You have to be careful that you do not listen so much to the Toronto Media.

I think Murray and Samsonov are great additions to the Leafs as both are young and former starters for their teams.

I really like Murray and that the fact that he backstopped Pittsburg to 2 Cup wins at a young age.........I think his father dieing and lots of injuries really negatively impacted him and then a trade to Ottawa which had a terrible defence destroyed his stats but I am convinced he will bounce back on the Leafs with the support of Dubas, Keefe and Egdon.

Samsonov could also be a home run for the Leafs.......again Washington was not the best defensive team in front of him but he still had a great winning record..........I get tired of the so called Media Experts ripping his stats when he had a great winning record........Its like people cutting down Grant Fuhr or Gerry Cheevers as goalies when they played on high offense teams which gave up lots of chances.

Us OId Guard have to stick together.

Not surprisingly, we usually do.

Well .......lets get to a more important question:

1. Are the Canucks going to trade JT Miller this summer?........and if so.....what is taking them so long?

I’m older than almost everyone else on CapFriendly, so here’s what I would say to you kids in your formative years (i.e, anyone under 50) if anyone asked:
1. You never say “I love you” enough, let alone too much.
2. I never learned anything while I was talking.
3. If you try to will yourself to be happy, you may or may not succeed; but if you want to be UNhappy, you’ll succeed 100% of the time. And as Bob Dylan said, failure’s no success at all.
I don’t always live up to these principles, but I sure wish that I could.
May you all have wonderful lives and wonderful wives.

I completely agree. I watch the playoffs even after my canes get eliminated and still root for specific players in the playoffs. I love seeing players who have played a ton of hockey in their career finally get that final prize. Other than my canes I was rooting for the panthers because of giroux and also the Avs because of cogliano and Johnson. As you become more of a fan, you grow more respect for the players and u have those who you root for despite the fact that they aren’t on your team. Honestly I wouldn’t have been disappointed if the leafs had won the cup this year because Spezza deserves a cup. When the caps won it I was happy for Ovi even tho he is a notorious cane killer. I am a baby compared to some of the best on this site, palhal and you I have the upmost respect for. I would be happy if the leafs won the cup because palhal would’ve been happy they won the cup. I grew up with a lot of the modern NHL. I was 11 when mcdavid was drafted and a lot of the current NHL. As I matured as a person and as a hockey fan I have learned to appreciate the sport and I will turn on a game almost every night during the season even if my team isn’t playing. I love being able to connect with people because of this game and just find other fans of the game. Capfriendly has provided a community for hockey fans to congregate which is much better than hockey twitter. You find fans of all ages here and it is so nice being able to find people who just have a love for hockey. Although this started as a mockery of the leafs, it is great to be apart of this thread because it shows how in the end we can all have a level of respect for each other even with differing opinions. I’m rooting for a Canadian team to win a cup now after my canes because it would be great for the nation and even with all the rivalries, I would see fans of every team being happy a Canadian team brought back the cup. In the end I am rooting for those guys who deserve it even if I don’t see them getting there soon. Love this community and members like you epitomize the greatness of it.

Love to hear it

They’re most definitely waiting for the right package. They witnessed what ottawa did to Chicago and don’t want a repeat of that. Patience is a virtue. Nucks management is waiting on the right package and once they get an offer they can’t refuse they pull the trigger.

My concern for the Canucks.........Are what happens if Miller starts the season with Canucks and then he drops out of being in the NHL top 30 scorers or gets injured.

I go back and forth on whether Canucks should hold or trade Miller..........Vancouver has been a great fit for Miller.......If he was willing to do a team friendly deal at say $7,500,000 per year for 6 years.....then I think he might be better just staying in Vancouver.

Alternatively, the Canucks run him back and try to make the playoffs and either trade him as a rental at deadline or hold him for playoff run.

I’ll give you Bracco and a 2nd…

I mean it’s not like torontos D is much better than ottawas. It’s obviously better but not as good as the D murray had when he won the cup. They both have upside but if I’m betting I would say they don’t backstop the team to a ECF. Unless they make a move to bolster the bottom 6 and the D then I see them not contending. Goalies look like that’s what the tandem is and if Murray or Samsonov can somehow be an all star caliber goalie then they could go somewhere but the bottom 6 and goaltending got weaker. And back to the main point, if half the cap wasn’t tied up in 4 players I think the leafs would have serious cup capability but in the end they lose against top teams because they exploit the leafs weaknesses IE the bottom 6 and defense. That’s why they had a 9-10 record against top 5 teams last year (Calgary, tampa, colorado, panthers, and canes). Compared to the top teams they preform rather mediocrely and their win rate drops .200%. Not being able to win against the top teams is their problem. These are the 4 division winners and the cup finalists. Colorado who was the eventual champion had about the same winning percentage against the top teams. That is my problem with the leafs. They got worse this off-season and if last season showed anything, they will be a good team compared to the bad teams but a mediocre team against the top teams. This is where my issue with the leafs comes in, the top talent can carry against bad teams and even above average teams but when they play serious talent, they are sub 500. If the leafs were a deeper/more balanced team, I would pick them as favorites for next year. They aren’t tho and that’s my issue. An average defense at best and a below average bottom 6 is not it. Teams like Tampa have a super deep defense that is top down good and their bottom talent is among the best in the league. That’s the difference maker in the top tier teams. That’s why I rate the leafs so poorly and have a distaste for dubas. He made poor signings in Tavares and nylander and both are holding the team back. If they had say 4-5 mil more in cap, they could build a really good team. The cap exists and that’s the problem for the leafs and other teams like the knights. The leafs haven’t done it as bad as the knights but the concept is still there. If the leafs managed to get an above average third line and an above average middle d pair, they would be contenders in my eyes. At the moment they are far from that and why I see them still losing. Your 5-6 stars can’t carry a 20 man roster to a cup, it has to be all around and losing guys like mikheyev and replacing him with a malgin or Calle is a visible downgrade. Who knows tho, the leafs could win it all and make me eat my words. Till then I will continue to believe what I believe.

Eh we aren’t NHL GMs, we don’t know the whole story. Just pure speculation in regards to trades. If you asked me the canes would get patches for free a week ago I would’ve said yea right. In the end anything can happen and I’d imagine the nucks are waiting for a really good offer. They want two good young players/prospects plus a first. Not many teams will pay that. We will see in the end

The new Canucks management team has been upgrading the entire organization and putting alot of resources into player development which is going to improve their ability to sign and develope players and prospects........They are now stocking the prospect pool and building depth on NHL and AHL team and are going to make some trades in the near future to upgrade their RH Defence positon on the Canucks.

I'm 68. I do remember the Leafs winning the Cup in 1962. Actually it must be to 1959, I remember seeing the Rocket play.

You sir are among the ever so lucky few that have seen the promised land! My dad makes me jealous. He’s 81 and he has seen so much of the glory days. I grew up in the 70s and early 80s and for my generation it has been extremely frustrating but we somehow remain here for the punishment. It’s just been too long to give up. The kids are the ones I worry about because they’re still naive but once they’re hearts are broken I can see them running to the Raptors full time and giving up on the Leafs

Hockey is so expensive for young people to play. Kinda think that is one reason that the Raptors have been popular. More kids can play basketball than (ice) hockey. Interesting that the Raptors and Leafs are owned by the same group but the Raptors have very good management and the Leafs....not so much (for years)

Looks like you've gathered a band of "elder statesman" together. Please feel free to share thi with the rest of the gang. For the record, I have been a NYR fan since 1956 (age 5). I attended my first hockey game at MSG #3 on March 9, 1958, three days before my 7th birthday and 19 days before "Mr.Hockey's" 30th. The Wings prevailed 4-2, Gordie netted one for the Wings, and Andy Bathgate answered for the Rangers. Back in the late 50's the Rangers and Bruins occasionally made the playoffs, but had the best brawlers in the league. However, it turns out that over the years, the Rangers and Wings provided the best boxing entertainment at games that I attended. The first occurred in the earlier 60's, a bench emptier (boy, do I miss those!!!). The particulars: Length - 55 minutes, Time to announce the penalties - 25 minutes - 12 ejections - skated 3 on 3 for the next 22 minutes - most vivid fight action - Reggie Fleming, star brawler for Blueshirts (Reggie didn't need his bolts tightened, he needed them installed) was about 2/3 up on a pile of players. A Wing who was slightly higher in the pile was delivering on Reggie's face. Reggie's right arm was pinned by several other participants. Reggie's solution: Since he could not block the incoming, he picked out a Wing lower in the pile, and while receiving, proceeded to start delivering on the other guy. Old time hockey at its best. As an Isles fan, I'm sure you recall a similar game between the Isles and Pens - 419 penalty minutes, Michael Healey attempting to take on the entire Pens team, he had several TKOs. The game ending with a 3 on 3 in progress and two guys on each bench. Next edition: Domi - Probert II.

just want to chime in on how fun it was to see a goofy troll post turn into something very wholesome

It was 1961-62. Again in 1962-63, 1963-64, and the Leafs won the final Original 6 cup in 1966-67. Forwards: Frank Mahovlich, Dave Keon, George Armstrong - Defense: Red Kelly, Tim Horton, Allan Stanley - Goalie: Johnny Bower. Great team!

What can unite fans more than an ACGM trolling the Leafs?