The media predictions for the Leafs.

[Ronco]

I read Steve S______ the "Man" today crack writer for the Toronto Sun, but whom should really be writing for the Montreal Gazette.
Are the Leafs good enough to make the playoffs with the new additions in the off season?
His column makes note of the new Leafs.
Then the - and +, s

To make matters short he predicted the Leafs will miss the playoffs again.
Non apologetic.

"Reality: The Leafs haven?t made the playoffs since prior to the NHL?s locked-out season. And frankly, forget all the Brian Burke blather about 1967, missing out every spring is what has become embarrassing here in hockey country. It has gone on too long. And mediocrity has been accepted and at times almost celebrated. Qualifying for the playoffs is no longer a foregone conclusion in the NHL. The Eastern Conference has all kinds of depth and the Leafs, nine points out of a playoff spot last year, will have to find a way to be better than Montreal and the Rangers and Carolina and New Jersey, and reinvigorated Winnipeg, and quietly emerging Islanders team. Being eighth now is an accomplishment. And no sure thing."

I hope the Leafs make him eat his words.

 

[ZBBM]

I do too but it's hard to argue with his reasoning.  A lot has to go right for us to make the playoffs.

 

[hockeyfan1]

I read Steve S______ the "Man" today crack writer for the Toronto Sun, but whom should really be writing for the Montreal Gazette.
Are the Leafs good enough to make the playoffs with the new additions in the off season?
His column makes note of the new Leafs.
Then the - and +, s

To make matters short he predicted the Leafs will miss the playoffs again.
Non apologetic.

"Reality: The Leafs haven?t made the playoffs since prior to the NHL?s locked-out season. And frankly, forget all the Brian Burke blather about 1967, missing out every spring is what has become embarrassing here in hockey country. It has gone on too long. And mediocrity has been accepted and at times almost celebrated. Qualifying for the playoffs is no longer a foregone conclusion in the NHL. The Eastern Conference has all kinds of depth and the Leafs, nine points out of a playoff spot last year, will have to find a way to be better than Montreal and the Rangers and Carolina and New Jersey, and reinvigorated Winnipeg, and quietly emerging Islanders team. Being eighth now is an accomplishment. And no sure thing."

I hope the Leafs make him eat his words.

Not necessarily an off-beat assessment a la Simmons.  Should the Islanders, Jets, Devils, Hurricanes, and etc., have better seasons than last year for themselves, the Leafs are going to have their work cut out for them.


I believe, though, regardless of what Steve Simmons spews out, that the possibility of a Leaf playoff spot, be it eighth, remains within reach, and not a very distant one. 

 

[GhostofPotvin29]

I read Steve S______ the "Man" today crack writer for the Toronto Sun, but whom should really be writing for the Montreal Gazette.
Are the Leafs good enough to make the playoffs with the new additions in the off season?
His column makes note of the new Leafs.
Then the - and +, s

To make matters short he predicted the Leafs will miss the playoffs again.
Non apologetic.

"Reality: The Leafs haven?t made the playoffs since prior to the NHL?s locked-out season. And frankly, forget all the Brian Burke blather about 1967, missing out every spring is what has become embarrassing here in hockey country. It has gone on too long. And mediocrity has been accepted and at times almost celebrated. Qualifying for the playoffs is no longer a foregone conclusion in the NHL. The Eastern Conference has all kinds of depth and the Leafs, nine points out of a playoff spot last year, will have to find a way to be better than Montreal and the Rangers and Carolina and New Jersey, and reinvigorated Winnipeg, and quietly emerging Islanders team. Being eighth now is an accomplishment. And no sure thing."

I hope the Leafs make him eat his words.

I had to laugh at that column, with this gem of analysis:

Be-Leaf: Liles will make the Leafs power play better.

Reality: Maybe he will. Maybe he won?t.

 

[princedpw]

It is this kind of sentence that is irritating and obviously untrue:

> And mediocrity has been accepted and at times almost celebrated.

The leafs haven't made the playoffs since the lockout, true, but no one has celebrated any of their recent seasons.

 

[Zee]

Media here never believes a team will do worse than the season before, unless of course they're talking about the Leafs.  So the Leafs had 85 points last year, but I suppose the roster is worse than last season so he's predicting fewer than 85 points this year?

What about the teams that were ahead of us?  Carolina, Rangers, Buffalo and Montreal will all do better than the season before?  Who's to say one or more of those teams won't have brutal seasons?  What if Miller and Price get injured/have off years?  What if all of Buffalo's new guys don't mesh? 

It's easy for Simmons to say the Leafs haven't improved at all, but he just takes it as gospel that all other teams around the Leafs are suddenly better?  Let's see what happens first before we go making those types of statements huh Steve?

 

[Bender]

I read Steve S______ the "Man" today crack writer for the Toronto Sun, but whom should really be writing for the Montreal Gazette.
Are the Leafs good enough to make the playoffs with the new additions in the off season?
His column makes note of the new Leafs.
Then the - and +, s

To make matters short he predicted the Leafs will miss the playoffs again.
Non apologetic.

"Reality: The Leafs haven?t made the playoffs since prior to the NHL?s locked-out season. And frankly, forget all the Brian Burke blather about 1967, missing out every spring is what has become embarrassing here in hockey country. It has gone on too long. And mediocrity has been accepted and at times almost celebrated. Qualifying for the playoffs is no longer a foregone conclusion in the NHL. The Eastern Conference has all kinds of depth and the Leafs, nine points out of a playoff spot last year, will have to find a way to be better than Montreal and the Rangers and Carolina and New Jersey, and reinvigorated Winnipeg, and quietly emerging Islanders team. Being eighth now is an accomplishment. And no sure thing."

I hope the Leafs make him eat his words.

I had to laugh at that column, with this gem of analysis:

Be-Leaf: Liles will make the Leafs power play better.

Reality: Maybe he will. Maybe he won?t.

Jeez. By that logic: Will I be hit by a bus tomorrow? It's possible. Will I get fired tomorrow? It's possible.

Almost anything is bloody possible. Anyway, yes, the team might not get it done this year, but they've addressed the coaching staff, addressed weak D, addressed depth on the forwards, addressed a first line centre. I don't understand why every other team is given the benefit of the doubt going forward that they could possibly improve but the Leafs aren't.

This is hack writing at its finest. At least at one point he used some kind of flawed critical thinking and logic to back up his points, but now his analysis is: Things could happen.

A high schooler could come up with a premise and argue for it better than Simmons. What a joke.

 

[Kin]

It's easy for Simmons to say the Leafs haven't improved at all, but he just takes it as gospel that all other teams around the Leafs are suddenly better?  Let's see what happens first before we go making those types of statements huh Steve?

He should see what happens first before he makes his predictions?

 

[Zee]

It's easy for Simmons to say the Leafs haven't improved at all, but he just takes it as gospel that all other teams around the Leafs are suddenly better?  Let's see what happens first before we go making those types of statements huh Steve?

He should see what happens first before he makes his predictions?

I don't think you can realistically assess which teams will or won't make the playoffs in September, at least give the schedule a good 20 games before you can definitely say the team hasn't improved.

 

[Kin]

Jeez. By that logic: Will I be hit by a bus tomorrow? It's possible. Will I get fired tomorrow? It's possible.

You may want to go and actually read the column. That's one sentence in a paragraph about how Liles is replacing Kaberle, essentially, and whether or not Liles is better on the PP than Kaberle. This, for instance, is some of what follows that sentence:

Last season, Liles had 18 points on a reasonably decent Colorado power play. Tomas Kaberle, the puck mover whom he essentially is replacing, scored 25 points on lousy power plays in Toronto then Boston. Kaberle?s strength was vision, puck-moving, and play-making. Where Liles may, in fact, make the big impression is at even strength. Last year he tied for ninth among NHL defenceman with even-strength scoring, just two points behind Shea Weber and four points behind Keith Yandle. That?s heady territory for a defenceman gifted to the Leafs by the cost cutting Avalanche.

There's nothing unreasonable there and it's got numbers and logic and it actually makes a pretty interesting point about Liles offensive skills at even strength. He's not just saying "maybe".

I don't understand why every other team is given the benefit of the doubt going forward that they could possibly improve but the Leafs aren't.

I'm not sure where you're reading any of that. This is basically the sum total of what he says about other teams:

The Eastern Conference has all kinds of depth and the Leafs, nine points out of a playoff spot last year, will have to find a way to be better than Montreal and the Rangers and Carolina and New Jersey, and reinvigorated Winnipeg, and quietly emerging Islanders team. Being eighth now is an accomplishment. And no sure thing.

The only positive things he says about any other teams is that Winnipeg is reinvigorated and the Isles are "emerging". Everything here is true. To make it to eighth the Leafs will probably have to be better than most of the teams he mentioned. And does he say it's impossible? No. He says it's not a sure  thing. The exact same thing every single one of us would say.

Seriously guys, I know there's a tendency to be defensive here but you're flipping out over something that for Simmons, who I'm not a fan of, is pretty reasonable.

 

[Kin]

I don't think you can realistically assess which teams will or won't make the playoffs in September, at least give the schedule a good 20 games before you can definitely say the team hasn't improved.

So people shouldn't make predictions about the upcoming season until 20 games into the season?

And Simmons doesn't say the team "definitely...hasn't improved". In fact, he says the opposite. Here's his quote about Connolly:

Connolly will make the Leafs better than they were because he is essentially replacing no one as the Leafs No. 1 centre. That doesn?t mean he will make them a whole lot better. He should help the Leafs special teams, both on power play and penalty killing, which is significant on its own, but in the past, when he?s been considered a front line player to build around,

And here's Lombardi:

Nashville all but gave him away because it needed to clear his $3.5 million salary and the Leafs were willing to gamble on a concussed player. When healthy, he?s been a serviceable NHL player with terrific speed. Again, the addition of a better player, but not someone to get overly excited about.

I quoted the thing about Liles above and, really, the entire article is like that. If it has to be summed up it's "The Leafs improved but it may not be enough in a tough Eastern conference. The playoffs are up in the air" which is something that's  really only objectionable in that it's not exactly the kind of thing a professional needs to tell us.

 

[Zee]

Seriously guys, I know there's a tendency to be defensive here but you're flipping out over something that for Simmons, who I'm not a fan of, is pretty reasonable.

The fact that the title of the article is "Don't bet on Leafs making playoff run" and the line "And mediocrity has been accepted and at times almost celebrated." probably irks more than a few people.  He's quick to dismiss the moves the Leafs have made in the offseason.

Here's his assessment on Connolly:

Connolly will make the Leafs better than they were because he is essentially replacing no one as the Leafs No. 1 centre. That doesn?t mean he will make them a whole lot better. He should help the Leafs special teams, both on power play and penalty killing, which is significant on its own, but in the past, when he?s been considered a front line player to build around, he?s never fulfilled the role.

So Connolly instead of Bozak on the top line isn't that big a deal.  His assessment on Lombardi:

Lombardi is a different story entirely: Nashville all but gave him away because it needed to clear his $3.5 million salary and the Leafs were willing to gamble on a concussed player. When healthy, he?s been a serviceable NHL player with terrific speed. Again, the addition of a better player, but not someone to get overly excited about.

"Nothing to get overly excited about".  In every paragraph he feels the need to downplay each and every move before they've even played 1 game with the Leafs.  This is why people dislike him so much.

 

[Zee]

Haha, I replied at the same time as Saint Nik with the same paragraphs but we each took different meanings from them.  Funny how bolding specific parts can alter your perception of something. 

I hear Simmons speak every week on "The Reporters", so I know he likes to snicker and joke about the Leafs.  His comments are meant to knock the Leafs, he knows it sells.

 

[GhostofPotvin29]

I just quoted what I was responding to.

 

[Kin]

The fact that the title of the article is "Don't bet on Leafs making playoff run"

As someone who's written in a couple publications, let me assure you, writers don't write their headlines. Editors do and their #1 goal is to write something catchy and provocative to gain attention.

and the line "And mediocrity has been accepted and at times almost celebrated." probably irks more than a few people.

The truth hurts, but it doesn't make what he's saying untrue.

So Connolly instead of Bozak on the top line isn't that big a deal.  His assessment on Lombardi:

It's not. And for the most part nobody here, even the most ardent of Leafs cheerleaders, think Conolly is a big deal. He was a consolation prize who most of us hope can stay healthy. Again, Simmons said that he'll make the team better.

"Nothing to get overly excited about".

Well, leaving aside the strict language of it where nobody should get overly excited about anything should people be over the moon about Matthew Lombardi? He's a guy with serious injury problems who most of us hope can provide some help to the team's third line whenever he's able to return. Saying "don't get overly excited" about that strikes you as unreasonable?

Jeez, you may want to avoid the written word as a general rule if that's the sort of stuff that gets your ire up.

 

[Kin]

Haha, I replied at the same time as Saint Nik with the same paragraphs but we each took different meanings from them.  Funny how bolding specific parts can alter your perception of something. 

The parts of the quotes I bolded where in response to you saying

It's easy for Simmons to say the Leafs haven't improved at all

When in fact, he says the opposite repeatedly. They have improved. What you seem to be objecting to is that you don't think he thinks the Leafs have improved enough which is just a difference of opinion.

 

[Zee]

and the line "And mediocrity has been accepted and at times almost celebrated." probably irks more than a few people.

The truth hurts, but it doesn't make what he's saying untrue.

How is this "the truth"?  Where exactly has mediocrity with the Leafs been celebrated ?  Fans have been down on this team since the lockout, I don't see much celebration going on.

The rest we can agree to disagree on.  I know the way Simmons operates, he looks for ways to knock the Leafs, he's always done it and always will.

 

[Zee]

Here's a positive media take on the Leafs that will make some forum members smile:

Leafs, Jets will still be playing after regular season
ROSEN'S DARK HORSE TEAM

Toronto Maple Leafs

Brian Burke has been building the team his way since taking over as GM and President in 2008. The Leafs finally have the pieces in place to keep Air Canada Centre open into spring time.

Burke addressed Toronto's need for centers this offseason by signing Tim Connolly and trading for Matthew Lombardi.

To be sure there are some giant question marks here as Connolly has always been prone to injury and Lombardi still hasn't been officially cleared after missing the final 80 games last season with a concussion. But, in taking the optimistic point of view, I see Connolly has someone who will work well with Phil Kessel and Lombardi as the ideal No. 2 center provided he is healthy.

All indications are that Lombardi is on track to play this season, and he might return when the Leafs need him most.

Even without Lombardi, I like what the Leafs have down the middle. Mikhail Grabovski is coming off his strongest season in the NHL (29 goals, 29 assists) and Tyler Bozak had an 82-game lesson last season in what the NHL grind is all about. Both could and should be better this season.

In front of James Reimer, who proved himself as an NHL goalie last season, is a defense that is better than most will give it credit for being.

Dion Phaneuf is the anchor of a blue line that is young and bursting with potential when you consider Cody Franson and Carl Gunnarsson are only 24 years old, while Luke Schenn and Keith Aulie are just 21. Franson and John-Michael Liles, a pair of offseason acquisitions, will add an offensive element to the Leafs' blue line that could be dangerous.

This is by far the best team Burke and Ron Wilson have had in Toronto, but it'll only work for them if they get off to a strong start. The Leafs won 18 of their final 33 games last season, but that was after they won just 19 of their first 49 games.

Don't sleep on the Leafs, especially if they make some noise early.

http://www.nhl.com/ice/news.htm?id=589024&navid=DL|NHL|home

 

[Kin]

How is this "the truth"?  Where exactly has mediocrity with the Leafs been celebrated ?  Fans have been down on this team since the lockout, I don't see much celebration going on.

Well, two things immediately jump out at me here. First and foremost, you and others seem to have somehow read "...by fans" onto the end of that sentence.

Secondly, you may want to step back and consider the concept of "celebrated". It doesn't necessarily mean a ticker-tape parade. Likewise, there is the word "almost" before celebrated.  If I say I almost hit a car I'm not wrong because I didn't hit a car. Almost, as my grandfather used to say, only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades.

I, off the top of my head, could name a half-dozen players who were mediocre but accepted and, at times, lauded during Burke's tenure but what's really the point? You seem intent on saying things that are flat out untrue about what Simmons wrote because he's not as positive as you seem to think is a requirement.

 

[BlueWhiteBlood]

Are you two really spending the time arguing over Steve Simmons? Surely you could probably think of better things to talk about. That's just my opinion though.