millbank Posted September 19, 2009 Author Report Share Posted September 19, 2009 Greetings to you... :) .... regarding Balsillie and hockey issue... I leave it to my man Leonard :o you be well.. Can't agree with this. Moore is 29 and has never had more than 13 goals in a season. Kessel is 21, has had 3 years in the NHL and scored 11, 19 and 36. Moore is more or less a dime a dozen, while Kessel could easily be a guy who scores 35-40 goals per year for the next 10 years. I agree that they got a significant player, but I'd say it was more just a part of their rebuilding process than an attempt to keep up with the others in the division. It's also worth noting that they gave up 2 potential top 10 draft picks and a fat 5-year contract in exchange for a guy with some real baggage. I mostly agree, but Kessel was a 1st line player for the best team in the EC last year and will certainly be a top line player for the Leafs. The Leafs will definitely be better than last year. I don't think they'll be in the mix for the playoffs though. I've been as anti-Balsillie as anyone, but it's not meant as a slam on the hockey fans of S. Ontario. I can certainly emphathize with hockey fans wanting a team. I just think he's gone about it wrong, and I really think a team there would hurt the Sabres. In any case, I hope you are well and that you'll come out of posting hibernation once the puck drops. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hawerchuk Posted September 19, 2009 Report Share Posted September 19, 2009 Damn, Kessel is a good player. I was hoping he'd be out of the Sabres division if Baaaaaaaston couldn't sign him. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deluca67 Posted September 19, 2009 Report Share Posted September 19, 2009 I agree that they got a significant player, but I'd say it was more just a part of their rebuilding process than an attempt to keep up with the others in the division. It's also worth noting that they gave up 2 potential top 10 draft picks and a fat 5-year contract in exchange for a guy with some real baggage. You are right, they are rebuilding. I have no doubt Burke will get his team built before the Sabres sniff the playoffs again. Sadly, Kessel is part of the 80% of NHL players that Sabre fans have no chance of ever seeing in a Sabres uniform. At least until their career is all but over. Burke builds winners while Regier recycles excuses. The second part of my post was a shot at the Sabres and their inability to do anything significant this off-season. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deluca67 Posted September 19, 2009 Report Share Posted September 19, 2009 Contender, probably not, but with all the defensemen they have added and they new goalie, they are going to be fighting for a playoff spot...... :doh: They are as much a contender as the Sabres are. And you can be damned sure they will be much tougher despite all the fifth liners the Sabres gave contracts to. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nfreeman Posted September 19, 2009 Report Share Posted September 19, 2009 You are right, they are rebuilding. I have no doubt Burke will get his team built before the Sabres sniff the playoffs again. Sadly, Kessel is part of the 80% of NHL players that Sabre fans have no chance of ever seeing in a Sabres uniform. At least until their career is all but over. Burke builds winners while Regier recycles excuses. The second part of my post was a shot at the Sabres and their inability to do anything significant this off-season. Do you think the Leafs will have a better year than the Sabres? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deluca67 Posted September 20, 2009 Report Share Posted September 20, 2009 Do you think the Leafs will have a better year than the Sabres? They'll be grouped with the Sabres. Where the Sabres have the advantage is in goal. That said, if Miller is out again for any significant length of time you could expect Lalime to lead this team out of playoff again. Miller is the difference between the Sabres having some of the best goaltending in the Division and maybe the worst in the Conference. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nfreeman Posted September 20, 2009 Report Share Posted September 20, 2009 They'll be grouped with the Sabres. Where the Sabres have the advantage is in goal. That said, if Miller is out again for any significant length of time you could expect Lalime to lead this team out of playoff again. Miller is the difference between the Sabres having some of the best goaltending in the Division and maybe the worst in the Conference. I think you're overestimating the Leafs and underestimating the Sabres. I think the Leafs will finish well out of the money. I agree on Miller though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deluca67 Posted September 20, 2009 Report Share Posted September 20, 2009 I think you're overestimating the Leafs and underestimating the Sabres. I think the Leafs will finish well out of the money. I agree on Miller though. The Leafs finished only 7 wins and 10 points behind the Sabres last year. They took steps to improve their goaltending and have added talent where the Sabres are going into this season with the same squad we all watched finish 10th in consecutive years. It's not unreasonable to that if a team stands pat and a team behind them in the standings improves themselves that it is a real possibility for the Leafs to be right there fighting with the Sabres for the one or two available playoff spots. I would think even you would agree that if it is close at he trade deadline that Brian Burke is more likely to get a deal done to get the Leafs into the playoffs than Regier is. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bob_sauve28 Posted September 20, 2009 Report Share Posted September 20, 2009 He must be one hell of a golfer. Why, is he going to be traded to the Sabres? If Toronto makes a big improvement this year with the people they have added that will make our organization look even worse than it does now, assuming we don't significantly improve ourselves. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VansTheMans Posted September 20, 2009 Report Share Posted September 20, 2009 The Leafs have a real shot at making the playoffs. Their revamped defense alone will make them difficult to play against. Acquiring Kessel now gives them a more potent offense as well. This is the tightest I've seen the Eastern Conference in YEARS. I want to see the Sabres prove all the naysayers wrong and reach the postseason this year...but they may not have enough. However, the team and organization must know that this is it; this is their one final shot. If they fail to reach the playoffs this year, there will be a fire sale of the roster and wholesale personal change (i.e. Lindy and Darcy both gone). Knowing that, I'd hope the Sabres leave it all out on the ice this year. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shrader Posted September 20, 2009 Report Share Posted September 20, 2009 The big question about Kessel, other than his health, is that if he is partially a product of Marc Savard in Boston, who will be his Marc Savard in Toronto? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deluca67 Posted September 20, 2009 Report Share Posted September 20, 2009 The big question about Kessel, other than his health, is that if he is partially a product of Marc Savard in Boston, who will be his Marc Savard in Toronto? Was Savard a product of Kessel? I'll watch Adams Division teams before any other regardless of the match-up. I really like Kessel as a player. The kid is young and has a huge career ahead of him. Please no comparisons to Connolly. If Connolly had the same drive as a player Kessel has back when he was 21? His career would be at a much different place right now. If all it took was a couple of #1s? The Sabres missed the boat. Kessel is the franchise changer the Sabres should have been looking at instead of collecting 5th liners with little NHL talent. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nfreeman Posted September 20, 2009 Report Share Posted September 20, 2009 The Leafs finished only 7 wins and 10 points behind the Sabres last year. They took steps to improve their goaltending and have added talent where the Sabres are going into this season with the same squad we all watched finish 10th in consecutive years. It's not unreasonable to that if a team stands pat and a team behind them in the standings improves themselves that it is a real possibility for the Leafs to be right there fighting with the Sabres for the one or two available playoff spots. I would think even you would agree that if it is close at he trade deadline that Brian Burke is more likely to get a deal done to get the Leafs into the playoffs than Regier is. I think the Sabres improved themselves with Grier and Montador. Those guys are not as good as the guys the Leafs brought in, but they will be solid contributors, both in terms of quality of play and in terms of leadership and getting underperforming teammates to play harder. I also think they will improve via guys like Pommer, Hecht, Roy, Tallinder and Sekera having better years and Rivet and TC staying healthy. And while the Leafs will also have some guys who "naturally" improve, the guys I mentioned on the Sabres are better players, IMHO, and their "natural" improvement will make more of a difference. As for deadline deals, DR has brought in quality players in 2 of the last 3 years at the deadline. I don't think the Sabres' failure to make the playoffs last year can be attributed to deadline deals that did or didn't happen. If Toronto makes a big improvement this year with the people they have added that will make our organization look even worse than it does now, assuming we don't significantly improve ourselves. OTOH, I can't argue with this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eleven Posted September 21, 2009 Report Share Posted September 21, 2009 Was Savard a product of Kessel? I'll watch Adams Division teams before any other regardless of the match-up. I really like Kessel as a player. The kid is young and has a huge career ahead of him. Please no comparisons to Connolly. If Connolly had the same drive as a player Kessel has back when he was 21? His career would be at a much different place right now. If all it took was a couple of #1s? The Sabres missed the boat. Kessel is the franchise changer the Sabres should have been looking at instead of collecting 5th liners with little NHL talent. "I want 10,000 tough guys, and I want 10,000 soft guys to make the tough guys look tougher!" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Calvin Posted September 21, 2009 Report Share Posted September 21, 2009 Greetings to you... :) .... regarding Balsillie and hockey issue... I leave it to my man Leonard :o you be well.. Millbank, how are the Leafs doing with cap space? do you see them dumping any significant players before the season begins? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spndnchz Posted September 21, 2009 Report Share Posted September 21, 2009 Millbank, how are the Leafs doing with cap space? do you see them dumping any significant players before the season begins? The Leafs have no cap space. And still need two more forwards from what I see. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shrader Posted September 21, 2009 Report Share Posted September 21, 2009 The Leafs have no cap space. And still need two more forwards from what I see. If you're going by the nhlnumbers figures, they've got at least $2 million worth of space locked up in defensemen that won't be with the team to open the year. 9 d-men are counted in that figure. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
millbank Posted September 21, 2009 Author Report Share Posted September 21, 2009 Maple Leaf Numbers Burke a aggressive man, he has added toughness , they have a much better defense, appear solid in goal, interesting group on young players. At some point will want to rid themselves of Blake if possible. Think they might surprise with a couple of unknowns making big team, first round pick will be sent back to London for another year. It would appear gap between Leafs and Sabre's much closer. Millbank, how are the Leafs doing with cap space? do you see them dumping any significant players before the season begins? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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