Can people please stop paying to see the crapfest that is the Leafs... please.

Leafs abomination

/Dear God they suck.

//Torontonian

Kessel with 11 shots alone. Amazing that he didn't have more than one goal last night.

As a non leaf fan, watching kessel play is just mind boggling. Hes about 3 tiers of skill above any other player on the leafs. Its amazing you guys still pay to watch that crap.

And if you are used to that level of skill its no wonder you paid 2 firsts and a second for anyone who wasnt on that level.

Roloson. Just damn.

I said this in another thread, but while I should care how ugly it was, or that we blew a 3 goal lead to the Leafs, or that it's this same inability to put games away that's turned a lot of leads into L's or OTL's, I just didn't care yesterday. Roli made it worth it.

Did the Isles take an assload of penalties? I don't see how a team gives up 50+ shots without racking up the PIMs

poisonedpawn78: As a non leaf fan, watching kessel play is just mind boggling. Hes about 3 tiers of skill above any other player on the leafs. Its amazing you guys still pay to watch that crap.

And if you are used to that level of skill its no wonder you paid 2 firsts and a second for anyone who wasnt on that level.

I hope Phil is happy with what he's wrought...he could've played nice in Boston, and still be playing for a contender, instead he got shipped off to the Leafs, who, considering what they gave up to get him, are likely a long way from returning to anything resembling a decent hockey team.

Also, Tugnutt, heheheheheh...

That's insane. I watched the 1st period of that game before getting distracted by Pittsburgh/Florida before the Flyers/Avs game, and even though Toronto was dominating the play in the Islanders zone I never would have guessed it would be so lopsided. Save for where it counts.

bottsicus: I hope Phil is happy with what he's wrought...he could've played nice in Boston, and still be playing for a contender, instead he got shipped off to the Leafs, who, considering what they gave up to get him, are likely a long way from returning to anything resembling a decent hockey team.

Hey now, the self-proclaimed "smartest man in hockey" made that deal, so you know it's gotta be good.

Crash and burn, Burke, crash and f*cking burn you POS.

dj4aces: Kessel with 11 shots alone. Amazing that he didn't have more than one goal last night.

That was quite a Kessel run.

docmattic: dj4aces: Kessel with 11 shots alone. Amazing that he didn't have more than one goal last night.

That was quite a Kessel run.


There a joke in there if he had 12 shots...

Loud_Mouth_Soup: docmattic: dj4aces: Kessel with 11 shots alone. Amazing that he didn't have more than one goal last night.

That was quite a Kessel run.


There a joke in there if he had 12 shots...

Guess what???
According to this article he did indeed have 12
leafs-shoot-lights-out-but-still-lose (new window)

"12: Shots on goal by Phil Kessel, who netted his sixth of the season"

"Maple Leafs?!? What the hell was I thinking?"

Might as well add "Detroit Red Wings" to that list...

/Red Wing fanatic, very confused about the season. Well, not "confused" but expected better, even under the circumstances. And don't blame the goaltending...

Soofus: Guess what???
According to this article he did indeed have 12
leafs-shoot-lights-out-but-still-lose (new window)

Says that in the link above, too. Shows what happens when you don't RTFA, amirite?

/Thought I saw 11 last night. They were wrong, apparently.

bottsicus: poisonedpawn78: As a non leaf fan, watching kessel play is just mind boggling. Hes about 3 tiers of skill above any other player on the leafs. Its amazing you guys still pay to watch that crap.

And if you are used to that level of skill its no wonder you paid 2 firsts and a second for anyone who wasnt on that level.

I hope Phil is happy with what he's wrought...he could've played nice in Boston, and still be playing for a contender, instead he got shipped off to the Leafs, who, considering what they gave up to get him, are likely a long way from returning to anything resembling a decent hockey team.

Also, Tugnutt, heheheheheh...

Hrrm, I thought he mainly got traded for cap purposes, as the Bruins were hard up. I don't think he demanded a trade, by any means.

mavrickatubc:

Hrrm, I thought he mainly got traded for cap purposes, as the Bruins were hard up. I don't think he demanded a trade, by any means.

Mostly... however, while he wasn't asking to be traded, he wasn't willing to budge on what he thought he was worth to the Bruins. Obviously, the Bruins didn't think he was worth it, so one-way ticket to Toronto.

All kidding aside, He seems happy in Toronto, so good for him. He's a good young hockey player, and he can thank Claude Julien for teaching him to play in all three zones.

As a Bruins' fan, it's nice knowing Boston has those draft picks in their back pocket now...

Kessel wanted out for quite some time. That's all you would hear in Bruins territory, how he didn't want to accept the role the coaching staff wanted him to play. Now look at all of them: they're coming off their most promising season in over 15 years barely looking like they're a playoff contender, and he's a Leaf ('nuff said). I know it's early in the season but still...

/that said, GO PENS!

Current Odds for Stanley Cup bets via Link (new window)
(average odds ± 1 standard deviation)
The Contenders:
1 Pittsburgh Penguins 5.00 ± 0.35
2 San Jose Sharks 6.00 ± 1.22
3 Chicago Blackhawks 7.61 ± 1.54
4 Washington Capitals 7.83 ± 1.50
5 Detroit Red Wings 9.67 ± 1.32
6 Philadelphia Flyers 15.33 ± 2.45
7 Calgary Flames 15.56 ± 1.33
8 New Jersey Devils 16.89 ± 3.02
9 Vancouver Canucks 19.78 ± 3.35
10 Buffalo Sabres 20.00 ± 2.65


The Underdogs:
11 Boston Bruins 20.78 ± 3.15
12 New York Rangers 26.11 ± 5.99
13 Colorado Avalanche 29.56 ± 4.42
14 Los Angeles Kings 32.89 ± 3.22
15 Ottawa Senators 34.11 ± 8.62
16 Columbus Blue Jackets 39.22 ± 2.33
17 Dallas Stars 44.44 ± 5.27
18 Tampa Bay Lightning 48.89 ± 7.75
19 Anaheim Ducks 52.44 ± 8.35
20 Montreal Canadiens 56.44 ± 9.26


The Inspirational Stories:
21 Edmonton Oilers 61.56 ± 10.14
22 St Louis Blues 65.11 ± 11.41
23 Atlanta Thrashers 70.44 ± 10.38
24 Nashville Predators 82.22 ± 33.36
25 Phoenix Coyotes 90.11 ± 17.68
26 Florida Panthers 100.00 ± 25.00
27 Minnesota Wild 106.11 ± 15.57
28 New York Islanders 110.67 ± 44.06
29 Carolina Hurricanes 144.44 ± 52.70
30 Toronto Maple Leafs 166.67 ± 41.46

mansonozz: ...Now look at all of them: they're coming off their most promising season in over 15 years barely looking like they're a playoff contender, and he's a Leaf ('nuff said). I know it's early in the season but still...

/that said, GO PENS!


Yet they still managed to shut out the Pens. ; )

But, yeah, disappointing season so far, to be sure. Hopefully, they'll get back into form with the return of Lucic and Savard.

I think Dallas should be bumped up to contenders, Calgary downgraded to underdog, Atlanta upgraded to underdog, and Columbus downgraded to inspirational story.

Two things are hold true in the end:
GF - GA.
How resilient the team is to injuries.

Hiro's Protagonist: I think Dallas should be bumped up to contenders, Calgary downgraded to underdog, Atlanta upgraded to underdog, and Columbus downgraded to inspirational story.

Two things are hold true in the end:
GF - GA.
How resilient the team is to injuries.

Canucks or Oilers fan? :)

mavrickatubc: Canucks or Oilers fan? :)

Student of the game.
(Nov 20, 2009)

Team GP MGLI Proj.
1 Vancouver 20 109 447
29 Calgary 18 15 68
Per team 18.9 50.3 217
so Calgary has only lost 1/3rd of the average games to injury. Given they have one of the hardest travel schedules, a history of injuries waiting to resurface, the Olympics (with Iginla, Bouwmeester, Kiprusoff) and clear lack of depth at all positions -- it's very likely that injuries will be Calgary's biggest challenge before the season is over.


and a Canucks fan like everyone else

Fark ate the link but here it is as text:
http://www.fromtherink.com/2009/11/20/1166194/2009-10-nhl-man-games-lost-to

keylock71: "Maple Leafs?!? What the hell was I thinking?"

Did you see his kid brother on TV playing for UNH the other day? He looks pretty good, but I don't think he's as good as Phil.

As an Ottawa Senators fan, my second favorite team is the team that plays the Leafs. I was thrilled this morning that the Laughs had that many shots and still lost. Last time they had that many they beat the team they were playing 8-0 (I heard it on the radio, I think it was Detroit and it happened some time ago).

Boston fans must be salivating for a lottery spot in the upcoming draft. And hey if they don't get #1, there's always the following year, lol. The GM in Boston secured his job for many years to come with that deal.

keylock71: mavrickatubc:

Hrrm, I thought he mainly got traded for cap purposes, as the Bruins were hard up. I don't think he demanded a trade, by any means.

Mostly... however, while he wasn't asking to be traded, he wasn't willing to budge on what he thought he was worth to the Bruins. Obviously, the Bruins didn't think he was worth it, so one-way ticket to Toronto.

All kidding aside, He seems happy in Toronto, so good for him. He's a good young hockey player, and he can thank Claude Julien for teaching him to play in all three zones.

As a Bruins' fan, it's nice knowing Boston has those draft picks in their back pocket now...

I had heard from various sources that he was generally difficult to deal with, and kind of a pain in the ass, not necessarily that he demanded to be traded.
Of course that could just be Bruins management taking a page from the Red Sox playbook.

keylock71: mansonozz: ...Now look at all of them: they're coming off their most promising season in over 15 years barely looking like they're a playoff contender, and he's a Leaf ('nuff said). I know it's early in the season but still...

/that said, GO PENS!


Yet they still managed to shut out the Pens. ; )

But, yeah, disappointing season so far, to be sure. Hopefully, they'll get back into form with the return of Lucic and Savard.

Looch was playing like a man on fire last night.

Hiro's Protagonist: Fark ate the link but here it is as text:
http://www.fromtherink.com/2009/11/20/1166194/2009-10-nhl-man-games-lost-to

Your point that Calgary may have quite a few injuries due to a hard travel schedule, many Olympians and injury history is valid. I wouldn't agree with the lack of depth point, as the Flames have one of the deepest D-corps in the league, and their scoring is actually far more balanced than they are given credit for, particularly now that two lines are consistently scoring (Bourque, Dawes and Glencross being the major additions).

Not to be rude, but I think the exact same points can be made for the Nucks, particularly in the fear that Louie and Daniel will be worn out with the massive road trip / Olympics combination and their previous injuries.

Also, again this sounds rude but isn't meant to be, but your analysis on the man games missed due to injury seems to be to be a classic mathematical fallacy (the fallacy of aggregates). The fact that in the past teams have missed an aggregate or total amount of man hours due to injury, doesn't mean that injuries will be evenly spread through the teams. I haven't done any sort of analysis, but I would assume that historically teams would form a standard bell curve with certain teams having few injuries and certain teams having many, with most having a middle ground. Calgary may have been lucky so far, and the Canucks certainly have had terrible luck, but there's no real strong causation suggesting future injuries from those stats.

But, I enjoyed your post and analysis, you clearly know your stuff. I'm just a huge Flames fan, and we're probably not gonna agree on their rankings. I do think the Nucks will dramatically improve in the next two or three weeks, though.

What's funny about these replies is most never even saw the game. Roloson was simply unbeatable, it happens. Reminded me a lot of the 1993 series against St. Louis when they outshot the Blues 63-30(or close to that)in one game and still lost. No matter when they did the puck just wouldn't go in same as last night.

mavrickatubc: Not to be rude, but I think the exact same points can be made for the Nucks, particularly in the fear that Louie and Daniel will be worn out with the massive road trip / Olympics combination and their previous injuries.

I expect the Canucks to have a worse than average year compared to the league and the franchise history for injuries. I can't say if it will be enough, but they have dipped 2 full lines deep into call-ups to get by so far. Until that changes, I think the depth is proven and enough to keep going through a long playoff run (G: Schneider, F: Hordichuck, Glass, Grabner, Bolduc, Shirokov, PC Labrie, D: O'Brien, Rome, Lukowich) I'm hoping that it's just been an early run of bad luck (eg: Sedin's foot was broken by a slapshot, that's not like losing Sami Salo when he throws out his back in practice) and it will be easier from here on out.

I think the Flames have a good team, and that Dawes doesn't get the credit he deserves, but I differ with you on Calgary's defense. They have 4 good D (Bouwmeester, Phaneuf, Sarich, and Regehr although Regehr is way over rated among Calgary's fans I think) and then the rest are development projects. I don't know Calgary's AHL roster well, but it says a lot when there is a line of forwards, defense, and a goalie that by all rights should be on the farm team. If that is the best available, then how big of a drop off is it to replace Iginla with the next in line on the farm team? Calgary has a good shot at winning the division this year, but they'll be push overs if they make it past the 1st round due to fatigue/injuries. If the injury bug bites before the trade deadline, there is probably no room for error because of cap space just like last year was a huge surprise. Brent Sutter is a good coach, Daryl Sutter is a terrible GM (the taking of flu shots before pregnant women, Mike Keenan... really, not being able to dress a full lineup because of cap limits... and for what it's worth, there was a rumor that he signed Bouwmeester at that price because he was worried Vancouver was going to sign him)

and don't worry about being rude, I'm usually a jerkface to all Flames fans on here because there were 1 or 2 that started the smack talk with me at some point I can no longer remember (probably had to do with them supporting Ben Eager's head hunting in round 2 of last year's playoffs)

bottsicus: keylock71: mansonozz: ...Now look at all of them: they're coming off their most promising season in over 15 years barely looking like they're a playoff contender, and he's a Leaf ('nuff said). I know it's early in the season but still...

/that said, GO PENS!


Yet they still managed to shut out the Pens. ; )

But, yeah, disappointing season so far, to be sure. Hopefully, they'll get back into form with the return of Lucic and Savard.

Looch was playing like a man on fire last night.

Indeed... The go ahead goal was a sweet deflection off that Chara blast. That's where Lucic is really deadly... Like Jack said, "He blocks out the sun!"

I saw parts of the UNH game. Didn't see too much of Kessel's brother though. By all accounts I've heard he's a damn good player with a lot of potential.

Yeah, I've heard Phil was a bit of a pud in the locker room... I also heard Sturm tried to mentor him a bit, but he wasn't having any of the advice. Who knows though?

If he really didn't want to be here in Boston, screw him. Don't want someone like that on a close knit team like the Bruins...especially if you're not going to go along with julien's program. Does say something about the guy when other guys like Krecji and Recchi were willing to take lower salaries to stay in Boston...

Personally, as a long time Bruins' fan, I'll take guys like Thornton, Lucic, Begin, Sobotka and Chara over the Phil Kessels of the league any day of the week.

Well we are well on our way to making history.
Worst single nhl season in history.

Thank you Brian (smartest man in hockey) Burke.

greenapple2step: Well we are well on our way to making history.
Worst single nhl season in history.

Thank you Brian (smartest man in hockey) Burke.

Burke is doing this on purpose, tanking this year and then he'll end up with the top pick in next year's draft, in the third round.

FreakinB: Roloson. Just damn.

I said this in another thread, but while I should care how ugly it was, or that we blew a 3 goal lead to the Leafs, or that it's this same inability to put games away that's turned a lot of leads into L's or OTL's, I just didn't care yesterday. Roli made it worth it.

I agree with this completely. As soon as the game as over, I caught myself thinking "Damn, that was a good game." Strange, we played like shiat (especially in the 3rd), but it was an exciting game and we won, so it feels good.

keylock71: mansonozz: ...Now look at all of them: they're coming off their most promising season in over 15 years barely looking like they're a playoff contender, and he's a Leaf ('nuff said). I know it's early in the season but still...

/that said, GO PENS!


Yet they still managed to shut out the Pens. ; )

But, yeah, disappointing season so far, to be sure. Hopefully, they'll get back into form with the return of Lucic and Savard.

That they did. Lots of teams whooped on 'em pretty good this month. Having 7-10 players out at a time will do that to ya. It's all good, if that didn't happen hockey would be boring. I love the Pens/Bs games though; my cousin back home in Boston area and I give each non-stop shiat.

Rev.K: bottsicus: I hope Phil is happy with what he's wrought...he could've played nice in Boston, and still be playing for a contender, instead he got shipped off to the Leafs, who, considering what they gave up to get him, are likely a long way from returning to anything resembling a decent hockey team.

Hey now, the self-proclaimed "smartest man in hockey" made that deal, so you know it's gotta be good.

Crash and burn, Burke, crash and f*cking burn you POS.

You have serious issues.

4NSpy: greenapple2step: Well we are well on our way to making history.
Worst single nhl season in history.

Thank you Brian (smartest man in hockey) Burke.

Burke is doing this on purpose, tanking this year and then he'll end up with the top pick in next year's draft, in the third round.

I'm going to steal use this after changing it to "top pick in the third round of next year's draft"...

greenapple2step: Well we are well on our way to making history.
Worst single nhl season in history.

The Leafs are one win or non-regulation loss away from being unable to match the 92-93 Sharks' loss record, and 7 points from exceeding the 74-75 Capitals' record for worst point total. This may be bad, but it's hardly historically bad.

Hiro's Protagonist: Fark ate the link but here it is as text:
http://www.fromtherink.com/2009/11/20/1166194/2009-10-nhl-man-games-lost-to

I saw that link. We're not #1! We're not #1
1 Vancouver 20 109 447
2 Edmonton 21 105 410

/The chant is way too familar..

Burke and Wilson must be losing their minds right about now. At least they have have good junior prospects like Kadri, Stralberg and Bozak, so there's something to look forward to in the future. Wouldn't be surprised seeing some Leafs get sent back to the minors though in the next few weeks, many of them are looking like they belong there.

/I'll give Kessel credit though, he's been playing very well.

Hiro's Protagonist:
so Calgary has only lost 1/3rd of the average games to injury. Given they have one of the hardest travel schedules, a history of injuries waiting to resurface, the Olympics (with Iginla, Bouwmeester, Kiprusoff) and clear lack of depth at all positions -- it's very likely that injuries will be Calgary's biggest challenge before the season is over.

Well, thankfully players only get injured once a season and Vancouver's used up their turns. I love Vancouver fans, the team is one game above .500 but they still plan the parade.

Flogster: Hiro's Protagonist:
so Calgary has only lost 1/3rd of the average games to injury. Given they have one of the hardest travel schedules, a history of injuries waiting to resurface, the Olympics (with Iginla, Bouwmeester, Kiprusoff) and clear lack of depth at all positions -- it's very likely that injuries will be Calgary's biggest challenge before the season is over.

Well, thankfully players only get injured once a season and Vancouver's used up their turns. I love Vancouver fans, the team is one game above .500 but they still plan the parade.

I think you mistake planning the parade with a simple acknowledgement that despite the rash of injuries that plagued the canucks and removed several key pieces of their team they have done well enough to stay as a contender. They do have a very tough schedule ahead of them due to the olympics on top of the fact that they are one of the more travelled teams in the league.

Admiration doesn't exactly mean blind faith in a cup.