight. The fact that needs to be explained to the Toronto fanbase is surprising.

I'm glad Foligno stepped up. And if he hadn't, Simmonds would have too. It's good to have these guys in the lineup because the Leafs' haven't in the past and it's left fans screaming that the group has no heart/are soft.

Hoping JT can rebound quickly. I'm more concerned that the whiplash on his neck will keep him out longer.

You are 100% and it's disgusting they do no understand.

I'm was arguing with some of my old teammates about the scrap. They said the fight was stupid.
Listen, you hurt my captain, MY CAPTAIN....you're eating your lunch through a tube.

It was accidental...but the intent is irrelevant. The end result is he's seriously hurt to the point where hockey doesn't matter - he has a family. All that matters is his quality of life isn't impacted.

You took my Captain out, you're going to see out of one eye for 2 weeks. That's the way it works.
Perry knew it was coming and respect for him engaging and taking it. Now we can try to move on.

Do I think Perry intentionally tried to knee Tavares in the head to hurt him? No

Would I put it past Perry to play a little dirty and take extra shots at players in an intense playoff game? Absolutely not.

IMO Perry didn't intentionally knee him in the head. The play happened really fast and Perry didn't have a lot of time to reaction to how Tavares fell.

BUT - my guess is Perry saw the hit on Tavares as he turned and was taking a straight line back in the play and, in doing so, was looking at taking an extra shot at Tavares on the way by. Not necessarily in the head or anything, just a shot to the body.

These guys are gutless. If they cared they would have beat the shit out of the Habs last night both physically and on the scoreboard.

I think Perry needs more tough love.

I don't care how innnocent he was

I actually think Xhekaj showed enormous restraint.

Considering how mad he was Pare is lucky Xhekaj didn't smash his face off the ground like I've done to people in the past. It hurts like hell and one good smash is usually all it takes to break a nose. If Pare didn't want to get to get punched in the back of the head he should have answered the call and taken a punch in the face instead of trying to run away like a coward.

Here's a link to the Spezza suspension thead so you can read more about what Leafs fans think of retributive eye for an eye justice.

 

[TMLBlueandWhite]

Quesrion: What do you think Berube, a guy who made his living in the NHL standing up for his teammates and fighting on a regular basis, thought of Pare's cowardly action to run away and not stand up for himself?

My guess is he was impressed with Pare as I was.

 

[Racer88]

Out of all the replies to my comment yours is the only one with any chops.

The rest are just argumemtative for the sake of arguing. I commend you for taking the high road and debating on the merits of intent. I don't see a deliberate attempt to injure but rather a split second decision by someone who got beat to stick his leg out and clip the opponent in attempt to slow him down.

The fact the shoulder contact came so much later after the knee I tend to believe Pare was leading with the knee, but I'm no expert, and I agree with you it's debateable what the actual intent was here.



I put the mods comments first for a reason.













I actually think Xhekaj showed enormous restraint.

Considering how mad he was Pare is lucky Xhekaj didn't smash his face off the ground like I've done to people in the past. It hurts like hell and one good smash is usually all it takes to break a nose. If Pare didn't want to get to get punched in the back of the head he should have answered the call and taken a punch in the face instead of trying to run away like a coward.

Here's a link to the Spezza suspension thead so you can read more about what Leafs fans think of retributive eye for an eye justice.

I didn’t know you were such a Jack eye fan

 

[LEAFANFORLIFE23]

Robertson with 3 goals in his last 2 games that's they Robertson that I like.

Get rid of the brain farts and he could be a very good player.

People say our LW is a weak spot between Robertson, Knies and Cowan I'm not so sure about that.

 

[Byron Bitz]

Robertson with 3 goals in his last 2 games that's they Robertson that I like.

Get rid of the brain farts and he could be a very good player.

People say our LW is a weak spot between Robertson, Knies and Cowan I'm not so sure about that.

It’s crazy that we pickled a LW with our top pick in 4 out of 5 years starting in 2019 and it’s still viewed as a positional weekness.

 

[notbias]

It’s crazy that we pickled a LW with our top pick in 4 out of 5 years starting in 2019 and it’s still viewed as a positional weekness.

It's because you are comparing it to Nylander and Marner on the right side.

If Nylander switches to C full-time, RW is our weakest position, LW will be our second strongest maybe (Domi, Knies, Robertson, McMann, Holmberg, Dewar, Pacioretty).

I think wingers should just be grouped together since a lot can play both sides (Nylander, Jarnkrok, Domi, Robertson, etc).

Also, Amirov is unfortunate and a big reason it is our weakest position.

Robertson with 3 goals in his last 2 games that's they Robertson that I like.

Get rid of the brain farts and he could be a very good player.

People say our LW is a weak spot between Robertson, Knies and Cowan I'm not so sure about that.

I think he has looked a lot more calm with the puck this year, the tunnel-vision he normally has does not seem to be as noticeable, he is looking for teammates instead of staring at the net.

I always thought this was his biggest issue (forcing shots), so very happy to see this.

 

[Dekes For Days]

It’s crazy that we pickled a LW with our top pick in 4 out of 5 years starting in 2019 and it’s still viewed as a positional weekness.

1. Our LW isn't all that weak. It just feels that way comparatively because we have superstars at C and RW.
2. Cowan was technically drafted as a RW, and is still a teenager.
3. Of those 3 LWs we drafted, 1 died. The other two are in the NHL.

 

[notDatsyuk]

It’s crazy that we pickled a LW with our top pick in 4 out of 5 years starting in 2019 and it’s still viewed as a positional weekness.

The problem is that, thanks to Dubas, between 2019 and 2022 we only had one first round pick (the unfortunate Amirov).

 

[ACC1224]

Ryan Reaves rides middle of the road in fallout of Patrik Laine injury

The Leafs enforcer didn't like to see reammare Cedric Pare punched out by Arber Xhekaj, but knows there's a risk to retaliation.

torontosun.com

Reaves has a few thoughts on the Laine injury.

 

[BM14]

Out of all the replies to my comment yours is the only one with any chops.

The rest are just argumemtative for the sake of arguing. I commend you for taking the high road and debating on the merits of intent. I don't see a deliberate attempt to injure but rather a split second decision by someone who got beat to stick his leg out and clip the opponent in attempt to slow him down.

The fact the shoulder contact came so much later after the knee I tend to believe Pare was leading with the knee, but I'm no expert, and I agree with you it's debateable what the actual intent was here.



I put the mods comments first for a reason.













I actually think Xhekaj showed enormous restraint.

Considering how mad he was Pare is lucky Xhekaj didn't smash his face off the ground like I've done to people in the past. It hurts like hell and one good smash is usually all it takes to break a nose. If Pare didn't want to get to get punched in the back of the head he should have answered the call and taken a punch in the face instead of trying to run away like a coward.

Here's a link to the Spezza suspension thead so you can read more about what Leafs fans think of retributive eye for an eye justice.

Almost like the playoffs and an EXHIBITION game are different?

What a colossal waste of your time putting together your argument without any context to the comments. Should reevaluate your life choices, bro.

 

[Da Mash]

1. Our LW isn't all that weak. It just feels that way comparatively because we have superstars at C and RW.
2. Cowan was technically drafted as a RW, and is still a teenager.
3. Of those 3 LWs we drafted, 1 died. The other two are in the NHL.

Some just dont understand the NHL draft and how players need developing.
Its not like every 1st rd pick makes it to the NHL.

 

[Dayjobdave]

No,Reaves is a solid player. He would be there without the incident in Montreal.

He will be the Rogers guy stepping into the Bell center to reset their Wifi.

 

[LEAFANFORLIFE23]

It’s crazy that we pickled a LW with our top pick in 4 out of 5 years starting in 2019 and it’s still viewed as a positional weekness.

That's because none of them are stars yet but I think Knies could be

 

[Leaf Fans]

He will be the Rogers guy stepping into the Bell center to reset their Wifi.

No, he won't.

 

[LEAFANFORLIFE23]

It's because you are comparing it to Nylander and Marner on the right side.

If Nylander switches to C full-time, RW is our weakest position, LW will be our second strongest maybe (Domi, Knies, Robertson, McMann, Holmberg, Dewar, Pacioretty).

I think wingers should just be grouped together since a lot can play both sides (Nylander, Jarnkrok, Domi, Robertson, etc).

Also, Amirov is unfortunate and a big reason it is our weakest position.



I think he has looked a lot more calm with the puck this year, the tunnel-vision he normally has does not seem to be as noticeable, he is looking for teammates instead of staring at the net.

I always thought this was his biggest issue (forcing shots), so very happy to see this.

Even if Nylander did switch full time to center, which I don't think is going to happen.

But even if he did all they'd have to do to fix the RW is shift Domi to RW.

The reality is if they wanted to they could have arguably the deepest wing position in the league.

RW
Marner
Nylander
Domi
Mcmann

LW
Knies
Robertson
Pacioretty
Jarnkork

C
Matthews
Tavares
?
Kampf/Holmberg.

The problem isn't the wings, if they are weak on the wings it is because they are CHOOSING to be weak on the wings, they don't need to be.

The problem for this year anyway is 3C.

Long term it's 2C, there is a reason why whenever they draft with their 1st round pick I want it to be on a center.

Tavares is a good 2C but he's in his 30's.

But for this year the issue is 3C.

The wings are only an issue because they are CHOOSING to make them an issue

 

[Fogelhund]

Even if Nylander did switch full time to center, which I don't think is going to happen.

But even if he did all they'd have to do to fix the RW is shift Domi to RW.

The reality is if they wanted to they could have arguably the deepest wing position in the league.

RW
Marner
Nylander
Domi
Mcmann

LW
Knies
Robertson
Pacioretty
Jarnkork

C
Matthews
Tavares
?
Kampf/Holmberg.

The problem isn't the wings, if they are weak on the wings it is because they are CHOOSING to be weak on the wings, they don't need to be.

The problem for this year anyway is 3C.

Long term it's 2C, there is a reason why whenever they draft with their 1st round pick I want it to be on a center.

Tavares is a good 2C but he's in his 30's.

But for this year the issue is 3C.

The wings are only an issue because they are CHOOSING to make them an issue

When you look back in time, there really haven't been much to pick from in C's, from where we've drafted. Going back to the 2018 drafts... the number of decent C's available were Mercer, McBain and Kurashev, for picks after we've picked. McBain is really a 4C, maybe 3C at peak anyway. Mercer looks good but is inconsistent. Kurashev we'll see... he might be a beneficiary of playing on a terrible team.

2022 we picked what is likely the best C from that point on in the draft.. it's just he's probably a year away from being NHL ready.

Compounding the issue, is there aren't any very good C's available next year in UFA. Gourde, Granlund, Bennett are about as good as it gets. Not really the best crop of C's, and that's if they make it to Free Agency.

There is some logic in trying out Nylander, even if you think the probability of success is low. If somehow he learns the position, you've filled the more important position.

 

[LEAFANFORLIFE23]

When you look back in time, there really haven't been much to pick from in C's, from where we've drafted. Going back to the 2018 drafts... the number of decent C's available were Mercer, McBain and Kurashev, for picks after we've picked. McBain is really a 4C, maybe 3C at peak anyway. Mercer looks good but is inconsistent. Kurashev we'll see... he might be a beneficiary of playing on a terrible team.

2022 we picked what is likely the best C from that point on in the draft.. it's just he's probably a year away from being NHL ready.

Compounding the issue, is there aren't any very good C's available next year in UFA. Gourde, Granlund, Bennett are about as good as it gets. Not really the best crop of C's, and that's if they make it to Free Agency.

There is some logic in trying out Nylander, even if you think the probability of success is low. If somehow he learns the position, you've filled the more important position.

Don't know about you but I would welcome Sam Bennett here with open arms.

Yanni Gourde to, although he would probably be a rental but he would be perfect for the playoffs.

 

[Fogelhund]

Don't know about you but I would welcome Sam Bennett here with open arms.

Yanni Gourde to, although he would probably be a rental but he would be perfect for the playoffs.

The challenge with Bennett, and the positives of Bennett, are the same thing. He plays a physical brand of hockey. The last time he played 82 games in a season, was 2017/18, 71 is the most since. He'll be 28 at the start of the 2025/26 season, and while that isn't old by any stretch, it can be for physical guys. Obviously I'd like what he brings to the table though, but Tavares will outscore him handily this year.

I'd love to have Granlund as well. He'd make a good defensive C, who is also decent offensively.

Gourde I'm less interested in.

 

[WTFMAN99]

The challenge with Bennett, and the positives of Bennett, are the same thing. He plays a physical brand of hockey. The last time he played 82 games in a season, was 2017/18, 71 is the most since. He'll be 28 at the start of the 2025/26 season, and while that isn't old by any stretch, it can be for physical guys. Obviously I'd like what he brings to the table though, but Tavares will outscore him handily this year.

I'd love to have Granlund as well. He'd make a good defensive C, who is also decent offensively.

Gourde I'm less interested in.

I'd heard the Leafs poked around on Granlund in the off-season but I guess other moves didn't pan out.

 

[AvroArrow]

The challenge with Bennett, and the positives of Bennett, are the same thing. He plays a physical brand of hockey. The last time he played 82 games in a season, was 2017/18, 71 is the most since. He'll be 28 at the start of the 2025/26 season, and while that isn't old by any stretch, it can be for physical guys. Obviously I'd like what he brings to the table though, but Tavares will outscore him handily this year.

I'd love to have Granlund as well. He'd make a good defensive C, who is also decent offensively.

Gourde I'm less interested in.

Lets be real, if Sam Bennett played for the Leafs he'd be suspended 3-4 times a year + playoffs. He doesn't play a physical brand, he plays a dirty brand of hockey and just doesn't get called for it. He charges or interferes on nearly every hit, he starts throwing punches before his opponent can get his gloves off. Easily top 3 dirtiest player in the league.

 

[Fogelhund]

I'd heard the Leafs poked around on Granlund in the off-season but I guess other moves didn't pan out.

Kampf + 1st for Granlund @ 50%??