goalie coach
Brian Burke has picked up yet another wallet. According to a Finnish report, the Toronto Maple Leafs have agreed to terms on a two year deal with Finnish free agent goaltender Jussi Rynnäs. Jussi is still just 22 years of age, and is coming off a stellar year in the Finnish SM-Liiga in which he posted a 2.50 GAA and a 0.929 SV%. Rynnäs is still at least a couple years away from being NHL-ready, and will start next season splitting time with James Reimer for the Toronto Marlies. Jussi was arguably this year's most coveted free agent goaltender, along with NCAA netminder Ben Scrivens, whom the Leafs had also been linked to over the past couple weeks.
As I was carefully selecting the sharpest and jaggiest stones for the public sacrifice of the Toronto Maple Leafs’ Vesa Toskala, I thought of something.
Pre-season.
Yup, that’s right. It was just pre-season. The reaction the 32-year-old has garnered throughout Leaf Nation might suggest otherwise, but yes, these games were basically meaningless—except for a select few.
The Toronto Maple Leafs are now riding a three-game winning streak after defeating the Philadelphia Flyers in overtime on Saturday night by a score of 5-4.
Yes, it's pre-season, but who cares? It's hockey, and we're winning. Enough said.
According to Swedish sports newspaper Aftonbladet, the Maple Leafs are frontrunners for the services of Farjestads goaltender Jonas Gustavsson as the 24-year-old sets his sights on crossing the pond for the '09/'10 season.
