Confirmed with Link: Leafs sign Liljegren to 2 year extension 3M AAV

[RoadWarrior]

This guy sucks, especially at 3M

He’s way too unreliable, he can look solid with infinite time and space and soft play

He’s too timid, soft, stupid, and lacking skills to actually do anything

This is 1.5M too much for any team, and 3M too much for us

He might lack hockey sense but he definitely doesn’t lack skills. Keefe has you idiots actually believing Holl and Brodie are better than Lilly.

 

[Kiwi]

Yikes, I was expecting a number closer to 1.5-2.25 million. This is a lot for a #6 D without size.

He's not a #6D

When he's on the bottom pair he's extremely good, it when he's asked to move up things get a bit "exciting"

 

[Sypher04]

He's not a #6D

When he's on the bottom pair he's extremely good, it when he's asked to move up things get a bit "exciting"

Prior to his high ankle sprain he was even handling the additional responsibility up the line up well. I look forward to seeing how he progresses under a new coach if he’s here at the start of the season

 

[Kiwi]

Prior to his high ankle sprain he was even handling the additional responsibility up the line up well. I look forward to seeing how he progresses under a new coach if he’s here at the start of the season

There's talent there, the question is how do we tap into it consistently

 

[RoadWarrior]

He's not a #6D

When he's on the bottom pair he's extremely good, it when he's asked to move up things get a bit "exciting"

It’s actually the opposite. He performed better with more responsibility and ice time. Especially when Rielly was suspended.

There's talent there, the question is how do we tap into it consistently

Take Rielly off PP1. Give Lilly a chance on the PP and play him with a stable veteran on the left side allowing him to take more offensive chances.

 

[Kiwi]

It’s actually the opposite. He performed better with more responsibility and ice time. Especially when Rielly was suspended.

His fancy stats when he's on the bottom pair are extremely good, extremely good

He should be paired with Benoit so he's not a bad partner if Liljegren wants to roam

 

[RoadWarrior]

His fancy stats when he's on the bottom pair are extremely good, extremely good

Especially when compared with his D partners.

 

[BertCorbeau]

There's talent there, the question is how do we tap into it consistently

Going Berube can figure it out.. but I think a lot of it is confidence and experience.

I think he can refine his game nicely as he ages. If he does the offense should follow

 

[Kiwi]

Going Bernie can figure it out

New eyes and a different approach won't hurt

 

[Aashir Mallik]

He might lack hockey sense but he definitely doesn’t lack skills. Keefe has you idiots actually believing Holl and Brodie are better than Lilly.

whats so good about his game? what translates into the playoffs?

He has a hard shot, but cannot use it at all. He is completely brain-dead under pressure and turns the puck over alot. Is stupidly soft on the boards and aroudn the net. He is a literal target

and Lol, holl and brodie aren't good either

there WAS a time where both were good-solid, and easily better than liljegren, but now (last two years) not the case.

liljegren at his best is a #2, for about 25% of the season. at norm he is a #4/5 for about another 50% of the season. and the rest he is a #5/6. Problem is only the bottom pairing dman shows up for the majority of the season. That 25% of the season against philly, arizona, chicago, etc... is blinding people from realizing he is a dime a dozen player.

 

[meefer]

Liljegren: 25 years old, 196 games played regular season, 13 playoff games, 3Mx2
Tied for 90th in scoring for defensemen with 23 points in 55 games.
58th overall in P/60 all situations.
45th overall in PPP%
98th overall in ESP/60
102 overall in TOI
81st overall in hits
79th overall in blocked shots
168th overall in SH TOI
59th overall in PP TOI
xGoals % with his three most common partners...59%

Player xxx: 26 years old, 475 games played reg season, 60 playoff games, 5Mx3 left on 7 yr deal
Tied for 114th in scoring with 18 points in 59 games.
115th overall in P/60 all situations
107th overall in PPP%
83rd overall ESP/60
110th overall in TOI
104th in hits
122nd in blocked shots
104th in SH TOI
99th in PP TOI
xGoals % with his three most common partners...55%

These are last season's numbers. I think they are quite comparable. Neither outstanding, but solidly in lower 2nd pair consideration, and unquestionably worthy of 3rd pairing time. One had as his most frequent partner a fella by the name of Josh Manson, the other Mark Giordano.
Player xxx is Sam Girard.

Of course there are other aspects of any player to consider, but Liljegren isn't as bad as some paint him to be. Partnered with: McCabe, Gio and Brodie those pairing all outscored the number of pucks that entered the Leafs net. It was with Rielly and Benoit where the difficulties raised their head and the Leafs were outscored during those pairing's minutes.

With Tanev in the fold and expected to bolster Rielly's pairing, I'd pair Liljegren with McCabe, their numbers together are good, and with a new coach who may be more patient than was Keefe, I'd finally like to see what we have with TL.

 

[Jozay]

This must mean they don’t think they’re getting another top 4 dman. I don’t see the point in signing this deal if they think they’re trading him.

 

[Sypher04]

This must mean they don’t think they’re getting another top 4 dman. I don’t see the point in signing this deal if they think they’re trading him.

Doesn’t have to mean that at all.
And I would still say it’s only 50/50 Liljegren is here next year.

 

[KeziaTML]

His only consistency is in and out of the lineup and we more than doubled his salary? His QO from cap friendly was 1.5m... what was the point of giving him this contract?

 

[meefer]

There's talent there, the question is how do we tap into it consistently

I'd argue that you play him consistently, regardless of the mistakes he will make. All defenseman make mistakes. But, a player who has been pulled every time he makes a mistake , confidence becomes an elusive quality, and a defenseman without confidence is a risky proposition. It's only a guess on my part, but might Berube have said to Tre, 'I can work with this kid, he's got some skill'.

 

[conFABulator]

His only consistency is in and out of the lineup and we more than doubled his salary? His QO from cap friendly was 1.5m... what was the point of giving him this contract?

I think the point was that he was arbitration eligible and that if they qualified him, he could opt for arbitration and obviously the fear was he would get more money (or possibly similar money on a one year deal that walked him to FA? I don't know if he is FA eligible next year)

 

[GoonieFace]

This is pretty terrible, hopefully they can trade him. 3 million for a bottom pair/healthy scratch dman…yowsers

 

[aingefan]

It's $3 million... it's market value. If he had figured it out, and was consistent, it would be $5-6 million, like Durzi just signed.... You don't get top pairing, or second pairing finished products at $3 million.

Not to mention Durzi has witch like warts on the defensive side.
I predicted long ago that Lili would take a friendly deal, which this actually is.
Just comparing to the two young ex-Leafs deals.
What he really needs is to stay healthy. High ankle sprain this year was a factor.

 

[aingefan]

Not playing in 1 game because of some misguided sense of owing TJ Brodie the chance to play after we lost game 1 is not Liljegren’s fault. It’s a stupid comment

That’s a common playoff strategy, kid out, vet in. Just standard.

And the costing games against Boston hyperbole is silly. He wasn’t great, but he wasn’t close to being the leafs least effective D in that series.

 

[Clark4Ever]

I think Lily has shown enough flashes of high end play to warrant taking this gamble.

 

[Dekes For Days]

That is really expensive for him. He has not earned that, and it's such a short term that we don't really get any benefit if he grows into that.
We haven't been able to trust Liljegren in any playoffs. That's manageable at 800k-1.4m. That is not manageable at 3m.
Why were we worried about arbitration if we were just going to pay him this anyway?

 

[DarkKnight]

That is really expensive for him. He has not earned that, and it's such a short term that we don't really get any benefit if he grows into that.
We haven't been able to trust Liljegren in any playoffs. That's manageable at 800k-1.4m. That is not manageable at 3m.
Why were we worried about arbitration if we were just going to pay him this anyway?

Just pretend Dubas made the same contract. You’d be defending it, guaranf***ingteed.

 

[Dekes For Days]

Just pretend Dubas made the same contract. You’d be defending it, guaranf***ingteed.

Unlike you, my reaction to GM actions doesn't change depending on who it is. Not sure what you think Dubas has to do with Treliving signing Liljegren.

 

[JEI]

Interesting he just got paid out a 2.4m signing bonus today. His base salary now is 1m for the year. Next year his salary is only 2.6m (lower than his cap hit).

Wonder if he's someone they would turn around and trade if they landed a bigger fish.

 

[freshwind]

I think Lily has shown enough flashes of high end play to warrant taking this gamble.

Lily put up a comparable ppg as durzi (without the pp time) and higher than sandin ... lily was the only plus player among the 3 ... reasonable gamble on him to develop some consistency .. this is a big season for him