Tribute Timothy Liljegren part 2

[BertCorbeau]

Liljegren is the best skater on our back end and a strong puck mover. Great stick defensively and uses his body well. Have no idea why he was sitting because the good far outweighs the bad.

Keefe's comfort with Holl blinded him .. I imagine he figured Holl is a bigger body that could handle Tampa's forecheck and pressure, and that Liljegren's inexperience would be a risk.

Gus was in last night for that reason too .. give Lily some action but have a vet that could play in case he struggled.

IMO Lily earned the nod in the top 6 of game 1 in round 2. If he plays well, he stays.

 

[Seath The Scaleless]

Lily made a costly play up the boards in OT or late third that turned into a chance that Sammy thankfully turned away otherwise it would have been up there in the echelon of Galchenyuk, Brodie, Kerfoot turnovers.

He can ease in but needs to be sheltered.

The shot wasn't the greatest, but with the Leafs having already completed the line change, someone should've covered for him. Instead, they were all standing around and allowed Tampa to go the other way

It's not uncommon for a D-man to carry the puck into the zone (or chip and chase) while the team is changing. He had open ice and decided to skate in and take a shot, something we weren't really doing for most of the 3rd and into OT. It was poor defensive awareness by the forwards.

 

[IPS]

So Liljegren wasn't good these playoffs, and especially wasn't good these last couple games against Florida.

WTF HAPPENED? This kid was honest to god trending towards a legitimate all-purpose puck-moving quality D, possibly even trending towards being a top pairing.

My god did they f*** this kid's development up something fierce.

Dermott, Sandin, Liljegren - Dubas fanboys for years touted these guys as the future of the Leafs D and none of them are panning out.

 

[shaner8989]

Likely lost confidence sitting the press box watching that pos Holl play instead of him. Not sure how Keefe hasn’t been fired yet.

 

[Mopar]

So Liljegren wasn't good these playoffs, and especially wasn't good these last couple games against Florida.

WTF HAPPENED? This kid was honest to god trending towards a legitimate all-purpose puck-moving quality D, possibly even trending towards being a top pairing.

My god did they f*** this kid's development up something fierce.

Dermott, Sandin, Liljegren - Dubas fanboys for years touted these guys as the future of the Leafs D and none of them are panning out.

They should have stuck with him through the ups and downs of the regular season so he can learn and grow. Leafs were a lock for the playoffs anyway. Let the young D get their minutes.

Instead he gets benched and Holl plays.

 

[1specter]

So Liljegren wasn't good these playoffs, and especially wasn't good these last couple games against Florida.

WTF HAPPENED? This kid was honest to god trending towards a legitimate all-purpose puck-moving quality D, possibly even trending towards being a top pairing.

My god did they f*** this kid's development up something fierce.

Dermott, Sandin, Liljegren - Dubas fanboys for years touted these guys as the future of the Leafs D and none of them are panning out.

Look to the coach. Keefe sucks at developing guys at the NHL level. Timmins too was playing excellent then got banished to the shadow realm over a couple of bad performances.

 

[Blaylock38]

They should have stuck with him through the ups and down of the regular season so he can learn and grow. Leafs were a lock for the playoffs anywhere. Let the young D get their minutes.

Instead he gets benched and Holl plays.

this 100%

 

[Seath The Scaleless]

So Liljegren wasn't good these playoffs, and especially wasn't good these last couple games against Florida.

Maybe I wasn't watching the same game, but I thought he was pretty good last night. Sure, perhaps he could've played the bouncing puck better on the 2nd FLA goal, but that was some pretty shitty luck.

He was also steady in game 4. He did show several flashes of his passing and puck moving abilities these last two games, as well as smart decisions in the offensive zone like pinching at the right times to keep cycles alive. Some work to be done defensively, but that's expected considering he has played < 2 full seasons worth of games in the NHL

They should have stuck with him through the ups and down of the regular season so he can learn and grow. Leafs were a lock for the playoffs anywhere. Let the young D get their minutes

This. Didn't help that he had a revolving door of partners after the trade deadline. He seemed to thrive when he was locked in with a partner (Sandin, Gio)

 

[Mopar]

Maybe I wasn't watching the same game, but I thought he was pretty good last night. Sure, perhaps he could've played the bouncing puck better on the 2nd FLA goal, but that was some pretty shitty luck.

He was also steady in game 4. He did show several flashes of his passing and puck moving abilities these last two games, as well as smart decisions in the offensive zone like pinching at the right times to keep cycles alive. Some work to be done defensively, but that's expected considering he has played < 2 full seasons worth of games in the NHL



This. Didn't help that he had a revolving door of partners after the trade deadline. He seemed to thrive when he was locked in with a partner (Sandin, Gio)

Who would have thought playing with the same partner would create chemistry?

 

[Stephen]

Look to the coach. Keefe sucks at developing guys at the NHL level. Timmins too was playing excellent then got banished to the shadow realm over a couple of bad performances.

The Leafs culture needs to change under a different coach. It feels like Keefe really amplifies that anxious energy to every corner of the organization. Just need gamers who want to step up, steal jobs and thrive in big moments.

 

[Jimmy Firecracker]

So Liljegren wasn't good these playoffs, and especially wasn't good these last couple games against Florida.

WTF HAPPENED? This kid was honest to god trending towards a legitimate all-purpose puck-moving quality D, possibly even trending towards being a top pairing.

My god did they f*** this kid's development up something fierce.

Dermott, Sandin, Liljegren - Dubas fanboys for years touted these guys as the future of the Leafs D and none of them are panning out.

I disagree about Lily being bad to finish the playoffs but that’s neither here nor there. What really matters is that Keefe sucks at developing players, plain and simple. He’s been here long enough I think we can say that with definitiveness. The only player he has all the patience in the world for is Holl. We need to get him out of here before he starts ruining Knies.

Liljegren should’ve been allowed the work through his struggles instead of being preemptively chastised and scratched. Zero reason to prioritize Holl at the time given he’s not part of this team’s future and was performing worse than Lily when all the trades happened.

Still think Lily will be a big part of the defence moving forward. Sandin could’ve been but the Leafs decided to cut bait. Let’s hope his lack of size and speed keeps us from really regretting that trade.

 

[ruaware41]

I disagree about Lily being bad to finish the playoffs but that’s neither here nor there. What really matters is that Keefe sucks at developing players, plain and simple. He’s been here long enough I think we can say that with definitiveness. The only player he has all the patience in the world for is Holl. We need to get him out of here before he starts ruining Knies.

Liljegren should’ve been allowed the work through his struggles instead of being preemptively chastised and scratched. Zero reason to prioritize Holl at the time given he’s not part of this team’s future and was performing worse than Lily when all the trades happened.

Still think Lily will be a big part of the defence moving forward. Sandin could’ve been but the Leafs decided to cut bait. Let’s hope his lack of size and speed keeps us from really regretting that trade.

i think we will really regret that one sorry friend. Should’ve got rid of Holl idk why keefe keeps playing him

 

[robertmac43]

Great little move from Lily before finding the pass.

 

[Community]

Great little move from Lily before finding the pass.

Filthy movement and pass.

I've been a fan of Liljegrens for a long time. I know he had a poor last ~15 games or so, but his season overall was very promising. If our coaching staff can develop him properly there's no reason he can't be our #2 behind Rielly in my opinion. He's got all the tools and a pretty good hockey IQ.

 

[EK47]

He looks to be an impact addition for Sweden. Looks to have great chemistry with Sandin. Stepping right into the game and making an impact while being jetlagged. I know it doesn’t mean much Hungary were absolutely awful, but IMO he was Swedens best defenseman. People are gonna say Tömmernes just because of the four assists but they don’t mean shit.

 

[TheDoldrums]

He looks to be an impact addition for Sweden. Looks to have great chemistry with Sandin. Stepping right into the game and making an impact while being jetlagged. I know it doesn’t mean much Hungary were absolutely awful, but IMO he was Swedens best defenseman. People are gonna say Tömmernes just because of the four assists but they don’t mean shit.

 

[EK47]

Yeah I don’t get why a team in win now mode would trade him for Gus and a low first. (Sorry)

 

[Knies iT]

So Liljegren wasn't good these playoffs, and especially wasn't good these last couple games against Florida.

WTF HAPPENED? This kid was honest to god trending towards a legitimate all-purpose puck-moving quality D, possibly even trending towards being a top pairing.

My god did they f*** this kid's development up something fierce.

Dermott, Sandin, Liljegren - Dubas fanboys for years touted these guys as the future of the Leafs D and none of them are panning out.

Keefe is a complete joke when it comes to developing players at the NHL level.

Disagree about his playoff performance. When you scratch one of your best puck movers for 5 straight playoff games and then thrust him into a series late against a near cap era dynasty, he's going to look behind the pace of play.

Last year, Liljegren should not have come out vs. TBL either. Should have had 2 goals early in that series if not for borderline HOTY saves from Vasi. Don't forget he missed the start of the year/camp with hernia surgery and still took big steps forward this year, sans the last month or so.

Keefe coaches scared. It's why he defaults to his garbage utility players.

 

[HamiltonNHL]

Keefe coaches scared.

he coaches to avoid being blamed for the loss vs. trying something to win.

Trying something to win:

Playing Woll in the first round
Playing Knies before being forced to.
Try another D while Holl is on the struggle bus.

 

[Tak7]

Anyone have any insight into why Liljegren is playing at the worlds, but Nylander isn't yet? They both travelled, but it appears only 1 of them is playing

 

[Farsailor]

Anyone have any insight into why Liljegren is playing at the worlds, but Nylander isn't yet? They both travelled, but it appears only 1 of them is playing

They did not both travel. When Liljegren arrived he told the press that Nylander is still in Toronto. But still no word on Nylander, team Sweden has given him 2 days to arrive or the spot will go to someone else..

 

[justashadowof]

Anyone have any insight into why Liljegren is playing at the worlds, but Nylander isn't yet? They both travelled, but it appears only 1 of them is playing

I noticed as well that Willie isn't listed on the Sweden roster on the IIHF site while Liljegren is. Maybe there's an agreement that he'll join the team later.

 

[LeafSteel]

Hoping Liljegren can get his confidence back so he can bring it when next season starts.

Get Keefe the Hell away from this team and let’s get someone who has a clue on how to develop players and put together lines.

Timmins, Liljegren, Knies all need a coach who will let them grow and develop, and not pigeon hole them due to his deficiencies as a coach.

Keefe needs to kick rocks, and as far away from this team as possible.

 

[Jimmy Firecracker]

Lily having himself a tournament offensively.

 

[Leaf Rocket]

Lily having himself a tournament offensively.

Hopefully with Holl gone we give him a chance to shine