Post-Game Talk: Leafs win 5-3 against the Lightning

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Priority #1 should be to bring in one more top 4 or heck, a top 2 dman. I agree that McCabe's presence is too important. Tanev too. We need one more to insulate ourselves incase one goes down on or before playoffs.

I disagree, at least in terms of priorities.

If Treliving is going to spend big this TDL then the bottom 6 (starting with a 3C) is the absolute starting point. Goaltending, if Stolarz is healthy is fine. The top 6 is great - it's up to them to produce in the post-season. The blueline is solid and at least over the past few playoffs the blueline hasn't been the reason we lost.

And given the assets Treliving has to play with I find it almost impossible to expect him to land a legit 3C (Laughton, for example) as well as a top 4 d-man. Having said that, sure, I'd absolutely love another veteran in the top 2 pairings it's just not likely.
 
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I disagree, at least in terms of priorities.

If Treliving is going to spend big this TDL then the bottom 6 (starting with a 3C) is the absolute starting point. Goaltending, if Stolarz is healthy is fine. The top 6 is great - it's up to them to produce in the post-season. The blueline is solid and at least over the past few playoffs the blueline hasn't been the reason we lost.

And given the assets Treliving has to play with I find it almost impossible to expect him to land a legit 3C (Laughton, for example) as well as a top 4 d-man. Having said that, sure, I'd absolutely love another veteran in the top 2 pairings it's just not likely.
He'd have to give up this year's second, Cowan and Minten and maybe his 2026 1st to get two players that potentially put them over the top.
 
I disagree, at least in terms of priorities.

If Treliving is going to spend big this TDL then the bottom 6 (starting with a 3C) is the absolute starting point. Goaltending, if Stolarz is healthy is fine. The top 6 is great - it's up to them to produce in the post-season. The blueline is solid and at least over the past few playoffs the blueline hasn't been the reason we lost.

And given the assets Treliving has to play with I find it almost impossible to expect him to land a legit 3C (Laughton, for example) as well as a top 4 d-man. Having said that, sure, I'd absolutely love another veteran in the top 2 pairings it's just not likely.
Agree that D isn't the priority. Our issue in the playoffs has been scoring enough, not stopping goals... Adding D isn't helping that, depth offense does.
 
Posts like this make me wish we had a downvote option lol
It was probably his best chance to score there. It wasn’t a case of him showboating or acting immature
Personally, I don't like that play. I'm old enough to remember the game in the 60s and 70s, and if someone had tried that back then, they wouldn't have made it back to their bench untouched. Similar to the slapshot into an empty net.

Having said that, I accept that it's part of the way the game is played now. It was a good try and a good save.
 

The Leafs’ big stars came to play. The Matthews line combined for eight points (Marner and Knies with three each and Matthews with two) and there was Nylander’s goal.

Tampa’s Nikita Kucherov, Brayden Point and Jake Guentzel failed to make a similar impact.

“They have stepped up, for sure, and done the job, and we need them to,” Berube said of his bold-face players. “They’re the leaders, the top players, and they have to lead the way. I think we’re getting there right now.

“Overall, I liked our game. That’s a really good team over there. I thought we checked well, did a lot of good things. Pretty solid effort from our team.”
Marner broke a notable franchise record on Monday two helpers on Knies goals, giving him 123 games with multiple assists. Borje Salming’s mark of 122 had stood since 1989. Only McDavid (183), Nathan MacKinnon (133) and Nikita Kucherov (130) have had more since Marner came in the NHL.

Matthews had another multi-point effort that passed Dave Keon for third in franchise history (202 games), behind Mats Sundin (274) and Darryl Sittler (244). The game also matched Woll’s career single-season high in appearances and was win No. 38, tying Grant Fuhr and Wayne Thomas for 26th among franchise netminders.
 
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I thought Rielly had his best game in a while next to McCabe. But I don't really see it as a long term fit. The quest for a partner for Mo continues. Pretty sure Frodo made it to Modor and back to the Shire in less time.
Rielly does well with DFD types but the issue is we've never gotten him a long-term guy who is actually a true RHD. Brodie was a great fit but once he lost his athleticism playing on his off side really caught up to him, and other guys like Hainsey, Muzzin etc were all left shots as well. He had a great stretch with Schenn and also looked decent with Boosh who were natural stay at home righties. Someone like those guys but of a higher calibre (think a DeMelo type, Nick Jensen, or a Murphy etc.) would be ideal. Tanev also works well but Berube seems to want a true shut down pair with McCabe-Tanev and you can't deny their results have been incredible, so it is what it is. If only we could clone Tanev...
 
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