Post-Game Talk: Leafs lose 4-2

[therealkoho]

Tavares said it best, would could have been a great road trip, turned into a pretty good one

Looking forward to getting Robertson in the lineup, and Wayne back
Also looking forward to a trade to bolster the lineup

optimum Matt Tkachuk

would be great Eric Staal, Kadri, Forsberg

would be a positive Sam Bennet, Nick Paul, Tanner Pearson, Joel Armia, Adam Lowry, Max Jones, Colt Sissons

 

[Alerion]

Or we could look at the standings.

Bad 2 games. Get a grip.

I'll be hard on them every single time they allow 3 goals on 8 shots in the second half of the third period. I am happy with how they've played on the whole this year but it doesn't make last night excusable.

 

[nuck]

Some of the young core on this team like Marner, Nylander and Rielly still need to mature...there's no need to lose focus, be reckless and implode being up by a goal or in a 2-2 tied game midway in the 3rd. Nylander playing scared with the delay of game penalty and Marner was losing patience trying to do everything by himself in a tie game...no idea what Rielly was doing turning around to stare at the ice in front of Andersen with Miller crashing the net for the 3rd Vancouver goal - the obvious play was to shield out the opponent and let Andersen get the puck...welp, we all saw what that led to.

Keef needs to mature as well. When a club isn't playing close to 60 minutes of hockey that is on the coach. When the club comes off a sweep of the Oilers and then lays down back to back for the Canucks, yes Freddie blows, but a lot of that is on Keefe. He needs to learn from these.

 

[GardinerTheForward]

Did he even make a save the first half of the third period?

Don’t know the exact point I stopped watching but I watched him make some big saves early on

 

[Drunken Leafs Fan]

So you can say our top guys have been good lately? If yes then you haven’t been watching. They have been abysmal. Matthews Marner Rielly all terrible again. Add Anderson but he just sucks in general.

Matthews and Marner have been dominant all season. If you disagree with that you haven't been watching. Rielly isn't our top defenseman anymore. What we've needed for years is a guy to slot in at the top of the chart and that is Brodie. He isn't flashy or even a top star, but he brings what we need on the back end and has been rock solid all season. We shouldn't need star goaltending, just above average. Whether that is Andersen or Campbell or someone else I don't know, but we aren't really lacking in net. The Leafs are doing well, think positive and enjoy the season.

 

[Confucius]

Matthews and Marner have been dominant all season. If you disagree with that you haven't been watching. Rielly isn't our top defenseman anymore. What we've needed for years is a guy to slot in at the top of the chart and that is Brodie. He isn't flashy or even a top star, but he brings what we need on the back end and has been rock solid all season. We shouldn't need star goaltending, just above average. Whether that is Andersen or Campbell or someone else I don't know, but we aren't really lacking in net. The Leafs are doing well, think positive and enjoy the season.

Not so drunk afterall

 

[Superstar]

Not so drunk afterall

Just woke up maybe...

 

[Northernguy10]

One thing we've seen this year is the randomness of goals going in. I mean we see it every year but I feel like with more of a baseball series style of play, it is more noticeable.

Take the Vanouver series in Toronto and series in Edmonton.

28 goals on 161 shots in 6 games. A 17% shooting %.

Take the two Rittich games and these past 2 Demko games.

5 goals on 144 shots in 4 games. A 3% shooting %.

Sometimes you need to take the highs and lows in stride and just kind of chill. The game to game emotional swings is wild and I get it is part of being a fan. But like I exhibited this when I was 10.

Nowadays one good game doesn't have me planning a parade and one bad game doesn't have me screaming to tear it down. Give me the big picture at the end and analyze from there. I save my freaking out for Game 7s when it is truly do or die. Otherwise hockey would kill me!

I feel like I wrote this...100% agree. My life got much less stressful when I finally realized this.

 

[AvroArrow]

Missed the last 2 games because of work, I see the boys need my good luck again. Caught some of the game on rewind, first game against the nucks they just looked tired and unlucky, not sure what happened last game as I didnt see much. Still in 1st comfortably so it's not too bad.

 

[JT AM da real deal]

Ho hum game
Jumbo Joe looked like he was 90
Rielly went back to taking stupid risks and cost team huge
only Zach and Mik played their normal tenacious games
JT and Vesey were ok/good
Freddy was Freddy he lost

 

[81Leafs50]

My recap of the "losing streak"

game 1- Were far and away the better team. 68% share HDCF, 65% xGF share. We lost because of excellent goaltending. WHich is going to happen regardless of how good the team is. This combined with playing a rested VAN team on our 3rd game in 4 nights... C'est La Vie

Game 2- Alot more even of a game. Thought the canucks as a whole looked pretty solid. Demko again stood tall when he needed to. 5v5 we were the better team, but we couldn't find a way to get a kill. The tying goal and GWG were unlucky bounces that are avoidable when you make the right plays beforehand. Willy's puck over glass penalty is as bareheaded of a play I have seen all year. When the puck rolls on edge like that in the defensive zone, and you are looking to go high and hard I completely get it. It Happens. Willy had all but exited the zone and thought the wise play was to go off the glass to get most likely get it in deep, but not deep enough for icing. Its a lazy play. 10 feet more, he has the red line and can dump and change. Complete trash. I can get behind players making mistakes, this one is inexcusable. The was no puck pressure, and we were at that point dominating the run of play. the subsequent kill was actually good, but they got a lucky one by Andy off bogo, and then another broken play circa 2019-20 with marner that lead to the GWG. VAN certainly looked more motivated yesterday, and played more than well enough to win. However, we had the lead in the 3rd, and were the better team in the 3rd, and somehow lost by 2..........

disappointed in the finish yesterday, but overall they played well enough to get 4pts, just the way she goes sometimes

it was a tie game and Marner's 2 horrible turnovers directly resulted in goal #3 and goal #4. That is complete trash. No one ever lost a game 2-2.

I love how people always find something to say about Freddy, Willy, Tavares, etc but Marner always gets a pass. Marner has been invisible and irrelevant since Matthews got hurt. Hes not driving anything on this team on his own.

 

[Twine Tickler]

it was a tie game and Marner's 2 horrible turnovers directly resulted in goal #3 and goal #4. That is complete trash. No one ever lost a game 2-2.

I love how people always find something to say about Freddy, Willy, Tavares, etc but Marner always gets a pass. Marner has been invisible and irrelevant since Matthews got hurt. Hes not driving anything on this team on his own.

Oh Marner has his Fair share of the blame in this game as well. However, I am more lenient on a far blue line turnover vs. a play where Willy is completely absent mindedly trying to go high off the glass when the red line was completely there for the taking. The go ahead goal was a tough turnover at the far blue, but Mo completely handcuffed himself trying to play that puck in neutral ice as well. Just a broken play all around. That turnover happens 20-30 times in a game and probably 95% of the time doesn't result in a goal against. He had both D-men on the ice (not in a change) and they were both in good position. Even with the TO, it shouldn't have resulted in a goal against IMO. Just unlucky. I am critical of Willy because it was either lazy, stupid, or most likely both. I would be shocked if any hockey minded person could come up with a logical reason why it would be advantageous to go off the glass there instead of skating the extra 10 feet and gain the red to lay a dump in. The ice was there, there was no puck pressure. I try not to pile on to the Willy negativity, especially because he has played well of late. But that's inexcusable in my opinion

 

[MattySnipes]

Unfortunately I missed both games this time because of work. It seems that I did myself a favour based off of reading the past two PGTs.

Sucks to see them drop 2 to a dweller after sweeping Oil.

Lot of posters disappointed in top line, Frederik "no room for error" Andersen, along with some bad penalties.

Great thing is it was just 2 games, we got humbled, let's go reward ourselves against a Jets team that is aiming to finish 2nd in North.

Fans have short memories. We take this next series and we'll forget about losing to Jim Hughson and his Canucks.

 

[81Leafs50]

Oh Marner has his Fair share of the blame in this game as well. However, I am more lenient on a far blue line turnover vs. a play where Willy is completely absent mindedly trying to go high off the glass when the red line was completely there for the taking. The go ahead goal was a tough turnover at the far blue, but Mo completely handcuffed himself trying to play that puck in neutral ice as well. Just a broken play all around. That turnover happens 20-30 times in a game and probably 95% of the time doesn't result in a goal against. He had both D-men on the ice (not in a change) and they were both in good position. Even with the TO, it shouldn't have resulted in a goal against IMO. Just unlucky. I am critical of Willy because it was either lazy, stupid, or most likely both. I would be shocked if any hockey minded person could come up with a logical reason why it would be advantageous to go off the glass there instead of skating the extra 10 feet and gain the red to lay a dump in. The ice was there, there was no puck pressure. I try not to pile on to the Willy negativity, especially because he has played well of late. But that's inexcusable in my opinion

Again I highlighted the critism Nylander got for nothing play.
- Willy is completely absent mindedly trying to go high off the glass when the red line was completely there for the taking.
- I am critical of Willy because it was either lazy, stupid, or most likely both.

Then comes the excuses for Marner.
- Mo completely handcuffed himself trying to play that puck
- That turnover happens 20-30 times in a game and probably 95% of the time doesn't result in a goal against.
- it shouldn't have resulted in a goal against IMO.
- Just unlucky

Willy's mistake was unintentional. Marner made a conscious decision to make a TWO stupid, careless, and lazy plays.

 

[Brown Dog]

Can you explain why?

I like how it forces the puck carrier to try to make a play, usually in traffic, which increases the chances of a turnover and a rush going the other way.

In the old days players would think nothing of banging it off the glass if they were in any sort of trouble and if it went over, no biggie. They'd get a change and a faceoff. It really did delay the game and rewarded low-risk, low-intelligence, low-creativity game play. I like that the rule discourages that "just-bang-it-off-the-glass" mentality and keeps the puck in play and the reduces stoppages.

I see what you're saying about puck-over-glass being akin to icing but with a disproportionately severe penalty. I've never thought of it that way and it's a fair point.

I also don't like how the black-and-whiteness of the penalty means that inevitably seems to follow some ticky-tacky obstruction penalty and lead to a backbreaking 5-on-3, but that's life.

On the balance of things I think it's a great rule.

 

[Twine Tickler]

Again I highlighted the critism Nylander got for nothing play.
- Willy is completely absent mindedly trying to go high off the glass when the red line was completely there for the taking.
- I am critical of Willy because it was either lazy, stupid, or most likely both.

Then comes the excuses for Marner.
- Mo completely handcuffed himself trying to play that puck
- That turnover happens 20-30 times in a game and probably 95% of the time doesn't result in a goal against.
- it shouldn't have resulted in a goal against IMO.
- Just unlucky

Willy's mistake was unintentional. Marner made a conscious decision to make a TWO stupid, careless, and lazy plays.

Marner made 2 conscious decisions with defensive support in good position to mitigate any potential risk. His mistake on the GWG was the beginning of a comedy of errors. Which was followed by Mo misplaying the puck in the neutral zone and culminating with a horrible back check by Jumbo on Miller, who eventually scored the goal. I respect if you disagree. But at the time of that penalty the Leafs were playing a very solid 3rd period. Willy's penalty shifted the momentum of the game, and was careless. Again, I will never fault a player for making a mistake that makes sense. Had Willy been hemmed in the zone for close to a minute, and was below his dots w/ oncoming puck pressure, I would completely understand playing the puck of the glass. And would be totally ok with any penalty that came from that. It happens. But when you are steps from exiting the zone, with no pressure, it makes zero sense. I feel bad for Willy, because it is the last thing he needs. I've been an advocate of Willy, and will continue to be. but when he makes decisions that lack any purpose or logic, I will speak my opinions on it. It was an unfortunate mistake, that played a major role in Vancouver tying the game. A game at that point in the 3rd where they looked like they were not going to be able to get that done. Not all mistakes are made equal, unfortunately for Willy in this game, his was the most costly IMO.