hobarth said:
This is a decent response but let me point out that I'm a Leaf fan and as such I couldn't give a flying fig about how well Kadri is/was doing so I don't have any sort of inner understanding of what's going on in Colorado.
It is absolutely reasonable and understandable that you don't understand the inner workings of what's going on in Colorado. What's somewhat less reasonable is when you form an argument that, boiled down, seems to be along the lines of "I don't know what they're doing in Colorado and also the Leafs should do what they're doing in Colorado."
Given the Avalanche just won the cup it's understandable to want that same level of success but absent a specific suggestion on what they did the Leafs could also do to achieve it, the argument you're putting forth is not really fact and/or evidence based.
hobarth said:
Some players are more receptive to different people for God knows what reason, some players simply need to move to different teams where their abilities have a chance of being recognized, examples Stephenson, Karlsson and Theodore on Vegas.
Yes. This is why whatever it was Colorado did to get a good season out of Kadri(if they really "did" anything) is probably not a one-size-fits all approach that could just as easily apply here.
Also Theodore seems like a weird example. He was 21 when he left Anaheim for Vegas and had played pretty well for Anaheim in his two short stints there. That seems less like an example of Anaheim being a bad fit for him as it does just the way a talented player develops with time. I don't think there's any reason to state with any sense of certainty he wouldn't have developed into just as good a player with the Ducks.
hobarth said:
I am obviously stating that TO's coaching hasn't/isn't reaching TO's players to the level required for them to thrive in the playoffs but it might not be necessary to replace the coach, probably a good idea, but spend $s on something that is missing, proper motivators, maybe?
Two problems here. One, I think most people would say we just saw the Leafs play pretty well in the Playoffs(certainly better against the Lightning than the team you think is the most talented in the NHL), specifically their top players. Absent believing it's impossible to play well in the playoffs but still lose a series, I don't think there is reason to believe that whatever the Leafs are doing isn't motivating their star players.
Secondly, again, absent a specific suggestion here I'm not sure this should be read as a meaningful criticism or suggestion. We've already agreed that not every player responds to "motivation" in the same way so there really can't be anything along the lines of someone we can objectively say would improve the Leafs motivation even if that were the problem. Again, like you said, he's been with the Avalanche a few years and had disappointing years there too and you don't even know if they did try new things with him or new "Motivators". So you're not even necessarily suggesting that the Avalanche even did something the Leafs could copy.
hobarth said:
Let's get back to Kadri, a 30 year old Kadri, 30 year olds don't usually pull career years out of well you know, they're usually in some state of decline, Kadri put together a statistical year where he had close to double the amount of points that could be expected from him in a normal year, that was stupendous. Mitch and Austin also had better years but at 23 and 24 they are expected to, a 30 year old Kadri is normally expected to hopefully maintain, not do anything close to what he did with his history. Kadri in his previous 2 contract years managed 39 and 45 points, I'd say that Kadri thrived this year for a reason beyond the fact that he needs to sign another contract.
Sure and in my response to you I suggested several reasons aside from his contract why his output might be stronger this year. Quality of teammates, the leaguewide bump in scoring, the general return to normalcy this year...whatever.
And while Kadri did have so-so years in his last two contract years, he is older now and, one hopes, more mature. He's got a family. He knows, realistically, this is his last year for a big UFA deal. That's a lot of motivation.
And he has been an inconsistent scorer in his career. He has had good offensive years before. I don't think anyone would have been shocked if you told them he would have had a 30 goal, 60+ point season this year. The gap between that and what he did is the one that needs to be explained and once you get into quality of teammates and bump in league-wide scoring and, yes, just him having a career year the discrepancy that you want to attribute to a mysterious motivational guru or technique probably isn't that huge.
hobarth said:
Teams are chemistry experiments but imagine if a team could somehow break thru the chemistry experimental phase and find something more decisive like money ball hinted at.
Feels like it's worth mentioning that Moneyball and it's origins are sort of famous for yielding good regular season results but disappointing playoff results. Despite that, the A's have never been "Let's go back to judging players by whether or not they're handsome because all these numbers aren't winning playoff series'"
hobarth said:
I watched a lot of the playoffs this year and I noticed how committed Colorado's top players were, that was a level I never felt was equaled by TO's top players.
And this is sort of my point about why it's important to make fact and/or evidence based arguments. Because, absent that, it just boils down to your particular interpretations of players commitment levels, judged through a TV screen.
That's certainly a fair thing for you to have an opinion on if you want. It's just not really a fertile ground for debate and discussion.
hobarth said:
I'd say based on pure talent Florida should've lifted the Cup this year and I think Florida is wise to replace their coach.
I feel like there's a lot I could say to this but primarily I feel like reducing Florida's coaching decision re: Brunette to "They didn't get enough out of their talent level in the playoffs" misses just about ten miles worth of relevant information with regards to Florida's situation this year. I mean, Brunette was never Florida's permanent head coach, for starters.
