And you don't know we will never develop a Giroux, Stepan, Alfredsson, Lucic, Bergeron. Thats the difference between fans and those who pretend to be one.
I know that we presently do not have one within our depth chart so it would be advisable to go out an get one in a timely and certain fashion.
You can trade, buy, or draft one. Trading costs equal assets. Players like them don't make it to free agency. Players like them can be drafted but with the highest certainty at the top of the draft board. Anything less comes with less certainty and less timeliness.
So in other words, you don't know if we will ever develop a Giroux, Stepan, Alfredsson, Lucic, Bergeron, Parise, etc. Either you don't know or we simply don't have them, or both.
There is no certainty under your wait-and-see approach, much less a workable timeframe. I, along with the best and most proven rebuilding GM's prefer something more objective, tangible, timely, and certain.
Since you fancy yourself so clairvoyant (and apparently up there with the best GMs), did you think the 17th overall prospect in our pool (who wasn't supposed to be in the NHL this year) would be selected to an All Rookie team? Did you think Kessel would finish as high as he did? What about Lupul? Where do you see Kadri next season?
You know very little, whether you want to admit it or not.
I know that we presently do not have one within our depth chart so it would be advisable to go out an get one in a timely and certain fashion.
You can trade, buy, or draft one. Trading costs equal assets. Players like them don't make it to free agency. Players like them can be drafted but with the highest certainty at the top of the draft board. Anything less comes with less certainty and less timeliness.
Since you fancy yourself so clairvoyant (and apparently up there with the best GMs), did you think the 17th overall prospect in our pool (who wasn't supposed to be in the NHL this year) would be selected to an All Rookie team? Did you think Kessel would finish as high as he did? What about Lupul? Where do you see Kadri next season?
You know very little, whether you want to admit it or not.
ROFL Yeah, and the Titanic was a really impressive looking ship when it was sliding straight down into the water as well. I hear it had some gorgeous china on board, and this big diamond necklace, too.
We signed Hanson when he was 22. Carter Ashton is 20, and this was is first NHL season. He played for Canada at the WJC and is a former first round pick.
But its a good thing we have a knowledgeable expert on prospects like you on this board
Perhaps you shouldn't ask questions that can't be answered or at least have the sack to answer same said questions when reversed in your direction?
Good for the goose.....
You point to all these non-lottery picks but don't have the ability to answer who and why we should count on our prospect pool to garnish similar results as these players like the Derek Stepan, Patrice Bergeron, Milan Lucic, Adam Henrique, Zach Parise players you so love to point to. The logic is so twisted, you've tied yourself in knots.
You point to all these prospects and former 1st rounders but really fall flat when it comes to actually evaluating them in terms of talent. That's kind of important!
But how could I forget? You think a passive "throw s*** at wall, hope it sticks" approach is what's best for this storied franchise..
Also, how can anyone argue that the Leafs are rebuilding just because they've got some high picks on the roster? High pick does not equal good.
If Burke was really rebuilding at this very moment, he would have jettisoned most of the lineup at the deadline for all those firsts he was talking about. Instead, he cruises to the end of the season with the lineup intact, finishes bottom-five, with no added assets or picks other than Ashton, who isn't exactly a lock to ever be a regular NHLer.
Does this make sense to anybody? Burke sure as hell won't get the same return for guys like Mac and Schenn on draft day that he would have at the deadline. Burke seems like he's determined to go into next year with pretty much the same lineup, or at least the same core, as this year, in some kind of insane attempt to prove that he was right about everything all along.
1. We did a complete re-build. Only Schenn, Grabo and Kulemin remain from the pre-Burke era
2. We were in a playoff position for 2/3 of the season. The epic collapse showed we have holes, but it also showed that we are somewhat better than what the standings say
3. We have a legit top line forward, a legit blue chip prospect, a legit potential no 1 defenseman, a stable captain with a cannon, and a ton of depth, in which the odds say at least a couple will exceed expectations
4. MOST IMPORTANTLY.... if we dont do the Kessel trade we still arent a playoff team, in fact we are probably more embarressing
Even if the leafs have improved compared to last year (which I believe they have though I don't expect they could beat last years team), the reality is that most of the rest of NHL teams have improved even more. That is to say, we are closer to NYI this year then to being a bubble playoff team. But both the NYI and leafs have improved but not enough to compete with the Senators, Panthers, etc. Heck even the AHL Calgary Flames with a few elite players is ahead of leafs.
We signed Hanson when he was 22. Carter Ashton is 20, and this was is first NHL season. He played for Canada at the WJC and is a former first round pick.
But its a good thing we have a knowledgeable expert on prospects like you on this board
What kind of offensive upside does he have? Can he crack a third line on a playoff team?
What kind of offensive upside does he have? Can he crack a third line on a playoff team?
Armstrong was a first round pick.
Komisarek was a first round pick
Steckel was a first round pick
Connolly was a first round pick
Lupul was a first round pick
I don't know if Ashton will turn out to have point production like Lupul or Armstrong but I'm leaning to his upside to be similar to Army. In fact, most of our Marlie prospects have limited upside with the exception of perhaps Kadri who might turn out to be an average second liner.
Armstrong was a first round pick.
Komisarek was a first round pick
Steckel was a first round pick
Connolly was a first round pick
Lupul was a first round pick
I don't know if Ashton will turn out to have point production like Lupul or Armstrong but I'm leaning to his upside to be similar to Army. In fact, most of our Marlie prospects have limited upside with the exception of perhaps Kadri who might turn out to be an average second liner.
So no Giroux, Bergeron, Lucic, and Parise-like talent in our depth chart?
In Tampa: 1st/2nd line Lucic-type forward
In Toronto: 3rd/4th line Armstrong/Hansen-type forward
look at the bright side who ever we draft 5th overall this year should be worth a mid to late first rounder next year, or we might be able to move up 2-3 spots if we add them to our first
The NHL owes the Leafs. We help the struggling franchises using our own money and we have a GM that is always in support of the league and we haven't been in the playoffs in 7 years and we finally have our own 1st round pick in lottery position. They are going to rig the lottery for us to win it. Then we pick Yakupov, sign schultz, trade all of LACK in the offseason, get Getzlaf, sign Suter, get Vokoun, trade Phaneuf & schenn + extras.
god that d looks awful, especially when vokoun hasn't been stellar.
I expect more of the same next year. I just don't see how we go from this to a playoff position. Burke hiring a coach that wants a game this team is not built for requires a pretty massive makeover and I just don't see it happening in a single year let alone the off-season.
I hope the new owners put someone in charge of this team other than an MLSE board member.
In how many ways can we say Burke sucks? Seems there's a thread about Burke's 'failures' every day. Only difference is they (threads) all have different titles. Content is exactly the same. I remember posting my thoughts on burke in one of them, about 30 burke threads ago
I see them pop up, can't stand typing the same thing over and over again. I guess you guys don't mind
In how many ways can we say Burke sucks? Seems there's a thread about Burke's 'failures' every day. Only difference is they (threads) all have different titles. Content is exactly the same. I remember posting my thoughts on burke in one of them, about 30 burke threads ago
I see them pop up, can't stand typing the same thing over and over again. I guess you guys don't mind
It's like a visit to the dentist for both sides of the debate.
