I just took a peek at the Leafs articles at Slam sports. Titles such as
aren't terribly encouraging. On the contrary, they invite thoughts as to how long it's going to take before the peasants arise and tumbrils begin to roll down the narrow alleys ("if you can't beat 'em"..., etc.) of Leafs Nation.
Time to bench Price and ride Halak to the end of the season. Price is letting in too many weak goals.
Price looks good on paper. He's young. I like Halak, too, even though the paper says he shouldn't be as good as he is. No room for two number ones, and Halak thinks he is one and plays like one. Dilemma for Bob Gainey, but a good one. They could trade one of them for a scorer or some other key ingredient who's missing. Ilya Kovalchuk is still unsigned. What price though?
Given the lack of scoring prowess on the Habs, I think they need to pay whatever price necessary for a bona fide sniper.
Without a first and second draft pick for leverage, the Habs ain't getting much. Besides, Cammilleri is a great sniper--what they need is a playmaker (whither Kovalev?). Actually, they need a lot--their great defence has been gutted these past two years, and they've paid way too much for fading stars like Gomez and Gionta.
Oh, and apparently, Andre Markov told Carey Price that if he wasn't going to play with heart to stay at home. I don't know about heart, but I agree that Halak has earned the no. 1 job six times over.
Nice to see the Sedin twins give the Toronto faithful a little display of their merciless prowess tonight. And, by pulling Luongo after letting in 3 goals in the first period, Vancouver coach Alain Vigneault gave Andrew Raycroft - now an ex-Leaf although still PAID by the Leafs - a chance for a little payback.
I wonder how many eastern teams the Canucks will crush in the first 8 games of the 14 game road trip?
Good lord. Well, that sucked. Leave it to the Leafs to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory. What a turnaround. Not that I'm surprised - sigh.
It's becoming a weekly ritual now. Gather the family around the tv after supper on a Saturday night to watch the Leafs lose.
Nice to see Burkey looking like a fire hydrant ready to blow! how's he doing with the Toronto media these days?
Given the lack of scoring prowess on the Habs, I think they need to pay whatever price necessary for a bona fide sniper.
I think Bob Gainey has tried to swing deals for everyone from Vinny to Ilya. Nowadays I think they actually have to ask players how they feel about living and playing in whatever city. Habs have the money and willingness to bring a scorer to Montreal. The question is, who wants to live and work in Montreal? Tampa's GM really betrayed Bob Gainey last season imo with releasing details of the Vinny negotiations to the press like that. I hope Tampa doesn't make the playoffs. Screw them.
Ontario Judge makes unprecedented ruling....
Toronto, Ontario (CP) -A seven-year-old Cabbagetown boy was at the center of
a Toronto city courtroom drama yesterday when he
challenged a court ruling over who should have custody of him.
The boy has a history of being beaten by his parents and the judge
initially awarded custody to his aunt, in keeping with child custody law
and regulations requiring that family unity be maintained to the degree
possible.
The boy surprised the court when he proclaimed that his aunt beat him more
than his parents and he adamantly refused to live with her. When the judge
then suggested that he live with his grandparents, the boy alleged they had
also beat him.
After considering the remainder of the immediate family and learning that
domestic violence was apparently a way of life among them, the judge took
the unprecedented step of allowing the boy to propose who should have
custody of him.
After two recesses to check legal references and confer with child welfare
officials, the judge granted temporary custody to the Toronto Maple Leafs, whom
the boy and judge both firmly believe are not capable of beating anyone.
bwaha
The Habs lost again, eh, Fidel?
That's technically not quite true, NorthReport. The Leafs are very capable of beating themselves and are in the habit of doing so.
At least when the Leafs lose we can just face it and say, "We suck."
The Habs lost again, eh, Fidel?
We were in the game with the Sens who are on a hot streak. Habs earned a point in their building. And Volchenkov will get his. That was a dirty god damned hit.
Snerk. :D
At least when the Leafs lose we can just face it and say, "We suck."
The Leafs do suck, no arguments here. Only the Oilers suck more. Looks like they'll be in Florida early again for the shuffleboard tourny.
I recently read "Leafs Abomination" a book about the Leafs by a couple of sports writers. Basically the thing is that no matter what the Leafs do on the ice, they're the most profitable franchise in the NHL...and there's absolutely no incentive for the management to put together a winning team. As long as the money keeps rolling in, they can lose forever.
Cup's in the states. Yanks are happy.
Yanks are oblivious. Both hockey fans down there, I agree, are happy though.
The Leafs do suck, no arguments here.
The point is that we can admit it, without making excuses such as "Ottawa is such a powerhouse, what could our puny boys do in the face of such a mighty juggernaut?"
I recently read "Leafs Abomination" a book about the Leafs by a couple of sports writers.
I have that book. Did you notice the price tag?
Phaneuf! Giguère! Wtf!
I had to check to see what your post was about.
Holy smoke! Phaneuf might be a real steal, although just yesterday the guys on "Leafs Lunch" were saying that Phaneuf was on the way out of Calgary, mostly because he was toxic in the dressing room.
I wish the Leafs could have done this without giving up Ian White, though. He and Luke Schenn are my favourite Leafs. He's been their most consistent player over the past two seasons, although he had some turnover trouble the last couple of games.
Getting rid of Blake and Toskala was great. I suppose The Ducks thought Giguere was expendible, given what I had just read this morning about Jonas Hiller.
I think the grab for Giguere is a great move: Giguere, a cup-winning goalie, isn't "skilled" so much as he is practiced and reliable. His positioning is so good he doesn't need to be athletic. He just goes out and does his job. Exactly what the Leafs need right now. Phaneuf, I'm not so sure about--he is a bit of a prick, I think, which is probably why such a skilled player is on the block. My Swedish friend rates White as much as you do--I expect he will be sad to see him go too.
It's so strange to see a non-playoff team pull off such a huge trade. How does Burke do this stuff?
I should also mention that Matty Stajan will be missed as well.
The Sam Pollock rule is who got the best player. By this standard the Leafs won.
Yes, and they can still miss the playoffs quite easily and, thereby, get out from under Caberley's contract. Burke went to great lengths in his press conference to make it ABSOLUTELY CLEAR that he would not ask the Leafs defender to abandon his "no trade" clause. However, he also noted, practically under his breath, that were the Leafs not to make the playoffs then that aspect of Caberley's contract would become null and void.
Oh yea.
What do you mean, "out from under Kaberle's contract"? Kaberle is regarded as one of the best bargains in the league, since he is paid so little relative to other players of his calibre.
Yanks are oblivious. Both hockey fans down there, I agree, are happy though.
The Leafs do suck, no arguments here.The point is that we can admit it, without making excuses such as "Ottawa is such a powerhouse, what could our puny boys do in the face of such a mighty juggernaut?"
If we look at the Red Wings team who won the cup last. they were not a team of physical giants. Some of their best players are in the 5'10 - 6' range and 185 to 195 lbs. Rule changes since the lockout tend to favour speedy playmakers over larger players who were successful with clutch and grab back then. The Habs are actually well matched on paper with any team in the league except for maybe two or three teams that have separated themselves from the pack, like the Caps, Devils, and Sharks. League parity has made the Eastern Conference very competitive and why such a narrow spread in points separates sixth and twelvth place teams.
The Leafs look not so bad on paper. They should be competing for a playoff spot in a year or two. This is a team that needs to gel for a season or two more before they can compete. The point is that league parity and rule changes won't be producing dynastic rule in the NHL like it was for the Habs or Oilers and Islanders in the old days. Even the Caps won't be guaranteed a trip to the cup finals this year. Even the Caps and Sharks will have to work hard and count on their lucky stars to make it past the first and second rounds and further than they progressed last spring after successful regular season play. The league is about as competitive as can be, and hockey fans can't really predict the outcome of games like it was when the Habs or Oilers were losing a grand total of ten or 15 games the whole season. I can remember hiockey fans complaining to no end about the NHL's imperialist setup then.
What do you mean, "out from under Kaberle's contract"? Kaberle is regarded as one of the best bargains in the league, since he is paid so little relative to other players of his calibre.
Perhaps I'm misreading Burke here. The fact that he went into the details of how the Leafs might get rid of Kaberle after noisily announcing that he would not press the Leaf defender on his no trade clause suggests to my cynical mind that something's afoot.
You can find the remarks by Burke on the TSN (I think) version of his 13 minute press conference. I think it is the first of the 2 press conferences; the first on the trade with Calgary and the 2nd on the trade with Anaheim. Fill you boots and see if you don't agree with my interpretation.
Kaberle's a minus 10 and has decent size, so he's a definite keeper as far as makebeLeafs masterminds are concerned. And apparently they needed to get rid of White, the only defenceman of nine blue liners who is under six feet tall. Apparently the one midget among eight other tree trunks and human pilons on defence was the reason for the Leafs last place performance so far. And they needed to get rid of that sparkplug forward Jason Blake - too small to be the 20 goal scorer that he is at a time when goals are hard to come by. And Stajan and Hagman with the good hands - get rid of them, too. Should be the biggest and strongest Canadian contingent of shuffleboard players they've ever seen at the Boca del Vista tourney this April.
I think that the Calgary deal is retroactive compensation for the Gilmour/Leeman swap, while the deal with Anaheim suggests that Burke still has some dirt on the team's owners (how else to you explain them taking Blake and Toskala).
If Kaberle is a contract bargain that raises his trading value. He can get a player of greater value. Vancouver got Erhoff and Lukowich for two players who will never play in the NHL simply because San Jose needed to trim their salaries.
I have that book. Did you notice the price tag?
Yeah, $19.67, right? Hilarious. :D
Wow, that's a great trade for the Leafs. You fans have reason for optimism.
Bear in mind, however, where I'm writing from.
Wow, that's a great trade for the Leafs. You fans have reason for optimism.Bear in mind, however, where I'm writing from.
Nice of Quinn to keep helping the Leafs after they fired him.
Quinn's in Edmonton.
Exactly. He's helping the Leafs by being worse than them.
What do you mean, "out from under Kaberle's contract"? Kaberle is regarded as one of the best bargains in the league, since he is paid so little relative to other players of his calibre.
Here are some more details ... "Little cap room for Leafs: Take 5"
CBC: Of course, the Leafs could move Tomas Kaberle ($4.25 million) in the summer, when his no-trade clause has a window that allows him to be dealt if Toronto doesn't make the playoffs.
Exactly. He's helping the Leafs by being worse than them.
OK.
I guess Edmonton's being lower than Toronto does make the Kessel trade look less like a complete disaster.
CBC: Of course, the Leafs could move Tomas Kaberle ($4.25 million) in the summer, when his no-trade clause has a window that allows him to be dealt if Toronto doesn't make the playoffs.
Anyone who follows the Leafs with more than a casual interest is quite aware of this.
Well, yea, OK, I admit my interest is only casual. However, by your previous reply, I was under the impression that you were unaware of the terms of K's contract.
BTW, are you still of the view that K is one of the "best bargains" in the league and, therefore, shouldn't be traded?
BTW, are you still of the view that K is one of the "best bargains" in the league and, therefore, shouldn't be traded?
If I was Leaf brass, I would shop him. They seem to be changing strategy from offensive club to a...bigger from the goal position forward. I think everyone's looking for offensive talent and realizing it's few and far between. And that it's easier to prevent goals than score them. Where does a player like Kaberle fit in with a defensive minded team, if that's how they intend to play?
Kaberle's been my favorite Leaf since he was a rookie, and I knew he'd be one of the leagues premier deffensmen. However, with the Leafs not challenging for a cup within his shelf life, it is time to deal him, particularly if they can get a first round draft pick this year or next as part of the deal; and I don't see why they shouldn't be able to.
Sure, if the Leafs were contending, Kaberle would be "untouchable" in my books. But that's not a worry for the next five or six years, and by that time, Kaberle will be well past his prime.
Well, yea, OK, I admit my interest is only casual. However, by your previous reply, I was under the impression that you were unaware of the terms of K's contract.
BTW, are you still of the view that K is one of the "best bargains" in the league and, therefore, shouldn't be traded?
Communication breakdown.
Your saying that the Leafs were saddled with the contract gave the impression that the contract itself was a problem. The only problematic part of the contract is the no-trade clause. It isn't as if his pay rate is a liability, which is the usual concern when one suggests that someone wants to get "out from under" a contract.
I agree with Tommy. Good as Kaberle is, he might be worth more to the team as someone to trade, providing the Leafs get a prospect who will become good in a few years. Being a good bargain makes him more attractive to trade.
And, there's such a thing as being decent to Kaberle, too. I think he deserves to end up on a contending team-- although the no trade clause seems to indicate he's happy in Toronto.
I'd try to trade Kaberle to a team that thinks it's ready for it's Cup run, and is willing to part with some future for some now. A team like Chicago, for example.
Might even throw in Komiserik, if there's a team out there that thinks it needs to spend more time killing stupid cross checking penalties, or Colton Orr if they want some promising kids beaten up in practice.
The Leafs must be picking up a large chunk of Toskla and Blake's salaries.
Burke can't call in favours like that.
Chicago already has four defenseman better than Kaberle (Campbell, Keith, Seabrook and Barker).
Another question is how many other similar players are going to be on the market. Joni Pitkanen is being shopped around by Carolina, for example. It could end up being a buyers' market.
The Leafs must be picking up a large chunk of Toskla and Blake's salaries.
Burke can't call in favours like that.
So there's no truth to the rumour that Burke is going to trade Grabowski, Ponikahoski and Stempniak for Getzlaf?
Damned if I know.
I just don't think "favours" fly in the NHL, where money is clearly on the line. I imagine teams make uneven trades to try and get players to jell better, or to subtract even high end players who are not happy in their current environment. I have a hard time believing that Burke can just dial up a superstar when he wishes.
Is this hockey talk or Leafs talk?
Why isn't anyone talking about the Oiler's one game winning streak? 
Yes, former Leaf and Leafs coach Pat Quinn is doing a heckuva job.
Oilers will soon be back to their glory days.
