News Article: Mirtle: Maple Leafs Ownership Could Make Massive Changes if 'Really Disappointing First-Round Exit' Happens Again in the Playoffs

[Dreakmur]

Doing that a year ahead of time isn’t something a mature manager would do. A lot of things could change over the course of the season, silly to burn a bridge unnecessarily.

Marner is going to want to start negotiations as soon as possible. You don’t think their camp will figure it out when the Leafs don’t reciprocate?

Unless the mature thing to do is pretend to negotiate and blindside him later..

I know some have this irrational hate for the player but he’s very popular within the organization. They aren’t going to ‘strip hope away’.

Avoiding tough decisions was Dubas’ failure. Hopefully, Tre doesn’t fall into the same traps.

 

[usernamezrhardtodo]

John how are you feeling today? Oh its your spleen? See you in April. Boom, unlimited cap! Others have taken Robidas island and morphed it into a tourist destination where the holiday ends after game 82. They can't limit themselves to players that need surgery. I could tell Tavares was nursing his spleen a couple of months ago.

It would be great if we would do that...but that was Lou's specialty it seems.

 

[al secord]

Maybe Treliving can get Huberdeau for him.

 

[Menzinger]

It does to the extent he can steer to his landing spot. He can decline every trade suggestion that isn't the one or two places he wants to be and if they are lucky they get a Tkachuk return and if they aren't he gets a Hanifin return. But I could actually see him declining anything and forcing them to either re-sign him or let him walk for nothing, knowing they would not let him go for nothing.

If KD had the stones to at least fight for a limited NMC on Mitch's first deal this could have been avoided but he gave away all his leverage. And not to belabor the Willie point but the one way out was for Shanny to allow him to be dealt over the summer. Kyle may have had that safety net in mind with his first deal.

Until July 1 they could still trade Willie if one of the teams on his non veto list thought he was worth that Trelific deal, correct? I am going to guess Willie's "won't go there" 10 was mostly populated by playoff teams that had the cap space and would have had strong interest rather than doormat clubs that would not have dreamed of adding a guy that was certainly going to be a rental for them. It basically turned the MNT into a NM. So AZ/SJ/Anaheim could perhaps be viable destinations? Utah/AZ has their single marquee player locked up so the overpaid Styles wouldn't screw up their salary structure and $15M in LTIR cap is coming off their cap next season. What a splash for the club to make their first year in the new building. They would need crazy deep pockets though because of all those Leaf-only bonuses so it might still be out of reach (go Tre).

Getting back to reality, if the playoffs don't go well they should probably talk to Mitch and explain they have salaried themselves in to corner and his next deal will make them even less competitive. So they are "exploring all options" and see if he has any interest in being god somewhere else rather than second fiddle to Matty forever. Then after he says no they hunker down to wait out the last year of JT's deal. No clear way out except to run it back. They can and they will. Again!

Mirtle has also mentioned on a Leafs Report (a while ago, either in the fall or summer) that at some point the Leafs had casually tested the waters of a Nylander trade, but didn't at all like potential offers which ended that talk pretty quickly.

Teams just aren't going to hand over prime assets for a non-extended winger. Which should likely also kill off any Marner trade speculation either.

Even if they plan on moving on, it's likely worth more internally to just play out his deal (and I say this as someone whose expecting him to be extended fairly soon after he is eligible)

 

[93LEAFS]

Or he stays and signs for 8 years.
I would think he’d take a chance and sacrifice a year down the road to possibly stay.


People paid for the 41 home games when Jason Blake was the best player.
Pretty naive to think they only keep these players to sell regular season tickets.

Leafs tickets are like memberships to Rosedale or Toronto Golf Club. The waiting list is endless, and if you give them up they will always be replaced. Add in, unlike Golf Clubs, people can buy their seasons tickets then sell them on the secondary market for a profit.

 

[nuck]

Mirtle has also mentioned on a Leafs Report (a while ago, either in the fall or summer) that at some point the Leafs had casually tested the waters of a Nylander trade, but didn't at all like potential offers which ended that talk pretty quickly.

Teams just aren't going to hand over prime assets for a non-extended winger. Which should likely also kill off any Marner trade speculation either.

Even if they plan on moving on, it's likely worth more internally to just play out his deal (and I say this as someone whose expecting him to be extended fairly soon after he is eligible)

I recall reading the same thing. It would be nice to have more details but I am thinking that was a Shanny decision made prior to the club finding out what Willies's actual expectations were. This gets back to the crux of the matter which is, if you have a losing mix with your club, is it more important to win the trade or to change the mix?

The mix is something Shanny has been supporting ever since KD came on board so I am not surprised that he would need a boatload back for Willie. $11M in cap space to start with doesn't seem to move the needle for him. I might think that way too if they had ever won anything. If you can't win with a big three what is the driving need to keep all three around ? Who else has won with a big three to show that it is a viable distribution of cap? Why do the Leafs need to get ass pounded on every deal just because they are the Leafs?

If you can't get enough of a return does it mean you just roll over and pay whatever a player asks? The nice thing about having three star forwards should be that if you feel like it you can move on from one if they are trying to reset the market at your expense. The idea that they can win as soon as they are free from the Tavares deal ignores that their other top guys are filling in the numbers on their new contracts.

I don't think Mitch is going anywhere either. Willie has set the floor for him to build off of with a deal that probably should have been what Mitch signed for

 

[ACC1224]

Marner is going to want to start negotiations as soon as possible. You don’t think their camp will figure it out when the Leafs don’t reciprocate?

Unless the mature thing to do is pretend to negotiate and blindside him later..



Avoiding tough decisions was Dubas’ failure. Hopefully, Tre doesn’t fall into the same traps.

You don’t have a realistic view on how this stuff works.
Anyway, Enjoy the game.

 

[hotpaws]

Maybe Treliving can get Huberdeau for him.

or maybe Barrie

 

[ACC1224]

Leafs tickets are like memberships to Rosedale or Toronto Golf Club. The waiting list is endless, and if you give them up they will always be replaced. Add in, unlike Golf Clubs, people can buy their seasons tickets then sell them on the secondary market for a profit.

Not sure what the list is now but I do know that in 98 I went on the list at 138 and got my seats in 99.

 

[93LEAFS]

Not sure what the list is now but I do know that in 98 I went on the list at 138 and got my seats in 99.

I think it varies depending on what you are willing to pay. If you go through a broker and buy a seat license, you can get them relatively quickly. But, you are going to pay an arm and leg to do so.

 

[Dreakmur]

You don’t have a realistic view on how this stuff works.

How does it work then?

Marner's camp calls Tre to ask to start negotiating a contract. If Tre doesn't want him back, what does he tell them?

 

[nuck]

Marner is going to want to start negotiations as soon as possible. You don’t think their camp will figure it out when the Leafs don’t reciprocate?

Unless the mature thing to do is pretend to negotiate and blindside him later..



Avoiding tough decisions was Dubas’ failure. Hopefully, Tre doesn’t fall into the same traps.

I think Marner is inevitable so it should happen quickly. I don't think he will dick around like Willie who first had to delay anything at all until the MNT kicked in and then had to ride that fast start for all it was worth. The longer he delayed the harder he was to move and the more leverage he had. Mitch has the NM and has enough of a resume that he will need more than WN without having to prove anything next year. He has no incentive to wait.

Until Willie resigned, Mitch's most optimistic comp was Pastrnak. Now its + only because of the internal comp. I would be shocked if they get him done for less than $12M. There is no tough decision here unless Shanny gets fired after the playoffs, and even then what is Tre's play? Mitch can wait forever with UFA status on its way.

 

[Dreakmur]

I think Marner is inevitable so it should happen quickly. I don't think he will dick around like Willie who first had to delay anything at all until the MNT kicked in and then had to ride that fast start for all it was worth. The longer he delayed the harder he was to move and the more leverage he had. Mitch has the NM and has enough of a resume that he will need more than WN without having to prove anything next year. He has no incentive to wait.

Until Willie resigned, Mitch's most optimistic comp was Pastrnak. Now its + only because of the internal comp. I would be shocked if they get him done for less than $12M. There is no tough decision here unless Shanny gets fired after the playoffs, and even then what is Tre's play? Mitch can wait forever with UFA status on its way.

The point is that they should not be signing him. Using over 25% of your cap on two offensive RWs is not a good use of limited space.

 

[Racer88]

The point is that they should not be signing him. Using over 25% of your cap on two offensive RWs is not a good use of limited space.

Like I said they would be better with 3 Domi’s then 1 Marner

 

[hullsy47]

actually it is $10,393,334 next year and $303,000+ the following year

Leafs are underdog in every posible series they could play in first round. This isn't like against Montreal or Columbus. Losing in first round in this season is expected. Dissapointing for sure, but what you can do? BOS and Florida are clearly better than Leafs in this season. And Rangers and Carolina are top 3 teams in the league.

Mirtle is still sour that his BFF Dubas is gone.

But how come those teams are better?
Pelley will ask those questions
A

 

[nuck]

The point is that they should not be signing him. Using over 25% of your cap on two offensive RWs is not a good use of limited space.

Yes but that is the path chosen years ago and supported by Shanahan. It will be the plan so long as he is there.

 

[Racer88]

But how come those teams are better?
Pelley will ask those questions
A

The answer he will get is because they were built properly not some crazy never tried before build style and he will also question the commitment of the guys they are giving the lions share of the money

 

[Dreakmur]

Yes but that is the path chosen years ago and supported by Shanahan. It will be the plan so long as he is there.

That’s probably why ownership is getting upset…. Hopefully they step in and fire his ass before we lock into an era wasted.

 

[Dekes For Days]

Who did they reaplce from last season that were equal to or better than them?
The offensive depth is significantly better than last year.

They are 0.55 and 0.59 P/GP.
Last year, we had Bunting at 0.60 and Jarnkrok at 0.53, and then added O'Rielly (0.85).
The year before that, we had Bunting at 0.80, Kerfoot at 0.62, Mikyehev at 0.60, and Kase at 0.54.
And that's not even counting that most of our past guys added more than just offense, and didn't cost as much.
The offensive depth is not really better. In fact, goals and points from forwards beyond the core 4 are almost exactly the same as last year, and less than the year before.
And internal graduates Knies, Robertson, McMann, and Holmberg have been big parts of even keeping it as high as it is.

 

[ACC1224]

Like I said they would be better with 3 Domi’s then 1 Marner

That was dumb the first time you said it.

 

[Stephen]

I think Marner is inevitable so it should happen quickly. I don't think he will dick around like Willie who first had to delay anything at all until the MNT kicked in and then had to ride that fast start for all it was worth. The longer he delayed the harder he was to move and the more leverage he had. Mitch has the NM and has enough of a resume that he will need more than WN without having to prove anything next year. He has no incentive to wait.

Until Willie resigned, Mitch's most optimistic comp was Pastrnak. Now its + only because of the internal comp. I would be shocked if they get him done for less than $12M. There is no tough decision here unless Shanny gets fired after the playoffs, and even then what is Tre's play? Mitch can wait forever with UFA status on its way.

Mitch is functionally already at a $11 million cap, so like Auston, whatever incremental raise to the next number is going to be a very small percentage raise relative to Willie and shouldn't really be all that hard to figure out.

With the season he's had, it's not like he has any red hot claim to be making Auston money, Mackinnon money. Nylander has leapfrogged him in AAV but also has more points, close to cracking 100. That number should be well under $12 million and more than what he currently makes. Does he just take the Nylander deal at $11.5 million and move forward?

 

[ToneDog]

Mitch is functionally already at a $11 million cap, so like Auston, whatever incremental raise to the next number is going to be a very small percentage raise relative to Willie and shouldn't really be all that hard to figure out.

With the season he's had, it's not like he has any red hot claim to be making Auston money, Mackinnon money. Nylander has leapfrogged him in AAV but also has more points, close to cracking 100. That number should be well under $12 million and more than what he currently makes. Does he just take the Nylander deal at $11.5 million and move forward?

If they exit quickly, I let him walk if he wants a dollar more than Nylander.

 

[Lightsol]

Him wanting to stay here only really matters if he believes there’s another contract after this current one. If they make it clear that isn’t happening, there’s little difference between leaving now or a year from now.

YES, let's add to the stupidity of Nylander's contract by getting rid of Marner to afford it! One more step towards a future where an aging $11 million William Nylander looking like Jonathan Huberdeau is all we have to look forward to!

 

[notbias]

Mitch is functionally already at a $11 million cap, so like Auston, whatever incremental raise to the next number is going to be a very small percentage raise relative to Willie and shouldn't really be all that hard to figure out.

With the season he's had, it's not like he has any red hot claim to be making Auston money, Mackinnon money. Nylander has leapfrogged him in AAV but also has more points, close to cracking 100. That number should be well under $12 million and more than what he currently makes. Does he just take the Nylander deal at $11.5 million and move forward?

If Nylander is getting $11.5 million and Marner is outproducing him (and has historically), is better defensively, and is more important on the PK, how is $12 million out of the question? Not to mention the cap should be rising for Marner's raise.

Move on from one of the forwards if you think it is needed, but it seems weird to sign the worse one and get rid of the better one.

 

[colchar]

Marner , Shanny , Keefe (maybe try to get savvy with a Johnny move/strip of C)

Dusts hands off. That’s all folks.

But that can change with a wicked playoff

Do you not grasp how classless it is to strip the captaincy, and how players around the league (ie. potential signings and trade acquisitions) would view an ignorant move like that?