The Official LEAFS NATION Hockey thread
- Thread starter Doc Holliday
- Start date
All depends, really. had Reimer not had a concussion this year, likely we would of made the playoffs in the 6-8 position. He played great until Gionta hit him with a flying elbow to the head and he was never the same after. The main thing the Leafs need is a good not great, but a good consistent goalie and if we happen to get a great goalie, then all the better. If the Leafs had Carey Price in net all season, we are easily a playoff team this year. People are always gonna bash Burke and some of his moves, like free agent signings Komiserak and Beauchemin, BUT when he signed them, they were both playing great hockey for the habs and ducks, how was anyone to no they would stop playing good hockey??? Same for Armstrong, most loved that signing minus the extra $500,000 some thought was too much but to get the players you want in free agency, you gotta overpay, always!. Connolly was the best centre available last summer at the time and again, Burke grabbed the best available, what more do people want, he does whats best but sometimes things dont work out and you keep going. Burke is the hardest working GM in pro sports and his efforts will pay off if he is given the time of 2-3 more years under a complete tear down and rebuild. He has done far more good. (stocking the cupboards full down on the farm, and the trades he made were mostly steals or at worst even up)
Sometimes when your lucky and get a Crosby handed to you out of a hat, it does not take as long, then again drafting in the top 1-3 every year doesnt always mean a rebuild will be quick, look no further than the Oilers.
Sometimes when your lucky and get a Crosby handed to you out of a hat, it does not take as long, then again drafting in the top 1-3 every year doesnt always mean a rebuild will be quick, look no further than the Oilers.
I'm actually glad Burke signed Beauchemin. If it wasn't for Beauchemin, the Leafs wouldn't have Jake Gardiner & Joffrey Lupul.
Yea but that was not the point, the point made was just because a player is doing well for a team one season especially when he will be a free agent after that season, does not mean when coming to a new team he will have the same success. Of course we are glad "NOW" we got Beauch because he landed 2 core players. To further my point, look what happened to Erik Cole when he left Carolina the first time and went to Edmonton, he was a shell of himself for the Oil, but this time around, when he left the second time to go to the habs, he was great for them. Also, look at Ville Leino last year with the Preds to this season with the Sabres,and there are many many more examples of this over the years. Ya just never know, thus it was not Burkes fault, he signed all three players i mentioned when they had just had good seasons, and many were happy that warm summer day when he made those deals, and the haters were jealous, especially many habs fans who wanted both Komi to stay and Beauch to sign with them. Why do you think they boo Komi still? If he sucked with the habs and decided to sign with the Leafs they would not boo him, but he was very good when he left the habs, thus, the boos STILL, which is kinda funny seeing how he has declined.
I dont think the defense is as bad as people think, Yes we need a true #1 goalie and a true #1 centre, but the D is not the main problem. How would you feel playing D in front of goalies who let in an average on MOST nights 1-2 softies per game? It would take the wind out of your sails just like it does our D-men. With a true #1 goalie everyone will play with more confidence and not like they are walking on egg shells all the time. Burke took a gamble with Reimer and it did not pay off, BUT he also did not expect him to get concussed either. After that I was hoping he would of signed a veteran to help Jonas G but as much as we as fans like to play armchair GM, in the end, they are paid the big money and we are not, to run the team.My faith in Burke is still strong, he hates to lose and he now has to sorta re-tool the team to fit Carlyles mold, and I am sure he will do everything he can to do that this summer, but Rome was not built in a day, right? With that said, a bonafide #1 goalie will easily give us 5 more wins next season, so there is light at the end of the tunnel if we can get that guy. Offer Price 10 years 75-80 million and watch montreal crumble 2 more spots to the basement of the NHL. See, there is always a silver lining. :thumb:
I dont think the defense is as bad as people think, Yes we need a true #1 goalie and a true #1 centre, but the D is not the main problem. How would you feel playing D in front of goalies who let in an average on MOST nights 1-2 softies per game? It would take the wind out of your sails just like it does our D-men. With a true #1 goalie everyone will play with more confidence and not like they are walking on egg shells all the time. Burke took a gamble with Reimer and it did not pay off, BUT he also did not expect him to get concussed either. After that I was hoping he would of signed a veteran to help Jonas G but as much as we as fans like to play armchair GM, in the end, they are paid the big money and we are not, to run the team.My faith in Burke is still strong, he hates to lose and he now has to sorta re-tool the team to fit Carlyles mold, and I am sure he will do everything he can to do that this summer, but Rome was not built in a day, right? With that said, a bonafide #1 goalie will easily give us 5 more wins next season, so there is light at the end of the tunnel if we can get that guy. Offer Price 10 years 75-80 million and watch montreal crumble 2 more spots to the basement of the NHL. See, there is always a silver lining. :thumb:
Marlies sweep Americans in 3 straight. D'Amigo,Kadri,Scrivens lead the way
ROCHESTER, N.Y.—As a marked man throughout their playoff series, Nazem Kadri really wanted to stick it to the Rochester Americans.
He had already gotten under the Amerks’ skin with his agitating style on the ice. So what better way for him to really drive them crazy than to silence the crowd with a dazzling goal, especially one that clinches a playoff series.
With Toronto leading 2-0, Kadri came out of the penalty box and made a Kadriesque type move to seal the Marlies’ win at 4:46 of the third period Monday night, wrapping up a sweep of their best-of-five AHL series before 7,118 at Blue Cross Arena.
“I was getting heckled pretty good in the penalty box. I kind of told myself that it would be nice to get out of the box and score a goal,” Kadri said. “The first wish of every single player who takes a penalty is to get a goal on a breakaway out of the box.”
On the goal, Kadri took a pass from Jerry D’Amigo over the blue line. Skating behind the Rochester defence, he drove to the net and deked Americans goalie Dave Leggio, going first to his backhand and then drawing the puck to his forehand before flipping the puck up and over the netminder.
“It was definitely a great feeling for the puck to get into the back of the net,” said Kadri, who chipped a tooth when he was cross-checked in the face during the second period, an incident that “really fired him up,” according to Toronto coach Dallas Eakins.
“Kadri was really upset about that,” Eakins said. “Our veterans on the bench (talked to him) and I had a little talk with him too so he could catch his breath.”
“Championship teams are the most disciplined teams,” Kadri said. “Even if it means taking a slash to the face or a punch to the head to capitalize on a power play, it’s something you have to do.
“I don’t think I was the only marked man out there. All the boys did an exceptional job of taking a beating and making them pay on the scoreboard.”
Kadri dished out hits and was knocked off his skates throughout this series and drew several penalties.
“He’s a guy who is always on the edge,” Eakins said. “He’s not just a skilled player. He’s willing to throw his weight around and that really irritates the opposing team.”
As for Kadri’s goal, Eakins was pretty much speechless.
“On that goal, his hands in close and what he did with the stick and the puck, you cannot teach that,” he said.
The victory puts the Marlies into the second round, likely against the Abbottsford Heat.
In earning the shutout, Toronto goalie Ben Scrivens stopped 29 shots, displaying cat-like reflexes and a quick glove hand in what was easily his best game of the series.
“I think I made better saves (in the other games) but this was my most complete game,” Scrivens said.
Philippe Dupuis scored what proved to be the winner at 3:59 of the first period while D’Amigo fired his fifth of the playoffs just 1:36 into the second.
This was Kadri’s official first goal of the series although a team video clearly showed he actually scored in Game 2 at the Ricoh Centre even though the officials ruled the puck never crossed the goal line.
The Marlies won 10 of 13 games against the Americans this season, including the three playoff games but this was the first one that wasn’t decided by a single goal. Leggio made his 26th consecutive start for the Amerks.
ROCHESTER, N.Y.—As a marked man throughout their playoff series, Nazem Kadri really wanted to stick it to the Rochester Americans.
He had already gotten under the Amerks’ skin with his agitating style on the ice. So what better way for him to really drive them crazy than to silence the crowd with a dazzling goal, especially one that clinches a playoff series.
With Toronto leading 2-0, Kadri came out of the penalty box and made a Kadriesque type move to seal the Marlies’ win at 4:46 of the third period Monday night, wrapping up a sweep of their best-of-five AHL series before 7,118 at Blue Cross Arena.
“I was getting heckled pretty good in the penalty box. I kind of told myself that it would be nice to get out of the box and score a goal,” Kadri said. “The first wish of every single player who takes a penalty is to get a goal on a breakaway out of the box.”
On the goal, Kadri took a pass from Jerry D’Amigo over the blue line. Skating behind the Rochester defence, he drove to the net and deked Americans goalie Dave Leggio, going first to his backhand and then drawing the puck to his forehand before flipping the puck up and over the netminder.
“It was definitely a great feeling for the puck to get into the back of the net,” said Kadri, who chipped a tooth when he was cross-checked in the face during the second period, an incident that “really fired him up,” according to Toronto coach Dallas Eakins.
“Kadri was really upset about that,” Eakins said. “Our veterans on the bench (talked to him) and I had a little talk with him too so he could catch his breath.”
“Championship teams are the most disciplined teams,” Kadri said. “Even if it means taking a slash to the face or a punch to the head to capitalize on a power play, it’s something you have to do.
“I don’t think I was the only marked man out there. All the boys did an exceptional job of taking a beating and making them pay on the scoreboard.”
Kadri dished out hits and was knocked off his skates throughout this series and drew several penalties.
“He’s a guy who is always on the edge,” Eakins said. “He’s not just a skilled player. He’s willing to throw his weight around and that really irritates the opposing team.”
As for Kadri’s goal, Eakins was pretty much speechless.
“On that goal, his hands in close and what he did with the stick and the puck, you cannot teach that,” he said.
The victory puts the Marlies into the second round, likely against the Abbottsford Heat.
In earning the shutout, Toronto goalie Ben Scrivens stopped 29 shots, displaying cat-like reflexes and a quick glove hand in what was easily his best game of the series.
“I think I made better saves (in the other games) but this was my most complete game,” Scrivens said.
Philippe Dupuis scored what proved to be the winner at 3:59 of the first period while D’Amigo fired his fifth of the playoffs just 1:36 into the second.
This was Kadri’s official first goal of the series although a team video clearly showed he actually scored in Game 2 at the Ricoh Centre even though the officials ruled the puck never crossed the goal line.
The Marlies won 10 of 13 games against the Americans this season, including the three playoff games but this was the first one that wasn’t decided by a single goal. Leggio made his 26th consecutive start for the Amerks.
Roberto Luongo, A Future Maple Leaf?
TORONTO - Brian Burke faces an enormous decision between now and the June draft: Is he willing to cast aside his personal, professional and philosophical convictions in favour of taking a run at the suddenly available Roberto Luongo?
That is the real question for the chief decision-maker of the Maple Leafs as the summer of change gets closer.
It became more of a question Tuesday when Luongo basically announced he is willing to waive his no-movement clause and understands it’s in the best interest of the Vancouver Canucks to probably trade him elsewhere for next season.
This is the problem with Burke’s high and mighty ways. He has not been shy in stating he believes many of the long-term contracts in the National Hockey League circumvent the current salary cap structure and he has been adamant in the past that he wouldn’t make the kind of offer the New York Rangers made to Brad Richards, which is not in violation of league rules, only in violation of Burke’s personal set of determinations.
The year before, Burke testified on behalf of the NHL against the New Jersey Devils’ signing of Ilya Kovalchuk. But what now, with Luongo available?
Would Burke be willing to trade for a contract he would not have agreed to himself?
There are 10 years left on the Luongo deal. The problem isn’t the salary cap hit. That comes in at a reasonable $5.33 million a year. What Burke historically has a problem with is the way in which the salary is structured throughout the deal.
Luongo would be paid $6.7 million the next six years.
Then $3.38 million in the seventh year; $1.6 million in the eighth year; and then $1 million in the ninth and 10th years. Luongo would be 43 years old at the conclusion of the contract — should he play to the end of it.
Now, here is what makes the Luongo to Toronto proposition interesting. While on the surface it would be a no-go, just based on Burke’s history, consider that David Nonis is Burke’s right-hand man and confidant. The same Nonis who spent a year trying to get Luongo from Florida when he ran the Vancouver Canucks. Finally, he succeeded and the state of the Canucks changed significantly from that day on.
Before making the Luongo trade, Nonis happened to be speaking with Devils’ general manager Lou Lamoriello. He asked Lamoriello what it was like to have Martin Brodeur in goal almost every night. Lamoriello answered rather succinctly: “I can sleep at night.”
The deal was made a few days later.
Now, expect there to be much conversation in the Leafs front office over the next few months about Luongo, with management being split on whether to take a run at him or whether it’s worth it for the Leafs, in this case Burke, to pass up a possible opportunity in exchange for his own agenda, his own ideals.
It’s noble that Burke has his opinions. But it becomes something more than that when his ideals interfere with his ability to do his primary work, which is making the Leafs better.
If the Stanley Cup playoffs have proven anything in the first weeks, it has been the value of goaltending. The Red Wings outplayed and outshot the Predators and lost. The Blackhawks were outshooting — 28-8 at one time — and outplaying Phoenix Monday night, but the score was 0-0 and the Coyotes eventually took advantage of average Chicago goaltending to win.
The goalies in the second round of the Cup playoffs in the West are Jonathan Quick, Brian Elliott, Pekke Rinne and Mike Smith, all of whom have been spectacular in the season and the post-season.
Pittsburgh lost because Marc-Andre Fleury couldn’t stop anything. Ottawa is going to a seventh game with the New York Rangers, thanks in some part to Craig Anderson. Just about the only reason the Stanley Cup champions have had difficulty in the first round is trying to figure out Washington goalie Braden Holtby.
The Leafs have James Reimer and a pending free agent in Jonas Gustavsson. When July 1 hit a year ago, they paid no attention to Smith signing in Phoenix or the phone call they got from Tomas Vokoun asking for employment and stayed the course in goal. The course didn’t work.
Now they need a goalie. They need one badly. Tim Thomas, at 38, may be available. The free-agent list, other than Martin Brodeur, is spotty, the best choices being Josh Harding in Minnesota, Vokoun or Winnipeg’s Chris Mason. Luongo can still play. He wasn’t the reason the Canucks lost in the opening round. But they can’t keep him and Cory Schneider anymore.
The price for Luongo won’t necessarily be high. Not a lot of teams will want to pay that much, deal with that term or, in fact, have that need. There won’t be many suitors. And the Leafs, needy in goal, should be one of them.
It’s no time for Burke to value principle over winning. It’s time to get this deal done and move on with this five-year-plan that he doesn’t have time for.
TORONTO - Brian Burke faces an enormous decision between now and the June draft: Is he willing to cast aside his personal, professional and philosophical convictions in favour of taking a run at the suddenly available Roberto Luongo?
That is the real question for the chief decision-maker of the Maple Leafs as the summer of change gets closer.
It became more of a question Tuesday when Luongo basically announced he is willing to waive his no-movement clause and understands it’s in the best interest of the Vancouver Canucks to probably trade him elsewhere for next season.
This is the problem with Burke’s high and mighty ways. He has not been shy in stating he believes many of the long-term contracts in the National Hockey League circumvent the current salary cap structure and he has been adamant in the past that he wouldn’t make the kind of offer the New York Rangers made to Brad Richards, which is not in violation of league rules, only in violation of Burke’s personal set of determinations.
The year before, Burke testified on behalf of the NHL against the New Jersey Devils’ signing of Ilya Kovalchuk. But what now, with Luongo available?
Would Burke be willing to trade for a contract he would not have agreed to himself?
There are 10 years left on the Luongo deal. The problem isn’t the salary cap hit. That comes in at a reasonable $5.33 million a year. What Burke historically has a problem with is the way in which the salary is structured throughout the deal.
Luongo would be paid $6.7 million the next six years.
Then $3.38 million in the seventh year; $1.6 million in the eighth year; and then $1 million in the ninth and 10th years. Luongo would be 43 years old at the conclusion of the contract — should he play to the end of it.
Now, here is what makes the Luongo to Toronto proposition interesting. While on the surface it would be a no-go, just based on Burke’s history, consider that David Nonis is Burke’s right-hand man and confidant. The same Nonis who spent a year trying to get Luongo from Florida when he ran the Vancouver Canucks. Finally, he succeeded and the state of the Canucks changed significantly from that day on.
Before making the Luongo trade, Nonis happened to be speaking with Devils’ general manager Lou Lamoriello. He asked Lamoriello what it was like to have Martin Brodeur in goal almost every night. Lamoriello answered rather succinctly: “I can sleep at night.”
The deal was made a few days later.
Now, expect there to be much conversation in the Leafs front office over the next few months about Luongo, with management being split on whether to take a run at him or whether it’s worth it for the Leafs, in this case Burke, to pass up a possible opportunity in exchange for his own agenda, his own ideals.
It’s noble that Burke has his opinions. But it becomes something more than that when his ideals interfere with his ability to do his primary work, which is making the Leafs better.
If the Stanley Cup playoffs have proven anything in the first weeks, it has been the value of goaltending. The Red Wings outplayed and outshot the Predators and lost. The Blackhawks were outshooting — 28-8 at one time — and outplaying Phoenix Monday night, but the score was 0-0 and the Coyotes eventually took advantage of average Chicago goaltending to win.
The goalies in the second round of the Cup playoffs in the West are Jonathan Quick, Brian Elliott, Pekke Rinne and Mike Smith, all of whom have been spectacular in the season and the post-season.
Pittsburgh lost because Marc-Andre Fleury couldn’t stop anything. Ottawa is going to a seventh game with the New York Rangers, thanks in some part to Craig Anderson. Just about the only reason the Stanley Cup champions have had difficulty in the first round is trying to figure out Washington goalie Braden Holtby.
The Leafs have James Reimer and a pending free agent in Jonas Gustavsson. When July 1 hit a year ago, they paid no attention to Smith signing in Phoenix or the phone call they got from Tomas Vokoun asking for employment and stayed the course in goal. The course didn’t work.
Now they need a goalie. They need one badly. Tim Thomas, at 38, may be available. The free-agent list, other than Martin Brodeur, is spotty, the best choices being Josh Harding in Minnesota, Vokoun or Winnipeg’s Chris Mason. Luongo can still play. He wasn’t the reason the Canucks lost in the opening round. But they can’t keep him and Cory Schneider anymore.
The price for Luongo won’t necessarily be high. Not a lot of teams will want to pay that much, deal with that term or, in fact, have that need. There won’t be many suitors. And the Leafs, needy in goal, should be one of them.
It’s no time for Burke to value principle over winning. It’s time to get this deal done and move on with this five-year-plan that he doesn’t have time for.
Lupul named finalist for the Masterson
TORONTO - Joffrey Lupul's career year, one of the few highlights for the Maple Leafs, could see him become one of the few Toronto players in recent seasons to win a major NHL award.
Lupul has been named a finalist for the Bill Masterton Trophy for "perseverance, sportsmanship and dedication to hockey."
The other contenders are from Canadian teams in the Northeast Division, Ottawa's Daniel Alfredsson for his veteran role in steadying the young Senators and Max Pacioretty of the Canadiens, who came back from last year's horrific collision with a post near the Habs bench to have a strong 2011-12 campaign.
But neither endured Lupul's experience, starting with a back-spine injury while playing in Anaheim a couple of years ago. Complications and infection worsened the situation and there were fears he would not walk again.
"That's an eye-opening experience to put it mildly," Lupul told the Toronto Sun's Mike Zeisberger in March when first nominated for the Masterton by the Toronto chapter of the Professional Hockey Writers Association.
"You don't know if you'll ever play again, even be able to lead a normal life again."
Lupul lost around 30 pounds and a chunk of playing tIme.
But after being traded to the Leafs late in 2010-11, Lupul not only showed his body could take the strain, he seized a first-line left wing role and held it.
This season, he didn't go more than one game without a point from opening night until early January. Playing through various injuries until separating his shoulder he remained in the top 10 of NHL scoring with 67 points in 66 games. He played a mentor role with the team and helped Phil Kessel and Tyler Bozak to huge years.
The Masterton was the last major award won by a Leaf, with Jason Blake dealing with a leukemia scare in 2007-08. Alexander Mogilny won the Lady Byng in 2003. Before that, Doug Gilmour won the Frank Selke for top defensive forward and Pat Burns the Jack Adams for coach of the year, both in 1992-93.
All award winners will be announced in June during the televised show from Las Vegas.
TORONTO - Joffrey Lupul's career year, one of the few highlights for the Maple Leafs, could see him become one of the few Toronto players in recent seasons to win a major NHL award.
Lupul has been named a finalist for the Bill Masterton Trophy for "perseverance, sportsmanship and dedication to hockey."
The other contenders are from Canadian teams in the Northeast Division, Ottawa's Daniel Alfredsson for his veteran role in steadying the young Senators and Max Pacioretty of the Canadiens, who came back from last year's horrific collision with a post near the Habs bench to have a strong 2011-12 campaign.
But neither endured Lupul's experience, starting with a back-spine injury while playing in Anaheim a couple of years ago. Complications and infection worsened the situation and there were fears he would not walk again.
"That's an eye-opening experience to put it mildly," Lupul told the Toronto Sun's Mike Zeisberger in March when first nominated for the Masterton by the Toronto chapter of the Professional Hockey Writers Association.
"You don't know if you'll ever play again, even be able to lead a normal life again."
Lupul lost around 30 pounds and a chunk of playing tIme.
But after being traded to the Leafs late in 2010-11, Lupul not only showed his body could take the strain, he seized a first-line left wing role and held it.
This season, he didn't go more than one game without a point from opening night until early January. Playing through various injuries until separating his shoulder he remained in the top 10 of NHL scoring with 67 points in 66 games. He played a mentor role with the team and helped Phil Kessel and Tyler Bozak to huge years.
The Masterton was the last major award won by a Leaf, with Jason Blake dealing with a leukemia scare in 2007-08. Alexander Mogilny won the Lady Byng in 2003. Before that, Doug Gilmour won the Frank Selke for top defensive forward and Pat Burns the Jack Adams for coach of the year, both in 1992-93.
All award winners will be announced in June during the televised show from Las Vegas.
Great Article about the Marlies (long)
http://www.thestar.com/sports/leafs/article/1177614--toronto-marlies-a-team-with-a-dream
http://www.thestar.com/sports/leafs/article/1177614--toronto-marlies-a-team-with-a-dream
Scrivens and Marlies keep rolling towards Calder Cup Titile
After having eight days off, Toronto Marlies coach Dallas Eakins wasn't sure if his players would play like a rested team or a rusty team.
Turns out he had nothing to worry about as Toronto dominated the Oklahoma City Barons en route to a 5-0 victory Thursday night in Game 1 of the AHL Western Conference finals.
From the first shift, the Marlies got off to a blazing start and left-wingers Marcel Mueller and Nicolas Deschamps each had a goal and an assist in the first period to set the tone.
"The start was huge for us," Eakins said. "It actually started right off the first shift. We were able to catch them sleeping, and we never let up. I thought our forwards did a great job of getting in on their defence and being physical."
Ben Scrivens made 31 saves and improved to 8-1 in the playoffs with his second shutout.
"Our execution was excellent," Eakins said. "We had practised very hard and had scaled them back to make sure they were ready. The young men came out flying tonight."
Each line contributed for Toronto in giving Oklahoma City its worst loss since a 7-0 defeat to Texas on the opening night of the season.
Five different players scored for Toronto and four players had multiple points. Philippe Dupuis and Nazem Kadri each had two assists.
Oklahoma City had chances with six power-play opportunities. However, Toronto turned every one of them away and has now killed its last 39 power-play chances against its opponents.
"That's the standard we've set for these guys," Eakins said. "It's the standard that our penalty-kill unit stands by. Every single one of them firmly believes they should never be scored on. What has helped is we actually force other teams on their power play to defend because of how aggressive we are."
Toronto also was able to get Joe Colborne back into the scoring column. The forward scored in the third period for his first goal in 30 games.
"He told (assistant coach) Derek King at the bench that it felt like a 200-pound weight had been lifted off his shoulder," Eakins said. "Everybody was excited about that."
Right-winger Matt Frattin and defenseman Jake Gardiner also scored for the Marlies.
Oklahoma City goaltender Yann Danis had 27 saves in front of 2,596 fans at the Cox Convention Center.
Toronto knows to expect a better effort from Oklahoma City on Friday night.
"Any time you can put up five goals, it's a good feeling," Scrivens said. "Hopefully we're in their heads a little bit. They know we can score. We were firing on all cylinders tonight, but we need to make sure these wins count and come out with the same intensity."
Game 2 is Friday night in Oklahoma City.
After having eight days off, Toronto Marlies coach Dallas Eakins wasn't sure if his players would play like a rested team or a rusty team.
Turns out he had nothing to worry about as Toronto dominated the Oklahoma City Barons en route to a 5-0 victory Thursday night in Game 1 of the AHL Western Conference finals.
From the first shift, the Marlies got off to a blazing start and left-wingers Marcel Mueller and Nicolas Deschamps each had a goal and an assist in the first period to set the tone.
"The start was huge for us," Eakins said. "It actually started right off the first shift. We were able to catch them sleeping, and we never let up. I thought our forwards did a great job of getting in on their defence and being physical."
Ben Scrivens made 31 saves and improved to 8-1 in the playoffs with his second shutout.
"Our execution was excellent," Eakins said. "We had practised very hard and had scaled them back to make sure they were ready. The young men came out flying tonight."
Each line contributed for Toronto in giving Oklahoma City its worst loss since a 7-0 defeat to Texas on the opening night of the season.
Five different players scored for Toronto and four players had multiple points. Philippe Dupuis and Nazem Kadri each had two assists.
Oklahoma City had chances with six power-play opportunities. However, Toronto turned every one of them away and has now killed its last 39 power-play chances against its opponents.
"That's the standard we've set for these guys," Eakins said. "It's the standard that our penalty-kill unit stands by. Every single one of them firmly believes they should never be scored on. What has helped is we actually force other teams on their power play to defend because of how aggressive we are."
Toronto also was able to get Joe Colborne back into the scoring column. The forward scored in the third period for his first goal in 30 games.
"He told (assistant coach) Derek King at the bench that it felt like a 200-pound weight had been lifted off his shoulder," Eakins said. "Everybody was excited about that."
Right-winger Matt Frattin and defenseman Jake Gardiner also scored for the Marlies.
Oklahoma City goaltender Yann Danis had 27 saves in front of 2,596 fans at the Cox Convention Center.
Toronto knows to expect a better effort from Oklahoma City on Friday night.
"Any time you can put up five goals, it's a good feeling," Scrivens said. "Hopefully we're in their heads a little bit. They know we can score. We were firing on all cylinders tonight, but we need to make sure these wins count and come out with the same intensity."
Game 2 is Friday night in Oklahoma City.
Maple Leafs sign Swedish teen Granberg
The Canadian Press
The Toronto Maple Leafs signed defensive prospect Petter Granberg to a three-year entry level deal Thursday.
Granberg won a gold medal with Sweden at this year's IIHF World Junior Championship.
The six-foot-three, 205-pound defenceman was selected 116th overall by Toronto in the 2010 draft.
The 19-year-old had one goal and three assists with 10 penalty minutes in 38 regular season games with Skelleftea AIK of the Swedish Elite League.
The Canadian Press
The Toronto Maple Leafs signed defensive prospect Petter Granberg to a three-year entry level deal Thursday.
Granberg won a gold medal with Sweden at this year's IIHF World Junior Championship.
The six-foot-three, 205-pound defenceman was selected 116th overall by Toronto in the 2010 draft.
The 19-year-old had one goal and three assists with 10 penalty minutes in 38 regular season games with Skelleftea AIK of the Swedish Elite League.
Marlies will play for the Calder
Congrats to the Toronto Marlies on defeating the Okl City Barons 3-1 tonight at Ricoh and will now play for the Calder Cup against the Norfolk Admirals. Great job boys and special thanks to Brian Burke for stocking the cupboards full in three short years with nothing in them when you arrived. A great farm system can only be a good thing for the future of the Leafs......... GO MARLIES GO!
Congrats to the Toronto Marlies on defeating the Okl City Barons 3-1 tonight at Ricoh and will now play for the Calder Cup against the Norfolk Admirals. Great job boys and special thanks to Brian Burke for stocking the cupboards full in three short years with nothing in them when you arrived. A great farm system can only be a good thing for the future of the Leafs......... GO MARLIES GO!
Leafs NHL draft preview
The number 5 has great significance for the Maple Leafs this summer and not for another Bill Barilko anniversary.
Toronto is picking fifth overall in Friday's NHL draft, leading into Brian Burke's fifth year as general manager. This will be Burke’s highest pick as a GM since he engineered the selection of the Sedin Twins second and third in 1999 with the Canucks and only the second time the Leafs have been in the top five since 1989.
It's not likely they'll get a player who breaks into the lineup right away, but with Burke's playoff failures a concern, and new ownership taking stock in the coming season, he could use a break at the table.
Ideally for Burke, the Leafs will not be in the bottom 14 again this time next year and he'll survive to see the young man who puts on a Leafs cap and sweater in Pittsburgh play for him and not a successor.
The Top 5 players the Maple Leafs could pick in the draft:
1. Mikhail Grigorenko
Centre, Quebec Remparts QMJHL
If there is one kid who could fall from the four names kept atop most draft lists all year it’s this 6-foot-3 enigma. The Leafs would have to decide between upgrading at forward, specifically centre, where they obviously need help, or adding another defencemen, which they have in abundance in their system. Grigorenko is Russian-born and plays in the QMJHL, both draft paths the Leafs rarely pursue. Some have put the floater tag on Grigorenko, but he's a pet project of coach Patrick Roy and had 85 points in 59 games.
2. Filip Forsberg
Right wing, Leksand SEL
No relation to Peter Forsberg and says he’s not likely ready contractually or mentally for North America until 2013-14. But he might be the right fit, one spot higher than his famous namesake in 1991. Forsberg can score and he's schooled in defensive basics. If he’s not going to break in right away, there’s no better place than his homeland to grow another year, well out of the Toronto spotlight. The 6-foot-2 right-hand shooting winger is the top European prospect on Central Scouting's list.
3. Matthew Dumba
Defenceman, Red Deer Rebels, WHL
Yes, the Leafs are thick in defencemen, including another former Red Deer rearguard in Dion Phaneuf. That doesn't mean they can’t pick another, hang on to him, then make a trade for a goalie or forward to maximize assets.
Dumba can hit hard for a six-footer under 200 pounds and he has an offensive upside.
4. Jacob Trouba
Defenceman, US Development Team
Trouba has come up the rankings, despite a relatively quiet world junior tournament for the U.S. But he's another defender who likes the heavy going, despite his still-developing body. He's committed to the University of Michigan, but the Kitchener Rangers own his OHL rights. He might one day be face-to-face with another Leafs first-rounder who changed his mind on college, Tyler Biggs, who is Oshawa Generals' property.
5. Radek Faksa
Centre, Kitchener Rangers
If defencemen aren't in the Leafs plan, Toronto’s search for an impact forward might lead to Faksa. He had 67 points in 62 games with Kitchener last year. He is a centre and does have some jam, especially as a checker.
Kitchener is developing a great track record with first-rounders. It would be the first time the Leafs chase a Czech-born player this high.
The five No. 5-overall picks who became Leafs:
1. Phil Kessel
Right wing, Boston, 2006
Going on three years since The Trade, debate continues on the merits of giving up picks that became Tyler Seguin and Dougie Hamilton. No arguing, though, that if Kessel gets another 100 goals in that span, he should be top 10 in club history before turning 30.
2. Rick Vaive
Right wing, Vancouver, 1979
Vaive had some turbulent years in Toronto, including a stint as captain. But it was still framed around three 50-goal seasons, which made a dismal decade for the fans more tolerable.
3. Tim Connolly
Centre, Buffalo, 1999
After one year, no one yet knows what to make of him, except that he didn’t justify the big bucks or the hype as the long-sought No. 1 centre. It might be he settles in nicely to a support role.
4. Ric Jackman
Defence, Dallas, 1996
He was the third of 13 defencemen taken in the first round and played 71 games for the Leafs in the last two years they made the playoffs. In a bizarre coincidence he was then traded for another Toronto-born defenceman, Drake Berehowsky, who had been a first-rounder of the Leafs in 1990.
5. Darren Veitch
Defence, Washington, 1980
By the time he came to the Leafs in 1988, a lot of water was under the bridge. Enduring the jibes about being selected just before Paul Coffey, Veitch survived a career-threatening injury when he slipped on a kid's toy and put his arm through a glass table. He'd also gone through Detroit, sworn enemy of the Leafs in the Chuck Norris Division days. He played parts of two years with the Leafs and their farm team.
The Top 5 NHLers picked at No. 5 in the draft:
1. Jaromir Jagr
Pittsburgh, 1990, RW
No one doubted 1990’s top five would all be great forwards, but some people actually felt bad for the Penguins, who’d have to settle for whomever four teams passed on. Jagr wasn’t even the highest Czech picked, with draft host Vancouver, run by Pat Quinn, opting for Petr Nedved after Quebec led off with Owen Nolan. After Keith Primeau went to Detroit and Mike Ricci to the Flyers, Pittsburgh took the man who would be nicknamed Mario Jr. Jagr is still going at age 40 and is eighth in career NHL points.
2. Scott Stevens
Washington, 1982, D
Stevens scored on his first shot as a Capital, but it was the trail of destruction from body checks as a New Jersey Devil that marked his Hall of Fame career. In a time before players who delivered clean hits were themselves targeted, many of those who met the left shoulder of Stevens head-on likened it to being run over by a truck.
3. Tom Barrasso
Buffalo, 1983, G
Some day Barrasso might yield this spot to Carey Price, taken fifth by Montreal in 2005. But the high-schooler from Massachusetts, chosen right behind Steve Yzerman, won a Calder Trophy with Buffalo and two Stanley Cups with Pittsburgh. His 369 victories put him 15th in NHL history.
4. Bill Guerin
New Jersey, 1989, RW
One of the most well-travelled of the fifth overalls, Guerin saw time with eight different teams after the Devils picked him. Guerin, Mats Sundin and Bobby Holik would become the best forwards to emerge from the first round in ‘89. Guerin won a Stanley Cup near the start of his career in Jersey and a second near the end with Pittsburgh. In between, he had 429 goals, the first player to notch 20 with seven different teams.
5. Rick Vaive
Vancouver, 1979, RW
All 21 players in the season’s first-round class made the NHL, but only Vaive, Brian Propp and Michel Goulet reached 50 goals. Vaive did it three times as a Leaf after a brief stay with the Canucks. While in Chicago, he had 43 goals one year and 441 overall. Four of the top five picks in '79 eventually became Leafs, Rob Ramage, Mike Foligno, Mike Gartner and Vaive.
The five biggest busts selected at the No. 5 position in NHL draft history:
1. G Ray Martyniuk
Montreal, 1970
Not only did the Canadiens miss the playoffs in 1970, they struck out with their first pick, both rarities. Martyniuk had a decent junior season with the Flin Flon Bombers, but would not play an NHL game. He kicked around the minors for almost a decade, but the Habs were able to cover up their error by bringing in Ken Dryden, who saw them through six Cups while Martyniuk beat the bushes. With their first pick a year later, the Habs were back to hitting home runs, getting Guy Lafleur first overall.
2. RW Daniel Dore
Quebec, 1988
Dore fulfilled his dream of being a scoring star in his home province, but with a Montreal roller hockey team, long after he washed out. Dore had 23 goals for the Drummondville juniors his draft year, 33 the next, but instead of augmenting the young stable of talent with the Nordiques, he played just 16 games and was a minus-8. Jeremy Roenick, Rod Brind'Amour and Teemu Selanne were all taken in the next five picks. But the 1988 first round still had a silver lining for Quebec, which took workhorse blueliner Curtis Leschyshyn third overall.
3. D Shawn Anderson
Buffalo, 1986
A decent year with the Canadian national team convinced the Sabres this promising puck-handler was hot stuff. Perhaps they confused him with Team Canada mate Zarley Zalapski, who went fourth overall to Pittsburgh. But both those teams whiffed on the best first-round defenceman in that draft, Brian Leetch. To his credit, Anderson made it into 255 NHL games and played pro until 2005.
4. LW Stanislav Chistov
Anaheim, 2001
There were four Russians selected in the first round of the 2001 draft after Ilya Kovalchuk and none really worked out. Chistov's NHL career was hampered by military obligations at home and then a refusal to stay in the minors where Anaheim sent him during his sophomore year. His rights were moved to Boston where he played one year, but his heart was in the KHL where he remains to this day.
5. D Bjorn Johansson
California, 1976
He had the same initials as Borje Salming and wore Mats Sundin’s No. 13, but was far from emulating either Swedish star. Though no countryman was taken higher in the draft until Sundin -- 13 years later -- Johansson had about as much impact on Bay Area hockey as the rest of the Golden Seals. A rushing defenceman, he only played 15 NHL games, all with the re-located Seals in Cleveland. With the next pick, the Rangers took Calder Trophy runner-up Don Murdoch.
http://slam.canoe.ca/Slam/Hockey/NHL/Toronto/2012/06/18/19889101.html
The number 5 has great significance for the Maple Leafs this summer and not for another Bill Barilko anniversary.
Toronto is picking fifth overall in Friday's NHL draft, leading into Brian Burke's fifth year as general manager. This will be Burke’s highest pick as a GM since he engineered the selection of the Sedin Twins second and third in 1999 with the Canucks and only the second time the Leafs have been in the top five since 1989.
It's not likely they'll get a player who breaks into the lineup right away, but with Burke's playoff failures a concern, and new ownership taking stock in the coming season, he could use a break at the table.
Ideally for Burke, the Leafs will not be in the bottom 14 again this time next year and he'll survive to see the young man who puts on a Leafs cap and sweater in Pittsburgh play for him and not a successor.
The Top 5 players the Maple Leafs could pick in the draft:
1. Mikhail Grigorenko
Centre, Quebec Remparts QMJHL
If there is one kid who could fall from the four names kept atop most draft lists all year it’s this 6-foot-3 enigma. The Leafs would have to decide between upgrading at forward, specifically centre, where they obviously need help, or adding another defencemen, which they have in abundance in their system. Grigorenko is Russian-born and plays in the QMJHL, both draft paths the Leafs rarely pursue. Some have put the floater tag on Grigorenko, but he's a pet project of coach Patrick Roy and had 85 points in 59 games.
2. Filip Forsberg
Right wing, Leksand SEL
No relation to Peter Forsberg and says he’s not likely ready contractually or mentally for North America until 2013-14. But he might be the right fit, one spot higher than his famous namesake in 1991. Forsberg can score and he's schooled in defensive basics. If he’s not going to break in right away, there’s no better place than his homeland to grow another year, well out of the Toronto spotlight. The 6-foot-2 right-hand shooting winger is the top European prospect on Central Scouting's list.
3. Matthew Dumba
Defenceman, Red Deer Rebels, WHL
Yes, the Leafs are thick in defencemen, including another former Red Deer rearguard in Dion Phaneuf. That doesn't mean they can’t pick another, hang on to him, then make a trade for a goalie or forward to maximize assets.
Dumba can hit hard for a six-footer under 200 pounds and he has an offensive upside.
4. Jacob Trouba
Defenceman, US Development Team
Trouba has come up the rankings, despite a relatively quiet world junior tournament for the U.S. But he's another defender who likes the heavy going, despite his still-developing body. He's committed to the University of Michigan, but the Kitchener Rangers own his OHL rights. He might one day be face-to-face with another Leafs first-rounder who changed his mind on college, Tyler Biggs, who is Oshawa Generals' property.
5. Radek Faksa
Centre, Kitchener Rangers
If defencemen aren't in the Leafs plan, Toronto’s search for an impact forward might lead to Faksa. He had 67 points in 62 games with Kitchener last year. He is a centre and does have some jam, especially as a checker.
Kitchener is developing a great track record with first-rounders. It would be the first time the Leafs chase a Czech-born player this high.
The five No. 5-overall picks who became Leafs:
1. Phil Kessel
Right wing, Boston, 2006
Going on three years since The Trade, debate continues on the merits of giving up picks that became Tyler Seguin and Dougie Hamilton. No arguing, though, that if Kessel gets another 100 goals in that span, he should be top 10 in club history before turning 30.
2. Rick Vaive
Right wing, Vancouver, 1979
Vaive had some turbulent years in Toronto, including a stint as captain. But it was still framed around three 50-goal seasons, which made a dismal decade for the fans more tolerable.
3. Tim Connolly
Centre, Buffalo, 1999
After one year, no one yet knows what to make of him, except that he didn’t justify the big bucks or the hype as the long-sought No. 1 centre. It might be he settles in nicely to a support role.
4. Ric Jackman
Defence, Dallas, 1996
He was the third of 13 defencemen taken in the first round and played 71 games for the Leafs in the last two years they made the playoffs. In a bizarre coincidence he was then traded for another Toronto-born defenceman, Drake Berehowsky, who had been a first-rounder of the Leafs in 1990.
5. Darren Veitch
Defence, Washington, 1980
By the time he came to the Leafs in 1988, a lot of water was under the bridge. Enduring the jibes about being selected just before Paul Coffey, Veitch survived a career-threatening injury when he slipped on a kid's toy and put his arm through a glass table. He'd also gone through Detroit, sworn enemy of the Leafs in the Chuck Norris Division days. He played parts of two years with the Leafs and their farm team.
The Top 5 NHLers picked at No. 5 in the draft:
1. Jaromir Jagr
Pittsburgh, 1990, RW
No one doubted 1990’s top five would all be great forwards, but some people actually felt bad for the Penguins, who’d have to settle for whomever four teams passed on. Jagr wasn’t even the highest Czech picked, with draft host Vancouver, run by Pat Quinn, opting for Petr Nedved after Quebec led off with Owen Nolan. After Keith Primeau went to Detroit and Mike Ricci to the Flyers, Pittsburgh took the man who would be nicknamed Mario Jr. Jagr is still going at age 40 and is eighth in career NHL points.
2. Scott Stevens
Washington, 1982, D
Stevens scored on his first shot as a Capital, but it was the trail of destruction from body checks as a New Jersey Devil that marked his Hall of Fame career. In a time before players who delivered clean hits were themselves targeted, many of those who met the left shoulder of Stevens head-on likened it to being run over by a truck.
3. Tom Barrasso
Buffalo, 1983, G
Some day Barrasso might yield this spot to Carey Price, taken fifth by Montreal in 2005. But the high-schooler from Massachusetts, chosen right behind Steve Yzerman, won a Calder Trophy with Buffalo and two Stanley Cups with Pittsburgh. His 369 victories put him 15th in NHL history.
4. Bill Guerin
New Jersey, 1989, RW
One of the most well-travelled of the fifth overalls, Guerin saw time with eight different teams after the Devils picked him. Guerin, Mats Sundin and Bobby Holik would become the best forwards to emerge from the first round in ‘89. Guerin won a Stanley Cup near the start of his career in Jersey and a second near the end with Pittsburgh. In between, he had 429 goals, the first player to notch 20 with seven different teams.
5. Rick Vaive
Vancouver, 1979, RW
All 21 players in the season’s first-round class made the NHL, but only Vaive, Brian Propp and Michel Goulet reached 50 goals. Vaive did it three times as a Leaf after a brief stay with the Canucks. While in Chicago, he had 43 goals one year and 441 overall. Four of the top five picks in '79 eventually became Leafs, Rob Ramage, Mike Foligno, Mike Gartner and Vaive.
The five biggest busts selected at the No. 5 position in NHL draft history:
1. G Ray Martyniuk
Montreal, 1970
Not only did the Canadiens miss the playoffs in 1970, they struck out with their first pick, both rarities. Martyniuk had a decent junior season with the Flin Flon Bombers, but would not play an NHL game. He kicked around the minors for almost a decade, but the Habs were able to cover up their error by bringing in Ken Dryden, who saw them through six Cups while Martyniuk beat the bushes. With their first pick a year later, the Habs were back to hitting home runs, getting Guy Lafleur first overall.
2. RW Daniel Dore
Quebec, 1988
Dore fulfilled his dream of being a scoring star in his home province, but with a Montreal roller hockey team, long after he washed out. Dore had 23 goals for the Drummondville juniors his draft year, 33 the next, but instead of augmenting the young stable of talent with the Nordiques, he played just 16 games and was a minus-8. Jeremy Roenick, Rod Brind'Amour and Teemu Selanne were all taken in the next five picks. But the 1988 first round still had a silver lining for Quebec, which took workhorse blueliner Curtis Leschyshyn third overall.
3. D Shawn Anderson
Buffalo, 1986
A decent year with the Canadian national team convinced the Sabres this promising puck-handler was hot stuff. Perhaps they confused him with Team Canada mate Zarley Zalapski, who went fourth overall to Pittsburgh. But both those teams whiffed on the best first-round defenceman in that draft, Brian Leetch. To his credit, Anderson made it into 255 NHL games and played pro until 2005.
4. LW Stanislav Chistov
Anaheim, 2001
There were four Russians selected in the first round of the 2001 draft after Ilya Kovalchuk and none really worked out. Chistov's NHL career was hampered by military obligations at home and then a refusal to stay in the minors where Anaheim sent him during his sophomore year. His rights were moved to Boston where he played one year, but his heart was in the KHL where he remains to this day.
5. D Bjorn Johansson
California, 1976
He had the same initials as Borje Salming and wore Mats Sundin’s No. 13, but was far from emulating either Swedish star. Though no countryman was taken higher in the draft until Sundin -- 13 years later -- Johansson had about as much impact on Bay Area hockey as the rest of the Golden Seals. A rushing defenceman, he only played 15 NHL games, all with the re-located Seals in Cleveland. With the next pick, the Rangers took Calder Trophy runner-up Don Murdoch.
http://slam.canoe.ca/Slam/Hockey/NHL/Toronto/2012/06/18/19889101.html
You mean: Brian Burke's fifth playoff-less year as general manager (which will also be the Leafs 8th straight season out of the playoffs, the longest playoff-less streak in the NHL!) :lol:
BURKE WON’T GIVE UP FIFTH PICK
In this thin draft year, many observers think the best prospects, certainly the top forwards, will be gone by the time the Maple Leafs pick fifth on Friday in Pittsburgh.
That has not convinced Brian Burke to give up the pick, at least not yet, and the general manager indicated he wants to come out of Friday’s first round with a fifth or a comparable choice.
“We are keeping the pick,” Burke said in an e-mail to the Toronto Sun on Monday. “We may move up or down, it’s hard to say. Based on today, we’ll pick fifth.”
Help up front is what the Leafs crave, both now and down the road. No one was expecting the fifth pick to be NHL-ready, but it could thin out even further as the top-10 choices unfold.
Nail Yakupov appears destined for Edmonton first overall and the two other Russian-born, CHL trained players, Mikhail Grigorenko and Alex Galchenyuk will go to either Columbus, Montreal or the Islanders, with defenceman Ryan Murray figuring somewhere in the top five.
Grigorenko would be the likely one to drop to fifth from that group. At least one of the next set of forwards, Filip Forsberg, has indicated he’ll stay in Sweden for one more year. Any move the Leafs make downwards with their first pick would be linked to securing a goaltender or forward, but the club is also wary of being without a first-rounder for the fifth time since 2003.
Burke added an extra at last year’s draft, allowing him to get defenceman Stuart Percy and forward Tyler Biggs, both of whom could challenge for jobs at this year’s camp.
http://slam.canoe.ca/Slam/Hockey/NHL/Draft/2012/06/19/19892921.html
In this thin draft year, many observers think the best prospects, certainly the top forwards, will be gone by the time the Maple Leafs pick fifth on Friday in Pittsburgh.
That has not convinced Brian Burke to give up the pick, at least not yet, and the general manager indicated he wants to come out of Friday’s first round with a fifth or a comparable choice.
“We are keeping the pick,” Burke said in an e-mail to the Toronto Sun on Monday. “We may move up or down, it’s hard to say. Based on today, we’ll pick fifth.”
Help up front is what the Leafs crave, both now and down the road. No one was expecting the fifth pick to be NHL-ready, but it could thin out even further as the top-10 choices unfold.
Nail Yakupov appears destined for Edmonton first overall and the two other Russian-born, CHL trained players, Mikhail Grigorenko and Alex Galchenyuk will go to either Columbus, Montreal or the Islanders, with defenceman Ryan Murray figuring somewhere in the top five.
Grigorenko would be the likely one to drop to fifth from that group. At least one of the next set of forwards, Filip Forsberg, has indicated he’ll stay in Sweden for one more year. Any move the Leafs make downwards with their first pick would be linked to securing a goaltender or forward, but the club is also wary of being without a first-rounder for the fifth time since 2003.
Burke added an extra at last year’s draft, allowing him to get defenceman Stuart Percy and forward Tyler Biggs, both of whom could challenge for jobs at this year’s camp.
http://slam.canoe.ca/Slam/Hockey/NHL/Draft/2012/06/19/19892921.html
Leafs trade Schenn for JVR
It didn’t happen on the draft floor, but Toronto Maple Leafs general manager Brian Burke finally made a big off-season splash late Saturday afternoon.
Burke shipped defenceman Luke Schenn, the subject of trade rumours for almost two years, to the Philadelphia Flyers for big winger James van Riemsdyk.
The move addresses one of the team’s most glaring needs up front. Though he doesn’t always use his size, van Riemsdyk is the type of player that should fit well into new Toronto coach Randy Carlyle’s lineup and easily be a top six forward.
Schenn, meanwhile, will be reunited with his brother Brayden, a big forward who had a solid season with the Flyers last year.
“I know the brothers are close,” Flyers general manager Paul Holmgren told the Philadelphia Daily News. “This has got to be a positive for Brayden.
“Obviously we gave up a good young winger in James, but we’re getting a good young defenceman in Luke.”
There were Schenn-for-van Riemsdyk rumours around February’s trade deadline, but the two teams couldn’t pull off a deal. Prior to that, the Leafs expected Schenn to be a big part of their future when they signed the former first-rounder to a five-year, $18 million contract.
Van Riemsdyk, 23, collected 11 goals and 13 assists in 43 games for the Flyers in 2011-12. The 6-foot-3, 200-pound American shared the Flyers’ team lead with seven goals in 11 playoff games in 2011.
http://slam.canoe.ca/Slam/Hockey/NHL/Trades/2012/06/23/19913306.html
It didn’t happen on the draft floor, but Toronto Maple Leafs general manager Brian Burke finally made a big off-season splash late Saturday afternoon.
Burke shipped defenceman Luke Schenn, the subject of trade rumours for almost two years, to the Philadelphia Flyers for big winger James van Riemsdyk.
The move addresses one of the team’s most glaring needs up front. Though he doesn’t always use his size, van Riemsdyk is the type of player that should fit well into new Toronto coach Randy Carlyle’s lineup and easily be a top six forward.
Schenn, meanwhile, will be reunited with his brother Brayden, a big forward who had a solid season with the Flyers last year.
“I know the brothers are close,” Flyers general manager Paul Holmgren told the Philadelphia Daily News. “This has got to be a positive for Brayden.
“Obviously we gave up a good young winger in James, but we’re getting a good young defenceman in Luke.”
There were Schenn-for-van Riemsdyk rumours around February’s trade deadline, but the two teams couldn’t pull off a deal. Prior to that, the Leafs expected Schenn to be a big part of their future when they signed the former first-rounder to a five-year, $18 million contract.
Van Riemsdyk, 23, collected 11 goals and 13 assists in 43 games for the Flyers in 2011-12. The 6-foot-3, 200-pound American shared the Flyers’ team lead with seven goals in 11 playoff games in 2011.
http://slam.canoe.ca/Slam/Hockey/NHL/Trades/2012/06/23/19913306.html
Burke interview following trade:
http://video.mapleleafs.nhl.com/videocenter/console?catid=802&id=182823&lang=en
http://video.mapleleafs.nhl.com/videocenter/console?catid=802&id=182823&lang=en
JVR interview following trade:
http://video.mapleleafs.nhl.com/videocenter/console?catid=802&id=182823&lang=en
http://video.mapleleafs.nhl.com/videocenter/console?catid=802&id=182823&lang=en
Offseason objective: Molding the Leafs into "Carlyle's Team"
TORONTO - As Randy Carlyle gazed around the draft tables on Friday night, there was no avoiding a stroll down Memory Lane.
This was Pittsburgh, site of his career year and Norris Trophy in 1980-81. On one side was the Anaheim Ducks group, with many names he shares on the 2007 Stanley Cup. On the other was the reinstated Winnipeg franchise, where he played for the Jets, coached the city’s AHL team and influenced countless hockey people there for the better part of two decades. At the far end of the floor were the new champions, the L.A. Kings, whom Carlyle faced many times in his California days.
But making an impact behind the Maple Leafs bench is his current and biggest challenge, a high-stress job that has burned out a long list that includes Hall of Famers. Carlyle’s grace period as coach ended April 7, the last of his 18-game mop-up role for Ron Wilson. His own watch officially began the past few days, inputting on player personnel such as the James van Riemsdyk trade, huddling with his assistants to set the training camp agenda and meeting No. 1 pick Morgan Rielly.
He keenly watched the AHL Marlies’ run to the Calder Cup final this month and, in less than a week, he’ll be looking in on the Leafs’ prospect camp. But when real camp starts after Labour Day, so will the reality that Carlyle hockey will require a Carlyle-style team, of which the Leafs are not, in mind or body.
“If you look at the playoffs, that’s what we’re trying to duplicate,” Carlyle said. “We’re trying to play that hockey for 82 games. “Obviously, there is a new coaching staff in place (Carlyle and right-hand man Dave Farrish, with Wilson holdovers Greg Cronin and Scott Gordon), a staff that demands a higher brand of defensive hockey. We still want to skate, to be a forechecking team. That doesn’t change.
“Are there areas in which we can improve? Obviously. There are going to be staples of our game, and players became aware of that when the change was made.”
The template Carlyle says he wants in 2012-13 was discussed in detail by the staff on Wednesday, including how the current roster can best be utilized, with further meetings planned in August and early September.
“We’re going to assign responsibility (roughing out lines and defensive pairings), talking about how we can prepare our team for a higher level,” Carlyle said. “We’re also going to create our own template for the staff (such as who will be in charge of special teams), what systems we have to play to change what we did in the last games of last season.”
Carlyle kept his composure on the bench as the Leafs lost 12 of his 18 games, but the wheels were already turning in his head for 2012-13.
“In the playoffs, there weren’t a lot of goals scored off the rush,” Carlyle noted. “We want to play a different brand of hockey, not so much a rush team, we want to be able to grind teams. If you can grind teams, you can create more time with the puck, thus you draw more penalties, create more scoring chances and you’ll wear down the opposition.
“Playoff games were played tight to the vest, but the pace of games was still up there. You’ve got to be able to move the puck, get in on the forecheck and create more offensive time. Our mindset has to change.”
To that end, the Leafs underwent a significant shift with van Riemsdyk joining the band on Saturday in a trade for defender Luke Schenn. On the day he fired Wilson, general manager Brian Burke acknowledged the need to tailor the team up front to reflect what he and Carlyle crafted in Anaheim. Saturday’s acquisition of van Riemsdyk was a vital first step.
“Randy will figure out where he plays,” Burke said of van Riemsdyk. “I envision him in the top six, on one of the power play units. We’re not big enough up front.”
Burke wants to position the Leafs to maximize what he believes will be a trend this coming year to keep play moving. Certainly, by playoff time, referees were more lenient on allowing battles for the puck to be settled without reading to the letter of the law.
“No matter what happens, someone is not going to be happy,” Carlyle said of past officiating trends. “Twenty guys will agree with the call or there are 20 who say: ‘How could you possibly miss that’?
“I think the standard of officiating created post-lockout has been a positive for the game. But the work ethic demonstrated by the teams has been one of playing up the neutral ice more and a lot less space in the middle. That’s what has really changed, everybody putting as many people back in defensive zones, five guys in that quadrant.”
If Carlyle can put life into the Leafs, Toronto’s table will be a desired destination at future drafts. :thumb:
http://www.torontosun.com/2012/06/24/carlyle-rolling-up-his-sleeves
TORONTO - As Randy Carlyle gazed around the draft tables on Friday night, there was no avoiding a stroll down Memory Lane.
This was Pittsburgh, site of his career year and Norris Trophy in 1980-81. On one side was the Anaheim Ducks group, with many names he shares on the 2007 Stanley Cup. On the other was the reinstated Winnipeg franchise, where he played for the Jets, coached the city’s AHL team and influenced countless hockey people there for the better part of two decades. At the far end of the floor were the new champions, the L.A. Kings, whom Carlyle faced many times in his California days.
But making an impact behind the Maple Leafs bench is his current and biggest challenge, a high-stress job that has burned out a long list that includes Hall of Famers. Carlyle’s grace period as coach ended April 7, the last of his 18-game mop-up role for Ron Wilson. His own watch officially began the past few days, inputting on player personnel such as the James van Riemsdyk trade, huddling with his assistants to set the training camp agenda and meeting No. 1 pick Morgan Rielly.
He keenly watched the AHL Marlies’ run to the Calder Cup final this month and, in less than a week, he’ll be looking in on the Leafs’ prospect camp. But when real camp starts after Labour Day, so will the reality that Carlyle hockey will require a Carlyle-style team, of which the Leafs are not, in mind or body.
“If you look at the playoffs, that’s what we’re trying to duplicate,” Carlyle said. “We’re trying to play that hockey for 82 games. “Obviously, there is a new coaching staff in place (Carlyle and right-hand man Dave Farrish, with Wilson holdovers Greg Cronin and Scott Gordon), a staff that demands a higher brand of defensive hockey. We still want to skate, to be a forechecking team. That doesn’t change.
“Are there areas in which we can improve? Obviously. There are going to be staples of our game, and players became aware of that when the change was made.”
The template Carlyle says he wants in 2012-13 was discussed in detail by the staff on Wednesday, including how the current roster can best be utilized, with further meetings planned in August and early September.
“We’re going to assign responsibility (roughing out lines and defensive pairings), talking about how we can prepare our team for a higher level,” Carlyle said. “We’re also going to create our own template for the staff (such as who will be in charge of special teams), what systems we have to play to change what we did in the last games of last season.”
Carlyle kept his composure on the bench as the Leafs lost 12 of his 18 games, but the wheels were already turning in his head for 2012-13.
“In the playoffs, there weren’t a lot of goals scored off the rush,” Carlyle noted. “We want to play a different brand of hockey, not so much a rush team, we want to be able to grind teams. If you can grind teams, you can create more time with the puck, thus you draw more penalties, create more scoring chances and you’ll wear down the opposition.
“Playoff games were played tight to the vest, but the pace of games was still up there. You’ve got to be able to move the puck, get in on the forecheck and create more offensive time. Our mindset has to change.”
To that end, the Leafs underwent a significant shift with van Riemsdyk joining the band on Saturday in a trade for defender Luke Schenn. On the day he fired Wilson, general manager Brian Burke acknowledged the need to tailor the team up front to reflect what he and Carlyle crafted in Anaheim. Saturday’s acquisition of van Riemsdyk was a vital first step.
“Randy will figure out where he plays,” Burke said of van Riemsdyk. “I envision him in the top six, on one of the power play units. We’re not big enough up front.”
Burke wants to position the Leafs to maximize what he believes will be a trend this coming year to keep play moving. Certainly, by playoff time, referees were more lenient on allowing battles for the puck to be settled without reading to the letter of the law.
“No matter what happens, someone is not going to be happy,” Carlyle said of past officiating trends. “Twenty guys will agree with the call or there are 20 who say: ‘How could you possibly miss that’?
“I think the standard of officiating created post-lockout has been a positive for the game. But the work ethic demonstrated by the teams has been one of playing up the neutral ice more and a lot less space in the middle. That’s what has really changed, everybody putting as many people back in defensive zones, five guys in that quadrant.”
If Carlyle can put life into the Leafs, Toronto’s table will be a desired destination at future drafts. :thumb:
http://www.torontosun.com/2012/06/24/carlyle-rolling-up-his-sleeves
Morgan Rielly: Something special has arrived in TO
TORONTO - Mike Stothers has no problem acknowledging it.
Morgan Rielly bugged him toward the end of the 2011-12 season.
A lot.
But it’s not what you might be thinking, and Stothers, the head coach of the Moose Jaw Warriors of the Western Hockey League, wouldn’t have had it any other way.
As Rielly, selected fifth overall by the Maple Leafs on Friday night in the 2012 entry draft in Pittsburgh, was nearing the end of his recovery from a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee, he would make daily stops in Stothers’ office.
“Every day for about three weeks, telling me he was ready to get back in the lineup,” Stothers recalled with a chuckle on Sunday afternoon. “I had to keep telling him we had to wait for clearance from the doctors. The scary thing was, he would be practising and he would be doing things that were unbelievable (for someone coming off knee surgery). And we couldn’t play him until we got the word.”
For Stothers — a former Leafs and Philadelphia Flyers defenceman who has coached in various capacities in the NHL, AHL and major junior since 1991 — it’s hard not to think of what Rielly might have done had he been healthy for the entire season. The smooth-skating defenceman had 18 points in 18 games before he was hurt on Nov. 6 after crashing into the net during a game against Calgary, eventually returning in April for the end of the Warriors’ playoff run.
But it’s clear the Leafs have a prospect who brings a lot more than a point-a-game pace. Stothers couldn’t have been more adamant about that.
“I can’t say enough about him,” Stothers said. “I’ve had a lot of kids in junior, but his combination of talent, commitment, personality … you hear it a lot, but with him, you’re really not going to meet a better kid.”
Whether Rielly was home in Vancouver during periods of rehabilitation or in Moose Jaw, his presence around the team was constant. If he was not in touch with his teammates through texting or other form of social media, it would not be uncommon for the Warriors to return from a trip in the wee hours of the morning and see Rielly waiting in the parking lot.
The hockey player that the Leafs drafted is one, Stothers believes, who is finely suited for the game today. Rielly compared himself to Kris Letang when he met with reporters in Pittsburgh, and Stothers dropped the names of Erik Karlsson and Brian Leetch into the conversation on Sunday.
Big expectations, yes, but that’s what happens when you are taken fifth overall.
“He can get up the ice and make plays and then come right back and not miss anything defensively,” Stothers said. “It’s something every coach is looking for, the ability to play that way. Morgan’s skating is a gift.”
In Stothers’ mind, it’s not just on the ice that Rielly will one day have an impact for the Leafs. Toronto scouts could have attended every Warriors game this past season and talked to the kid afterward, but still not have had a full grasp of his personality.
Stothers, hired by the Warriors last summer, saw it up close.
“Humble and a great sense of humour,” Stothers said. “Infectious. One of those kids who walks into the dressing room and everybody is happy to see him. Down to earth. A real love of life.
“And his passion for the game — you don’t always see it with a kid who is that talented. But with Morgan, you do.”
It’s not to say Rielly is perfect and will be a Norris Trophy contender from the first shift he skates with the blue Maple Leaf on his chest. Not unlike any other 18-year-old defenceman, there is plenty to learn, an education that will come only with experience.
But the encouraging indications are that Rielly badly wants to take it all in. The hockey words for someone such as he are “highly coachable.”
“I’ll tell you one thing, the Leafs aren’t going to regret taking him,” Stothers said. “He’ll do anything in his power to improve. And he’s old-school, not the rah-rah type. He’s just a leader in the way he plays the game.”
TORONTO - Mike Stothers has no problem acknowledging it.
Morgan Rielly bugged him toward the end of the 2011-12 season.
A lot.
But it’s not what you might be thinking, and Stothers, the head coach of the Moose Jaw Warriors of the Western Hockey League, wouldn’t have had it any other way.
As Rielly, selected fifth overall by the Maple Leafs on Friday night in the 2012 entry draft in Pittsburgh, was nearing the end of his recovery from a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee, he would make daily stops in Stothers’ office.
“Every day for about three weeks, telling me he was ready to get back in the lineup,” Stothers recalled with a chuckle on Sunday afternoon. “I had to keep telling him we had to wait for clearance from the doctors. The scary thing was, he would be practising and he would be doing things that were unbelievable (for someone coming off knee surgery). And we couldn’t play him until we got the word.”
For Stothers — a former Leafs and Philadelphia Flyers defenceman who has coached in various capacities in the NHL, AHL and major junior since 1991 — it’s hard not to think of what Rielly might have done had he been healthy for the entire season. The smooth-skating defenceman had 18 points in 18 games before he was hurt on Nov. 6 after crashing into the net during a game against Calgary, eventually returning in April for the end of the Warriors’ playoff run.
But it’s clear the Leafs have a prospect who brings a lot more than a point-a-game pace. Stothers couldn’t have been more adamant about that.
“I can’t say enough about him,” Stothers said. “I’ve had a lot of kids in junior, but his combination of talent, commitment, personality … you hear it a lot, but with him, you’re really not going to meet a better kid.”
Whether Rielly was home in Vancouver during periods of rehabilitation or in Moose Jaw, his presence around the team was constant. If he was not in touch with his teammates through texting or other form of social media, it would not be uncommon for the Warriors to return from a trip in the wee hours of the morning and see Rielly waiting in the parking lot.
The hockey player that the Leafs drafted is one, Stothers believes, who is finely suited for the game today. Rielly compared himself to Kris Letang when he met with reporters in Pittsburgh, and Stothers dropped the names of Erik Karlsson and Brian Leetch into the conversation on Sunday.
Big expectations, yes, but that’s what happens when you are taken fifth overall.
“He can get up the ice and make plays and then come right back and not miss anything defensively,” Stothers said. “It’s something every coach is looking for, the ability to play that way. Morgan’s skating is a gift.”
In Stothers’ mind, it’s not just on the ice that Rielly will one day have an impact for the Leafs. Toronto scouts could have attended every Warriors game this past season and talked to the kid afterward, but still not have had a full grasp of his personality.
Stothers, hired by the Warriors last summer, saw it up close.
“Humble and a great sense of humour,” Stothers said. “Infectious. One of those kids who walks into the dressing room and everybody is happy to see him. Down to earth. A real love of life.
“And his passion for the game — you don’t always see it with a kid who is that talented. But with Morgan, you do.”
It’s not to say Rielly is perfect and will be a Norris Trophy contender from the first shift he skates with the blue Maple Leaf on his chest. Not unlike any other 18-year-old defenceman, there is plenty to learn, an education that will come only with experience.
But the encouraging indications are that Rielly badly wants to take it all in. The hockey words for someone such as he are “highly coachable.”
“I’ll tell you one thing, the Leafs aren’t going to regret taking him,” Stothers said. “He’ll do anything in his power to improve. And he’s old-school, not the rah-rah type. He’s just a leader in the way he plays the game.”
Here is what the radio host (The Bill Watters Show) and former Leafs assistant-GM had to say this morning:
"Don't be surproised if both Brandon Prust and Shane Doan become Maple Leafs after July One.They have been targeted since mid April & fit plan."-----Bill Watters
"Don't be surproised if both Brandon Prust and Shane Doan become Maple Leafs after July One.They have been targeted since mid April & fit plan."-----Bill Watters
Similar threads
