TSN's article on Clarkson.

[madmike77]

The Leafs management and coaches are still defending him. It's gotta be that they're in full out denial or something. He's played here for more than a year and a half now, and done absolutely nothing to show he even belongs on the roster, yet he's a permanent fixture on the 2nd PP unit.

What choice do they have? If they want to deal him (unlikely I know...) they need to talk him up.

And if they want him to improve and be a part of the team going forward (and realistically that's what will happen) they can't just throw him under a bus.

Admitting he's a huge bust doesn't really do them any good.

 

[NHL Fanatik*]

Or perhaps Clarkson is being utilized incorrectly?

He did plenty fine with NJ.

 

[Semantics]

Or perhaps Clarkson is being utilized incorrectly?

He did plenty fine with NJ.

He was terrible in NJ too, and carried by Elias et al. I have no doubt he could score 15-20 goals and 30-40 points if he played with Kessel, but that doesn't make him a useful player.

The fact that Elias hated him and called the contract with the Leafs a joke says it all.

Putting a guy in a position to be carried with your best players isn't "utilizing him correctly".

 

[Loff]

But, but....

 

[Evil Little]

Article doesn't mention how much opposing players would be messing with the Leafs' water bottles if he wasn't getting the ice time, though...

 

[PatriceBergeronFan]

Love this contract!

 

[NHL Fanatik*]

He was terrible in NJ too, and carried by Elias et al. I have no doubt he could score 15-20 goals and 30-40 points if he played with Kessel, but that doesn't make him a useful player.

The fact that Elias hated him and called the contract with the Leafs a joke says it all.

Putting a guy in a position to be carried with your best players isn't "utilizing him correctly".

He played fine with NJ, even before his top 6 days. He was an effective bottom 6 player who got under the skin of the opposition, he worked his way up in NJ.

 

[Reality Check]

It is amazing to me that anyone would have signed him to that contract..

When you are the same franchise that signed Jeff Finger to a multi-year contract, anything is possible.

 

[Dr Pepper]

Nonis: “I’m not worried about six or seven right now. I’m worried about one. And Year One, I know we’re going to have a very good player. I believe that he’s got a lot of good years left in him.â€

He was right to worry.

That chair he's sitting on must be melting by now, thanks to good ol' Davey boy.

What a nightmare contract for the Leafs, who I believe are just finishing their Darcy Tucker buyout payments. I smell another one on the horizon.

 

[WTFMAN99]

Patrik Elias was the biggest critic of his deal... In a summer interview in the Czech.

He called the deal a "joke" and laughable... When his linemate for a long time says that ...( i knew they had a feud and Elias didn't like him, which is why he left NJ)

Enjoy Clarkson with top line minutes and 1st PP duties if Deboer gets hired

Do you have anymore on this? How the heck could Clarkson get on Elias's bad side? I find Elias to be one of the more classy guys in the league.

 

[ViewsFromThe6ix]

When you are the same franchise that signed Jeff Finger to a multi-year contract, anything is possible.

In hindsight its been pointed out that multiple teams were interested and he left money and likely term on the table to come to Toronto. Lucky us

 

[The Thin White Duke]

It's not that he doesn't live up to his contract, its that he actively makes us a worse team every second he's on the ice. I'm absolutely certain any single Marlies winger would be more effective than Clarkson. Hell, I'm pretty sure just going with 11 forwards would be more effective.

 

[Purity*]

I'll go over some of the attributes of Clarkson's amazing tenure in Toronto so far.

- This dude cannot make a pass to save his life, his passing skills ARE NOT NHL LEVEL. He can't even receieve passes either. Last night's game Leafs had a clean 3 on 2 break and JVR made an excellent pass to Clarkson in the slot only to see him bobble the puck and lose it.
-His skating is TERRIBLE, he literally falls on his ass every shift and is routinely gets left in the dust on the backcheck.
-He's bad defensively. Routinely caught out of position and just doesn't know where to be at all. We have A LOT of bad defensive players on this team and Clarkson seems to fit right in.
-When we signed this guy, I heard so much about how he's "strong on the boards and on the puck." REALLY? This guy routinely loses board battles against smaller players and turns the puck over on the slightest bit of contact.


This guy is a 4th line grinder who is getting force-fed good offensive minutes and PP time by our management in a sad attempt to justify his terrible contract. Lombardi, Connolly, Komisarek were contracts we just finished getting over, and then Nonis goes ahead and tops all of them by bringing this useless turd on board. Clarkson is our second highest paid forward and EASILY the worst player in our top-9.

 

[gamer1035]

Dude isn't an nhl player.

 

[SladeWilson23]

-When we signed this guy, I heard so much about how he's "strong on the boards and on the puck." REALLY? This guy routinely loses board battles against smaller players and turns the puck over on the slightest bit of contact.

His puck possession game was his strong suit with the Devils. He would basically skate with it behind the net for like 30 seconds until he could get it to the net.

 

[janecky]

Do you have anymore on this? How the heck could Clarkson get on Elias's bad side? I find Elias to be one of the more classy guys in the league.

Elias speaks his mind. Recently when there was a puff piece about Scott Gomez's re-emergence as an offensive producer, Elias gave Gomez praise but also said, "He still has issues defensively, but that's the way it's always been." I wouldn't be surprised if he called the Clarkson contract a joke. That's what it is. It's not the same as calling Clarkson a joke, but as a veteran elite player Elias knows what the player's real value is, especially since it was Elias who helped Clarkson to his goal totals.

 

[Feed Me A Stray Cat]

Clarkson can be a 25-goal scorer in the NHL. I just don't think the system the Leafs employ suits him.

Clarkson scores his goals off of puck possession. He's a good guy along the boards and has a good nose for the net. He doesn't score goals off the rush. He has limited offensive awareness, so he's not going to make his teammates better or see plays happen before they do.

His best years were under DeBoer in NJ with the high possession game the Devils were playing at the time. The game was simple for Clarkson - dump and chase, forecheck and cycle. Hover around the net for rebounds and deflections.

Such a one dimensional player should not be making $5.0MM+, but that doesn't mean he's useless. I hope the Leafs eat a portion of his contract and trade him to a team where he will be better utilized.

 

[Feed Me A Stray Cat]

He was terrible in NJ too, and carried by Elias et al. I have no doubt he could score 15-20 goals and 30-40 points if he played with Kessel, but that doesn't make him a useful player.

The fact that Elias hated him and called the contract with the Leafs a joke says it all.

Putting a guy in a position to be carried with your best players isn't "utilizing him correctly".

Clarkson was not terrible in NJ.

He rarely played with Elias in 11-12, when he had his best offensive season with 30 goals.

Clarkson's ES goal scoring rates from 2010 to 2013 were pretty solid (69 out of 302 qualifying forwards).
http://stats.hockeyanalysis.com/rat...=0&type=individual&sort=igoals60&sortdir=DESC

 

[jdatb]

Clarkson can be a 25-goal scorer in the NHL. I just don't think the system the Leafs employ suits him.

Clarkson scores his goals off of puck possession. He's a good guy along the boards and has a good nose for the net. He doesn't score goals off the rush. He has limited offensive awareness, so he's not going to make his teammates better or see plays happen before they do.

His best years were under DeBoer in NJ with the high possession game the Devils were playing at the time. The game was simply for Clarkson - dump and chase, forecheck and cycle. Hover around the nets for rebounds and deflections.

Such a one dimensional player should not be making $5.0MM+, but that doesn't mean he's useless. I hope the Leafs eat a portion of his contract and trade him to a team where he will be better utilized.

You must not have watched him play recently.

 

[Feed Me A Stray Cat]

You must not have watched him play recently.

I watched Clarkson play in Albany and NJ for many years, so I think I have a good idea of what his game is all about.

I haven't watched him much with the Leafs, but I am not surprised he is not succeeding there given his style of play. I don't believe there would be significant regression in his skills (which are basically nose for the net, hands in tight, strength on the puck) in two years at the age of 30.

 

[siddy]

I've never seen so many plays die on someone's stick.

Whenever the puck gets to Clarkson, he can't receive the pass, carry the puck, or dish it out. It's a travesty.

He's unmoveable, and his contract cannot be bought out due to the structure of the deal.

It's the Leafiest things that the Leafs have ever done.

edit: But "intangibles"

 

[rangers91*]

its amazing how a guy like Mike Richards is even the minors now and Clarkson is playing 2nd Power Play on the leafs. What a joke. Richards>>> Clarkson.

 

[Jtown]

rough week for nhl players on the kitchner rangers memorial cup winning team.

 

[SladeWilson23]

A lot of people were comparing him to Randy McKay when he first came up.

 

[xdl1]

You must not have watched him play recently.

We all have, and for several years before that. What he said is all 100% accurate.

He is what he looks like - a 3rd/4th like grinder who has little to no game sense and hockey talent outside of board work and a somewhat accurate shot at times. His best days were playing 12-14 minutes in a puck possession game down low.