Who is the softest team in the playoffs? Which team brings to most grit?

[WetcoastOrca]

New Jersey and Toronto.
As others have said it’s not so much the support players that make a team soft or gritty, it’s the attitude of the star players who play by far the most minutes.

 

[Ncit3]

Colorado
Carolina
New Jersey

Just my 2 cents.

I’ll take skill over grit. Colorado proved last year that talent and speed kills.

 

[Former Referee 68]

Oilers have more Toughness then they are given credit for
Kane
Nurse
Kostin
Vinny
Ekholm
Hyman
RNH ( you tube his fights)
Drai... don;t fight but hits anything
Bjugstad
Kulak hits hard

 

[Fight4yourRight]

NJ AINEC

 

[WTFMAN99]

I’ll take skill over grit. Colorado proved last year that talent and speed kills.

I have Colorado winning their 1st round match up and losing in the 2nd round.

Landeskog + fatigue are the reasons.

 

[KnightofBoston]

I never really saw grit as the teams that hit a lot but rather can be hit and don’t give up, pucks, checks, whatever

Generally they go hand in hand but not always. Grit is how you respond to physical and mental adversity, the word many here seem to be looking for is aggression

 

[Rude Dog]

Teams don’t make the top 16 if they are soft. Correct answer. None of them. Toughness doesn’t just mean breaking bones. it can also mean taking a hit to make a play. This isn’t the day of the broad street bullies.

 

[Ncit3]

I have Colorado winning their 1st round match up and losing in the 2nd round.

Landeskog + fatigue are the reasons.

It could happen, but I’d put nothing past MacKinnon. And I don’t think the Stars are very good. Minnesota is scarier.

 

[ffh]

Can't believe this isn't closed yet. It's the devils.

 

[thaman8765678]

I’ll take skill over grit. Colorado proved last year that talent and speed kills.

Except most of Colorado core players were not afraid to muck it up.

Yes, they had skill and speed but they also had a lot of grit.

Do you really see Matthews and Marner willing to go into the dirty areas like Mackinnon? I don't.

 

[WTFMAN99]

Except most of Colorado core players were not afraid to muck it up.

Yes, they had skill and speed but they also had a lot of grit.

Do you really see Matthews and Marner willing to go into the dirty areas like Mackinnon? I don't.

They go to the dirty areas plenty.

Will they drop their gloves or anything? No.

Matthews has had quite a few hits the last few series though.

I don't consider the duo as gritty as a lot of other star players on other top teams but they're not perimeter players.

 

[Skolman]

Oilers have more Toughness then they are given credit for
Kane
Nurse
Kostin
Vinny
Ekholm
Hyman
RNH ( you tube his fights)
Drai... don;t fight but hits anything
Bjugstad
Kulak hits hard

Mcdavid is more physical than Draisaitl, in my opinion.

 

[HockeyWooot]

Softest: NJD? They're a young skilled team that's exciting to watch but not sure they have the right balance of physicality and grit to get past NYR. Not a slight this team took a huge step forward this year and will get better and better.

Toughest: Bruins, Wild, Tampa

 

[SeanMoneyHands]

Softest is NJD. Who’s going to protect Jack Hughes when he gets thrown around like a stuffed animal by the bigger Rangers?

 

[Bizz]

Canes are the softest.
Wild are the grittiest, but that's not a good thing for them.

 

[dirtydanglez]

AVS are are one of the softest team going into playoffs.

that's just your east coast bias.

Schenn - 318 hits - 1st in the NHL
Acciari - 244 hits - 10th in the NHL
McCabe - 163 hits - 65th in the NHL
ZAR - 163 hits - 65th in the NHL
Holl - 151 hits - 83rd in the NHL
Lafferty - 125 hits - 126th in the NHL

these are all great but where is the grit in the top 6. just bunting really.

 

[leafsfan5]

that's just your east coast bias.


these are all great but where is the grit in the top 6. just bunting really.

It depends on how you define grit but the Leafs have Bunting, Matthews, ROR in the top 6 who all bring elements of it

It’s not as much as the support players, but it’s clearly there

 

[1specter]

People mentioning the Leafs are out to lunch. It was true 2-3 years ago, but there's a different tone this season with regards to grit and toughness. The most recent game against Tampa was a good example.

 

[L4br3cqu3]

Reading this thread, the grit Toronto has comes from their fans, not from the team.

 

[Sheikyerbouti]

Mcdavid is more physical than Draisaitl, in my opinion.

Its because drai takes most nights off to stay healthy imo. He has tools that allow him to bully people when it matters, even with the puck. You will see it in the playoffs, or when he's mad. He's mean and just as chippy as Kane -- he plays the slash and crosscheck game during a line change at an elite level.

 

[Arthur Morgan]

They have had Clifford and simmonds previous years Lol


leafs fans in a nutshell, makes a thread about calling out other teams. gets defensive when his team is picked.

its just funny when casual fans that have no idea how much Toronto has changed keep saying Toronto just like for the past few years the D being terrible which is a old story casuals love to hold onto

 

[OKR]

Devils, they might be the softest team in the league in general.

 

[Arthur Morgan]

Well let's break all this down. I will put down the teams with players that have over 100 hits this year we will see

I dunno feels pretty even across the board but I dunno if Toronto is one of the softest in the playoffs

Toronto: 8 over 100 and 9 with 50 or more but below 100

Boston: 8 over 100 and 11 with 50 or more but below 100

Tampa Bay: 9 over 100 and 7 with 50 or more

Florida: 5 over 100 and 10 with 50 or more

Carolina: 5 over 100 and 8 with 50 or more

New Jersey: 6 over 100 and 8 with 50 or more

NYR: 9 over 100 and 6 with 50 or more

NYI: 8 over 100 and 7 with 50 or more

Dallas: 5 over 100 and 8 with 50 or more

Colorado: 3 over 100 and 14 with 50 or more

Minnesota: 7 over 100 and 9 with 50 or more

Winnipeg: 8 over 100 and 5 with 50 or more

Vegas: 7 over 100 and 10 with 50 or more

Edmonton: 6 over 100 and 10 with 50 or more

LA: 7 over 100 and 11 with 50 or more

Seattle: 7 over 100 and 8 with 50 or more

 

[Arthur Morgan]

that's just your east coast bias.


these are all great but where is the grit in the top 6. just bunting really.

I dunno they dont seem that soft compared to everyone else.

Toronto:
Marner: 53 hits
Nylander: 18 hits
Matthews: 78 hits
Tavares: 112 hits
Bunting: 85 hits
Rielly: 70

Boston:
Pastrnak: 91
Marchand: 81
Bergeron: 66
Zacha: 67
Krejci 41
Lindholm: 78

Tampa Bay:
Kucherov: 61
Point: 37
Stamkos: 92
Hagel: 68
Killorn: 61
Sergachev: 128

Florida:
Tkachuk: 68
Barkov: 52
Montour: 92
Verhaeghe: 29
Reinhart: 58
Luostarinen: 64

Carolina:
Necas: 57
Aho: 59
Burns: 40
Svechnikov: 140
Kotkaniemi: 105
Gostisbehere: 46

New Jersey:
Hughes: 12
Hischier: 34
Hamilton: 64
Bratt: 24
Meier: 154
Mercer: 36

NYR:
Panarin: 26
Zibanejad: 71
Fox: 25
Trocheck: 182
Kane: 13
Kreider: 128

NYI:
Nelson: 50
Horvat: 57
Barzal: 25
Lee: 125
Dobson: 60
Pageau: 175

Dallas:
Robertson: 57
Benn: 97
Pavelski: 93
Hintz: 47
Heiskanen: 49
Domi: 22

Colorado:
MacKinnon: 53
Rantanen: 77
Makar: 65
Compher: 37
Lehkonen: 93
Toews: 93

Minnesota:
Kaprizov: 66
Zuccarello: 51
Boldy: 65
Eriksson Ek: 119
Johansson: 26
Gaudreau: 42

Winnipeg:
Connor: 43
Morrissey: 89
Scheifele: 50
Dubois: 71
Wheeler: 54
Niederreiter: 165

Vegas:
Eichel: 59
Stephenson: 74
Marchessault: 76
Smith: 69
Pietrangelo: 65
Karlsson: 50

Edmonton:
Mcdavid: 89
Draisaitl: 66
Nugent-Hopkins: 48
Hyman: 77
Nurse: 146,
Bouchard: 95

LA:
Kopitar: 68
Fiala: 53
Kempe: 119
Arvidsson: 25
Danault: 81
Doughty: 115

Seattle:
McCann: 65
Dunn: 115
Eberle: 44
Beniers: 79
Gourde: 118
Sprong: 33

 

[Nineteen67]

The Canes are not very physical. One of my favourite teams to watch, but I don’t think they’re built for the playoffs.