Confirmed with Link: TOR sign F Zach Aston-Reese to a PTO

[Ianturnedbull]

So it's safe to order this?

 

[Leaf Fans]

View attachment 583111
So it's safe to order this?

Sure, it might be obsolete, but if you like it, why would you care?

 

[Dayjobdave]

I suspect there’s a deal in place. It could be fun to have a 4th line that can hit, skate, forecheck and play good D. Tilt the ice for the show ponies.

For Wayne Train to make the club he will have to come into camp sharp.

 

[Mr Knies Guy]

Defense + Hits = Beauty.

 

[Punch Drunk Loov]

I'll be so sad if we don't get him signed and we got this close

 

[VanW27]

Really doubling down on his old strategy of soft players with good analytics. Might as well go out as he came in.

?

15th in the league in total hits and 10th in hits per 60 last season

 

[ACC1224]

I'll be so sad if we don't get him signed and we got this close

?

15th in the league in total hits and 10th in hits per 60 last season

It’ll be nice to have a guy finish his check but are these the bone crunching type hits or more the little bump type?

 

[ToneDog]

Is ZAR better than Gaudette because I am thinking if he is why did we sign Gaudette instead and why wasn't ZAR signed by somebody ??

 

[Golden_Jet]

Gaudette is a better hockey player.

 

[zoA]

It’ll be nice to have a guy finish his check but are these the bone crunching type hits or more the little bump type?

He’s throws a big hit here and there but he’s not a cruncher, it’s more volume. The reason I wanted ZAR was to have someone on the 4th that clogs things up. If we can squeeze a little more offensive game out of him, wonderful, but we needed more stability. I do wish he was faster, but I think he would be a great addition to our 4th line. He’s the type that even if he doesn’t develop chemistry or progress his game, you’re still getting everything you signed him for - low risk move.

 

[Zybalto]

Is ZAR better than Gaudette because I am thinking if he is why did we sign Gaudette instead and why wasn't ZAR signed by somebody ??

Oddly enough, despite getting signed, Gaudette feels like the guy going to the Marlies and ZAR the guy the Leafs probably want on their 4th line but are still making moves when it comes to cap.

Comparison of Gaudette and ZAR from Jfresh's cards:





Jfresh also wrote a decent article a couple of years ago on why ZAR's defensive numbers are so good (and have stayed good the last 2 seasons).

Zach Aston-Reese has the Best Defensive Stats in the NHL. How?!

The conclusion:

"Zach Aston-Reese is a perfect illustration of why the eye test and defensive analytics so often disagree. It also provides an indication of why we should broaden our notions of what constitutes defensive play - or at least recognize the distinction between the two ways of conceptualizing it. From a casual eye test, he doesn’t stand out at individually at all - at best he seems like an effective third wheel bringing some physicality. His awkward skating stride, magnified by playing alongside a burner like Tanev, doesn’t help, nor does the frequency with which he misses prime scoring opportunities. But it’s the fact that he can maintain his incredible shot suppression regardless of who he’s playing with combined with his effectiveness on the forecheck and along the boards that is what makes him a great defensive player.

It might be unfair to compare Aston-Reese’s game to that of a more traditional two-way forward, because the Penguins’ shutdown line is so exclusively focused on killing the clock by controlling the puck along the offensive boards. Players who suppress expected goals against while playing a more active offensive game such as Valeri Nichushkin, Blake Coleman, and Mark Stone should probably receive more credit, as their games involve taking more risks and not just killing time.

But at the end of the day, Zach Aston-Reese does exactly what you would ask of a shut-down bottom-six forward, especially one playing on a team that has so many offensive weapons. The Penguins can deploy ZAR against other teams’ best players, knowing that in all likelihood what they’re gonna see is 30-40 seconds of forechecking, board-battling, and puck-ragging. And at the end of the day, the best defence is not letting your opponent have the puck. Ever."

He also had some of the lowest Ozone start% numbers of any forward in the league. Looking forward to seeing him in camp.

 

[ACC1224]

He’s throws a big hit here and there but he’s not a cruncher, it’s more volume. The reason I wanted ZAR was to have someone on the 4th that clogs things up. If we can squeeze a little more offensive game out of him, wonderful, but we needed more stability. I do wish he was faster, but I think he would be a great addition to our 4th line. He’s the type that even if he doesn’t develop chemistry or progress his game, you’re still getting everything you signed him for - low risk move.

Thanks, I know little about the player but that sounds like pretty much what I’ve read.

Any thoughts on why he wasn’t able to land a contract?

 

[andora]

Oddly enough, despite getting signed, Gaudette feels like the guy going to the Marlies and ZAR the guy the Leafs probably want on their 4th line but are still making moves when it comes to cap.

Comparison of Gaudette and ZAR from Jfresh's cards:





Jfresh also wrote a decent article a couple of years ago on why ZAR's defensive numbers are so good (and have stayed good the last 2 seasons).

Zach Aston-Reese has the Best Defensive Stats in the NHL. How?!

The conclusion:

"Zach Aston-Reese is a perfect illustration of why the eye test and defensive analytics so often disagree. It also provides an indication of why we should broaden our notions of what constitutes defensive play - or at least recognize the distinction between the two ways of conceptualizing it. From a casual eye test, he doesn’t stand out at individually at all - at best he seems like an effective third wheel bringing some physicality. His awkward skating stride, magnified by playing alongside a burner like Tanev, doesn’t help, nor does the frequency with which he misses prime scoring opportunities. But it’s the fact that he can maintain his incredible shot suppression regardless of who he’s playing with combined with his effectiveness on the forecheck and along the boards that is what makes him a great defensive player.

It might be unfair to compare Aston-Reese’s game to that of a more traditional two-way forward, because the Penguins’ shutdown line is so exclusively focused on killing the clock by controlling the puck along the offensive boards. Players who suppress expected goals against while playing a more active offensive game such as Valeri Nichushkin, Blake Coleman, and Mark Stone should probably receive more credit, as their games involve taking more risks and not just killing time.

But at the end of the day, Zach Aston-Reese does exactly what you would ask of a shut-down bottom-six forward, especially one playing on a team that has so many offensive weapons. The Penguins can deploy ZAR against other teams’ best players, knowing that in all likelihood what they’re gonna see is 30-40 seconds of forechecking, board-battling, and puck-ragging. And at the end of the day, the best defence is not letting your opponent have the puck. Ever."

He also had some of the lowest Ozone start% numbers of any forward in the league. Looking forward to seeing him in camp.

Or as the old way says hes boring.. which is good. Sometimes a tesm just needs a line they can put out there and nothing happens... if you can plan on nothing happening for 10 minutes a game and have a solid offence those two things point younin the right direction

 

[zoA]

Thanks, I know little about the player but that sounds like pretty much what I’ve read.

Any thoughts on why he wasn’t able to land a contract?

My theory is that it’s a mixture of timing (agent wanting to see if any other offers came through and Toronto being patient) and Toronto wanting to see if any of the Marlies crush it in cramp — Steeves and Anderson from my POV. The other thing is that he’s a black hole offensively and the game has moved away from that — you can see how much some pens and ducks fans hate him in the other thread lol. That said, I think we’re comfortable with zero offence from him.

 

[ACC1224]

My theory is that it’s a mixture of timing (agent wanting to see if any other offers came through and Toronto being patient) and Toronto wanting to see if any of the Marlies crush it in cramp — Steeves and Anderson from my POV. The other thing is that he’s a black hole offensively and the game has moved away from that — you can see how much some pens and ducks fans hate him in the other thread lol. That said, I think we’re comfortable with zero offence from him.

That’s what has me puzzled. Seems the player is assuming all the risk. The guy hasn’t made a lot of money in his career, he’ll still want to be paid.

 

[saltming]

Really doubling down on his old strategy of soft players with good analytics. Might as well go out as he came in.

16th in the league in hits/60
Stop with the rhetoric and at least try to be observant

 

[zoA]

That’s what has me puzzled. Seems the player is assuming all the risk. The guy hasn’t made a lot of money in his career, he’ll still want to be paid.

Yea, it’s a bit strange, but I’m assuming there’s a bit of a handshake in place. I know Toronto is seen as a great place for these types of contracts, but I don’t think that extends as far as PTOs. Should be interesting to see how things shake out. If Steeves or Anderson kill it in camp though, I’d be a little disappointed if they don’t get a shot.

 

[notbias]

It’ll be nice to have a guy finish his check but are these the bone crunching type hits or more the little bump type?

If they are hits and he is responsible defensively, I am happy. Everyone talks about the grind during playoffs, and now people just want bone-crunching hits? I'll take this and NAK on a 4th line just being annoying and hitting people, don't really want Clifford running around trying to kill everyone and getting scored on.

 

[Gallagbi]

That’s what has me puzzled. Seems the player is assuming all the risk. The guy hasn’t made a lot of money in his career, he’ll still want to be paid.

Id guess he has a handshake oneway deal here in place and its just a question of whether he can make our roster. If not, he'll try to land elsewhere of his choosing based on his play. If that fails, sign for league min (or similar) here and hit the waiver wire - where Leafs scraps seem to be popular.

Weve also extensed a number of these fringe NHLers careers and the Marlies are one of the better AHL spots in terms of resources.

 

[Folignos Helmet]

I think....
Gaudette, Marlie who can fill in on a more offensive line when there is an injury, also C depth for injury.
ZAR, 4th liner.

ZAR-Kampf-NAK as a 4th line would be decent.
Allow the 3rd line to focus more on offense

 

[Zybalto]

This guy has really interesting stats to look at.

Even if we dismiss the analytic charts showing him with the 6th best xGA out of the 326 forwards to play 1500+ 5v5 minutes the last 3 seasons, how does he do with more solid numbers? Actual hits, goals against, and differentials?

5v5 Ozone start%: 33.17 (14th lowest out of 326)
Hits/60: 13.12 (15th most out of 326)
Actual 5v5 goals against/60 the last 3 years: 1.55 (3rd lowest out of 326, 1st fewest REL)
Actual 5v5 goal differential/60 the last 3 years: 56.27% (62nd out of 326, pretty much identical to Crosby's GF%)

He may suck in a lot of ways but he was sure effective out there in his role IMO. Buried in defensive zone starts and apparently one of the hardest forwards in the league to score goals against.

Considering our 4th line was certainly an issue last season, I'll take those numbers all day. It seemed to translate over to the Ducks (along with his ability to blow offensive chances) but the end results look good to me. It's not a small sample here. It's a full 3 years with even better relative numbers for both underlying AND outcomes.

I'm surprised he's still available but who knows what's going on behind the scenes.

 

[ACC1224]

Id guess he has a handshake oneway deal here in place and its just a question of whether he can make our roster. If not, he'll try to land elsewhere of his choosing based on his play. If that fails, sign for league min (or similar) here and hit the waiver wire - where Leafs scraps seem to be popular.

Weve also extensed a number of these fringe NHLers careers and the Marlies are one of the better AHL spots in terms of resources.

This seems the most likely scenario to me. Not a lot of interest and he’s just hoping to latch on wherever he can.

 

[Gallagbi]

This guy has really interesting stats to look at.

Even if we dismiss the analytic charts showing him with the 6th best xGA out of the 326 forwards to play 1500+ 5v5 minutes the last 3 seasons, how does he do with more solid numbers? Actual hits, goals against, and differentials?

5v5 Ozone start%: 33.17 (14th lowest out of 326)
Hits/60: 13.12 (15th most out of 326)
Actual 5v5 goals against/60 the last 3 years: 1.55 (3rd lowest out of 326, 1st fewest REL)
Actual 5v5 goal differential/60 the last 3 years: 56.27% (62nd out of 326, pretty much identical to Crosby's GF%)

He may suck in a lot of ways but he was sure effective out there in his role IMO. Buried in defensive zone starts and apparently one of the hardest forwards in the league to score goals against.

Considering our 4th line was certainly an issue last season, I'll take those numbers all day. It seemed to translate over to the Ducks (along with his ability to blow offensive chances) but the end results look good to me. It's not a small sample here. It's a full 3 years with even better relative numbers for both underlying AND outcomes.

I'm surprised he's still available but who knows what's going on behind the scenes.

Feels like theyre setting up a no event 4th line to me and will roll something like ZAR - Kampf - NAK, which gives them some more offensive options in the middle 6

 

[Da Cool Rula]

As of right now much are the Leafs over the cap again?

 

[Leaf Fans]

As of right now much are the Leafs over the cap again?

They are still 1.5 million over.