Leafs -V- Thrashers Post-Game: Rebound
Firstly, an interesting item of news – the Vancouver Canucks have acquired goaltender Jason LeBarbera from the LA Kings in exchange for a 7th round pick. Update: Hat-tip to Sarah, who points out that Curtis Sanford has been placed on the IR alongside Roberto Luongo, necessitating the deal for another ‘tender.
So the Maple Leafs close out an up-and-down December with a 4-3 overtime win over the lowly Atlanta Thrashers. After dropping three straight at the beginning of the month, the Leafs proceeded string together a successful six game stretch in which they picked up ten out of a possible twelve points. The Leafs then hit a Christmas time rut, losing three successively by a collective score of 16-4 . While Wilson is demanding increased consistency out of his young group, streakiness is often times the signature of a rookie-laden club. Capricious play has certainly been the hallmark of the re-building Leafs’ season to date.
After starting off habitually slow, the Maple Leafs largely dictated the play for the remainder of the game with a strong overall effort that deserved the two points. It looked as though the Buds were going to let the game slip through their hands after a lack of capitalization (Grabovski [x2], Blake, Stempniak) on some golden opportunities to put the two points safely away. A fortunate interference call sort of saved the Leafs as on the 4-on-3 power-play Pavel Kubina beat Johan Hedberg with a cannonading blast from the point in the extra frame.
Someone has to get to the root cause of the Leafs’ inability to start well out of the gate. My guess would be that it’s a symptom of the youngsters’ lack of confidence or belief in themselves. It’s certainly not a lack of preparation, not under Wilson’s watch. The Leafs’ propensity for putting together impressive comebacks -as well as their ability to close out games (9-0-2 when leading after two) – seems to point to the possibility that the Leafs’ play corresponds with fluctuating levels of confidence. It seems that whenever something goes the Leafs’ way, the team rides the momentum of a renewed sense of confidence and self-belief (which explains the comebacks and their ability to close out games) that isn’t there from the outset of games.
Tonight was a big rebound performance for the team as a whole but more so for some individual Leafs. First and foremost, Curtis Joseph stood tall in stopping 29 shots – a couple of which were of the big-time variety – to record his first win of the year as well as his long-awaited 450th career win (congrats!). Joseph’s breakaway stop on Jim Slater to preserve the 2-2 scoreline was huge. CuJo will be rewarded with another appearance Thursday night when the Buffalo Sabres come to town. With another strong performance Thursday, Joseph will have gone a long way in re-assuring Wilson and Burke that he can provide a supportive back-up presence. If things went awry tonight as they have in the majority of his appearances to date, as Wilson recently said himself in an interview with Mike Ulmer, Leafs’ brass would have a tough decision to make, likely to either discuss the possibility of retirement with CuJo or, even less tactful, to waive/demote him. PPP, Old Yeller may just have some life left in him yet.
Tomas Kaberle, who was a -5 over the Leafs’ last three losses, was very sharp in both ends of the ice. Lee Stempniak and Nik Kulemin, two recent residents of Wilson’s doghouse, were very active and effective offensively. Stempniak played easily his best game in a Leaf uni to date. I thought Mikhail Grabovski was quite effective up front, although he should have shot on both of his breakaways as opposed to passing and attempting to deke out Hedberg. I’m not exactly sure why Grabovski has been shafted on power-play time recently by Ron Wilson.
Your thoughts?
December 31st, 2008 at 12:33 am
Good blog
How about Toskala to LA? Lots of mouth watering prospects there
December 31st, 2008 at 12:38 am
An overall great effort from everyone in the Leafs lineup. The defence has stepped up tonight ensuring Cujo’s 450th win despite the goal that came off of Finger’s skate. Hopefully Stempniak can continue to perform well and produce which can perhaps be a good asset come trade deadline. Mikhail Grabovski’s slick pass to Kulemin was a beauty; he will definetely be part of the Leafs future in years to come. Big news today as Sundin has finally got onto the ice with his Canucks teammates, he will blossom with the Sedins. Talking about Mike Gillis’ feed off from former leafs members like Kyle Wellwood and Sundin. It’s great to see Vancouver relying on our guns to make them a cup contender. Now, hopefully Kaberle will catch Gillis’ eyes. Carolina Hurricanes waived Frantisek Kaberle in order to clear cap space, should Burke sign Frantisek to join Tomas? Perhaps both of them could provide a great package for Gillis. Listening from Sportsnet pregame show, it hurts to hear that Steen and Colaiacovo could have provided two second round picks instead of trading for a mediocre Stempniak.
December 31st, 2008 at 12:42 am
Wow, interesting move by the Canucks, I’m surprised Labarbera only costed them a 7th rounder. Will be interesting to see if any other goalie related moves result from this. Good to see CuJo get his 450th, but it looked like if they hadn’t of been playing the backwash of the league the game would have resulted differently.
December 31st, 2008 at 12:45 am
“Carolina Hurricanes waived Frantisek Kaberle in order to clear cap space, should Burke sign Frantisek to join Tomas? Perhaps both of them could provide a great package for Gillis.”
No, we need to avoid him at all costs. Bringing him aboard will only entice Tomas to stay, plus Tomas is worth more in a trade alone than with Frank.
December 31st, 2008 at 12:46 am
Yeah, ummmm, if Gillis wanted Frantisek he would pick him up off waivers
As for the game, deserved two points but i expected them to beat atlanta
December 31st, 2008 at 12:47 am
Vesku, talking about LA’s top prospects: Hickey and Tubert, the tandum from current World Junior Canadian team are both LA’s prospects; with addition to Drew Doughty. We may perhaps fetch one or two prospects from LA if they wish to make it to the playoffs (they are only 3 points off from 8th place). From my perspective, i do not see the Leafs drafting Tavares or Hedman. They will not be able to get a long losing streak going with Ron Wilson’s mission statement of “work ethic.” From now until the rest of the season, the leafs will be a mediocre 0.500 team. Hopefully we will reach the top 5 spot. From there, we can draft Magnus Svensson Paajarvi or Braydon Schenn or Duchene. Right now, the leafs need to stockpile a lot of draft picks that we lost from acquiring Hollweg and Mayers, both seems to be futile in the Leaf’s gritty lineup. Even Deveaux is more physical than them. That should be the aim of the squad, as the Leafs lack depth.
December 31st, 2008 at 12:49 am
Right, deMarcus, i screwed up there lol! I was so caught up with Frantisek and Tomas joining together, i never thought about that
December 31st, 2008 at 12:53 am
And remember, when Burke said in the News conference that it was lucky enough for him that Scott Niedermayer joined the Ducks because of his brother Rob? Frantisek looke dlike to be the case here lol
December 31st, 2008 at 12:55 am
Oh ya, a ton of great prospects in the LA system (I really like Oscar Moller as one of their lesser known prospects, of course either Teubert or Hickey would be amazing coups)
If we’re in the first or second position I can’t see us not taking Hedman or Tavares. We’re not gonna pass on possibly the next next one (ive had my skepticism about tavares but he’s really coming through for team canada) because there may be a question or two about his work ethic (i havent see this at the WJCs). I think this is moot though because we’re clearly not bad enough to be in the bottom wrung, currently we’re 8th last I think with this win. Obviously Burke will do some selling but we just ain’t as bad as NYI or the Thrashers as we’ve seen here. As you mention there are a ton of very good options later in the draft so i dont think we should be too concerned about that, we’re gonna end up with a great player regardless… I can see Schenn fitting the Burke-Wilson profile for sure, MSP and Duchene are also amazing.
I dont think LA will mortgage any of their future, why now? they’re not there yet without a true number 1 tender. a bit more patience and they will be awesome, the addition of kaberle or even vesa in march isnt exactly going to put them over the top.
December 31st, 2008 at 12:55 am
I am thinking: If Frantisek joins the Canucks, perhaps Tomas will be lured to go to the Canucks
I an envisioning that wherever Frantisek goes, Tomas will have a higher chance of going there
December 31st, 2008 at 12:59 am
haha, let’s hope and pray
I actually think kaberle is ready to waive now with sundin and much of the old guard gone, does any one know if he still has solid friendships with anyone in the line-up (I know he was good friends with Sundn, Tucker, Mccabe who are now all gone)
December 31st, 2008 at 1:00 am
Kubina and Kaberle have a strong relationship away from the rink I believe (there’s the Czech connection there). I’ve seen the pair of them attending TFC games together in the past.
December 31st, 2008 at 1:06 am
Uh-oh. Could this mean the “Muskoka Two” might be at it with the NTC games again?
God help us.
December 31st, 2008 at 1:11 am
They’d better not, or its the Islanders for both of them in the summer
December 31st, 2008 at 1:14 am
From the Leafs current prospect pool, I can envision the future forwards lineup considering the prospects we only have currently (of course, from this upcoming draft, our lineup would be more impressive) (you can add your own opinion of a better roster if you will):
Flaake DiDomenico Hayes
Stefanovich Grabovski Kulemin (crazy line right here)
Tlusty Ruegsegger Mitchell
Stalberg Champagne Williams
It seems to me that last draft seems to be more of a successful one from previous drafts (Hayes, Stefanovich, Flaake and Didomenico seem to be promising prospects). That Euro line will be of tremendous skill, creativity, goal production and speed come two or three years; the two Belarussians and Russian. As can be seen, TML’s draft success has not been very good. Hopefully this season, we can improve our prospects pool.
December 31st, 2008 at 1:15 am
I’m going to guess that it will be a “no” on Frank, from Burke’s position. The last thing this team needs is yet another defenseman.
Schenn should be fully healthy soon, and Stralman will play his way back into the lineup. His positional game leaves a lot to be desired, but looks to be improving … on an average (17-14-3) Marlies squad, he is -1 in 6 games played.
Oh, and for all the Anton Stralman mega-fans out there, January 3rd is a date that you will definitely want to mark on your calendars. Drop all your plans that day and get over to the Ricoh to claim your very own Anton Stralman bobblehead doll. That’s right, Saturday is Anton Stralman Bobblehead Day. They just love him in the “A”.
December 31st, 2008 at 1:18 am
haha, good to know Garrett. I hope Stralman gets another shot with the Leafs sooner than later
December 31st, 2008 at 1:20 am
Imagine we drafted Hedman. Hedman and Stralman as a tandum WOOOO! But i think the Leafs really need to draft a top forward promising prospect, thats what they lack at the moment or to say it simply: they lack in all areas thus far.
December 31st, 2008 at 1:23 am
For sure, hopefully we can get two first rounders so that we can bolster both the defensive and offensive areas of the roster. I would say we need a big offensive star more than we do a defenseman at the moment, now if Hedman really is gonna be a 6’6 version of Lidstrom I may reconsider. I haven’t been THAT impressed with him from what I’ve seen in the juniors so far
December 31st, 2008 at 1:25 am
I realize that “improving” comment doesn’t make sense as written … to clarify, given the defensive struggles of the Marlies this year, and the lack of a consistent offense, a -1 over 6 games isn’t something to read much into, from a defensive standpoint. Heck, Sifers was -3 over 19 games before his callup.
Word on the grapevine is that Stralman is getting better at reading the cycling game and getting into shooting lanes to prevent shots … which were two of his major weaknesses at the NHL level.
December 31st, 2008 at 1:28 am
Hedman i coming off a shoulder injury, maybe that has hindered his play a little bit? He will definetely be big soon. And sometimes defencemen make plays that are critical to the game, it’s not all about scoring. Sorry I have to really express my thoughts, if we traded Kaberle and Sundin and Kubina: We would have gotten further ahead int he rebuilding process: Higgins, Carter, Grabovski (although we have him already), 2 first round picks from Luke Schenn’s draft, we could have picken up Chet Pikard (playing exceptionally well for Canada thus far) and another promising prospect. I am kinda sketchy on Kubina’s case, I think we could have fetched Clowe is it?
December 31st, 2008 at 1:31 am
good insight Garrett, you should post blogs more often
December 31st, 2008 at 1:32 am
Exactly what im saying Garret, we need to improve on drafting better. We need to draft promising defensive and offensive minded prospects that will be really good in the future. Toronto hasn’t done that in a while, that’s why we are 40 years without a cup.
December 31st, 2008 at 1:32 am
Mizuno, I agree. Forward depth is the most important thing, at this point.
Looking at it from a FA perspective, I wonder if a solid defenseman may come cheaper than a 35 goal scorer. If that’s the case, the draft emphasis should definitely be on forwards as the D can be built through other means.
Not to mention that Schenn, Stralman, and White all look to be key components of the future … there’s half a starting D, in a few years. Can’t say we’ve got six forwards who will definitely be a part of the core a couple years from now. Stajan, I suppose is one. Probably Grabovski and Kulemin, if they continue to develop. That’s three of a possible top six up front. Yep, there is much work to be done.
December 31st, 2008 at 1:33 am
Good job on the comment on Stralman’s development, that was really nice, hopefully hell become really good.
December 31st, 2008 at 1:35 am
I’ve been meaning to write a bit about him, but I’m trying to track down a few more details before doing an actual post, though. I don’t want to base an entire post on what a few regular Marlie-goers (and friends of a couple of the players) have told me.
December 31st, 2008 at 1:39 am
I am looking forward to your post about Stralman, are you going to track down the details based on the Marlies game or previous games hes played in the NHL?
December 31st, 2008 at 1:46 am
A little bit of both, if I can. In-depth Marlie game analysis is harder to track down, but I’ll see what I can find. May have to rely on the “grapevine” for some of that, which I’d rather not do. I’ve seen more of him, and read more about his game, at the NHL level, so that part is much easier. Should have something up in the next day or so, if I’m lucky.
December 31st, 2008 at 2:23 am
IMAGINE IF THOSE GUYS HAD LET US TRADE THEM
carter, higgins, grabo, luca sbisa,
we would be able to turn this thing around by next year when we signed nash
but anyways, what do u guys actually think we could get 4 kaberle, and who do you guys think we will have in prospects by the end of march
December 31st, 2008 at 2:31 am
Gus Katsaros mentioned Hodgson and a first not as a solid rumor but as an example of what the Leafs could retrieve
to be honest that sounds steep to me, but we can’t underestimate the value of a smooth skating puck mover on the blue-line. a lot will have to do with whether or not we can move him at the deadline because teams will pay more in march than july or august
I would be happy with just a first myself. if we could get a quality prospect alongside the first i would be ecstatic. i guess when i think about it, whoever we are gonna be dealing kaberle to is going to be a playoff team very very likely as kaberle won’t waive unless it is. he’ll probably only go to a legit contender (I agree with gus, vancouver could be a potential destination), which means the first will be in the 25 range give or take. Obviously any first rounder of any sort is a plus and it could potentially be packaged along our first to move up to grab the player burke wants. i think that may be the case as burke will pick out one player from the upper draft class and decide that’s his man, sort of like Fletcher. i think they have similar approaches to drafting from what i’ve heard
so, if that pick is low like we can expect then may be I do expect a prospect alongside him. I think that’s still out there somewhere, possibly in Vancouver, maybe still in Philly
December 31st, 2008 at 2:36 am
ya i thought that hodgesen seemed too steep as well, cuz i think there would be riots if they traded that kid cuz he seems like a terrific young prospect, makes you wonder if we should had just waited, and drafted him instead of schenn
December 31st, 2008 at 2:49 am
I disagree with drafting Hodgson over Schenn. The Leafs really lacked defense, and that was something Cliff Fletcher was trying to adress or improve on after evaluating his team. That’s why he got Finger, Frogren and Van Ryn to develop a solid D core that Ron Wilson can work with and develop. With patience, Schenn will become a well rounded shutdown defenseman!
December 31st, 2008 at 7:47 am
Finally a good game from Cujo where he didn’t look like swiss cheese back there. And Grabovski’s speed last night was amazing. Maybe we’ll see more of those stretch passes to Grabs while he’s in full flight – although he needs more confidence to shoot; his shooting percentage is amazing. And good on Stempniak for finally putting together some goals. He plays well, he just had that Alex Steen syndrome of not converting.
December 31st, 2008 at 9:59 am
Kaberle’s biggest disadvantage this year is that he doesn’t have that stud right-handed forward like Sundin to hit with the stretch pass. The Kaberle stretch pass from the left is a tough one for left-handed forwards to hold — Grabovski was able to last night, but it’s been awhile since we’ve seen that play unfold. Kaberle still has a ton of upside for contending teams, he’s just been displaced on this new Leaf squad.
Nice to see Cujo get number 450. And I mean literally see….I was there last night
December 31st, 2008 at 11:18 am
Wow an explosion of comments haha. Guess everyone was holding it in til the post-game blog game out.
December 31st, 2008 at 11:49 am
In regards to the game, CuJo played as well as we could have hoped for being 41 and not being in any sort of real rhythm this year.
Grabovski, Kulemin and Hagman were lights out for the most part. I loved their work ethic. I wish they would have had more time on the PP for sure. Williams left with a shoulder injury, and that seemed to spark Stempniak. I know there are a lot of doubters out there, but I think we saw an example of what he can do. He buried a sweet pass from Poni. Toronto’s system is completely different than St. Louis, and he had zero confidence in St. Louis this year. It takes time to find where you fit. I would take Stempniak over Blake any day. Blake has been alright over the last while, but at 5 mill per year, he’s another McCabe for our blue and white…simply overpaid.
Mitchell looked good as well, nice to see him get a little time with some other players than our current 4th line folks. Here’s what I would propose for next game’s lineup.
Poni – Stajan – Antropov
Kulemin – Grabo – Stempniak
Hagman – Mitchell – Mayers
Blake – Moore – Deveaux
Kaberle – Kubina
Finger – White
Frogren – Sifers
Did anyone see Sifers after his attempted fight?? Did he get a misconduct, or was there a message being sent to him?
I think the key for us the rest of the year is developing a 4th line so we can roll all 4 instead of keeping to 3 and mixing in a guy or 2 from the 4th onto the top 3. Did Hollweg play in the third period (shouldn’t be in the lineup anyways)??
In regards to Kaberle, I hope we have learned from the Sundin saga what to do and what not to do. I think we ask him if he wants us to explore a trade, if he says no, we respect his decision. If we miss the playoffs again (which looks like will happen), then we sit down with him again and explain where we need to go, thank him for his time and then deal him.
The only concern I have with Kaberle going is the loss of offence from the blue line. Kubina has a clapper from the point, but who will feed it to him?? I also think White is much more effective as a winger than on D, but he could still play that on the point. Stralman has offensive upside, but is a liability on D in our own zone at times. I realize Kaberle is probably going to fetch the best price for us, but I would rather see Finger be the odd man out.
December 31st, 2008 at 2:02 pm
just thought i’d point out that sanford was placed on the IR, which is likely why vancouver traded for labarbara. however, once luongo and sanford are back (both week-to-week), then we can let the trade speculation begin…
December 31st, 2008 at 2:09 pm
Thanks Sarah, makes sense.
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