Maple Leafs captain Dion Phaneuf had to be helped off the ice after tangling his legs with the Ottawa Senators' Peter Regin in the second period at Air Canada Centre and was carted off to the hospital.
Right now there is no word on how long, it at all, that he will be out of the lineup.
The irony is that both tonight and on Saturday there was a smattering of boos directed at Phaneuf by impatient Leaf fans. Hey when the team is not winning and you make a player the face of the team, the wrath of the fans will be directed at him.
This week GM Brian Burke has provided a spirited defense of the captain. I would expect no less from Burke who has always stood up for his players. But Burke will need to tread carefully and not further upset the impatient fan base.
“You're talking about a real small number of people, and frankly I think it's a disgrace. Ten games in . . . all the time I worked in Vancouver I don't think I ever had a player booed. Our team got booed a few times, I think we probably had it coming” but no player was singled out, Burke said. He also suggested that in the short time since coming to Toronto, no player has done more on and off the ice than Phaneuf.
Perhaps fan expect too much of Phaneuf but those high expectations are partly created by the team. He literally was treated as a savior since day one and installed as captain despite having not shown much on the ice. This is a stud player that Calgary had given up on and we all can see why. It might have been wiser to just let the guy play his way back into form and not make him a centre piece right away.
Let's face it, Burke has hooked his wagon to this player and has to support him. This is a marriage than has to work.
But dumping on the impatient fans is neither fair or wise. No fan base anywhere is as supportive as Leaf Nation. These fans rabidly back a team that has provided next to nothing for 43 years expect for a bad product at ridiculous prices.
If you want to know what a disgrace is? How about a team projected to be in contention for a playoff spot finishing 29th overall. How about a team that hasn't make the playoff since 2004? How about a team that hasn't made a Cup final series since 1967? How about a team once again projected to compete for a playoff spot that can't score? Yet is not the least bit ashamed to charge their customers in excess of $200 for a ticket.
Brian shut the fuck up. Remember who pays your salary?
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