2025-26 Toronto Maple Leafs General Discussion
- Thread starter herman
- Start date
Roy and Joshua are at their most valuable when they're playing well and eating a heavy dosage of defensive assignments/zone starts. I know Nylander played well there the one game but ultimately that's not a role you want him playing a lot. With that said you sure as heck don't want Domi there either I don't know what's going on.
I don't mind trying 34+88 together again though, both need to break out of their funks.
4EVRLEAFAN
Active member
It's not a funk for 34, there's something wrong with him.
This sounds so bad lol
What a quote! Thanks for the posting, Anna!
I'm still waiting.
Guilt Trip
Well-known member
L K
Well-known member
Great minds!
It's also just good to get Hildeby back in the net. He wasn't the problem when he got pulled in his last start but icing him out for a week just seems like a great way to mess with his confidence.
WhatIfGodWasALeaf
Well-known member
It seems the media have decided it's time to give Matthews the Larry Murphy treatment.
Guilt Trip
Well-known member
It's ridiculous really. I guess they need a new whipping boy like many fans. Negativity sells. Would love it if he could get back to where he was but it is what it is. How can you get mad at him for being injured?
To be fair, while the injury is the most probable cause, the team, and he himself have said he is healthy enough to play. Most fans and media people aren't as smart as the people here. If you remove injury, it just looks like he isn't trying.
Guilt Trip
Well-known member
I guess logic doesn't work for some lol
No it doesn't. I mean think of the people who would say Gretzky wasn't that great because he couldn't fight. As George Carlin said "Think of the dumbest person you know, and the realize that probably 50% of the population is dumber than that"
L K
Well-known member
I think the one thing that is going to allow the Matthews stuff to fester (aside from the media crap...and this is the one area where I think the Leafs media really sucks is they try to create controversy to sell views...probably the only scenario where players are treated worse is a French Canadian player playing in Montreal who isn't the second coming of Lafleur) is what the hell is his injury.
We think its his back. I get why the team doesn't want to create a bigger target on his problems but when you make comments about him being healthy or things being fine when it clearly isn't, it will get the more casual fans frothing. He wasn't right last year and his physical metrics are worse this year.
That being said, Matthews is getting the brunt of things right now
John Tavares - 1G 2A -6 in his last 12 games
Will Nylander - 2G 7A -3 in his last 12 games
Matthew Knies - 2G 9A -4 in his last 16 games
Auston Matthews - 5G 4A -1 in his last 12 games
Noone is playing well offensively right now and Matthews is matching the goal scoring of Knies+Nylander+Tavares over this streak of play.
Knies has been hurt this year. Tavares' game fell off a cliff so it's hard to imagine he isn't playing hurt. Nylander has missed time so again its probably likely he is playing hurt.
But if everyone on the team is banging up to the point that our four best players have 10 goals in their last 52 combined games. Deal with it. Sit them. Accept that the season is an unmitigated disaster and get them fixed. If it isn't all injury then it is a complete collapse of the coaching philosophy. If the organization thinks the team is quitting on the coach...then deal with the players but we aren't fixing this. Get a coach who can work better with these players and rebuild their trade value.
We think its his back. I get why the team doesn't want to create a bigger target on his problems but when you make comments about him being healthy or things being fine when it clearly isn't, it will get the more casual fans frothing. He wasn't right last year and his physical metrics are worse this year.
That being said, Matthews is getting the brunt of things right now
John Tavares - 1G 2A -6 in his last 12 games
Will Nylander - 2G 7A -3 in his last 12 games
Matthew Knies - 2G 9A -4 in his last 16 games
Auston Matthews - 5G 4A -1 in his last 12 games
Noone is playing well offensively right now and Matthews is matching the goal scoring of Knies+Nylander+Tavares over this streak of play.
Knies has been hurt this year. Tavares' game fell off a cliff so it's hard to imagine he isn't playing hurt. Nylander has missed time so again its probably likely he is playing hurt.
But if everyone on the team is banging up to the point that our four best players have 10 goals in their last 52 combined games. Deal with it. Sit them. Accept that the season is an unmitigated disaster and get them fixed. If it isn't all injury then it is a complete collapse of the coaching philosophy. If the organization thinks the team is quitting on the coach...then deal with the players but we aren't fixing this. Get a coach who can work better with these players and rebuild their trade value.