Confirmed with Link: Locker Room Exit Interviews Monday May 6 (Players and Keefe) + Pelley/Shanny/Tre on Friday VIDEO LINK PG 57

[Hugh Mongusbig]

In game 5 7s

Auston Matthews:
0 goals 3 assists

Mitch Marner:
0 goals 2 assists

John Tavares (in 4 games):
1 goal 0 assists

William Nylander:
2 goals 2 assists

Nylander is the only one close to living up to his contract

who would have guessed that the Lafrenière would end up more clutch in the playoffs than any of the Leafs overpaid core?

Money well spent Leafs.

 

[The Masters]

 

[The Masters]

53 min

thinks they waiting until Friday so they can make a decision on Keefe because they need to tell media if he is staying or not by Friday.

32 Thoughts: The Podcast

Hockey fans already know the name, but this is not the blog. From Sportsnet, 32 Thoughts: The Podcast with NHL Insider Elliotte Friedman & Kyle Bukauskas is a weekly deep dive into the biggest news and interviews from the hockey world.

www.sportsnet.ca

 

[Just Rude]

Now they just need to convince Marner into a trade and then take the C from Tavares and we are moving the right way.

I know it will be an unpopular opinion, but I think this is a douche move and probably not the best message to send to players who may have the chance to sign here, either now or in the next few years.

The guy really hasn't done anything wrong. He is who we thought he was, and Leaf fans know this is what it would look like in the last year or two of the deal. I'm no JT apologist but not sure what taking the C off him does but show the rest of the players in the league what a shitty organization this is.

He's not the best player, is very robotic in his answers and probably isn't the guy that should have been given the C in the first place. But he has one year left on his deal. Ask him to waive and hope he says yes. If not, he comes off the books next summer and you give the C to AM then.

Stripping him of the C would be a very bad look, IMO.

 

[SmoggyTwinkles]

I know it will be an unpopular opinion, but I think this is a douche move and probably not the best message to send to players who may have the chance to sign here, either now or in the next few years.

The guy really hasn't done anything wrong. He is who we thought he was, and Leaf fans know this is what it would look like in the last year or two of the deal. I'm no JT apologist but not sure what taking the C off him does but show the rest of the players in the league what a shitty organization this is.

He's not the best player, is very robotic in his answers and probably isn't the guy that should have been given the C in the first place. But he has one year left on his deal. Ask him to waive and hope he says yes. If not, he comes off the books next summer and you give the C to AM then.

Stripping him of the C would be a very bad look, IMO.

I agree with this.

He has one more year. You don't force anything.

You can absolutely ask the guy about maybe giving the C to someone else, maybe accepting a trade, but behind closed doors.

Don't do a "Sundin" on the guy.

Only difference is Tavares ain't Sundin to the Leafs.

 

[Just Rude]

Really hoping it's not just a 'run it back' year but really seems like that's where things are mostly headed, with the potential exception of a coaching change. Shanahan getting to stick around would be an absolute joke.

I'm a nobody - so my mom says - but I would be utterly f***ing blown away if they run it back. Pelley is going to want to make a very loud statement, probably before the draft, about who is charge. It's a power move.

He knows the fanbase and media in this market as well as anyone and will want to shake things up and settle the village down. 100% agree Shanahan should be gone, and very well could be in the next little while.

That said, if JT or MM don't want to waive, they have the org by the balls. Blame the f***ing idiot who handed out the NMCs like candy. I'm not sure what a buyout or "sitting them in the press box" does to make the team better.

 

[Just Rude]

The fact that Shanny is part of the presser on Friday tells me he is sticking around.

That could be just optics. Imagine MLSE putting out a presser earlier this week saying only Tre and Pelley would speak Friday? Imagine the media shitshow?

The post mortem has just begun, and Pelley has really just taken over. Keefe will be fired,and there's lots of time to gas Shanahan. If Pelley doesn't like the next chapter of the Shanascam, he'll be gone well before the draft.

 

[thinkblue]

 

[TheGreenTBer]

I know it will be an unpopular opinion, but I think this is a douche move and probably not the best message to send to players who may have the chance to sign here, either now or in the next few years.

The guy really hasn't done anything wrong. He is who we thought he was, and Leaf fans know this is what it would look like in the last year or two of the deal. I'm no JT apologist but not sure what taking the C off him does but show the rest of the players in the league what a shitty organization this is.

He's not the best player, is very robotic in his answers and probably isn't the guy that should have been given the C in the first place. But he has one year left on his deal. Ask him to waive and hope he says yes. If not, he comes off the books next summer and you give the C to AM then.

Stripping him of the C would be a very bad look, IMO.

I can't stand Marner or Tavares and I 100% agree with you.

If you treat players like that it will (not can, will) bite you in the ass at some point. That doesn't mean you can't have accountability, but you can't railroad them and expect no repercussions.

 

[Leaf Fans]

who would have guessed that the Lafrenière would end up more clutch in the playoffs than any of the Leafs overpaid core?

Money well spent Leafs.

He doesn't have any game 5 points.

 

[darrylsittler27]

f***ing FINALLY someone with the f***ing BALLS to take responsibility!

The decision to lose was made when Tre offered Samsonov.Keefe will be the fall guy.

 

[darrylsittler27]

I'm a nobody - so my mom says - but I would be utterly f***ing blown away if they run it back. Pelley is going to want to make a very loud statement, probably before the draft, about who is charge. It's a power move.

He knows the fanbase and media in this market as well as anyone and will want to shake things up and settle the village down. 100% agree Shanahan should be gone, and very well could be in the next little while.

That said, if JT or MM don't want to waive, they have the org by the balls. Blame the f***ing idiot who handed out the NMCs like candy. I'm not sure what a buyout or "sitting them in the press box" does to make the team better.

Marner does not have them by the balls. A new coach can 3rd line and p.k him and devalue his next contract. Tavares saw what happened to Sundin. They can offer him front office if he complies. He may even want out now. There are ways to handle it. Especially if a new coach hates Marner.

 

[Martin Skoula]

Marner does not have them by the balls. A new coach can 3rd line and p.k him and devalue his next contract. Tavares saw what happened to Sundin. They can offer him front office if he complies. He may even want out now. There are ways to handle it. Especially if a new coach hates Marner.

New coach doesn’t even need to get extreme about it, let Marner play top-6 + PP like normal but run a system that no longer depends on him. Other players carry the puck in, someone else quarterbacks from the point, Marner plays like a normal hit and run wing instead of LARPing as a C.

Without his free system points he’s looking at a 70-80 point season without needing to visibly sandbag him. That hurts his next contract way worse than purposely torturing him with Kampf minutes where a GM will just ignore the results. A year of regular top-6 winger usage instead of running him as if he’s Kucherov is a realistic look at what he’ll bring to his new team, good luck with the 12+ demands at that point.

 

[NVious]

I can't stand Marner or Tavares and I 100% agree with you.

If you treat players like that it will (not can, will) bite you in the ass at some point. That doesn't mean you can't have accountability, but you can't railroad them and expect no repercussions.

I completely disagree.

Vegas literally treated their franchise's favorite/most storied player in Fleury like that and they won a cup.

Why is there negative repercussions when players are held accountable but there's no negative repercussions when the players fail to hold up their end of the bargain?

Forcing them out sends a message nobody is above the team and if you don't hold up your end of the contract you will face consequences. If they love Toronto so much they can both come back for a league minimum, they obviously won't because they love money more than winning/Toronto

 

[The Masters]

Been thinking more and more on this but why would Pelley be present? Just to say this is a united front and that Shanny/Tre still have total support? Sounds fishy to me. Pelley doesn't need to be there to offer support .. unless its for personal ego to say hes in charge. If he fires Shanny in a year, people would just question him and say why tf did he support only to fire him year later? There was 8 seasons of failure. You need another to realize this?

my point is I dont see the upside for Pelley speaking unless there are organizational changes being announced on Friday

 

[dubplatepressure]

Been thinking more and more on this but why would Pelley be present? Just to say this is a united front and that Shanny/Tre still have total support? Sounds fishy to me. Pelley doesn't need to be there to offer support. If he fires Shanny in a year, people would just question him and say why tf did he support only to fire him year later? There was 8 seasons of failure. You need another to realize this?

my point is I dont see the upside for Pelley speaking unless there are organizational changes being announced on Friday

Maybe he's just more hands-on and wants to show his commitment.

 

[MSZ]

I have been in sales. EVen the most competitive type (which was NOT corporate, which was easy), and I can;t imagine two bad quarters of subpar results let alone a decade and not feeling the heat of losing my job.

People have targets. Remember the Shanny plan was 5-6 years. He couldn't believe his luck when they kept him around past that when he brought in some zen, horse whisperer b.s to the owners to "stay the course, I believe in them".

This is why it is clear, to MLSE it is solely about the cash. Nothing has really changed since the Ballard years except the expectations. The results are essentially the same.

In fact, if I recall correctly, the Leafs in the 1980s, some teams who finished with only 52 and 48 points (and I didnt have to look that up), won playoff rounds and yes, took the second round to seven games.

That is further than this core has gone in about the same number of years!

I don't have time to look that up either, but IIRC they won 2 rounds during the 80s.

 

[Isaac Nootin]

thinks they waiting until Friday so they can make a decision on Keefe because they need to tell media if he is staying or not by Friday.

Why do the Maple Leafs owe the media anything? For a decision like this, you take your time and analyze every angle. You don't rush because the media wants you to.

 

[killer1980]

Gotta take a wait and see attitude with Pelley. Not sure that he is the 2nd coming. He is extremely well connected to the media so, not expecting any criticisms or even truth coming from them. We'll see Friday.

 

[notbias]

That's because come playoff time, Nylander is the only one who has enough talent and grit to play a playoff style game.

The others are invisible because easy goals from the regular season disappear as defence tightens up, there seems to be way more blocked shots and guys like AM and JT get pushed out from near the net preventing rebound and short distance wrister goals. Even the worst team making the playoffs (Caps, Isles and Kings) are still avg teams middle of the pack. And JT's goal was a lucky bounce off a TB dman's skate into his own net. He didn't even aim. He just swung around wildly shooting on net and got a lucky deflection.

It's crazy how much better he is than everyone else but only outproduces one of those players.

 

[57 Years No Cup]

New coach doesn’t even need to get extreme about it, let Marner play top-6 + PP like normal but run a system that no longer depends on him. Other players carry the puck in, someone else quarterbacks from the point, Marner plays like a normal hit and run wing instead of LARPing as a C.

Without his free system points he’s looking at a 70-80 point season without needing to visibly sandbag him. That hurts his next contract way worse than purposely torturing him with Kampf minutes where a GM will just ignore the results. A year of regular top-6 winger usage instead of running him as if he’s Kucherov is a realistic look at what he’ll bring to his new team, good luck with the 12+ demands at that point.

You're EVIL! And I like it!

 

[notbias]

It's baffling to reach the conclusion of Shanahan meddling when looking at the number of players and staff with Soo connections employed by this team over a certain number of years. Removing Shanahan because his tenure and hirings haven't yielded much in the way of team success would be another matter entirely.

Which Soo players were bad?

I never understood this argument when he was just as willing to trade a Soo guy.

 

[The Masters]

Why do the Maple Leafs owe the media anything? For a decision like this, you take your time and analyze every angle. You don't rush because the media wants you to.

agreed but they need to do their end of year presser. the biggest question will be if keefe is staying or going. they cant hide from that question. they either gotta shyt or get off the pot.

Same thing with Masai and Nurse. He waited out a week after the season and did his due diligence on Nurse and held his press conference after that. Same thing likely happening here.

 

[LeafsFan89]

I would argue it's more important to trade 1-2 of the core 4 than it is to make a head coach change.

I was optimistic when we were eliminated. Now that Shanny is back, it's probably going to be an "evaluation year" and we probably resign both Marner and JT at the end of the year. I want them both gone for culture change reasons and cap reallocation. Resigning them is the worst possible outcome in my mind.

 

[Martin Skoula]

You're EVIL! And I like it!

It’s not even evil, the guy doesn’t have an extension and we hopefully have a new coach implementing a new system, we need to start preparing for life without Marner in case he’s off to greener pastures. Even if we ignore the contract/trade part of it, Marner as the #1 option for carrying the puck hasn’t worked and shows no signs of potentially working one day, we should be doing this even if he was signed to an 8 year 1$ contract.