The leafs should _____ offseason thread

[The Expert]

I think Shanny is doing a great job, they should sign him to a lifetime contract.

 

[bleedgreen]

Apparently Ron and Rod didn’t actually get along very well, at least not toward the end.

You’ll have to remind me of this, I’ve either forgotten or missed it somehow. They had been pretty close earlier from what I had seen.

 

[Lshap]

That's the most fundamentally embarrassing part of it though.

Drafting Nylander, Marner and Matthews in three consecutive drafts is about as good as any rebuilding team could ever hope for. It requires a lot of fortuitous circumstance to be drafting in the right positions at the right years and then to make the correct selections at those positions to get players of that caliber all on the same timeline/trajectory as each other.

The fact that the Leafs have fumbled the bag and managed to squander such a glorious situation they started with is mind-boggling.

Well said. Toronto's strength – their offence – isn't a result of a plan or vision. They lucked into their strength by getting three top picks in three great drafts. I don't fault the Leafs for getting lucky, but then the job should've focused on shoring up the weaknesses at D and in nets. Instead, after almost a decade, their GMs opted for short-term patches. They continue sacrificing their backend in order to service the contracts of their stars.

 

[Esq]

Unless Rod just wanted a huge payday, I cannot imagine him wanting to coach in Toronto. What a thankless, perilous road that assuredly ends in disappointment.

 

[SoupNazi]

Mike Babcock is still available.

 

[Ezekial]

I guess you are a bit younger than I thought. The objective of any effort in this world is to generate revenues. Toronto is doing fine in these terms so our children will have a chance to celebrate 100 anniversary in 2067.

Yea it's really hard for the Toronto Maple Leafs to turn a profit.

Imagine if they had a few more home playoff games a year, though.

 

[BB88]

Wow lol all time terrible take! Yzerman built that Tampa team, hasnt lucked into an elite pick with Detroit. Lets see Analytics first GM's.... Chayka and Dubas the two worst GM's in the NHL in the last decade outside of Dorion. Great call!

Hadn’t Tampa already drafted Stamkos& Hedman prior to Steve Y going to Tampa and had another high pick to start with?

 

[KingsFan7824]

They weren’t a Tavares away from legitimately winning it all though?

But how long do you wait to see what happens? How often does that perfect time ever come? If there's no risk, there's no reward. That's just life.

I know with the Kings, they missed the Kopitar/Doughty ELC window. And then after trading young pieces in Schenn and Simmonds for Richards, they were still an average team, because they still couldn't score 2 goals a game, and were technically out of a playoff spot the day they threw caution to the wind and got Carter, who had 10 years left on a term in his late 20's. Luckily Carter cried his way out of Columbus, or else the Kings probably don't have a Cup. Anything else from that 2012 deadline isn't winning the Kings squat. Not to mention having to bring a literal Canadian far boy off his ranch as a favor to a good friend from his days in SJ. Lombardi had no intention of firing Terry Murray and bringing in a Sutter brother.

Any of the contracts handed out, all any team is looking for is the first year or two. Nobody is worried about years 6 and 7. You give out those last couple years because it's the price of doing business in the modern day NHL. And you can only do what's available. Most good goalies aren't on the market. Most good D-men aren't on the market. If the guy you can get is a forward, who doesn't fill your greratest need, most teams will still get that guy, and then worry about everything else later. Most GMs don't have the luxury of not having their job on the line.

 

[Killer Orcas]

Yzerman & Shanahan: two most overrated minds in hockey. Give me an advanced stat nerd over these two any day

Has Shanahan actually ever been considered a hockey mind? He's more on the business side isn't he? Pretty sure he doesn't make player decisions unless he meddles?

 

[Fantomas]

Firing coaches all the time isn't a way to build a winning franchise.

 

[FunkySeeFunkyDo]

If I’m an elite coach or just an above average coach I’d be pissed at Rod taking just 600K or 1.8M per year. WTF? Sullivan’s extension is for 5.5M per year.

 

[Golden_Jet]

Firing coaches all the time isn't a way to build a winning franchise.

Who’s been doing that.

 

[Finlandia WOAT]

Brind'amour has publicly said he has no interest in coaching if it isn't with Carolina. He had a long successful, lucrative playing career so its unclear if the temptation of a blank check would be cause for reassessment

 

[Torontonian]

Brindamour is too demanding for the leafs core. Would force him out like Babcock.

Those days are gone for the core and the Leafs. Babcock they won out on, but they got the kind of coach they wanted (like Keefe) and haven't done shit or changed their ways. It's on the core now to buy into what the coach is selling, they don't get the benefit of the doubt anymore.

Sticking to the thread, it depends on what RBA contract demands are, MLSE wasn't too pleased having to pay almost 25m+ over 5 years for Babcock not to work for us anymore, and I'm sure they won't be too pleased having to pay Keefe for another 2 seasons after being fired this summer not to work for us.

 

[Lua]

Might make sense for coaches who never made the big bucks in their careers, but according to Capfriendly, he made over $50M as a player. He's already set for life and likely so are his kids and grandkids.

Rod Brind'Amour Career Earnings - CapFriendly - NHL Salary Caps

Rod Brind'Amour NHL career earnings, salary, performance bonus, signing bonus, and estimated earnings

www.capfriendly.com

In your experience, do rich people ever suddenly decide that they have enough?

 

[roon]

Outside of Toronto paying him a Salary in line with Auston Mathews - I can see no reason Rod would leave Carolina to go coach the Leafs.

 

[Torontonian]

Brind'amour has publicly said he has no interest in coaching if it isn't with Carolina. He had a long successful, lucrative playing career so its unclear if the temptation of a blank check would be cause for reassessment

Kyle Dubas also said he would take some time off if he wasn't going to be the GM of the Maple Leafs, 2 weeks later he was the President of the Pittsbrugh Penguins. RBA probably has more of a spine then Dubas, but I would take what these guys say with a grain of salt.

 

[holy]

I heard they're gonna use a cyborg coach that has it's thoughts created based on HF posts. Leafs winning the cup for sure if that's the case.

 

[Antropovsky]

Why in earth would Rod want to go to that circus in Toronto?

Leafs paid Babcock 6.25 million almost 10 years ago. That's 250% more than Rod the Bod makes now. Also was an 8 year contract of guaranteed money.

 

[Jeremy2020]

I wholeheartedly think the Leafs need to keep the core together and retain keefe.

 

[BackToTheBrierePatch]

Leafs should hire AV. He would set them straight

 

[Chan790]

Kyle Dubas also said he would take some time off if he wasn't going to be the GM of the Maple Leafs, 2 weeks later he was the President of the Pittsbrugh Penguins. RBA probably has more of a spine then Dubas, but I would take what these guys say with a grain of sal

A big difference is that Dubas went to college for sports management and this is his lifelong dream career field.

Rod has a lot more money, hasn't just said he doesn't want to coach anywhere else, also he's said he doesn't want to make a career out of this at-all and won't be coaching long-term. He's got other things he wants to do unrelated to hockey.

I'm more worried about RBA retiring if we win the Cup than leaving to go elsewhere.

 

[Esq]

I heard they're gonna use a cyborg coach that has it's thoughts created based on HF posts. Leafs winning the cup for sure if that's the case.

Unrelated -- I just asked AI to show a dog coaching the Leafs.

So there's that.

 

[63 others]

Again I ask and? My point was that covid hit the leafs hard, harder than most. I only brought up Dubas because other people responding to my initital comment kept bringing him up.

it did not at all. yeah some variables changed. then you should adapt the plan. if shanahan cant do that he should have been sacked like 4 years ago

 

[disgruntleddave]

Has Shanahan actually ever been considered a hockey mind? He's more on the business side isn't he? Pretty sure he doesn't make player decisions unless he meddles?

He drank the dubas kool-aid so hard and loved how it tasted, that he fired him when dubas finally realized that a different flavor of kool-aid would taste better. Just loved that first flavor too much.

That's pretty much it.


He'll be gone hopefully soon this off-season, maybe before playoffs end. Leafs need to steer differently quickly.