Confirmed with Link: Leafs sign D Oliver Ekman-Larsson (4 years, $3.5M AAV)

[al secord]

Don't mind this at all. Compared to other frightening deals yesterday, this seemed like a nice piece of business.

 

[Da Mash]

There was a time when many HFBoardsters would have traded the farm to acquire OEL.

Now that he's a Leaf he sucks.

Oh my god.

Just chill out people.

Maybe a half a decade ago....yes....

Tre went with older players hoping they can give us a few more good years.

Team got older and Im not sure it would of been the direction I would of went but then again I was never a big Tre fan as I just dont think he is that great of a GM. He gets too tunnel vision for my liking.

But Lets Go Leafs.....Im too old to lose sleep over it. Im excited for the year to start.

 

[Sypher04]

Maybe a half a decade ago....yes....

Tre went with older players hoping they can give us a few more good years.

Team got older and Im not sure it would of been the direction I would of went but then again I was never a big Tre fan as I just dont think he is that great of a GM. He gets too tunnel vision for my liking.

But Lets Go Leafs.....Im too old to lose sleep over it. Im excited for the year to start.

Tre built a very good defensive group in Calgary. I trust his judgement on that end. He’s done what he can so far, I think it’s not the final state he envisions but it’s a big step up

 

[Oscar Peterson]

Rielly - Tanev
McCabe - Liljegren
OEL - Hakanpaa

OEL with Hakanpaa is a solid 3rd pairing.

I think that will be exactly how the early camp pairings shake out, but that being said Benoit and McCabe have very strong chemistry so if Liljegren falters at all I could see Benoit coming in and Liljegren taking Hakanpaa's spot.

I think we actually have a nice bit of depth here though, and rather than 3/4 defenseman competing for the #6 lineup spot it will be more like Benoit/Hakanpaa competing for a role and Liljegren/Timmins competing for a role.

 

[Tak7]

54 weeks ago, OEL was involved in one of the league's most expensive ever buyouts due to being a gas can in Vancouver.

Only really stabilized things in a defensive-heavy system in Florida playing bottom pair minutes with a really solid partner.

The Leafs blueline, and overall team defense, is considerably weaker than Floridas.

I'm not a fan of this contract at all - you could have packaged the OEL money with the Hakanpaa money and taken a run at a $5.5M Pesce.

Really seems like the Leafs were over-seduced by his offensive potential on the powerplay.

 

[Oscar Peterson]

Tre built a very good defensive group in Calgary. I trust his judgement on that end. He’s done what he can so far, I think it’s not the final state he envisions but it’s a big step up

Our D looks significantly better going into next season than it did even after the deadline last year. I understand the term concerns but I think people are sleeping on how much of an upgrade Tanev is at least over the next few years. Like, he's a legitimate high minutes impact player and will provide us a lot more than 4.5 million in value over the short term. And even if he declines significantly by years 5/6 and we can't LTIR him, the cap might conceivably be 12-15 million dollars higher by then.

I also think a big part of how this D-corps shapes up is if Berube can unlock Liljegren's game because while Keefe never could, there's still potential there.

 

[Da Mash]

Tre built a very good defensive group in Calgary. I trust his judgement on that end. He’s done what he can so far, I think it’s not the final state he envisions but it’s a big step up

Yeah... I know he is trying to put his stamp on this team. Calgary fans didnt hate to see him go. Im not a big fan of signing older players to they are 40 but like you said ....not alot of cap space.

He really shouldnt of resigned Kampf or even given Lilly 3 mil a year.....cap is tight enough and even throwing a mil or so a year to Reaves was not a great move....again ...a aging player who offers very little.

We will see what happens with Marner and Taveres when the money comes off the books if that happens at all as I can see both being here again next yr.

Domi signing was ok. Im not convinced he is a top 6 player and I think Mathews hid alot of his defensive liabilities. If he is motivated ....maybe he changes but sometimes its hard to change the spots on a player no matter who the coach is. He loves Toronto so maybe that pushes him more to be a complete player we need.

But seeing how free agency went there was alot of overpayment. No way I would of given those contracts Edmnudson and the Bear got......even Bert got a nice contract and I would of passed on that too even tho I liked him here.

All in all....Tre did ok.

 

[notbias]

There was a time when many HFBoardsters would have traded the farm to acquire OEL.

Now that he's a Leaf he sucks.

Oh my god.

Just chill out people.

No, when he started sucking he sucked.

Now, he is a gamble, he had a nice season last year but was very sheltered.

We will see if he continues to bounce back, but he hasn't been a great player for a while.

 

[Da Mash]

54 weeks ago, OEL was involved in one of the league's most expensive ever buyouts due to being a gas can in Vancouver.

Only really stabilized things in a defensive-heavy system in Florida playing bottom pair minutes with a really solid partner.

The Leafs blueline, and overall team defense, is considerably weaker than Floridas.

I'm not a fan of this contract at all - you could have packaged the OEL money with the Hakanpaa money and taken a run at a $5.5M Pesce.

Really seems like the Leafs were over-seduced by his offensive potential on the powerplay.

Pesce would of been great.

I hope we kicked the tires there....but then again......I think Tre gets tunnel vision on players he wants and doesnt put alot of effort in other possibilities IMHO

But then again....some players just dont want to come to Canada to play.

I would of given the Habs a 4th in 2026 (if we have it ) for Kovacevic .....

 

[Da Mash]

Our D looks significantly better going into next season than it did even after the deadline last year. I understand the term concerns but I think people are sleeping on how much of an upgrade Tanev is at least over the next few years. Like, he's a legitimate high minutes impact player and will provide us a lot more than 4.5 million in value over the short term. And even if he declines significantly by years 5/6 and we can't LTIR him, the cap might conceivably be 12-15 million dollars higher by then.

I also think a big part of how this D-corps shapes up is if Berube can unlock Liljegren's game because while Keefe never could, there's still potential there.

Hopefully Berube makes fun of Lilly mother or something to light a fire under him. I was a big fan of Lilly but I wish he had some fire in him you know.

We need Lilly to be Bobby Boucher

 

[4thline]

Now, he is a gamble, he had a nice season last year but was very sheltered.

Not really- pretty much baseline

 

[Dala]

https://x.com/i/web/status/1808157328283140171

Tingsryds insamling för att rädda föreningen

Hjälp oss att rädda Tingsryds AIF

www.targetaid.com

If you want a more relaxed OEL with no worries regarding his youth club, feel free to pitch in whatever amount.

 

[BertCorbeau]

54 weeks ago, OEL was involved in one of the league's most expensive ever buyouts due to being a gas can in Vancouver.

Only really stabilized things in a defensive-heavy system in Florida playing bottom pair minutes with a really solid partner.

The Leafs blueline, and overall team defense, is considerably weaker than Floridas.

I'm not a fan of this contract at all - you could have packaged the OEL money with the Hakanpaa money and taken a run at a $5.5M Pesce.

Really seems like the Leafs were over-seduced by his offensive potential on the powerplay.

By all accounts Tre was in on a lot of guys kicking tires. It didn't seem like Pesce wanted to sign here in Canada. So it's plausible that OEL was more of another route he went.

Seems like that mid $3 range was market value for bottom pairing d-men like him.... so the AAV isn't out of line, the term is just a bit long.

There's risk. I'm hopeful he can provide solid 5 on 5 mins, boosting puck movement, and get the Leafs' PP in better shape.

 

[notbias]

By all accounts Tre was in on a lot of guys kicking tires. It didn't seem like Pesce wanted to sign here in Canada. So it's plausible that OEL was more of another route he went.

Seems like that mid $3 range was market value for bottom pairing d-men like him.... so the AAV isn't out of line, the term is just a bit long.

There's risk. I'm hopeful he can provide solid 5 on 5 mins, boosting puck movement, and get the Leafs' PP in better shape.

It seems rich to have him as bottom pairing when we signed another for $1.5 million and had one for $1.35 million as well.

Hoping he exceeds the bottom pairing for the price tag.

 

[BertCorbeau]

It seems rich to have him as bottom pairing when we signed another for $1.5 million and had one for $1.35 million as well.

Hoping he exceeds the bottom pairing for the price tag.

Over 82 games, OEL has averaged at least 30+ points even in his last few "down" years.

If he can provide that offense while being decent defensively, that's well worth the price tag ... the term is the bigger risk

 

[Welsh Maple Leaf]

Dubas is pissing himself at this crap

 

[banks]

...

Team got older and Im not sure it would of been the direction I would of went but then again I was never a big Tre fan as I just dont think he is that great of a GM. ...

Pesce would of been great.

...

I would of given the Habs a 4th in 2026 (if we have it ) for Kovacevic .....

* would've

 

[ChurchOfMatthews]

https://x.com/i/web/status/1808157328283140171

Interesting. When I was a teen in the late 80's we went to Sweden for a few weeks to play hockey. We lived and played most of our games in Tingsryd. I still have some mementos from the trip.

 

[ITM]

54 weeks ago, OEL was involved in one of the league's most expensive ever buyouts due to being a gas can in Vancouver.

Only really stabilized things in a defensive-heavy system in Florida playing bottom pair minutes with a really solid partner.

The Leafs blueline, and overall team defense, is considerably weaker than Floridas.

I'm not a fan of this contract at all - you could have packaged the OEL money with the Hakanpaa money and taken a run at a $5.5M Pesce.

Really seems like the Leafs were over-seduced by his offensive potential on the powerplay.

Forsling and Montour came out of nowhere to be fair and some say Montour's on his way down again.

Our defence might have been weaker, but now...If we are we're not that much weaker. Especially when you consider Montour's gone and so is OEL.

And so is Stolarz.

I want to see what our team defense looks like under a coach who demands accountability and a strong forecheck.

As for the implication OEL is soft...He was fifth in PIMs on the club and led the D in that cat. (pun intended).

If he's our day to day number 4 but amplifies the PP - at his hit - we're golden.

 

[notbias]

Over 82 games, OEL has averaged at least 30+ points even in his last few "down" years.

If he can provide that offense while being decent defensively, that's well worth the price tag ... the term is the bigger risk

30 points for someone who gets PP time does not scream good to me.

 

[Daisy Jane]

Really seems like the Leafs were over-seduced by his offensive potential on the powerplay.

considering our powerplay sucked complete monkey in the playoffs. being overseduced by that doesn't seem like a bad thing to me.

I want to see what our team defense looks like under a coach who demands accountability and a strong forecheck.

this is my thing too. I feel. we're looking at people as parts - and not as a whole and not with the coach in mind. (which is fair. people are allowed to not like the deal etc). but i feel too - being older isn't a bad thing. I never thought it was. as much as it is a "young man's game." and health etc plays a part, i think when it comes to the playoffs, maturity etc can play a part. OEL just won a cup now, and so that mentality can help the leafs. (I feel).

 

[Man Bear Pig]

If he even wanted to play in Toronto. A lot of players don’t want to.

Apparently he didn't wanna play anywhere in Canada.

 

[CabanaBoy5]

considering our powerplay sucked complete monkey in the playoffs. being overseduced by that doesn't seem like a bad thing to me.




this is my thing too. I feel. we're looking at people as parts - and not as a whole and not with the coach in mind. (which is fair. people are allowed to not like the deal etc). but i feel too - being older isn't a bad thing. I never thought it was. as much as it is a "young man's game." and health etc plays a part, i think when it comes to the playoffs, maturity etc can play a part. OEL just won a cup now, and so that mentality can help the leafs. (I feel).

There was a time when we wanted and valued players with Stanley Cup experience. I think the experience gained having gone through a tough Stanley Cup run and winning in a tough 7-game final series is invaluable to the Leafs. OEL wasn't a marginal player who was in and out of the lineup, he was an important contributor to winning the Cup. He had a TOI of 15:27 in 24 playoff games.

 

[Daisy Jane]

There was a time when we wanted and valued players with Stanley Cup experience. I think the experience gained having gone through a tough Stanley Cup run and winning in a tough 7-game final series is invaluable to the Leafs. OEL wasn't a marginal player who was in and out of the lineup, he was an important contributor to winning the Cup. He had a TOI of 15:27 in 24 playoff games.

yeah. and unlike the others we have gotten (who got then and lost - which imo is still valuable experience). the dude's won. (was he on the Florida team that lost in the final?) my belief is and always will be while overall talent may not scream Cup - a lot of the issues are mental and if they have people who can butt kick them into gear who knows what it is like to be in every situation before winning it all that's a good thing in my opinion.

 

[Thornbury]

30 points for someone who gets PP time does not scream good to me.

He wasn't on PP1.