Game 12 - Leafs @ Devils - Wednesday Nov 2nd, 2011 - 19:30 EST - 5-3 Win

[Stebro]

What's the strategy with the leafs pk? Stand as still as possible, skate as little as you can and just cross your fingers and hope for the best? They LET the other teams control it. The good pk-teams pressure the other team so hard so it's difficult to see who's in control over the play.

 

[Tigger]

What do I expect from the leafs? 85% or so.

That would be top 5 in the league the last few seasons.  A tad unrealistic for what this group has shown.

Well you must aim for high standards. What's worrying me is just the fact that we haven't seen any real improvement from year to year. And I still say that any team can have a great pk if you just work at it. There have been plenty of teams that are quite average, but have one scoring line, and great special teams who actually win titles. We can't go into a playoff with a penalty killing like this. The coaching staff must do something.

The playoffs are a ways off, the next game is what matters however the 'high standards' you're referring to here are your own, the top 5 pk units last year hovered around that mark. Saying 'if you just work at it' is to claim that most teams don't, which is completely false.

Well is it reasonable to assume that they are doing the right things if we stink 5 years in a row?

As reasonable as it is to assume the player personnel is getting the job done.

 

[Strangelove]

As far as the statements about the PK sucking during Wilson's entire tenure here go, the PK has been in the bottom-5 (bottom-6 in one year) in the league since the lockout. That's 3 head coaches, multiple assistant coaches, countless of penalty killers, and a rotating door of mostly useless goalies.

It used to be that we could legitimately blame the likes of Raycraft, Toskala and Belfour.  But what ails the team now isn't goaltending issues.  It's a pisspoor system.

 

[Kessel Run]

Where is the GD PRESSURE on the PK??????????

 

[Guru Tugginmypuddah]

LOOP D LOOP!

 

[ZBBM]

Now, HOLD THE DAMN LEAD.

 

[Propellertop]

Should be 3-0 or 3-1 at worst right now. Jack Wagons!

 

[bustaheims]

Kablammo!

 

[GhostofPotvin29]

We're 5 on 5 all-stars.

 

[Tigger]

That still doesn't explain how our pk can suck year after year. What does it say about the coaching staff if things doesn't improve? It's one thing if you constantly lose on even strength due to poor depth, or if you can't score on the pp because you don't have the right players. But basically every team can be taught to play decent pk even with bad players. So I still turn my focuse to Wilson and the coaching staff. And if we the players constantly leave others in front of the net, or are unfocused just before the penalties end, then the coaching staff must do something.

In 07/08, with Maurice at the helm, the Leafs were 29th on the pk, it's difficult for me to agree with you based on what you're saying.

Well who's been coaching the team since then?

They were 24th in 05/06 under Quinn, you're way too focused on Wilson.

 

[CarltonTheBear]

As far as the statements about the PK sucking during Wilson's entire tenure here go, the PK has been in the bottom-5 (bottom-6 in one year) in the league since the lockout. That's 3 head coaches, multiple assistant coaches, countless of penalty killers, and a rotating door of mostly useless goalies.

It used to be that we could legitimately blame the likes of Raycraft, Toskala and Belfour.  But what ails the team now isn't goaltending issues.  It's a pisspoor system.

I'll agree to this slightly, although I think it does have a little to do with players still adjusting. But to say the last 5 years of penalty killing failure rests square on the shoulders of Ron Wilson is ridiculous when you look at the goaltending he's had to deal with in the majority of his Leafs tenure.

 

[leafplasma]

What's the strategy with the leafs pk? Stand as still as possible, skate as little as you can and just cross your fingers and hope for the best? They LET the other teams control it. The good pk-teams pressure the other team so hard so it's difficult to see who's in control over the play.

Yep a bowl full of mildew would fair better.

 

[pnjunction]

Man this team would be awesome if we had a PK 

 

[Stebro]

Passive is a bloody understatement.  Just standing around.  That's a coaching decision.

Exactly, that must be a coaching decision. I doubt that the players are just so lame that they forgot how to skate. And if things don't work, things must change. And we've seen these lame goals in several games.

 

[Guru Tugginmypuddah]

Schenn sucks.

 

[Erndog]

Schenn my god

 

[ZBBM]

Now, HOLD THE DAMN LEAD.

Gahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

 

[bustaheims]

I'll agree to this slightly, although I think it does have a little to do with players still adjusting. But to say the last 5 years of penalty killing failure rests square on the shoulders of Ron Wilson is ridiculous when you look at the goaltending he's had to deal with in the majority of his Leafs tenure.

Yeah, I mean, this might be the first season where he's had reliable goaltending, and, even that's questionable, considering Reimer's struggling a little as a sophomore and Gustavsson is still fairly inconsistent and prone to giving up weak goals.

 

[Bender]

This team is infuriating. How many breakaways will we give up? It's like fucking clockwork.

 

[pnjunction]

Holy sheet Schenn blows this year