General Leafs Talk v2.0

[CarltonTheBear]

Paul Stastny as well. He would be a nice fit with Kessel/JVR.

Right, forgot about him. We might get to see that line at the Olympics too.

 

[bustaheims]

And while I know that we say this every single year, seeing Big Joe and Marleau as potential free agents this summer is pretty intriguing.

I don't know if Thornton has the wheels to keep up with Kessel and JvR. He'd be excellent if the Leafs got any sustained zone time, but, I'm not sure he's a fit for the way the Leafs play. Of course, when the new Leafs coach takes over . . .

 

[CarltonTheBear]

I don't know if Thornton has the wheels to keep up with Kessel and JvR. He'd be excellent if the Leafs got any sustained zone time, but, I'm not sure he's a fit for the way the Leafs play. Of course, when the new Leafs coach takes over . . .

That didn't really stop the team from throwing money at Clarkson or trading for Bolland though. Both were considered Carlyle-type players, and I think Thornton could be in that same category.

Besides, you're not going to find very many centres that can keep up with Kessel and JVR.

 

[Arn]

HBO will be filming their show for the Winter Classic games about now? (I Saw the HBO staff mentioned when watching a Detroit game the other night).

I hope they get access back stage to tell us why Carlyle keeps icing the lineups he does, in particular the 4th line...

 

[Britishbulldog]

It might be a good time to get Bolland signed to a cap friendly deal.

I'm really not sure how I feel about re-signing Bolland. Unless he's giving us a pretty big discount, but he'll probably look for about $4mil. We would essentially be committing to Bozak-Kadri-Bolland down the middle for the next few years. That's not great to say the least.

And while I know that we say this every single year, seeing Big Joe and Marleau as potential free agents this summer is pretty intriguing.

At capgeek.com I always re-sign Bolland for the 3rd line at $4.2 MIL.  When this season's playoffs end he will still be just 27 years old.  He is better than Bozak so anything less will be a steal.

McClement should not get a pay raise over the $1.5 MIL he is making now.  Hopefully for not more than 2 years.

I hope Nonis locks up Kulemin at $3.0 MIL for 5 years.

 

[drummond]

Smithson is a nice addition, especially on draws, after Washington game sits at 61.2%, which is pretty impressive. I have not seen any glaring mistakees in his game, sure his action is limited (mostly on draws), but he is doing exactelly what he was asked to do. Reliable guy, good to know he is in the system even after Bozak/Bolland return.

 

[Rebel_1812]

It might be a good time to get Bolland signed to a cap friendly deal.

I'm really not sure how I feel about re-signing Bolland. Unless he's giving us a pretty big discount, but he'll probably look for about $4mil. We would essentially be committing to Bozak-Kadri-Bolland down the middle for the next few years. That's not great to say the least.

And while I know that we say this every single year, seeing Big Joe and Marleau as potential free agents this summer is pretty intriguing.

At capgeek.com I always re-sign Bolland for the 3rd line at $4.2 MIL.  When this season's playoffs end he will still be just 27 years old.  He is better than Bozak so anything less will be a steal.

McClement should not get a pay raise over the $1.5 MIL he is making now.  Hopefully for not more than 2 years.

I hope Nonis locks up Kulemin at $3.0 MIL for 5 years.

re-sign bolland and trade bozak.  The main reason to sign bozak was because he was a good friend with kessel and played well with him.  Now that kessel is resigned, and we have a better center in the wings why not trade him.  Plus it might force kessel to grow up a bit when his roommate moves out.

 

[Chev-boyar-sky]

Not sure where to post this but this is something that bothers me a lot. Ahead of tonight's game against the Jackets:

http://www.thestar.com/sports/leafs/2013/11/24/maple_leafs_reimers_hot_hand_makes_carlyles_job_easier.html

"...Leafs coach Randy Carlyle rotates his goalies, based in large part on matchups, and Bernier has the better numbers and more familiarity with the Jackets."

So Reimer makes 49 saves the other night and single handedly (basically) earns the team 2 pts, and now he may have to take a seat because Bernier has better career numbers against the Jackets (who Reimer's never faced).

I don't get the "logic" of this type of thing.

First of all Bernier already faced the Jackets this year and the team lost 5-2, so it couldn't exactly have been a banner night. He's coming off a less than stellar performance against the Preds who, coincidentally, he'd had great career numbers against in the past. Reimer had a similar thing happen against Ottawa this year, where after great career numbers against the Sens he had a bad game. So seemingly past performance is no guarantee of future results.

The other part of this myth that I don't understand is the, shall we say, context of it.

Reimer has, for a large part of his career, played on subpar defensive squads (although some of the teams were just wholly subpar). Bernier was on pretty good L.A. squads that ended up winning the Cup. So not good contextual comparisons of pure stats.

Another part of the comparison would be players that change on other teams. Bernier's past numbers against the Jackets would have had him facing a very different team, so the numbers hardly have any meaning. Foligno may have been with the Sens, Nash with the Rangers and their goalie may have been terrible leading to more wins etc.

It would seem to me that the wisest thing to do would be to play the goalie that is playing the best at the time. The only reason I can think to "play the numbers" is so the coach can look like a smart guy in the event of a win, and has an easy excuse if the goalie doesn't live up to his past brilliance.

I fully expect Carlyle to make the stupid choice this evening (though I still hope for a win) and look good, because the Leafs are up against an AHL team. Reimer should get the start and would be just as likely to win.

 

[Kin]

Not sure where to post this but this is something that bothers me a lot. Ahead of tonight's game against the Jackets:

http://www.thestar.com/sports/leafs/2013/11/24/maple_leafs_reimers_hot_hand_makes_carlyles_job_easier.html

"...Leafs coach Randy Carlyle rotates his goalies, based in large part on matchups, and Bernier has the better numbers and more familiarity with the Jackets."

So Reimer makes 49 saves the other night and single handedly (basically) earns the team 2 pts, and now he may have to take a seat because Bernier has better career numbers against the Jackets (who Reimer's never faced).

I don't get the "logic" of this type of thing.

It sort of reads like you're confusing how the reporter is interpreting Carlyle's remarks for Carlyle's actual justifications. Carlyle is attributed to making the decision based, in part, on "matchups" and then the writer tries to connect that to previous stats. That's not attributed to Carlyle though.

While there may be no good basis for choosing a goalie based on trying to guess out how his style/strengths matchup against the opponent it's not as simplistic as weighing four games of experience on Bernier's side against zero on Reimer's as conclusive.

If I had to guess I'd probably go with the fact that a lot of what is going on with the goaltending duties is that Carlyle is choosing his goaltenders on no real basis outside of trying to keep both guys fresh and game-ready as the season wears on. I'd bet that Bernier was scheduled to start against Columbus regardless of what happened against Washington and that Carlyle isn't inclined to change things up. Now, if your stated preference is to ride a hot hand, that might not strike you as any better but there is a logic to it. If Bernier knows he's playing Columbus and not Washington he can devote his time preparing for that specific team. I don't know how much time they spend studying video but compartmentalizing starts and keeping to a schedule could certainly give each goalie a leg up in their assigned games.

 

[Chev-boyar-sky]

Not sure where to post this but this is something that bothers me a lot. Ahead of tonight's game against the Jackets:

http://www.thestar.com/sports/leafs/2013/11/24/maple_leafs_reimers_hot_hand_makes_carlyles_job_easier.html

"...Leafs coach Randy Carlyle rotates his goalies, based in large part on matchups, and Bernier has the better numbers and more familiarity with the Jackets."

So Reimer makes 49 saves the other night and single handedly (basically) earns the team 2 pts, and now he may have to take a seat because Bernier has better career numbers against the Jackets (who Reimer's never faced).

I don't get the "logic" of this type of thing.

It sort of reads like you're confusing how the reporter is interpreting Carlyle's remarks for Carlyle's actual justifications. Carlyle is attributed to making the decision based, in part, on "matchups" and then the writer tries to connect that to previous stats. That's not attributed to Carlyle though.

While there may be no good basis for choosing a goalie based on trying to guess out how his style/strengths matchup against the opponent it's not as simplistic as weighing four games of experience on Bernier's side against zero on Reimer's as conclusive.

If I had to guess I'd probably go with the fact that a lot of what is going on with the goaltending duties is that Carlyle is choosing his goaltenders on no real basis outside of trying to keep both guys fresh and game-ready as the season wears on. I'd bet that Bernier was scheduled to start against Columbus regardless of what happened against Washington and that Carlyle isn't inclined to change things up. Now, if your stated preference is to ride a hot hand, that might not strike you as any better but there is a logic to it. If Bernier knows he's playing Columbus and not Washington he can devote his time preparing for that specific team. I don't know how much time they spend studying video but compartmentalizing starts and keeping to a schedule could certainly give each goalie a leg up in their assigned games.

You're right on that first part. Read things differently the first time through.

My issue is with the fact that Reimer hasn't started 2 games in a row since Oct. 26/29. He deserved another start after the Boston and Buffalo games. He's been that good.

Maybe it's just my view of things but it appears to me anyway that Bernier was given the starts against the Sabres and Preds based on his performances against the Wild and Islanders.

Looks to me (and maybe I'm wrong) that Reimer isn't getting the same kind of rewards for his very good play.

At the end of the day they're both very good this year so it probably doesn't matter all that much. It just feels as if when Reimer has a bad game they'll use it as a reason to go to Bernier more often and not vice-versa. Bernier also has 3 more starts than Reimer this year so the split could use a little more equality.

 

[Coco-puffs]

Not sure where to post this but this is something that bothers me a lot. Ahead of tonight's game against the Jackets:

http://www.thestar.com/sports/leafs/2013/11/24/maple_leafs_reimers_hot_hand_makes_carlyles_job_easier.html

"...Leafs coach Randy Carlyle rotates his goalies, based in large part on matchups, and Bernier has the better numbers and more familiarity with the Jackets."

So Reimer makes 49 saves the other night and single handedly (basically) earns the team 2 pts, and now he may have to take a seat because Bernier has better career numbers against the Jackets (who Reimer's never faced).

I don't get the "logic" of this type of thing.

It sort of reads like you're confusing how the reporter is interpreting Carlyle's remarks for Carlyle's actual justifications. Carlyle is attributed to making the decision based, in part, on "matchups" and then the writer tries to connect that to previous stats. That's not attributed to Carlyle though.

While there may be no good basis for choosing a goalie based on trying to guess out how his style/strengths matchup against the opponent it's not as simplistic as weighing four games of experience on Bernier's side against zero on Reimer's as conclusive.

If I had to guess I'd probably go with the fact that a lot of what is going on with the goaltending duties is that Carlyle is choosing his goaltenders on no real basis outside of trying to keep both guys fresh and game-ready as the season wears on. I'd bet that Bernier was scheduled to start against Columbus regardless of what happened against Washington and that Carlyle isn't inclined to change things up. Now, if your stated preference is to ride a hot hand, that might not strike you as any better but there is a logic to it. If Bernier knows he's playing Columbus and not Washington he can devote his time preparing for that specific team. I don't know how much time they spend studying video but compartmentalizing starts and keeping to a schedule could certainly give each goalie a leg up in their assigned games.

You're right on that first part. Read things differently the first time through.

My issue is with the fact that Reimer hasn't started 2 games in a row since Oct. 26/29. He deserved another start after the Boston and Buffalo games. He's been that good.

Maybe it's just my view of things but it appears to me anyway that Bernier was given the starts against the Sabres and Preds based on his performances against the Wild and Islanders.

Looks to me (and maybe I'm wrong) that Reimer isn't getting the same kind of rewards for his very good play.

At the end of the day they're both very good this year so it probably doesn't matter all that much. It just feels as if when Reimer has a bad game they'll use it as a reason to go to Bernier more often and not vice-versa. Bernier also has 3 more starts than Reimer this year so the split could use a little more equality.

Well, you got your wish.  Reimer starts tonight!  He might actually get three games in a row, considering how well he has played against the Pens in his career.  That said, if they give up 50 shots again tonight, he'll need some rest!

 

[drummond]

I start leaning towards the idea of trading either Gardiner or Franson for real stay at home d-man, or trading both of them.

 

[Boston Leaf]

Any update on Lupuls groin?

 

[GhostofPotvin29]

Any update on Lupuls groin?

Nope, but he's not at practice.

 

[applecheeks]

Any update on Lupuls groin?

Nope, but he's not at practice.

...Lupal avoids bag skate. Nice one Lups.

 

[CarltonTheBear]

Lines from practice today:

JVR-Bozak-Kessel
Raymond-Kadri-Clarkson
McClement-Holland-Kulemin
McLaren-Smithson-Orr

Gunnarsson-Phaneuf
Gardiner-Rielly
Fraser-Franson

 

[GhostofPotvin29]

Lines from practice today:

JVR-Bozak-Kessel
Raymond-Kadri-Clarkson
McClement-Holland-Kulemin
McLaren-Smithson-Orr

Gunnarsson-Phaneuf
Gardiner-Rielly
Fraser-Franson

What on earth did Smith do to be taken out of the lineup, especially in the face of TWO enforcers on the 4th line?  He only contributed a couple of the few even strength goals the Leafs have got lately.

 

[Erndog]

Lines from practice today:

JVR-Bozak-Kessel
Raymond-Kadri-Clarkson
McClement-Holland-Kulemin
McLaren-Smithson-Orr

Gunnarsson-Phaneuf
Gardiner-Rielly
Fraser-Franson

What on earth did Smith do to be taken out of the lineup, especially in the face of TWO enforcers on the 4th line?  He only contributed a couple of the few even strength goals the Leafs have got lately.

I don't understand it either  ???

 

[CarltonTheBear]

What on earth did Smith do to be taken out of the lineup, especially in the face of TWO enforcers on the 4th line?  He only contributed a couple of the few even strength goals the Leafs have got lately.

To be honest, I'm not sure where I would have Smith in my line-up either. I prefer Holland over him so that takes up the top-3 centres. Maybe he could move to wing but I don't know how well he'd make that transition. But yeah, it is odd to have a guy with 5 points in his last 4 games in the pressbox considering our problems scoring.

 

[GhostofPotvin29]

What on earth did Smith do to be taken out of the lineup, especially in the face of TWO enforcers on the 4th line?  He only contributed a couple of the few even strength goals the Leafs have got lately.

To be honest, I'm not sure where I would have Smith in my line-up either. I prefer Holland over him so that takes up the top-3 centres. Maybe he could move to wing but I don't know how well he'd make that transition. But yeah, it is odd to have a guy with 5 points in his last 4 games in the pressbox considering our problems scoring.

I would imagine him or Smithson could at least play as passable a LW/RW as Orr/McLaren and still chip in more at both ends of the ice (moreso Smith than Smithson, but at least both could take a draw).