Apex Predator
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- Jun 21, 2019
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yeah I kind of prefer your idea but just hypothetically talking if he surprised and made the team there are options to help our cap crunch. Always fun to look at stuff like this.
Prospect Info: Marlies/Prospects Thread - 2021/22 PART III
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yeah I kind of prefer your idea but just hypothetically talking if he surprised and made the team there are options to help our cap crunch. Always fun to look at stuff like this.
SeaOfBlue
The Passion That Unites Us All
- Aug 1, 2013
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We are locked in 100% to Muzzin next year. Short of him not being able to play anymore for some reason, I do not see him waiving his full-NTC to go somewhere else next year.
And TBH, I don't see the Leafs really wanting to dump him either. Mentally, he needs to get back into sync. I think he has had a concussion a lot longer than he would care to admit and that has affected him. The way he has processed things for much of this year, it would explain a lot. If he can recover from whatever is ailing him mentally, I think many of the rookie mistakes he is making get cleaned up and he will regain some of his offensive confidence. Other than that, he is as good (if not better) than he has always been, and that is in a tougher role than he has been getting in the past few years.
I notice you always attribute Muzzins struggles to the mental side of the game
That seems wildly hopeful when we're talking about a 33 year old who plays an extremely rugged style, has a significant injury history and wasn't a great skater to begin with
Also I'd like you to tell me why our team doctors were allowing somebody with an ongoing concussion problem to continue playing, against there hypocritic oaths I might add
What you wrote makes no sense
SeaOfBlue
The Passion That Unites Us All
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It is relevant enough if you are talking about his future replacement.
SeaOfBlue
The Passion That Unites Us All
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Muzzin's skating does not look any worse than it did last year. A lot of his noticeable mistakes this year have been mistakes he has not made in the past. Missing assignments. Getting beat on the cycle and down low. Making poor passes. Even if his skating has worsened, these are not mistakes he should be making with as much frequency as he is making them right now.
And for a guy who has suffered a major concussion that required him to take him off on a stretcher not even 1.5 years ago, I don't think it is unreasonable to say that past concussions + Covid + ongoing hits, even if they don't cause another concussion that keeps him from playing in general, can make brain fog worse.
As for the bolded, the NHL is literally dealing with lawsuits which have to do with exactly this. Maybe they are not putting out guys with full on concussions anymore, and maybe there is not even anything medically wrong with Muzzin, but if his concussions make him a second slower in his processing... That is a big deal when you are in a league as competitive as the NHL.
Apex Predator
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what the hell is knies gonna do for this team this year? The only thing we need is a defenseman
acrobaticgoalie
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The team is lost defensively right now. I dont think Knies will solve our troubles in that regard
Kral has 13 points in his last 11 games.
When watching a very good leaf team beat itself mentally and with not the best young guys defensive game, it makes me want to find more and more 'simple' d-men.
On the game tying goal, Liljgren tries to hold onto the puck to long to make the 'home run' play. If he beats his guy and makes the pass it looks like he was trying for it would have been a 2 on 1 the other way with Tavares and Willy. He ends up loosing it near the blue line, and the Rangers quickly counter with a nice few crisp passes.
If he instead had chipped it off the glass (the safer play) it would have been a pack battle between Nylander Tavares and 1 Ranger defender.
Now is making the safer play always better? No. When it works, high danger plays can pay off huge. But somoeone needs to remind these guys when you have a 3-2 lead on a very dangerous NYR team and you have lost a few 2 goal leads in a row that making the safer play is actually the smarter play.
Jack Han did a good breakdown of what happened for anyone looking, inclduing Kreider elbowing Liljgren and dropping him before scoring the 5-3 goal.
IMO, I would love to see a few more 'safe play' d-men being developed by the Leafs, especially if they are going to be playing 3rd pair. Its obvious that Sandin and Liljgren both have a ton of skill and smarts, but I think they are thinking the game a bit better than they are able to deliver over this last little stretch.
On the game tying goal, Liljgren tries to hold onto the puck to long to make the 'home run' play. If he beats his guy and makes the pass it looks like he was trying for it would have been a 2 on 1 the other way with Tavares and Willy. He ends up loosing it near the blue line, and the Rangers quickly counter with a nice few crisp passes.
If he instead had chipped it off the glass (the safer play) it would have been a pack battle between Nylander Tavares and 1 Ranger defender.
Now is making the safer play always better? No. When it works, high danger plays can pay off huge. But somoeone needs to remind these guys when you have a 3-2 lead on a very dangerous NYR team and you have lost a few 2 goal leads in a row that making the safer play is actually the smarter play.
Jack Han did a good breakdown of what happened for anyone looking, inclduing Kreider elbowing Liljgren and dropping him before scoring the 5-3 goal.
IMO, I would love to see a few more 'safe play' d-men being developed by the Leafs, especially if they are going to be playing 3rd pair. Its obvious that Sandin and Liljgren both have a ton of skill and smarts, but I think they are thinking the game a bit better than they are able to deliver over this last little stretch.
Here’s a radical idea. Let the young guys develop and make mistakes.
hockeynorth
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- Aug 31, 2017
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Not worried about that to be honest. Wouldn’t be opposed to adding depth but that top line LW is a much bigger concern to me. Ideally, someone like Knies could fill it at some point because he has the ability to create space for others, maintain possession, and create havoc using his size and strength. Both Marner and Matthews would benefit significantly. Bunting just doesn’t have the ability to make teams consistently pay for cheating on their coverage.
SeaOfBlue
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Way too early to tell. I don't think it should come as a surprise that good prospects are performing. They were doing it the entire time.
stickty111
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- Jan 23, 2017
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But our boy Pontus Holmberg made it.
We have Knies, Abruzzesse, Holmberg as legitimate prospective Leafs/ current prospects. And we have the likes of Malgin and Herzog there as well.
No one in Finland expected him to get in. Too weak in his own end for top level, unfortunately, and not a prodigy offensively to offset that. If you thought he'd be good enough to get in, temper your expectations is what I would say.
stickty111
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First of all incorrect. Second, that wasn't the point and isn't the reason.
Finland is going veteran heavy and thats why he isn't there. If they went young, I can guarantee he is on the team. Learn the actual basis why he isn't there is what I would say.
Pretty much.
First of all incorrect. Second, that wasn't the point and isn't the reason.
Finland is going veteran heavy and thats why he isn't there. If they went young, I can guarantee he is on the team. Learn the actual basis why he isn't there is what I would say.
I don't understand what you're saying. "They're going veteran heavy", they're going with the team they think will win. Niemelä isn't a part of that equation. I'm honestly curious about your logic, care to elaborate?
stickty111
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- Jan 23, 2017
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Thats a veteran group they are going with. I'm not saying they are right or wrong. Point is his ability isn't why he isn't there. Young team? I'm sure he is going. Unless you think those mediocre names they chose are somehow better then Niemela.
His ability is 100% why he isn't going. This isn't some boy scout summer camp. It's the biggest event in Finnish sporting. The coach, the players, all of them are facing the biggest event of their lifetimes. The Olympics, even without the NHL, are THE event in the Finnish sporting consciousness. They're not going there to play around. They want to win, and they pick the best team available. Literally millions of Finns will be watching them - the only event in their lives where this happens.
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