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Joey Crabb re-signs 1 Year Deal with Leafs

Crabb has 5 goals and 6 points in 13 games since he's been called up.

Even when everyone is healthy, I think Crabb deserves to stay. He has turned the third line into a reliable scoring threat, and I think the team is better off with him.

Thoughts?
 
Gilmour the Great said:
Crabb has 5 goals and 6 points in 13 games since he's been called up.

Even when everyone is healthy, I think Crabb deserves to stay. He has turned the third line into a reliable scoring threat, and I think the team is better off with him.

Thoughts?
Click to expand...

A lot of guys deserve to stay. He's basically got Army's roster spot right now and I'm not convinced he's a better overall player.
 
Gilmour the Great said:
Crabb has 5 goals and 6 points in 13 games since he's been called up.

Even when everyone is healthy, I think Crabb deserves to stay. He has turned the third line into a reliable scoring threat, and I think the team is better off with him.

Thoughts?
Click to expand...

That's the two headed nature of 'depth' I suppose but if it's down to him versus say Dupuis as a 13th option well it's a nice problem to have.
 
Gilmour the Great said:
Crabb has 5 goals and 6 points in 13 games since he's been called up.

Even when everyone is healthy, I think Crabb deserves to stay. He has turned the third line into a reliable scoring threat, and I think the team is better off with him.

Thoughts?
Click to expand...

I don't expect his scoring pace to last but he's a pretty good PKer. Couldn't stand him on a scoring line last year. This season, he's earned a little of my respect. I'd take Armstrong over him in a heartbeat though.
 
I would take Armstrong over him too, but as you said, he is a strong PKer who has had an immediate effect on our PK rank. Between that and his scoring, I don't think there are 12 forwards in our system who have the potential to contribute more.

Assuming we ever get every forward healthy (which is unlikely), I would make the lines:

Lupul-Bozak-Kessel
Lombardi-Timmy-Mac
Kuli-Grabbo-Army
Brown-Steckel-Crabb
Colborne-Dupuis-Frattin

He's not a perfect player by any means, but he brings balance to the roster, and he is a great example to the kids on how work ethic pays off.
 
Going with 3 defencemen? ;)

I don't think that's far off saying Crabb could be fighting Dupuis for the 13th spot.

 
It works for Tampa.  :P

Respectfully, I think Crabb has shown far more than Dupuis so far, and should be considered safely above him on the depth chart. For me, the question is whether he has outplayed the kids. Steckel is a lock for a position given his faceoff ability, and I believe Lombardi's speed and defensive intelligence means he will walk back into the lineup once he is healthy. Armstrong's toughness ensures him of a spot too.

I think Orr and Rosehill are only useful in potential dustups against teams like Boston, and even then Brown offers most of what they do, plus speed and penalty killing. Frattin and Colborne have lots of potential, but I think they would benefit from heavy minutes on a winning Marlies team, that kind of confidence can't be gained through limited fourth line experience and healthy scratches. Dupuis has been a total offensive black hole so far, in today's game a fourth line player needs to contribute more than hits.

I think this year's Crabb is a pretty great 12 man on a roster, and we are lucky to have the depth that allows for this situation. When you think that he was on Kessel's line at times last year, it really is amazing how far Burke has brought the roster in 12 months.
 
Well, as mentioned in the game day thread, Dupuis is doing a pretty good job on the pk, second behind Steckel in shtoi and I think has only been on for 4 ppg this year, IIRC.

Certainly Crabb has made more of his offensive opportunities to date and on that could get the nod but I wouldn't underestimate Dupuis' value to the pk... and that's coming from a guy who questioned Dupuis' value this summer.
 
Gilmour the Great said:
I would take Armstrong over him too, but as you said, he is a strong PKer who has had an immediate effect on our PK rank. Between that and his scoring, I don't think there are 12 forwards in our system who have the potential to contribute more.

Assuming we ever get every forward healthy (which is unlikely), I would make the lines:

Lupul-Bozak-Kessel
Lombardi-Timmy-Mac
Kuli-Grabbo-Army
Brown-Steckel-Crabb
Colborne-Dupuis-Frattin

He's not a perfect player by any means, but he brings balance to the roster, and he is a great example to the kids on how work ethic pays off.
Click to expand...

I wonder about Lombardi. He's shown very little this season, and I'm not sure the Leafs have the luxury of waiting for him to find his game. There are players who are producing, both offensively and defensively and Lombardi has been just ok defensively and offensively.

I like Crabb's forecheck and net presence (at least 2 goals have been deflections right on the doorstep). As mentioned his Pk'ing is also pretty good. He seems the better 3rd line option at the moment anyways, irrespective of the fact that Lombardi is hurt.
 
Waiting for someone to find their game is one thing, waiting for someone to get into nhl game shape and find their game after doing nothing for an entire year is another. I thought he was doing remarkably well with that and think even a half gassed Lombardi is a better option.

Don't get me wrong, I like Crabb and the work he's doing but the chasm between skillsets seems pretty wide to me.
 
Tigger said:
Waiting for someone to find their game is one thing, waiting for someone to get into nhl game shape and find their game after doing nothing for an entire year is another. I thought he was doing remarkably well with that and think even a half gassed Lombardi is a better option.

Don't get me wrong, I like Crabb and the work he's doing but the chasm between skillsets seems pretty wide to me.
Click to expand...

If you look at the stats and games played between the two Crabb and Lombardi, there is not much difference. Crabb will score more goals, this season. and imo he plays more physical. There plus/minus will be near identical. IMO again the only difference is vast amount of speed which Lombardi has.
 
freer said:
Tigger said:
Waiting for someone to find their game is one thing, waiting for someone to get into nhl game shape and find their game after doing nothing for an entire year is another. I thought he was doing remarkably well with that and think even a half gassed Lombardi is a better option.

Don't get me wrong, I like Crabb and the work he's doing but the chasm between skillsets seems pretty wide to me.
Click to expand...

If you look at the stats and games played between the two Crabb and Lombardi, there is not much difference. Crabb will score more goals, this season. and imo he plays more physical. There plus/minus will be near identical. IMO again the only difference is vast amount of speed which Lombardi has.
Click to expand...

You mean games played this year? I think Lombardi's body of work as a player is a pretty big difference and like I said above that's Lombardi working his way back into the nhl after a long time off, he wasn't at the top of his game yet nor was his conditioning there either. Crabb doesn't seem like he has a higher ceiling to me, at all.
 
Tigger said:
Waiting for someone to find their game is one thing, waiting for someone to get into nhl game shape and find their game after doing nothing for an entire year is another. I thought he was doing remarkably well with that and think even a half gassed Lombardi is a better option.

Don't get me wrong, I like Crabb and the work he's doing but the chasm between skillsets seems pretty wide to me.
Click to expand...

I like the job Crabb is doing, but he is playing the best hockey of his career. Lombardi is just finding his way again. If he can get to 80% of his best, he will be a real asset and quite a bit better than Crabb.
 
He's working out very nicely as a 4th line winger. He's just a solid player. Whether or not they stick together remains to be seen but Crabb, Steckel, and Brown in my opinion is about as solid of a 4th line as they come... They can provide the odd goal, control the puck off of draws, forecheck... They bring some toughness/nastiness. Anyway, just an observation of mine.
 
Joey Crabb "Cakes" has really surprised me this year.  He's quite flexible in that he can do a reasonable 2'nd line forward impression (at least short term) but yet be equally effective mucking and grinding.  The scepticism I have toward "late bloomers" is unfounded here and I think the Leafs have found a bit less than a diamond (a ruby?) in the rough.
 
Joey Crabb on fighting Carl Gunnarsson at #Leafs practice: "I thought he butt-ended me and he claimed he didn’t. That's fine."

If Gunnarson had gotten injured during that I'd find Crabb and Galulli his leg. 
 
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