Phaneuf Discussion Thread - Civil Mode

[aesthetics]

Phaneuf has no heart and soul, he's really not a smart player, and his leadership is best summed up by exiting from the back of the building after a difficult loss.

His supporters claim that his early season dominance (some fans are so ignorant that its embarrassing) should give him more leeway, and that we shouldn't judge too harshly.

Well, thats a losers mentality. What he does when it counts matters, not the beginning of the season.

And by the way, he's been atrocious during the first half of the season, in fact he's been a total disaster since he came to this city. He's an albatross around the leafs and perhaps his biggest indictment is that we can't trade him even if we wanted too -- since there is no market for defence man that lack in game intelligence, have no pride, are slow and prone to coughing up the puck in the neutral zone.

And lastly, Nonis has got to go. He messed up with Clarkson and Phaneuf. Nonis should be fired as well.

End Rant.

 

[GordieHoweHatTrick]

He's the #1 defenceman on a team that has finished 29th, 25th, 29th, 18th, and 26th (in progress) in goals against. I'm not a big fan of his game either; he's not quick on his feet, he can't skate backwards and he doesn't process the game at a high pace. I just never saw him as being a great defenceman and ~30 point outputs aren't enough to make up for all his defensive lapses.

 

[Daisy Jane]

Rotating A's are stupid IMHO! Either you deserve to be an Alternate or you're not! One game you are declared to be a team leader, and then, the next game you're not. I don't like it.

there are countless teams that have rotating A's. 2 at home, 2 on the road, i'm not saying give it to every single person like a free for all. a leadership core. So using your words - the Coach determinded who 'deserves' to be an alternate, and rotates the letter among those he 'deserves' to have it.

 

[member 147413]

He represents the fanbase tremendously with his play. Bipolar and frustrating, I wouldn't mind seeing him in another jersey, blue isn't really his colour.

 

[achtungbaby]

What's the truth then?

My understanding when making *real* hockey trades is that you have to move something of value to get what you want back in return. He was the most expensive piece on the blueline at the time and seeing as though they JUST signed JBo to a deal and were looking for cap relief as paramount then it only seems to make the most sense.

So ship out your best, and most expensive, dman then? Or, did they realize something about the guy?? (scottish accent for some reason) Too many east coasters here for me liking. Damned Habs fans.

 

[hockeystick89]

No, they shipped him out because they were struggling and over-priced themselves on the blueline and had no assets or talents, much less depth at the forward position.

Why do you think he got traded for a depth defenseman and a couple of depth forwards? Only Stajan remains there from that deal.

I live in Calgary and trust me, Dion was hated here. The fans and media were turning on him for his play on the ice, and his teammates hated him for some stuff that happened off the ice. There's a reason he was traded for a bag of pucks to the first taker.

 

[achtungbaby]

I live in Calgary and trust me, Dion was hated here. The fans and media were turning on him for his play on the ice, and his teammates hated him for some stuff that happened off the ice. There's a reason he was traded for a bag of pucks to the first taker.

I lived in Alberta for many years. We all watched Dion not become the icon he became in eastern media. Trust me when I say they'll never believe you. Dion was a gift from Sutter and it'll never be anything different. The Leafs got him for junk, accept it.

 

[diceman934]

Apparently Sutter never shopped him around. Other GMs would've offered more had they known he was available

Not a chance would there have been a bidding war....his contract and his on ice play as well as all the issues off ice made him very hard to move. He has been over paid every year he has played here and he got a raise? He was a salary dump!

 

[DaveT83*]

All the Talent in the world doesn't cure Cancer.


Dion was Cancer in Calgary. It was toxic. He had to go.

Burke thought by giving him more responsibility it would reignite him - give him something to believe in and focus less on his juvenile tendencies to blame everyone around him for his own failings.


It hasn't worked. Same old Dion. Same old Cancer. Different setting. Only difference is that the Leaf's roster is littered with PR Representitives that wouldn't dare say/do anything to suggest things weren't perfect.

 

[Stephen]

I live in Calgary and trust me, Dion was hated here. The fans and media were turning on him for his play on the ice, and his teammates hated him for some stuff that happened off the ice. There's a reason he was traded for a bag of pucks to the first taker.

Bit of both. Calgary didn't get the best value for him and went in the toilet, while Toronto paid a cheap price to get a player they foolishly built up to be more than he is. Toronto made him into a pillar of their franchise, which was a mistake, but it also says something about the other personalities in town and lack of maturity if he's seen as a leader.

 

[Stephen]

All the Talent in the world doesn't cure Cancer.


Dion was Cancer in Calgary. It was toxic. He had to go.

Burke thought by giving him more responsibility it would reignite him - give him something to believe in and focus less on his juvenile tendencies to blame everyone around him for his own failings.


It hasn't worked. Same old Dion. Same old Cancer. Different setting. Only difference is that the Leaf's roster is littered with PR Representitives that wouldn't dare say/do anything to suggest things weren't perfect.

Dion doesn't seem to have that much "talent" anymore. He used to be a high energy rugged guy with a booming shot. Now he skates like he's hobbled up, turtles from trouble, can't control the puck on the point, makes weak wristers because his slapshot control is horrible and makes weird reads when the pressure is on.

It's like he didn't take care of his skillset and work hard at improving and he's regressed and aged before his time.

 

[richardn]

I wonder what we could get for Phaneuf in a trade?

 

[richardn]

What a f'ing joke that Nonis signed this plug for the money and term he did. Another year or two and he will be untradeable. He is regressing every year in my opinion. Between Dion and clarkson's contracts it's going to f this team up for years and years

 

[Banic]

What a f'ing joke that Nonis signed this plug for the money and term he did. Another year or two and he will be untradeable. He is regressing every year in my opinion. Between Dion and clarkson's contracts it's going to f this team up for years and years

So let's bottom out for the next 7 years, pay a bunch of plugs to insulate the kids and use those 2 Contracts to get to the cap floor

 

[Bardown warrior]

All the Talent in the world doesn't cure Cancer.


Dion was Cancer in Calgary. It was toxic. He had to go.

Burke thought by giving him more responsibility it would reignite him - give him something to believe in and focus less on his juvenile tendencies to blame everyone around him for his own failings.


It hasn't worked. Same old Dion. Same old Cancer. Different setting. Only difference is that the Leaf's roster is littered with PR Representitives that wouldn't dare say/do anything to suggest things weren't perfect.

That was like 9 years ago when he was like 20 years old... Imagine what you would do if you were a millionaire 19 year old; He was a kid for christs sake and the world was his oyster. He's a different person now you can tell. Maturation takes time.

 

[Teeder9]

That was like 9 years ago when he was like 20 years old... Imagine what you would do if you were a millionaire 19 year old; He was a kid for christs sake and the world was his oyster. He's a different person now you can tell. Maturation takes time.

Sadly, if we had the 19/20 year old, he'd be worth having for 7 more years and actually making a difference.

 

[Banic]

Where are all his fans right now? You know the ones who called his detractors names. Said we didn't understand hockey etc. Just curious is all. He's being left alone here.

 

[Tak7]

I think the fact that he's had a pretty good season up until about 15 days ago, is largely a mute point now.

It doesn't matter that he's been very good - when it's mattered and when the team has needed him, he's fallen flat on his face.

I'm not sure what people expected though; the coaching staff played the hell out of this guy all season, and now he's quite literally breaking down in front of our eyes, like a car that has way too much mileage on it.

I would personally like to see both:

a) Some better defensive help lining up with him

and

b) A stronger leadership core in the dressing room to help him and his message.

Only then can we truly assess just what the hell Dion Phaneuf is as a leader and as a player. I don't think he's a number 1, but I think he can be valuable to this team moving forward.

And whether or not that's accurate is irrelevant - he's here to stay with a contract like that

 

[ULF_55]

I live in Calgary and trust me, Dion was hated here. The fans and media were turning on him for his play on the ice, and his teammates hated him for some stuff that happened off the ice. There's a reason he was traded for a bag of pucks to the first taker.

It wasn't that he was given away for nothing, it is just that except for Stajan the other pieces were moved.

Stajan is not a big scorer at all, but he's considered a team leader and a good example for the younger players. He's a character player.

 

[BLONG7]

What does that have to do with anything? Nothing at all. Some of those polls came from ESPN, which generally sucks at hockey coverage. They don't even have a crew to air games in the first place and haven't for almost 13+ years now.

They claimed to have 'asked' 30 'anonymous' random players from the NHL what they think.

This could stem from a multitude of things...Phaneuf lighting a guy up in a hit, Phanuef outscoring a team-mate. Phaneuf saying something to a guy that makes him mad. Phaneuf getting lots of media coverage that others guys don't get because they prefer to play in a non-Hockey market. Phaneuf having a hot wife. Phaneuf being an all-star. Phaneuf getting high Norris votes. Phaneuf having a big slapshot. Phaneuf getting a better contract.

See any reasons to see a discrepancy here?

The article I read, polled 360 players...more than half of the league...

 

[Rielly4]

Same old toronto fans...bored of blaming Clarkson... You guys couldn't be more wrong. His salary maybe is pretty big but he would make any team way better... Imagine you added Phaneuf to St Louis blue line or Chicagos.. It would be so unfair.

Phaneuf is a good two way mobile big physical d man.. He can move the puck pretty well too considering hes the top of the umbrella on the #4 PP in the league although i do admit Gardiner Rielly should be #1 PP and not Phaneuf and Franny. Fransons way worse then Dion hes a disaster and hes too slow.

Phaneufs fine... Stop labeling him as a #1 d man.. Hes a top pairing d man forsure we just need to get him a more elite partner... I like Gunner but he should be a good 3rd pair d man.

Get a smart puck mover who is sound defensively as his partner.. A suter type, maybe Giordano would be good.

 

[johnny_rudeboy]

Same old toronto fans...bored of blaming Clarkson... You guys couldn't be more wrong. His salary maybe is pretty big but he would make any team way better... Imagine you added Phaneuf to St Louis blue line or Chicagos.. It would be so unfair.

Phaneuf is a good two way mobile big physical d man.. He can move the puck pretty well too considering hes the top of the umbrella on the #4 PP in the league although i do admit Gardiner Rielly should be #1 PP and not Phaneuf and Franny. Fransons way worse then Dion hes a disaster and hes too slow.

Phaneufs fine... Stop labeling him as a #1 d man.. Hes a top pairing d man forsure we just need to get him a more elite partner... I like Gunner but he should be a good 3rd pair d man.

Get a smart puck mover who is sound defensively as his partner.. A suter type, maybe Giordano would be good.

So why are we paying Dion to be a legit #1 and one of the best in the league when his game rely on what partner he have? With that salary and the C on his jersey he should be able to carry a rookie and still come out of it looking elite. Resigning Phaneuf to that contract was a joke.

 

[Teeder9]

Not to mention he'd be lucky to be the Blues #4

 

[richardn]

It's almost time to Larry Murphy Dion out of town. 7 more years of Dion means we are on a 10 year rebuild because there is no way we can win the cup with that much salary tied up with a pylon. He brings zero to this team. His shot and physical play is gone he has nothing left he's completely washed up.

 

[KuleminFan41]

So why are we paying Dion to be a legit #1 and one of the best in the league when his game rely on what partner he have? With that salary and the C on his jersey he should be able to carry a rookie and still come out of it looking elite. Resigning Phaneuf to that contract was a joke.

How much do you think PK will make despite relying on Markov?And that guy won a Norris