I'm moving!

I've decided to incoporate by Maple Leafs blog with my other blog - Canada, eh?





Since the Curse of Frank Mahovlich lives on I feel compelled to continue to report on the National Tragedy - the Toronto Maple Leafs.

So please check me out at my other location.

GO LEAFS GO!

Excellent video review of the Maple Leafs rollercoaster 2011-12 season

Filmmaker Dave Kennedy created this 14-minute review of the ecstasy and agony of Toronto Maple Leafs' 2011-12 rollercoaster season. The second half is tough to watch.

Dion Phaneuf as the season's scapegoat

Dion Phaneuf was doomed from the start of the season when Ron Wilson declared he was the best defenseman in the league by a country mile. The statement is as false today as it was back in October. On team with a flawed defensive system and weak goaltending the Leafs defense became progressively worse as the season progressed. Phaneuf was no exception.

Phaneuf wears the "C" and is the highest paid player on the Leafs so he will naturally attract more attention than anyone else on the roster. The media and various blogs are now trying to pin the second half meltdown to weak leadership, ie, Phaneuf is a bad captain.

I don't buy into this thinking at all. There are a lot of questions to be asked about Dion Phaneuf but the Maple Leaf collapse cannot be pinned on him. I don't believe that captains play a big role on professional sport teams. Good players make for winners but putting a "C" on someone's chest isn't going to make everyone else better. I think many agree that Jerome Iginla is a model captain. Yet the Flames won't make the playoffs this year for the third consecutive year and have not made it past the first round in quite a number of years. There were seasons when both Wendel Clark and Doug Gilmour were captain that the Leafs missed the playoffs.

Leadership can't come from a single individual, it has to emanate from a group of veterans. That being said Phaneuf may not be a great captain. What we don't know is what goes on in the dressing room. When you continually see player polls suggesting that Phaneuf is the most over-rated player in the league that tells me he's not a popular guy. That sentiment may also exist in the Toronto dressing room. An unpopular guy appointed captain is not likely good for team morale. I saw a recent article suggesting he and Luke Schenn did not get along. Reporters spend a lot of time hanging around with players so some of these stories have some truth to them. He likely is considered management's guy and considering how much Brian Burke has invested in this guy, it's probably true.

The bottom line is that Phaneuf makes $6.5 million (his cap hit) which ranks him 6th among defenseman. He clearly is not worth that kind of money which is probably the major reason why people are so critical of him. The Leafs are trying to build a defense around this guy and he just might not be up for it. But I doubt Burke is the one who can objectively evaluate this asset.

Phaneuf may not be the reason for the Leafs' dismal season but the real issue is whether he can contribute to their success in the future.

New York Islanders act as if Pat LaFontaine never existed

Before every home game this season, the New York Islanders have commemorated their 40th anniversary in the National Hockey League by dimming the house lights and queuing up a nostalgic video.

For five minutes, the Nassau Coliseum scoreboard comes to life. It flickers through a montage of clips, set to stirring orchestral music, that recall the one thing this struggling franchise still has in abundance: a rich history of great moments made possible by great hockey players.

But anyone remotely familiar with the team's history will ask the same question after watching this video: What happened to one of the most famous Islanders of all, Pat LaFontaine?

LaFontaine, arguably the Islanders' best and most popular player in the late 1980s and early 1990s, remains one of their most significant figures. Yet the video is one of several instances when the Islanders seem intent to pretend he doesn't exist—they've left him out of their Hall of Fame and once neglected to mention his presence at a charity bike ride. It's one of the rare instances in sports history where a professional team has taken pains to whitewash a player from its history.

The fracture seems to stem from LaFontaine's 40-day tenure as an unpaid senior adviser to team owner Charles Wang and his resignation from that post on July 18, 2006. That resignation came just hours after Wang had fired general manager Neil Smith and replaced him with the team's backup goaltender, Garth Snow. Wang had hired Smith and LaFontaine on the same day, and LaFontaine said in a recent interview that he disagreed with Wang's decision to fire Smith after less than six weeks.

The ill will stems from LaFontaine's tenure as an unpaid adviser to owner Charles Wang.

LaFontaine elected to step down after failing to persuade Wang to reconsider, he said—not necessarily out of loyalty to Smith, but out of concern for the franchise's direction. "I believe you treat people fairly," he said, "and stand up for what you believe in."

source

Mike Millbury is Don Cherry with only half a brain

Most people know I just don't care for Don Cherry. I don't care for his xenophobia, right wing political agenda, bully pulpit or out-dated perspective of the game. But I do appreciate his skills as a promoter and populist.

As for Mike Millbury, I'm sorry but I find him revolting. He is a sorry excuse for a hockey commentator and his approach to winning an argument is to bully his opponent or just throw insults. I'm sure he thinks he's being controversial when he is just obnoxious. I thought he was done as a TV personality when he was charged with assulting a 12 year old player but he beat that rap and therefore CBC continues to employ him.

For me he had crossed the line too many times but this week he went after Sidney Crosby. Milbury called Crosby "little goody two shoes" and a "little punk" and "not the perfect gentleman" and implied he's a hypocrite for playing on the edge after his "35th concussion" and punctuated the whole thing by saying, "screw him, hit him."

I can understand that he might be annoyed by Crosby's persona because he knows that Crosby can be pretty chippy on the ice. But he is the game's biggest start and never expects anyone to protect him unlike Wayne Gretzky who always had "on ice security." But he questioned his masculinity and made light of his concussion problems.

Then he makes an apology but I doubt there is any real remorse. The apology is strictly to protect his job. Millbury's style is to verbally bludgeon people similar to what he did on the ice several decades ago. This man has not mellowed and feels he has no need to.

Surely there must be a former player or executive that can fill Millbury's big shoes. That would provide him with more time to bully kids at the arena when his son plays.

NHL Power Ranking - Week 27

The Maple Leafs are clearly just going through the motions of playing out the remainder of the season. Any power ranking above 29 is undeserved. Despite management, the coaching staff and the players committing to winning as many games as possible, nothing could be farther from the truth. What else can they say with so many home games at the tail end of the schedule. People are shelling out $200 or more or a ticket to watch shinny in some cases.

All of a sudden a raft of players are hurt and out of the lineup including James Reimer, Jonas Gustavsson, Mikhail Grabovski, Joffrey Lupul, Clarke MacArthur, David Steckel, Mike Brown and Matt Frattin. If the team was fighting for a playoff spot how many of these walking wounded would be still in the lineup? Obviously we will never know. One of the luxuries of playing for a non contender is that you don't have to play injured and you have 5 full months to recover from the season before training camp starts. I can just imagine how many NHL players are playing hurt right now. That number will grow through the playoffs. So playing on a non contender can extend your career. Life isn't so bad if you are a Maple Leafs player.

Fox Sports - 26th (-1)

Air Canada Centre is apparently the new Nassau Coliseum, as four different Maple Leafs have started in goal over the last five games. The fans will have one more opportunity to taunt the home team this Thursday against Tampa Bay.

The Hockey News - 26th (-1)

Fan anger over Leafs' consistent futility at an all-time high; Brian Burke better have long sleeves - and more than a few tricks up them - this off-season.

CBS Sports - 27th (-1)

When they beat Buffalo on Saturday night, the Maple Leafs won on their home ice for the first time since Feb. 6.


TSN - 29th (-2)

Locked in a battle with the Ducks and Islanders for the fourth, fifth and sixth-worst records in the league, with the bottom five eligible to land the top pick in the draft lottery, the Maple Leafs are making a solid bid for positioning with three top six forwards on the shelf the rest of the way.

ESPN - 29th (-4)

After a colossal fall from grace, the only thing the Leafs have to look forward to is denying Buffalo a playoff berth, which could happen as they visit Buffalo Tuesday.

You can't lose them all

I understand the Leafs beat the Sabres tonight 4-3 ending their 11 game losing streak at home. That is one-quarter of all their home games. I couldn't bear to watch the game. Despite the win the Leafs remain in 26th place and keep a hold on the last lottery pick in this year's amateur draft.

It's hard to understand what has happened to this year's promise. What went wrong and who is to blame. Harold Ballard is no long around. We have one of the top general managers in the league. Richard Peddie has faded from the scene. There is no interference from the MLSE board. There is no management power struggle like the one between Ken Dryden and Pat Quinn. John Brophy has retired coaching in the ECHL. Andrew Raycroft, Jason Allison, Jason Blake, Vesa Toskal, Mark Bell and Jeff Finger are no longer playing for the Leafs.

How could this team become the worst team over the last third of the season?

Has the past 45 years become such a burden on the team that no one can succeed?

The worst of it is that the team has quit. They would rather accept a series of humiliating losses than work to win meaningless games. They really don't deserve the unwavering loyalty of their fans. The glory years were so long ago that likely over half of their fan base wasn't alive when the Leafs last one the Cup and almost 10% of Torontonians weren't born when the Leafs last made a playoff appearance.

In 45 years no Cup appearances and only two post-seasons where the Leafs made it to the final four. We are the Chicago Cubs of hockey. The alleged centre hockey world except they don't know how the play the game very well.

Just when you think things couldn't get any worse, the team couldn't sink any lower, sure enough things do get worse.

Welcome to Leafs Nation.

Kari Lehtonen hits fan's face with puck, gives him towel which is stolen by another fan

Pekka Rinne robs Henrik Zetterberg

Rinne is the reason Nashville is guaranteed a playoff berth every season. This is the type of goaltending the Leafs need to find.

Had enough of the Maple Leafs? Blue Jays home opener is April 9

Maple Leafs fans are getting ugly and for a good reason. Starting with 11 straight losses at home. That's pretty nasty for a team with the highest ticket prices in the NHL. The fans struck back last night cheering for the Blue Jays.

The drive for the bottom five

The best part of the Leafs collapse, Brian Burke has become a mute! No bold predictions, looking for the bogeyman, challenging people to fights, or excuses. Suddenly he no longer speaks. Sweet!

His team left for their spring/summer hiatus already leaving him with no explanation. Because the season isn't quite over yet. Yes this is one to tell the grandkids about. The year the Leafs played a 50-game season and then just disappeared.

You have to feel sorry for Randy Carlyle. He knew this team had problems but he likely had no clue how bad it would be. The pained look on his face behind the bench says it all.

Oh and the Leafs lost to the Flyers tonight by a score of 7-1. This was the highlight of the game for the Leafs.

Scouting Report: Spencer Abbott

Each year, the NHL dips into the pool of undrafted collegiate players to bolster their system. The Leafs got the ball rolling by signing 23-year-old left winger Spencer Abbott of the Maine Black. Abbott leads the nation in both points (56) and assists (37). And not surprisingly, he has become one of the top candidate's for this year's Hobey Baker Award as well. In addition to his point production, Abbott's quickness and game-changing ability at the college level are among the assets that have put him squarely on the NHL radar.

At 5'10", 175 lbs, Abbott is not a very big player in college hockey. The attribute that has allowed Abbott to thrive is his tremendous quickness. He can move pucks quickly and dart almost seamlessly through traffic. Abbott's great vision and sense of anticipation can be seen in his transitioning and his innate ability to set up and finish plays, including his own.

Excuse me for not getting too excited about this signing. The Leafs are loaded up with small players who are good skaters. Do they really need another Tyler Bozak? I understand as a free agent the risks are quite low. But can Brian Burke cool it with the nonsense that these signings are the equivalent of a 1st round draft pick? Most collegiate signings are a bust. So I'm getting too excited over this one.

Pretty sad, the Vancouver Canucks released a video asking fans not to riot

Leafs lose a must lose-game

This season the Maple Leafs might actually be in synch with their fans. Most fans understand that finishing 20th is not better than finishing 28th or 29th. If you aren't going to make the playoffs then dropping in the standings makes the most sense. That increases the possibility of drafting a player who can help you next season. Provided you have hung on to your first pick.

Yet each season over the past few years the Leafs make a run on the standings with too little left in the schedule. Frustrates the hell out of fans since the wins are meaningless. But this year the team has essentially given up on the season. A few guys are playing for spots next year but since of the team is signed for next year why bother. Welcome to the 2012 strain of the blue and white disease. The team has the serious look down pat along with the standard "we are working hard to turn this around." Sure you are.

So tonight was an important game for the Leafs. A win by Carolina along with a win by the Islanders dropped the Leafs to 26th overall and lottery country. Gustavsson was at his worst and got the yank after it was too late to mount a comeback. It would only be fitting if this was his last game at the ACC. The Monster has long ago become a nightmare. The night had a little bit of irony with two ex-Leafs scoring for Carolina. Both Jay Harrison and Tim Brent were journeymen players who mostly spent time with the Marlies. The third goal by Harrison was particularly ugly. He just lofted the puck at the net and it went over Gustavsson's shoulder. Vesa Toskala lives on! Thanks guys for sticking the knife in nice and deep.



So the Leafs are now mathematically eliminated so one set of cliches will be dropped for a new bunch. Next up is Philadelphia. We can only hope for a bloodbath.

NHL Power Ranking - Week 26

The Leafs players say they are now playing for pride which suggests they have none. It's hard to believe that in week 9 Sports Illustrated had the Leafs ranked 5th overall. Seems so long ago now. I hope Burke finds out what's wrong with this team this summer. Otherwise he's next to walk the gang plank.


ESPN - 25th (0)

Playing out the string for a seventh season in a row. If the Panthers hang on to make the playoffs, Toronto will be the only team not to reach the postseason since the 2004-05 lockout.

Fox Sports - 25th (0)

The Leafs have been held to under 20 shots in four of their last five games. Five forwards – Lupul, MacArthur, Brown, Frattin and Kulemin – missed Saturday’s shootout loss to the Rangers due to injury.

The Hockey News - 25th (-3)

Thanks to David Steckel, the one area Toronto isn't mired at or near the bottom of the league in is faceoffs: they're tied for fourth with a 51.9 percent efficiency.

National Post - 25th (-3)

Head coach Randy Carlyle is 4-6-2 since stepping behind the bench.

CBS Sports - 26th (-1)

He's already shattered his career high in points with 77, and as of Monday, Phil Kessel is just one goal away from setting a new personal best in goals. His next one will be his 37th of the season.

Sports Illustrated - 27th (0)

It's been just a dismal second half for the Leafs, who will miss the postseason for the seventh straight year. Reports out of Hogtown say goalie Jonas Gustavsson is probably headed elsewhere next season. Remember when teams flew all the way to Sweden to court this guy

TSN - 27th (-3)

It's been an epic collapse for the Leafs, winning three of the last 23 games in regulation, but they were especially awful in four games prior to Saturday's loss against the Rangers -- registering a total of 62 shots on goal.

When it comes to the Maple Leafs I can't decide if the glass is half full or empty

The Toronto Maple Leafs are totally baffling and frustrating. We've been watching this wreck being rebuilt over the past 3 years by head mechanic Brian Burke and no one can be sure where we are. Does this team have a solid core of players that needs a few finishing pieces , most of all a solid goalie? Or has the flawed team coming out of the post-lockout period been replaced by different flawed players?

During parts of this season the Leafs have been able to rollover teams with their speed and aggressive play. Other times they have looked limp, timid and confused. Good teams have bad games. Bad teams will have good games. This is a team that will have great games and horrible games.

How much has coaching contributed to all this? Hard to tell. Certainly Brian Burke will never tell. He isn't going to throw his former coach under the bus but we do know that something motivated Burke it replace a couple of assistant coaches in the off season.

One thing is certain, this team needs more than a coaching change to compete. Three years into a rebuild it would be difficult to start from scratch but each piece of this puzzle needs to be examined to see if it is a good fit. The players logging the biggest ice time are Dion Phaneuf and Phil Kessel, but are they really capable of taking on such a load? Some players have been brought in to play a certain role - Colby Armstrong, Tim Connolly, Dave Steckel, Mike Komisarek and Mike Brown. Have they been able to deliver? Some have while others have not.

Remember this is the second youngest team in the NHL. But how much better will some of the 24 to 26 year olds get? Have they plateaued? Do they need more veteran leadership? Do they have the right veterans? Making moves will be tough since 19 players are under contract for next season. It would help if the Leafs could grab a pick in the top 3 in this year's draft. They have had draft picks this high but not kept them. Their last top 3 draft pick was Wendel Clark. We could use another Clark.

Nazem Kadri makes a case

A Brian Burke draft pick finally tries to make the Leafs GM look good. Nazem Kadri helped steal a win from New Jersey along with James Reimer. Kadri tipped a shot off the stick of Jake Gardner into the Devils net for the Leafs' second goal. But his nicest goal was in the shootout. Every shooter had scored except for Patrik Elias. Kadri was the last shooter and he totally fooled Bradeur when he faked with his backhand and pull quickly to his forehand to win the game 4-3.

But the real hero was Reimer who stopped 43 of 46 shots while the Leafs only managed 17 shots on Bradeur. The Leafs only managed 3 shots in the 3rd period and overtime. After blowing a 2-goal lead in the third period at least they didn't let this one get away from them.

Realignment wouldn't have helped the Leafs

Let's face it when you only have 72 points you aren't going to make the playoffs no matter how the teams are aligned. In fact right now the Leafs have the last lottery spot. But realignment which was rejected by the NHLPA would have helped some teams. For instance Buffalo would pretty much be in.

Conference A

87 Boston
85 Florida
84 Ottawa
80 Buffalo
73 Tampa Bay
72 Toronto
69 Montreal

Meanwhile Washington with the same number of points as Buffalo would be pretty much out. Their conference would have been much tougher.

Conference B

99 NY Rangers
96 Pittsburgh
92 Philadelphia
89 New Jersey
80 Washington
75 Carolina
71 NY Islanders

Vancouver's conference would have been the tightest. Five teams would be in fight for 3 spots much like the current situation.

Conference C

95 Vancouver
85 Colorado
84 Los Angeles
84 Phoenix
82 San Jose
82 Calgary
75 Anaheim
66 Edmonton

The final conference would have been the strongest. Winnipeg who still has an outside chance at a playoff spot would have been 16 points back instead of 5. Even Dallas would have been out of the running for the playoffs.

Conference D

100 St. Louis
93 Detroit
92 Nashville
92 Chicago
85 Dallas
76 Winnipeg
70 Minnesota
53 Columbus

Please no more bullshit Mr. Burke

That Brian Burke is one smooth talker. And boy he likes to talk. Too bad he can't deliver on his many platitudes. He sure has got the excuse machine working on overtime this season. If you ask Burke about the the Leafs' collapse he can come up with lot of reasons. The media pressure, the market in general, the difficulty of the NHL, the fact that players are programmed at birth to hate the Maple Leafs. Burke has blamed a lot of people. By default he blamed Ron Wilson for part of the failure when he excused him. He blames Don Cherry. He blames Dave Feschuk for calling James Reimers mother. Just about everyone but the fans and yes the suits that pay his inflated salary.

Let's look back on what he promised the abused Leafs fans three years ago.

He said the team needed a culture change to eliminate the blue and white disease. Twenty-three new faces in the dressing room but same culture.

He said is this team needed to get tougher. Burke brings in soft players like Phil Kessel, Tyler Bozak, Clarke MacArthur, Matthew Lombardi and Tim Connolly. Colton Orr and Jay Rosehill are scratches for most of the season then demoted to the Marlies.

The top 6 forwards would be skill guys and the bottom 6 would be plumbers. Well he sort of got the skill guys in place though neither Bozak or Kulemin have proven themselves to be top 6 forwards. As for the plumbers - Connolly and Lombardi, more like dead weight.

He said he was going to build from the net out. Right now James Reimer and Jonas Gustavsson don't look any different than Vesa Toskala and Curtis Joseph the two goalies he inherited. The only thing that is missing is the 185 foot goal bouncing over a goalie's shoulder.

Meanwhile not a single Burke draft pick is playing for the Leafs. Luke Schenn, Matt Frattin James Reimer and Carl Gunnarsson were drafted before Burke arrived. All others youngsters like Jake Gardner, Carter Ashton and Cody Franson came through trades.

I just don't see a plan. Move around draft picks. Try to make a splash with free agency but refuse to give out the long term contracts. Pick up bad contracts from other teams in exchange for some other assets and then burden your coach with underachievers. Impose your own trade deadlines. It's all bullshit.

Leafs return to their losing way

I was a little panicky after the Leafs picked up wins last week against Ottawa and Tampa Bay. The win against Tampa Bay really hurt because had the Lightning picked up the 2 points, the Leafs would be sitting right now in 27th place and in a lottery position.

But hey the Leafs recovered and once again look like the team that anyone can beat. Poor Evgeny Nabkov had some difficulty keeping his head in the game. The 14 shots he faced spread over 60 minutes meant long stretches of inactivity. But then on Monday night they only managed 13 shots against Boston. So things are looking better.