#add the mitch marner drama

[idontgotopartiesanymore]

save me hughesy save me

[fishylife]

All the even numbers!

There were a lot of questions but this was really fun!

2. Second favourite team?

Despite the Battle of Ontario, I sort of have a soft spot for the Sens because we’re Ontario bros 4eva.

4. Team you just hate?

Team USA, especially because they have such a skilled group of young prospects coming up. They’re going to be such an annoying rival for Team Canada to play against in the near future.

6. Top three players on your favourite team?

Nikita Soshnikov is probably my favourite Leaf right now! To round out my top three, I’ll say Connor Brown and Zach Hyman. I think all of them are good boys who work hard (y)

8. Three players you like on teams you can’t stand?

I can’t stand Chicago because they are so stupidly good. They keep trading away players and yet are still perennial cup contenders. That’s such bullshit. Pisses me off. Anyway, I still like Jonathan Toews. It’s a Team Canada thing. 

Leafs and Habs are meant to be bitter rivals so I get mildly disappointed anytime the Leafs get scored on by the Habs lol. Anyway, I can’t dislike Shea Weber. See a trend here?

I can’t think of a third person I’m supposed to hate. Maybe Patrice Bergeron because he’s a Bruin. I don’t think there’s a single person who could hate Bergy for who he is as a person though. 

10. Prettiest uniforms?

Before this season, it was tied between the Flyers alternate jersey (photo source)

and the Ottawa alternate jersey. (photo source)

After this season, I’m going to add the Leafs Centennial Classic jersey onto that list too. (photo source)

12. Best hair?

This is going to sound mean but I don’t think there’s anybody’s hair I absolutely love? Maybe Matt Duchene’s hair at the Sochi 2014 Olympics because he looked rather princely. (photo source)

14. Best eyes?

I’m a sucker for Tom Pyatt’s eyes. It’s not fair that both Pyatt brothers are this gorgeous. (photo source)

16. Best goaltender?

My first response would be Carey Price. But over the past couple of years, we’ve gotten to see so many other goaltenders shine, like Braden Holtby, Sergei Bobrovsky, and Devan Dubnyk! My answer will still probably be Carey Price though lmao I’m just trying to create drama.

18. Dream line (mix and match players from teams)?

Sidney Crosby, Connor McDavid, and whoever because it doesn’t matter lol. 

20. Most overrated?

Toews is constantly being called overrated but I looked up his stats they don’t even seem that bad. The lowest point total he ever had in his professional career was 48 in 2012-2013 (with 23 goals). So I wouldn’t call him vastly overrated. So I don’t have an answer for this >.

22. Prettiest goal you ever saw?

I spent so long trying to look for this goal. In the 2014 Olympics, Team Canada played against Team Austria and I remember seeing this toe drag goal by Ryan Getzlaf and at the time I was just so impressed haha. Maybe not the prettiest goal ever, but one that left an impression on me. 

24. Who on your team is:

24a. Eternal sunshine?

Definitely Mitch Marner. He seems like he tries to stay positive all the time.

24b. Team Dad?

Mike Babcock for sure. He always seems so wise and strict. But if we’re talking strictly players on the team, then I’ll say Leo Komarov. But he’d be the fun kind of dad. Not the “clean your room” kind of dad.

24c. Team Mom?

Something about Curits McElhinney tells me he’d be a very nice Team Mom. I don’t know why, it’s just a feeling. But look at this photo lmao. (photo source)

Otherwise, JVR seems very mom-like for some reason. I’d trust him to be an adult for the kiddos. 

24d. Team Baby/Babies?

Preeeeetty much all of them? But among the rookies, probably the ones who are actually younger in age i.e. Mitch and Auston, 

24e. The Class Clown?

OK the answer to this one is legitimately all of players under the age of 25 on the Leafs. It feels like when they hang out together, the hilarity just turns up to 100. 

24f. The quiet one?

Hmm Freddy Andersen and Nikita Zaitsev I’ll say. Supposedly Zaits is a silly goose though and that makes me happy. 

24g. The serious one? 

I don’t know, something about Matt Hunwick makes me feel like he’s really earnest and serious. At least he’s smiling in his mugshot though. (photo source)

24h. The hothead?

If I’m being realistic, it’s probably Sosh. He will go head first into any shenanigans without hesitation.

26. Player who’s always scratched who ought to be played more?

Well, it used to be Frankie Corrado since he was just sitting around and not getting a lot of on-ice time, but now that he’s cleared waivers, at least he gets to play with the Marlies and get a lot of practice in. And also hang out with Dicky. (photo source)

Nowadays, I feel that the efforts of Leafs fans will be focused onto Josh Leivo, who has also been sitting around these days, and not getting a lot of time on ice. I think he’s in a similar situation as Corrado, because if I remember correctly, he had a one-way deal too. 

28. Best duo?

Henrik and Daniel because they’ve basically turned into a meme by this point. Bask yourselves in the glorious Sedinery.

(gif source)

Also everybody needs to watch the time the Sedins had a competition and their tiebreaker ended in a tie. 

30. OT3+?

The entire Penguins team is best friends, and it’s beautiful. It just seems like they genuinely enjoy each other’s company and they hang out together even when they’re not at work. I wish I had a crew that was that tight. 

32. Guy you want desperately to slash but can’t for some reason (Married, no good pair, etc.)

Uh, no one I can think of. I mean, if you can’t force a ship, then you can’t. 

34. Player you most wish would get traded to your team?

For now I’m going to say either Juuse Saros or Colton Parayko, both players I really like and are sort of within the age range of the bulk of the Leafs roster. 

36. Most likely to be in the penalty box at any moment?

These days it seems to be Martin Marincin :/ Just try your best, buddy, alright? I’m rooting for you. 

38. Gets away with murder award (never gets penalties but should)?

Not really sure, to be honest. This sounds kind of bad, but I don’t really like to get involved in penalty shenanigans. They are always tricky debates :S

40. Nicest guy on the team?

Can I just say Patrick Marleau is a gem and I hope he has a good day today. 

(photo source) (From Christina Marleau’s twitter but I can’t find the page because this was from years ago)

And I almost forgot, PATRICE BERGERON, who is an ACTUAL ANGEL and the NICEST PERSON YOU WILL EVER MEET. (REAL LIFE EVIDENCE among countless other instances lmao)

42. Best with the press?

Sidney Crosby is absolutely the king of saying something without saying anything. He’s perfected the art. 

I just want to give a shout out to Bobby Lu though. #1 both on the Panthers and in my heart. Here’s his twitter account which is an iconic piece of hockey history and everything he has ever tweeted should be framed in the Hockey Hall of Fame.

44. Most likely to be photographed with small children?

Sidney Crosby, especially since he started his hockey camp last offseason. He’s always really nice to them and that makes me happy :3

46. Most likely to be photographed shirtless in a hot tub with starlets?

My go-to answer was Tyler Seguin, but it could also be Ovi lol.

48. Most likely to get in bar fights unrelated to hockey?

I mean, hit the right nerve, and anybody could get into a bar fight to be honest lmao.

50. Rising star award?

THE LEAFS FUTURE IS SO BRIGHT I NEED SOME SPF 45. AND WE GOT MORE COMING OUR WAY IN THE MARLIES.

[yahoo-puck-daddy-blog]

John Tavares and the one-year Maple Leafs fantasy

When an NHL insider puts forth an outlandish notion, it’s usually born from one of two places: Their own attention-seeking imagination, or from a seed planted by someone else, perhaps during an informal chat or a over beer in Toronto.

Craig Button is an NHL insider for TSN, and recently proffered a whopper: What if New York Islanders star John Tavares hit unrestricted free agency, opted not to sign a long-term deal with anyone and instead went home to Ontario on a one-year deal with the Toronto Maple Leafs in an all-in attempt to win a Stanley Cup before the Leafs salary cap blows up?

OK, maybe outlandish didn’t do it justice. This was bat [expletive] crazy.

Button’s theory is that the Leafs could make this happen with Auston Matthews and Mitch Marner still on their entry-level deals. It would give the Leafs a one-two punch up the gut of Matthews and Tavares, a duo that only the Pittsburgh Penguins and potentially the Edmonton Oilers could match in its potency.

Via Editor In Leaf, Button’s justification:

You may ask, why would John Tavares sign a one year deal? Well, there is precedent for this and all you have to do is go back to 2008 when Marian Hossa signed with the Detroit Red Wings. Yes, those very same Detroit Red Wings that had Mike Babcock as their head coach. They fell in game seven of the Stanley Cup playoffs in 2009, but Marian Hossa made them a much better team and would John Tavares do that for the Toronto Maple Leafs? Absolutely.

Like Hossa when he signed with the Red Wings, Tavares will be 28 when the 2018-19 season begins. But that’s where the similarities end.

First off, Hossa was a burgeoning nomad. The Ottawa Senators made him an Atlanta Thrasher in August 2005. The Pittsburgh Penguins traded for him in February 2008 and he signed with Detroit in July, with the sole intention of winning a Stanley Cup there. After that didn’t happen, he signed his cap-circumventing deal with the Chicago Blackhawks, and won three.

Tavares has, time and again, voiced a fierce loyalty to the Islanders, the only franchise with whom he’s played. So the first step towards making this fantasy a reality is to pry his hands from the idea he can one day win with the Islanders. Maybe it’s a lack of confidence in management. Maybe he’s sick of the arena drama. Who knows?

The next thing you have to get past is the idea that John Tavares, a franchise player, would opt for a short-term rental from the Maple Leafs rather than long-term security from any number of teams that would ante up for him. (Teams that include the New York Rangers, for example.) That taking a one-year shot at a Cup is worth the risk of blowing out his knee on a one-year contract, or some other calamity.

And the final hurdle is the idea that Tavares would choose the Leafs for this one-season dalliance.

As is tradition, the assumption is that anyone from a place like Mississauga would consider it an honor and a privilege to play in Toronto at the first opportunity to do so, and attempt to bring a Stanley Cup there. The fact that the only person to have done this in recent memory is their current coach (a native of Manitouwadge, Ontario) apparently isn’t a deterrent for this philosophy.

It’s plausible, then. But if we’re fantasy casting John Tavares short-term destinations en route to a Stanley Cup, then let’s be honest: Tampa Bay would be just as attractive.

We all know the longstanding friendship between Steven Stamkos and Tavares. We know they’ve played for a Cup, while the Leafs – thus far – have not. We know that in Victor Hedman, the Lightning have a championship-caliber defenseman that the Leafs currently don’t possesses.

(Please note an all-in contract for Tavares in 2018-19 would still position the Leafs for an all-in offer to Drew Doughty in 2019-20.)

Yes, the Leafs would be in a much better cap position to give Tavares a ridiculous base salary on a one-year deal. But the Lightning have a window to win by 2018-19 and could act accordingly to clear the necessary space (which could be one Ryan Callahan buyout away).

Now, the flip side of this is whether it makes sense for the Leafs, and we’ll hand the mic to Andrew Boehmer of Editor In Leaf:

I love and hate the idea. My love for it is because it’s Tavares, a terrific hockey player who could really add to this young team and help push them towards success. But where the hate part comes into play is that the whole thing just sounds a little absurd. I guess that’s not hatred, just a realistic approach. Let’s just pretend that Tavares was willing to sign a one-year deal with Toronto, his hometown team. At what cost? I’m not necessarily focusing in on the Leafs cap situation either, but more so the message that this kind of move makes. Yes, a semi-positive one because management has acquired an elite talent, but also one that looks impatient, like the plan is being rushed.

So circling back to the start: Is this just speculation or informed speculation?

Said Button: “I don’t think it’s so much of a dream, in fact, I think it’s something that has real legs and could be real possible, because if John Tavares has to look at this from the perspective of who has a better chance to win in the near future, I think it’s clearly the Toronto Maple Leafs.”

Clearly!

At the very least, Leafs fans should be thrilled with this theory: Their team has graduated from “hey maybe he wants to play back home!” to “maybe he wants to contend for a Cup back home,” and that’s a significant improvement.

—

Greg Wyshynski is a writer for Yahoo Sports. Contact him at puckdaddyblog@yahoo.com or find him on Twitter. His book, TAKE YOUR EYE OFF THE PUCK, is available on Amazon and wherever books are sold.

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