maple leafs
Maple Leaf prospect Matt Frattin is drawing plenty of headlines this summer... but unfortunately, it's for the wrong reasons. For the second time this summer, the University of North Dakota forward was arrested by local police, and this latest incident resulted in Frattin's dismissal from the school's men's hockey program. [more…]
Now that the 2008-09 regular season has officially ended, it's time to take a look back over the roster to assess each of the Maple Leafs' players.
Note that I'm only including players who finished the season with at least one game played for the Maple Leafs, and am excluding those traded away during the course of the season.
Statistics for those who were acquired mid-season reflect games played as members of the Maple Leafs only.
In a shaky and at times sloppy game, the Leafs pulled out of yet another overtime with a shootout win. Vesa Toskala had a night in net that was a simple summary of his season to date: solid at times, with glaring weaknesses and questionable play marring his effort as a whole. Nonetheless, in a tilt that saw another Leaf rookie debut and a season stalwart leave the game with an injury, Toronto ironically secured two points against one of the very teams that many "tank-minded" fans badly want to see move up in the standings.
*The following is an opinion piece regarding the players who, I think, are on their way out of Toronto by March 4th (not the off-season)*
The Leafs are in the midst of, yet again, a mediocre season. Unlike previous years, however, the Leafs have refrained from the up-and-down, "I BeLeaf in 8th place" facade that was commonly grouped with the Leafs during the past few years. Rather, the Leafs have been posting L's on the calendar regularly this season, "rewarding" their fans with disappointing efforts.
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After chasing down the Pittsburgh Penguins, making a substantial offer for a failing market team, and whispers of supporting the Buffalo Sabres, it looks as if Jim Balsillie may in fact receive the green light on a new buzzing project in the greatest hockey market in the world.
With Cliff Fletcher sticking around for the upcoming season, the Maple Leafs have gone forward in hiring new staff since the start of the off-season. It seems the philosophy among many franchises around the league is to create positions to fill with excellent hockey minds in order to improve their own hockey growth and knowledge above the ice surface. Maple Leafs Sports and Entertainment has finally joined in on that idea by adding Al Coates as the Director of Player Personnel, Jeff Jackson as the assistant GM and Director of Hockey Operations in 2006 who focuses primarily on collective bargaining duties and contract negotiations, and an overhaul of the coaching staff other than Keith Acton, who has found a way to stay within the organization after stints under head coaches Paul Maurice and Pat Quinn.
