Around the League 2017-2018 Edition
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Not a very good photoshop job.
Deckie007
Well-known member
looks better on twitter at 1/10 the resolution :lol
Fans are stupid. They tend to blame the best players for losing rather than blaming the shitty ones or management for not building a better team around the good players.
Obviously Koivu was never McDavid... but many fans blamed Koivu for years of losing. It never made sense to me to blame one of the very few guys on the team that actually did show up most nights.
MindzEye
Wayward Ditch Pig
Yeah...we just went through that with Kessel and Phaneuf. Kessel slumps and the team stops scoring...Kessel's fault for not being able to carry the franchise himself, amirite?
Could you imagine what Toronto would be like right now if Marner and Nylander didn't have Matthews to shield them from a pile of the expectations?
Could you imagine what Toronto would be like right now if Marner and Nylander didn't have Matthews to shield them from a pile of the expectations?
Aberdeen
Well-known member
Not to mention Sundin.
MindzEye
Wayward Ditch Pig
It's funny that even when you see the hyped up superstar win a cup, they're surrounded by stud talent. So why fans continually shit on their team's best players for not being good enough to win when they're doing it all by themselves is ****ed.
Crosby has had Malkin his entire career, and didn't win shit in a decade until they added a stud offensive winger and vezina calibre goalie to the core. In Chicago, for all the acclaim Toews garnered, I don't think he was ever the best player on that team. That title was alternated on a night by night basis between Kane and Keith, throw in Hossa is a very good but not quite elite goalie. Even Boston's cup had the best goalie in the world at the time, the best defender in the world at the time, and a top 5 centre (not to mention a pile of quality depth everywhere else). LA had a PPG beast of a 2 way centre, and a perennial Norris candidate surrounded again by a pile of quality depth.
But in Toronto Kessel is run out of town for not being good enough to win...Montreal seems to be in the process of doing that to MaxPac. You need more of those players to win (preferably better ones as well), not less of them. What you don't need are the Dave Bolland's, Andrew Shaw's, etc of the world.
worm
Well-known member
chia pet is bad
worm
Well-known member
half the "fans" can only name the top 5 or so players
leafman101
Well-known member
All Chia had to do was nothing:
Hall-McDavid-Draisatil
Perron-Barzal-Eberle
Puljujarvi-RNH-Yakupov
Klebloom-Petry
Nurse-Shultz
Hunt-Marincin
Hall-McDavid-Draisatil
Perron-Barzal-Eberle
Puljujarvi-RNH-Yakupov
Klebloom-Petry
Nurse-Shultz
Hunt-Marincin
CRL
Well-known member
leafman101
Well-known member
That team would have $23 million in cap space to find a 4th line and goalie.
Might have been a squeeze when McDavid's contract kicks in next year, but not if the cap goes up $5 mill as expected based on Bettman's revenue projections.
Might have been a squeeze when McDavid's contract kicks in next year, but not if the cap goes up $5 mill as expected based on Bettman's revenue projections.
MindzEye
Wayward Ditch Pig
I remember when we used to do this exercise with the Burke era Leafs
I don't miss that at all.
leafman101
Well-known member
Lucic + Strome + Sekera + Larsson + Russell + Talbot = $26 million, 12 goals, .900
Hall + Eberle + Perron + Yakupov + Schultz + Petry = $27.63 million, 29 goals
Hall + Eberle + Perron + Yakupov + Schultz + Petry = $27.63 million, 29 goals
MyNameIsJonas
Well-known member
IMO we live in a world where Jim Benning is the 3rd best Canadian GM, behind Lou and whoever is in Calgary
Cheveldayoff is a timid loser, and Dorion, Chiarelli, Bergavin are maybe bottom 3 in NHL
Cheveldayoff is a timid loser, and Dorion, Chiarelli, Bergavin are maybe bottom 3 in NHL
MindzEye
Wayward Ditch Pig
Chevy hasn't done **** all on the trade front...but it's hard to knock his draft record.
2011: If redrafted today Scheifele probably goes 2nd (maybe 3rd behind Gaudreau, and definitely behind Kucherov but that's about it). Also pulls decent 3rd liner Adam Lowry out of the 3rd round
2012: Trouba at the 9 is a strong pick. Only guy who has turned out better on the board at the time was Forsberg and it's hard to pass on a big RH defender with plus skating. Lots of guys who were in various mock's top 10 still on the board with Grigorenko being chief among them. Pulled potential stud starting goalie Hellebuyck out of the 5th round as well
2013: Morrisey at 13 was solid, with only Wennberg & Mantha being picked in that range that would arguably be better selections...but when you get a potential top 3 defender outside the top 10, it's hard to complain. Petan is looking a bit busty at the moment (considering he was a top 50 prospect of most lists recently) and Copp is only really a 3rd liner, but pulling those 2 and one of the better goalie prospects in the world (Comrie) is a good draft
2014: Ehlers at the 9 is a lovely grab...easily, easily could have passed on him and taken Ritchie or Perlini and very few would have criticized him. Rest of the draft looks meh, but when you step up at the 9 pick and get the best (or 2nd best...Pastrnak) player available, you did well.
2015: Connors was a screaming steal at 17. It would have been really easy to pass on the USHL kid and take the big, skilled Russian who had just lit up the Q or even Chabot (who would still be a good pick at the 17) but they rolled the dice and it's working out. Connor is legit. Roslovic is PPG+ as a 20 yr old in the AHL right now so while some good prospects were taken right after him (Larsson, Beauvillier, Juulsen), they did their job here and took someone with skill and legitimate upside
2016: No brainer here, yeah. Sometimes just doing the easy thing and not trying to be the smartest guy in the room deserves a pat on the back. I'm sure he received some interesting names in trade talk leading up to the draft. Taking a mountain of a defender with some puck skills at the 18 spot looks smart right now as well but way too early to tell.
So yeah...he's a bit spineless, but I think they had a plan to take their time, draft right, and develop their kids. If he had been a bit more aggressive about fixing the goaltending, they'd have been a bunch better. But then they also wouldn't have Laine now.
2011: If redrafted today Scheifele probably goes 2nd (maybe 3rd behind Gaudreau, and definitely behind Kucherov but that's about it). Also pulls decent 3rd liner Adam Lowry out of the 3rd round
2012: Trouba at the 9 is a strong pick. Only guy who has turned out better on the board at the time was Forsberg and it's hard to pass on a big RH defender with plus skating. Lots of guys who were in various mock's top 10 still on the board with Grigorenko being chief among them. Pulled potential stud starting goalie Hellebuyck out of the 5th round as well
2013: Morrisey at 13 was solid, with only Wennberg & Mantha being picked in that range that would arguably be better selections...but when you get a potential top 3 defender outside the top 10, it's hard to complain. Petan is looking a bit busty at the moment (considering he was a top 50 prospect of most lists recently) and Copp is only really a 3rd liner, but pulling those 2 and one of the better goalie prospects in the world (Comrie) is a good draft
2014: Ehlers at the 9 is a lovely grab...easily, easily could have passed on him and taken Ritchie or Perlini and very few would have criticized him. Rest of the draft looks meh, but when you step up at the 9 pick and get the best (or 2nd best...Pastrnak) player available, you did well.
2015: Connors was a screaming steal at 17. It would have been really easy to pass on the USHL kid and take the big, skilled Russian who had just lit up the Q or even Chabot (who would still be a good pick at the 17) but they rolled the dice and it's working out. Connor is legit. Roslovic is PPG+ as a 20 yr old in the AHL right now so while some good prospects were taken right after him (Larsson, Beauvillier, Juulsen), they did their job here and took someone with skill and legitimate upside
2016: No brainer here, yeah. Sometimes just doing the easy thing and not trying to be the smartest guy in the room deserves a pat on the back. I'm sure he received some interesting names in trade talk leading up to the draft. Taking a mountain of a defender with some puck skills at the 18 spot looks smart right now as well but way too early to tell.
So yeah...he's a bit spineless, but I think they had a plan to take their time, draft right, and develop their kids. If he had been a bit more aggressive about fixing the goaltending, they'd have been a bunch better. But then they also wouldn't have Laine now.
leafman101
Well-known member
Is it spineless, or is it the right way to build? Its certainly better than panicking and moving Scheifele, Trouba and Morrisey for nothing because they didn't become a contender in 3 years like Chia did.
With all the pressure, and some disappointing seasons, lots of people called for that. He didn't waste money on keeping Ladd. He hasn't signed any bad FA deals. He stuck to the plan. And now they are good because of it.
I think they've done a better job than Calgary. They certainly built a better team.
With all the pressure, and some disappointing seasons, lots of people called for that. He didn't waste money on keeping Ladd. He hasn't signed any bad FA deals. He stuck to the plan. And now they are good because of it.
I think they've done a better job than Calgary. They certainly built a better team.
MyNameIsJonas
Well-known member
Chevy has indeed drafted very well, but he's literally done nothing on the trade market and kept Paul Maurice all this time and extended him for some reason.
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