Weekly Takes - Monday, May 11th Edition
Weekly Takes - Monday, May 11th Edition
I was incredibly disappointed in the John Chayka-Mats Sundin press conference.
Not at Chayka, Sundin, or Keith Pelley, but rather, the media.
Steve Simmons should be embarrassed for what he “asked.” He was not asking what he asked because he wanted an answer. He “asked” what he asked because he wanted his voice all over social media in the next week. The only hack in that interaction was Simmons himself
Those who celebrated Simmons’ “question” exposed themselves, too. It was not professional, funny, or polite. Why are we talking to people like this in a professional setting? This was not “hard-hitting journalism” and if you think it was, you are lame.
As for the rest of the media, I was disappointed in them too.
Not one question to Sundin about how he views the sport. Not one question to Pelley about Mike Gillis’ involvement throughout the process. The media did not do their job on Monday.
The only other takeaway I had from it is, I find myself rooting even harder for Chayka than I was prior to Monday.
The Leafs winning the lottery, bluntly, is franchise-changing.
In the short-term, this is the first bit of positive PR the team has had since they went up 2-0 in their series against the Panthers. Literally.
In the interim, Toronto adds a superstar level talent in Gavin McKenna, on an entry-level deal, to a team that desperately needed a star.
In the long-term, he changes the future of the team. Gone are the days, for the next half-decade, of the Leafs having a bottom-tier 23U core. Gone is having to completely rely on Auston Matthews and William Nylander to stay. They have flexibility to contend or to rebuild.
As for Matthews, the Leafs have to take a stand here.
Meet with Matthews and lay out your vision. If that is not enough for your captain, you move on. You cannot make moves this offseason to please him, only for him to leave anyway.
If this is a new era, the inmates cannot run the asylum anymore.
It is great for Mitch Marner that he is dominating Utah and Anaheim, while away from the spotlight.
I do not think anyone ever doubted his ability to dominate Utah or Anaheim. Let’s see what he does against the winner of the Avs-Wild series.
My takeaways on the Jays’ recent stretch of play…
Yes, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. has to be way better. He is not making the money he is making to be Luis Arraez, for as nice of a floor as that is. He needs to start hitting home runs. This is shocking to witness.
Brandon Valenzuela has to stay over Tyler Heineman, once Alejandro Kirk is ready. If it was 70/30 in terms of production in favour of Valenzuela, you would send down the former to preserve organisational depth. But it is not 70/30. Valenzuela is simply an elite backup catcher. He stays.
Eric Lauer has to go. The issue is, a team with far too many starters in spring training now does not have enough. Lauer is about to be DFA’d. Jose Berrios’ arm may be cooked. Max Scherzer in general may be cooked. Shane Bieber cannot come back soon enough.
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