axman15

If he can turn into Forsberg, that would be a dream come true. I'd be happy with even 'just' a league average #1 center. I don't mind his play for MODO, as you said he was playing against men in a very tough league. It sets him up well to be able to jump into the NHL (or even the AHL) sooner than most players his age.

I like the changes too, I'm just not sure how much success they will add up to. But you're right, our bottom 6 forwards were brutal last year. Clarkson and Bolland both failed miserably (both for different reasons), and a revolving cast of players tried in those roles also couldn't get the job done. On Reimer to Winnipeg, I've heard that too, but I get the feeling that the Jets are going to see what they have in net before they go out and make a move. Is Reimer really that much better than Pavelec? I'm not sure he is. I wouldn't mind the Leafs acquiring Kane at all, he'd fit in nicely on our second line with Kadri/Lupul. But I'd rather not give up Bozak in the deal, even if that's a dealbreaker. Bozak is the closest thing we have to a #1 center at this point (Kadri has the potential, but I need to see a bit more out of him before considering giving him the spot), and say what you want, but he does have chemistry with Kessel. He's just too big a piece of our team at the moment to deal for a guy like Kane. Don't get me wrong though, if we could work out a deal for Kane without trading Kessel/JVR/Bozak/Kadri/Reilly/Gardiner, I'd be all for it. That's not likely to happen though.

Huge fan of it. I heard a lot of people say that he was overpayed, but there is no real value that you can tie with what he brings to the team. He is the kind of guy that every successful team needs (not calling the Leafs successful), and he knows what his role is. A very good professional. This could very well be Holland's breakout season. If he can get enough ice time, we could see 20+ goals IMO. That could be a problem though, finding the ice time on a team with so many centermen.

Much appriciated. That's an offseason of thoughts right there

I really hope the team trades Reimer. He is a good backup/insurance for us, but it isn't doing anything for him as a player. He's not developing, and despite what he's said of late, it's quite clear that he isn't happy in Toronto. The problem is, I'm not sure where they should trade him to. He wants to start somewhere, but there is no place for him to start at the moment. Every team that entered the offseason with questions in net have, for the most part, answered them. That leaves the Leafs with a choice of either trading him well below value, or holding onto a guy who doesn't want to sit on the bench. Of what I've seen, Reimer is a good guy, and I don't think he would purposly cause any issues in the room if he is unhappy. However, with the way that the Toronto media will grab onto even the smallest quote and take it well out of proportion, you never know. As for the rest of the offseason, I don't really have a stance. We entered with a few holes, and those holes still exist going into training camp. The defense lost Gunnerson, and added Robidas and Polak. There's a chance that Franson will be traded, and Granberg has a shot to make the roster as well. I like the Gardiner signing, it was something that I feel we had to get done. But do I think that we are better on defense now? Not so much. Phaneuf is still the number 1 guy (different topic for a different day), and any improvement will hinge on the developement of Reilly/Gardiner. We know what Robidas and Polak are going to bring to the table. We know what Phaneuf is going to do. For me, this is still an average defense group. Up front, we lost Bolland, a guy who didn't play much last year due to injury (we're gonna end up regretting that trade. Some decent picks for a guy who played 16 games for Toronto), McClemment, and Raymond. In return we added a ton of 3rd/4th line depth players. The possible line combonations are endless. We didn't really get any upgrades, but we did add more depth which will be a big help. We also didn't lose much. This is a real make or break year for a few guys in particular. Halfway through the season management is going to have a much better idea of what they have going forward in guys like Holland, Clarkson, Gardiner, etc. Overall, this is still a fringe playoff team. A 6/7/8 seed in the East is a real possibility, but so is a bottom 5 finish. Here's how I would predict the lines going into the season... JVR-Bozak-Kessel Lupul-Kadri-Booth Komarov-Holland-Santorelli Winnick-Kontiola-Clarkson (Frattin, Ashton) Gardiner-Phaneuf Reilly-Robidas Franson-Polak (Granberg) Bernier Reimer