The Sheet with Jeff Marek - On the Sheet: David Alter on the Maple Leafs' Start and Brad Treliving's Press Conference

Episode Date: November 19, 2025

David Alter joins the show to break down Brad Treliving’s brutally honest Maple Leafs press conference — including his comments about the team’s “vanilla” identity, inconsistent compete level, belief in Craig Berube, and the acknowledgement that Toronto’s record overstates their play. They dig into why the Leafs’ interior defensive coverage has collapsed, how aging core pieces factor in, what losing Mitch Marner cost them, whether a lack of contract-year urgency is hurting the group, and what comes next as the Leafs navigate injuries, pressure, and early-season frustration.SHOUTOUT TO OUR SPONSORS!!👍🏼 Fan Duel: https://www.fanduel.com/👍🏼Bauer: https://www.bauer.com/👍🏼Uber Eats: https://www.ubereats.com/ca👍🏼Prime Video: https://primevideo-row.pxf.io/c/5560083/3303015/20020Reach out to [e-mail] to connect with our Sales Team and discuss opportunities to partner with us!If you liked this, check out:🚨 OTT - Coming in Hot Sens | https://www.youtube.com/c/thewallyandmethotshow🚨 TOR - LeafsNation | https://www.youtube.com/@theleafsnation401🚨 EDM - OilersNation | https://www.youtube.com/@Oilersnationdotcom🚨 VAN - CanucksArmy | https://www.youtube.com/@Canucks_Army🚨 CGY - FlamesNation | https://www.youtube.com/@FNBarnBurner🚨 Daily Faceoff Fantasy & Betting | www.youtube.com/@DFOFantasyandBetting____________________________________________________________________________________________Connect with us on ⬇️Link Tree: https://linktr.ee/daily_faceoff💻 Website: https://www.dailyfaceoff.com🐦 Follow on twitter: https://x.com/DailyFaceoff💻 Follow on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/dailyfaceoffDaily Faceoff Merch:https://nationgear.ca/collections/daily-faceoff Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It's never a dull moment, and this was the general... How are you, David? First of all, thanks a lot for coming aboard today. The annual mid-November update from the Maple Leaf's general manager. Did anything stand out from Brad Trillivings' address today? Other than we had the shot in the arm, the confidence in the coach, which we always sort of look at sideways, but, you know. And we had an Austin Matthews citing today as well.

What stood out to you from the morning in Leafland? yeah hey guys i think the number one surprising thing for me was i didn't expect brad tray living to be so brutally honest about how things have kind of veered from his vision of what the identity of this team was supposed to be using the term vanilla to describe it that's kind of surprised me and i know if i'm in that situation i'm hoping i've heard that from him before that goes out to the media for sure because there's been a couple of these moments now where there's been public comments about the team's identity dating back to Stollers like three, four weeks ago when he kind of called out the team's performance in front of them to now. So, you know, a lot of

things are being said and there just really hasn't been a lot of evidence. And the fact that Brad Tray Living also talked about the fact that they probably have more wins than they deserve. He was pretty scathing about where his team was at despite the record. I thought he might take more of an optimistic tone, but that certainly wasn't the case. That one really, he's got me, David, like, when I was listening to True Living and he's like, our record isn't indicative of how we're playing. I'm like, oh, he thinks they're, he thinks they should be higher. He's like, no, actually, we suck more than our record would indicate, which is not something that I ever expected a GM to say. I did think it was a little bit on the nose when he

showed up in that hot dog costume while talking about how vanilla the team is and being like, and we're all looking for the guy who did this, Brad for Living, constructor of the Maple Leaf roster. Um, his, his vote of confidence on Craig Brube included the phrase, he didn't become a bad coach overnight, to which I would say, David, he also wasn't a great coach before this fortnight. Um, I'm not the biggest Craig Burube fan. I happen to think that the, the blues winning the cup that year was the perfect marriage of coach and team from a psychological standpoint. I think he was hired to do the. same thing he did with the blues, which is to kind of like make everybody forget all the demons and all the weight and all the troubles that you have during a season. And I think he found, unfortunately, that the Toronto Maple Leafs are as psychologically damaged a franchise and professional sports as you can find.

Where are you on Barube? Do you think he's the right guy for this team? Do you think that he was ever the right guy for this team? I think it's kind of hard because from a systemic standpoint, I 100% agree that I didn't think he was necessarily the right type of coach, but then everything I learned about how he operates kind of changed my mind on that, where it was almost kind of like an NFL type situation where if you have a head coach that can kind of be the voice and can kind of motivate guys, but then you can delegate properly and have the best O.C. and D.C. that threw all the nuts and

bolts of it and you can kind of stay out of it that way, then it could work. And so I thought, okay, given what he's been able to do last year, delegated all of the defensive stuff to Lane Lambert and really did kind of get the Leafs to play a different way, like that actually did happen despite some of the underlying analytics, like keeping everything out of the interior and just playing a tougher defensive type of hockey that translates better to the playoffs, I think he's done a good job in that regard. But all that's disappeared now. And I don't know why that's disappeared. I mean, there's theories about it with, you know, Mitch Marner's been talked about and all the things he's brought in the regular season.

But I think a lot of this is just doesn't seem to kind of be obvious as to where the accountability is supposed to be. If the coach isn't kind of flipping it around and doing it, then it's the more players, really. It's not getting enough from some of those guys. And for me, I think it's, Brubay may not be the right coach in the long term, but I think it's way too early, given what he was able to show last year. And the fact that, you know, it is still just 19 games into the season that maybe he's got something up his sleeve. But just talking to everybody else, the fact that he delegates a lot leads me to believe that he's not going to come up with the strategic differences, it's going to be

the people underneath them and that might be the problem in the end. From a construction point of view, not lost on anybody was this is a team that lost to the Florida Panthers and lost to the Florida Panthers in a very specific way and got embarrassed on home ice in game seven. Marner

goes and there's talk about bringing in heavier players, tougher players, playoff style players, as opposed to leaning into the team that it already is slash was. Do you think the eight beliefs are guilty of trying to out panther the panthers. Got beaten by the Panthers, so we need to be more like them to beat them, as opposed to

leaning into the skill you already have. Is that fair? I think it's fair, but I would also add that after Mitch Marner walked, which was a problem that Bradtree Living kind of inherited because he didn't really have that card to kind of move him and you couldn't get the return from an elite player. There really wasn't anything out there on the open market to kind of do. And you've already mortgaged a lot of the future in some of these trade deadline deals that you made before. So you can't really lean into the more skill at that point with what's available. You really kind of have to just, okay, we haven't really

had depth before, let's add these guys who can maybe help us for where we've been the weakest, which is the playoffs. I think everyone can kind of agree on that. And I think they thought to themselves they can get through whatever turbulence

they're going to get through in the regular season because they have these elite players who've been able to kind of help them win games when times are tough and they don't slide for very long. But this was the scenario that I don't think they envisioned, which is, well, if they don't make it.

So it's tough to say because I do think that these players on the face of it would have helped over Mitch Marner that didn't really help in that situation in the last playoffs. But you have to get there. And the chasm for what Mitch Marter brought to the team and what they're missing is deep. So that and the fact that they're leaving the interior completely open on the defensive side is really kind of making the least kind of scratch their heads being like, did everyone just age out at the exact right time and they're just slower or is there something

fundamentally wrong here? And so I don't disagree with them trying to get deeper because they just really haven't had the death. And I guess Nick Eilers might have been the best guy in free agency you could have decided, but then you have to pay him a lot and then is that worth it or is that the right guy you can kind of pay to replace? It was a tough mix, but some of the problems they created And some of them they didn't. But when you go into the summer, I don't think they were really left with much of a choice given what they lost and what was available. So then, like you said, what they didn't get back from Martyr because he had the move and everything. You know, it's interesting that True Living said, and again, you know, you lost a hundred point winger who did everything in all facets of the game, who was a great regular season performer.

one of the things that he said today was the enthusiasm deficit with this team. Like they're not excited about any of this. And, you know, say what you will about Mitchie. But he bought some excitement to the proceedings with the way that he played and just who he was. And then there's also excitement when you have a player like that in your roster. And there's also excitement when you are the Colorado Avalanche and you find a way to get Martin Natchus to give you 75% of what you lost when you Niko Ranton as opposed to maybe like 0.1% that the Mischelli gave them in trying to replace Marner. How much is losing Marner contributing to that lack of enthusiasm this season? And is that

code for guys like that have been on this team think that the window is now kind of closed because Marner's not here and there was no suitable replacement for him? That's an interesting one. think going into the season they felt that they would struggle as much without him to the point where they are now they've had elite players they've had to play games without them they've demonstrated in the past like in the 23 24 season pretty late in the year when the games were tougher and harder to play and he was gone with an ankle injury that they were still able to produce wins they were still able to get good results but now certainly his enthusiasm

would probably help when times are kind of slower because, like, I look back at, you know, 22, 23, 24, when the Leafs would notoriously get off to slow octobers, but it wouldn't go beyond three or four games, and Mitch Marner was projecting positivity. And that can help, and it certainly helped in those situations. But sometimes not just addressing the problems head on and being too positive and kind of letting them drag on can be worse. And I think that's what you're seeing now. I just don't know if the players are necessarily looking in front of them

and being like we miss that type of guy. I really think what's happening now is there's been an attention to be better defensively and do all those things. And for whatever reason that worked last year in doing it, they have not been able to kind of get it together and they've been disconnected all over the ice. They're not releasing the puck quick. When they get it, there's a bit of a hesitation. and I think right now there's just everyone's kind of making sure they're not that guy

to make the next big mistake, not necessarily looking for help from within. Because I think they look around and they see this is what they're dealt with. There's not really much that's going to change between now and the end of the year. Let me throw a theory at you here. This was a conversation from, I don't know, three weeks ago, maybe a month ago that I had with someone who brought up the point that if you want to have a hungry team, if you want to have an aggressive team, if you want to have a team that does something, as uncomfortable as it may be as the manager, you need players on expiring contracts. The idea being if you're not hungry, you won't eat. And maybe the most obvious example is the Florida Panthers last year with all the guys that ended up resuscary. signing, but do you look at this Maple Leafs team?

Because this is the point this person was making said, no, the problem is like no one's on an expiring contract. Like everyone's really, really comfortable there. Like there's no uncomfortable with all this guys on the expiring deal. Like, do you think, would you look at the Maple Leafs and say that, you know what, maybe this person that Merrick was talking to is has something, there's something there. Or is that just a coincidence out, oh, look at the Florida Panthers with all those guys on expiring deals and look how hungry they were.

Could that be a contributing factor here? year. I think it could help a little because any former player I've talked to while they'll never admit it when they're playing after the fact when they retire, they say 100% they were turning it on in their contract year, right? Like they were 100%. So Nikolai Habiboulin might be the best contract year player of all time. I think he like always in his final year had the best safe percentage before a contract. But Sergei Sampsonoff was always my comparison for that. Samsonoff would turn into like Yager in his contract years and the rest of the time he was like nothing.

Yeah. And you know, as a time restricted eater, like your best focus is when you're a couple hours away from eating. But anyway, so going back into that, going back into that, no, it does help. But I also think it's just everyone is a year older. The league is getting faster. And like, I'm of the belief. Like I know you guys talked about Chris Tannav and how much they miss them.

and it is a factor, but the Leafs weren't playing great even with him in the lineup, too, and still leaving a lot of that in the middle open. And I just wonder, their core is all in their 30s. It's another year and with term that at some point, we all looked at those contracts and being like, well, that player may not play until whatever or whatever,

and then they're going to have to figure out something. But there was also the possibility that what if everyone ages out at the same time? and then you have a disaster defensively. And I'm not saying that's happened, but it kind of looks pretty close to that. Like, you're seeing Jake McKay play the worst hockey I've seen him play in the last couple years, and he's admitted that. It's not great looking in that regard.

But certainly if those guys were playing for contracts or you had a core player that was kind of motivated to play for that, that certainly would help things because I think that would kind of fuel a different kind of energy going into the game. Is it the excuse? I don't know. But it's certainly, I certainly think it can be a factor because you talk to any former player and they say they've turned on the Jets in that final year knowing that they've got to

find their next meal ticket for sure. It's just so funny. Everybody falls over themselves praising the least for getting Brandon Carlo and Chris Tanov and then like Badard and Celebrity pop off this year. And it's like, it's a young man's league. They've got a bunch of redwoods back there. What are they doing? Yeah, or the Maple Leafs kids.

David, this has been great. Thanks for sharing your expertise. We appreciate it. I know it's a game day. It's always, oh, by the way, so here's a question. Is this must win for the Maple Leafs tonight? Greg, Greg snickering at me. Our producer, Zach Phillips, is like, oh, yeah, it's a must win game 100%.

What do you say, Dave? Now that the Sabres have just beaten the Oilers 5 to 1 and they're dueling for the basement, is this a must win for the Maple Leafs against the blues? I think it's tough. This certainly had a feeling of tension in the availability today that I probably would have said no, but just given the timing of everything, yeah, it probably is a bit of a must win

because I think it's getting a little tighter in that room. Like you can feel that there's tension, and if they don't get some sort of positive result soon, then it can get worse. So yeah, let's say must win. for sure. Can I just give you my briefly, my master plan? Oh, boy.

Yeah, go for it. You shut down Matthews for the season, but let him play in the Olympics, because obviously. That's a good message to the defense. You finish with the worst record in hockey. All right. You finish with the worst record in hockey. The pick that you gave Boston's top five protected, and you draft Gavin McKenna as

your new marner. I don't understand how there's any flaw in this plan, personally. Listen, the one thing I will say The one thing I will say If this wasn't the Toronto market And this is the Leafs going through it I don't know if it'd be as big Or another team going through it

I don't know if it's that big a deal Because they've been so consistent For nine consecutive regular seasons That every good elite team Has missed the playoffs at some point On route to winning a Stanley Cup It seems to have happened Vegas is a good example

Where they missed the year before That this consistency Maybe hasn't given them the right kind of adversity to kind of adjust for those playoff moments but i don't know that plan that's going to be a hard sell for leaf fans i would give a billion dollars to hear brad shrew living try to sell the market on you know every team has to miss the playoffs before it wins the cup yeah go to the bottom before you go to the top like we all know this the code word is adversity right like you wouldn't say playoffs but he would say adversity and that's a that's a blanket words

so there you go interesting times uh david appreciate it enjoy the game tonight. Continued great work on the hockey news. We appreciate this. Thank you, guys. It was fun. Thank you. The great David Alter, who covers the Toronto Maple Leafs, was at the Bachelor of Press Conference this morning, covering the game tonight for the Maple Leafs releasing off against the St. Louis Blue.

I spent 16 hours last night, every day this week, every day this month. I can't get out my head. style ambitions day to day because you can call it all right I went to the dark man you tried to give me a little medicine I'm like now and that's fine

I'm not against those methods but new it's me and myself and how this is going to be fixed in my mind I do want a record I turned on the music I do want to break it I turn on the music

Wasting up They're mad And you sometimes losing I've been on the days that we're wrong