Originally posted by Taylor@Aug 24 2013, 03:10 PM
I loved how last year before the season started everyone just blew the Leafs off saying they would be a bottom team again. They finish strong in 5th and people are still underestimating them for this season when they look even stronger.

It was only half a season, and if they continued playing like they did down the stretch of the regular season last season there's no way in hell they would made the playoffs. There's reason to underestimate, they have a unknown situation at goalie, they're hoping they get a repeat performance from Kadri and he wasn't a one hit wonder, and they don't have one of their top 3 defensemen signed right now. So I'd say being weary of them isn't out of the question. Shit the Ducks finished 2nd last season, we have the same roster except added some solid depth players and there's definitely a lot of x factors that could cause them to be a lottery team to be quite honest.

Thank you to My boys @Merica and @Ragnar for the lovely sigs!

Originally posted by Maxy@Aug 24 2013, 03:23 PM

It was only half a season, and if they continued playing like they did down the stretch of the regular season last season there's no way in hell they would made the playoffs. There's reason to underestimate, they have a unknown situation at goalie, they're hoping they get a repeat performance from Kadri and he wasn't a one hit wonder, and they don't have one of their top 3 defensemen signed right now. So I'd say being weary of them isn't out of the question. Shit the Ducks finished 2nd last season, we have the same roster except added some solid depth players and there's definitely a lot of x factors that could cause them to be a lottery team to be quite honest.

If Lupul stays healthy that only helps our offence that much more. Clarkson will be a great versatile player as we can use him on the 2nd or 3rd line depending on how he plays, PP and/or PK. Bolland will make our bottom 6 stronger. Hopefully with another year with Carlyle our possession game will improve. Goalie situation isn't even a problem anymore. Reimer showed last year he can be a starter and do it well. Say what you want idc. With Bernier there as well we have two goalies great young goalies. Hopefully we get Kadri and Franson signed but if only one does then we have an asset to trade for the future or something to help our team now.

But we will see.

Originally posted by Taylor@Aug 24 2013, 03:46 PM

If Lupul stays healthy that only helps our offence that much more. Clarkson will be a great versatile player as we can use him on the 2nd or 3rd line depending on how he plays, PP and/or PK. Bolland will make our bottom 6 stronger. Hopefully with another year with Carlyle our possession game will improve. Goalie situation isn't even a problem anymore. Reimer showed last year he can be a starter and do it well. Say what you want idc. With Bernier there as well we have two goalies great young goalies. Hopefully we get Kadri and Franson signed but if only one does then we have an asset to trade for the future or something to help our team now.

But we will see.

Exactly there's a whole lot of what ifs lol. If Lupul stays healthy, which he hasn't been able to do for over 5 years, If Clarkson plays well which he has only played very well for a couple seasons and even they weren't spectacular. Reimer needs to prove he can be good for a whole season which he hasn't done yet. Having 2 goalies who haven't played a full season is definitely a problem, and if you can't sign Kadri or Franson you're taking a chance, as what you trade for may not work out.

I'm a pretty big supporter of the Leafs but I definitely don't feel that it's a certainty they do as good or better than last season

Thank you to My boys @Merica and @Ragnar for the lovely sigs!

Originally posted by Taylor@Aug 24 2013, 03:46 PM

Clarkson will be a great versatile player as we can use him on the 2nd or 3rd line depending on how he plays, PP and/or PK.

You don't want Clarkson anywhere near your PK.

RYAN RIELEY | LW | NEW ENGLAND WOLFPACK | 546 TPE
NAME: RYAN RIELEY
NATIONALITY: USA
HEIGHT: 6'4"
WEIGHT: 210 LBS
NUMBER: 89
———————————————————————————————————
SMJHL CAREER STATS
S53 CAR: GP: 11, G: 2, A: 2, P: 4, +/-: -3, H: 16, CF: 34.9%, CF Rel: -5.1%
S54 COL: GP: 50, G: 8, A: 5, P: 13, +/-: -10, H: 99, CF: 49.8%, CF Rel: -8.9%
S55 QUE: GP: 50, G: 12, A: 7, P: 19, +/-: -17, H: 109, CF: 41.7%, CF Rel: +5.6%
———————————————————————————————————
SHL CAREER STATS

———————————————————————————————————
IIHF CAREER STATS
S54 SWE-JR: GP: 12, G: 1, A: 5, P: 6, +/-: +4, H: 29, CF: 50.6%, CF Rel: +8.9%
S55 USA-JR: GP: 12, G: 1, A: 0, P: 1, +/-: -3, H: 11, CF: 54.1%, CF Rel: -5.0%
———————————————————————————————————
SMJHL PLAYOFF STATS
S53 CAR: GP: 4, G: 0, A: 1, P: 1, +/-: E, H: 8, CF: 28.7%, CF Rel: -11.1%
S54 COL: GP: 5, G: 1, A: 1, P: 2, +/-: -1, H: 11, CF: 43.5%, CF Rel: -7.2%
S55 QUE: GP: 10, G: 2, A: 1, P: 3, +/-: -5, H: 20, CF: 42.9%, CF Rel: +7.5%
———————————————————————————————————
SHL PLAYOFF STATS

———————————————————————————————————
IIHF MEDAL ROUND STATS
S54 SWE-JR: GP: 1, G: 0, A: 1, P: 1, +/-: +1, H: 4, CF: 42.9%, CF Rel: -9.4%
———————————————————————————————————
AWARDS:

———————————————————————————————————
TRANSACTIONS:
S53: SIGNED DFA CONTRACT WITH THE CAROLINA KRAKEN
S54: DRAFTED 34TH OVERALL BY THE COLORADO RAPTORS IN THE SMJHL DRAFT
S54: LOANED FROM USA TO SWEDEN FOR THE WORLD JUNIORS
S55: DRAFTED 15TH OVERALL BY THE NEW ENGLAND WOLFPACK IN THE SHL DRAFT
S55: SIGNED A 1-YEAR, $3.0M ELC WITH NEW ENGLAND
S55: DRAFTED 7TH OVERALL BY QUEBEC CITY IN THE SMJHL EXPANSION DRAFT
S56: SIGNED A 2-YEAR, $6.0M EXTENSION WITH NEW ENGLAND


NICO GRØSS | RW | RETIRED
NAME: NICO GRØSS
NATIONALITY: SWITZERLAND
IIHF AFFILIATION: CZECHOSLOVAKIA
HEIGHT: 6'0"
WEIGHT: 198 LBS
NUMBER: 8
———————————————————————————————————
SMJHL CAREER STATS
S37 COL: GP: 50, G: 11, A: 15, P: 26, +/-: -1, H: 93
S38 COL: GP: 50, G: 7, A: 25, P: 32, +/-: -5, H: 134
S39 COL: GP: 50, G: 2, A: 26, P: 28, +/-: +8, H: 85
———————————————————————————————————
SHL CAREER STATS
S40 BUF: GP: 50, G: 1, A: 11, P: 12, +/-: -14, H: 148
S41 BUF: GP: 50, G: 1, A: 11, P: 12, +/-: -13, H: 146
S42 BUF: GP: 0, G: 0, A: 0, P: 0, +/-: E, H: 0
———————————————————————————————————
IIHF CAREER STATS
S38 CZE: GP: 10, G: 0, A: 0, P: 0, +/-: -2, H: 22
S39 CZE: GP: 10, G: 0, A: 0, P: 0, +/-: -4, H: 18
S40 CZE: GP: 10, G: 0, A: 3, P: 3, +/-: -1, H: 23
———————————————————————————————————
WJC CAREER STATS
S38 EU-C: GP: 5, G: 0, A: 1, P: 1, +/-: -6, H: 13
S39 EU-E: GP: 7, G: 0, A: 2, P: 2, +/-: -1, H: 17
———————————————————————————————————
SMJHL PLAYOFF STATS
S37 COL: GP: 7, G: 0, A: 3, P: 3, +/-: +1, H: 15
S38 COL: N/A
S39 COL: GP: 5, G: 1, A: 3, P: 4, +/-: +1, H: 11
———————————————————————————————————
SHL PLAYOFF STATS
S40 BUF: N/A
S41 BUF: GP: 7, G: 0, A: 1, P: 1, +/-: +1, H: 23
S42 BUF: TBD
———————————————————————————————————
IIHF MEDAL ROUND STATS
S38 CZE: N/A
S39 CZE: N/A
S40 CZE: N/A
———————————————————————————————————
AWARDS:

———————————————————————————————————
TRANSACTIONS:
S37: DRAFTED 3RD OVERALL IN THE SMJHL DRAFT BY COLORADO
S37: SIGNED 1 YEAR/$3.0M JUNIOR CONTRACT WITH COLORADO
S38: DRAFTED 6TH OVERALL IN THE SHL DRAFT BY BUFFALO
S38: SIGNED 2 YEAR/$5.0M ELC WITH BUFFALO
S38: TRANSFERRED IIHF AFFILIATION TO CZECHOSLOVAKIA
S38: NAMED TO TEAM EUROPE - CENTRAL FOR THE WORLD JUNIORS
S39: NAMED TO TEAM EUROPE - WEST FOR THE WORLD JUNIORS
S39: SIGNED 2 YEAR/$8.0M EXTENSION WITH BUFFALO
S41: SIGNED 3 YEAR/$12.0M EXTENSION WITH BUFFALO


CASEY HOLMES | G | RETIRED
NAME: CASEY HOLMES
NATIONALITY: USA
HEIGHT: 6'3"
WEIGHT: 185 LBS
NUMBER: 30
———————————————————————————————————
SMJHL CAREER STATS
S28 STL: 42GP, 18W, 3.21GAA, .872SV%, 4SO
S29 STL: 44GP, 26W, 2.70GAA, .890SV%, 2SO
———————————————————————————————————
SHL CAREER STATS
S30 BUF: 32GP, 10W, 3.43GAA, .894SV%, 1SO
S31 BUF: 44GP, 15W, 2.95GAA, .904SV%, 3SO
S32 BUF: 41GP, 17W, 2.87GAA, .907SV%, 3SO
S33 BUF: 44GP, 21W, 2.85GAA, .907SV%, 3SO
S34 BUF: 44GP, 16W, 3.29GAA, .902SV%, 2SO
S35 BUF: 44GP, 18W, 2.69GAA, .909SV%, 3SO
S36 BUF: 44GP, 27W, 2.81GAA, .908SV%, 2SO
S37 BUF: 45GP, 23W, 2.86GAA, .909SV%, 3SO
———————————————————————————————————
IIHF CAREER STATS
S34 USA: 10GP, 5W, 2.50GAA, .912SV%, 0SO
S35 USA: 10GP, 7W, 3.30GAA, .881SV%, 0SO
S36 USA: 10GP, 4W, 3.65GAA, .884SV%, 0SO
———————————————————————————————————
SMJHL PLAYOFF STATS
S28 STL: 5GP, 1W, 3.54GAA, .864SV%, 0SO
S29 STL: 16GP, 12W, 2.37GAA, .902SV%, 1SO
———————————————————————————————————
SHL PLAYOFF STATS
S30 BUF: N/A
S31 BUF: N/A
S32 BUF: N/A
S33 BUF: 5GP, 1W, 3.78GAA, .895SV%, 0SO
S34 BUF: N/A
S35 BUF: 3GP, 0W, 4.02GAA, .896SV%, 0SO
S36 BUF: 7GP, 3W, 2.50GAA, .903SV%, 1SO
S37 BUF: 7GP, 3W, 2.15GAA, .936SV%, 0SO
———————————————————————————————————
IIHF MEDAL ROUND STATS
S34 USA: 3GP, 3W, 1.33GAA, .946SV%, 2SO
S35 USA: 1GP, 0W, 3.19GAA, .902SV%, 0SO
S36 USA: N/A
———————————————————————————————————
AWARDS:
S29 FOUR STAR CUP CHAMPION (STL)
S29 JERMAINE TENNYSON AWARD (BEST SMJHL GOALTENDER)
S34 IIHF GOLD MEDALIST (USA)
———————————————————————————————————
TRANSACTIONS:
S28: SELECTED 3RD OVERALL (1ST ROUND) BY STL IN SMJHL DRAFT
S29: JOINED THE BUFFALO STAMPEDE
S29: SIGNED 1 YEAR/$1.000M ELC WITH BUF
S30: SIGNED 3 YEAR/$3.000M EXTENSION WITH BUF
S33: SIGNED 1 YEAR/$3.000M EXTENSION WITH BUF
S34: SIGNED 3 YEAR/$6.000M EXTENSION WITH BUF
S37: SIGNED 1 YEAR/$2.000M EXTENSION WITH BUF
S37: RETIRED


ADRIAN THOMAZ | C | RETIRED
NAME: ADRIAN THOMAZ
NATIONALITY: FINLAND
HEIGHT: 6'4"
WEIGHT: 220 LBS
NUMBER: 15
———————————————————————————————————
SMJHL CAREER STATS
S19 STL: GP: 40, G: 7, A: 11, P: 18, +/-: +6
S20 STL: GP: 40, G: 11, A: 16, P: 27, +-: -6
———————————————————————————————————
SHL CAREER STATS
S21 LAP: GP: 52, G: 11, A: 31, P: 42, +/-: E, H: 11
S22 LAP: GP: 52, G: 18, A: 25, P: 43, +/-: +9, H: 30
S23 LAP: GP: 52, G: 13, A: 25, P: 38, +/-: +2, H: 10
S24 LAP: GP: 52, G: 9, A: 30, P: 39, +/-: +17, H: 41
S25 BUF: GP: 50, G: 14, A: 28, P: 42, +/-: -3, H: 65
S26 BUF: GP: 50, G: 15, A: 26, P: 41, +/-: -8, H: 132
S27 BUF: GP: 50, G: 20, A: 23, P: 43, +/-: +7, H: 213
S28 BUF/WKP: GP: 49, G: 15, A: 28, P: 43, +/-: -2, H: 99
———————————————————————————————————
SMJHL PLAYOFF STATS
S19 STL: GP: 15, G: 1, A: 4, P: 5, +/-: +3
S20 STL: GP: 19, G: 6, A: 10, P: 16, +/-: +7
———————————————————————————————————
SHL PLAYOFF STATS
S21 LAP: GP: 5, G: 0, A: 3, P: 3, +/-: -1
S22 LAP: GP: 18, G: 4, A: 8, P: 12, +/-: +1
S23 LAP: GP: 7, G: 3, A: 2, P: 5, +/-: -1
S24 LAP: GP: 18, G: 8, A: 15, P: 23, +/-: +14
S25 BUF: N/A
S26 BUF: N/A
S27 BUF: N/A
S28 WKP: GP: 14, G: 5, A: 3, P: 8, +/-: +3
———————————————————————————————————
AWARDS:
S20 FOUR STAR CUP CHAMPION (STL)
S21 POTOCZNY AWARD WINNER (LAP TEAM AWARD)
S27 JEFF DAR TROPHY NOMINEE
———————————————————————————————————
TRANSACTIONS:
S19: SELECTED 24TH OVERALL (4TH ROUND) BY STL IN SMJHL DRAFT
S20: SELECTED 14TH OVERALL (2ND ROUND) BY LAP IN SHL DRAFT
S20: SIGNED 3 YEAR/$6.000M ELC WITH LAP
S21: NAMED ALTERNATE CAPTAIN FOR LAP
S22: SIGNED 6 YEAR/$26.000M EXTENSION WITH LAP
S25: JOINED THE BUFFALO STAMPEDE VIA EXPANSION
S26: RESTRUCTURED CONTRACT TO 3 YEARS/$9.000M WITH BUF
S28: TRADED FROM BUFFALO TO WEST KENDALL
S28: RETIRED


ANTERO SALMELAINEN | LW | RETIRED
NAME: ANTERO SALMELAINEN
NATIONALITY: FINLAND
HEIGHT: 6'5"
WEIGHT: 215 LBS
NUMBER: 32
———————————————————————————————————
NWJHL CAREER STATS
S7 VAN: GP: 37, G: 26, A: 25, P: 51
———————————————————————————————————
SHL CAREER STATS
S8-S19: GP: 600, G: 175, A: 204, P: 379
———————————————————————————————————
NWJHL PLAYOFF STATS
S7 VAN: GP: 7, G: 5, A: 9, P: 14
———————————————————————————————————
SHL PLAYOFF STATS
STATS LOST
———————————————————————————————————
AWARDS:
S17 CHALLENGE CUP CHAMPION (LAP)
———————————————————————————————————
TRANSACTIONS:
S7: DRAFTED 1ST OVERALL BY VANCOUVER IN NWJHL
S7: NAMED CAPTAIN OF WHALERS
S8: DRAFTED 1ST OVERALL BY EDMONTON IN SHL
S8: SIGNED 3-YEAR ELC WITH EDMONTON
S8: TRADED FROM EDMONTON TO WEST KENDALL
S11: SIGNED 5-YEAR, $15.000 M DEAL WITH WEST KENDALL
S12: TRADED FROM WEST KENDALL TO TEXAS
S12: TRADED FROM TEXAS TO CALGARY
S15: TRADED FROM CALGARY TO LOS ANGELES
S18: TRADED FROM LOS ANGELES TO NEW ENGLAND


BRANDON HOLMES | RW | HALL OF FAME | STAMPEDE FOUNDER
NAME: BRANDON HOLMES
NATIONALITY: USA
HEIGHT: 6'2"
WEIGHT: 208 LBS
NUMBER: 17
———————————————————————————————————
NWJHL CAREER STATS
PGF: GP: 20, G: 12, A: 10, P: 22
———————————————————————————————————
SHL CAREER STATS
WKP: GP: 220, G: 82, A: 97, P: 179
———————————————————————————————————
NWJHL PLAYOFF STATS
PGF: GP: 10, G: 7, A: 7, P: 14
———————————————————————————————————
SHL PLAYOFF STATISTICS
WKP: GP: 45, G: 18, A: 20, P: 38
———————————————————————————————————
AWARDS:
S1 BRANDON HOLMES AWARD WINNER
S1 FOUR STAR CUP CHAMPION (PGF)
S2 CHALLENGE CUP CHAMPION/(WKP)
S3 ALL-STAR GAME MVP
S3 MATHIAS CHOUINARD AWARD WINNER
S4 IHF TOURNAMENT GOLD MEDALIST (USA)
S5 CHALLENGE CUP CHAMPION (WKP)
INDUCTED INTO SHL HALL OF FAME
———————————————————————————————————
TRANSACTIONS:
DRAFTED 4TH OVERALL BY WEST KENDALL IN THE S2 DRAFT
SIGNED 3-YR/$7.5MIL DEAL WITH WEST KENDALL
NAMED ALTERNATE CAPTAIN OF THE PLATOON FOR S3
SIGNED 3-YR/$6 MIL EXTENSION WITH WEST KENDALL

McClement - Kulemin
Bozak - Bolland

I'm thinking that would be our PK

Originally posted by Maxy@Aug 24 2013, 05:01 PM

Exactly there's a whole lot of what ifs lol. If Lupul stays healthy, which he hasn't been able to do for over 5 years, If Clarkson plays well which he has only played very well for a couple seasons and even they weren't spectacular. Reimer needs to prove he can be good for a whole season which he hasn't done yet. Having 2 goalies who haven't played a full season is definitely a problem, and if you can't sign Kadri or Franson you're taking a chance, as what you trade for may not work out.

I'm a pretty big supporter of the Leafs but I definitely don't feel that it's a certainty they do as good or better than last season

I agree with most of what you said but the whole thing about having two goalies that haven't played a whole season, or not having enough experience, having the two young guys on the same team gives us twice the chance that one sticks. Plus with Reimer I don't see him not being right about what he was last season, I think he is one of those high floor low ceiling players, I don't think he will ever be an elite goalie but a steady guy back there, where as Bernier is more of a boom or bust, if he comes in this year and plays like he has the potential too then I can see us finishing around where we did last season.

tl;dr: Reimer not question mark, Bernier is but Bernier's ceiling 100x higher.

As for the team going into the season, I think the Leafs will be fighting for one of the wild card spots.

Originally posted by Taylor@Aug 24 2013, 03:10 PM
I loved how last year before the season started everyone just blew the Leafs off saying they would be a bottom team again. They finish strong in 5th and people are still underestimating them for this season when they look even stronger.

hmm yeah but compare them to teams that are ALWAYS in the playoffs. soooo.... you guys get kicked out R1 in your first round in a long time congrats :lol:

Originally posted by Secord@Aug 24 2013, 07:19 PM

I agree with most of what you said but the whole thing about having two goalies that haven't played a whole season, or not having enough experience, having the two young guys on the same team gives us twice the chance that one sticks. Plus with Reimer I don't see him not being right about what he was last season, I think he is one of those high floor low ceiling players, I don't think he will ever be an elite goalie but a steady guy back there, where as Bernier is more of a boom or bust, if he comes in this year and plays like he has the potential too then I can see us finishing around where we did last season.

tl;dr: Reimer not question mark, Bernier is but Bernier's ceiling 100x higher.

Yeah I guess that's a way to look at it. I agree with those points. I think Bernier is going to be the starter, watching him play I just think he's going to be a stud and I think right now he's even with Reimer with a lot higher ceiling. Just my thoughts on it. But yeah very valid point. I think it's good you have two goalies but goalies, especially unproven ones are always a question mark

Thank you to My boys @Merica and @Ragnar for the lovely sigs!

Toronto has the toughest team in the league. We will smash faces and take over. Speed and Toughness kills.

We Got a New Team.

BTW Kadri wants 6x6 (insert facepalm here)

How does every other team get sick contracts well we always seem to have greedy players.

:lol: Kadri thinks one year of playing good and now he thinks he is a super star...

Originally posted by Kesler17@Aug 24 2013, 06:41 PM
:lol: Kadri thinks one year of playing good and now he thinks he is a super star...

Yea especially when he started to decline towards the end of the season and playoffs

Originally posted by Dion.OvOxO@Aug 24 2013, 04:42 PM

Yea especially when he started to decline towards the end of the season and playoffs

:lol: He played like shit in playoffs, and Kesler isnt even making 6m, hes making like 5.3 with a pay cut... and hes way better when not injured.

I'm fine with letting him sit for a week or so into the season if that is actually what he wants. He misses a week of action and he will fold so fast. I haven't seen it anywhere that he is actually asking for that much though I haven't really been paying attention either. I hope he isn't being that greedy.