Posts tagged Prospects
Sam Carrick 101
Jun 28th
In an attempt to beef up the Videos page on this site, I’m gonna start posting videos whenever I run into an interesting one. Here’s the first installment:
Getting to Know Sam Carrick
You can follow me on Twitter here.
Prospects of the Day – Who Are The Entire Leafs 2010 Draft Class?
Jun 27th
Though the Leafs may not have had their first or second round picks, incredibly high ones at that, thanks to a trade that like it or not will be one of the most controversial in team history for years to come, the Toronto Maple Leafs have definitely made some serious waves in the 2010 Entry Draft in spite of all of that. Heading into the draft missing first and second rounders, the Leafs were able to make enough moves to pick seven players in the draft, and still manage to trade a 5th round pick for Mike Brown.
In the end of the day, the Leafs walked out with Bradley Ross, Greg McKegg, Sondre Olden, Petter Granberg, Sam Carric, Daniel Brodin, and Josh Nicols. Before we go into details on the guys, here’s a minor summary.
Missing the 1st Round Draft Party? So what?
Jun 16th
Call me a masochist, but I can’t wait until the draft. On second thought, call me a sadist, for the sake of the dead horse I’ll be beating in the absence of anything else important to talk about. I’ve been reading some good posts on drafting over at Copper ‘n Blue and Five Hole Fanatics, and I’ve decided to write one similar to those that I’ve seen, from a decidedly Leaf-centric perspective, of course. This means that I’m talking about what The Leafs are missing in the 2nd overall pick.
In Defence Of Jeff Finger
Jun 12th
This may or may not be the most hated article that I’ll ever write. I’m aware, so troll on.
Look, there are many extremely toxic contracts in the NHL, that are extremely detrimental to the team because of their ridiculous length, cap hit, and a players poor play. Jeff Finger, isn’t one of them. Sure, he’s by no means worth it to the Toronto Maple Leafs, filled to the brim with very good defencemen. Sure, his contract was a big WTF when he first signed it. But when you really look at things, its not so bad. Look, I know you’re laughing your asses off right now, but give this article a chance and hear me out.
Where Can Kabby Go?
Jun 4th
So, its June and the year is 2008 or later. You guys all know the drill. Tomas Kaberle probably used his no trade clause at the trade deadline, and speculation runs wild that the Leafs will trade him at the draft, particularly this year where the pick cupboard is particularly low. The particular opinion is that the Leafs want a top six forward and secondary toughness in return, in an effort to shore up a particularly ailing forward system on a team filled to the brim with defencemen and goaltending for the first time since the birth of Chris Chelios (273 BC).
At this point, everyone agrees that no matter how much we respect Kaberle for being one of the top all time defencemen on this team in terms of contribution, for being far and away the longest serving Leaf left (he’s the only player that was on the roster before October 2008. Yes, you read that right), for being classy as can be during his tenure, for consistantly being an awesome defenceman, and about a thousand things great about him, its his time to go. Dion Phaneuf has come in and declared the team his, essentially making it clear that anyone who disagrees can jump off a bridge. Francois Beauchemin had a solid year. Komisarek, when healthy, was very good after the first few weeks. Luke Schenn had a weak start to the year, but has been evolving at hyperspeed since Dion came in. Carl Gunnarsson has shown amazing strides in his play. And the Leafs have a million and one defensive prospects willing to force Jeff Finger into the AHL. Kaberle is just simply the odd one out.
There is a question that concerns many though – and that’s who would be wanting a player like Kaberle? As great as he is, there are definite concerns in such a trade.
1. How does the other team look for salary?
1a. Do they have a lot of players to sign already? High cap space may not be as good as appears.
2. Do they have enough forward depth to be able to trade someone solid away?
3. Would Kaberle be a first pairing defenceman on the team?
4. Would Kaberle be the #1 puck moving defenceman on the team?
5. Is the team in a position where they’d want to be acquiring a Kaberle to win?
6. How badly would they require Kaberle to sign an extension? And
7. Would Kaberle want to sign an extension there?
I took these 8 categories, and put them in to a chart, to see if it gives a reasonably accurate portrayal of who I thought could aquire Tomas. This is what came out of it.
Talking Nazem
May 27th
It’s that time of year again, the time of year when the heart of Leafs nation sinks like a stone because of a continued lack of organizational focus on the draft. That feeling will be elevated to a new degree this June when the Boston Bruins draft second overall off of a draft pick acquired from the Maple Leafs in the infamous Phil Kessel trade.
But let’s not talk about how much that quite frankly sucks, let’s not focus on whats bad. Instead, lets focus on what we do have to be excited for in the form of a prospect: the infamous Nazem Kadri. I’ve wanted to do a piece on Nazem for awhile, about his potential as a star, his potential as a bust, his potential as a player for the Leafs next year and more.
I compared his stats, read all about him, watched his videos, but as I continued to research I asked myself why I didn’t just learn firsthand about Nazem from those who know him best: the diehard London Knights fans.
There was immediately one person that came to mind, and that’s Brandon Krug, or as most of you know him as on Twitter, Kadri_Nation. I asked him if he wouldn’t mind answering a few of my questions, and he was kind enough to oblige, so without further ado here’s what he had to say:
How good do you think Nazem Kadri can be in the NHL? How many points do you think he could one day put up and who would you compare him to in today’s game? More >
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