Gardner seems exactly the type to flourish under Babs, he has the tools, he's just dumb....
- aminnes

I thought the same thing. Babs is very detail-oriented and that's one of Gardiner's biggest flaws

Pffft. They'd never do that again. They'll sign Joel Ward instead.
- 1979AD

...

dont they need a representative.. or am i confusing that with allstar.... most likely confusing that with allstar.
- Lee Denault

yeah, that's the allstar game.

Since when does tanking = rebuilding?

You can still build a team and also develop a winning culture. All about drafting well, developing well, and having patience.

You don't need 10 straight lottery picks.
- TheThrill

Ask the Blackhawks and the Kings where they would be without Kane, Toews and Doughty. Or the Lightning without Stamkos and the Habs without Price, the Penguins without Crosby, Malkin, Fleury and Staal, the Capitals without Ovechkin and Backstrom. I'd say in a far different and worse off position.

hmmm... what? and more importantly, why?
- Pecafan Fan

Because they could give one of the biggest fanbases in the league something to be hopeful about at the expense of nothing.

I'm not saying it's going to happen, but this definitely increases the odds of attracting top UFAs like Stamkos, or Tavares in a few years.
- Feeling Glucky?

100%. although not going to happen..

....


just like Babcock signing here.

Kadri too. Babcock demands a lot of his centres so Kadri will either get better or get pushed overboard.
- The Law

Yeah.

Kadri's on the clock now.

And I couldn't be happier.

Ask the Blackhawks and the Kings where they would be without Kane, Toews and Doughty. Or the Lightning without Stamkos and the Habs without Price, the Penguins without Crosby, Malkin, Fleury and Staal, the Capitals without Ovechkin and Backstrom. I'd say in a far different and worse off position.
- JohnFergusonJr

where did price get picked.. 5th?


arent we drafting 4th this year?

with these players?

When you can prove to me that the Leafs can draft the likes of Lidstrom, Franzen, Datsyuk and Zetterberg and so on in the 7th round, then I'll be okay with it all but somehow I doubt they can do that right now.

I like Dubas and Hunter as much as the next guy but they haven't proven they can do that in the NHL yet and it's pretty foolish to assume they can right off the bat.
- JohnFergusonJr

That's the point, at this point in time nobody can prove a damn thing, especially as this years draft hasn't even happened yet.

Today is a win. We got the best coach in the game, and the long-term contract suggests that he has bought into Shanny's plan. FFS just be happy about that...

He has an out after year 5 by the way.

And the team hasn't started a rebuild until they trade Kessel, Phaneuf, Bernier, JVR, Bozak and the rest of the veterans on this team.
- JohnFergusonJr

You mean "might have an out clause" or do you know more than Friedman does?

No, not really. My point was that Team Canada was going to invite one Leaf to camp, and he was the best candidate.
- 1979AD

Sorry, no - this sets off the BS meter.

Hockey Canada doesn't bow to Leafs Nation.

That's simply not how it works.

I thought the same thing. Babs is very detail-oriented and that's one of Gardiner's biggest flaws
- TheThrill

Hopefully Babcock can connect the dots for him in a way that Randy clearly wasn't able to...

He has an out after year 5 by the way.

And the team hasn't started a rebuild until they trade Kessel, Phaneuf, Bernier, JVR, Bozak and the rest of the veterans on this team.
- JohnFergusonJr

Bernier and JVR are 26. Hardly veterans.


Leafs have started the rebuild, by completely rebuilding the off-ice component of the team.

Also known as the part that decides who gets signed/traded/drafted, and how they get developed.

This is a complete ground-up rebuild.

Ask the Blackhawks and the Kings where they would be without Kane, Toews and Doughty. Or the Lightning without Stamkos and the Habs without Price, the Penguins without Crosby, Malkin, Fleury and Staal, the Capitals without Ovechkin and Backstrom. I'd say in a far different and worse off position.
- JohnFergusonJr

And we currently have Rielly and Nylander, who have the potential to be top line, top pairing guys.

How many top 10 draft picks do you need?

Pffft. They'd never do that again. They'll sign Joel Ward instead.
- 1979AD

looks up his favorite player growing up...Adam Graves..ok you are safe, no Wardel Clark photophops to worry about

Woooo!

Agreed. I like Beleskey but he'll be overpaid by at least 1-1.5m for too many years.

Bring in a couple of solid supporting veterans to help the kids, but don't forget that we also have the youngest AHL team, and that theymanaged to get into the AHL playoffs... there are some solid pieces there who will be on the big team in a couple of years.
- lumlums

pre-order his jersey right now!

if UG has the same opinion as you... you dont even need to speak.
- Lee Denault

i missed the UG craze. saw HH in all his glory though

So if I'm reading your argument correctly:

Babcock is wired to win. It's in his DNA.

Because of Babcock, the Leafs are going to embark upon a plan that deep Hockeybuzz thinkers like you and me already know is doomed to failure.

If Babcock is so smart, why are you smarter than him? Why can't he see that keeping all of the vets is an inferior path to success than building from the bottom up?

So many questions. I may need to lie down.
- Atomic Wedgie

He's going to take his superior coaching skills and try to turn chicken turd into chicken salad because that's what he feels he's good at doing. It's either that or he allows Shanahan to get rid of them all and sabotage himself by having little to no talent to work with. In the end, the firesale is less likely to happen now and he has an out after year 5 so if things do go as he planned, he's a UFA again.

He has an out after year 5 by the way.

And the team hasn't started a rebuild until they trade Kessel, Phaneuf, Bernier, JVR, Bozak and the rest of the veterans on this team.
- JohnFergusonJr

why does everyone assume that those players will be traded for picks and prospects, i say the majority will be traded for young NHLers.
is that still not blowing it up?

Bernier and JVR are 26. Hardly veterans.
- Feeling Glucky?

In today's NHL?

At 26, you're a veteran.

looks up his favorite player growing up...Adam Graves..ok you are safe, no Wardel Clark photophops to worry about
- DDM-Coga

Wardel Clark!!

That's the point, at this point in time nobody can prove a damn thing, especially as this years draft hasn't even happened yet.

Today is a win. We got the best coach in the game, and the long-term contract suggests that he has bought into Shanny's plan. FFS just be happy about that...
- lumlums

According to Dubas, it takes about 5 years in order to properly judge a draft. This clown is freaking out because Babs might actually instill a winning culture into this club.

This is the best news to happen in Leafland in a long time

Yeah.

Kadri's on the clock now.

And I couldn't be happier.
- Atomic Wedgie

And truth be told - I like his chances. A few improvements to his game in the neutral zone and an opportunity at top line/PP minutes and I think we'll like the results.

And we currently have Rielly and Nylander, who have the potential to be top line, top pairing guys.

How many top 10 draft picks do you need?
- TheThrill

People need to realize that JFJ giving the Musky 5 no trades is the number 1 reason this team sucks (other issues as well of course), but imagine 4-5 maybe even 7-8 early picks added over the last 5 years to the roster... You don't have to have the number 1 overall to win, just need some good guys and actually develop them properly...