freer said:
Strangelove said:
herman said:
https://mapleleafshotstove.com/2017/12/22/leafs-links-elliotte-friedman-jvrs-future-toronto-dont-think-hes-underappreciated-internally-think-wants-stay-think-want-stay/
JvR thoughts up there.
Unless they get him on a steal of a deal I think it would be a mistake to lock JVR up long term for 6 million +. He is not getting younger and is such a one dimensional player that he could pretty quickly be a huge liability if the offence dries up even a bit.
Ok so we don't resign him and the likely hood of him being traded is slim if the team is in the playoff hunt. Who in our system is going to replace him. And PLEASE don't say Leivo!!!
That's a good question. I think we still really don't know what we have in Leivo. Earlier in the season I was not impressed and would have been happy to see him let go for a pick. But in some of the recent games, I saw some things I liked. I think he deserves some time on a more offensive line, maybe with Matthews or Kadri for a bit. He certainly won't drive a line but he could be a very good complimentary piece (kind of like JVR).
Otherwise...if JVR goes you move Kapanen up (he should really be an everyday player at this point) and hopefully can replace Komarov with someone with more speed and offensive talent. Johnsson maybe? Leivo? So maybe his (JVR's) replacement would be sort of a committee approach where you upgrade a couple of positions from within - none of them being able to replace JVR's production by themselves, but maybe the team overall is stronger.
The other option is to find a free agent or someone who needs a change of scenery from another team.
One player I've lost some of my confidence in is Brown. He works had and is very opportunistic but he really doesn't create much on his own and I've seen him blow a lot of defensive assignments this year, often resulting in goals. I'd prefer him over Komarov on one of the top 3 lines but if you bring Kapanen up and everyone else is healthy...