Luke Schenn: One more chance?

[Tigger]

Well, Schenn was brought in way too early in a system that didn't exactly benefit his skill set. I don't think he's as terrible a skater as some are saying, his choices at times seem like the paramount issue to me.

Something that gets lost in all this is that he experienced a couple significant injuries in his first year, one to his eye and another to his knee that precluded him from training much in his first Leaf offseason. Coupled with the notorious sophomore slump and his age some regression was more than expected.

In spite of that his ppg improved every year and he's maintained an upper tier physical presence. It's more than fair to be patient with him and see what he might learn in a real defense first system.

 

[moon111]

Would like to see some big quality hits to put the fear of God in opponents.  Think he just isn't mobile enough to make great contract with the faster players now.

 

[Kaberle15]

I ran P-A-T-I-E-N-C-E? through my Maple Leafs Fans spellchecker and it automatically corrected it to P-A-N-I-C.

LMAO, so true...

 

[Deebo]

Was Schenn around for the Maurice years or was that just before he was drafted?

Maurice was fired before Schenn was drafted.

Deebo you are a bit wiser / older and a little less knee-jerkish like me do you not think this trade Schenn business might not be entirely thought through by some of your co-fans?

My answer is the same as any player, trade him if there a deal that makes sense, otherwise don't.

I don't think trading him is the same as declaring him a bust. I'm open to moving anyone on the roster, any pick or prospect if the right deal is there.

 

[Strangelove]

I say you trade him for whatever you can get.  His game has too many glaring faults for him ever to amount to much.  Between skating issues, positioning issues, lack of hockey sense, and terrible hands, there just isn't much player there.

 

[freer]

I say keep him. Trade Dion, save some money.

 

[princedpw]

This is an honest question and I'm not sure I know the answer.

How much has Schenn improved in his 4 seasons so far? Has he regressed?What areas of his game (right now) are above average? Which are below?

I can see how at the moment he's being labeled a miss, as he hasn't improved significantly since he came into the league.

I still think he's more potential (although I agree the potential is pretty significant) than results and in that regard he's a project. A 4-6 defenceman with the #5 overall pick isn't exactly a "hit".

When I want to be positive about him, I reflect back on when he was paired with Kabby.  For a while, he and Kabby were the best d-pair on the team.  That is why a 3.6 million salary seemed reasonable.

 

[dappleganger]

I say you trade him for whatever you can get.  His game has too many glaring faults for him ever to amount to much.  Between skating issues, positioning issues, lack of hockey sense, and terrible hands, there just isn't much player there.

Completely agree.

I say keep him. Trade Dion, save some money.

Dion makes too much but he's better defensively than Luke and he put up 44 points last year so if we are to jettison anyone, let it be Luke. 

Edit: My wife makes a good point. Saving money doesn't make the team better. Who you gonna spend it on?

 

[trojanweed]

i'm sorry but i have a hard time believing that he is just a bad player and has huge holes in his game. 

we give up on players all the time that go else where and show "some" success. Also his younger brother, in a diferent system, on a successful team, is fitting in the nhl fine, and seems to have a long career ahead of him.  But the older brother who's been playing for crap teams, with no system (defence first anyone?) is a bust and has huge holes in his game.  his skills are there, we just need to use them right.  theres a reason why every defencemen thats comes through toronto is destroyed, and i would look at coaching before blaming a young player thats shown signs at times hes not useless. 

our last two coaches were not defence first guys, the first coach (maurice) has also been fired again since that time, and wilson is an old school coach that has not evolved with the game.  Lets give carlye at least two/three months, if by the christmas break, schen is playing 3rd pairing still i'd be shocked. I can also see komi being very successful under carlye.  these guys have been hung out to dry unfairly by a crap system.

 

[BlueWhiteBlood]

I think it's a no-brainer to keep Schenn here. I'm kind of split on whether we should trade him for JVR, if that indeed is what is going to happen, but only because I think JVR has dropped off a bit. I'd have to have all the information on him and have him vetted by the scouts pretty thoroughly before making that move.

 

[dappleganger]

I think it's a no-brainer to keep Schenn here. I'm kind of split on whether we should trade him for JVR, if that indeed is what is going to happen, but only because I think JVR has dropped off a bit. I'd have to have all the information on him and have him vetted by the scouts pretty thoroughly before making that move.

I think Schenn is in the same boat. I think JVR and Schenn would both benefit from a change of scenery.

We need an upgrade at forward and Philly could use some D. Seems like a smart trade.

 

[BlueWhiteBlood]

I think Schenn is in the same boat. I think JVR and Schenn would both benefit from a change of scenery.

We need an upgrade at forward and Philly could use some D. Seems like a smart trade.

The only difference I see though is, that I think Schenn is going to benefit from the coaching of Carlyle and bounce back fairly quickly. I'm not as well versed with JVR's downfalls.

 

[Tigger]

I think Schenn is in the same boat. I think JVR and Schenn would both benefit from a change of scenery.

We need an upgrade at forward and Philly could use some D. Seems like a smart trade.

The only difference I see though is, that I think Schenn is going to benefit from the coaching of Carlyle and bounce back fairly quickly. I'm not as well versed with JVR's downfalls.

JVR was pretty banged up this year but I haven't seen a ton from him in the playoffs. Not sure what to make of him right now.

If it was a straight up swap I'd consider it but I'm not blown away by the notion with what I know either.

 

[Jalili]

i'm sorry but i have a hard time believing that he is just a bad player and has huge holes in his game. 

we give up on players all the time that go else where and show "some" success. Also his younger brother, in a diferent system, on a successful team, is fitting in the nhl fine, and seems to have a long career ahead of him.  But the older brother who's been playing for crap teams, with no system (defence first anyone?) is a bust and has huge holes in his game.  his skills are there, we just need to use them right.  theres a reason why every defencemen thats comes through toronto is destroyed, and i would look at coaching before blaming a young player thats shown signs at times hes not useless. 

our last two coaches were not defence first guys, the first coach (maurice) has also been fired again since that time, and wilson is an old school coach that has not evolved with the game.  Lets give carlye at least two/three months, if by the christmas break, schen is playing 3rd pairing still i'd be shocked. I can also see komi being very successful under carlye.  these guys have been hung out to dry unfairly by a crap system.

Well it could be another Scott/Rob Niedermayer situation in reverse. One turns into a big name player, the other amounts to a role player.

 

[Etiam Vultus]

I think Schenn is in the same boat. I think JVR and Schenn would both benefit from a change of scenery.

We need an upgrade at forward and Philly could use some D. Seems like a smart trade.

The only difference I see though is, that I think Schenn is going to benefit from the coaching of Carlyle and bounce back fairly quickly. I'm not as well versed with JVR's downfalls.

JVR was pretty banged up this year but I haven't seen a ton from him in the playoffs. Not sure what to make of him right now.

If it was a straight up swap I'd consider it but I'm not blown away by the notion with what I know either.

When JVR first came back in the playoffs, he was very impressive.  He crashed the net, played with an edge, and showed some offensive flair.

He has tailed off quite a bit since then.  This could be because he simply does not have the timing or conditioning of the other players after missing so much time, or it could be that he was playing over his head due to adrenalin and he is now playing at his normal level. 

I think that both JVR and Schenn have promise, and both have warts.  It would be a pretty even  trade if it was made.

 

[WalterSobchak]

We were patient enough to hold on to a injury riddled Nik Antropov for 10 long years, and now that Carlysle only just taking over, I think we might want to see what Schenn can do in a system that won't ruin his confidence, won't have a coach throwing him under a bus. Give him a year and then go from there.

 

[Strangelove]

We were patient enough to hold on to a injury riddled Nik Antropov for 10 long years, and now that Carlysle only just taking over, I think we might want to see what Schenn can do in a system that won't ruin his confidence, won't have a coach throwing him under a bus. Give him a year and then go from there.

"Patient"?  He performed excellently relative to his contracts for most of his tenure.

What sort of promise has Schenn shown, really, beyond being a high draft pick?  He looks and plays like Jeff Finger minus the hands.

 

[Bullfrog]

One of the most prolific hitters in the league for the last few years, for one.

 

[Strangelove]

One of the most prolific hitters in the league for the last few years, for one.

Given how often he's caught out of position or on the wrong side of his man in front of the net and in the corners, I wouldn't say his prolific body contact (to whatever extent it really is prolific) has been a particular asset.

That is to say: it hasn't been particularly effective in relation to the rest of his game.

 

[Bullfrog]

Well, I'd said it's definitely a positive attribute of his. I don't find he's often out of position because of big hits. I think it's more due to lack of mobility.