detroit red wings
A couple of days ago, I had a pretty interesting conversation with @Dudgee (solid MLHS guy, give him a follow) when he first stated that he thought the Leafs brass should withhold judgement on Kessel and Bozak until we see them in the playoffs. This got me thinking, because Bozak is due for an extension and Kessel is going into the final year of his contract, ultimately with the prospects of a massive raise from his current $5.400mn salary. So I wondered - is Bozak destined to simply be a rental player for the Leafs during the playoffs, or is there anything he can do to solidify himself as a key cog in the organization?
Judging from most of the stuff I've heard on Twitter, if seems like the masses are ready to dispose of Bozak, and I wanted to reach out to our writers to see what they thought. From my side, regardless of whether Bozak stays, or not, the situation at centre will change - with Kadri's ascension and Grabovski's sub-optimization - and this summer could mark the beginnings of the organization's intense search for a #1 Centre, which is key to turning the Leafs into a better possession team. [more…]
The Leafs entered last week with the hope of winning at least two of the three games on their Western road trip. They were successful in accomplishing that goal, however last night's loss to the Detroit Red Wings put the team into a very difficult position heading into the final stretch of the regular season. In order to have a realistic chance of making the post season, Toronto will likely have to win all six of their remaining games and pray that the Buffalo Sabres hit a dead end and win two or fewer of their games.
Considering the season-long brilliance displayed by Ryan Miller, and major offensive contributions from Thomas Vanek and sophomore forward Tyler Ennis, the Sabres will have to suffer a significant blow such as an injury or losing streak to lose hold of the eighth and final playoff spot.
Brian Burke stated prior to the start of the season that the primary goal was to make the playoffs. With yet another season set to wrap up in mid April, the city of Toronto is not filled with negativity and frustration, but rather a sense of optimism and promise that the Leafs have made significant strides towards building a contending team in the very near future.
Links after the jump.
The Maple Leafs visit the Joe Louis Arena in the only meeting of the season against an original six rival in the Detroit Red Wings. Coming off their third-straight win after a victory in Colorado on Thursday, tonight's game is the next step in the attempt to more or less run the board and climb into the top-eight of the Eastern Conference. Despite being second in the West, the Red Wings have struggled in the month of March, going 4-4-3 in their last 11, including two losses in regulation and an overtime loss, in their last three games.
Toronto is looking to capitalize on the Red Wings glut of injuries. Detroit will be without leading offensive forwards Pavel Datsyuk (lower body), Todd Bertuzzi (back) and Johan Franzen (groin). With a 16-7-4 overall record and a 12-3-1 road record when James Reimer is between the pipes, the Leafs have been one of the top three teams since the all star break, behind only the San Jose Sharks and New Jersey Devils. In order to prove up to making the playoffs, let alone to competing in them, Toronto needs to be able to beat the best. Let's hope the continued lack of outside help hasn't taken some of the wind out of the Leafs' collective sail, as the state of Florida failed the Leafs last night with Carolina and Buffalo wins over Tampa Bay and the Panthers.
Follow the jump for today's Leaf Links.
It is a popular war cry teams will make when in the midst of an unlikely or unexpected championship run. But what exactly is needed to make a championship contending hockey club and just how far are the Maple Leafs from truly becoming one? I thought I would attempt to answer that very question while trying to look at how a successful championship contending hockey team is currently composed and then comparing it to the Leafs situation and roster makeup. [more…]
The Toronto Maple Leafs had a game to forget tonight.
This is not exactly the most enjoyable game to share my postgame thoughts, but here we go:
At this time last year, Jerry D'Amigo was a little known Maple Leafs' draftee who had been passed over 157 times by other clubs only a few months before. After a banner year at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in the NCAA and a brilliant run at the World Juniors, the not even 20 year old D'Amigo currently finds himself with an NHL contract, an invite to training camp, and a legitimate shot at making his dreams come true as soon as this fall. That was last year. Now let's take a look at some of the names that could be making some serious headway up the Leafs' organizational depth charts in 2010-2011.
In part 11 of his 12 Burning Questions series, Derek Harmsworth takes a look at one of the hottest topics in Leafs Nation today: just how long of a leash does Ron Wilson have?
In the summer of 2008, the Toronto Maple Leafs were in the midst of a major overhaul. Â Much maligned general manager John Ferguson, Jr. had been relieved of his duties with the organization, and as nice a man as JFJ was when I met him at the Leafs rookie and orientation camp a year prior, there is no solid argument that can be made for him as a good GM.
Ferguson Jr, to his credit, can take solace in the fact that a few of his draft picks are now cracking the Leafs as legitimate players, Kulemin and Gunnarsson among them, although even that fact can be debated  - how much was scouting and how much was general managing?
In a word, John Ferguson Jr. left the Toronto Maple Leafs in shambles, and some of the moves he made, continually sacrificing youth for a quick fix solution (or at least something he thought was a quick fix) have very well set the Maple Leafs back at least an additional few years in the rebuilding process. [more…]
Hopes and expectations are that the conclusion of the 2010-11 season will see the Maple Leafs  return to playoff action for the first time since Jeremy Roenick ended the Leafs' 2004 post-season run in overtime of game six on May 4, 2004.
Many factors led to the Leafs' demise during the 2009-10 campaign, which ultimately meant the relinquishment of Tyler Seguin to the Boston Bruins. Inconsistency was the primary issue, as many key players were ineffective or downright useless---I'm looking at you, Vesa Toskala. The off-season acquisitions of Mike Komisarek and Francois Beauchemin had fans salivating at the potential of the team's defense corps. However, things took an unfortunate turn for the worse when both defensemen---it was later revealed Komisarek required season-ending surgery for a pre-existing shoulder injury--- struggled mightily out of the gate. Moreover, the combination of Toskala's horrendous goaltending and Luke Schenn feeling the early effects of the dreaded sophomore slump only added to the nightmarish start to the season. Leafs fans had to endure seven torturous games before the club posted its first win. To put it simply, the Leafs didn't even take a step forward before they crashed and burned.
 As the systemic dismantling of this summer’s Stanley Cup champions continues in earnest, league watchers are crying foul. Where detractors of the current, hard revenue based cap once denounced the communistic, unilateral sharing of league revenue as the prime illustration of illogic in the CBA (alongside the long-long term contract loopholes), Monday’s exit of Antti Niemi from the Chicago Blackhawks has helped turn the club into the latest martyr’s of the cap.
The Chicago Blackhawks have decided to walk away from Antti Niemi's arbitration awarded $2.75M contract, and have instead signed veteran free agent Marty Turco to a one-year $1.3M contract. With the Blackhawks decision not to retain him, Niemi is now a free agent goaltender on the market and should attract some immediate attention.
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In case you haven't already heard, the Maple Leafs have broken off negotiations with prospect Bill Sweatt, acquired in the Versteeg trade from the Blackhawks. In a statement to the Toronto Sun, Burke explained that the club would rather keep a spot on the 50 contract limit open than continue discussions with Sweatt. As the talks continued to stall, the Leafs likely turned and upped their offer to Marcel Mueller, whose ELC contract value sits at $1.12 million. Sweatt is likely looking for a figure close to Blake Wheeler's $2.825 cap hit as a 4-year college free agent, which is a steep price to pay for a player with speed but limited offensive upside. [more…]
According to the Toronto Maple Leafs official Twitter feed, the club announced today the signing of free agent defenseman Brett Lebda to a two-year deal worth $1.45 million per season.
Lebda spent the last five seasons with the Detroit Red Wings after the organization signed him as a free agent in 2004, picking up a Stanley Cup ring in during his stay in '08.
Lebda's career high in points is 18. Â He had 16 two years ago, but saw his total fall to just 8 points last year, though he did only play 63 games due to a back injury.
Lebda has great pace and puck-rushing ability, though his point-total doesn't necessarily reflect that. The Buffalo Native is thick for his height at 195 pounds, but is a bit undersized at 5'9. He does play a game bigger than his frame would suggest. $1.45 million seems a tad pricey, but hopes will be that Lebda will be able to improve production on a Leafs blueline that doesn't have the type of elite offensive weapons from the blueline like Detroit had in Brian Rafalski and Nik Lidstrom (this providing Kaberle is dealt, and no doubt this seems like a poor-man's replacement). [more…]
