Permanent NHL Free For All Thread

[joelcairo]

In another hockey thread here someone posted that Detroit's "lousy higher draft picks" have not worked out. Unfortunately, that poster did not provide any examples to support his statement.

Therefore, I was curious and did some research. I decided to compare Detroit's draft history to Toronto's Here are the results:

Detroit, due to its consistently fine performances, has had virtually NO "top picks" in the time frame of 2000 to 2014. Let's compare Detroit's top two draft pick positions to Toronto's:

2000 - DET 29 and 38, TO 24 and 51
2001 - DET 62 and 121, TO 17 and 39
2002 - DET 58 and 63, TO 24 and 57
2003 - DET 64 and 132, TO 57 and 91
2004 - DET 97 and 128, TO 90 and 113
2005 - DET 19 and 42, TO 21 and 82
2006 - DET 41 and 47, TO 13 and 44
2007 - DET 27 and 88, TO 74 and 99
2008 - DET 30 and 91, TO 5 and 60
2009 - DET 32 and 60, TO 7 AND 50
2010 - DET 21 and 51, TO 43 and 62
2011 - DET 35 and 48, TO 22 and 25
2012 - DET 49 and 80, TO 5 and 35
2013 - DET 20 and 48, TO 21 and 82
2014 - DET 15 and 63, TO 8 and 68

Detroit has had a mere 7 picks from the top 30 since 2000. Of those 7, ZERO were in the top 10, and only 3 were in the top 20. Its HIGHEST pick was 15.

Compare to Toronto, which had 12 picks from the top 30, including FOUR from the top 10 and another 2 in the top 20. And this DESPITE the fact that Toronto also GAVE AWAY several high draft picks. For example in 2010 number TWO (!) Tyler Seguin, #32 (Jared Knight) and in 2011 number NINE (Dougie Hamilton) all in the Kessel trade.

Here are some of Detroit's brilliant draft picks and their point of selection:

Mrazek 141, Tatar 60, Nyquist 121 (!!!!), Abdelkader 42, Helm 132, Franzen 97, Howard 64, Quincey 132, Kronwall 29, Zetterberg 210 (!!!!!!!!!!), Datsyuk 171 (!!!!!!!!!!!), Holmstrom 257 (!!!).

And Toronto? Glad you asked:

Luke Schenn 5 (how'd that work out?), Jiri Tlusty 13 (Claude Giroux went 21st that year - could the Leafs have perhaps chosen better?), Kadri 7, Morgan Rielly 5. They DID get Tuukka Rask at 21...and that DID work out very well...for the BRUINS, that is, after the Leafs traded him for (drum roll please) Andrew Freakin' Raycroft!

 

[Doc Holliday]

In another hockey thread here someone posted that Detroit's "lousy higher draft picks" have not worked out. Unfortunately, that poster did not provide any examples to support his statement.

So, my little buddy.....how was your weekend? :lol:

 

[joelcairo]

So, my little buddy.....how was your weekend? :lol:

Great, as always - although obviously not as great as Franson's and Santorelli's! Thanks for asking:smile:

 

[anon_vlad]

Great, as always - although obviously not as great as Franson's and Santorelli's!

Sorry, JC, but for once I have to disagree with you. NHLers are paid a relative pittance for their work in the playoffs. TO appears the least often in the playoffs of any team. Their players therefore have the most time of any in the NHL to recuperate from the already long schedule. Unless they drop their golf bags on their feet, they don't get any new injuries while their colleagues play intensely in the playoffs for several more weeks. I believe that this can only extend Leaf players' careers and thefore increase their total earnings.

Also, they are under less pressure during the regular season due to the diminished expectations placed on members of the remedial (or less, politely, retarded) class. Seriously, in watching them play, one can't help be struck by how rarely they venture near the opponent's crease.

 

[Special K]

Ya know JoelCairo I'm really sick and tired of you backing up everything you mention with black & white facts!! How are the resident Loser Leaf Lovers or should I say Lover, since one has long since disappeared, supposed to compete with straight up, honest, detailed facts? You're completely unfair in your brilliance!! :nod:

 

[wolfie7]

LMAO. Poor Leafs fans... :deadhorse: :lol: :crazy: :wave:

 

[Doc Holliday]

LMAO. Poor Leafs fans... :deadhorse: :lol: :crazy: :wave:

Nah! Everything is going according to the master plan. Tank the season, give it your best shot at getting Connor McDavid, and then hire the best coach in the NHL to coach the team for the next few years. It's working!!! :lol:

 

[Sol Tee Nutz]

WTF................ Buffalo is making a game of it against my lowly Oilers. I do not want to see them tank on purpose but they are horrible enough to do the deed.
I would like to see Hall traded for a decent goalie if one is offered. Reason: Hall gets hurt too much. Trade deadline will be interesting.

 

[Doc Holliday]

WTF................ Buffalo is making a game of it against my lowly Oilers. I do not want to see them tank on purpose but they are horrible enough to do the deed.
I would like to see Hall traded for a decent goalie if one is offered. Reason: Hall gets hurt too much. Trade deadline will be interesting.

The Oilers are in a tough spot. They'll likely finish in the 2nd spot. Usually, that would mean getting the 2nd-best player available, in this year's case-----Jack Eichel.

But since the odds for the last-place team being reduced to 20%, this means that the remaining 13 non-playoff teams have an 80% chance of getting the #1 overall pick. But if the Sabres (who will likely finish last) get beat out for the #1 overall pick by one of the other teams in that other bracket, then it means that if the Oilers don't win the lottery, they'll be stuck picking 3rd since Buffalo would automatically get the #2 pick.

So if i'm the Oilers, i'm actually hoping that Buffalo wins the lottery. Or else, they risk getting only the #3 pick, which means that they might (and should) trade him.

I agree with you that Taylor Hall has been injury-prone so far in his young career, but it would take a lot from other teams to get him if the Oilers are wise. Okay, that might be a tall order! lol

 

[Sol Tee Nutz]

Rumor mill in Edmonton is that one of these three will be traded. Hall, Eberle or Hopkins....... Personally I would like it if Hall & Hopkins were traded for goaltending / defense. Eberle is the only one who publically stated that he wanted to stay in Edmonton.

 

[anon_vlad]

The Clairvoyance of the Leafs

Nah! Everything is going according to the master plan. Tank the season, give it your best shot at getting Connor McDavid, and then hire the best coach in the NHL to coach the team for the next few years. It's working!!! :lol:

While the rest of the NHL thinks in terms of a couple of years, the Leafs see a decade ahead. Firstly, truculence over talent for five years with Burke. Lose a new way with NoNutts (who extolls small players) for another couple. In the 7th year, tank to try to obtain a golly gee, wow 1/10 shot of landing McDavid (who was in elementary school when the 7 year plan started) - the very definition of perspicacity!

It amazes me that anyone can put a positive spin on the loss of Franson and Santorelli. They accepted almost nothing for them as they expect to lose them to free agency. Why, you ask? They have cap problems for years to come as they are stuck with a pylon, a bench-warmer and a bearded lady. Happily, Jokinen will fit in with the Leafs' culture as he is also used to golfing all Spring. (He has only appeared in the playoffs once in his very long in the tooth career.)

 

[G1GBallday]

Tank the season, give it your best shot at getting Connor McDavid

Come on Doc you know as well as I do that McDavid is from Ontario so it goes without saying that even if the Leafs win the lottery they'll pick the American Eichel instead of the Canadian. :eyebrows:

 

[wolfie7]

Nice article on Babs.

http://www.sportsnet.ca/hockey/nhl/mike-babcock-perfectionist/

Reading it will be the closest Leafs fans will ever get to landing him as a coach. Admire from afar. :wave:

 

[Doc Holliday]

Rumor mill in Edmonton is that one of these three will be traded. Hall, Eberle or Hopkins....... Personally I would like it if Hall & Hopkins were traded for goaltending / defense. Eberle is the only one who publically stated that he wanted to stay in Edmonton.

The Bruins have brought Malcolm Subban along on their western road trip. Word is that they may be dangling him to the Oilers, who really need goaltending for the future (and defence, of course). With Rask signed long-term, there really isn't room for Subban in the organization and he's potentially their biggest trade-bait if the Bruins are serious about a playoffs run.

If they do play him against the Oilers, look out!! This means that there is a chance either Yakupov or Eberle may be heading to Edmonton. My guess is that to get Eberle, the Bruins would likely have to include a first-round pick and/or a top prospect or younger player in the trade, along with Subban.

 

[Doc Holliday]

Nice article on Babs.

Reading it will be the closest Leafs fans will ever get to landing him as a coach. Admire from afar. :wave:

Babcock is extremely loyal to his fellow coaches. He knows that he holds the power to raise all of their salaries if he becomes a free agent and makes himself available to the highest bidder.

I was once told that he'd be seeking around $4 million and be the league's highest-paid coach, but recently my sources have told me that he's actually looking at getting $5 million per year on a long-term contract....with input in player movement.

He may very well stay with the Wings, but i'd be absolutely shocked if it happened. He may not go to Toronto, but there may be a few teams out there willing to pay him what he will ask or close to it.

I believe that the plan all along since July was for the Leafs to wait the year out in order to sign Babcock. They fired all of Carlyle's assistants and re-signed players he couldn't stand. I also firmly believe that they figured they'd have a poor season & wind up being contenders in the Connor McDavid lottery. When the team over-performed for the first couple of months or so, it looked like they'd squeeze into the playoffs. They were a playoff team when they decided to fire Carlyle. Again, THEY WERE IN A PLAYOFF POSITION WHEN THEY FIRED RANDY CARLYLE. Who would fire a coach in such a circumstance? Okay, Lou Lamoriello did it in New Jersey twice when he fired Robbie Ftorek and later Claude Julien near the end of the regular season.

But think about it: Do you fire a coach of Randy Carlyle's calibre and replace him with a Peter Horacek?? It doesn't make sense!

Let me tell you what will happen:

The Leafs will continue to lose. Why? The players are already demoralized and know they're on their way out of Toronto. This was guaranteed last week when management leaked to the press that Brendan Shanahan had received permission from the board to bust this team up & start over. Once their top-paid players and UFA's are dealt away, they'll get the cap space and draft picks they need in order to re-build the team. RFA's will be re-signed. And then, away with the current coaching staff & they'll hand over the keys to Mike Babcock. :thumb:

 

[Doc Holliday]

Come on Doc you know as well as I do that McDavid is from Ontario so it goes without saying that even if the Leafs win the lottery they'll pick the American Eichel instead of the Canadian. :eyebrows:

Leafs will not be in a position to even do this. If Buffalo doesn't get the first overall pick, it automatically gets the #2 pick, which will be Eichel. The best Toronto can do is to win the lottery and pick McDavid first overall. But winning the lottery will take a lot of work since other teams have the same idea in mind.

What i'd do if i were the Leafs (as long as Peter Horacek isn't too delusional about his future as Leafs coach) is to rest Bernier for the rest of the season and bring up one of the kids from the Marlies and have him share the job with Reimer.

There is a chance that many of the kids from the farm will be called up for the rest of the season, but that's not really a good idea since they'll be hungry to show what they have. Better keep the same bunch of disgruntled veterans who know that management wants the team to tank the rest of the season and just give a half-assed effort every game until now.

 

[smuler]

Okay, Lou Lamoriello did it in New Jersey twice when he fired Robbie Ftorek and later Claude Julien near the end of the regular season

I remember Phil Esposito doing it to Michel Bergeron

Best Regards

Smuler

 

[Doc Holliday]

Watching the Rangers/Islanders game. It should be a dandy!! Isles currently leading 3-1. Great rivalry! :thumb:

 

[smuler]

Watching the Rangers/Islanders game. It should be a dandy!! Isles currently leading 3-1. Great rivalry! :thumb:

3-3 doc :lol:

 

[Doc Holliday]

I remember Phil Esposito doing it to Michel Bergeron

Best Regards

Smuler

Yeah, he started this whole nonsense and got laughed out of the playoffs after the first round. Didn't it wind up costing Espo his job??

3-2 Rangers after Kreider's slapshot!!! Great game!!!

Wait, it's now 3-3!!!! McDonagh (former habs pick traded for Gomez) just scored right after the faceoff!!!