Post-Game Talk: Leafs lose to MONTREAL. This team is no gangsta. Lyubushkin is needed, hard.

[ashs]

Brodie's been struggling a ton lately. A lot of uncharacteristic penalties and fire drill defense all over the place.

Of course he has, been do or die games from day 1, that effort isn't sustainable

 

[Sniper99]

Edmonton east?

Not quite, they actually fired their coach, we're still trying to figure out what our coach is doing

 

[MSZ]

You have to build from the net out

or get a goalie

Time to ask Cujo comes out of retirement.

 

[LastOne2100]

tavares has 3 ES goals in the last 25 games, thats not good
marner/matthews have been carrying this team for a long time

Really makes you think how much better this team could be with that $11M used elsewhere, like it should have been.

 

[HellasLEAF]

Has ANY other NHL team allocated its cap space in this manor. Honest question..

 

[djdev]

Really makes you think how much better this team could be with that $11M used elsewhere, like it should have been.

sad to see him go from 47 goals to this, if he was still contributing outside of the PP then i could live with it, but hes looked uninterested all year, and its kinda screwing us depth wise to have to use 11m on a player that doesnt ever win games for you, the other big 3 have all done it multiple times this year

edit: seriously, i cant remember one game this year where i can say JT was the best player...not 1.

 

[GQS]

The team is flawed. Leafs management should be very concerned right now.

Seriously what more can Dubas do at this point? Maybe bring in a Fleury to try and improve the goaltending and moving Mrazek. Maybe bring in another Dman too. At the end of the day its up to our best players to show up and lead the way. The only other option that Dubas has is moving a major player to really shake things up.

 

[keonsbitterness]

Tavares has a full NTC. He aint going anywhere LOL

Unless it was in year 7 to chase a Cup because we were out of it, I don't think he'd ever waive.

 

[Racer88]

Really makes you think how much better this team could be with that $11M used elsewhere, like it should have been.

I have been saying this for 2 years now……single biggest mistake Dubas has made……even worse then Marners dollar value

 

[LastOne2100]

Seriously what more can Dubas do at this point? Maybe bring in a Fleury to try and improve the goaltending and moving Mrazek. Maybe bring in another Dman too. At the end of the day its up to our best players to show up and lead the way. The only other option that Dubas has is moving a major player to really shake things up.

Dubas will be betting the farm for sure. This roster isn't good enough to get past Tampa or Florida, and he knows his career is tied to getting past Tampa or Florida.

Doubt the gambit will pay off and if it doesn't, it's going to take a significant hit on an already depleted and bare prospect pool.

 

[Statsman1]

I want to believe in this team, I really do, and they make it so hard to find that confidence in them.

When they cannot get fired up to destroy a barely-AHL-quality last place playing-the-second-in-two-nights Montreal team in a revenge game, they make it difficult to imagine them winning a series against even an equal opponent, let alone the elite teams.

After tonight, I guess it really is “I will believe they can do it when they actually do it.”

 

[34]

No surprised at all. It is what you expect from this team. It is a failed, flawed build. Rebuild is in order.

Just hope Muzzin will be ok. That might be a career for him at this point. Brain injuries are nothing to take lightly. Won’t be surprised if he is forced into retirement.

 

[Jimmy Firecracker]

Count me as a nonbeliever now.

 

[CabanaBoy5]

Guess who was on for 0 goals against and both goals for tonight?

Perfect example of how a player can get lucky and the stats make him look good. He was terrible tonight…again. Giveaways, out of position, outmuscled, etc. Sooner we’re rid of this guy the sooner our defence is better.

 

[SeaOfBlue]

Stop right there with the matthews crap. Last year and tonight he showed no fight. Last year when he was being rag dolled by chariot he had a silly looking grin on his face. He should have turned around and cross checked him in the face and send a message. Posters will now say oh yeah and matthews gets suspended what dies that do for us. Well if you look at some if the better players in the league they give you the stuck or an elbow now and then.

matthews smiles. So Dont give him a pass

each of the top two lines need a big power forward to fight through the teams with a big defense

Or the guys who get paid to be good can play like it.

Maple Leafs' John Tavares: Back after difficult COVID ordeal

Apparently Tavares had a really bad case of Covid. Most guys on our team felt no symptoms, but Tavares sufferred hard. Before Covid he looked dominant. 8 ES goals in 29 games, tied for second (with Nylander) to Matthews' 12. And he could have easily had more.

Tavares now looks exactly like he has no energy. He was still getting some chances and you can tell he is still trying and skating hard, but he just looks like he is at the end of his shift all of the time for most of 2022.

 

[Ports]

Shanahan will be shown the door also, so you know he's all in too. If they lose in the first round it's a likely full back office overhaul.

Frankly, they all deserve it for not sticking to the plan and rushing our rebuild with the JT signing that was completely unnecessary and ruined any opportunity to have a proper balanced team.

Well, and repeatedly signing horrible contracts for which there are no comparables in the NHL.

This.

 

[Da Cool Rula]

Their won't be any firings (despite the fact it seems Keefe d8esnt have a clue what to do)but something drastic has to happen. Major trade

 

[Guy Boucher]

Really felt like we had 4 unplayable defensemen today. And the two that are playable had rough nights.

 

[LastOne2100]

I have been saying this for 2 years now……ingle biggest mistake Dubas has made……even worse then Marners dollar value

Agree, but honestly, Dubas' closet of errors is growing.
1) Matthews contract that has no comparables in the league with that small term that walks him right to free agency
2) Torpedoing a season from Nylander then just giving him what he wanted all along
3) Marner contract that has no comparable even in the ballpark for an RFA
4) Kadri trade (although this one had to be made)
5) Marchment

Drafting has been pretty rough, although that started before Dubas.

 

[paulhiggins]

Rotate some of the overpaid guys keeping Dubas and Shanny company watching from the rafters.

 

[Future]

Unless it was in year 7 to chase a Cup because we were out of it, I don't think he'd ever waive.

Strip him of the C and I could see him requesting a trade out of embarrassment.

 

[Racer88]

Agree, but honestly, Dubas' closet of errors is growing.
1) Matthews contract that has no comparables in the league with that small term that walks him right to free agency
2) Torpedoing a season from Nylander then just giving him what he wanted all along
3) Marner contract that has no comparable even in the ballpark for an RFA
4) Kadri trade (although this one had to be made)
5) Marchment

Drafting has been pretty rough, although that started before Dubas.

Yup

 

[Brown Dog]

After last year's collapse, the vast majority of the fanbase had become embittered in response to this team's inability to rise to the occasion. Covid delays, generally strong play, and the lack of a compelling playoff race in the East took the edge off that feeling.

But a loss like tonight brings it all back with such clarity. Can this iteration of the Leafs win when it matters? I'll believe it when I see it.

 

[LucicAndChong]

There are some major problems on this team.

Jake Muzzin was supposed to be our defensive rock. Physical and could eat minutes along with providing great defence. Problem is he cannot stay healthy anymore. And even when he is healthy he is a shell of his former self.

His body has a lot of hard miles and I’m afraid his NHL career is almost done. He has a young family to take care of, eventually he will have to think about his future. He cannot be trusted to be our defensive rock anymore, and that f***s us.


Mitch Marner. Can be one of the most creative players in the NHL, but seriously lacks what it takes to be productive in the playoffs. Prone to long droughts, Marner would be fine for the team if he wasn’t making 8 figures.

He is not a player who thrives in physical playoff hockey and that is a serious concern, especially when he takes up almost 1/8th of our teams total cap.


John Tavares. This one is probably the biggest problem for the future IMO. Tavares has been less and less effective since his 47 goal season. Although he does the small things right, when you’re getting paid $11 million dollars you have to be doing more than the small things on most nights.

He has incredible hockey IQ which allows him to score as much as he does, but his foot speed severely limits his abilities on the ice and it’s only going to get worse. He is not a 1st line player anymore, and he is not a competent 2nd line Center anymore. An $11 million dollar player should be able to drive their own line and it’s evident he can’t do that anymore.

so now the problem becomes what to do with him. He has 3 full years left on his contract after this year, along with a NMC. He is the golden Pajama boy, and praised because he was one of the few free agents who has ever WANTED to be a leaf. And that’s why it’s so hard to think or talk about the possibility that he might have to get traded.

I have seen a lot of people say “just move him to the wing if he isn’t a competent Center anymore” but that brings more problems. 1, if you don’t think that Marner is worth $10 million dollars as a winger then youre going to be VERY upset with Tavares as an $11 million dollar winger and 2, if he moves to the wing that leaves a massive hole in the leafs offence at the 2C position and we will have no cap space to address it.

this is all without mentioning our goalie uncertainty and more systemic problems with our defence.

i am seriously worried about the future of this team, and I am not sure there is a way to feasibly fix it.

 

[LastOne2100]

i am seriously worried about the future of this team, and I am not sure there is a way to feasibly fix it.

Time machine. Oh, you said feasible? Robidas Island JT?