It's Housecleaning Time in TO

Well, "Trader Cliff" Fletcher is certainly not your typical Interim GM. Besides, being given the reigns for at least a season, and not just 1-2 months, it seems Fletcher has been tasked with leaving a clean slate for the new GM (Burkie?) to work with.

Instead of just sitting back and waiting for his sponge bath, Fletcher has been busy cleaning house and getting rid of garbage stowed away in the attic.

Witness ...

1. Waiving Andrew Raycroft - one of JFJ's biggest mistakes was giving this young goalie a monster contract. Raycroft wilted in Toronto and never found the form he found in his rookie season. Raycroft is too expensive to be a backup goalie and simply not good enough.

2. Waiving Kyle Wellwood - This move shocks me somewhat, even if Wellwood is a midget and soft on the body. Wellwood is young, offensively talented, and isn't too expensive. You'd think Wellwood would stick around for at least another season.

Then again, the guy did only get 21 points last year in 59 games and is very suspect defensively. The Leafs are obviously worried about his ability to stay healthy, also.

3. Waiving/Buying-Out(?) Darcy Tucker - Love him or hate him, you know Tucker is an effective pest who can occasionally put the puck in the net. He's also overpaid at $3mil per season, and has had problems staying healthy. With his age (33) and his style of play, you know Darcy is an asset that will depreciate quickly.

4. Not going after Mats Sundin - Even if the Leafs don't intend to compete, this is a move that I think is a poor one. Besides being Mr. Maple Leaf, Sundin is also one of the most bankable, consistent offensive producers in the game. You can always count on Sundin to provide about a point-a-game whilst staying healthy. If Sundin wants to stay, why not sign him? It's not as if the Leafs don't have cap room.

I've been extremely critical of the way fossil Fletcher was brought on board and critical of the way the Leafs have managed their franchise since ... forever. Instead of finding a talented GM to chart a new course, the Leafs decided on some old guy to come in and simply 'hold the fort'.

That said, I have to commend the fact that Fletcher is not afraid to clean up some of the mess left behind and ensure that the GM-to-be doesn't have to waste time on such endeavors. While being in a 'holding pattern' for a season is a poor way to manage a club, Fletcher seems intent on at least allowing the Leafs to start fresh and not simply hang onto whatever chaff they have on board.

The fact is, JFJ signed a lot of players to deals that pay them too much: Jason Blake, Bryan McCabe, Darcy Tucker, Andrew Raycroft, and Pavel Kubina. With the Leafs not being a very good team, it's obvious that some of these expensive players had to be let go in order to leave room for any future business.

As long as Fletcher doesn't spend this new-found cap room on aging vets in a stupid attempt to make the playoffs, the Leafs are, shockingly, looking like they might know what they are doing.

Quick Question: Who is Better Off?

Wayne, our ever perky Southern Correspondent, comes to me with a rather hard-to-answer question

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In a typical Presidential election year, the candidate whose party is out of office always asks the voters, "Are you better off than you were four years ago?"

Four years ago, NHL fans were about to face a lockout. Three years ago, we finally got back to playing. But are things any better for fans of certain teams? Of these teams, who's better off (or worse off) today than they were three years ago when the playing field was supposed to be leveled financially?

L.A. Kings
Atlanta Thrashers
Florida Panthers
Columbus Blue Jackets
Phoenix Coyotes
Chicago Blackhawks
St. Louis Blues

Or everyone's favorite:

Toronto Maple Leafs
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Without having access to the finances of these clubs, it is very hard to comment on if they are truly better off than they were before the lockout

Chicago? They are much better off, simply because "Dollar Bill" Wirtz bit the big one and his spawn 'get it'. The Hawks are on TV (GASP!), have some great young talent, and seem to be getting some buzz in the Windy City.

St. Louis? They were always well off...they have a good fan-base, good corporate sponsorship, and never were in any danger.

The Canadian teams are doing great, but I would opine that they got hurt a lot by the CBA. We know the Canadian teams make a huge chunk of the league's revenues, so we know that these same clubs have to contribute a huge chunk into the revenue sharing pool.

Who benefits? Atlanta, Florida, Nashville, etc.. Oh, the Leafs are in terrific shape, especially since the Canadian dollar is strong, but they likely would be stronger if we were under the old system and the Leafs could keep every dime they make.

Does anyone else have some theories?

Paul Maurice is Fired

Leafs fans can finally rejoice ... PAUL MAURICE HAS BEEN FIRED!!! W00t!

In a classic case of a new GM wanting a new GM, fossilized interim GM Cliff Fletcher canned 'Chairman Mo', opting not to wait for the new regime to come in and make a change.

Paul Maurice said his firing on Wednesday morning as head coach of the Toronto Maple Leafs did not come as a surprise.

"I don't think, based on the season we just had, that this was a surprise," Maurice said, adding that his immediate plans are "to hang with my kids."

"I appreciate the fact it was clearly a decision they made and they didn't sit on it for a long time. I don't know that it was a shocker. It's a conversation you never want to have. The first [firing] is the toughest one. After that, you're in the fraternity," Maurice said.

As the Acid Queen would be quick to tell you, Maurice is one of the worst head coaches in the entire NHL. Take away his flukey run to the Finals with the Canes a few years back, and you get a long trail in inept coaching decisions and underperforming teams.

From our favourite Canes fan:

The more things change, the more they stay the same. Like I said months ago, I tried to warn the Leafs fans–I did, I really did. And all they did was laugh at me and bray about how I CLEARLY don’t know anything about hockey because otherwise I’d see what a great coach Paul Maurice is and how he’d make the Leafs great again.

Who’s laughing now, kids?

He’s a decent coach ... in the AHL. Nice guy, too–but as an NHL coach I really don’t think he’s up to snuff. Coaches have to be developed too, just like players, and Mo’s development as a coach was severely hampered by his being thrown right into the fire all those years ago in Hartford after a whopping six weeks and change as an assistant coach under Paul Holmgren (who now GMs the Pflyers). If he wants to salvage any kind of career at all, he needs to go back to the AHL or just be an assistant somewhere for a few years and learn how to do more than the same old crap he did for 8 years in Carolina and 2 years in Toronto.

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Our Southern Correspondent has a couple of questions for us. One I can answer, and one I can't.

1. Once again the Red Wings won the President's Trophy (for whatever that's worth); I remember, at one time, the team doing so used to get a $100,000 bonus...Is that still true?

*Jes: Per Wikipedia, the Presidents Trophy winning team gets $350,000 to spread around*

2. Do the players on the winning Cup team get some sort of financial bonus? Players on the World Series winner get about $350K; players on the Super Bowl winner get $64K...

*Jes: I have no idea, but anyone who needs financial incentive to win the Stanley Cup if somebody I wouldn't want on my team*

MLSE Scams Ticket Buyers, World Yawns

by Jes

The Toronto Maple Leafs organization just continues to be one of the very worst in all of professional sports. To the days of Harold Ballard to the constant inept too-many-cooks management to corrupt employees, the Maple Leafs are just one gigantic joke.

The latest blight to come from Hogtown is a delicious little ticket scam that a few employees develops to 'cash' in on some hockey-starved fans.

From the Toronto Star:

Rob Tanguay thought it was odd when a Toronto Maple Leafs employee told him to bring an envelope stuffed with $5,000 in cash to a truck stop in Milton to help cover the cost of hockey tickets.

A vice-president with a St. Thomas-based transportation company, Tanguay was a typical Leafs fan who figured he might never get his own season seats at the Air Canada Centre. He'd been on a waiting list for season tickets for some 15 years when, out of the blue, he received a call from a Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment sales employee last spring.

"He told me someone wanted to give up their seats and he had tried to reach three other people on the wait list. I was Number 4 and he asked if I was still interested in tickets," Tanguay said.

The seller was looking to dump a pair of tickets in the red section and wanted to sell the personal-seat licences for $20,000 apiece, Tanguay said. There was one hitch: Tanguay said the MLSE employee wanted him to bring $5,000 in cash – at the seller's request – to cement the deal.

"After I bought the tickets, I looked up the seller's name on Canada411.com and contacted him, asking whether he'd received the cash," Tanguay said. "He hadn't. I knew right then I'd been scammed. I called (the MLSE employee) back and asked why he had wanted the $5,000 and he told me that the seller was lying and he had given him the cash. I didn't believe him but I didn't do anything about it at the time."

Reached at his home, the MLSE sales employee declined to comment. He is one of five employees in the MLSE ticketing department who were fired 10 days ago.

Now, this Tanguay guys doesn't seem like the dullest knife in the drawer, so he must have been some kind of desparate to have been scammed like this.

How could ANYONE actually think that you'd have to meet an employee at a TRUCK STOP, and not an official office, and exchange cold hard CASH, and not think something is fishy is beyond me. Yet, Tanguay went through with the exchange as he was so hell-bent on getting his tickets. Sheesh.

Yes, I realize that these are the actions of a select few employees, but the Maple Leafs certainly didn't do a good job in screening these employees and keeping tabs on them. It speaks to the ineptness of the Leafs organization that stuff like this occurs, and that it takes an outsider to ring the alarm bells.

As an aside, PERSONAL SEAT LICENSES have to be one of the best legal scams in years. It's bad enough that you get gouged for just buying a regular ticket, but now a team can charge an extra fee just for having the ability to renew your season tickets year after year. What happened to customer loyalty? What happened to asking the guy if he just wants to renew or not? Sad....

Mats Sundin Won't Waive No-Trade Clause

by Jes

All too often, people whine about the 'good old days' and how a player tended to play for one franchise his one career. Of course, it was much easier to play for just one team when there were only SIX teams in the league. In today's 30-team monstrosity, there is a lot more choice out there for both GMs and players.

Basically, people whine that players aren't loyal any longer, all the while forgetting that GM's don't exactly show 'loyalty' to the players they put on waivers, etc.

Now, as we approach deadline day, the one player that has been in the spotlight the most is Mats Sundin. Sure, Sundin is with his second NHL franchise, but it feels like he's been a career Maple Leaf.

Mats said 'no' to waiving his no-trade clause, and now he'll remain with the Leafs until the end of the season. Obviously, Mats enjoys playing in Toronto and doesn't want to move his family and/or away from his family and friends for an extended period of time.

Per Ice Junkies:

Many players have come before him and have left their home team in order to chase the dream temporarily with a cup favorite but Mats decided it was not the way he wanted to win. To me, this speaks volumes about his class and leadership and illustrates exactly why so many teams were lined up for a shot at his services. Sundin deserves a cup, but with Toronto clearly embarking on an intensive, and much needed, re-build he may never get it. Many will accuse Mats of hurting that rebuilding effort and claim that he should have allowed Fletcher to get some value for him and then just re-signed with Toronto in the off-season. Regardless of one's perspective on that, Mats decision is actually a refreshing one as he will be a leaf until the end and that's something to be celebrated.

On the flip side, Greg Wyshynski over at FanHouse disagrees entirely with what Sundin is doing.

Sundin has placed his own personal comfort ahead of self-sacrifice for the franchise he so dearly adores. The asking price was only going to rise as Tuesday's deadline grew near; there's no telling what improvements to next year's Leafs their captain just pissed away because of his nihilism toward the "concept of a rental player." Ice Junkies believes this decision is the epitome of class; I couldn't disagree more.

Well, I'm obviously not siding with Greg on this issue.

1. Why shouldn't Sundin place his own personal comfort ahead of everything else? He signed a contract with a no-trade clause specifically because he *gasp* didn't want to get traded. If the Leafs wanted to trade him, perhaps they shouldn't have agreed to the clause. D'uh!

2. It's not Mats Sundin's responsibility to do anything other than perform well on the ice. Anything that has to do with how much talent surrounds Sundin is the sole responsibility of Leafs' management. The fact that the Leafs are in their current pickle is the fault of JFJ and his ilk.

3. Why the double standard? Do we now praise players because they choose to be rental mercenaries, or do we praise them because they show some actual loyalty?

So, Mats made a personal decision and didn't want to upset his family and be a pawn in the NHL's Meat Market. Good for him. Mats has fulfilled his obligations to the Leafs, and is not obligated to play the role of trade bait. Why do we insist on treating players like commodities? It would be akin to me chastising Greg for not quitting FanHouse so that we can go out and hire Al Strachan.

Monday Morning Musics

by Jes

The one thing I can say that I have in common with the Vancouver Canucks is that we're both going through a period of mental hockey fatigue. It's the middle of the season, and I'm feeling 'blah'. The Canucks? They look the same way, winning just one of their past eight games, and generally sucking the big one. Injuries are really taking their toll as the Canucks can no longer seem to keep goals from being scored against them at a good pace.

Why is it the Canucks suck against sucky teams, especially Los Angeles? Post-lockout, the Blues, who could barely beat anyone else, whipped the Canucks like Mistress Veronique.

Vs. the Kings
October 19th: 4-2 loss
December 10th: 4-2 loss
January 10th: 3-2 loss

Are the Canucks trying to do Crawford a favor and sucking so that he can keep his job? WTF, eh?

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Wayne, our Southern correspondent, shares some thoughts over the weekend.

Did anyone hear Mike Milbury on NBC call out Jaromir Jagr as being "gloomy" and "moody"? He did everything except call him "Ee-yore"...Trying to think of an "All-Moody" team with Jagr and Marian Hossa; any other nominations?

Chris Pronger is definitely a big whiner, as is Raffi Torres. One more defenseman ... hmm ... Dion "Sour Puss" Phaneuf.

In goal? Can we pull Patrick Roy out of retirement?

And the coach? None other than the Great Whine, Wayne Gretzky

Jagr is truly the league's biggest diva, and both he and the Rangers would be in a great spot if he'd just shut up and story worrying about non-essential stuff. It's not enough for Jagr to be paid well, but he has to have the world revolve around him as well. For that reason, he's never been the guy you can truly build a team around.

I see that Marc Savard will finally make an All-Star Game this Sunday...wonder what kind of reaction he'll get in Atlanta...Me: I'd applaud...

As would I

As I type this, the Maple Laffs just fired their GM; what took them so long? Well, Don Waddell has an opening when Atlanta Spirit fires his ass this coming May.

I covered this over at NHL FanHouse. Until the Leafs change their management structure (ie. Too many cooks, not enough brains), it doesn't matter which GM they hire. The Leafs' ownership cares only about profits, and has too many people who want a say in the affairs of the club. For this reason, no GM can truly make their stamp on the team as they'll have many other people to go through.

It's a testament to Pat Quinn's GM skills that he did as well as he did during his tenure there, demotion and all.

Tuesday's Thoughts: Flyers Goon it Up

span style="font-style: italic;">by Jes

After what happened between Flyers d-man Randy Jones and Bruins forward Patrice Bergeron, you'd figure that the Philadelphia Flyers might exercise a little caution in last night's rematch

But, as we know, the goonish mentality is alive and well in the City of Brotherly Love. (Hat tip to Mirtle for the video link)

Philadelphia's Scott Hartnell was given a five-minute boarding penalty and a game misconduct for hitting defenceman Andrew Alberts at 14:22 of the second period. Andrews left the game with an unspecified head injury and will be evaluated on Tuesday.

Boston's Zdeno Chara said that his team decided not to retaliate after Alberts was injured.

"It's something we talked about," Chara said. "We probably ended up with some bruises, but we have two points and that's the most important thing right now. It's up to the league to address things like that."

Hartnell said that the hit on Alberts was not deliberate.

"I did not try to hurt him," Hartnell explained. "There was no intent at all. I am not that type of player. If you look at all the games this year and past years, I finish my checks every time I have an opportunity."

Not deliberate? From the little highlight we do see (near the end), Hartnell was absolutely rocketing towards Alberts with the full intention of doing some damage. While I defended Jones' hit on Bergergon, I believe Hartnell's hit was fully intended to injure the Bruins' player, and a very lengthy suspension ought to be on the way.

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Other goodies over at the NHL FanHouse ...

1. We have a new contributor in Kevin Schultz (from Barry Melrose Rocks). His debit column is a beauty, as he gives Gary Bettman some tips on how to run his new radio show.

2. Imagine winning a hard-to-come-by Nintendo Wii, and then dying on the way to pick up your prize. Well, that's what happened to one poor kid at a Providence Bruins game. Greg Wyshynski has all the gory details.

3. Rome continues to burn as rumours surface that JFJ wanted to fire Paul Maurice, but couldn't. More Steve Simmons bullshit or the real deal? We report, YOU DECIDE!! Muhahaha

Hot Uncensored Leaf Action

by Greg

Pity poor Jiri Tlusty -- in a matter of weeks he's gone from "the guy who scored two goals in his debut" to "the naked guy on the internet."
I kind of wonder what sort of draft-pick orientation process the Leafs have -- I'd figure that "don't take naked pictures of yourself and send them to a girl" would be pretty high on the advice list.

Despite the apologies, I've yet to find anyone outraged by this (admittedly, I haven't looked too hard) -- reactions tend to range from amused to "leave the kid alone." I sort of side with the second one, though obviously not enough to not write about it. If idiotic (though fully-clothed) photos were a crime, I'd be doing hard time.

There's a bit of interest to be found in the contrasting coverage -- the Sun seems to be going with the full-on British tabloid approach (somewhere Rupert Murdoch is reading the "Lusty Tlusty" headline and feeling very proud of his impact on journalism), while TSN is so restrained that it's impossible to tell what's going on. The only story I can find on the site is this vague Canadian Press story -- it was the first thing I read about it this morning, and I was left with no clue what the photos showed. Tlusty cooking dinner? Robbing a bank? Watching television? Murdering a hobo? Who knows, in the demure TSN/CP world?

At least it's getting the NHL a little press, though I must admit any possible PR campaign escapes me.

Have a Hockey Hallowe'en!

by Jes

Ahh, Hallowe'en, the time for children to get stuffed with fattening treats, shoot fireworks at each other, and dress up in costume.

For the adults, it's not that much different, other than revolvers replacing fireworks, most of the time.

Now, if you love hockey, then why not show it with a puck-related costume this All Hallow's Eve?

1. The JASON Classic - The goalie mask is timeless, effective, and instantly recognizable. Donning the mask definitely says "psycho killer", or Patrick Roy, and saves us the agony of seeing your ugly face all night. You can't go wrong with something like this ...

2. The PUCK BUNNY - Ladies, show your true love of the game by dressing up as every hockey fan's fantasy creature. Fawn over your man as if he makes millions, and pretend that you think icing is just stuff you get on a cake.


Mmmm... be sure to wear pink, lots of pink.


3. A TORONTO MAPLE LEAFS GOALTENDER - OK, it's a bit hard to pull off.


4. A TORONTO MAPLE LEAFS FAN - Not so hard to pull off.


5. A TORONTO MAPLE LEAFS DEFENSEMAN - Very easy to pull off.


6. JOHN FERGUSON JR., for you yoga fanatics.

Here are a few bonus pics...

Sidney and his Hallowe'en candy...

The Canucks' play is enough to send many fans into HULK SMASH! rage of mages.

The Maple Leafs Goaltender Conundrum

by Jes


What did I do to deserve this?

When Leafs GM John Ferguson Jr., aka "Puppet Boy", put all of his eggs in one basket with the trade/signing of Andrew Raycroft, more than a few eyebrows were raised wondering just what the hell he was doing.

While Raycroft had an amazing rookie season once upon a time, he had just come off of an injury plagued season in which he sucked more than a blindfolded Brian Boucher. In 2005-06, Raycroft played in just 30 games, and sucked with an 87.9 SV%. Somehow, JFJ thought Raycroft was 'The Answer' after Ed Belfour's departure.

It was no surprise, then, that Raycroft completely bombed as the Leafs #1 'tender, finishing with a well-below-average 89.4 SV% (90.5% was the league average), and JFJ was forced to go to a Plan B.

That Plan B? Spend a whole whack more resources to acquire career backup Vesa Toskala, somebody with a pretty decent track record in his brief NHL career.

The overall cost?

Raycroft - Hot prospect Tuukka Rask and then a $6mil/3 year deal.
Toskala - A 1st and 2nd rounder in 2007, and a 4th rounder in 2007 for Toskala and drunk driver Mark Bell.

Well, 4 games into the season, and the Leafs' netminders have combined for a 4.17GAA and 86.5SV%, with both goalies playing equally brutal.

So, what the hell do the Leafs do? Play a goalie and hope he goes on a hot streak?

If I am Paul Maurice, I'd do something about those raccoon eyes, and then play Toskala as my #1 goalie for the first half of the season. Toskala, despite his poor start, has a much better track record than Raycroft. With Raycroft, you know you will not get average goaltending. With Toskala? There is a good chance that you'll get at least average, if not more.

Forget this back-and-forth crap to appease the media and fanbase, go with the talented hand, which is Toskala. Just because the Leafs paid so much for Raycroft, doesn't mean they should continue to play him.

Do what the Avs do, and realize that Jose Theodore is a sunk cost. They are smart enough to know that Budaj is a superior goaltender, so they just sit Theodore on the bench, and know that they can do little but pay Theodore to open the bench door for his teammates. At this point, Maurice should ensure that Raycroft has the same type of job.

Jason Blake's Newest Battle: Cancer

by Jes




Not too long after The FanHouse's Greg Wyshynski reported on the pressure Leafs winger Jason Blake faces after *gasp* not scoring a goal in his first three games, comes news that Blake has a much more serious issue to deal with: Cancer.


The diagnosis: Chronic myelogenous leukemia, an uncommon type of cancer. According to wikipedia, the longest survival time was 117 months. On a more positive note, The Mayo Clinic states that patients can live many years as long as they take (ever improving) chemo-like pill treatment. The complications, however, could end Blake's career early.

"This morning I shared with my teammates news that I was diagnosed with Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia," Blake said on the team's website.

"It is highly-treatable, and I have begun taking a pill on a daily basis that has proven to be very effective in controlling this cancer. The prognosis, and certainly the expectations of my physician, myself and my family, is that I will live a long, full and normal life. This situation will not impact my ability to live my life as I otherwise would, and will not affect my ability to perform at my highest level for the Toronto Maple Leafs. I'm looking forward to my first season with the Leafs and helping our club compete for the Stanley Cup."

Well, this is certainly terrible news for Jason Blake and his family. Here is hoping that they idenfied it early enough, and that treament has improved enough, that Blake can manage the condition and live for many more years.

Man Finds 1967 Stanley Cup Ring in the Ocean!

by Jes

A Toronto Maple Leafs Stanley Cup ring is a rare piece of jewelry, indeed.

Imagine, then, finding one while doing a little deep-sea diving?

Yes, today's strange-but-true story:

A treasure hunter searching in Florida waters came across a true Canadian find - a Stanley Cup ring marking the last time Toronto's Maple Leafs were able to clinch the hockey championship.

The ring has been missing for some thirty years. It belonged to former Maple Leaf right-winger Jim Pappin, the player who led his team during the 1967-68 season playoffs with seven goals and 15 points.

Pappin was so disillusioned with the Leafs after they traded him to the Chicago Blackhawks, he gave his ring to his father-in-law.

"I didn't want anything to do with the Toronto Maple Leafs," he told CTV's Naomi Parness.

I can't imagine being so pissed that I'd give away my cup ring.

Anyway, there is quite a story involved with this ring, and now it appears to have a happy ending.

Yep, the Leafs can't win a ring, they have to find it in the ocean *yuk yuk*