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

[Maple Leaf]

I'm not surprise at all of OEL start.

sign a D who fit exactly with what your team need, you will just get the best of the player.

just need some slapper and things get will get real hot if you know you know

 

[WillNy29]

holy crap he looks really good. not out of place in the top 4 at all so far

 

[Gabriel426]

He is such a pleasant surprise sofar. I guess he finally adapt a style that fits his current physical limits.
He reads the game well and play great positioning. Best of all, he hasn’t misread situation that caused the Leafs a goal.

 

[Seath The Scaleless]

The first page of this thread is hilarious lol

 

[Gabriel426]

The first page of this thread is hilarious lol

Remind me of the Hainsy thread, lol

 

[uncleben]

holy crap he looks really good. not out of place in the top 4 at all so far

It's early, but I'm happily eating crow*


*so far.
My biggest concern was with term, but still, he's playing better than I expected, even from the get-go

 

[1specter]

Dude is looking like a stud. I feel incredibly calm when I see him out there

 

[Shooter2x]

He doesn't look 33 out there so far. Looks like he's in the heart of his prime.

Needs to find his finish though. With the chances he's getting coupled with his shot, he can easily finish with 10+ goals.

 

[Dough72]

He doesn't look 33 out there so far. Looks like he's in the heart of his prime.

Needs to find his finish though. With the chances he's getting coupled with his shot, he can easily finish with 10+ goals.

yeah he's been great but he doesn't have a lot of artistry around the net

 

[CapspaceKiller]

He looks like a steal through 4 games at 3.5/per.

He's definitely playing like a top 4 guy.

 

[Legion34]

He doesn't look 33 out there so far. Looks like he's in the heart of his prime.

Needs to find his finish though. With the chances he's getting coupled with his shot, he can easily finish with 10+ goals.

A lot of defensemen play well into their mid to late 30s. He was a top pair top 10-15 in the league D in his prime.

he is reportedly finally healthy. Hopefully he keeps it up. Of course he isn’t going to be 20g “wouldn’t trade him for Matthews” OEL but we can hope for and expect good things

 

[Sypher04]

The first page of this thread is hilarious lol

Yeah a lot of really bad takes.

 

[Tie Domi Esquire]

Yeah a lot of really bad takes.

Judging a 4 year deal after 4 games

 

[DarkKnight]

The first page of this thread is hilarious lol

Yikes! I like my take

 

[Sypher04]

Judging a 4 year deal after 4 games

Is that supposed to be worse than judging it after 0?

 

[HamiltonNHL]

Yeah a lot of really bad takes.

not all

Here is your PP1 defenseman....

nice.

View attachment 890654

Treliving rebuilding the Leafs defense.

nice.

I really don’t think this is a bad signing. Time will tell. We needed someone with some puck skills and a shot from the backend

Nice.

He will put up 50+ points this year, and provide 2/3 pairing level defense.

Nice.

 

[Tie Domi Esquire]

Is that supposed to be worse than judging it after 0?

Yes because at least they're considering the term.

 

[Enniskillen]

And we could still acquire a player like Roy or Skjei, or even better, by trading Liljegren plus additional assets in addition to getting OEL. If Calgary commits to a full rebuild, we could potentially trade Cowan and Liljegren for another top-pair defenseman like Rasmus Andersson.

This could create a top-five defensive core in the league:

- Rielly — Tanev
- McCabe — Andersson
- OEL — Hakanpaa

That would be awesome! There’s just one minor thing with Calgary management hating anything related with Tre.

 

[GoonieFace]

He was pretty bad for 2.5 seasons before he went to Florida, so it’s not unreasonable to think it was risky to give him a 4 year deal. He is looking good though

 

[LEAFANFORLIFE23]

He was pretty bad for 2.5 seasons before he went to Florida, so it’s not unreasonable to think it was risky to give him a 4 year deal. He is looking good though

He wasn't though, he was on Arizona, followed by the Jim Benning run Canucks.

Now he's been on good teams in Florida and Toronto

 

[All Mod Cons]

Dubas is pissing himself at this crap

I agree. And that's 100% why we should never have hired him.

 

[crump]

So far so good. Both him and Tanev have fit like a glove with Berube. He’s wound the clock back, at least for the first 4 games. It’s long season, it’s a long contract for an early 30’s guy. If he helps bring us to the promised land then nobody will care in the waning days of his contract and we’ll
be waxing poetic about his place in Leafs history.

 

[The Masters]

Amazing pick up by Brad

 

[thewave]

Amazing pick up by Brad

I know right. At the rate he is playing now he will be more valuable to the team than MM in the playoffs and for peanuts.

 

[Jimmy Firecracker]

I’m sorry OEL for ever doubting you.

https://x.com/i/web/status/1848542387863245000