Confirmed with Link: Leafs sign F Ryan Reaves (3 years, $1.3M AAV)

[Leaf Fans]

That's not true. 85% of it can be buried, not 99.8%. And again, he's not buried. He's costing 1.35m against the cap.

Reaves is the same thing. Which is why you can't actually name anything that's different. He's just the shiny new toy.

Gregor and Minten cost 775k and 845k respectively. They didn't force anything.

Your statement is contradictory. You claim it's irrelevant, but then you claim we need both. Well, we don't have both, because we lost the better tool for the worse, more expensive, more rusted tool that we didn't really need.

Gregor beat out Lafferty for the 4th line job.

 

[supermann_98]

That's not true. 85% of it can be buried, not 99.8%. And again, he's not buried. He's costing 1.35m against the cap.

Reaves is the same thing. Which is why you can't actually name anything that's different. He's just the shiny new toy.

Gregor and Minten cost 775k and 845k respectively. They didn't force anything.

Your statement is contradictory. You claim it's irrelevant, but then you claim we need both. Well, we don't have both, because we lost the better tool for the worse, more expensive, more rusted tool that we didn't really need.

I love how triggered you are that the Leafs signed a guy who's not only been loved by his teammates, but who your hero Dubas would've never considered signing. Get over it, he's way more of a player than Simmonds or any of the other jobbers Dubas used to sign for the 4th line.

His body checking alone has the other teams shook and they jump him as soon as he finishes hard (clean) checks.

 

[ACC1224]

Gregor beat out Lafferty for the 4th line job.

This is correct. The obvious isn't always so obvious.

 

[Apex Predator]

I love how triggered you are that the Leafs signed a guy who's not only been loved by his teammates, but who your hero Dubas would've never considered signing. Get over it, he's way more of a player than Simmonds or any of the other jobbers Dubas used to sign for the 4th line.

His body checking alone has the other teams shook and they jump him as soon as he finishes hard (clean) checks.

Can’t wait to hear how he’s going to talk bad about Reaves on the Leafs Report.

 

[thewave]

The Beast of the East. That is all.


<3 Ryan Leaves

 

[Dekes For Days]

Gregor beat out Lafferty for the 4th line job.

No, Reaves was handed a 4th line job, and Lafferty subsequently had to be traded to be cap compliant.

I love how triggered you are that the Leafs signed a guy who's not only been loved by his teammates, but who your hero Dubas would've never considered signing. Get over it, he's way more of a player than Simmonds or any of the other jobbers Dubas used to sign for the 4th line. His body checking alone has the other teams shook and they jump him as soon as he finishes hard (clean) checks.

Dubas isn't my "hero", and Dubas brought in fighters every year he was here. You're right that he probably wouldn't have brought in Reaves though, because he doesn't like to hand out 1.35m for 3 years to 36 year old below replacement players. Nobody is "shook" or "triggered", and our team gave belts and compliments to all the past guys too.
Reaves is just the shiny new toy. You only think it's different, in the adrenaline of the early season, because you want it to be different.

 

[Apex Predator]

No, Reaves was handed a 4th line job, and Lafferty subsequently had to be traded to be cap compliant.

Dubas isn't my "hero", and Dubas brought in fighters every year he was here. You're right that he probably wouldn't have brought in Reaves though, because he doesn't like to hand out 1.35m for 3 years to 36 year old below replacement players. Nobody is "shook" or "triggered", and our team gave belts and compliments to all the past guys too.
Reaves is just the shiny new toy. You only think it's different, in the adrenaline of the early season, because you want it to be different.

Isn’t that what the leafs have been doing the last 4 years with the core? Why is the Reaves liked at bad by you but the core view is not. It’s essentially the same because you wan tit to be different. They’ve tried and failed but are running it back but you want it to be different.

 

[Ianturnedbull]

No, Reaves was handed a 4th line job, and Lafferty subsequently had to be traded to be cap compliant.

Dubas isn't my "hero", and Dubas brought in fighters every year he was here. You're right that he probably wouldn't have brought in Reaves though, because he doesn't like to hand out 1.35m for 3 years to 36 year old below replacement players. Nobody is "shook" or "triggered", and our team gave belts and compliments to all the past guys too.
Reaves is just the shiny new toy. You only think it's different, in the adrenaline of the early season, because you want it to be different.

It's different because it's factually different. Reaves was not on the team last year, and now he's on the team this year.

To say that Clifford/Simmonds is the same player as Reaves is an oversimplification.

Why don't you just come out and say what you really want to say:

"I don't like fighting in hockey"

 

[Dekes For Days]

Isn’t that what the leafs have been doing the last 4 years with the core? Why is the Reaves liked at bad by you but the core view is not.

You're confusing two things. The team isn't the same. The results aren't going to be the same (and wouldn't be, even if the team was, because that's how hockey works).
The play style of Reaves compared to past players we've had is the point of discussion. And nothing is different there.

It's different because it's factually different. Reaves was not on the team last year, and now he's on the team this year.

Yes. Reaves wasn't on the team last year. He is - for now - on the team this year. That is technically different.
But what everybody is talking about is having a player with that playstyle. And nothing is different there.

 

[ACC1224]

Leafs haven't had a player like Reaves since Colton Orr, maybe Matt Martin.

 

[horner]

It's different because it's factually different. Reaves was not on the team last year, and now he's on the team this year.

To say that Clifford/Simmonds is the same player as Reaves is an oversimplification.

Why don't you just come out and say what you really want to say:

"I don't like fighting in hockey"

Love Reeves
He is exactly what this team needed.
When he hits he hurts players
If you want to fight no problem .
Clifford and Simmons aren't Reeves

 

[Leaf Fans]

No, Reaves was handed a 4th line job, and Lafferty subsequently had to be traded to be cap compliant.

Dubas isn't my "hero", and Dubas brought in fighters every year he was here. You're right that he probably wouldn't have brought in Reaves though, because he doesn't like to hand out 1.35m for 3 years to 36 year old below replacement players. Nobody is "shook" or "triggered", and our team gave belts and compliments to all the past guys too.
Reaves is just the shiny new toy. You only think it's different, in the adrenaline of the early season, because you want it to be different.

No, Gregor beat Lafferty out for the job. I didn't think Dubas was your hero. I didn’t even mention him.

 

[thewave]

No, Reaves was handed a 4th line job, and Lafferty subsequently had to be traded to be cap compliant.

Dubas isn't my "hero", and Dubas brought in fighters every year he was here. You're right that he probably wouldn't have brought in Reaves though, because he doesn't like to hand out 1.35m for 3 years to 36 year old below replacement players. Nobody is "shook" or "triggered", and our team gave belts and compliments to all the past guys too.
Reaves is just the shiny new toy. You only think it's different, in the adrenaline of the early season, because you want it to be different.

Below replacement? He is an impact player that makes your team tougher to play against, a Warrior, a Champion and something the Leafs didn't have on the team. We didn't have that on this team because Dubas wasn't smart enough to understand that you need these sorts of people to formulate a team with character.

Dubas was some Brock Grad with no hockey experience really. He tried to use metrics to build a team and failed large. Good riddance he is gone forever.

 

[Mess]

Can’t wait to hear how he’s going to talk bad about Reaves on the Leafs Report.

Seems not everyone is happy with the new physical play and tone setting.

Wonder what bothers them most the Leafs winning or the Leafs push back and intensity that Ryan inspires?

Leafs haven't started a season 3-0 since 2017-18 when Lou Lam was our GM and what our new GM Treliving is attempted to achieve tonight with his new additions to the Leafs roster.

 

[Dekes For Days]

No, Gregor beat Lafferty out for the job.

There is more than one 4th line job. Leafs could have had Lafferty instead of Reaves. They couldn't have both because of the cap.
Gregor has nothing to do with anything. He's league minimum.

Below replacement? He is an impact player that makes your team tougher to play against

No he's not. He's a good fighter, but he is below replacement, something we've had a similar version of every single year, and his line has been getting caved in so far.
We've been winning because of Matthews and our stars so far.

 

[Hoverhand]

Two things can be true.

The 4th line has looked uncoordinated in their own zone thus far (It's early but this was a predicted problem). It needs to improve, we're going to play more close games in the coming months and we can't have major blunders in the 1st and 2nd period. It's okay to admit that the eye test of the *actual* hockey part of this line is pretty suspect. (I haven't checked the fancy numbers)

That being said, the locker room benefits from having a guy like Reaves is incalculable. In the playoffs, you need your star players to join in on the mud hockey and start throwing elbows out there. There's a reason why all of the grinders Dubas brought in during the end of his tenure didn't move the needle. If there's any 4th liner out there that can drag the team's stars into the fight and motivate them to actually get their hands dirty... it's Ryan Reaves.

 

[Leaf Fans]

There is more than one 4th line job. Leafs could have had Lafferty instead of Reaves. They couldn't have both because of the cap.
Gregor has nothing to do with anything. He's league minimum.

No he's not. He's a good fighter, but he is below replacement, something we've had a similar version of every single year, and his line has been getting caved in so far.
We've been winning because of Matthews and our stars so far.

Gregor has to do with winning the 4th Line job. Why would they get rid of Reaves? He has been excellent. He fights as well.

 

[Mess]

Ryan Reaves has done something in Toronto that hasn't happened in over a decade​

For the Toronto Maple Leafs, finding the right combination of players to finally break through and find some playoff success has been a real challenge. The jury is still out on whether or not this year will be different, but the aura surrounding the team certainly feels a bit different.

One of the reasons for the change in appearance this year has been the decisions made by new GM Brad Treliving, who felt as though the Leafs needed to alter their identity a bit by adding some more sandpaper, which he was able to find in Tyler Bertuzzi, Max Domi and Ryan Reaves. The latter is coming off of back-to-back fights in his first two appearances as a Leaf. In case you missed them, here they are:

Lance Hornby of the Toronto Sun did some digging following the conclusion of the Leafs' 7-4 win over Minnesota on Saturday and discovered that Reavo's two fights in consecutive games hasn't happened in over a decade, dating back to April of 2013

Honestly, it may not seem like a valuable asset to the team to those outside the locker room, but we have already seen players like Auston Matthews step up and acknowledge how important Reaves has been to the early success of the team. The Leafs are now 2-0-0 to begin the season and I don't think it's a random coincidence that these wins occurred in games where Reaves logged at least 3 hits and a fight.

 

[SprDaVE]

Two things can be true.

The 4th line has looked uncoordinated in their own zone thus far (It's early but this was a predicted problem). It needs to improve, we're going to play more close games in the coming months and we can't have major blunders in the 1st and 2nd period. It's okay to admit that the eye test of the *actual* hockey part of this line is pretty suspect. (I haven't checked the fancy numbers)

That being said, the locker room benefits from having a guy like Reaves is incalculable. In the playoffs, you need your star players to join in on the mud hockey and start throwing elbows out there. There's a reason why all of the grinders Dubas brought in during the end of his tenure didn't move the needle. If there's any 4th liner out there that can drag the team's stars into the fight and motivate them to actually get their hands dirty... it's Ryan Reaves.

Well said and agreed.

Ryan Reaves has done something in Toronto that hasn't happened in over a decade​

For the Toronto Maple Leafs, finding the right combination of players to finally break through and find some playoff success has been a real challenge. The jury is still out on whether or not this year will be different, but the aura surrounding the team certainly feels a bit different.

One of the reasons for the change in appearance this year has been the decisions made by new GM Brad Treliving, who felt as though the Leafs needed to alter their identity a bit by adding some more sandpaper, which he was able to find in Tyler Bertuzzi, Max Domi and Ryan Reaves. The latter is coming off of back-to-back fights in his first two appearances as a Leaf. In case you missed them, here they are:

Lance Hornby of the Toronto Sun did some digging following the conclusion of the Leafs' 7-4 win over Minnesota on Saturday and discovered that Reavo's two fights in consecutive games hasn't happened in over a decade, dating back to April of 2013

View attachment 753486

Honestly, it may not seem like a valuable asset to the team to those outside the locker room, but we have already seen players like Auston Matthews step up and acknowledge how important Reaves has been to the early success of the team. The Leafs are now 2-0-0 to begin the season and I don't think it's a random coincidence that these wins occurred in games where Reaves logged at least 3 hits and a fight.

Let's hope his fighting improves goaltending and the 4th lines play.

 

[IPS]

I've never seen Matthews so involved in scrums before like these last 2 games.

The Reaves effect seems to be a real thing.

 

[Legion34]

That's not true. 85% of it can be buried, not 99.8%. And again, he's not buried. He's costing 1.35m against the cap.

Reaves is the same thing. Which is why you can't actually name anything that's different. He's just the shiny new toy.

Gregor and Minten cost 775k and 845k respectively. They didn't force anything.

Your statement is contradictory. You claim it's irrelevant, but then you claim we need both. Well, we don't have both, because we lost the better tool for the worse, more expensive, more rusted tool that we didn't really need.

The cap hit is 200k of 83.5 million which is .2% of the cap.

What matters is the percentage of the cap that his ahl hit would take out of the total pie. He is not buried because the team like what he brings over lafferty.

If/when he regresses they will be able to bury all but 200k, which may go down when the cap goes up

The leafs absolutely could have ran a 20 man roster with lafferty and reeves.

They chose Gregor and a 7th d over him.

 

[Mess]

Gregor has to do with winning the 4th Line job. Why would they get rid of Reaves? He has been excellent. He fights as well.

Noah Gregor is a younger, cheaper and better version to Lafferty which made him expendable. That is why Leafs traded Lafferty to avoid losing him on waivers and then signing Gregor off his PTO to fill his 4th line roster spot.

I think Gregor has been good (scored a goal that helped beat Montreal in game #1) and Reaves impact has been noticeable and impactful. To me its their center David Kampf that has been the weakest link of the 4th line to date. If Kampf was more a grittier and banger type player the trio would be better together stylistically.

Leafs have 2/3rds of a Isles Identity 4th line trio of Matt Martin, Casey Cizikas and Cal Clutterbuck and could become something like that with the proper centre.

So Leafs need a scrappy, pesky 4th line centre with grit that is a pain in the butt to play against to complete the Reaves -- Gregor trio. Then it can truly be deployed as an energizer line to change momentum.

 

[Sypher04]

Basically traded Lafferty for Gregor and a 5th. That’s a good deal in my eyes

 

[GoonieFace]

There is more than one 4th line job. Leafs could have had Lafferty instead of Reaves. They couldn't have both because of the cap.
Gregor has nothing to do with anything. He's league minimum.

No he's not. He's a good fighter, but he is below replacement, something we've had a similar version of every single year, and his line has been getting caved in so far.
We've been winning because of Matthews and our stars so far.

You are going to win with your best players regardless, and if Reaves being on the team makes Matthews better than it’s a huge win.

Just accept the fact that there is a place for players like Reaves.

 

[Mess]

No he's not. He's a good fighter, but he is below replacement, something we've had a similar version of every single year, and his line has been getting caved in so far.
We've been winning because of Matthews and our stars so far.

Auston Matthews passes off Leafs championship belt to new member of the team, explains why​

Midway through the first period, Ryan Reaves woke up the Scotiabank Arena crowd with a massive hit on Frederick Gaudreau and immediately fought Marcus Foligno while Gaudreau remained on the ice. It was a spirited tilt that saw the former teammates trade some heavy shots before the linesmen separated them. The shift from Reaves swung the momentum in the Leafs' favour and they didn't look back, securing a 7-4 win over the visiting Minnesota Wild.

Following the game, Auston Matthews, who scored his second hat-trick in as many games, awarded Reaves with the Maple Leafs championship belt, awarded to the player of the game after each win, and had this to say about the first year Leaf:

"The energy he comes with to the rink every day, in the locker room, on the ice. He knows his role to a T and he doesn't ever [stray] from that. He's been an unreal addition ... big hits, just kind of getting the momentum back on our side, and obviously he's not afraid to chuck them. It's awesome to see & I imagine there's going to be a lot more of that throughout the rest of the season." - Matthews on Reaves