billsteeves.bsky.social
92 posts
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72 following
Discussion Master
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Tough call guy on youtube explains it that it is plausible that Ekblad needed a change. He was just out of view and was on for long time. Still greasy in my view but
www.youtube.com/watch?v=tI11...
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Very well summarized re offer sheets. The ones that sign them are usually disgruntled like Broberg/Holloway. Aho was lowballed by perennially cheap Carolina. Kotkaniemi was scratched in cup final and unhappy in Montreal. Players in good situations don't sign them. Knies is in a very good spot.
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Oilers are the oldest team in the league. The difference is their Ferrari's don't suffer tire blowouts in playoffs like Leafs. Also, leafs outscored Oilers this season so why not in playoffs?
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They added John Tavares. In 2020, they added Tyson Barrie and dressed a 3rd line of Robertson/Johnsson, Kerfoot, Kapanen with Spezza on 4th line. Offensive oriented. Failed spectacularly and was the worst team of era. Also, scoring costs money/cap space to which the flat cap offered little room.
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You can't double team on the power play. That is exclusively the domain and responsibility of the big boys which has failed in crucial moments for yrs. There is no even strength matchup that should be getting the better of 16/34/23. Leafs Dcore leads the playoffs in goals. Enough talk about help.
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Leafs also had alpha dogs in the crease (Joseph, Belfour). Far cry from the self-doubting vibes of Andersen, Campbell, Samsonov (like Lalime). Stolarz seems like he has that dog in him. Amazing the confidence a team can draw from that.
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Suzuki getting decked cleanly by Tavares, losing his stick in process, then taking an (uncalled) penalty by holding Carlo’s stick. You’re right, refs shouldn’t let that go.
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They are the 2012-2014 LA Kings with more talent. Tough style to play and built for playoffs .
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Dude, shut your mouth. And get your own house in order. You’ve got a failing republic on your hands led by cowards. You and your countrymen need to figure it out.
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Canada’s army will be 40 million if the yanks keep fucking around.
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Don’t get the demotion/promotion thing. They are trying to create 3 strong lines by putting 1 of their stars on each just like Pens did for back to back cups. Maybe it doesn’t work but they aren’t exactly lighting up as is.
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Not 2nd in goals but Kessel as a star on Pens provides a pretty good template for similarly built roster.
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In absense of true shutdown line, you need 3 threatening scoring lines in the playoffs. Letting Nylander run a 3rd line against easier matchups always made the most sense for me.
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Great pod. Nodded my head a lot. I see no path to victory against Florida playing 23/34/16 together. If they still insist on deploying 16/34 together as some kind of saw-off shutdown line then they can’t have Knies. Might as well just use Holmberg/Jarnkrok in that spot.
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Still think it’s at least on par with any fwd group they have had in past 5 yrs (where they didn’t win of course). Seems like they are forever 2 quality fwds short.
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And they are pretty much locked into this same team next year! Don’t get the handwringing about Marner. Like, go out in rd 1 or 2 and we are worried about rolling it back?
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There were 4 2C's moved yesterday (Nelson, Norris, Cozens, Mittlestadt). Not many plausible alternatives for Habs in right age range (Byfield, McTavish?). Prices paid reflect that demand far exceeds supply. Johnston would have been offer sheeted. Don't see many options even in summer.
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But they Carlo for 3 yrs and Laughton for at least 2 yrs. Looks like both retained. They aren't just for this year.
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With the caveat they could add someone with a 1st, Stankoven is nowhere near Rantanen or Necas right now. I don't see the argument. Hall is fine and whatever but Drury was a useful player for Carolina too.
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For a win now team? I don't think I would. Necas and Rantanen are both significantly better players than Stankoven. Necas was involved in talks for Pettersson when his value was high. Carolina seems to focus too much on value props and not enough on Cups. Likely drives coaches/players nuts.
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Definitely possible to be a Marchment type with wonky skating but no guarantee. Pretty low shot rate in AHL too. Complimentary 2nd liner has to be his max and that's reaching for me.
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Salary retention and picks back make this deal reasonable in my view. 2 yrs at 1.5m is solid when Dom has his market value at over 4m this yr. Is Grebenkin ever going to be better than Laughton? It's unlikely.
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Don’t think Donato is a real centre though. Rather save assets for C/RD.
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Oh it will get paid, but the 1sts they are giving up are 20-30's so no net value lost. You take your 12-15 yr contention run if your Tampa and then go back to the front of the line picking high draft picks. Cycle of life in NHL.
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Players on non-contenders often do. Tampa has already done this with McDonagh too.
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True, but when they age out they also have a bunch of elite players that they can flip when the time comes. They will be able to get 1sts for Point, Cirelli, Hagel etc. They will be the future Nelson's at deadline. They are doing it right in my opinion.
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America, this is such an embarrassment and insulting to Canadians. Playing with the lives of millions of people. This is irreparable damage and the U.S cannot be trusted again. You have let true evil win in your country. Do more to speak out.
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Great deal. Wow. Evans left some $ on table it seems.
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His salary is very reasonable for sure and good player. I also think he still sees himself as an alpha and to get the most out of him he needs his 18-19 min +PP which is tough to fit with JT and AM. I wouldn't cry if they got him but I'm skeptical he's even interested.
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Low key not a fan of ROR fit. He scores less than Schenn at 5v5 and his pace is concerning. JT and him up the middle is slow stuff. I think Leafs need more speed. ROR had poor play driving in playoffs with Leafs too. For me, Gourde is easily the happy medium fit and cost wise.
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O’Reilly hasn’t hit 2.0 5v5 pts/60 once in last 5 yrs. Schenn is currently ahead of Kadri, Hertl, W Karlsson, Zacha at 5v5 pts/60. Not bad players. Schenn produces fine at 5v5. O’Reilly far more dependent on PP and bigger minutes to produce.
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Would they be a player for Marner/Rantanen?
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He only played the first two games. He sat out the only one the U.S. lost. I thought he played great in win against Canada. I get he didn't score goals but neither did Eichel who he was better than overall.
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In fairness, you could see this coming from a mile away. It was set up to be whoever lost was the choke artist. It makes two groups feel good. 1. Leaf haters 2. Leaf fans who want the scapegoat for past playoff sins. Imagine if Jack Hughes or Adam Fox played for Leafs.
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I know, sorry, I was referring to original post.
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I mean, I don't know how the eye test didn't tell you that Matthews and B Tkachuk were dominant and he could have ended it 3 times in OT. Yes, he was on for a goal against the best player in the world.
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You win. Your feelings are a better judge of players.
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AM stirred the drink to the tune of 82% expected goals tonight. 2 assists, 57% on faceoffs and was the best centre on the ice. You can hate him but he does other things very well when not scoring. Fox lost his man more than AM in OT.
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Just stop. Save the bashing for after playoffs.
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Yep
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Harsh but true. He just has trouble with the faster pace it seems. No space for him. Just generally ineffective on offense.
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All good man✌️. Habs fans are used to evaluating bottom sixers so it's really an honest mistake. I just think it was nice for Montreal to get called up to the big leagues and get a chance to cheer for superstars like Marner. Will be great civic pride.
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People are talking about Jake Evans for a 2nd. 1st+ for Laughton. I don’t think they are comparable at all. I think in another environment Schenn thrives, especially in playoffs. Not saying I would give a huge package for him though. A 2nd is a no brainer.
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I find that a little extreme to be honest. He’s 100% worth a 2nd at 50% retained.
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He can watch Nylander pass him on all-time Leafs scoring list too. I think that type of thing matters greatly to his ‘camp’. He has chance to be Leafs all time leading scorer if he signs. Leafs need to hold firm.
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I feel cold watching that ❄️
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34 is a terrible PP player and always has been. They have not had set plays on power play since the Bozak, JVR, Kadri days. Just 3 guys who want to be the QB and have the puck in their hands. Improvising doesn’t work well in playoffs.
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This list includes some unimpressive names and G/60 stats always need to be taken with grain of salt. Still, Robertson outperforms Kaliyev handily in 5v5 G/60 as well. What are we replacing here?
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He's not gonna play on a 4th line so you can scratch that. He won't play 1st PP unit so you can scratch that too. He's not better than Knies/McMann/Pacioretty either. You would have to drop Robertson for him which is pointless to me. Robertson scores more at 5v5.
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Ya, I think he needs to go to a weaker team where he can see plenty of PP time and hope to round out rest of his game. He's a shot chucker who doesn't score at 5v5 (8 goals per 82 career). Not physical or defensive minded either. Not something a cup contender needs in bottom six in my opinion.