Tribute Timothy Liljegren Part 3 - Everyone wants Flowers.

[crump]

Kid is looking smooth out there, even throwing some timely hits.
great game tonight. that last period was a huge one for him. should have lots of confidence going forward.

 

[Tak7]

Getting Giordano may end up paying off even better than anyone anticipated. Didn't see tonight's game but it sounded like Lilly had another great game. Hopefully this will mean Holl will be on the 3rd pairing, where he should be.

I'm already having wet dreams about a short-term extension.

 

[TheDoldrums]

I'm hoping for something around 6x4M.

Lots of precedent there:
Ghost, Marino, Klingberg, Klefbom, Severson, Carlo, Dumelin, Pesce, Murphy, Ekholm.

He also has less experience than all of them at the time, so you can either buy another year, or drop the AAV. He's the type of guy you bet on and watch bloom as a top-pairing guy for ridiculously under market value or get fair value for basically what he's doing now.

it sounds good but honestly I think they'll be forced to bridge him to keep the AAV lower with our cap situation. 2x2 imo.

 

[IPS]

it sounds good but honestly I think they'll be forced to bridge him to keep the AAV lower with our cap situation. 2x2 imo.

They have enough flexibility to gamble on him long term if theyre willing to part ways with guys like kerfoot and holl

 

[leafsfan2point0]

Him and Gio are money together, they compliment eachother so well! Gio is looking like an amazing pickup so far!

 

[ponder]

He’s rock solid so, so often now. Great defensive positioning, great breakout passes, making smart plays in the offensive end, and getting reasonably physical. The rookie mistakes are getting far less frequent too.

I was a skeptic before this year, and I was dead wrong. He’s rapidly establishing himself as a legit top 4 dman.

 

[Morgs]

He’s rock solid so, so often now. Great defensive positioning, great breakout passes, making smart plays in the offensive end, and getting reasonably physical too. The rookie mistakes are getting far less frequent too.

I was a skeptic before this year, and I was dead wrong. He’s rapidly establishing himself as a legit top 4 dman.

Glad to have ya on the train.

 

[mapleleaf979]

He and Sandin need new contracts, what are we thinking here? I’d love to get a 3 year bridge for under 2.

Liljegren would probably get a 1.5mill for 2 years. He was looking brutal for most of the year, i pointed to one thing and that was his decision making. He was taking far too many risks with passes and going for rushes. Liljegren is playing simple right now, doesnt over handle the puck like he use too, he is defering to Girodano to move the puck. If he sticks to this style without thinking or trying to prove he is an offensive dynamo like he was growing up, he can be a player. I am pleasantly surprised by Liljegren in the last 3 games.

 

[meefer]

Except tonight it undoubtedly is. What he did tonight being just one of four dmen left for us was ultra impressive against an aggressive team. If it’s him or Holl who sits in the playoffs it HAS to be Holl at this rate.

I was trying to be blasé about his continuing development. Led the team with 4 hits, is finding seams, playing confidently with Gio, color me impressed. And you're right, it was an impressive display tonight.

 

[LeafsOHLRangers98]

U-23 Defensemen with more even strength points than Liljegren this year:

Bouchard 28
Dahlin 26
Hughes 24
Seider 23
Dobson 21
Heiskainen 21

His offense has been elite 5 on 5 for a young player and he's been great defensively as well. Keep in mind that some of these guys have also played 20 more games than Liljegren this year. What's not to love?

 

[zeke]

Pure beast

 

[Knies iT]

I'm hoping for something around 6x4M.

Lots of precedent there:
Ghost, Marino, Klingberg, Klefbom, Severson, Carlo, Dumelin, Pesce, Murphy, Ekholm.

He also has less experience than all of them at the time, so you can either buy another year, or drop the AAV. He's the type of guy you bet on and watch bloom as a top-pairing guy for ridiculously under market value or get fair value for basically what he's doing now.

100% agree and don't care about jumping the gun. This is the kind of guy you lock up long-term while he's just emerging. It's always a gamble, but it's how you end up with a Ryan Ellis contract (the old one). Giordano potentially re-upping for cheap would make it doable, pending other moves.

Bridge Sandin, go LT on Liljegren. Even if he stagnates, we'd be happy. As i'm sure you know, there's a lot more he has to offer that hasn't fully blossomed yet. Do it before he's an all-situations horse beside Rielly.

 

[Le Cobra]

IIRC Lili was ranked in the top 10 first round draft picks and only fell due to mono. He is severely underrated by most but i am glad we have keen observers in this thread

The Toronto Maple Leafs couldn’t believe that Timothy Liljegren fell to 17th overall in the 2017 NHL Entry Draft.

Last season, the Swedish defenseman was projected to be a top-5 selection, however, he came down with mononucleosis midway through the season. Once his health improved, he decided to return to the lineup. Liljegren thinks he may have returned too soon, which ultimately reduced his draft stock. Immediately after his return, he played sluggish and didn’t seem like the same type of player.

 

[Morgs]

U-23 Defensemen with more even strength points than Liljegren this year:

Bouchard 28
Dahlin 26
Hughes 24
Seider 23
Dobson 21
Heiskainen 21

His offense has been elite 5 on 5 for a young player and he's been great defensively as well. Keep in mind that some of these guys have also played 20 more games than Liljegren this year. What's not to love?

5v5 P60:

Liljegren - 1.37
Bouchard - 1.36
Heiskanen - 1.07
Dahlin - 1.06
Dobson - 1.02
Seider - 0.96
Hughes - 0.94

Time to get him more minutes!!

 

[ULF_55]

I can see how some might be surprised, that happens when you focus on rookie mistakes and ignore the good things they bring.

I've always liked that he seemed to want to get the puck out of the d-zone, and accepted stretching his game would, like most rookies, come with mistakes.

Same with Sandin, especially that game where he played his off-wing with Rielly. Had bad puck luck where at least 2 of the goals against were just bad bounces, a pass slightly behind him at center ice, and a puck that bounced in front of the net he couldn't get his stick on.

Liljegren has the tools, it should only be a matter of time that he knows how to use all of them effectively.

Leafs fans are patient, they've been waiting 55 years? What's a season or two for rookies to get their feet.

 

[Griffin76]

I'd lock Liljegren up long term as well. Sandin on a bridge. The defensive game appears to be there. When he starts scoring goals he's going to get expensive. And it will be coming.

 

[Skullz]

There was one backhand saucer he flipped from the blue line to Boston's blue line to catching Bunting on a rush (that was called offside) that was so f***ing slick ... that is a confident d-man.

Yup I haven't seen that in a long time. He is a fabulous passer especially on breakouts.

 

[BlueBaron]

This is a true feel good for us. Hitting on back to back first round D is not our usual business model. Don't know about you guys but I love Gio and what he brings on so many levels.

Pretty safe bet Holl is gone after this campaign.

 

[fahad203]

I didn't think he was ready for big games or minutes. I'll say I am happy to be wrong
He looks solid out there

 

[Jimmy Firecracker]

Like the first tweet says, Liljegren was good before Gio came aboard. They're obviously a fantastic pairing and Gio has elevated Liljegren's play, but Timmy wasn't a scrub before the trade, nor will he be should Gio move on in the off-season.

Of course, this myth that's already being parroted by Lilly's biggest and blindest critics is going to be their cover going forward. No introspection on their end, it'll just be "Gio turned Liljegren good, which he wasn't before."

 

[Morgs]

Like the first tweet says, Liljegren was good before Gio came aboard. They're obviously a fantastic pairing and Gio has elevated Liljegren's play, but Timmy wasn't a scrub before the trade, nor will he be should Gio move on in the off-season.

Of course, this myth that's already being parroted by Lilly's biggest and blindest critics is going to be their cover going forward. No introspection on their end, it'll just be "Gio turned Liljegren good, which he wasn't before."

It's actually the perfect cover for those idiots to casuals (their primary audience) to say "he was trash but vet defenseman fixed him and now he's good". You won't hear a single one of the overdrive guys or Carlo say how wrong they were when in reality their opinions on Liljegren have been insanely bad for years.

 

[LeafParade]

I feel like the doubters never watched him the AHL. He takes a bit of time to adjust to a new league, but once he adjusts... he is solid. I think next year he will break out as a top 4 D, no questions asked. The tools were always there.

 

[Mickey Marner]

Now that we have him with Giordano, I'd like to see him get more ice-time, especially with Holl and Lyub both getting hit in the head. He should be in the 18-20 range.

 

[LeafsOHLRangers98]

Now that we have him with Giordano, I'd like to see him get more ice-time, especially with Holl and Lyub both getting hit in the head. He should be in the 18-20 range.

He did fine with more ice time when he was paired with Rielly.

sub .800 SV% goaltending was the issue.

But yes he should be pushing 20 on a regular basis down the stretch. Even if everyone is healthy I don't see any reason to play guys like Mo/Brodie into the ground with 25-30 minutes. Even out the minutes, get everyone to the playoffs fresh and healthy.

 

[Dragao6]

Outside of watching matthews go for 69 goals and new leafs record Lilly’s development with gio is the other big interest of mine to watch on this years season