John Tavares is a Maple Leaf

[Phileas Fogg]

I also wonder if Babs plays him on the PK. When Doug Weight took over the Islanders coaching position the one big change he made was using Tavares on the kill and I think that John really appreciated being put in that role.

It's a good thought. Im guessing, barring injuries, the biggest challenge will be getting all this forward talent enough icetime. Matthews simply has to get at least 2 minutes added to his average TOI, Kadri is too good to just have 3rd line minutes consistently... if one of your stars in an effective Pker, I say go for it. Tavares and kapanen could be a frightening PK unit for the opposition.

 

[Deebo]

I remember around here (on the former penaltybox.com) in the playoffs when the Leafs played the Islanders.  The Isles fans that came to troll here were insane, just horrific people.  Then, later in the same playoffs, the Leafs played Carolina, and the Carolina fans that posted here were so nice and respectful.  It was such a huge contrast in behaviour.

It's straight-up embarrassing how Islanders fans are attacking Tavares for this. Just gross behavior from adults.

There are people like this in pretty much every fanbase, remember the abuse Gardiner took after game 7?

 

[Phileas Fogg]

I remember around here (on the former penaltybox.com) in the playoffs when the Leafs played the Islanders.  The Isles fans that came to troll here were insane, just horrific people.  Then, later in the same playoffs, the Leafs played Carolina, and the Carolina fans that posted here were so nice and respectful.  It was such a huge contrast in behaviour.

It's straight-up embarrassing how Islanders fans are attacking Tavares for this. Just gross behavior from adults.

There are people like this in pretty much every fanbase, remember the abuse Gardiner took after game 7?

There were a few, but they were the same people that never liked Gardiner beforehand. I think a surprising number of fans were far more conciliatory that I expected, and saw it as a one game nightmare hiccup. Personally, I saw the advantage post in that perhaps a great time to negotiate a team-friendly extension... but no dice it seems.

 

[dappleganger]

I also wonder if Babs plays him on the PK. When Doug Weight took over the Islanders coaching position the one big change he made was using Tavares on the kill and I think that John really appreciated being put in that role.

Matthews and Tavares on the second half of the PK. I approve of this. 

 

[dappleganger]

I also wonder if Babs plays him on the PK. When Doug Weight took over the Islanders coaching position the one big change he made was using Tavares on the kill and I think that John really appreciated being put in that role.

It's a good thought. Im guessing, barring injuries, the biggest challenge will be getting all this forward talent enough icetime. Matthews simply has to get at least 2 minutes added to his average TOI, Kadri is too good to just have 3rd line minutes consistently... if one of your stars in an effective Pker, I say go for it. Tavares and kapanen could be a frightening PK unit for the opposition.

All of Tavares, Matthews, Kadri, Marner would be effective penalty killers.

(Guys who previously haven't really been used in that role)

 

[herman]

I was thinking about that too. I wonder if Marleau gets some time in the crease as well on the PP - he's actually a pretty big body, decent hands of course. That said, he'd have to take some punishment, and as an older player, that may be a problem.

With the way the league is changing though the net front guy really doesn't take as much punishment as he would have 5-10-15 years ago. I mean when was the last time you remember seeing JVR getting pummeled there?

I think the big question for the PP will be does Babcock spread out the two units again or load up on one?

I see it currently like this:
PP1:
Tavares
Kapanen-Kadri-Marner
Rielly

PP2:
Leivo/Grundstrom
Matthews-Johnsson-Nylander
Gardiner

PK1:
Tavares-Hyman
Hainsey-Zaitsev

PK2:
Brown-Kapanen
Dermott-Rielly/Marincin

PK3:
Lindholm-Marleau

Tavares is not a traditional net front (screen and tip point shots). He?s more back door seam pass with the open stick. JvR player both screen and back door option and had no trouble with Marner attacking off the halfwall. A lefty umbrella D is mandatory if you?re running things through Marner. If Kapanen is getting the shaft playing 4th line RW again, they can afford to load him onto both special teams.

 

[Mack674]

I remember around here (on the former penaltybox.com) in the playoffs when the Leafs played the Islanders.  The Isles fans that came to troll here were insane, just horrific people.  Then, later in the same playoffs, the Leafs played Carolina, and the Carolina fans that posted here were so nice and respectful.  It was such a huge contrast in behaviour.

It's straight-up embarrassing how Islanders fans are attacking Tavares for this. Just gross behavior from adults.

I think we can thank Trumpism for the descent into incivility.

I think we can also thank Trump for making America much less attractive to raise a young family in.

Way to bring political propaganda into a discussion about hockey teams.

Because rude assholes just didnt exist, the world was a magical place of unicorns and rainbows, chocolate cakes and high fives until "Hitler" ruined everything - including hockey fans.

So tired of you types - I like sports and come here to get away from this shit but no - youve gotta bring it here to and whats worse, you havnt the slightest idea what you're talking about. Zero.

 

[Mack674]

I remember around here (on the former penaltybox.com) in the playoffs when the Leafs played the Islanders.  The Isles fans that came to troll here were insane, just horrific people.  Then, later in the same playoffs, the Leafs played Carolina, and the Carolina fans that posted here were so nice and respectful.  It was such a huge contrast in behaviour.

It's straight-up embarrassing how Islanders fans are attacking Tavares for this. Just gross behavior from adults.

There are people like this in pretty much every fanbase, remember the abuse Gardiner took after game 7?

There were a few, but they were the same people that never liked Gardiner beforehand. I think a surprising number of fans were far more conciliatory that I expected, and saw it as a one game nightmare hiccup. Personally, I saw the advantage post in that perhaps a great time to negotiate a team-friendly extension... but no dice it seems.

Those people exist everywhere and arent exclusive to any specific team or area. I would bet  the majority of troll posters are teenagers or unhinged basement-living at moms house losers anyway. Who cares what someone says if they get that upset about millionaires playing a game.

I was upset too, but I didnt and dont hate Gardiner for it lol its not like I could do better. Nobody likes to lose, oh well.

If somebody gets upset enough to act that way and burn jerseys (or a city, looking at you Vancouver) they need their priorities re-arranged in a major way.

I understand being disappointed but come on guys, this isnt war - he didnt commit treason. This is a business and thats how it works.

Its not like he signed a 15 year contract then 2 years in decided hes not going to play unless they trade him. That would piss me off.

He signed a contract, he finished it. The end.

 

[mr grieves]

I remember around here (on the former penaltybox.com) in the playoffs when the Leafs played the Islanders.  The Isles fans that came to troll here were insane, just horrific people.  Then, later in the same playoffs, the Leafs played Carolina, and the Carolina fans that posted here were so nice and respectful.  It was such a huge contrast in behaviour.

It's straight-up embarrassing how Islanders fans are attacking Tavares for this. Just gross behavior from adults.

I think we can thank Trumpism for the descent into incivility.

I think we can also thank Trump for making America much less attractive to raise a young family in.

And, of course, white enclaves in NYC's outer boroughs and burbs are pretty much ground zero for Trumpism.

 

[herman]

Way to bring political propaganda into a discussion about hockey teams.

Because rude assholes just didnt exist, the world was a magical place of unicorns and rainbows, chocolate cakes and high fives until "Hitler" ruined everything - including hockey fans.

So tired of you types - I like sports and come here to get away from this shit but no - youve gotta bring it here to and whats worse, you havnt the slightest idea what you're talking about. Zero.

I welcome all opinions, even in sports fora, as I believe people holistically integrate all their belief systems and experiences into whatever they participate in. To try to partition everything into compartments just to hide from the opinions that you don?t agree with only leads to further division and basically no new learning.

It sounds like you know about this stuff more than I do, so further dialogue is welcome. Enlighten and correct my assumptions as you see fit.

 

[herman]

He signed a contract, he finished it. The end.

Yeah this is all it should be seen as. But fans are going to be emotionally invested and react accordingly.

 

[Mack674]

He signed a contract, he finished it. The end.

Yeah this is all it should be seen as. But fans are going to be emotionally invested and react accordingly.

Fine, then react like an adult and not a 4 year old having meth withdrawals.

 

[Kin]

He signed a contract, he finished it. The end.

Yeah this is all it should be seen as. But fans are going to be emotionally invested and react accordingly.

Nah, I don't think we can just blame this on a natural result of fandom. I've seen guys leave the Raptors or Jays or Leafs and while I've been frustrated I haven't gone after them personally. Were there some fans who reacted like complete and total herbs to someone like Sundin? Sure, but they were jerks and deserved to be called out as such. It's the result of an insufficiency of reasonableness, not an excess of fandom.

 

[Bender]

I remember around here (on the former penaltybox.com) in the playoffs when the Leafs played the Islanders.  The Isles fans that came to troll here were insane, just horrific people.  Then, later in the same playoffs, the Leafs played Carolina, and the Carolina fans that posted here were so nice and respectful.  It was such a huge contrast in behaviour.

It's straight-up embarrassing how Islanders fans are attacking Tavares for this. Just gross behavior from adults.

I think we can thank Trumpism for the descent into incivility.

I think we can also thank Trump for making America much less attractive to raise a young family in.

Way to bring political propaganda into a discussion about hockey teams.

Because rude assholes just didnt exist, the world was a magical place of unicorns and rainbows, chocolate cakes and high fives until "Hitler" ruined everything - including hockey fans.

So tired of you types - I like sports and come here to get away from this shit but no - youve gotta bring it here to and whats worse, you havnt the slightest idea what you're talking about. Zero.

For someone who didn't want to pull any further into a political debate this post sure sounds like you're baiting an argument.

 

[Zee]

On the Island, not so much in the way of happiness:

It came like the slow ripping of a Band-Aid, and now the wound will bleed out all over Islanders fans for years to come.

Yeesh, that's a lede?

Uh, yeah ... from the NY Post.  : :

But actually, the reactions they quote run the gamut: bitter betrayal, trash the jersey, it's on management (that would be my take), he deserves to chase his dream, Barzal is already better than him  : : :, wow look at all the cap space, Lou and Trotz will right the ship.

I absolutely would be bitter if I were an Isles fan.  Can you imagine how we'll feel when Matthews walks someday so he can pursue his boyhood dream of lifting the Coyotes* to greatness?



* Problem is, the Coyotes will be defunct by that time

I almost wanted to gloat to Islanders fans that I saw posting on Twitter in the days leading up to July 1. I saw them posting things like:

"Stupid Leafs fans don't understand that John is just using Toronto to drive up the price, there's no way he'll leave, Lou will make him an offer he can't refuse"

And on and on ...

I can't though, it's good fortune that Tavares chose the Leafs but I fear if we gloat too much karma will bite us in the ass and maybe Matthews leaves to Arizona when it's his turn. I hope not, but I'll just enjoy this signing and not say a peep to Isles fans. It's not their fault the management was a joke for so long.

 

[Bender]

Why do people think Lou is a magician? I don't understand. If two companies came to me and one said you can work with the crusty 75y.o. who runs his teams like the military, is a bit out of touch with modernity, is kinda losing his marbles and may or may not be running a team in 3yrs and the other said they had a fresh exec rising through the ranks, who's won at every level and really wants you to be part of this move forward in hockey thinking I wouldn't at all hesitate with option #2.

Working under Lou does not sound like a lot of fun to me, from everything I've read/heard.

 

[Kin]

I can't though, it's good fortune that Tavares chose the Leafs but I fear if we gloat too much karma will bite us in the ass and maybe Matthews leaves to Arizona when it's his turn.

If Matthews decides that after 9 years here he's got a burning desire to play in Arizona than best of luck to him but I think it's important to not pretend that would be a mirror image of what happened here.

The Islanders, during most of Tavares' time there, were a mess of an organization. They lacked stable ownership and, really, a modern arena. They made some pretty terrible decisions on top of that like moving to Brooklyn, then deciding to unmove and split their time between Brooklyn and Nassau. To top all of that off it was their choice to sign Tavares to a well under-market 5 year extension.

So if Matthews gets offered, essentially, the same thing that Eichel or McDavid got and decides he only wants five years I think we'd have to prepare ourselves for the reality that he's thinking about his future and doesn't necessarily see playing for the Leafs for the entirety of his career as a certainty.

What happened with Tavares didn't just happen out of the blue and if Matthews makes a similar decision it won't just happen out of the blue either.

 

[Zee]

I can't though, it's good fortune that Tavares chose the Leafs but I fear if we gloat too much karma will bite us in the ass and maybe Matthews leaves to Arizona when it's his turn.

If Matthews decides that after 9 years here he's got a burning desire to play in Arizona than best of luck to him but I think it's important to draw not pretend that would be a mirror image of what happened here.

The Islanders, during most of Tavares' time there, were a mess of an organization. They lacked stable ownership and, really, a modern arena. They made some pretty terrible decisions on top of that like moving to Brooklyn, then deciding to unmove and split their time between Brooklyn and Nassau. To top all of that off it was their choice to sign Tavares to a well under-market 5 year extension.

So if Matthews gets offered, essentially, the same thing that Eichel or McDavid got and decides he only wants five years I think we'd have to prepare ourselves for the reality that he's thinking about his future and doesn't necessarily see playing for the Leafs for the entirety of his career as a certainty.

What happened with Tavares didn't just happen out of the blue and if Matthews makes a similar decision it won't just happen out of the blue either.

All good points. If the trajectory of the Leafs is top team / contender for the foreseeable future he'll most likely want to stay around. Would also help if Arizona isn't that great a team, if they suddenly start winning Cups he might want to be there. As long as the Leafs keep trending in the right direction it'll be a desirable spot for any player.

 

[Kin]

Why do people think Lou is a magician?

The short answer is that Hockey People fetishize cup-winning.

 

[Mack674]

I remember around here (on the former penaltybox.com) in the playoffs when the Leafs played the Islanders.  The Isles fans that came to troll here were insane, just horrific people.  Then, later in the same playoffs, the Leafs played Carolina, and the Carolina fans that posted here were so nice and respectful.  It was such a huge contrast in behaviour.

It's straight-up embarrassing how Islanders fans are attacking Tavares for this. Just gross behavior from adults.

I think we can thank Trumpism for the descent into incivility.

I think we can also thank Trump for making America much less attractive to raise a young family in.

Way to bring political propaganda into a discussion about hockey teams.

Because rude assholes just didnt exist, the world was a magical place of unicorns and rainbows, chocolate cakes and high fives until "Hitler" ruined everything - including hockey fans.

So tired of you types - I like sports and come here to get away from this shit but no - youve gotta bring it here to and whats worse, you havnt the slightest idea what you're talking about. Zero.

For someone who didn't want to pull any further into a political debate this post sure sounds like you're baiting an argument.

You're right - never call a spade a spade or hold anyone to account for sillyness. Better to ignore and pretend its not real.

For a supposed hockey fans board, you guys sure sound like youre more interested in getting into trump bashing rhetoric - in a thread about JOH  TAVARES.

But im the bad guy, for pointing our that it isnt remotely relevant or appropriate.

Sure thing.

Remember when Gretzky didnt get called for high sticking Dougie? Fucking Trump....