I am still hearing today Toronto media saying the Leafs were the best in their Division! Best at what?... Use the last ten years if needed for reference....
- justsaying

You are what you’re record says you are. Best regular season team in their division. Best playoff flops in their division too.

It's a team sport, Team effort, Theres already enough pressure on the top four or 5 Leaf forwards, This latest Leaf failure lands squarely on Shanahan, Dubas, And Keefe. If you want to continue to put more unnecessary pressure on Mathews you can bet he'll be signing with an American based team when he gets the chance.
- Shady1962

With big contracts comes more pressure - they understand this when they sign.
neither played like they had big contracts.
No chance leafs look to trade both - but will not be surprised if Marner is shopped.

"These were both brutal takes which proves you actually don't need to know anything about hockey to write for this site"

See: Tanner, James.

"These were both brutal takes which proves you actually don't need to know anything about hockey to write for this site"

See: Tanner, James.
- Levit8

LMAO I miss that guy, was always so entertained by how hard he tried to prove he knew absolutely nothing

These were both brutal takes which proves you actually don't need to know anything about hockey to write for this site lmao
- Prospy1493

Well Eklund owns the site and he doesn’t know anything about hockey either so what’s your point?

Just over half way to the Chicago Cubs 108 year break from Championships...

The last time Toronto won a playoff series their leading scorer was using wood stick!

But seriously it's crazy to see them bounced in the first round along with Edmonton. So much elite level talent... I'm jealous. I know it must feel like crap getting your bell rung every playoffs but it still seems like more fun then what's going on in Devilville.
- Queenie_5_hole

Your time will get there. You’re heading in the right direction. The Leafs are supposedly “there” in their window to win. If this continues happening which I don’t see why it wouldn’t they may have to do some sort of reset.

Trade Marner please
- Steven_Seagull

The Flyers will take him. Name your price.

And be reasonable.

Well Eklund owns the site and he doesn’t know anything about hockey either so what’s your point?
- TurdFergeson

His point is that you don't need to know anything about the sport in order to write about it on this blog. It's pretty clearly stated.

LMAO I miss that guy, was always so entertained by how hard he tried to prove he knew absolutely nothing
- Prospy1493

He is the Editor in Leaf, proving his ignorance about hockey, economics, human nature, statistics, and life in general on an almost daily basis.

This was just mentioned on the Sabres board.

TO would you....

Buffalo gives, Sam Rienhart and a pick/ prospect
To gives, Marner

What a crap blog!! Do you watch the Leafs? At times during the year they were outclassed during games…..too often! Sure they still won because they could turn it up for a few shifts and pot goals. No so in playoffs! What’s going to change with this group next year!? Nothing! Same core, same heart! So now we lose Hyman and we are suppose to believe these guys can make up for it?
Of course you don’t trade Marner for nothing! But to stand pat with this bunch hoping they will eventually have some heart and grit is nuts! It’s not going to happen. I don’t care if we lose but put up a fricken fight. Get involved! Did you see Galligers face…..looked like he got hit with sticks and pucks in three different places! Marner doesn’t have a mark on him! What an embarrassment.

Mathews has 3 more years in Toronto, could he re sign, yup, could he also want to end up in Arizona, LA or New York, yup, no one but him really knows, but if you suspect he may want to leave after 3 more years its more likely than not he is traded after 2.

why not at least look around and see what someone might offer? if LA offered;
Byfield (local bopy)
Kaliyev
Kempe
Grans
and their top 10 pick this year
might be interesting but i'm sure Leaf fans will want 3x as much back which is unrealistic.
- Ross77

Id replace Kaliyev with another prospect.

This package is a tough one too cause if Mathews doesn’t resign kings are getting screwed

The Flyers will take him. Name your price.

And be reasonable.
- DrMidnite

Look at the Flyers assets and the Leafs needs. It starts with offering Hart. Still interested?

Look at the Flyers assets and the Leafs needs. It starts with offering Hart. Still interested?
- Levit8

So they're a project goalie away?

First off, you're crazy.

Second is, the $ doesn't match so take JVR+Ghost+Hart????

Done.

Trade Marner please
- Steven_Seagull

I would take him on the Sharks, Maybe I will be able to stay awake to watch the games .

…it wasn’t just this series….the Leafs struggled against Vancouver and Ottawa this year as well. When you think of it, who in the North would this team have beat?

It's a team sport, Team effort, Theres already enough pressure on the top four or 5 Leaf forwards, This latest Leaf failure lands squarely on Shanahan, Dubas, And Keefe. If you want to continue to put more unnecessary pressure on Mathews you can bet he'll be signing with an American based team when he gets the chance.
- Shady1962

Okie dokie...

1/2 the cap to 4 players.
1/2 to the other 19.

So the 19 gotta carry the top 4.
Gotcha so good luck. Dubas is a genius.

He got grit? What a laugh that is. Old fossils yes & the darlings in the preseason. C’mon in Vancouver we all know how a useless bottom 6 sinks a team. PO’s or not that is on the GM & neither Dumbass nor JB has a clue.

Feel like I read the same thing every year about the leafs.

"Stay the course they dominated they got unlucky their xGF% was much better than the other team. They ran into a hot goailie"

How many years in a row can you use this excuse?

…it wasn’t just this series….the Leafs struggled against Vancouver and Ottawa this year as well. When you think of it, who in the North would this team have beat?
- Bullot

Lets say all North teams played at their highest level. None are contenders. I’d give the Jets the leg up on them all being they are better built for the playoffs.

Feel like I read the same thing every year about the leafs.

"Stay the course they dominated they got unlucky their xGF% was much better than the other team. They ran into a hot goailie"

How many years in a row can you use this excuse?
- FLAM3SFAN

Ask Shanny & Dubas who built this roster. It’s on them. Keep firing/hiring coaches isn’t the answer.

Who would have thought the Amazon prime documentary on the leafs was going to be a comedy

Also it’s easy to point to Thornton, simmonds and foligno (who I say gets a pass for his time injured) but at the same time Toronto’s depth won them 3 games of this series. Ironically it’s on Toronto’s stars for not providing secondary scoring for their depth pieces.

They can't compete with a salary structure that pays four players 40M. This is just fact. Top 3 contenders in the playoffs have far superior salary structures.

The new "meta" isn't to stack talent; it's the oldest meta alive. Millennials keep thinking they can drive by road blocks placed by previous generations, not recognizing why those road blocks were placed there, and have this fixation that they don't need to innovate existing theories of success, but reinvent the oldest ones and keep trying to do that over and over again. (More numbers = more success is a failure to identify the dozen extra variables that go into hockey as a sport)

The Avs look like #1 contenders right now. Know what the Avs, Bruins, and Lightning all have in common? They're not paying anyone much more than 9M. That's the meta. Then they took that cash they have that other teams overpaying their stars don't, and they're putting some good glue guys on the team.

This is the salary cap era. Let's take a very simple example: Matthews makes 11.6 a year, MacKinnon makes 6.3. Matthews now has to play 84% better than MacKinnon to give his team what MacKinnon gives the Avs. You know what the Avs paid for that spare salary? Brandon Saad.

Dubas FAILED to tame his paychecks to superstars and now the solution is to juggle depth to cover up this failure? No. He's got to admit his error and change that precious formula or he'll continue to get the old regular season success an playoff failure.

So ask yourself what will help this team win more? A Mitch Marner? Or 11 million dollars worth of roster players to support JT, Nylander, and Matthews?

JT and Matthews are fixtures. Odd man out? Marner. Time to move on. It was time to move on from this formula two years ago.

Also: if you're trading for a first liner, unlike Franchise mode... they don't slot right into your roster. There's a buffer period before they start to be effective. That buffer period is longest with first line players. Foligno would probably make a great line with Marner and Matthews but they need a full training camp.
- archromat

All excellent points! Very well stated!

Does JT still wear those cute pajamas?

"These were both brutal takes which proves you actually don't need to know anything about hockey to write for this site"

See: Tanner, James.
- Levit8

You forgot to insert a random music video that nobody will watch.