Opinion
(Author’s note: credit goes out to MLHS reader the stache, whose comment, “Is it possible to start up a poll/page on the Kaberle deal with every member giving their ONE Kaberle deal and whoever has the closest after the fact idk gets mad props†is the basis for this article. Good on ya, buddy)
Salutations, true beleafers! We stand but a month away from the 2010 NHL draft in Los Angeles, where Burke and the boys from Scouting and Development will be showing up like beggars at the ball. The consensus amongst Leaf fans and hockey analysts is that our faithful #15, Tomas Kaberle, shall be brought to market in LA and sold to the highest bidder.
Things may be relatively quiet in Leafs Nation these days, but that doesn't mean there has been a lack of excitement elsewhere in the NHL.
As such, here are a few quick takes on some of the headlines dominating the NHL landscape these days (including the Phoenix Coyotes situation, the Patrice Cormier charges, and Willie Mitchell's controversial comments), as well as a quick glance at the nearly-completed 2nd round of the NHL playoffs.
Ron Wilson, an alumnus from Providence College, was playing for Davos in the Swiss National League A in 1985 when pivotal Minnesota North Stars defenseman Craig Hartsburg was injured. Embroiled in a battle for a playoff spot, Minnesota were in tough to find a stabilizing replacement to hold down the North Stars backend whilst Hartsburg recovered. Ron Wilson, a standout collegiate defender who never rose above major league stopgap, became the go-to-guy having already played 13 games for the North Stars the season previous. A span that bullet pointed five seasons in Switzerland.
A grizzled journeyman by age 30; Wilson would provide stellar coverage in Hartsburg’s absence securing an presence on the North Stars blueline in the 1986-’87 season before completing his NHL playing career with Minnesota a year later.
Those who know me can tell you I am an avid reader. Â I devour books at a staggering pace, specializing in sports books and autobiographies mostly. Â And as the warm weather approaches, and the hockey season gives way to deck weather, my reading habit ramps up considerably.
Book of choice at the moment? Â "The Yankee Years" Â by Joe Torre. Â A fantastic account of life in the major leagues and life as the manager of one of the most popular, most traditional, and at times, most dysfunctional franchises in the world.
Torre does an excellent job of taking readers behind the scenes of his time in New York, including a fist hand look of one of the biggest rivalries in all of sports. Â That is, the Yankees and the Boston Red Sox.
And that's where the parallels started standing out to me as a Leafs fan.
Nazem Kadri is ranked fourth overall in points in the Ontario Hockey League playoffs.
It has a nice ring to it when you take into consideration he was eliminated in the second-round by his ex-team, the Kitchener Rangers. Kadri compiled an impressive 9 goals and 27 points in 12 playoff games, giving him the highest points-per-game average among playoff competitors during the 2010 OHL post-season.
However, that doesn't mean his future in the National Hockey League for next season is solidified. Not even close, actually. Fact remains that plenty of promising prospects have fell by the wayside and spoiled untapped potential, and that the manner in which an NHL club handles the transition of a prospect into the big leagues remains of paramount importance in the successful development of a promising up-and-comer into a consistent NHL contributor, especially in a hotbed like Toronto.
Since Brian Burke has been at helm, the Toronto Maple Leafs organization has restocked its prospect cupboard and have instilled hope in a fanbase desperate to win.
Leafs fans have witnessed both highs and lows during the 2009-10 season and, although they must watch helplessly as the Boston Bruins select either one of Tyler Seguin or Taylor Hall, there is now legitimate reason to believe the Stanley Cup drought could come to an end.
When? Who knows, but Burke is taking it one step at a time---and, somehow, avoiding the traditional five-year rebuilding plan in the process.
Is it just me, or has the hockey season passed us by far quicker than usual? It seems like I just finished making arrangements for the home opener against Hamilton (which, might I add was a win) and here I am already looking back at the season that was.
It was an absolute blur of call-ups and injuries. The bright young stars that comprised the frat-pack line (Tyler Bozak, Christian Hanson and Viktor Stalberg) all found their way up to the Leafs. Carl Gunnarsson, the player I was most keen on going into the season, left the Marlies early on for the big club and never looked back. [more…]
Lots of reading today: Gus chips in an  analogical look at the NHL playoff series; Alex has your links with a look at potential Leaf Jussi Rynnas.
In what was Brian Burke's first summer on the job with the Toronto Maple Leafs, it was clear from the get go that he put an onus on improving specialty teams, and also team defense. Â The brash Toronto GM made a lot of moves as it related to improving these areas, and on paper they looked like a sure recipe for change and improvement.
[more…]
So the curtain comes down on the 2009-2010 Maple Leafs season. I know many readers are upset because we as Leaf fans must once again adopt and follow an entirely different team as a sort of playoff hockey avatar in order to fully enjoy the postseason (I find the only way to really get in to it is to pick a surrogate rooting interest). The angst is ramped up in Leaf land as well because the team finished so low in the standings, yet come draft day the guys clustered around our table won't be studying anything more intently than the lunch menu, because we won't likely have a pick for the first day and a half (unless Burkie has a miracle relating to a certain Czech defenceman tucked up inside those French cuffs).
With the final bell about to ring season most fans would be happy to forget - although the impending draft all but dictates they most assuredly will not - the Maple Leafs will officially enter the offseason five campaigns removed from the playoffs at the conclusion of Saturday night's game in Montreal.
Unlike previous years, however, this season has revealed to fans -- amidst the rubble of far too many losses -- a silver lining of sorts: the promise of youth.
I really had so many options with this title. With all the Anaheim prospects on Toronto, I thought of calling it “Duck, Duck, Duck, Moose!†With many players returning from injury, I pondered using “I’ve got 99 Problems, but a Stitch Ain’t One.†But really, being five points out with five games remaining, the Marlies truly are on a wild Moose chase.
As it stands now, the Marlies will have to win all of their final five games to have a hope of extending the season past April 12th. The two most important of these will need to come this weekend as Toronto faces Manitoba, the current occupant of the 4th and final spot. [more…]
Alec's Note: Please welcome Marlies writer Clayton Hansler, the newest member of the MLHS blogging team. Clayton has contributed freelance work to Leafs TV and is in regular contact with the Marlies club and personnel. We're excited to have him. Welcome, Clatyon!
The Ducks play spoiler to the blue and white... kind of. As the Marlies head down the stretch and zero in on the number four spot in the North West, Anaheim pulls a key contributor up to the big club. As if it's not already hard enough watching talent on the baby buds knowing they'll never develop into a Leaf.
