[Matthew Tkachuk] Leafs would be unbelievable if the team wasn't in Toronto

[bigdog16]

Then hockey players are weak minded as f***. You think it's hard to play hockey in a Canadian market? They would cower in the corner if they played in most of the association football leagues. Heck they would have a mental breakdown if they played in quite a few markets in the MLB, NBA or NFL.

So either hockey players are bigger wussies than football, baseball, american football and basketball players. Or it's an excuse for being failures.

Its also a cultural and mental thing. Majority of hockey players grew up rich and have been told they are the best their whole lives. Football and basketball players, for the most part, had very different upbringings and have dealt with far more adversity

 

[Montreal Shadow]

only a sith deals in absolutes


seriously tho, it's mostly on the players, GM, coach

but the high pressure definitely plays a factor, even if it's not the most significant factor

When you’re paid millions, a bunch of angry Canadian fans should be a non-factor.

 

[Frank Drebin]

This post is just "exhibit ZZ" of proving my point. Throwing jerseys on the ice, beers at players, booing in the 1st period, etc. You would've thought they were playing in Philly after that loss, but nope home stadium. They lost in the same "asshole" fashion as their fans are.

Its just a game and entertainment. Treat it as such and you will be much happier .

I’m not from Toronto and don’t cheer for the leafs

 

[Colezuki]

It happening in other sports is irrelevant, we're talking about hockey here. It doesn't happen to other teams in hockey, because there's no other team with the same circumstances as Toronto.

It absolutely does,no one talks about it, Vancouver, Boston, New York, Montreal, Philly all have bad stuff like this over the years. Stop pretending it’s unique to Toronto

 

[KnightofBoston]

When you’re paid millions, a bunch of angry Canadian fans should be a non-factor.

i'd say it's more than fans, it's media pressure and them being constantly in your face, people txting you shit all the time, seeing twitter etc


I get friggan annoyed when someone from work txts in the group chat (why i don't allow myself to be in them any more) after work hours, and that's nothing compared to what theyll face on a constant basis

 

[KnightofBoston]

It absolutely does,no one talks about it, Vancouver, Boston, New York, Montreal, Philly all have bad stuff like this over the years. Stop pretending it’s unique to Toronto

it is fairly unique to toronto, because even in Boston, if the team is bad for a number of years fans stop paying attention. Toronto has a cubs like dedication in their fanbase

I'd say Montreal is the closest comparable

people don't give a shit in New York, they just bandwagon another team

Philly? lol

and Vancouver is like Philly, they'll pay attention and then crash out if there was hope, but lose interest when there isn't

 

[Transplanted Caper]

As I said elsewhere, yes it's a big market, yes there's pressure, but the big market also allows the players to leverage their profile and earn a lot more money, get treated incredibly well internally, and by and large get the superhero treatment throughout the city. I doubt any piece in New York or Boston or Los Angeles or Philly or Dallas or anything other NA market in any other sport that tried to push accountability onto the fans or media would make it to print. They got booed off the ice because the played like crap in a deciding game, a recurring theme for NINE years. While on some level, they're defending buddies, I think by and large Tkachuk, Marchand, and Maurice are having a bit of fun, which fine, but the people in media furiously jotting down their quotes are being worked.

 

[KeithIsActuallyBad]

It sure is funny to me that a comment of "honestly, its hard to deal with the pressure of the media and fanbase in that city" is met with an avalanche of "NO IT'S NOT YOU JUST SUCK, YOU p***y" from the media and fanbase in that city

Part of the reason there's pressure from the media and the fanbase is that they keep f***ing folding at any critical juncture. A simple win in a game 7 erases a lot of doubts.

I go back to game 5 (I did a little research and found they haven't won a home game 5 in over 20 years), and how bad they looked. After that game, I heard a lot of Leaf fans and media claim that the team would probably win game 6 just to instill some false hope and completely crap the bed in the decisive game 7.

Of course, that's exactly what happened. The team is masterful at falling behind in series then playing catchup only to fall flat on their face when the chips are really down.

In this series in particular, yeah they lost a heartbreaking game in game 3 that would've basically ended the series. So what? The Oilers had a similar heartbreaking loss in game 3 under similar circumstances, and they responded not by laying two consecutive eggs but by punching the Knights in the teeth and declaring to them that they wouldn't lose in the series again.

The Leafs went from darlings to dust in the manner of a week. They had a number of opportunities to change the narrative about them. They win game 4 or 5 and there's a strong chance they're in the ECF right now, and they only started trying when their backs were up against the wall. Then when the pressure was back on them they folded.

I get it, it's tough to win, especially in this league. But this has gone on for close to a decade. Blaming the fans and media is stupid. Only they can break the cycle of anger and disappointment and they just flat out refuse to do it. Just win one winner take all game, Leafs. Plenty of other teams have done it, including some in other high pressure markets.

 

[Dirtyclapper]

Never seen another fanbase throw jerseys on the ice during play and drinks at the players bench. Crybaby whiners. Chasing Marner and Tavares out of town who are awesome hometown guys. You get what you give.

 

[KeithIsActuallyBad]

Never seen another fanbase throw jerseys on the ice during play and drinks at the players bench. Crybaby whiners. Chasing Marner and Tavares out of town who are awesome hometown guys. You get what you give.

Are they though? Tavares wanted to come home but he also wanted to get paid far more than he was worth. Same with Marner. You want to make that much money you better deliver when it matters.

The Isles won as many series in Toronto as the Leafs did under Tavares' watchful gaze. Not saying it excuses the fan behaviour at all, but time and time again these two have shown they aren't up to the task.

 

[Dirtyclapper]

Are they though? Tavares wanted to come home but he also wanted to get paid far more than he was worth. Same with Marner. You want to make that much money you better deliver when it matters.

The Isles won as many series in Toronto as the Leafs did under Tavares' watchful gaze. Not saying it excuses the fan behaviour at all, but time and time again these two have shown they aren't up to the task.

Your defense is literally trash. Id take either one of those guys on my team

 

[Rec T]

It absolutely does,no one talks about it, Vancouver, Boston, New York, Montreal, Philly all have bad stuff like this over the years. Stop pretending it’s unique to Toronto

Cutter Gauthier was getting death threats after saying that he didn't want to play for Philly. It absolutely happens elsewhere.

 

[DuncanMacpherson]

People don't want to acknowledge it, but there's a lot of truth to this. Chris Johnston just talked about today how Mitch Marner has been harassed multiple times throughout the years and he was harassed last night after the game by fans as well. There were Leaf fans making threats against his newborn son on Twitter.



This is not normal behavior. There are other fanbases with passionate fanbases that are hard on their players, but you're never going to see them throw beer at their own players and try to do stuff to them off ice. Toronto is different because their fanbase has a pretty deep resentment for their own team due to the repeated failures of the franchise. It's a more toxic and negative passion than say a Montreal where they mostly have high standards due to their pride. There's a harshness and brutality to Toronto due to the self-loathing fanbase and media.

But Mitch said he’s treated like a god in Toronto.

 

[KeithIsActuallyBad]

Your defense is literally trash. Id take either one of those guys on my team

Over who, exactly? You willing to kick Kyle Connor to the curb?

Don't you think it says a bit when the Isles actually had more success after Tavares left?

 

[landy]

Hes not wrong, but such big Canada trolling being done by bill balls Tkachuk. Love it!

 

[Double-Shift Lasse]

The players ARE looked upon as kind of gods.

 

[Double-Shift Lasse]

Definitely was that way for a while with the Red Sox, but they eventually got over it (helped quite a lot along the way by becoming the first team in major league baseball to complete a reverse sweep). Same story with the Chicago Cubs. It's just that it took 86 years for the Red Sox and over 100 years for the Cubs. I definitely enjoyed the hell out of both while they lasted.

So Leafs fans should just hang in there for another 30-40 years.

 

[Dirtyclapper]

Over who, exactly? You willing to kick Kyle Connor to the curb?

Don't you think it says a bit when the Isles actually had more success after Tavares left?

I don't have to kick anyone to the curb, I'm saying your forwards are fine. Defense is what needs a drastic change up. Morgan Rielly as the number 1 D is terrifying and that first goal in a game 7 at home was 100% all him with that god awful pinch. Changed the entire game, flood gate opened.

 

[izlez]

It absolutely does,no one talks about it, Vancouver, Boston, New York, Montreal, Philly all have bad stuff like this over the years. Stop pretending it’s unique to Toronto

Great!

Nick Suzuki:
Last 2 months: 1.26 PPG +12
Playoffs: .4 PPG -5

Can you point me in the direction of the Nick Suzuki is a weak minded loser thread, or should I get one fired up?

 

[Five Alarm Fire]

Tkachuk and Marchand are rubbing salt in the wound.

What I would say is that in comparison to other sports mentioned, there are differences with hockey that make things particularly challenging for the Leafs. The problem is more nuanced.

- Common practice of NMC/NTC in the sport, giving players more control to avoid certain markets.
- The hard salary cap makes the first point more difficult to navigate and stacks the deck for other markets.
- Hockey players in general prefer private lifestyles and tend to shy away from the spotlight.

So while I think Toronto is no different than big markets in other sports, it’s a bigger disadvantage in the hockey ecosystem. And media/fanbase is only one element, when combined with taxes/cold weather/political preferences it exacerbates the problem. Within the NHL this isn’t exclusive to Toronto either.

I do think it plays a role but it’s only one factor of many working against the Leafs.

 

[NVious]

There's literally no pressure to playing in Toronto, this organization is the worst sports franchise for 6 decades and what has happened exactly? Nothing.

Turtlechuk is just trolling like his father when the waiter asks him if he's had enough and he says yes. It's an obvious joke.

 

[KeithIsActuallyBad]

I don't have to kick anyone to the curb, I'm saying your forwards are fine. Defense is what needs a drastic change up. Morgan Rielly as the number 1 D is terrifying and that first goal in a game 7 at home was 100% all him with that god awful pinch. Changed the entire game, flood gate opened.

For starters I'm not a Leafs fan. My team has actually made it past the second round in the past 20 years. Four times as a matter of fact. The salary cap exists so bringing aboard a 10 million dollar player means someone's gotta go, likely someone expensive.

Secondly, the numbers speak for themselves. This isn't a one time thing, This is a year after year thing of continually going quiet when the lights are the brightest. This is a "The entire team around the core four has changed and they still continue to fail" thing.

The crazy thing for the Leafs and all this media and fan pressure is that if they win that series against Florida, they get nothing but praise for beating the defending Cup champs and making it the furthest the team has made it in 23 years.

If a defense with Darnell Nurse and Evan Bouchard patrolling it can shut teams down then what's the Leafs excuse?

Just score a goddamn goal in a crucial game. How are they getting outdone by Cody f***ing Ceci in game 7s?

 

[kerrabria]

During an appearance on the Spittin' Chiclets podcast, Tkachuk acknowledged Toronto's high-pressure environment and just how much pressure the Toronto players face:


Thoughts on Toronto's intense media and fan environment obstructing team success and player performance? Could you see nerves of the massive expectations in the largest market being part of the reason for Toronto's early playoff exits?. Personally, I don't buy the excuse, but Tkachuk bringing it up shows how aware the players are of this.

Sports Illustrated link to quote

Tkachuk is correct. The Toronto (and larger Canadian) media is absolutely pathetic. They know nothing and speak exclusively in hyperbole. And their stupidity gins up the fanbase until they're booing their own team every single time they lose a home game. They deserve nothing.

 

[Anemia]

Good thread idea for the Leafs board. Definitely not deserving of the playoffs forum. OP looking for attention?

 

[Gardner McKay]

During an appearance on the Spittin' Chiclets podcast, Tkachuk acknowledged Toronto's high-pressure environment and just how much pressure the Toronto players face:


Thoughts on Toronto's intense media and fan environment obstructing team success and player performance? Could you see nerves of the massive expectations in the largest market being part of the reason for Toronto's early playoff exits?. Personally, I don't buy the excuse, but Tkachuk bringing it up shows how aware the players are of this.

Sports Illustrated link to quote

The Yankee's didn't have a problem with it. The Patriots didn't have a problem with it. The Lakers didn't have a problem with it.

Three examples of very high pressure sports environments.