Under Further Review – May 11 Edition – Douglas Smith with Editor Bill Morphy. Special thanks to this week’s contributors including Peter Hucul and Rob Wagner.
Spanning the digital ether to bring you the constant variety of sport… the thrill of victory… and the agony of defeat… the human drama of athletic competition… This is Under Further Review.
NHL Playoff Takeaways – We can all agree it’s time to end the 32-year Stanley Cup drought among Canadian teams. Wouldn’t it be amazing to have three Canadian teams in this year’s Final Four? Could happen.
As much as we like to troll the Toronto Maple Leafs, this is the best Leafs team in the Matthews-Marner era. Credit the Chief. Leafs coach Craig Berube has changed the dynamic around the team. The country club atmosphere is gone. No more entitlement. It’s all about TEAM. The Leafs have totally bought in. There are no favourites with Berube.
Matthew Kneis adds another big offensive threat to the Leafs lineup. All the talk seems to focus on the Core Four so Knies often gets overlooked. That one additional offensive weapon makes the Leafs really dangerous.
The injury to Anthony Stolarz may end up impacting the series. Joseph Woll has been adequate at best. His save percentage in the three games – Game 1: .850, Game 2: .893, Game 3: .861. At the other end of the ice, Sergei Bobrovsky is posting the worst numbers in his 11 playoff seasons. Bobrovsky’s save percentage in this year’s playoffs is .875. The Panthers need Bob at his best.
Florida’s game plan against the Leafs is very noticeable. They are hitting at every opportunity and targeting the Leafs blueline group. The Panthers had 64 hits in game three. Paul Maurice believes the hits show up late in the series when the constant barrage begins to take a toll on the opposing team.
It pays to have stars and we’re finding that out in this year’s playoffs. Star players affect outcomes. Mikko Rantanen has been leading the way in Dallas. He posted back-to-back hat tricks, a first in the NHL playoffs since Jari Kurri way back in the 80’s. If Miro Heiskanen returns to the lineup, look out for the Stars. McDavid and Draisaitl continue to shine in Edmonton. What team has an answer for that duo? Florida has Alexander Barkov and Matthew Tkachuk. The Leafs have their stars. William Nylander has been nearly unstoppable in the playoffs. Auston Matthews has been solid at both ends of the ice. However, his scoring has dried up and it’s a confounding trend. Matthews has scored only three times in his last 19 playoff games. If you are comparing stars, Colorado’s Nathan MacKinnon has averaged 34 goals over the course of his career. In the post-season, he’s scored at a 47-goal pace. Great players deliver when it counts.
Brad Marchand has been a thorn in the Leafs side for a decade. After the overtime goal in game three, Marchand now has 33 points in 31 playoff games against the Leafs all-time. If Florida manages to rebound and win the series, the conditional second-round pick owed to Boston will convert to a 2027 first round pick. May end up being worth it.
The Winnipeg Jets finally had everyone available for game two against Dallas and they responded with perhaps their best game of the playoffs. Connor Hellebuyck was dominant. The Jets greatest asset is their overall balance. We’ll see how things go as the series shifts to Texas. One win there could set up another drag-‘em-out seven-game series.
Vegas came off the ropes Saturday night in Edmonton. A late goal with just 0.4 seconds left prevented a 3-0 series deficit. The Golden Knights won a Stanley Cup with size and toughness. Not sure it will slow the Oilers. Every Edmonton Oiler forward has scored at least one goal in these playoffs, a testament to the Oilers new-found depth up front. The Oilers have out-scored any issues in net. Edmonton has scored four or more goals in six of nine games. Getting Evander Kane back into the lineup has given the Oilers a big lift. He deepens the top six and makes the Oilers offence very difficult to contain. No word on the status of defenceman Mattias Ekholm. It would be a huge boost to get him back.
The Carolina Hurricanes have taken a 2-1 series lead against Washington. The Canes speed through the neutral zone has given the Caps all kinds of trouble. Washington is generating very little offence. Carolina has had the easiest route of any playoff team and should be well-rested if they can eliminate Washington in five or six. They are a really well-coached team under the underrated Rod Brind’Amour.
In case you didn’t notice, the Utah Hockey Club moved up ten spots in the draft lottery from 14th to 4th. Had the Canucks not fashioned that wild three-goal comeback in Dallas, Utah would have finished behind the Canucks and Vancouver would have held the 14th pick. Another sad postscript in Canucks history. In 55 years, the Canucks have never held the first overall pick. Bad lottery luck is the only luck they’ve known.
The Colorado Avalanche are the first team in MLB/NHL/NBA history to lose seven consecutive game 7’s. Pity the team that matches that record.
Carolina’s massive defence prospect Alexander Nikishin is yet to dress for a playoff game after signing with the Hurricanes following the end of the KHL season. At 6-foot-4, 216-pounds, Nikishin is NHL-ready. After agreeing to terms, Nikishin travelled 10,000 miles across three continents while the Hurricanes navigated immigration and visa issues. His odyssey started in St. Petersburg with stops in Istanbul, Riyadh, Jeddah, New York and finally Raleigh.
Rick Tocchet has resurfaced as an analyst on TNT’s playoff coverage. Toc has worked with TNT before so it was no surprise they invited him back. Ray Ferraro is working the Hurricanes/Caps series for ESPN. Unlike here in Canada, the U.S. networks recruit the best available talent, not who works cheapest.
The NHL coaching fraternity is about as stable as Meghan Markle. The turnover is crazy. No less than 17 NHL teams have changed coaches in the past year. Only eight current NHL coaches have made it past the second season. Since the end of the regular season, another eight jobs became open. Two have been filled – Mike Sullivan with the Rangers and Joel Quenneville with the Anaheim Ducks. The coaching carousel just keeps spinning and the same retreads keep filling the vacancies.
No NHL organization is more screwed up than the Buffalo Sabres. After missing the playoffs for the 14th straight season, the Sabres have brought in Eric Staal as an assistant to GM Kevyn Adams. Surprise, surprise. The two played together in Carolina. The ‘chummy’ system is alive and well in the NHL. Nothing will change in Buffalo until the team brings in a senior manager who can revamp the organization top to bottom.
Seven NHL teams have multiple first-round picks in the upcoming June draft. San Jose (2), Chicago (2), Nashville (3), Philadelphia (3), Columbus (2), Montreal (2) and Calgary (2). The Flyers have seven picks in the first three rounds. The Blackhawks, Preds, Sharks and Canadiens have two second-rounders as well.
The Band-Aid Brigade – You don’t have to be a soothsayer to see where this is going. It took years for the Canucks to build a decent core. In a flash, it’s proven nowhere good enough to legitimately contend for a Stanley Cup. What now?
The steadfast resistance in taking the slow road to contention has cost the Canucks dearly. The Canucks have selected in the first or second round of the NHL draft only three times since 2020. They’ve made the playoffs once in that time span. They’ve already made it clear they are willing to trade this year’s first round pick in order to try and secure a top-six centre. There we go again. Chips in the middle. Forget about long-term planning. It’s all about ‘win-now.’
It’s amazing how utterly frivolous the Canucks are when it comes to draft capital. Renting Elias Lindholm cost the team a first-round pick. How many selections have gone out the window just to shed salary? If the Canucks have any hope of landing the elite forwards they need this summer, the cost of doing business is going to be enormous. More draft picks and more young assets will need to be forfeited. All in the name of making the playoffs. Maybe.
For years now, the Canucks have taken a band-aid approach when what was needed was a triple bypass. We have often criticized the Maple Leafs (much of it with tongue firmly planted in cheek) for their lack of playoff success. But the Leafs have made the playoffs for nine consecutive seasons which is far better than the Canucks. The Leafs took the scorched-earth approach and tore it down to the studs which helped land elite foundational pieces.
The sad truth is the Canucks have never had the organizational discipline and patience to slowly accumulate talent. Trevor Linden advised Canucks ownership they needed to launch a full-blown rebuild similar to the Leafs and other organizations. Jim Benning convinced them otherwise so Linden was kicked to the curb. What we’ve had since then is a series of botched roster moves that’s left the team in its current predicament. It’s been some kind of retool, hasn’t it?
We’re a year away from Quinn Hughes being extension eligible and already there are multiple reports he’s interested in being united with his brothers in New Jersey. Believe it. Quinn’s father Jimmy played at Providence College in the 80’s and one of his teammates was Devils GM Tom Fitzgerald. Connect the dots.
The noise never stops in this market. Allvin and the Chipmunks are not about to suddenly reverse field and start a rebuild. The dye is cast. The Canucks are pot committed and that means do anything required just to make the playoffs next season.
MLB Notebook – Manager John Schneider is ‘Dead Man Walking’ as long as the team continues to flounder. The Cleveland Clowns will be looking for a scapegoat and Schneider is sure to be the sacrificial lamb. The Blue Jays sit in 10th spot in the American League. They are fortunate the AL East has been so underwhelming.
Keep an eye on the Jays top pitching prospect Trey Yesavage. He’s been overpowering batters at Low A Dunedin and is on a fast track to Vancouver. Yesavage struck out 36 in his first five starts with a 2.31 ERA. Don’t be surprised if the 21-year-old former first-round pick gets the call soon. Another good reason to get out to the Nat and catch a Canadians game.
What’s happened to the Baltimore Orioles? Weren’t the O’s supposed to be the new powerhouse in the American League? Instead, the Orioles sit dead last in the American League East with a 14-23 record. Their pitching staff ranks 29th in the majors ahead of only Miami and Colorado. Seems like the whole team is struggling at the plate. Catcher Adley Rutschman is hitting .195. Third baseman Jordan Westburg has a .217 average. Cedric Mullins (.220), Ryan Mountcastle (.218) and Tyler O’Neill (.217) are underperforming. Even the O’s best player, Gunnar Henderson, is batting just .258.
What an incredible start for New York Yankees lefthander Max Fried who signed an eight-year, $218 million contract with the Yanks in the off-season. Fried is 6-0 and leads the majors with a 1.05 ERA. With ace Gerrit Cole, Luis Gil and Marcus Stroman all sidelined, Fried has been a workhorse with 51 2/3 innings pitched. That’s a 226-inning pace.
Things have not worked out nearly as well with Yankees reliever Devin Williams. He’s lost the closer job to Luke Weaver after being acquired over the winter from Milwaukee. Williams has a 9.24 ERA and his strikeout rate is down significantly. He’s walked 11 in 12 2/3 innings. From 2022 to 2024, Williams posted ERAs of 1.95, 1.53 and 1.25, respectively, while recording 65 saves and averaging about 14 strikeouts per nine innings.
New York Mets moneybag Juan Soto is not exactly lighting the world on fire. After signing the record $765 million dollar contract, Soto is hitting just .259 with eight home runs and only 19 RBI’s. The Mets are in first place in the NL East so it’s not the end of the world but still….
Remember the Chicago White Sox historically bad season last year? The Sox set a new MLB record with 121 losses. Well, the Colorado Rockies are about to take their own run at infamy. The Rockies are 6-33 and on pace to win even fewer games than the ’24 White Sox. They 2-17 on the road and are already 19 and a half games behind the first-place Dodgers in the NL West.
Speaking of the Dodgers, they have 13 pitchers on the IL including starters Blake Snell and Tyler Glasnow. They rank 26th in team ERA (5.25). Shows you have much talent they have when they can still hold onto first place.
How about this stat? Ricky Henderson walked to lead off an inning 796 times. 45 percent of the position players in the Hall of Fame did not walk that many times in their career.
Random Leftovers – Can someone please explain why the Dallas Cowboys would obtain George Pickens from the Pittsburgh Steelers? Complete waste of a third-round pick. Is CeeDee Lamb not a big enough diva for you? Pickens makes Tyreek Hill look like a choirboy. The Steelers were shocked any team showed interest. Against Cincinnati last season, Pickens was flagged twice for unsportsmanlike conduct — one for making a gun gesture and another for dropping a ball on a Bengals defender. Against the Cowboys, Pickens wore eye black that read “Open F—ing Always.” Remember when it actually meant something to wear that star on your helmet?
As expected, forward Maddox Schultz was the first overall pick in the WHL draft by the Regina Pats. Schultz gets to remain in his hometown. He just led the Regina Pat Canadians to the Telus Cup midget national championship. Meanwhile, the Medicine Hat Tigers selected Duke Lesnar with the 115th overall pick. If the name sounds familiar, it should. He’s the 14-year-old son of WWE champion Brock Lesnar and former professional wrestler Sable. Duke played this season with the Notre Dame Hounds U-15 prep team based in Wilcox, Saskatchewan.
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