Jump to content

TMLsHockeyBlog

Blogger
 View Profile  See their activity

  • Posts

    91

  • Joined

  • Last visited

 Content Type 

Blog Entries posted by TMLsHockeyBlog

  1. TMLsHockeyBlog
    Rick Nash, #61, Columbus Blue Jacketsphoto: mapleleafs.com
    News broke on Tuesday that Rick Nash is willing to waive his no-trade clause to go to a short list of teams. Rick Nash is under contract until the end of the 2017-18 season. His cap hit is $7.8M per season. The list is suuposedly 5 teams or less, and as for Canadian teams, it has been reported that the Canucks, and the Leafs, are somewhat in the run. The problem for both teams is that they are right against the salary cap.
    The price the Blue Jackets have put on Rick Nash is 3 or 4 good young players. According to TSN, a deal that would move Nash to the Maple Leafs would invovle Jake Gardiner and another 2 or 3 good young players. The problem is that the Maple Leafs don't want to "mortgage their farm", or trade away all of the good young assets that they have drafted and acquired over the last few seasons.So, Maple Leafs General Manager, Brian Burke, must ask himself a few important questions. Are there sufficient players available on the Marlies that can jump up to the NHL level and play in an opening that might be created by trading for Nash? Will the Leafs have to trade away salary to have a manageable amount of cap space to make the trade? Is it worth it to trade away a handful of good young talent for Nash?
    The Leafs have played 19 different forwards this season. These include their usual starting line up, but also others in the Marlies. Such as Matt Frattin, Nazem Kadri, Joe Colborne. Jay Rosehill and Colby Armstrong have been a healthy scratch the last few games, and Philippe Dupuis is in the Marlies as well, but he wasn't much help to the Leafs when he was up here.
    The Leafs have also used eight defensemen this season. Including Phaneuf, Liles, Schenn, Gardiner, Gunnarsson, Franson, Komisarek and Aulie. They are very deep in defense as they also have Korbinian Holzer, Matt Lashoff, Jesse Blacker, and Simon Gysbers in the Marlies. Blacker is still very young, and not ready to be put into the NHL, but the other three might be able to pull it off. Lashoff has previous, although limited, NHL experience with the Leafs as well as with the Lightning and Brunis.
    The Leafs wont have to trade much to fit Nash under the cap for the remainder of this season. They will only need to shed a little over 1.8 million worth in a yearly salary. That is the equivilent of David Steckel and Mike Brown. Next year, however, they have to resign some quality UFAs and RFAs (such as Grabovski, Kulemin and Franson), and won't have enough space under the cap with Nash on the team unless they trade away a good chunk of salary. Toronto would likely have to get rid of the about 7 million dollars off their cap (almost equal to the $7.8M cap hit Rick Nash brings.
    We've established thats it's possible, but is it worth it? I'm not a big fan of trading away a lot of young players with potential for one player, but Rick Nash is only 27 years old and have plenty on NHL in front of him. He's the big skilled body that the Leafs are looking for that would fit in their top 3. I think it is possible, and it is worth is at the least have the depth to support the trade, and they've proved it with all the different players that jumped into the line-up due to all the injuries earlier in the season.
    So, how would you go about trading for Rick Nash? I would start with shopping Tim Connolly for anything. Connolly is a cap hit of $4.75M and hasn't shown much more than a guy like Matt Frattin, who makes a lot less money this year, and is an RFA next year. If the Leafs can get Tim Connolly off their books, it will already equal nearly 2/3rd the amount of salary needed to cover Rick Nash's salary. Tim Connolly is only signed through next season, so it is not a long-term gamble for any team considering taking on this salary. I'd say its proposterous that anyone would trade for Connolly, but the Habs traded for Gomez while he was in a terrible slump and in a much worse contract in New York. According to capgeek.com, Tim Connolly has a motified no-trade clause, but it does not elaborate anything beyond that.
    Assuming Jake Gardiner is a must, and Columbus wants another three good young players, is it not worth it for the Leafs to try to get this deal done? Let's say the asking price is Gardiner, Kulemin, Kadri and Colborne, is that too much to ask? What about Horbinian Holzer, Keith Aulie and Luke Schenn? Is Clarke MacArthur too old for Columbus to take him in a package deal?
    Brian Burke doesn't traditionally like to make any big deals at the trade deadline, he is known to make his trade weeks or months prior to the deadline. This year is going to be different though, because the Leafs are so tight to the salary cap, and as the trade deadline approaches, he will have a little more wiggle room. Brian Burke and his management staff will have a lot of decisions to make heading towards the trade deadline.
    Source
  2. TMLsHockeyBlog
    Leafs Defense Struggle in WinnipegPHOTO: mapleleafs.com
      The Toronto Maple Leafs are have lost three games in a row, for the first time this season. Overall, that's a good sign, but over the last few weeks, including the games they have won, Toronto's defense has not been up to par.  The Leafs are 3-3-1 in their last seven games, but in those seven games have allowed 28 goals against. That's an average of four goals against per game. In fact, in that time span, the only game where the Leafs didn't allow four goals against was March 4th against the New Jersey Devils.
      Despite the fact that they were able to win some games in the last few weeks, the team has looked out-of-sorts defensively. In the past you could easily shift the blame to sub-par goaltending, but this time it's not the case. Although their numbers don't look good at all, Toronto's goalies have been playing rather well as of late. The blame must be put on the players. At what point are the players going to be held accountable for their inability to keep the puck out of their own net? Many think that Thursday nights match-up with the Pittsburgh Penguins will showcase a different Leafs line-up, but many also think it should have happened weeks ago.

      Let's take a look at John-Michael Liles to start. He has been a healthy scratch for nearly a month, having last played February 16th. In 15 games this season, he has one goal and five assists for six points and is a plus-2. He has also only taken two penalty minutes in those 15 games. Jake Gardiner is another name you can't leave behind. He continues to have his way in the AHL playing for the Toronto Marlies. Gardiner has 30 points in 40 games for the Marlies. Both of these players are great puck movers, have a lot of vision and speed, and can definitely help the Leafs' struggling powerplay.
      Let's contrast them with two of the Leafs that I think have been struggling mightily lately. Korbinian Holzer is a big tall defensman, who has three points in twenty games this season, but he is also a minus-8 on the season. Mike Kostka has seven assists on the season and is a minus-7 for the year. Both of these players have really struggled lately, and its come to show in recent games.
      So at what point do you sacrifice size for skill and finesse? Personally, I don't think you need to roll with six big strong defenseman. Phaneuf, Fraser, and Franson are all pretty big defenseman, and Carl Gunnarsson isn't an easy walk around. Especially considering that despite being smaller defensemen, Liles and Gardiner both use their speed and their skill to play very effectively in their own zone. More effectively than a lot of the players with size have been playing over the last few games. It is definitely time to get Liles into the line-up, and I would like to see Jake Gardiner here as well, but I wont push it, because I know how much Randy Carlyle loves big strong defensemen.
      Clearly, though, the current personnel aren't getting the job done and its time for a change. It's time for some of these players to be held accountable for their performances.
     
    Source
  3. TMLsHockeyBlog
    Nazem Kadri celebrates scoring his thirdgoal of the 2013 season
    PHOTO: NHL.com
    When the Toronto Maple Leafs drafted Nazem Kadri seventh overall in the 2009 entry draft, they had high hopes for the former London Knight forward who showcased an amazing set of hands alongside great playmaking abilities. But as the years passed in Toronto, Nazem Kadri hasn't been able to find a regular spot in the line-up, despite multiple opportunities being called up over the last three seasons.So this past off-season Kadri worked hard so that when the season came around he could prove that he deserved a regular spot on the roster. But things didn't quite work out when the NHL and NHLPA couldn't come to a collective bargaining agreement and the NHL went into a lockout. So Kadri started the season for the Toronto Marlies of the American Hockey League as he awaited the lockout to end. It wasn't the start to the new season that he was looking for, but what made matters worse was when his coach in the Marlies, Dallas Eakins, questioned his play and even benched him at one point during the AHL season.

    But once the NHL came back, Kadri had his chance to prove his worth to the Leafs, and thus far he has been playing better than most would have expected. He is playing hard, going into the dirty areas when needed, and he isn't hesitating to try to make a play in the offensive zone. His defensive play, which has been criticized in the past, has also greatly improved.
    Kadri has played all of the first four games for the Maple Leafs this season, and leads his team with three goals and five points. Two of his three goals were scored on the powerplay, which is an area where the Leafs have been struggling and look towards a player like Kadri for help.
    So Kadri is off to a good start to the 2013 NHL season, but his biggest goal to overcome is consistency. Kadri has been inconsistent in previous years after being called up. He would look great for the first few games and then get a bit comfortable and his game would suffer. With Matt Frattin and a few others trying to gain a regular spot on the Leafs line-up, Kadri needs to play with urgency every game to remain an effective piece of the Maple Leafs.
    Source
  4. TMLsHockeyBlog
    Ray Whitney, #13 Phoenix CoyotesPHOTO: nhl.com

    So we all know who Ray Whitney is, and we all are finally realizing that he is good, but how good is he? Whitney was a name that was seldom mentioned even just a few years ago. Somehow he has managed to remain one of the most underrated players in the NHL over the last decade or so, and despite the fact that he is 40 years old, he is still putting up great numbers late in his career. 
    Success in hockey came early for the Canadian-born Whitney. In his third year playing for the Spokane Chiefs of the Western Hockey League (WHL), he lead the league with 185 points and helped the Chiefs win the 1991 Memorial Cup. He was drafted 23rd overall by the San Jose Sharks in 1991, however his NHL career didn't start off as well as he would have liked. Whitney played the better part of two season in the International Hockey League (IHL). After four partial seasons with the Sharks, Whitney was sent down and split time in the American Hockey League (AHL) and IHL. It was only in the 1997-98 season, when Whitney was already 25 years old, that he started to play complete seasons and put up points just shy of a point per game.
    On March 31st, Whitney became the 79th player in history to reach 1000 points in the NHL. He had 77 points in the regular season this year, and since the lockout has put up 468 points in 529 games. In total, he has 1003 points in 1229 NHL games. He also helped the Carolina Hurricanes win the Stanley Cup in the year following the lockout season. Despite the good numbers, and the ability to do so year after year, he rarely seemed to be mentioned in a conversation of top players in the league. In fact, in the last twenty years that he has played in the NHL he has never made more than $3.55M per season.  
    At age 40, most players who haven't already retired, would seriously be considering it, as I would assume Whitney is. But his stats over the past few seasons prove that he still has what it takes to not only manage to get the job done, but be a very good asset to whomever he plays for. If Whitney decides to continue for another year or two in the NHL and can put up numbers comparable to what he has done in the past few seasons, he may be considered for the Hockey Hall of Fame. His numbers are already pretty good, and comparable to several players that are already in the hall, including Henri Richard, who amassed 1046 points in 1256 games. Although the fact that Whitney didn't win 11 Stanley Cups like the 'Pocket Rocket' makes it a tough comparison, the stats are very similar and worth considering.
    At the end of the day, when Ray Whitney decides to retire from playing hockey, he will go down in history as one of the most underrated players in the league, who quietly played almost twenty years in the NHL and won a Stanley Cup with the Hurricanes in 2006.Source
  5. TMLsHockeyBlog
    The Toronto Maple Leafs have relieved Brian Burke of his job and replaced him with his Dave Nonis, one of Toronto's assistant General Managers. The news came as a shock today when the decision was made, and was followed up by a press conference from Toronto at 1:45pm this afternoon. Burke has been appointed a new role for the Maple Leafs as a senior advisor.

    Burke, who was the GM for the Leafs for the last four years, had a losing record in his tenure with Toronto. He just recently signed Randy Carlyle to take over as the coach at the tail end of last season. Considering the fact that the NHL and the NHLPA have finally come to a deal after four months of lockout, the timing of this news is rather odd. Why not fire Brian Burke in the summer? Or why not fire him in the dead months during the lockout? The timing doesn't seem right for a change to just happen. What made this decision happened just a few days prior to training camp for the 48-game shortened NHL season.
    During the press conference held this afternoon, it was noted several times that the decision to let Burke go wasn't anything reactionary, but rather that the relationship with Burke "wasn't something that would last long-term". But could there be something else? Is it possible that Burke's headstrong morals, that may have rubbed other general managers the wrong way and interrupted possible trades, be the reason that he lost his job? At this point, no one knows, but maybe in time the answers will be revealed.
    All these questions aside, there is one far more important to Maple Leafs fans, what does this mean for Roberto Luongo coming to Toronto?
    Source
  6. TMLsHockeyBlog
    Roberto Luongo may no longer be a Vancouver Canuckby the start of next season
    PHOTO: nhl.com
    Following a season where the Leafs found themselves free falling from a playoff spot to a top 5 draft pick, largely due to inconsistent play in the defensive zone and sub-par goaltending, many fans and members of the media are looking for change. One name that has been rumoured to be on the move this off-season is Vancouver Canucks goalie, Roberto Luongo.Luongo has played his last six seasons in Vancouver, however with the emergence of Cory Schneider, and the Canucks coaching staff leaning towards him in crucial playoff games, it would seem Luongo would be on his way out. But does he really want to play in Toronto? And how badly do the Leafs need a starting goalie? Well, let's look at the last decade of so of Leafs goaltending.

    Between the years of 1998 and 2002, Curtis Joseph played four seasons for the Leafs, leading them into the playoffs every year. Joseph's excellent performance earned him two all-star game appearances while with the Leafs. The Leafs haven't had a good playoff run since Joseph left the team to sign with the Red Wings in 2002.
    Following Cujo's departure, Ed Belfour played three years in net for the Maple Leafs and was arguably the last good and consistent starting goalie that has worn the blue leaf on his jersey. Belfour played some of his best hockey for the Leafs in two seasons prior to the lockout. After the lockout, he played one more year for the Leafs but didn't look very good. This was likely due to a combination of his age, as he was closing in on retirement, and not playing for a year due to lockout.
    Other goalies to play more than a handful of games for Toronto since then include: Mikael Tellqvist, J.S. Aubin, Andrew Raycroft, Vesa Toskala, Martin Gerber, Jonas Gustavsson, J.S. Giguerre, James Reimer and Ben Scrivens. None of these aforementioned goalies have proven to be a considered a consistent starting goalie.
    Luongo might be the next star goalie in Toronto. He might be the guy to take up where Cujo and Belfour left off. He might not, and that would be bad news for whomever acquires his services because he carries a $5.33M cap hit through to the 2021-22 season.
    Although the Leafs are right up against the cap, it would only take a few small moves to free up enough space to fit Luongo. Armstrong, Lombardi and Komisarek are names that come to mind when thinking of player that are signed to rather generous contracts that could offset Luongo's salary. Now the last remaining question is whether or not Luongo wants to play in Toronto for the Maple Leafs, an question that only a handful of people know the answer to.
    Source
  7. TMLsHockeyBlog
    The NHL made it official yesterday. The Winter Classic for next year would be in Detroit at Michigan Stadium, which is more commonly known as the Big House. The Leafs would visit the Red Wings in front of over 110, 000 fans. This isn't big news as this was a poorly kept secret, the rumours had been around for nearly a month. Assuming HBO does a 24/7 series on the event, like they have in the past, it will be a very exciting month leading up to the Winter Classic.
    Two Original Six rivals will be going at it in front of an NHL record breaking audience. Leafs GM Brian Burke said, "It's Hockeytown against the center of the hockey universe", when describing the event. The Winter Classic is expected to break the NHL record for largest attendance at a single game, but there are also plans for a series of events to build up to the game around the city. Rather than calling the entire plan the "Winter Classic" its being dubbed the "Hockeytown Winter Festival".
    The Winter Festival is set to include far more than the outdoor game between the Leafs and the Red Wings. As per tradition there will be an alumni game played at Comerica Park, but there is expected to be far more. The Great Lakes Invitational, which is a tournament of Michigans four college teams, is also to occur during the weeks leading up to the outdoor game. There is also going to be an AHL match-up between the Maple Leafs affiliate, the Toronto Marlies, and the Red Wings affiliate, the Grand Rapid Griffins. Two OHL games, high school games, youth hockey games, and public-skating sessions are also to be arranged at Comerica Park.
    Lets not forget about HBO's 24/7 series. A series of four episodes that shows footage of what really happens behind closed doors with these two teams. This will be the first 24/7 series showcasing the Toronto Maple Leafs. The Leafs fan base is a very off-the-wall fan base. It seems everyone thinks they're a better GM or coach or player than the ones currently employed. Brian Burke and Ron Wilson are criticized after every game, lose or win. In the past, these rather opinionated, and often uneducated, fans would call in on radio shows and voice their thoughts. As technology advances, avenues such as twitter give an open shot to everyone to say speak their mind, regardless of how vulgar or indecent their thoughts are. It's sad when someone creates a twitter account solely for the purpose of retweeting the stupid things that other people tweet to Brian Burke. If you want a good laugh and you're a twitter user you should follow @AskBrianBurke.
    The reason I decided to bring this up is because the 24/7 series will show an in-depth look at how Brian Burke works, and how Ron Wilson and his assistant coaches run the team. There are a ton of people that say the Leafs should have fired Wilson, but they have never seen the team in practise. They have never seen what he tells the team to do, and how the players react to him. A coach loses his job when the players stop playing for him, when they don't try because they're fed up, and once the team stops listening to the coach, there's no reason for him to be there. There's no evidence that the Leafs have ever stopped playing for Ron Wilson, and based on what I have picked up from interview of both the coach and the players, the relationship seems to be a very strong one. That being said, I could be completely wrong. The point is that I just dont know, and neither do most people. That is why it will be interesting to watch the 24/7 series and get a look at how Ron Wilson chooses to coach the team and on where the respect level is for both him and the players.
    The bad news is that all this news broke almost a calendar year before the event is set to take place. So everyone just needs to sit tight in anticipation for the next few months...
    Source
  8. TMLsHockeyBlog
    With the acquisition of Dave Bolland, it looks like Tyler Bozak will not be returning to the Toronto Maple Leafs in the upcoming season, unless Leafs GM Dave Nonis makes a few more trades to free up some salary.
    The Leafs only have $16M of cap space remaining and only have 12 players currently signed. Toronto has a long list of players to either re-sign or let go to the free agent market before the start of the season in October. Those players include Nazem Kadri, Joe Colborne, Clarke MacArthur, Tyler Bozak, Ryan Hamilton, Carl Gunnarsson, Cody Franson, Mark Fraser, Ryan O'Byrne, Mike Kostka, and the newly acquired Jonathan Bernier.

    Assuming the Maple Leafs use one of their two compliance buy-outs on Mike Komisarek, that will free up another $3.5M to get their cap space to just around $20M. But some of those guys on that list are due for a significant pay increase. Kadri, Franson, and Bernier are the most important targets, as well as Colborne and Gunnarsson in the mix too. On the plus side all five of those players are restricted free agents, so there isn't a rush to get them signed in the next week before the market opens up for unrestricted free agents.
    It would look like the Leafs aren't going to sign any of their four unrestricted free agents. MacArthur and Bozak are both probably too rich for the Leafs to sign, and O'Byrne and Kostka were seldom used by coach Randy Carlyle down the stretch, so there doesn't seem to be a pressing need to sign either of those players.
    Source
  9. TMLsHockeyBlog
    In this episode, the ever-so-wacky Tim Connolly has to be serious. He is having some really troublesome health issues. But GM Brian Burke knows a good doctor or two, and with the help of an unlikely friend, Tim realizes that his health problem isn't so bad after all.

    <a href="http://tmlshockeyblog.blogspot.com/2012/08/new-video-tim-connolly-no-heart.html">Source</a>
  10. TMLsHockeyBlog
    After a good week of hockey where the Leafs won all three of their games from last Wednesday to this past Monday, the Leafs have struggled badly. They most certainly are making the playoff race interesting, but not in a good way if you're a Leaf fan. They have lost their last three games and have played progressively worse in each game.
    It was Mats Sundin's night tonight. His jersey number 13 was honoured and raised into the rafters accompanied by ceremony where Sundin would be cheered for the majority of the 20 minutes of his speech. That was about all the cheering the Leafs would get as the next three segments of 20 minutes would be filled with boos from the stands. The Leafs were flat again tonight. Reimer let in two questionable goals, one through the five-hole and another that fluttered between his arm and squeaked into the back of the net. Luke Schenn attempted to stick handle the puck in the defensive zone, which is usually not a good idea, and turned it over to Montreal for another goal. Dion Phaneuf let Lars Eller walk around him for the fourth goal and Reimers night was done. Gustavsson would come in the third period and would let a goal in on his first shot against, which was a breakaway for Montreal.
    Along with their terrible performance was a lack of luck for the Leafs. They hit a couple of goal posts including one where Kulemin hit both posts and the puck rolled along the crease. This was definitely a game to forget for the Leafs. On the plus side though, the fourth line played very well. They were extra physical, and even at the end of the game Mike Brown went after PK Subban, who was jousting with Kessel earlier in the period. Brown took a minor penalty, but at that point the game was over and it was good Brown to stick up for his teammate.
    As bad as the Leafs played today, they deserve better goaltending. I don't care how bad your defense is playing, your goalie has to not let in bad goals, and most goalies for a playoff team will make some big saves on plays that should've been goals. Reimer was simply not good today. Not good at all. The Leafs thought their goaltending problems were over last week when Reimer came back getting two shutouts and playing solid, but since he has shown a lack of consistency.
    But its tough to thrown Reimer under the bus without a few friends. No reason he should be lonely down there because Phaneuf, Schenn, Connolly and many other, if not all, Leaf players looked bad today. Brown and Boyce may have been the only exceptions as they played hard, finished their checks, and pressured on the forecheck all game long.
    The Capitals didn't play tonight, so for now the Leafs still hold the eighth and final playoff spot, but they will need to shape their game up because the Caps have two games at hand on Toronto. With 26 games left in the season there isn't much time left for playing like they did this week. Toronto needs to go hard down the stretch. Toronto gets back at it on Tuesday as they start a western Canadian road trip in Calgary. Then they head into Edmonton on Tuesday and Vancouver next Saturday night.
  11. TMLsHockeyBlog
    James Reimer and Phil Kessel celebrate after their victoryPHOTO: mapleleafs.com
    Quite possibly one of the worst collapses in recent memory is that of the Toronto Maple Leafs this season. Two months ago the Leafs were in a respectable playoff position with hopes of playing in the post-season for the first time in almost a decade. However, a monumental collapse in February, that has continued into March as well, has left the Leafs stranded far from a playoff spot as they currently sit seventh last in the entire league. With the win yesterday, Toronto's record is 31-32-8 with only 11 games left in the season. But are the Maple Leafs really as bad as their record suggests?The Leafs only have three wins in their last 15 games, and many fans who were praising the team just a few months ago, are now turning against Brian Burke, with complaints that he hasn't assembled a good enough roster. In my opinion, such criticism is not fair to Brian Burke. Many are quick to judge, but have short memories. Before Brian Burke became the General Manager in Toronto, the teams top three forwards were Matt Stajan, Alex Ponikarovski and Nik Antropov. Now, our top three forwards are Phil Kessel, Joffrey Lupul, and Mikhail Grabovski, a big improvement from the previous three players listed.
    There is a simple way to sum up Toronto's woes this season. It isn't uncommon for a young team, who started out strong, watch their season crumble. This happened to the Leafs and they were unable to pull it back together. Add a coaching change and a new playing system and things get complicated even further. But are the Leafs a bad team? I don't think so. Sure, there are a few bad contracts on the team, but asides from those players, the Leafs are far from being a bottom ten team in the NHL. They may not be a Stanley Cup contending team, but they are definitely playoff contenders.
    Things didn't turn out that well for them this season, and the Leafs find themselves in a familiar position in the standings, near the bottom. After the playoff hopes went out the window, I am glad the Leafs continued to lose. There is no point in winning here and there and finishing just a few points out of a playoff spot but not having a top ten draft pick. It seems most fans understand this, and remember those years of finishing a few points out after the last lockout, yet these fans are the same ones that criticize the Leafs for losing a bunch of games. You can't have it both ways!
    So, I am looking forward to next season. A clean slate for the players to make up for the mid-season mistakes. A clean slate for the goaltending to step it up and for the defense to help the goalies out, instead of hanging them out to dry. All of this with a new coach and a new style of play, likely a more defensive strategy, and if all goes well, a high draft pick developing in the Leafs' system en-route to becoming a good contributor in the years to come.
    Source
  13. TMLsHockeyBlog
    The Los Angeles Kings win the Stanley Cup forthe first time in franchise history.
    PHOTO: NHL.com
    The Los Angeles Kings have won the Stanley Cup for the first time in their history. The season had many ups and downs for the Kings, but they managed to make their way into the playoffs by capturing the eighth and final spot in the West. But when the playoffs started, the Kings put their regular season struggles behind them and rolled through each of their opponents with relative ease to capture the Stanley Cup.The Kings, joined the National Hockey League back in 1967, along with five other teams. This was the league first major expansion and would be the start of many more to come over the next several decades. The downside for cities which already had teams in the NHL was the increased competition, and with that  came a lower chance of success. Although the Kings managed to break their drought, which lasted nearly half a century, there are two more droughts dating back to that same season where the NHL expanded from six to twelve teams.

    The St. Louis Blues, who also entered the league in 1967 alongside the Kings, have never won a Stanley Cup. Upon entering the league the Blues went on to make it to the Stanley Cup finals in each of their first three seasons. A seemingly good start for the Blues, except for the fact that all three years they were swept in the finals. Since then, the Blues have never made it to the final series of the Stanley Cup playoffs. They have only made it to the final four teams three times since.
    Things went downhill for the Blues following a second round elimination in 2002 as they would only make the playoffs in three of the next eight seasons. All three of those playoff births were short lived as the Blues were eliminated in the first round each time, only winning four of the 16 combined games. But as we've seen with several teams in the league, including the Pittsburgh Penguins and Chicago Blackhawks, what goes down must come up. The league is designed so that the teams that struggle the most in the season will have the best opportunity to build their team in the off-season. Both the Penguins and Blackhawks struggled for many years before acquiring and developing their core group that would eventually lead each team to a Stanley Cup Championship. So that being said, over the last decade the Blues had drafted many players in the top half of the draft, including two top five picks. So for all the Blues fans with their heads to the ground, this past season was a wake up call. The Blues won their first playoff series in a decade and that might just be the start of things to come as they develop their young talent.
    Now, looking towards a team that is also in the fourth decade of their Stanley Cup drought, the Toronto Maple Leafs. Since their last Cup victory in 1967, the Leafs have never made it to the finals of the Stanley Cup playoffs. Over the next fourty years following the expansion, Toronto would make it to the final four a handful of times, but never past that. Things began to look up hill in the 90's as Doug Gilmour would lead the Leafs to back-to-back Conference finals in 1993 and 1994 but with no further success. Shortly after that, Mats Sundin would lead the Leafs to the Conference finals in 1999 and in 2002 but once again that would be as far as the Leafs would get. Following the NHL lock-out in 2004, the Leafs are yet to make the playoffs. They are the only NHL franchise that hasn't made the playoffs in that period of time. Much like the Blues, the Leafs looked like they may be turning things around this season as they had a great start to the season and maintained marginal success until just about the half-way point of the season where they would free fall to the basement of the standings.
    So, which of these two teams will break their drought and hoist Lord Stanley's Cup first? Only time will tell...
    Source
  14. TMLsHockeyBlog
    Finally I've mustered enough desire to fight off the laziness that has kept me from writing an article over the last few months. This is because EA Sports has released the Demo for NHL 13 today. The game will be available on September 11th, 2012.
    After pretty much releasing the same game since 2008 with some minor tweaks over the last four years, this year EA Sports added a bit more to the game. Is it completely different? Absolutely not. Are there a lot of tweaks or just a few? There isn't a lot, but there isn't a few. However, the parts that were revamped this year compared to years in the past were done very carefully to the best detail.
    So, what's new?
    Speaking strictly about gameplay, there are a few improvements they have made this year. Some for the better, some that may need to be working on by next year to get it just right. The biggest improvement this year is the new skating engine. Players actually look like they're skating across the ice. Unlike previous years where you could do things like stop, turn on a dime and skate at full speed, the skating this year is far more realistic. The downside with the skating, and what may end up being a problem with the game until it is patched by EA (hopefully), is the new skating backwards option. It's a great idea to fully optimize skating as their tutorial video shows, but I think the backwards skating is way too powerful and will end up being a big problem when playing other users online. I have already seen a shoot-out glitch goal where the skater just skates backwards towards the goalie until the last second and turns to face the goalie to score. He did it over and over again only missing a few times.

    I also found that hitting has been adjusted so it isn't so easy this year. In previous years you were sometimes magnetized to the player while hitting, and while that is still there, it seems they lowered the magnetism so that you actually have to time your hits. Also, passing the puck is a lot more sensitive. You need to really aim nicely to hit a player with a long pass, also if you are on your backhand you wont be able to make a hard pass all the way up the ice, which I like because it is far more realistic.
    Another thing I enjoyed is the effort done to creating really authentic looking players. Each players face in the video game looks just like in real life. It's a really big improvement on last year. The whole graphics in general have been stepped up quite a bit.
    On the downside, which was a bit disappointing, is the fighting engine is still the same awful engine we have been playing with for the past few years. In hindsight, it's probably a good thing, because game times won't be longer due to constant fighting, but it would have been nice to have a new fighting engine.
    One thing I found really annoying was the advertisement above the scoreboard. It really isn't much, but a few times I noticed that during a whistle a Honda pick-up truck drives above the scoreboard and stays there for a few seconds before driving off. I just found that slightly annoying.
    New to the Main Menu
    The main menu has a lot of the same features as previous games. From the "Play Now" option you can play a game, play in the winter classic or "Battle for the Cup". Next is Hockey Ultimate Team, which at a brief glance looks fairly similar to previous years, except when you pick your starting roster, there is a much more in-depth menu.
    New this year is GM Connected mode. This mode is basically a fantasy league with your friends. In essence it is an online version of "Be a GM", where you can play against up to 29 your friends as opposed to computer AI. You have the option of playing each game or just coaching them.
    Another new addition to the Main Menu is "NHL Moments Live". This is where you are shown a moment of the last NHL season and you can either re-create that moment or change the moment. For example if your team lost a heart-breaking game in overtime, you now can replay that and win the game instead. You have the option to re-live moments of your favourite team or even just your favourite player.
    Free skate is the same mode as last year, where it is exactly as it sounds. It's a free skate, an opportunity for you to practice and master some of your favourite moves in NHL13.
    Lastly, the EA Sports Season Ticket is brought back this year. With the purchase of it you get the three day early release, much like last year. You also receive 24 Gold Premium Packs for Hockey Ultimate team, which are distributed on a weekly basis and must be redeemed each week. Lastly, you get 20% off downloadable content in NHL 13 and access to other downloadable content.
    NHL 13 comes out on September 11th, 2012.
    CLICK HERE FOR MORE VIDEOS
    Source
  15. TMLsHockeyBlog
    Tim Connolly #12, Toronto Maple LeafsPHOTO: mapleleafs.com
    So, the Leafs lost again, their fourth straight in regulation. Jonas Gustavsson was in net tonight, and although he let in 5 goals, he looked pretty good aside from a penalty shot goal against. Although, one could argue if Phaneuf didn't get lost on the play there wouldn't have been a penalty shot after all. Kiprusoff was the key to the Flames holding a 3-1 lead until late in the third period when the Flames added two more goals as the Leafs had pretty much given up. The lone goal scorer for Toronto was Tyler Bozak. Leafs defensive zone coverage was a disaster, the slot was open all night and the Flames were ripping them at the Monster from close range. The final score was 5-1 in favour of Calgary.After three straight loses and an injury to Gunnarsson, the Leafs had to juggle their lines heading into tonight. I don't disagree with the decision to juggle the lines, but I can't say the same for the players Ron Wilson decided to promote. Tim Connolly was jumped up to the second line, where he played the wing with Grabovski and MacArthur, and Mike Komisarek started the game on the first defensive unit with Dion Phaneuf. You would think with the salary spent on these two players, over nine million dollars per season combined, they would deserve their new assignments, but if you've watched many games this season its quite the opposite.
    In Komisarek's defense, he wasn't playing on the top defensive unit for long. He finished the game with over 15 minutes of ice time, second lowest of the six Leafs defenders. Mike Komisarek has a no movement clause, so unlike Jeff Finger, the Leafs can't bury him in the minors and take his salary off the cap. That being said, he clearly isn't capable of playing in the NHL. Toronto has to suck it up, eat the money, and put the best guys on the bench and on the ice. I would much rather see Keith Aulie or Korbinian Holzer playing. At least if they make a mistake, you can justify it in many ways that you can't for Komisarek. They're young, they don't make big money, they have a good future in front of them. Komisarek has none of those things going for him.
    And now, the main attraction, Tim Connolly. "Cheap man's Brad Richards", "Plan B", or as I like to call him, "useless". His lack of effort is sickening. I can't handle watching him coast around the ice and exerting no visible effort. Lately I've seen a "skating top speed" radar on TV broadcasts, they should do the same for Connolly to see how slow he's skating.
    He's a waste of talent, and he has quite a bit of it. He's has exceptional vision, and was supposed to be the top line center. He was supposed to be playmaking with Phil Kessel. Hard to imagine that as Kessel would be in the offensive zone and Connolly would still be at the defensive zone face-off dot, coasting up the ice.
    But hey, at least he doesn't make over seven million dollars a season, like Scott Gomez. I must say though, he is definitely in line to take over where Gomez left off when he scored a few days ago. If there's any justice in the Leafs organization, he should be benched until he comes out to play hockey. Nazem Kadri gets benched for rookie mistakes and lack of effort, yet Tim Connolly, a veteran in the NHL, gets promoted to the second line to play like crap... He's junk, wasted money, teach him a lesson and bench him!
    It's nice to see the fourth line work their ass off and average around nine minutes of ice time a game. I wonder what Darrly Boyce thinks to himself while he's warming the bench watching Connolly glide around offering no help in the defensive zone, let alone the offensive zone. Boyce and Brown go hard on the forecheck, cycling the puck and finishing their checks and they get minimal ice time.
    Ron Wilson needs to start rewarding effort and benching players who aren't trying. By letting Connolly play 16 minutes, including power play ice time, you send a message that you tolerate lazy players with no drive to compete. You're looking to discourage that type of play, but your action are in turn encouraging it. If Wilson can't get these guys going, then its about time Wilson gets going.
    The Leafs are in Edmonton tomorrow night. A fifth straight loss will cripple their playoff aspirations. The Leafs have thus far been lucky that Capitals, who trail the Leafs for that last playoff spot, are in a losing slump as well. The Maple Leafs are the only team in the top eight in the Eastern Conference with a losing road record (12-14-2). They need to get things in the right direction tomorrow with a win over the Oilers.
    Source
  16. TMLsHockeyBlog
    Shea Weber smashes Henrik Zetterberg's face intothe glass twice
    PHOTO: TMLHockey
    Brenden Shanahan is in charge of administering discipline to NHL players whose actions are not within the rules of the NHL and thus warrant punishment. The punishment is usually a fine, suspension or both.
    Let us look at his role administering suspensions and fines thus far in the playoffs. Things started off really bumpy when Shanahan chose only to give Shea Weber a $2500 fine for his attack on Henrik Zetterberg in game one. Weber took Zetterberg by the back of his head and smashed his face into the glass twice. Since that decision, it seems Shanahan is determined to punish every player regardless of whether they are a superstar or not, which is something that should have been done from the start, but now leaves a void of confusion from player to player as to what will get you suspended and what will not.
    Much like watching a game where a ref misses a call and the remainder of the game is a series of make-up-calls, Shanahan has made it very unclear as to what is acceptable and what isn't. Since the Weber incident he has chosen to suspend over half a dozen players for varying amounts of games. The message Shanahan is sending is that it isn't okay to hurt someone with a play within the rules, yet its all fair when you physically assault them without any attempt at making a hockey play.
    Enough is enough already with NHL suspensions. Much like how diving seems to get worse every season because referees neglect to make the call, the lack of suspensions in the NHL will lead to worse plays on the ice. Even when suspensions are administered, they are usually only for a game or two. Being suspended for a couple of games in an 82 game season isn't much of a punishment. Players will not stop head hunting because of a three game suspension. The league needs to start throwing around more 10 and 20 game suspensions like they did to Raffe Torres. More long-term suspensions without pay may actually make a difference.
    Sadly, I bet of Marian Hossa wasn't carried away in an ambulance, Torres would have only gotten a one game suspension. Maybe even more sad is that Torres made somewhat of a hockey play whereas Weber simply assaulted Zetterberg. I must say that if I were Torres, I'd be pretty unhappy when comparing both instances and both punishments. You know things are unclear when players, such as Jonathan Toews, who were not involved in any way with the suspensions, and lack of suspensions, are saying that something isn't right.
    Its about time Shanahan, and the league officials get together to find a solution that works. Harsher punishment to everyone, and not just Torres, may make a difference... I just don't see that happening in the near future. Until someone gets seriously injured, nothing will change. Things will remain the same because the NHL is more about reaction than prevention.
    Source
  17. TMLsHockeyBlog
    
    Gustavsson lets in a soft goal vs the JetsPHOTO: mapleleafs.com
     After Kessel opened the scoring to give the Leafs an early one goal lead, a familiar face came to see the Maple Leafs in their efforts against Winnipeg tonight. It was another really bad goal against due to goaltending that simply isn't up to the task. Jonas Gustavsson lets a really soft backhand from a near impossible angle get by him and the Jets would tie the game. Winnipeg would later score again to make it 2-1 and held the lead through the rest of the game.  
    For it being the second game in back to back nights, the Leafs put together a very honest effort. The team as a whole worked hard throughout the game, and maybe didn't deserve to win, but at the very least it should have been a tie game through regulation. The Leafs were hesitant to shoot the puck, often electing to make one more pass for the perfect goal that just didn't materialize. That being said, they didn't deserve the fate they walked away with tonight.Up until James Reimer took back the number one starter job in the last few weeks, those watching the Maple Leafs were all ready to watch an awful goal make it's way into the net behind a blue and white jersey. Joe Bowen's excited voice saying "he would like that one back" would ring in my ears game after game. I had almost forgotten the feeling altogether for the past few weeks as Reimer backstopped the Leafs to a few wins with some very steady goaltending.

    Coming off a six game streak where they went 5-0-1, it was almost inevitable that the Leafs were going to struggle to get any points in tonight's game. I will consistently reiterate that I don't think Gustavsson is a terrible goalie, he does make some big saves every game, but the fact that he lets in an absolutely terrible goal almost every single game is unacceptable. He will not be the goalie that will take the Leafs into the playoffs or beyond as the year progresses. I would expect him to get only a handful of starts from here to the end of the season as the Leafs battle for the post-season.
    The only good news around the East for the Leafs is that the Senators lost again against the St.Louis Blues. The Devils beat the Rangers 1-0, the Penguins lost in a shootout but managed a point. Washington played Florida, so from a Leafs perspective as long as that game didn't go into overtime they'd be fine, and the Capitals beat the Panthers 4-0. So the Leafs still hold the 7th spot with one point over the Senators and two games at hand. The Panthers drop to 9th as the Caps take the division lead, but the Panthers have only played 52 games, two less than Toronto and four less than Ottawa.
    Source
  18. TMLsHockeyBlog
    Flyers beat the Leafs 4-3PHOTO: mapleleafs.com
    The Maple Leafs schedule is starting to get the better of them. The team suffered its second consecutive loss after playing their third game in four nights. Things dont get better for Toronto as they have very few rest days over the next handful of games. The Leafs came out really flat in the first period and for the most part James Reimer held the Leafs in it until Hartnell batted a bouncing puck out of the air and through Reimers legs. The Leafs would answer back several times in the game, but ultimately lose 4-3. Tyler Bozak had a very strong game, he scored twice for the Leafs in the losing effort.
    Toronto picked up their game at some points through the second and third periods but ultimately made one too many mistakes in front of James Reimer tonight. When you're playing a quality team like the Flyers, you cannot make as many mistakes as the Leafs did, but you could somewhat justify it with the packed schedule and players being tired.
    James Reimer played well again tonight. Unfortunately some crazy bounces and redirected shots made their way behind him asides from Claude Giroux sniping one into the top corner after a giveaway and bad defensive zone coverage.
    What I liked about the two loses is that the team didn't stop competing. Sure, they came out flat and didn't really play a good game in either of the loses, but they gave it their all until the final whistle. You can tell that this team really wants to make a playoff run and doesn't take losing lightly.
    The worst news came after the Leafs game had finished. All the teams who played today that are around Toronto in the playoff race earned at least a point. The Capitals gave up a late lead on a bad goal from a shot taken by Bogozian from outside the blueline and would lose in a shootout. The Devils would also lose in the shootout to the Blues. Ottawa and Florida won their respective games in regulation.
    At the end of the day the Leafs drop to eighth spot as the Sens jump them, but the Sens have played two more games than the Leafs. The win for the Panthers put them back in third and send the Caps to ninth, but the Caps have a game at hand over the Leafs.
    The Leafs play the Montreal Canadiens on Saturday night in Toronto. Toronto is a much better team at home and hope to get back to the win column as the playoff race intensifies.
    Source
  19. TMLsHockeyBlog
    Mikhail Grabovski, 84, Toronto Maple LeafsPHOTO: mapleleafs.com
    When asked about Mikhail Grabovski on Insider Trading, Thursday night, TSN analyst Darren Dreger had this to say:The Leafs will only trade Grabovski if they feel a contract will not be figured out by the trade deadline on February 27th. Toronto does not want to let him go to a free agent market without getting anything in return. Ideally though, Maple Leafs General Manager, Brian Burke, wants him to remain in the blue and white if the two sides can agree on a deal. As it stands now, the offer of a prospect and a second round draft pick is a bit weak for Grabovski. There is no indication on how good a prospect is on the table, but unless it is a very good prospect, with a ton of NHL upside, I don't think the offer is enough to get Burke to pull the trigger. If in fact Grabovski is to be traded before the trade deadline, he is likely to get a better offer in the next week and a half.
    Grabovski takes up a big role on Toronto's roster. He is slotted as the center of the second line, but is Toronto's best centre. He is the glue that holds the second line together, and on nights where Phil Kessel and the first line aren't getting it going, he is the go-to guy for coach Ron Wilson. If you take Grabovski out of the picture, there is going to be a big hole that no one currently in the organization can fill. Tim Connolly will likely take the spot on the second line if that is the case, but he has not been meeting the expectations the Maple Leafs thus far this season.
    If Grabovski does get traded, the Maple Leafs hopes of making the playoffs this season will be a far more difficult tast than it looks to be at the moment. He has a lot of chemistry with Clarke MacArthur and Nikolai Kulemin, and although Kulemin's numbers are down this season, the second line comprised of those three players is rather effective. In games this season when MacArthur has not played with Grabovski, his contributions to the team have declined rather significantly. If Grabovski goes, so does the chemistry of the second line, and so does a good portion of Toronto's secondary scoring.
    There are quite a few fans that don't mind if Grabovski goes because they claim that Joe Colborne will take his spot and succeed just as well. I don't think there is any indication that the Leafs will have Colborne on the second line at any point this season or even next season, unless his development accelerates rapidly. He is a good prospect, but not NHL-ready at this point in time, and is still a few years away from being an effective top six forward, if he even meets that goal at all.
    I believe Grabovski is looking around the five million dollar per season amount over a term of approximately five years, or so. One could argue that compared to other contracts around the league, and compared to similar contracts the Leafs have offered players, Grabovski is one of the most talented players for that price range. In my opinion, the only way Grabovski gets traded out of Toronto is if he no longer wants to play here, or if he is asking for too much money. That being said, there is no indication that Grabovski wants to leave Toronto, in fact he has stated many times that he wants to remain a Maple Leaf. As for his expected salary, I don't see Grabovski getting more than six million dollars per season in the free agent market, so it may be in his best interest to stay in Toronto for around five million per year.
    At the end of the day, I would be surprised if the Leafs traded Grabovski, due to a differing view during contractual negotiations. I believe both sides want to get the deal done and will make strong attempts to do so before the trade deadline. I also don't see Brian Burke accepting the best trade available when February 27th rolls around, however, if a team does offer him a trade that far exceeds his percieved value of Grabovski, I don't think he will hesitate to pull the trigger. As it stands now though, a prospect and a second round pick is not enough.
    Source
  20. TMLsHockeyBlog
    Crawford lets the puck slide past him in overtime and the Blackhawks lose in another tight game with the Coyotes
    PHOTO: nhl.com
    So, we've made it to the halfway point of the first round of the playoffs, and it has been rather eventful when compared to previous years. Here is my breakdown of each series this far. VANCOUVER CANUCKS vs LOS ANGELES KINGS
    The Canucks finished this season with the best record in the NHL, which earns them the President's trophy, but things didn't quite go their way early in the playoffs. Daniel Sedin didn't play in their first three games for the Canucks as the Kings jumped to an 3-0 series lead. Vancouver would win game four with Daniel Sedin in the line-up, but have a big hill to climb.
    Roberto Luongo played in net for the Canucks in games one and two, and played considerably well, but Cory Schneider was given the call for game three to change things up. Despite the loss in game three, Schneider, who played well, was given the nod to start in net for game four which he won. This raises a lot of questions about the future of Luongo and whether or not he will be playing for the Canucks in the near future.
    The real goaltending story in this series is Jonathan Quick for the Los Angeles Kings. In my opinion he has been the best goalie of the playoffs thus far.
    Although the Kings are the eighth an final team to make the playoffs in the Western Conference, they are still a very good team with a very talented roster. I don't see the Canucks winning another three consecutive games to knock the Kings out. In fact, when the dust settles and the first round is behind us, I think Los Angeles will be many people's favourite for the Stanley Cup.
    ST. LOUIS BLUES vs SAN JOSE SHARKS
    After last nights win, the St. Louis Blues have a 3-1 series lead. The only game they lost happened in the second overtime. Even despite the injury to Jaroslav Halak, St. Louis' number one goaltender, they still managed to win with Brian Elliot in net. Although Elliot is the back-up goalie, he put up great numbers in the regular season and is continuing where he left off in the playoffs. Andy McDonald has been great as well as he leads the Blues offense with seven points.
    As for the Sharks, Neimi has played well enough to win most nights, but their top players need to start producing. Patrick Marleau and Joe Pavelski are still held pointless thus far in the series.
    PHOENIX COYOTES vs CHICAGO BLACKHAWKS
    Although Chicago is the lower seeded team in this match-up, many people considered them favourites to get past the Coyotes. With all the fire power and skill up front, it's surprising that the Blackhawks trail the Coyotes 3-1 in the series. Simply stated, Crawford has been bad in net for Chicago, and across the ice, Mike Smith has been phenomenal for the Coyotes.
    Granted, all four games were decided in overtime, but the last two games were decided by bad goals. In game three Crawford let in a goal from the icing line, and in game four he let a sliding puck get behind him. If the Blackhawks want to get back into this series, they need Crawford to start playing like a starting NHL goalie. But let's not put the whole blame on Crawford. Johnny Oduya, who the Blackhawks picked up at the trade deadline, is having an absolutely terrible run thus far in the playoffs.
    NASHVILLE PREDATORS vs DETROIT RED WINGS
    The Predators lead the series 3-1 over the Red Wings in another series where most games have been decided by a single goal. When things are that tight, it helps to have a goalie like Pekka Rinne in net. It also helps that Shea Weber is in the line-up and not suspended despite a vicious play involving him and Zetterberg earlier on the series. But that's another discussion entirely in itself.
    Who would've thought that two former Stanley Cup champions and one runner up, all within the last five years, would be on the brink of a first round elimination?
    Source
  21. TMLsHockeyBlog
    Hal GillPHOTO: mapleleafs.com
    It must be really difficult to manage a team when the ownership keeps you on a really tight budget. Such is the problem in Nashville. That is why in the off-season the Predators traded Cody Franson and Matthew Lombardi to the Maple Leafs for Brett Lebda and Robert Slaney. The only reason the Predators gave up an asset like Franson is because they wanted to get Lombardi's contract off their books. Nashville would end up letting Lebda go and keeping Slaney, until today.The Predators traded Slaney along with Blake Geoffrion and a second round pick to the Montreal Canadiens for Hal Gill and a conditional draft pick. Gill, who is 36 years old, is in the last year of his current contract and will be an unrestricted free agent in the summer. With not much money left to pay to Gill from now until the end of the season, the Predators add some depth to their defense as they prepare for the playoffs, at a very minimal cost.
    Looking back at the those two trades, there isn't much return for what the Predators have given up. They did manage to save the 3.5 million dollars per year, for this year and next year, that Lombardi would have been paid, but have given up quite a bit for not much in return. Compared to last years roster, out of Nashville is Cody Franson, Matthew Lombardi, Blake Geoffrion, and a second round draft pick, and in return is just Hal Gill, who is likely just a rental player until the end of the season.
    The limited funds in Nashville have really handcuffed the management of the team, despite that though, the Predators are currently fifth in the West. They are also in one of the hardest divisions in the league. The Central Division also has the Red Wings, Blues, Blackhawks and Blue Jackets. All of those teams except Columbus are in the top six in the West, yet the Predators have a record of 13-2-2 against teams in their division.
    Indeed, the Predators are a model NHL team to follow. I'm sure they would much rather have Cody Franson on their team right now, they may not have had to trade for Gill if Franson was still there, but they keep on doing what needs to be done. They are a new team compared to others in the league, and there really isn't much going for them, yet they almost always seem to manage their way into the post-season. So thumbs up to the Predators for this trade given their circumstances.
    Source
  22. TMLsHockeyBlog
    So, I haven't put anything new up in about a week. If you want a Leafs update, they haven't scored in two games and I keep falling asleep while my TV is still on.
    I decided to make a list of some of my favourite posts and some of the most viewed posts on my blog, if you haven't checked them out before, give them a look...
    They are sorted from oldest to newest.
    Fifteen Ways To Become An Elite Hockey Player
    Defensive Mistakes and Coaching Errors - Leafs Lose Again
    Eric Staal and the Maple Leafs - Wishful Thinking
    Why Good Teams Never Trade Their Draft Picks and Comparing With The Leafs
    Leafs Have Messed Up Drafting For Twenty Years
    Leafs Trade Talks - Kulemin and Gunnarsson
    Is Dion Phaneuf the Most Overrated Player in the NHL?
    Concussion Prevention - Ten Questions Every Player Should Ask Themselves
    How Good Is Cody Franson and What Is He Worth?
    2013 Winter Classic - Leafs vs Red Wings
    Rick Nash in a Maple Leafs uniform - Is it a good idea?
    Grabovski Trade Rumours - What Makes Sense? (pre-trade deadline)
    Leafs Fire Ron Wilson and Hire Randy Carlyle
    Source
  23. TMLsHockeyBlog
    The NHL's trade deadline past yesterday at 3pm EST. There were more than a few big names kicking around as many major sports broadcasts launched their respective ten-hour trade deadline specials. I'll cut to the chase though, most of the bigger name players, such as Nash, Grabovski and others, ending up staying put with their current teams. The day moved slow, but in the end there were more than a dozen trades before the deadline.
    Here is a recap of each trade and a bit on who I think walked out a winner, and who walked out a loser.

    WINNER: TIE Nashville had one Kostitsyn brother, and got the other to get some chemistry between the two for their playoff run this season, but they may have given up too much for a pending UFA. Kostitsyn was drafted 10th overall in the 2003 NHL Entry Draft by the Montreal Canadiens. The 27-year old had 20 goals and 45 points in 81 games last season and is at a similar pace this season. Those aren't astonishing numbers, but he may prove to be a good secondary scorer. Andrei's brother Sergei will be an RFA this summer. If he decides to stay in Nashville, maybe he can convince his brother to stay as well, and Nashville might walk out winning this trade after all.


    WINNER: TAMPA BAY The Lightning acquire a veteran defenseman from the Red Wings for a conditional seventh round pick. Commodore has an annual cap hit of $1 million and his contract expires this summer. The cost was low, his salary is low, and it expires after the season, why not take a chance at a player when it costs you so little.

    WINNER: TIE The Oilers wanted a more defensive defenseman, whereas the Wild wanted a more offensive defenseman. The two have almost identical contracts, except Gilbert has a $500,000 higher cap hit. If I were to pick which player I would rather have on my team I would choose Gilbert, but Edmonton already has several puck moving defenseman, so I don't see anything wrong in moving one of them.

    WINNER: TIE Given the depth the Maple Leafs have at defense, Keith Aulie was expendable. Aulie has really struggled to find his game this season after a promising end to last season. In return the Leafs get former first round draft pick Carter Ashton. The 20-year old stands at 6'3" and 200lbs. He is the prototypical player that Brian Burke likes, he is big but can still skate and move the puck well.

    WINNER: COLORADO The Sharks acquire Daniel Winnik and T.J. Galiardi, but gave up two good prospects and a roster player similar to the two they received in return. San Jose did not get an impact player in this trade. They are trying to bolster their team for a playoff run, but acquired a decent player in Winnik, and one that has really been struggling in Galiardi. The Sharks gave up Michael Sgarbossa, who is just 19-years old and has played very well in his last couple of seasons in the OHL. He has 146 points in 96 games for the Sudbury Wolves. They also gave up Mike Connolly who amassed 30 points in 40 games for the Worchester Sharks before being traded.

    WINNER: TAMPA BAY The Lightning trade Matt Gilroy for a younger Brian Lee. Neither of these two are guys that will make of break your team, but I think the Senators gave up on Brian Lee a little too early in this deal. Gilroy is a UFA after this season.

    WINNER: VANCOUVER The Canucks pick up a very good defensive forward in Sami Pahlsson. The price was moderate considering Ellington, a former second round draft pick, hasn't really shown much promise towards becoming a player in the NHL. Pahlsson will prove valuable to the Canucks in their playoff run in the spring.

    WINNER: WINNIPEG The Blackhawks definitely overpaid for Johnny Oduya. The Jets had to part with a good defender during their push for the playoffs, but were rewarded generously for Oduya, who is a UFA in the summer.

    WINNER: BOSTON
    The Bruins gave up two struggling prospects in hopes that the 39-year old, Brian Rolston, can pull together a good run in the playoffs. Rolston has proven that he can be a quality goal scorer in the past, but his stats have fallen considerably this season. He is a UFA this summer. The Bruins also pick up Mike Mottau. He is also in the last year of his contact and will provide some depth for Boston's defense.

    WINNER: BUFFALO I find it hard to believe the Predators traded their first round pick for a 30-year old rental player whose highest scoring season is 36 points, despite seven years in the NHL. Gaustad does bring some intangibles to the table, but Nashville overpaid.

    WINNER: MINNESOTA
    The Bruins make the swap for an older, more experienced Greg Zanon, but Kampfer is only 23 years old and has plenty of hockey ahead of him. Zanon's contract ends after this season whereas Kampfer's has another year. The only reason this trade makes any sense is if the Bruins are intentionally dumping a roster spot for next season.

    WINNER: TIE I don't know much about John Scott, but he is a 29-year old who just broke into the NHL a few years ago and has only mustered five points in 140 NHL games. I don't know know what the Rangers see in him, maybe they were trying to get TSN's James Duthie to stop making jokes and pushing buttons that make annoying sounds you would only hear in a mid-90's radio show.

    WINNER: ANAHEIM Anaheim wins simply because they put Fraser on waivers last month and the Leafs could have claimed him for free. This trade seems more of a good gesture from the Leafs to give Dale Mitchell a chance in another organization. He has struggled in his limited time with the Marlies over the past couple of seasons.

    WINNER: BUFFALO The Sabres walk away laughing with this deal. They didn't give up much and managed to pry Cody Hodgson out of Vancouver. I do like Gragnani for the Canucks, but it wouldn't have taken much to get him out of Buffalo. The deal hangs mostly on Zack Kassian, and I think the Canucks over-valued him significantly. He is just 21-years old though, so he has plenty of time to prove me wrong. How everyone on Buffalo's end managed to keep a straight face until the deal was signed is beyond me.
    And finally...

    WINNER: ANAHEIM The Canucks pick up Andrew Gordon in this deal, and although his AHL stats are great and would lead one to believe he is a very good pick up, the 26-year old hasn't been able to do much in the NHL. The Ducks pick up 22-year old Sebastian Erixon from the Canucks.
    The best show came from the Nashville Predators who continued to buy yesterday in hopes of a long and prosperous playoff run. Nashville has given up quite a few draft picks over the last week or so, I hope for their sake things work out.
    Overall, it was a boring day in the hockey world compared to trade deadlines in the past. Maybe next season TSN's trade deadline special wont be ten hours long. You know things are slow when you're looking at a possible roster selection for the 2014 Olympic games...
    Source
  24. TMLsHockeyBlog
    Montreal wins in Kaberle's return to TorontoPHOTO: mapleleafs.com
    Leafs playoff hopes here high approaching the puck drop at the ACC on Saturday night. Both the New Jersey Devils and the Ottawa Senators lost their respective games in regulation earlier today. The bad news is that the Panthers play the Jets. Going into tonight Winnipeg sits two points behind the Leafs and the Panthers are one point ahead. A win for the Leafs tonight will put them back into the top eight. If the Panthers win they will jump back to third and a Leafs win will knock Washington to the ninth spot.
    The first eight minutes of the period went by quickly without much action until P.K. Subban took a bad roughing penalty as he punched Tyler Bozak in the head. On the Leafs powerplay Clarke MacArthur would cough up the puck to Lars Eller who came in on a breakaway but was stopped by Gustavsson, his first save of the game. Through the first period the Leafs weren't using their speed and seemed to be playing down the the level of the Habs. After some awful turnovers by the Habs, the Leafs were gaining momentum until Montreal came in on a 3-on-1 and scored. The original shot deflected awkwardly off the boards behind Gustavsson and bounced over the net and landed at the top of the crease on Bourque's stick, who scored his first as a Canadien. The Leafs would answer back quickly though. Tyler Bozak lobbed a great pass to Matthew Lombardi who scored on a breakaway to tie the game. The second period was a pretty quiet one, there was no change in the scoreboard. There was a ridiculous dive by Montreal's Kostitsyn. The ref that was ten feet away watching the play didn't call a penalty on the Leafs because he saw that Kostitsyn dove. The ref at center ice called a penalty and the Leafs had to kill another penalty. What makes the ref at center ice think the ref ten feet away missed the call and he should make it from 100 feet away? Also, once the ref at center calls the penalty can't the other ref say it was a dive and at least even up the calls? There's no reason the Leafs should have ever been short-handed on that play. We should've been on a powerplay because as far as I know there is no rule against calling a stand-alone diving penalty. I've said it before, and I'll say it until somebody actually happens, players will continue to dive because they know there is no consequences. They know that worst case the referees will only call even-up penalties, one penalty for a hook or trip and one for the dive. Apparently, you can't lose if you dive. Let's get some refs out here that actually call players on diving before hockey turns into a game of soccer.

    The Leafs started the third period much like the first two, very slow. Montreal took advantage of this and put a shot through a screen behind Gustavsson and the Leafs are down 2-1 early in the third period. They would end up losing the game 3-1 by a combination of questionable refereeing and playing without any urgency. The third goal was another one that Gustavsson should have stopped. That being said, he was hit off balance as Gardiner was pushed into him a few seconds before the goal went in. Much like the loss against the Senators earlier this week, the well-rested Leafs are beat by a team who played who played the night before.
    Clarke MacArthur didn't look good tonight. He wasn't really competing, he turned the puck over too many times, and in the second period he found himself taking a few shifts on the Leafs fourth line. I think he played his best hockey with Kadri and Connolly a few weeks ago, but now with Lupul playing so well for that line you can't put MacArthur back there. His numbers are still respectable, he has 12 goals and 9 assists in 39 games heading into tonights contest. His cap hit is managable for teams looking for some secondary scoring. There were more than a couple of pro scouts from around the league in attendance and maybe the Leafs can trade him as part of a package for something bigger.
    Tomas Kaberle returned to Toronto but looked pretty invisible tonight. He fit well with every player wearing blue. If Toronto wants to be a playoff team they have to be able to beat teams like Montreal who sit near the basement in the NHL. Something has to change in Toronto because they're losing their grip on playoff hopes. To make matters worse, the Panthers and Lightning game turned out to be a three-point game as it went into overtime and then a shootout.This may be another year that Toronto looks back on a few games like tonight where they did not come out to play and miss the playoffs by a few points. The Leafs have back-to-back games against the New York Islanders on Monday and Tuesday. They have to win both of those games just to keep pace.
    Source
  25. TMLsHockeyBlog
    Leafs goalies Jonas Gustavsson (left) and James Reimer (right)as Reimer was pulled from the net in Saturday's game
    PHOTO: mapleleafs.com
    The Toronto Maple Leafs are in a really bad whole and can't seem to climb out of it. They have just won win in their last six games including last nights 6-2 loss to the Vancouver Canucks. The Canucks shed some light on truly what kind of team the Leafs can be against a top team in the league. The answer on this night was a skilled offensive team with terrible defensive zone coverage, and two goalies who, rather than play really well to prove they want and have earned the starting goaltending job, end up getting the start moreso based on the other goalie's struggling efforts.The game started out bad when the Canucks scored in the first off a mis-timed pinch by Keith Aulie. We've seen too many of those come back and end up in the back of our net. Aulie needs to gage when is a good time to pinch, and when isn't. Once in a while you will make mistakes, but you would think after being burned by that play so many times, he would be more hesitant to pinch.
    It's tough to blame James Reimer on many of the goales the Canucks scored on him last night, but on the flip side he didn't go out there and make any big saves to help the team. If you're a bubble team like Toronto you need your goalie to step up and make some big saves every game. I'm not deflecting away from the issue, which is absolutely awful defensive zone coverage, but a big save from Reimer would have been nice last night. Jonas Gustavsson came into the game in relief of Reimer, and did not look any better, in fact I would say he looked worse, but I wasn't really paying attention, tuning in and out at that point.
    Nikolai Kulemin scored a late goal in the third period. His first in a while, and only his sixth on the season. He celebrated a little too much for someone who scored the second goal for in a 6-2 defeat, but I don't think he deserves the criticism. He has struggled lately and it's nice for him to get on the board.
    The Leafs miraculously still sit in eigth in the East. The Capitals also lost last night, to the Lightning, so they remain one point behind Toronto. Suddenly there are more contenders for the last playoff spot though. Will all the Leafs and Capitals loses lately, the Winnipeg Jets find themselves only two points out of a playoff spot. The Leafs will have to be careful.
    Toronto will have to put a better effort forward as a team heading into a four game home stand. They play New Jersey on Tuesday, San Jose on Thursday, Washington on Saturday and Florida the following Tuesday. Three of the four games are against teams that higher in the standings than Toronto, and two games are against teams that are close to them in the race. A fair goal for the Leafs to set is to win either of the first two match-ups, and then win both games against the Capitals and Pathers.
    Source
×
×
  • Create New...