The Leafs Getting Much Younger
Posted 1:26 PM ET | Comments 6
Well I must say to start of this is my first blog here at hockeybuzz
so hopefully a couple people will read it. Just want to start of by
saying I really enjoy people's comments on this site.
There are alot of bright hockey minds here and hardcore fans
to there respective teams.
Alot of people are sitting here or there now bashing the Maple Leafs
for the moves they have made thus far in the offseason.My comment is
hold the bashing till we see some results. Yes even I would not have
given Mr.Finger a four year fourteen million dollar deal, but come on
lets cut the guy some slack and not run him out of town just yet he
"could" be a late bloomer or he could be just average and overpaid or
he could be a complete failure.The way I see it the guy deserves a
Chance.I'm game for him because he is 28 decently young still has 5 to
6 years in his prime left and will see just how good he gets.
Niklas hagman I thought was the best of there three seasons because
alot of good forwards bloom late now im not saying this guy is going to
score 60-70 points. I'm saying this guy is better than Darcy Tucker.
Darcy Tucker was getting older couldn't skate very well anymore and
could hardly throw a big hit. Hagman brings Great Speed good Grit alot
more grit than Tucker provided in the last two season's for us and
Good shot and good PK guy. I dont believe hagman is going to score 27
in Toronto but I do believe that Hagman is going to be a 15-20 Goal
Scorer here and provide us some much needed energy and a Very talented
PK guy.He also is only 28. Mikhail Grabovski trade for me was HUGE and
I mean HUGE ! I know there are some people out there complaining about
losing another 2nd round pick and a prospect.In my opinion though we
"perhaps" got a steal from Montreal time will tell. I dont want to here
Grabovski is the next Kyle wellwood because he already isn't. Kyle
Wellwood was never a good skater and didnt have much of a shot either
and would make his team Vulnerable by Avoiding a hit at " ALL COSTS"!!
Grabovski on the other hand I know doesnt like to get dirty but he
doesn't leave his team vulnerable like Kyle Wellwood did. Grabovski
also posses Dynamic Speed is a great skater and has Dynamic Shot ! His
skill set all together far surpasses that of Kyle Wellwood now he has
to show it on a consistant basis in the NHL. OH and by the way he is
only 24 years old. How about Jiri Tlusty why aren't people talking
about him. This kid has game plane and simple he is responsible
defensivly can throw a hit or two and is a great skater with good
speed. Tlusty had 10 goals in 58 games last year in toronto playing 8
or 9 minutes a game mostly 4th and 3rd line. I think this kid can be
a 20-25 goal scorer if given the oppurtunity.Nikolai Kulemin that is
the guy I will be microscoping in on this year potentially
The Maple Leafs next big thing on Offense the guy has Explosive Speed
a INCREDIBLE SHOT! and if you get in his way he is not afraid to drop
you. Dave King his ex coach who coached him and Malkin said Malkin
was the better Point Getter but Kulemin was the Much better Complete
player. So I dont expect 100 pt seasons out of this guy however it's
not far fetched to think this guy could be a 60 pt guy something the
Leafs have lacked for a long time.Anton Stralman is a wonderful
Offensive D man but I think we all agree he needs to gain some muscle
to fill out his body but I think the sky is the limit for him. We also
drafted Luke Schenn Who I have a hunch will be on the roster this
up comming season.Now just imagine if we land Frogren and could some
how get Vorbiev undercontract. I do think the Leafs will get Frogren
however I doubt they will convince Vorbiev.
With all the above said People make the leafs sound as if they have
no future young up comming players. They might not of had a bright
out look under JFJ but under Cliff Fletcher there looking alright.
If we take a look at the list below it shows most if not all of
the current contracted players by the Maple Leafs not including
goalies.I will not be listing Vorbiev because I dont believe
he will ever be signed but I hope he gets signed. I will be
listing Frogren though because Leafs lunch said they just
signed him to a two year deal.
Forwards
Jiri Tlusty-Age-20
Alex Steen-Age-24(RFA)-(no idea why he isnt signed yet)
Matt Stajan-Age-24
Nikolai Kulemin-Age-22(turns 22 in 10 days)
Jermey Williams-Age-24
Kris Newbury-Age-26
Mikhail Grabovski-Age-24
Robbie Earl-Age-23
Darryl Boyce-Age-24(turns 24 in 3 days)
Nik Antropov-Age-28
Boyd Devereaux-Age-30
Alex Ponikarovsky-Age-28
Niklas Hagman-Age-28
Jason Blake-Age-34
Mark Bell-Age-28
Bates Battaglia-Age-32
Alex Foster-Age-23
Jamal Mayers-Age-33
John Mitchell-Age-23
Defense
Luke Schenn-Age-18(notsigned)
Anton Stralman-Age-22(turns 22 in less than a month)
Jonas Frogren-Age-28
Carlo Colaiacovo-Age-25
Jeff Finger-Age-28
Tomas Kaberle-Age-30
Pavel Kubina-Age-31
Steffan Kronwall-Age-27
Ian White-Age-24(I dont believe he will be in the starting 6)
Bryan McCabe-Age-33(Would be a Miracle if he stays)
Phil Oreskovic-Age-21
There average Forward age works out to be 23.15
There Average Defense age works out to be 26.09 with McCabe
Without McCabe 25.4
There Overall Team Age With McCabe 26.16
Without McCabe 25.5
So at the very least what we have here is the fact the Maple Leafs
Will have a very young team that should be entertaining.
so hopefully a couple people will read it. Just want to start of by
saying I really enjoy people's comments on this site.
There are alot of bright hockey minds here and hardcore fans
to there respective teams.
Alot of people are sitting here or there now bashing the Maple Leafs
for the moves they have made thus far in the offseason.My comment is
hold the bashing till we see some results. Yes even I would not have
given Mr.Finger a four year fourteen million dollar deal, but come on
lets cut the guy some slack and not run him out of town just yet he
"could" be a late bloomer or he could be just average and overpaid or
he could be a complete failure.The way I see it the guy deserves a
Chance.I'm game for him because he is 28 decently young still has 5 to
6 years in his prime left and will see just how good he gets.
Niklas hagman I thought was the best of there three seasons because
alot of good forwards bloom late now im not saying this guy is going to
score 60-70 points. I'm saying this guy is better than Darcy Tucker.
Darcy Tucker was getting older couldn't skate very well anymore and
could hardly throw a big hit. Hagman brings Great Speed good Grit alot
more grit than Tucker provided in the last two season's for us and
Good shot and good PK guy. I dont believe hagman is going to score 27
in Toronto but I do believe that Hagman is going to be a 15-20 Goal
Scorer here and provide us some much needed energy and a Very talented
PK guy.He also is only 28. Mikhail Grabovski trade for me was HUGE and
I mean HUGE ! I know there are some people out there complaining about
losing another 2nd round pick and a prospect.In my opinion though we
"perhaps" got a steal from Montreal time will tell. I dont want to here
Grabovski is the next Kyle wellwood because he already isn't. Kyle
Wellwood was never a good skater and didnt have much of a shot either
and would make his team Vulnerable by Avoiding a hit at " ALL COSTS"!!
Grabovski on the other hand I know doesnt like to get dirty but he
doesn't leave his team vulnerable like Kyle Wellwood did. Grabovski
also posses Dynamic Speed is a great skater and has Dynamic Shot ! His
skill set all together far surpasses that of Kyle Wellwood now he has
to show it on a consistant basis in the NHL. OH and by the way he is
only 24 years old. How about Jiri Tlusty why aren't people talking
about him. This kid has game plane and simple he is responsible
defensivly can throw a hit or two and is a great skater with good
speed. Tlusty had 10 goals in 58 games last year in toronto playing 8
or 9 minutes a game mostly 4th and 3rd line. I think this kid can be
a 20-25 goal scorer if given the oppurtunity.Nikolai Kulemin that is
the guy I will be microscoping in on this year potentially
The Maple Leafs next big thing on Offense the guy has Explosive Speed
a INCREDIBLE SHOT! and if you get in his way he is not afraid to drop
you. Dave King his ex coach who coached him and Malkin said Malkin
was the better Point Getter but Kulemin was the Much better Complete
player. So I dont expect 100 pt seasons out of this guy however it's
not far fetched to think this guy could be a 60 pt guy something the
Leafs have lacked for a long time.Anton Stralman is a wonderful
Offensive D man but I think we all agree he needs to gain some muscle
to fill out his body but I think the sky is the limit for him. We also
drafted Luke Schenn Who I have a hunch will be on the roster this
up comming season.Now just imagine if we land Frogren and could some
how get Vorbiev undercontract. I do think the Leafs will get Frogren
however I doubt they will convince Vorbiev.
With all the above said People make the leafs sound as if they have
no future young up comming players. They might not of had a bright
out look under JFJ but under Cliff Fletcher there looking alright.
If we take a look at the list below it shows most if not all of
the current contracted players by the Maple Leafs not including
goalies.I will not be listing Vorbiev because I dont believe
he will ever be signed but I hope he gets signed. I will be
listing Frogren though because Leafs lunch said they just
signed him to a two year deal.
Forwards
Jiri Tlusty-Age-20
Alex Steen-Age-24(RFA)-(no idea why he isnt signed yet)
Matt Stajan-Age-24
Nikolai Kulemin-Age-22(turns 22 in 10 days)
Jermey Williams-Age-24
Kris Newbury-Age-26
Mikhail Grabovski-Age-24
Robbie Earl-Age-23
Darryl Boyce-Age-24(turns 24 in 3 days)
Nik Antropov-Age-28
Boyd Devereaux-Age-30
Alex Ponikarovsky-Age-28
Niklas Hagman-Age-28
Jason Blake-Age-34
Mark Bell-Age-28
Bates Battaglia-Age-32
Alex Foster-Age-23
Jamal Mayers-Age-33
John Mitchell-Age-23
Defense
Luke Schenn-Age-18(notsigned)
Anton Stralman-Age-22(turns 22 in less than a month)
Jonas Frogren-Age-28
Carlo Colaiacovo-Age-25
Jeff Finger-Age-28
Tomas Kaberle-Age-30
Pavel Kubina-Age-31
Steffan Kronwall-Age-27
Ian White-Age-24(I dont believe he will be in the starting 6)
Bryan McCabe-Age-33(Would be a Miracle if he stays)
Phil Oreskovic-Age-21
There average Forward age works out to be 23.15
There Average Defense age works out to be 26.09 with McCabe
Without McCabe 25.4
There Overall Team Age With McCabe 26.16
Without McCabe 25.5
So at the very least what we have here is the fact the Maple Leafs
Will have a very young team that should be entertaining.
Alex Steen signed a 2-year, $3.4 million contract near the end of the season. It is Stajan that remains unsigned as of right now, and will likely be headed to arbitration. Otherwise, solid blog!
Thanks for the compliment, and yeah I liked alex steen's deal he still has potential but he is a good two way player who in my opinion is a 15-20 goal scorer and a 40-50 pt getter might be able to get to 60 at some point but who knows. Stajan I didnt want to see go to Arbitration , because most of the time abritration you usually only get granted 1 year deals, and personally I think stajan is worth more than steen at the moment because he is the better two way player and the better penalty killer I would of loved to see stajan signed to a 3 or 4 yr deal between 1.5 and 2 mil per season.
Firstly, thank you for your article.I agree, Cliff Fletcher has compiled a young team that many Leaf fans are too quick to dismiss. The unknowns are exactly how good will Jiri Tlusty, Mikhail Grabovski and Nikolai Kulemin be in the NHL? Is Jeff Finger the late blooming hard hitting defensive man with an edge that the Leafs have been missing for so many years? I have no doubt that Luke Schenn will be a force in the NHL, but we are not likely to see him in the NHL this year.After years of having an average team with no upside we are about to see a team that is younger and faster than last years. We have a new coach with an edge that is not afraid to challenge players to be better. A team that does have upside and can be the beginning of something better.
Yeah I'm not writing this team off I'm not saying they will make the playoffs but Guys like Hagman and Finger intrigue me so I'll wait to judge but I kind of hope Sundin does not come back and it hurts to say that because he is forsure my favourite NHL player. However I want to see some guys like Tlusty,Kulemin and Graboski get time. I think Kulemin will play on the top 2 lines regardless if Mats comes back or not. Oh and Thanks for the Compliment
Nice Blog. I'm also happy with the on ice direction - younger, faster, grittier. Whatever one might say about the players that Cliff has acquired I think that everyone would have to agree that they all play hard, so we should see a Leaf team that's more determined if not more skilled. I've seen a few comments on other blogs comparing Grabovski and Wellwood. I don't know much about Grabovski but I was encouraged by a negative comment a Habs fan made about him. It was something like 'Wait for him to get benched and throw a hissy fit.' I think Wellwood's fate was sealed last year when he was scratched and he didn't react at all. Obviously players have to earn their ice time but if a guy's not upset that he's not playing he probably shouldn't be. By the sound of it, Grabovski's competitive and he's a good guy, despite the fact that he left the Habs without permission last year to try and get more ice time in the AHL. The one thing I'm not too happy about so far, in addition to the seemingly ridiculously large Finger contract, is that Fletcher has gotten nothing in return for the players he's shipped out and that he's paying in draft picks to bring other guys in. Obviously he's not done yet and he's got at least two too many defencemen on the roster, hopefully he can swing some deals to ease the logjam on D and replenish some picks. I know the kind of heat McCabe's taken from the fans but I've been thinking that if he's really dug in his heels it might not be a bad move to make up with him, put him on the second pairing and deal Kubina and Kaberle (if Kaberle would go for it). It would be hard to see them both go but they're pretty much the only Leaf players with significant trade value and if Fletcher is serious about rebuilding those two could probably bring back a good return for the future. As for McCabe I don't think he's been as bad as people make him out to be and I think that given a chance he can rebound and provide full value for his contract. Anyway, I'm looking forward to seeing what this team looks like when it gets back on the ice. Should be a fun year next year.
Yeah most certainly , I wouldn't Trade kaberle though. As for the leafs doing more I still think fletcher has something up his sleeve to grab a 20-30 goal scorer on forward through via trade , but then again thats what I hope I have no proof of that actually happening. All though Jason Williams wouldn't be a bad grab.