Quoting: NucksExec
I feel I should clarify something.
This post was not intended to say the Canucks are better than any of those teams.
It's just telling you the logic behind how the Canucks are building their team this year. I'm fully aware that those teams all have multiple stars and are better all round teams.
What most fans don't understand is that the playoffs are largely down to luck. In the NHL even the 1st place team only has a ~60% chance of beating the worst team on any given night.
Since many Leafs fans are here, I'd ask you this. How many times have you been "goalied" or run into a hot player in the playoffs. Now how many times have you done the same to another team?
Having a deep team is great if 4 times in a row the favourite wins. Even if you are a 60% favourite in every playoff round you only have a 12% chance of winning 4 in a row.
My point here is the Canucks logic isn't flawed. Management isn't saying that the Canucks can best the Leafs. They are saying that in a series against the Leafs (for example). Pettersson, Hughes or Demko could single handedly win the series for the Canucks (two of them have already proved that). On the Leafs it's Matthews? (He's also had 8 chances and never done it).
When we talk about #1s it's McDavid, Karlsson (2017), Bob, Mackinnon, Makar, Hedman, Stamkos, these guys can win a round on their own and carry their team.
Maybe Samsonov or Woll can do it but neither give anyone much reason to believe they can. Rielly can't do it. He played tremendous last year and that quality of play was equivalent to Karlsson/Makar/Fox in the regular season. Not the Karlsson or Makar performances we've seen in the playoffs.
So that's some clarification. The Canucks just believe if they make the playoffs they can steal rounds because generally only a #1C, #1D, #1G can do that and they have all three, most teams don't.
I understand the logic from the Canucks, but if you want my thoughts, check out my last post on this thread... But here's the rebuttal on the Leafs:
Rielly's always been a playoff performer, that's his shtick... He needs a Pesce type player on the backend to help him which I believe Treliving will find... He was also playing hurt for a majority of this past season (Until his hip injury he had 16 assists in 20 games, roughly a 65 assist pace). He's a number 1, no doubt about it... He's also fantastic 5v5, especially in the playoffs
As for Samsonov, you're right until he proves you wrong this season, Sammy had 1 top 7 goaltending season and he's been mid besides that, he also played up to par in the playoffs until G3, when he got hurt (I fully believe Leafs if Sammy doesn't get hurt, as great as Woll was, the Leafs win G3 and G5 and go back to Florida with a 3-2 lead)... But you're right about luck and running into a hot goaltender.
You've also got to include Matthews after the RD1 he had vs Tampa, he was the best player in RD 1 at that time bc of the defence and the threat he constantly posed offensively... And he just got very unlucky in RD 2 (led the league in shots and attempts in RD 2)
I think if you get rid of the 1D claim that the Leafs don't have, I don't find any problems with it