Reporter throws shade at the Leafs over goaltending tandem, ranks two teams with weaker tandems above them
On Sunday, The Score's John Matisz put together a tier system to rank the projected top-16 teams in the NHL this season and, for the most part, the risers and fallers were obvious. But there was one anomaly in the rundown - the Toronto Maple Leafs were not in either of the top 2 tiers despite being a top-4 team last season.
For those who are curious as to how the entire list breaks down, you can visit the link below. But for those who are curious as to where the Leafs landed, Matisz ranked them a tier 3 team. To his credit, he called this group "scary at full potential", but his rationale for placing them in this group is somewhat suspect.
Matisz views the tandem of Matt Murray and Ilya Samsonov as a huge strike against the Leafs. That's fine - not everyone is as high on this tandem as those within Leafs Nation who have spent time learning about both Murray and Samsonov this summer. But it's worth noting that Matisz also ranked the Edmonton Oilers (Jack Campbell and Stuart Skinner) in the 2nd tier and the Colorado Avalanche (Alexandar Georgiev and Pavel Francouz) in the 1st tier.
Listen.. I get it. Dumping on the Leafs is the perennial flavour of the week. It draws clicks. It generates discussion. But I don't know how Matisz can sit there with a straight face and use the tandems as a legit measure for why certain teams belong in certain tiers without acknowledging the fact that Matt Murray has more Stanley Cups than any goalie in the top two tiers not named Andrei Vasilevskiy.
| POLL | ||
SEPTEMBRE 4 | 770 ANSWERS Reporter throws shade at the Leafs over goaltending tandem, ranks two teams with weaker tandems above them Which tandem would you rather have? | ||
| Murray/Samsonov | 353 | 45.8 % |
| Campbell/Skinner | 187 | 24.3 % |
| Georgiev/Francouz | 230 | 29.9 % |
| List of polls | ||
