25 Nov 2020 15:43:59
Hyman/Matthews/Marner
Simmonds/Tavares/Nylander
Vesey/Bennett/Kerfoot
Barabanov/Thornton/Spezza

Rielly/Brodie
Muzzin/Dermott
Lehtonen/Bogosian


Mikheyev and Holl to flames for Sam Bennett, a Center prospect and a 3rd round pick.


1.) 25 Nov 2020
25 Nov 2020 17:38:31
Huge overpay Mikheyev before he was injured was almost a point per game player and Holl played well last year plus we don’t need anymore centres.


2.) 26 Nov 2020
25 Nov 2020 23:35:26
Is Dermott a very good young defenseman that has a bright future and I like a lot? Yes.

Is Dermott a better 2RHD than Holl? Probably not,

I can’t say decisively because I haven’t seen Dermott play 2RHD in the NHL. I have seen Holl play that position though, and I think he does it well.

What I like about Dermott is that he is excellent at closing the gap between the rushing forward at the blueline. He forces turnovers and has excellent transition play. Too many Leafs, Rielly is particularly guilty of this, allow the forward to gain entry into the zone with speed, while the defender plays a collapsing box fall back style defense. Dermott is more aggressive at standing up at the blueline and not allowing zone entries against.

Holl is excellent at both zone entries and zone exits with possession. He makes a lot of short accurate outlet passes to the forwards that allows them to exit the defensive zone and enter the neutral zone with possession. He is not known for generating offense, yet that is exactly what he does. And he is very good at it. His numbers don’t appear on the box scores. But a lot of plays that result in a scoring opportunity start from a smart play he made in the back end.

Unless, and until, Dermott (or Lehtonen) proves he is capable of taking that 2RHD spot, that spot is Holl’s to lose. We shouldn’t trade him without adequate replacement.

Bennett is a third line centre. A top 4 defensemen is more valuable than a middle six forward, and the top two pairings is more valuable combined than the top two forward lines. By weakening our top 4 defense to add a bottom six forward, it would weaken the team as a whole.

I’m not convinced Dermott can be a better 2RHD than Holl. I was impressed by both last year. They can both play middle pair defense and step up to top pairing in case of injury. But only at their respective positions. I wouldn’t take risk of losing Holl without bringing in replacement. And I don’t think Dermott is a proper replacement.

Just my two cents. For whatever that’s worth.


3.) 26 Nov 2020
26 Nov 2020 06:16:54
I'm not as much a fan of Holl as I am Dermott but, I agree on the point of who knows? Maybe Dermott is better at 2RHD than any of us imagined? But maybe he is much, much worse. I don't like the idea of trading or removing Holl until we see what Lehtonen and Dermott can do. As much as I like Bogosian he isn't a top 4 player.