Eastern Conference Second Round: (2) Toronto Maple Leafs vs (WC2) Florida Panthers

[2014olympicgold]

That continuous play rule is really strict.
Not exactly sure on it...
ie. if a player passes the puck and play is next considered dead, the continuous flow ends when the other player hits the puck with his stick.
I don’t even recall an instance of this rule coming into play.

It happened vs the Leafs this yr in the regular season early on, believe it was vs Calgary.

Happened against Boston in 2019 too.

[Canucks_fan18]

This team is so soft. They almost need to do a trade similar to the Huberdeau one with Marner, not sure what is out there though. I am getting Matthews unless he forces their hand, Nylander for sure as he's a bargain and as others have pointed out JT isn't really all that tradeable.

[2014olympicgold]

This team is so soft. They almost need to do a trade similar to the Huberdeau one with Marner, not sure what is out there though. I am getting Matthews unless he forces their hand, Nylander for sure as he's a bargain and as others have pointed out JT isn't really all that tradeable.

The UFA market is bad. Top offensive player is like Killorn. RFA market is Bratt, Meier, DeBrincat, Zegras, PLB, and Zegras. There's a few others but those are your big guys. Not one of those players is equal to a Hube/Tkachuk level of deal involving Marner or Matthews. Then the market next yr for RFAs is Pettersson, Dahlin, Necas, Hagel, Raymond, Seider, Byfield. So same kinda thing.

People will say "You need this type of trade" but I can not think of a player out there that matches the makeup and situation the Leafs need. I can think of Tom Wilson, Byfield (Plus), and that's really it. But I can't stitch together a trade that would make sense.

So unless we see something nuts like Matthews/Marner for one of the top picks this yr, I honestly have NO idea the route Dubas or the new GM can or will take.

[ericdaoust]

Bring back Kadri

[blayze]

Need to go back to the Burke era... MORE TRUCELENCE!

[Canucks_fan18]

Bring back Kadri

I really wonder how they would of looked if that kept Kadri and didn't sign JT. They would have cap space to add another significant piece and I can't imagine Kadri not playing just as well as JT.

[ericdaoust]

I brought up Kadri for a reason. Whenever they have a player that plays hard and with passion, the fans will run him out of town when he screws up and gets suspended.

Same thing happened with Bunting this year

[2014olympicgold]

I really wonder how they would of looked if that kept Kadri and didn't sign JT. They would have cap space to add another significant piece and I can't imagine Kadri not playing just as well as JT.

I've gone on with the thought that the butterfly effect would include the Leafs not having half the players they have. Or Rielly wouldn't have had a down yr, and his cap would be higher than it is now, or he might not even be on the team. Leafs might have had Andersen extended and his injury woes happen on the Leafs. I'm sure there's more but there's likely a snowball effect of keeping Kadri.

Kadri was traded July 1st 2019, and Tavares signed with the team on July 1st 2018. So if the Leafs don't sign JT, they probably keep JvR, Gardiner, Bozak and Brown. So to me it's a waste of time to think that way.

The significant pieces the Leafs could have added in free agency in 2018 is nothing outside of JvR...which now looks like a great non-move. 2019 FA was Tyler Myers, Bobrovsky, Duchene, Panarin and Anders Lee.

[Axeman33]

I really wonder how they would of looked if that kept Kadri and didn't sign JT. They would have cap space to add another significant piece and I can't imagine Kadri not playing just as well as JT.

I've said this all along since the day they signed him. Terrible move. They already had their 2C in Kadri, who was still signed at a team friendly deal of $4.5M for 3 more seasons when he got traded away to Colorado. They wanted JT and they got him. Now they are stuck with him and his terrible contract. Even if they were able to get him to waive his NTC, no one will take him and that contract for two more years. Can the Leafs afford to eat some of his cap to trade him? They are probably looking at a buyout of Matt Murray too. This team doesn't have the cap flexibility to do this and re-sign the players who are walking.

[hockeyrobot]

I've said this all along since the day they signed him. Terrible move. They already had their 2C in Kadri, who was still signed at a team friendly deal of $4.5M for 3 more seasons when he got traded away to Colorado. They wanted JT and they got him. Now they are stuck with him and his terrible contract. Even if they were able to get him to waive his NTC, no one will take him and that contract for two more years. Can the Leafs afford to eat some of his cap to trade him? They are probably looking at a buyout of Matt Murray too. This team doesn't have the cap flexibility to do this and re-sign the players who are walking.

I've been here as well. And now go one step further and think that his big UFA contract was $7 million after an absolute elite season on a Cup winning team. Does he ever put up 87 points on Toronto? Does that mean he is open to signing for even less once his previous deal is done?

It's all 20/20 now. But still fun to think about.....for an outsider. Not for a Leafs fan

[2014olympicgold]

I think you can say the Leafs were thinking they'd have success in the first 5yrs of his deal and deal with the issues in the final 2yrs. Then in 2018 (or 2019?) when they signed him...how can you expect the cap wouldn't move for like 5yrs.

It's all 20/20, and the Leafs took a shot and in all honesty, it's worked out regular season for 5yrs. I think if you asked people would you consider it a success after 5yrs of Tavares playing C2 with 354pts over 360gp. It's literally been playoff issues the 4 previous yrs you'd hope there was success.

It's failed because there's no cup. Don't get me wrong on that. But I also am not wasting my energy on wanting to go back in history on it, because it's been probably the lower end of their projection on JT in the regular season. Like 80pts in 80games for him was probably exactly where they thought he'd be in 2023.

[Axeman33]

I think you can say the Leafs were thinking they'd have success in the first 5yrs of his deal and deal with the issues in the final 2yrs. Then in 2018 (or 2019?) when they signed him...how can you expect the cap wouldn't move for like 5yrs.

It's all 20/20, and the Leafs took a shot and in all honesty, it's worked out regular season for 5yrs. I think if you asked people would you consider it a success after 5yrs of Tavares playing C2 with 354pts over 360gp. It's literally been playoff issues the 4 previous yrs you'd hope there was success.

It's failed because there's no cup. Don't get me wrong on that. But I also am not wasting my energy on wanting to go back in history on it, because it's been probably the lower end of their projection on JT in the regular season. Like 80pts in 80games for him was probably exactly where they thought he'd be in 2023.

I think you meant to say "next to no playoff success".

[2014olympicgold]

I think you meant to say "next to no playoff success".

My personal thought is his contract is a failure without a cup. I'm big in the "your goal should be a cup" and not "Your goal should be the playoffs and see what happens". But I get markets like Vancouver, Ottawa, Arizona have different definitions of success.

Toronto's should be "cup". But I get the lower bar of "no playoff success" makes it look worse. But I would say its failed group if the team even went to the finals and lost. I also have a different definition of success from a contract vs a season. Can be a successful season, but still not make a contract successful. If that makes sense.

Still has 2yrs to make the contract a success though.

[rataylor22]

His contract is/was probably a failure without a cup, but there would be a lot more debate if Toronto had a bunch of second and third round eliminations and maybe a finals appearance. Instead it's been all first round exits and a second round performance so bad they might as well have been eliminated in round 1.