Quoting: GenXHockey
Leafs dominated play with Lilly on the ice. Lyubushkin was a hot mess for the most part. He was playing well above his head so I don't blame him personally.
Lilly in the other hand moved the puck like a surgeon, contributed offensively consistently and had very impressive defensive numbers. Especially when paired with Rielly. But made all of his partners better. Other than points he led leafs Dmen in nearly every metric.
Thing is, I don't disagree with you on Lilly. He's good. I disagree with your assessment on Lyubushkin. I saw things differently there. He just brings an element the d core needs. Lilly doesn't bring that. I'm not even confident either player will actually be with the Leafs next season. Do the Leafs qualify Lilly and risk going to arbitration with him? I don't like that really. I'd rather option Sandin, sign Lyubushkin to a low aav cap hit for 2-3 years, let Lilly walk to UFA, and give Niemela a chance on RD throughout the season at a lower cap hit than Lilly. AGAIN, I like Lilly, but I think we have too many guys like him that are better at what he provides. We need a solid mix of defensive attributes, not all finesse.