Post-Game Talk: Leafs lose. Thornton on the first PP unit. Weak. Nice work keefe. Do better.

[tom leafers]

One game - and that JT injury sucked the life out of the building. Not worried

exactly. So many people in hear need to chill the hell out. It’s one game, after a week off, after a devastating injury to our captain. We had our chances and unfortunately got unlucky. Did we play well? Not really. I don’t see ya playing like shit next game.

If the boys don’t come out hard for JT On Saturday night And lose that game, then I’ll be nervous. But for now, it’s 1 friggen game people

 

[Bomber0104]

Im sorry are you somehow blaming Dubas for a freak injury?

Um yeah, when you spend half your cap on 4 players and one of them goes down, it makes it that much harder to replace them with your table scrap depth pieces.

Who else can possibly be blamed for designing the team that way?

 

[Trapper]

They out-chanced and outplayed Montreal last night, hit 3 posts I believe, this could have been a very different game.

One team's game plan is built on holding onto the puck and generating quality scoring chances.
The other's is to get the puck, put it into empty space, and try to win it back by hitting and hoping there is a breakdown for a scoring chance.

Here is another game with lopsided hitting last night
Pit - 29 | NYI - 46

It is almost like less skilled teams need to muck it up to try to make it a game.

Also would not surprise me if half the "hits" from last night were just Montreal laying cross-checks in front of the net.

They can put that on the Maple Leafs tombstone as our final epitaph.

Here lies the Leafs. We were the better team, out chanced them and ran into a hot goalie.

Look it’s 1 game in a 7 game series. I fully expect them to win but unlike the other teams of Boston/Pittsburgh/etc, this team has established no track record of confidence in crunch times. Until they do that, there will always be doubt.

We’ve downgraded opponents every year, Washington, Boston, then Columbus and now Montreal. A team that really isn’t a playoff team. Regardless this team has a lot more to prove than another team that just loses a first game.

 

[Ziggdiezan]

Thats not a back breaking goal though. Andy's was way worse.

Tied 1-1 in the 3rd period and you let in a shorty from a guy on his knees while attempting and failing to play the puck again? I would say that is pretty back breaking.

 

[Woodman19]

Um yeah, when you spend half your cap on 4 players and one of them goes down, it makes it that much harder to replace them with your table scrap depth pieces.

Who else can possibly be blamed for designing the team that way?

Regardless of that, I dont see many teams replacing a key piece like that at this point of the season so the cap doesnt really matter now.

 

[Jimmy Firecracker]

Um yeah, when you spend half your cap on 4 players and one of them goes down, it makes it that much harder to replace them with your table scrap depth pieces.

Who else can possibly be blamed for designing the team that way?

This is absurd, by that logic a team should never sign any player to a big contract because they may get injured, no matter how good they are.

The flip side of your argument that is when healthy you’ve got an elite centre playing on your second line and allows the team to outclass most of our opponents in the centre department.

 

[GoBuds14]

Montreal fans are excited, as they should be. But man, some of their fans are VERY confident this series is over in 5 or 6. They don’t have a good roster, arguably the weakest of any playoff team, I don’t understand the confidence.

 

[Jimmy Firecracker]

I hope every Habs fan that has the nerve to come in here and spout off after our Captain’s injury gets whatever the highest infraction possible is.

 

[Bomber0104]

This is absurd, by that logic a team should never sign any player to a big contract because they may get injured, no matter how good they are.

The flip side of your argument that is when healthy you’ve got an elite centre playing on your second line and allows the team to outclass most of our opponents in the centre department.

There's nothing absurd about diversifying risk.

That's probably one of the most basic economic concepts but maybe that's beyond your grasp..

 

[Stigma]

Because Riley Nash is a veteran with a history of solid playoff performances and Engvall has an hour of solid regular season play in what, three seasons? I start Nash 100% of the time in yesterday's situation.

Fine. You may have a point. But to say that having Engvall or Galchenyuk play over Nash while having Nash slowly ease in on the 4th line a "ridiculous take" is kind of extreme.

 

[Woodman19]

Montreal fans are excited, as they should be. But man, some of their fans are VERY confident this series is over in 5 or 6. They don’t have a good roster, arguably the weakest of any playoff team, I don’t understand the confidence.

Probably the same psychology of Leaf fans thinking its over already because we didnt win the 6-0 blowout they expected. Fans are stupid and overreact when reality doesnt match their fantasy world expectations. Its a best of series and nothing is decided even if we had won last night.

 

[Guided by Veseys]

Carey Price was good last night but could anybody actually think that he was incredible? He did what he had to which was not a lot. If the leafs somehow lose the series and Price only has to play low danger games then hopefully the narrative isn’t about Price being amazing.
He was good not great. Didn’t need to be great.

 

[Woodman19]

There's nothing absurd about diversifying risk.

That's probably one of the most basic economic concepts but maybe that's beyond your grasp..

Diversifying risk didnt help the Leafs when we were paying like 10 guys $4-5 mil to be league average players. Unfortunately one of the side effects of having top end talented players means you actually have to pay them and I would rather have the uncomfortable feeling of being a worried accountant over numbers that make me uncomfortable than having a team of uncomfortable players that make me feel better about finance.

 

[BertCorbeau]

Mitch Marner Career Playoffs Game Log | Hockey-Reference.com

Marner with only 6 assists in his last 12 playoff games. When you combine this with the borderline embarrassing PP, where he's supposed to be the key playmaker, it's clear that Marner needs to rise up and be better.

He's done it in the playoffs before, but particularly since he's gotten his new contract he's been subpar. And for $11 mill per year, he's expected to rise up in the playoffs and lead.

 

[Dion TheFluff]

That's a good line up. I wouldn't mind seeing that.

I don't want to see Simmonds in Leafs uniform ever again. In fact, I would put Nylander with Matthews and Marner.
Get one good solid line. If the Habs want to play Denault 25 mins a game against our top line, let them

only thing I would be worried about is, all 3 like to have the puck alot.
Plus Nylander and Galchenyuk seemed to have really good chemistry.

 

[Jimmy Firecracker]

There's nothing absurd about diversifying risk.

That's probably one of the most basic economic concepts but maybe that's beyond your grasp..

Diversifying risk? This isn’t a your stock portfolio, we’re trying to build a winning hockey team here and to do that you sign the best players available. If you go out of your way to sign worse players so you can afford a slightly better depth guy you’re playing to lose.

 

[Woodman19]

Diversifying risk? This isn’t a your stock portfolio, we’re trying to build a winning hockey team here and to do that you sign the best players available. If you go out of your way to sign worse players so you can afford a slightly better depth guy you’re playing to lose.

You can argue that we have "diversified risk" by having 4 high end players rather than our usual maybe 1.

 

[Contenderorpretender]

If I was told mtl puts up 2 goals I'd bet the leafs win. No need to stress yet.

 

[sxvnert]

There's nothing absurd about diversifying risk.

That's probably one of the most basic economic concepts but maybe that's beyond your grasp..

Problem with that theory is top end is crucial to winning a cup. Having a bunch of 4-5m players gets you to the post season, maybe a round or two but will never win a stanley cup.

 

[ShaneFalco]

Mitch Marner Career Playoffs Game Log | Hockey-Reference.com

Marner with only 6 assists in his last 12 playoff games. When you combine this with the borderline embarrassing PP, where he's supposed to be the key playmaker, it's clear that Marner needs to rise up and be better.

He's done it in the playoffs before, but particularly since he's gotten his new contract he's been subpar. And for $11 mill per year, he's expected to rise up in the playoffs and lead.

Keeps trying to make the pretty pass. That 2 on 1 last night prime example

 

[Woodman19]

I dont think its going to be as high a scoring series as everyone expects. Montreal clings onto a 1 goal lead like its 5 minutes left from winning the Cup because they know they have to.

 

[OppositeLocK]

If for whatever reason Toronto ends up losing, I just hope that nobody uses the Tavares situation as an excuse. This team is more than good enough to win without him.

The pens made it to the third round with both Crosby and Malkin out.

 

[ShaneFalco]

 

[Confucius]

The Foligno fight was pretty bizarre, Perry is a tough guy but he didn't seem to want to fight back and just took it. Very strange overall.

 

[BertCorbeau]

I dont think its going to be as high a scoring series as everyone expects. Montreal clings onto a 1 goal lead like its 5 minutes left from winning the Cup because they know they have to.

Yep, this is the playoffs. They're not just going to stop with their effort level. They upset the Pens in the play-ins, and while talent-wise they aren't really good enough for a cup run, they can still upset teams in a series. Especially if Price plays well.

The Leafs need to have a grind-them-out mentality. Greasy goals and engage them heavily. Giving the Habs momentum in a series will just keep them pushing hard. They won't relax with a series lead, they know they have to play all-out to have a chance.

But after that hard paced first period, I saw the Leafs' get their game going. Smart puck movement and not allowing the Habs forecheck to disrupt that will open things up for the Leafs.