2019 Toronto Maple Leafs Offseason Discussion

[CarltonTheBear]

Rielly will be an interesting one in 3 years. He'll have just turned 28, is he looking for the equivalent of a Doughty/Karlsson home run deal (whatever that number is in 3 years). At that point do you really want to lock up a guy for 8 years at that age?

Yeah I think it's certainly a tough question to answer... but that's a problem for 3 years down the line. For now we've got the rest of his contract to take our best shots at the Cup and we'll need Rielly at $5mil to do that.

 

[disco]

https://twitter.com/simmonssteve/status/1177071962276937735

 

[disco]

https://twitter.com/TLNdc/status/1178890448284336134

 

[Pick]

One observation this preseason.
A rookie takes a run at Matthews, elbow up and then sticks a knee out, and nobody does anything.

 

[herman]

One observation this preseason.
A rookie takes a run at Matthews, elbow up and then sticks a knee out, and nobody does anything.

They scored a bunch of goals in response.

 

[Pick]

One observation this preseason.
A rookie takes a run at Matthews, elbow up and then sticks a knee out, and nobody does anything.

They scored a bunch of goals in response.

Just watched Coaches Corner. Commenting on the hit that put Tavares on his ass, Don Cherry stated Leafs aren't tough enough for the playoffs and won't win the SC. I won't be as quick as Grapes to make a conclusion so early in the season but I agree Leafs aren't showing the toughness needed to advance far in the PO's.

 

[Bender]

One observation this preseason.
A rookie takes a run at Matthews, elbow up and then sticks a knee out, and nobody does anything.

They scored a bunch of goals in response.

Just watched Coaches Corner. Commenting on the hit that put Tavares on his ass, Don Cherry stated Leafs aren't tough enough for the playoffs and won't win the SC. I won't be as quick as Grapes to make a conclusion so early in the season but I agree Leafs aren't showing the toughness needed to advance far in the PO's.

As Babcock said, being tough doesn't mean hitting guys or beating people up. Being tough to play against means making the other team bust their ass to get anything done because you're so good and tenacious.

 

[Pick]

One observation this preseason.
A rookie takes a run at Matthews, elbow up and then sticks a knee out, and nobody does anything.

They scored a bunch of goals in response.

Just watched Coaches Corner. Commenting on the hit that put Tavares on his ass, Don Cherry stated Leafs aren't tough enough for the playoffs and won't win the SC. I won't be as quick as Grapes to make a conclusion so early in the season but I agree Leafs aren't showing the toughness needed to advance far in the PO's.

As Babcock said, being tough doesn't mean hitting guys or beating people up. Being tough to play against means making the other team bust their ass to get anything done because you're so good and tenacious.

I agree with Babcock but it's harder to be 'good and tenacious' when your best players are fighting off thugs or worse, nursing injuries. Suzuki's run at Matthews, elbow aimed at the head and knee out, could have resulted in serious injury. I'm surprised the incident didn't get more attention in the media and on this board.