Why All the Grabbo Hate?
by SkinnyFish on Sep 2, 2010 11:30 AM EDT
40 comments
Frankly, I've grown very tired of the constant hate for Mikhail Grabovski and have decided to write a post that aims to stamp out the hate once and for all.
Grabbo is entering his second year of his three year deal worth $2.9M in caphit per year. The year before his newest contract, he scored 20 G and recorded 28 assists in 78 games playing as the 2nd line center. That's a 0.615 PPG pace. This past season, one that was shortened due to a broken wrist, saw his point total drop to just 35 but his PPG stayed relatively the same at 0.592.
Alrighty so now let's do some comparisons to see just how good or bad Mr. Grabs is.
According to NHL.com, a PPG pace of 0.592 has him ranked 58th last year among centers which would put him near the bottom of the barrel for guys playing in a 2nd line role.
Haters - 1, Lovers - 0
Take the jump, but be warned; it's not pretty from here on out for the Haters.
40 comments | 5 recs |
SBN Mock Expansion Draft - Protected List
by PPP on Sep 2, 2010 9:00 AM EDT
259 comments
Monday, we looked at the SBN Expansion Draft and what players to protect on the Leafs' squad. The full details can be found here. The Leafs benefit a lot from the rules exempting guys with little NHL experience. However, the Leafs do still have to leave players unprotected even though we could likely protect the entire team via exemptions and our allotment of protected spots. So without further ado, here's who is remaining a Leaf:
Goaltender
Jonas Gustavsson is being protected and Jean-Sebastien Giguere is free to be picked up by either Gabe or James
Defencemen
Dion Phaneuf, Luke Schenn, Mike Komisarek, Tomas Kaberle, and Francois Beauchemin will be protected during the draft. Jeff Finger and Brett Lebda will be exposed in the draft. (Carl Gunnarsson is exempt.)
Forwards
This is where the exercise becomes tricky. Because of our dearth of players that fit the 40 games played/70 over past two seasons threshold we have to unprotect a player that we would normally be allowed to leave exposed. That means that Phil Kessel, Nikolai Kulemin, Mikhail Grabovski, John Mitchell, Colby Armstrong, Clarke MacArthur, Colton Orr, Fredrik Sjostrom, Mike Zigomanis, and Kris Versteeg are all protected. That leaves Clarke MacArthur Colby Armstrong and Mike Brown as the exposed players in the draft. (The remaining forwards not listed are exempt.)
You can follow the outcome of the draft, which is being held tonight via conference call between Philadelphia, Winnipeg, and Quebec, via the NHL hub over at SBNation.com.
Yay September!
by Karina on Sep 2, 2010 7:00 AM EDT
in From The Branches
106 comments
Thank goodness it's September with training camp and the pre-season right around the corner. I can't take any more cap, SPC, or roster speculation. I am going so insane with the lack of any hockey to watch (although thank you TSN for re-playing so many Olympic games and the Bruins/Flyers game 7 lately) that I actually came up with the most insane idea ever to "solve" the Canucks' problem of Luongo's captaincy (co-captains!). Heck I even feel the Leafs Annual hasn't been enough to tide me over, since most articles cover things we've talked about at length here. Nevertheless, in a little over a week I will be heading off for a fine vacation in New York City and when I return, there will be preseason hockey to watch. YAAAAAY
Links after the jump.
Examining GVT per Million: Has Brian Burke Signed Efficient Player Contracts?
by Nirbo on Sep 1, 2010 7:03 PM EDT
23 comments
Editor's Note: Here's a good first FanPost for anyone wondering what they should be striving for. Nirbo analyses Brian Burke's roster using GVT per million and gives us an idea of what we might be able to expect in a best-case scenario.
This is a pretty simple exercise for my first FanPost. Been a lurker and occasional commenter for a while, and I hope this adds at least a limited amount to the preseason discussion.
While I love many of the names and attached abilities that he has brought in, I haven't been sold on Burke's cap-management strategy. It seems he has overpaid on a significant chunk of contracts, particularly in free agency. I wanted to see if the stats backed this up.
I'm going to use GVT vs. $M to assess players whose current contracts are Burke's responsibility: players signed or traded for under his watch. I will exclude Kadri, Mueller and others who don't have historical NHL data to go on, though I'm sure we can have fun with eGVT at some point.
Here is Tom Awad's original series on how GVT is calculated for those who are interested and haven't seen it already.
23 comments | 3 recs |
Do You Realize What Month It Is?
by SkinnyFish on Sep 1, 2010 7:00 AM EDT
in From The Branches
574 comments
It's freaking September! That's what month it is. September holds more than just the end of summer and the beginning of fall; it marks the beginning of the return of hockey! In September we get rookie tournaments, training camp, roster finalization, and lastly the start of the pre-season.
August is the worst hockey related month by far; September freaking rules. Any of you who got some hate for September be mad bugging yo.
Links after the jump.
Twitter / Jeff Marek: Maple Leafs sign Christian ...
Christian Hanson has signed a 1 year contract, per Jeff Marek on Twitter.
Read the official press release here.
Update: Per Mirtle: 600K two way deal.
It's Time for some Phantasy Puck
by SkinnyFish on Aug 31, 2010 2:00 PM EDT
334 comments
That's right ladies and gentleman, the NHL season is fast approaching and with it comes the return of the PPPPP. Last year's installment was a hit with 40 teams spread out amongst 2 divisions. This year we're looking to improve upon that success and have an even better turnout and season.
But before we get to naming our teams, we need to put our heads together and figure out what kind of Phantasy Puck we want to play. Below is a series of questions for you to answer that'll help me determine a) how many people are interested in joining the PPPPP and b) what types of drafts and leagues people are interested in partaking in.
First off, are you interested in being a part of the PPPPP? You do not have to be a Leafs fan to play; all are welcome. Our league(s) will be run using Yahoo!s fantasy engine, and you'll need a Yahoo! account to play. Please no absentee managers for these leagues. If you join, we'd like it if you actively participated in the week in and week out goings on with your team and its league. Also, do to the large numbers of players and the turn over with managers, we will not be doing keeper leagues.
Take the jump for the rest of the PPPPP questions.
Toronto Maple Leafs' Mount Puckmore
by PPP on Aug 31, 2010 11:03 AM EDT
606 comments
Editor's Note: Thanks to Sean Leahy for asking us to contribute to Puck Daddy's Mount Puckmore series and thanks to everyone that helped discuss the choices. Here's what we went with, let us know what we got wrong but remember, Wendel blessed these choices.
Save the 1967 jokes: unless your team is the Montreal Canadiens the history of the Toronto Maple Leafs is a lot more storied than that of your favorite franchise. Actually, use them if you want. It's not like the rest of you can come up with any original jokes or better ones than Leafs fans can anyway.
Picking just four names from the 93 year tale of the Toronto Maple Leafs is an exercise in compromise. Can a team that won 13 Stanley Cups pick three of its four Mt. Puckmore visages from players that never won a Cup in Toronto?
The post-1967 Leafs include players like Darryl Sittler. Sidney Crosby's nickname of Darryl comes from the fact that in junior the Penguins star scored eight points in one game. Darryl Sittler scored six goals and four assists in one NHL game during a career in which he re-wrote the franchise's record book.
Wendel Clark embodies what the Toronto Maple Leafs are and always have been; a hard nosed workman's team in stark contrast to the endlessly skilled Montreal Canadiens. While the Flying Frenchmen were winning Cups on the back of Gallic flair, the Leafs were piling them up with the proverbial stiff upper lip. Wendel Clark literally gave 110% until his body failed and anyone who has ever called themselves a Leafs fan knows of his heroics in the 1993 Western Conference Finals where he put the Leafs on his back and tried to overcome Kerry Fraser and Wayne Gretzky with sheer will and a deadly wrister.
What about Doug Gilmour who was instrumental in those two runs to the conference finals? He posted 35 points in 21 games in the 1993 playoffs after being run out of town in Calgary. After Wendel Clark's departure Gilmour wore the C in Toronto in a move that has been strangely echoed by Dion Phaneuf's arrival.
It's not any easier to pick players from before 1967. Dave Keon lifted four Cups in Toronto and is the only Leafs with his name etched on the Conn Smythe trophy: named after the Leafs owner and given to the playoff MVP.
Who can forget Bill Barilko? He won four Cups in his five seasons and in his last hockey game Barilko scored in OT to win the Leafs the 1951 Stanley Cup. Less than half a year later he disappeared. His body wasn't found for eleven years. The Leafs had an eleven year Cup drought that they ended with a run of three straight titles. The first one came in 1962 after Barilko's body was found.
A great case could be made for any number of Maple Leafs being a part of this exercise. To leave off Hap Day, Charlie Conacher, Bill Barilko, Doug Gilmour, Dave Keon, Wendel Clark, Darryl Sittler, Syl Apps, Turk Broda, Johnny Bower and all of the Leafs greats is to leave off a long list of legends. These are our four choices for Mt. Puckmore, the four players who rise above being legends.
606 comments | 6 recs |
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