2007-2008 Schedule

The Leafs' 2007-2008 schedule was released today. The season will be kicked off with the renewal of the friendly neighbourhood rivalry with ottawa which features a home and home series kicking off the festivities. These two games will set the tone for the early part of the season. The defending Stanley Cup Finalists will look to get their season off to a good start after meekly bowing out in the Finals. Who is starting in goal could be a question as Emery still has his arbitration hearing and teams are rumoured to be waiting to see how Ottawa deals with an award.

One year after eliminating the Canadiens from the playoffs the Leafs will once again be able to put the final nail in their season's coffin as they play them twice in the final week of the season including the finale. This season will have the Leafs hosting the Central Division and travelling to the west to take on the Pacific Division teams. The Buds will play 26 Saturday night games most of which will grace Hockey Night in Canada since the CBC likes high ratings. The nights that they choose to show another game at 7pm will feature their lowest ratings of the year.

Highlights of the schedule can be found below.

Battle of Ontario:

Wednesday, October 3rd, 2007 - senators
Thursday, October 4th, 2007 - @ senators
Tuesday, November 6th, 2007 - @ senators
Saturday, November 17th, 2007 - senators
Saturday, February 2nd, 2008 - senators
Monday, February 25th, 2008 - @ senators
Saturday, March 22nd, 2008 - @ senators
Thursday, April 3rd, 2008 - senators

English Canada takes on French Canada:

Saturday, October 6th, 2007 - Canadiens
Saturday, November 3rd, 2007 - @ Canadiens
Tuesday, November 13th, 2007 - Canadiens @
Tuesday, November 27th, 2007 - Canadiens @
Saturday, December 15th, 2007 - @ Canadiens
Thursday, February 7th, 2008 - @ Canadiens
Saturday, March 29th, 2008 - Canadiens
Saturday, April 5th, 2008 - @ Canadiens

Defending Champs:

Wednesday, January 9th, 2008 - @ Ducks

Original Six matchup that comes around once in a blue moon:

Saturday, February 9th, 2008 - Red Wings

Looks like someone in the scheduling office listened to the complaints about spreading the games between division rivals out. Except, of course, for the Bruins once again who the Leafs play 5 times between February 16th and March 25th. Great work NHL.

February 9th will also double as Hockey Day in Canada with the Red Wings and Avalanche acting as guests as they take on the Leafs and Canucks respectively while the Oilers and Flames renew the Battle of Alberta and the senators and Canadiens fight each other for the title of 'Fanbase that most hates the Leafs'.

Movin' On Up

I hate it when they play that song at the ACC. Aside from the 'Move of the Game' it doesn't make any sense to play the Jefferson's theme song. However, the Leafs have done their best over the past week to shore up their weak spots.

The signing of Jason Blake will help to make the Leafs offence more balanced and more consistent. While the Leafs ended last year as the 8th ranked offence they struggled at times against teams that set up their defensive stall (see: Bruins, Boston) as they generally need many chances to create one goal. Blake is a player that showed that he is capable of turning a single chance into a goal.

Vesa Toskala and Mark Bell were acquired from the San Jose Sharks for the Leafs' first and second rounder in the 2007 draft and a fourth round pick in 2009. Bell is essentially a throw-in so that the Sharks could clear some salary cap space after a disastrous first year for the former 20 goal scorer which included a quick demotion from the top line and a DUI charge. If he can get back to his form then he will be yet another good reclamation project by JFJ.

Toskala is the key to the trade and he was quickly signed to a 2 year $8M extension. The trade I liked because it addressed the Leafs' need to get better in net. Raycroft will benefit from the competition as well as from not having to start 42 games in a row. The extension bothers me a bit because Toskala has not earned it. Who knows how he will deal with the media fishbowl? The best way to look at it is that he is getting paid $9.375M for 3 years and after a great year the extension could look like a piece of brilliant work by JFJ (likely good enough to save his job) but if not then it will be the next GM's problem.

Blockbuster Move

Well, looks like JFJ grew a pair sometime between his repeated affirmative statements about Andrew Raycroft and today as he made a big splash on Draft Day. The Leafs will trade their 2007 First and Second Round picks as well as a 2009 Fourth Round pick for goaltender Vesa Toskala and forward Mark Bell. Note: The first round pick is set for 2007, but if the player the Sharks want isn't available, San Jose has the option to move the pick to 2008 with a top 10 protection covering the Leafs. That means if Toronto's 2008 pick is a top 10 pick then it will slide to 2009.

In a repeat of last year's move JFJ picked up a potential # 1 goalie who he will probably sign to a new contract in the next couple of months. The saying 'fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice...well you won't fool me again' (Thanks Dubya) comes to mind. If Toskala doesn't pan out then it HAS to be JFJ's last chance. Right?

Anyway, this draft has been labelled a weak draft by everyone involved in hockey. Giving up the picks could hurt the Leafs down the road but the odds are more likely that they won't. Scratch that, knowing the Leafs the 13th pick is going to be a Hall of Famer.

Here's a look at some work from Hockey Numbers looking at the save percentages of Toskala and Raycroft (left and right respectively) based on shot location:

That's easy, Toskala is better in 3 of 4 areas. That was shot location on the ice and now is shot location on the goalie:

Looks like we traded a goalie with a glovehand problem for one with a stick side weakness. Toskala is again the better overall goalie. There is no doubt that this is an improvement in net for the Leafs. The interesting thing will be to see how Raycroft reacts to the trade. He can either pout and leave (like in Boston) or he can man up and challenge Toskala (please).

Mark Bell will be a good addition to the Leafs' second or third line. He is in the second year of a 3 year $6.5M contract. He is coming off a weak year with San Jose but previously he had years of 45 and 48 points on terrible Blackhawk teams so hopefully all he needs is a change of scenery.

I'll put a post together on what I think that this means cap-wise over the weekend but the Leafs are a much improved team in the present. The long-term effects will probably be devastating if only because that's what it's like to be a Leafs fan but right now I am happy.

D-Day

Now that the Leafs are part of the hockey news again I will end my hibernation since the end of the Leafs' season.

It's Draft Day in Columbus and the Leafs are getting some work done. They signed Carlo to a 3-year extension at $1.283 which is about $400K more than he had to receive in a qualifying offer as an RFA so Mats' unselfish contract has already paid off.

The most interesting part of the article came near the end though:

The Leafs now have eight defencemen under contract including Marlie Staffan Kronwall who's expected to crack the Leafs lineup.

That means that a spot has to open up in the top 6 of Kaberle-Kubina, McCabe-Carlo, White-Gill. In terms of who would make way for Kronwall I would have to say it would be either Kubina, McCabe or (please God) White.

The former pair would have to be moved via trade and the latter could just be sent to the Marlies to learn a backhand and that being hit won't actually kill you. Considering the following:

"We're looking to get better in goal. We'd like to have a tandem that can push each other and create a little more healthy internal competition and ultimately better results on the ice in goal,"

the rumours are rampant as to how Kubina or McCabe could fetch a goalie with the names of Manny Fernandez, Ilya Bryzgalov, and Vesa Toskala all being bandied about.

Add in the fact that the Leafs have a chance at a very good player at 13th and today could go a long way towards getting the team back as a fixture in the playoffs.

There is a rumour rampant that the Leafs are going to trade their 13th pick for Vesa Toskala conditional on them being able to sign him long-term. He will be entering the last year of a 2 year extension worth $2.75M per season. Please God. Let this happen.

Walk On With Hope In Your Heart

Last night's game was enough to tremble the foundations of the most loyal Leaf fans. It certainly has not been the first and it will not be the last. That is the dichotomy of being a fan. There are no highs without the lows. Red Wing fans had to endure 42 years of mediocre, incompetent, and mentally weak teams before they were able to celebrate a Stanley Cup. The Rangers went 54 years of the same. Neither franchise ever really got close (lopsided Finals defeats aside) but the fans stuck with their team and in the end they were able to savour reaching the mountaintop.

aquietgirl's post serves as a reminder that as bad as things get there is always tomorrow. I have been a huge Liverpool fan and You'll Never Walk Alone, the team's anthem (no God Save the Queen in Liverpool) serves to remind the fans and players that they are inexorably bound.

When you walk through a storm
Keep your head up high
And don't be afraid of the dark.
At the end of the storm
Is a golden sky
And the sweet silver song of a lark.
Walk on through the wind,
Walk on through the rain,
Tho' your dreams be tossed and blown.
Walk on, walk on
With hope in your heart
And you'll never walk alone,
You'll never walk alone.

I have had the privilege of travelling to Anfield to sing YNWA in the stands and I have heard it sung at various times. I have heard it before every game, seconds after a last minute goal has consigned Liverpool to a bitter defeat, and after important victories. At that point, the players and fans struggles are validated as they have seen the fruits of their labours. A perfect example is during the 2005 Champions League semi-final versus Chelsea. The Chelsea players were visibly shaken when they entered the pitch and were met by a wall of sound.

The most spectacular rendition came at half-time in Istanbul during the 2005 Champions League Final when Liverpool trailed 3-0 and seemed destined to lose in embarrassing fashion. The 60,000 strong contingent belted out one of the strongest renditions in the club's history. Down the tunnel a jubilant AC Milan could hear the thundering voices and feel the shaking stand while a seemingly beaten Liverpool was given new life. Their coach, Rafa Benitez, used the fan's commitment to inspire his players on to one of the greatest comebacks in sports history.

"I said: ‘Don’t let your heads drop. We’re Liverpool. You’re playing for Liverpool. Don’t forget that. You have to hold your heads high for the supporters. You have to do it for them. ‘You can’t call yourselves Liverpool players if you have your heads down. If we create a few chances we have the possibility of getting back into this. Believe you can do it and you will. Give yourself the chance to be heroes’."

On Saturday night, Leaf fans will have to play the part of a 7th man for the team. Their commitment to the team and the team's response have been evident over the Leafs eight game winning streak at the ACC and game 82 will require more of the same. Too often over the course of a season the rink can be quiet but as the importance of the games has risen so has the level of vocal support from the fans. Both the fans and the team will have to be at their best in order to beat the old enemy, a team that the Leafs have not met in a meaningful game since 1979, a team that stands between them and the post-season. If the Leafs succeed in stretching their winning streak to nine games they will still need some help from the Flyers and Devils to ensure that the Islanders do not pass them but they will have taken the chance to be heroes.

At the end of the day, playoffs or no playoffs, the bond between supporters and players will remain as it always has, waiting on the end of the storm and that golden sky. Go Leafs Go!

The Leafs Hate Us

So the Leafs scratch and claw to get this:

And then the Habs do them a favour by losing to the Rangers and the Leafs respond by...blowing the game in the third after they had tied it early. At the end of the year when people are asking why the Leafs are not in the playoffs the answer will not be found by laying the blame at the feet of Raycroft or any other individual but in the major defensive breakdowns (easily the cause of the majority of the goals against) that came at crippling times (the 3-2 goal tonight). Whether it was a lack of concetration, failing to clear the zone when within five feet of the blueline or RUNNING INTO EACH OTHER!!!! these braincamps have always been of the soul crippling variety.

Maybe the Leafs needed a dispiriting loss (Buffalo, NYR) so that they could be ready for Saturday night against the Habs. If they win then tonight can be forgotten but of course now the Leafs are dependent on the help of a Flyers team that is out of the playoffs and a Devils team that has already clinched the Atlantic Division. Suddenly this plan does not seem so great. At the end of the day all that the Leafs can do is win.

An Open Letter to the Maple Leafs

Hey Guys,

Tough game tonight eh? I know you guys don't like pressure and knowing that a win would have put you in a tie for 7th must have raised the blood pressure a bit. That must be why you guys made about a month's worth of mental errors in the game tonight. 7-2? You guys knew it was game 79 tonight right? I don't know if anyone told you but April Fools ends at noon and this game certainly wouldn't have found itself on any list of accepted pranks.

It sort of reminded me of the way that you guys came out and were destroyed in back-to-back games in Montreal last year. The team was really left for dead after that pair of stinkers but you guys reeled off a 9-1-2 finish to the season. It was not enough to make up the ground since you didn't play any teams that you were chasing. I guess playing with the lowered expectations of the fanbase and press felt liberating but it's not something I would encourage.

The reaction tomorrow in the press and among a lot of fans will be to quit on the team. Last Saturday morning, after your great third period against the Sabres, the papers were awash with articles about how the team didn't deserve to be in the playoffs and how the season was over. Then Sunday morning, after the 4-1 win, they ran the complete opposite stories. Seriously, it was like reading freaking Mad Libs that were filled in with an optimistic viewpoint instead of their usual pessimistic spin. You can expect to read a lot of the same tomorrow. If it helps you play the kind of hockey that saw you beat the Devils, Sabres, Hurricanes, and Penguins than you should accept the pessimism. Feel liberated from the crushing expectations of a fanbase that has not celebrated a Stanley Cup in 38 seasons.

If you can rebound from today's debacle like you did after blowing leads against the Sabres and Penguins then you'll be in good shape. Your destiny is still in your own hands but don't think that it means that you are expected to beat three teams that you have dominated this year (not entirely in results but on the balance of play). That might increase the pressure and we wouldn't want you guys squeezing your sticks or letting opposition forwards stand unmolested in front of the net. Not only do you guys face the worst team in the East (Philadelphia) at home and a DiPietro-less Islanders squad that could already be eliminated from the playoffs by game time but you get to face your oldest rival on home ice in a game that will most likely decide the 8th seed.

Those three games look pretty winnable but only if you play the kind of hard forechecking, opportunistic hockey that has kept you guys in the playoff race despite losing over 330 man games to injury. Three wins would see you guys qualify for the playoffs and since you'll be expected to get drilled in the first round you'd probably have a chance at springing a surprise since it would be totally unexpected. Let me tell you that a playoff spot in itself would be appreciated greatly. Things are hard enough as fans when your drought is heading towards 4 decades but when you miss the playoffs you really put us in a tough position. Fans of other teams start crawling out of the woodwork to take potshots not to mention having to deal with the bandwagoners. A playoff spot would be appreciate but no pressure. That's the last thing you guys need.

Leafs Charged with Attempted Murder, Escape with Win

Luckily for the Leafs Julie Beattie, a nurse from McMaster University Hospital (I hear that she walks and talks a little faster than her Brock counterparts), was in the stands as her quick reaction and CPR training saved the life of a fan that had just seen his team cough up a 4-1 lead for the second time in the past fortnight when Ryan Whitney buried his shot with just over four seconds remaining in the third.

Like that Sabres game a scant eight days ago, there is a lot of good to take away from this game. Andrew Raycroft played a very good game. The three goals could hardly be laid at his feet (in order their would be Kubina, Poni, and Poni/McCabe's fault) and his play through the first 55 minutes was what must be replicated tonight against the Rangers in order to keep the Leafs in the playoff picture. For those first 55 minutes the Leafs held a team that they had struggled against under control and had built a strong lead. And the biggest plus was the Leafs' reaction to losing their lead late. Instead of folding up their tent they came out and completely dominated the overtime period before Tomas Kaberle scored his second of the game on a long shot from the point. The Leafs certainly picked the perfect game in which to break their goose egg against the Pens.

Tonight the Leafs play their game in hand on the Habs as they travel to Madison Square Garden to take on the Rangers. Last night the Leafs received no help as the Rangers, Lightning, and Habs all won their games (Stupid Buffalo!). The season series stands at 2-0-1 in the Leafs favour including a 5-4 loss in overtime that featured a barnstorming third period by the good guys, a 9-2 blowout which saw Wellwood and Ponikarovsky tally five points, and a 2-1 nailbiter in one of Raycroft's best performances as his 37 saves featured a few of the spectacular variety. The Leafs will be facing a white-hot Henrik Lundqvist and the usual suspects (Jagr, Straka, Nylander) who will need to be shut down to give the Leafs a chance to not only leapfrog the Habs but tie the Rangers for 7th in the conference.

A Tale of Two Games

Leafs 6 v. Hurricanes 1: Relentless

Secondary scoring carried the day in this game, as Ninja noted, because the top two lines played the Hurricanes big guns to a standstill. Carrying on from three great (mostly) games against the top two teams in the east the Leafs established their forecheck early and used it to cause numerous turnovers. Again, most teams in the conference do not have the size to deal with the top line or the skill to make breakout passes under pressure, at least not throughout their defence corps. When the buds can get this part of their game going the opposition, especially teams that rely on speed and quick puck movement, struggle to create the chances off the rush that fuel their offence. This game gave the Leafs the season series with a 3-1 mark.

Leafs 2 v. Thrashers 3 (OT): Crap

Boyd Devereaux clearly did something wrong to someone on the Thrashers in some past lifetime because he was getting run all over the ice. Unfortunately, it was the pattern of the game. No one from the Leafs outside of the usual suspects (Carlo and Kilger) replied in kind. The Leafs certainly created enough chances to win but as in so many losses the finish was not present. In the end, they let themselves get beat on a terrible penalty call after the defence had lost track of Kovalchuk! The worst part were the two blown calls on Pohl (before) and Sundin (after) that the referees apparently missed.

I have noticed that the referees have been missing more calls, letting more go, and calling more useless penalties (player reaches out stick, taps puck carrier, gets called for hooking). I imagine that it will only get worse in the playoffs. The loss (and thank God for that point) gave the season series 3-1 to the Thrashers a year after the Leafs swept them. This sets up the Leafs for a huge (and rare) Saturday/Sunday back-to-back with the Penguins and Rangers. Head over to the BoO for in-game comments.

A Week in the Life of the Leafs (March 19-26)

This week had the potential to be more about the death of the Leafs playoff hopes than offering any sort of hope but it ended up providing the latter (with an early dose of the former). Three games against the top two teams in the East were skillfully handled (for about 171:15) and personally it gave me the belief that the Leafs are rounding into form just in time. They control their fate as their schedule gives them games against each of their rivals (except Tampa, dammit). Here's a quick look back at the games.

Leafs 2 v. Devils 1: Sweet Revenge

Wade Belak got the sideshow out of the way early with a looong fight in which he took the decision with some good early shots but kudos to the scrub for playing his role. He could have spent his three minutes on the ice hiding but he didn't. In the game, the Leafs picked up goals from Kyle Wellwood (who says his return wasn't like a deadline pick-up now?) and the suddenly scorching hot Nik Antropov. Both were set up by the captain on rushes in which he hit the zone with a full head of steam. Raycroft got some help from the posts as he outdueled Martin Brodeur.

Leafs 4 v. Sabres 5: Heartbreak

Well this was a gut-punch game if I have ever seen one. At 4-1 I was soaring. Devereaux-Steen-Stajan was the best line on the ice and Raycroft had barely been tested. Then a funny thing happened as the Leafs got greedy. Not content with taking the gift from the hockey gods (the fourth goal) and going home to attempt to complete the sweep over the Eastern Conference's best team the Leafs tried to run up the score. It quickly fell apart as a couple of bad line changes, a terrible tripping call on Kubina, a soft play by Carlo, and a missed timeout (Maurice knew that the next whistle after the 4th goal was a tv timeout but his team couldn't last until the next whistle) cost the Leafs their hard-earned points.

Leafs 4 v. Sabres 1: Resilience

I won't lie. After the previous night's events I was expecting the Leafs to get buried. But the coaching staff dedicated themselves to showing the team how they had dominated the Sabres for most of the previous evening and wouldn't you know it, they repeated it at home for their 5th straight home win. Again, the Steen-Stajan-Devereaux line was golden as both kids were playing with an incredible amount of confidence and skill. They are both becoming very difficult to handle in the offensive zone while maintaining their defensive responsibility. Darcy Tucker potted a couple of goals including a Leafs powerplay special in celebration of the reunion of PP # 1.

These three games, minus the meltdown, have to have instilled a huge amount of confidence in the entire team. If they can keep it going against the Hurricanes then they will start to build the kind of momentum that saw them finish last year on an 11-1-2 streak and with the team gelling after a season of injuries they look like a team that could make some noise in the playoffs. But first things first, time to beat the storm.

V is for Vengeance

Tonight the Leafs face the hero of the New Jersey inbreds in their first meeting since the scrub tried to injure rosy-cheeked Tomas Kaberle. Kaberle will await the doctor's word on whether he will play tonight and the sentiment is that the Leafs would prefer him taking until the weekend to return. The rest of the Leafs meanwhile seem to have their heads on straight and appear set to learn their history lessons:

"I don't think the boys will be looking for him," said Kaberle. "They'll be playing their own game. We just have to get the two points."

That sentiment has been echoed by the team and most fans in a Sun poll want nothing more than the critical two points. As McCabe has pointed out revenge is a dish best served cold and the scrub could conceivably be around next season as well.

Belak might drop the mitts early but the window is only about 1-2 minutes, the amount of time the scrub might spend on the ice and not picking splinters out of his rear, so it will probably amount to nothing. The scrub's obliviousness knows no bounds,

"I'm not looking to go head hunting or anything like that. I'm just want to go out there and play my game. I'm sure if I'm skating down the wing with the puck, he's going to come hit me too. That's obvious."

What was obvious was that the league does not need to employ players that take up minutes that a beer leaguer could fill just as well without the accompanying embarrassing incidents. What was obvious was that, as Kaberle put it, the scrub has no respect for his fellow NHLers. Attitudes like that generally end up coming back to bite the player in the rear whether it's a high-profile teammate that gets him shipped out of town or, in the case of the scrub, whether it's a little more personal attention in future matchups.

Would any Leaf fan be upset at a clean hit injuring the scrub? Nary a tear would be shed and it would be the biggest irony if it was on a play when a Leaf 'was just finishing his check.' But the biggest vengeance would be a win and that is where the focus must lie.

A Week in the Life of the Maple Leafs

Tuesday March 13, 2007 - Leafs 3 v. Lightning 2: Season Sweep

This game was closer than it had to be as the Leafs' shooters again made a subpar goalie look like a world beater. The game was one-way traffic for the first 50 minutes as the Leafs completely dominated the play save for Ian White's lovely deflection into his own net and Dan Boyle potting a shorty 20 seconds after clipping Mats in the face. Great call.

Thankfully, the Leafs were able to eventually take the lead courtesy of a personal favourite, Nik Antropov, who showed some good anticipation and hands in creating some space for himself down low before tucking a shot in at the far post.

Friday March 16, 2007 - Leafs 1 v. Capitals 5: I Want A Refund

Stupidly, I thought that a well-rested Leafs team might be able to handle a Hershey Bears team that had lost to the Bruins the previous night and in fact was on a 9 game win streak. Unfortunately, Olaf Kolzig was back in net and with the Leafs in the mood to make Johnson look great they were not going to get any favours playing against an actual world class goalie.

I compounded my error by purchasing the LeafsTV interactive feed for my computer. In a pinch it is actually worth it but that money would have bought me more happiness if they had been used for anything else. The worst part was that my buddy and I were conversing over MSN about how McCabe seems to have picked up his defensive play over the past few games and had dedicated himself to a simpler game. Literally 20 seconds later he tried to freaking pokecheck Alex Semin in front of the net. HIT HIM!

Saturday March 17, 2007 - Leafs 2 v. Canadiens 3 (SO): St. Patrick Returns

Maybe the Leafs' long-term plan is to screw the Habs over by making them think that Jaroslav Halak is a good goalie rather than a goalie that is benefitting from a Leafs team that has gone into another offensive funk. The Spirit of St. Patrick (no, Roy is not dead) was certainly in a giving mood for the Habs. I missed the Tucker-Bouillon fight but I heard it was a much fairer tilt than last time what with the Hab waiting for Tucker to join the fight before punching him in the face.

The Leafs' again dominated the Habs (that's 6 times out of 7 for those keeping count) and again lost in a shootout. Mats went to his patented move, top shelf, but Wellwood lost the handle on his deke, Perreault ran out of room, and Tucker took a bad shot. Unused after their previous success were O'Neill and Steen. Raycroft was looking good until Koivu scored with the Habs' third shot and Andrei Kostitsyn potted the winner.

The upcoming week sees the Leafs host the Devils and Sabres to bookend a trip to Buffalo. The Leafs will probably have to pick up three points at a minimum which means that the forwards cannot be happy chucking 30 shots at the net. They have to tap their inner-snipers and find a way to shot somewhere other than at the goalie's crest. Anywhere else. Ask McCabe how he misses the net entirely and adjust a bit.

What If?

I rarely read The Sun (Liverpool fan and all) but I managed to catch this story which made me simultaneously cry, laugh in pain, spit my milk at the screen, and slam my head against my desk. Of course, who knows how the trade would have worked out in the long-run. Well, it definitely would have been the best thing that Jonas Hoglund ever did for the Leafs. Player development is a game of maybes and could bes or Coulda, Woulda, Shoulda so maybe this trade would have been remembered as the time that the Leafs traded away three future superstars while gambling on the NHL's Michael Jordan. But as it stands, Vinny would look good in blue and white but I am happy with Kaberle and Antropov who combined cost less and put more points on the board.

Anyway, back to this reality, where the Leafs host the aforementioned Mr. Lecavalier and his friends. This season the Leafs have shown some ability to control the Three Amigos (or at least limit their damage) and hold a 3-0-0 record in the season series against the Bolts. They picked up a pair of 4-2 wins in the Sunshine State bookending a 5-4 victory at the ACC. Tonight they will be looking to complete the season sweep but will have to once again look out for Richards, St. Louis, and the almost-Leaf Lecavalier the latter two which are among the top three in scoring while Vinny leads the race for the Richard Trophy. The Leafs need this win (and all three games this week) as they face a killer 7 days starting Sunday with a game against the Devils and a home-and-home with the Sabres.

A Week In The Life...

The past week for the Leafs has seen Wellwood and Tucker make their returns to the lineup, Kaberle continue his recuperation from the scrub's hit, a couple of tough losses, a stultifying win, and a momentum shifting comeback.

Saturday March 3, 2007 - Leafs 1 v. Sabres 3: Will No One Finish?

The Leafs hosted a Sabres team that was ripe for the picking as they were (and continue to be) in their first real injury crisis since last year's playoffs. I guess the Leafs understood how they felt and wanted to do their part to help the Sabres through their troubled time. It was a magnanimous gesture on the part of the Leafs but one that they could hardly afford. Despite keeping a lid on the Slugs the buds coughed up enough mental errors and missed chances to allow the team from across the Peace Bridge to steal a 3-1 decision.

If you assume that the Leafs will face the Sabres in the first round if they qualify then it could hvae been a strategic move to play the inept possum. However, considering the Leafs have two games left against these same Sabres then you would not be wrong in thinking that the Leafs lacked a certain finishing edge to their chances. Something that a player like Tucker or Wellwood could provide when healthy.

Tuesday March 6, 2007 - Leafs 3 v. Capitals 0: Shoot Me

This was a terrible game that lacked flow, passion, and excitement but the Leafs won so I cannot be too upset despite having to pay MLSE's ridiculous prices. We kept joking that we did not realize that Ovechkin and Semin were healthy scratches as they were completely invisible. Raycroft had a good solid game as he turned away 24 shots for his second shutout of the season and Tucker picked up the GWG. Yanic Perreault scored his first goal in his third run with the team on a nice burst of speed down the boards before slotting the puck behind the Hershey Bears' starting goaltender. Nik Antropov and Alex Ponikarovsky combined to ice the game on a nice bit of interplay. Poni dropped the puck at the blueline and drove to the net where he deflected Antro's low, hard shot into the net.

Thursday March 8, 2007 - Leafs 1 v. senators 5: No Goals Please, We're Grinders

This was a game of missed opportunities as Travis Green, Matt Stajan, Bates Battaglia (TWICE!), and John Pohl all missed wide open nets. Each (save for Green's) came at crucial junctions that could have changed the momentum of a game that saw the senators score on their first two powerplays and one of Toronto's. Not the start that the Leafs wanted to this home-and-home series with their nemesis.

Saturday March 10, 2007 - Leafs 4 v. senators 3 (OT): Domination Rewarded

I stretched my personal win streak to three games with this one although the result was in doubt for most of the game. It was an odd one that, despite numerous scoring chances for the Leafs, had a bit of a dull feeling to it until the last 10 minutes of the third. The senators looked poised to steal a win on the back of some opportunism and excellent goaltending by Ray Emery despite being heavily outplayed by the good guys.

First, Boyd Devereaux scored on the only mistake in an otherwise stunning display of goaltending when he sneaked a shot over the shoulder of Ray Emery who had gone down too early. Then, Mats outskated Wade Redden and slipped a pass to the much maligned Nik Antropov who used his 8 foot reach to whack home his own rebound. That set the stage for the Leaf fans' sweetheart, Darcy Tucker, to finish the game off on a nice one-two with Pavel Kubina to notch his second goal of the game. The ACC erupted as the Leafs' faithful celebrated a deserved victory and smug sens' fans sat shocked wondering how another lead slipped away in the third.

Wellwood made a welcome return to the Leafs lineup and his skill showed as he set up a number of chances. Last night was the first time since December 19th that he and Tucker were both in the lineup. No surprise that one of them was the difference in the game as both picked up stars. They provided the skill and finishing that was lacking on Thursday night and that has cost the Leafs so many points in 2007. The race for eighth is down to the final 13 games and the cavalry looks to have made its appearance just in time.

Leafs 4 v. Devils 3 (SO): A Call to Arms (Elbows)

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This part is just to blow off some steam. I don't actually want to see anything other than clean hits on Janssen. Lots and lots of clean hits. And a fight with Belak.

Let's get the hit out of the way first. You can see the video on YouTube but I cannot link to it because I can feel my blood pressure rising with each viewing. It was a disgusting hit from an absolute scrub. A hit by such a gutless puke that he did not touch the ice for the rest of the game despite Belak not being in the lineup. Of course the referee, Kelly Sutherland (that's a girl's name) missed the hit. He was probably stoned.

The hit was late (later than the Neil hit on Drury) and from the blindside. But that's not what gets the hackles up since, in my opinion based on the replays, Neil's hit was not an attempt at a headshot. This hit was different as you can see Janssen make a clear move to not only hit Kaberle's but to drive through his head. As a proxy, look at the Letowski hit on Armstrong earlier in the season. The frustration is only amplified by the realization that Colin Campbell's Wheel of Justice will most likely fall on a 0 game suspension. With that disgusting thought in mind, Al Capone sums up the message that should be sent to Belak and Tucker and whoever else is in position to get Janssen:

I want you to get this f-ck where he breathes! I want you to find this nancy-boy Cam Janssen, I want him DEAD! I want his family DEAD! I want his house burned to the GROUND! I wanna go there in the middle of the night and I wanna PISS ON HIS ASHES!

The Leafs did nothing at the moment of the hit and I will atribute that to the fact that the play was going up ice and that Ms. Janssen did not see the ice again. However, on March 20th I want to see vengeance. Whether it's Belak fighting him three times or the Leafs repeatedly running Elias, Gionta, Parise, or any other skill player on the Devils I want some price to be paid. If the league won't handle things then they will see some vigilante justice which I am sure will make Campbell happy. That must be why his suspensions are so haphazard and ineptly handed out. He wants to see it happen. I hope the Leafs give him his money's worth.

As for the game, the Leafs looked completely out of it as they played their way to a 2-0 deficit but something funny happened in the third period. The Leafs' defenders took up the charge for their fallen compatriot. First Carlo burst through the Devils' defence and pick up a nice Steen pass before deking Brodeur. Then White took a good point shot on the powerplay that was tipped in by Antro before Hal Gill scored on a shot that deflected off of Paul Martin's stick.

The Leafs looked poised to cap the comeback before Bryan McCabe and a bad bounce conspired to send the game to overtime. Nothing was settled in the extra period so the Leafs tooke their 3-6 record into the shootout. Stajan (despite deking Brodeur out of his jockstrap) and Sundin both missed their opportunities before "Don't Panic It's" Yanic Perreault, Alex Steen, and Jeff O'Neill all tallied to give God's team an improbable victory. The boys can't dwell on the win for too long as they travel home to face the Sabres who are 8-1-1 in their last 10 and just waxed the Leafs 6-1 on Tuesday. Kaberle will be out of the lineup so the team will have to show the same jam as their did in the third period last night or that effort will have been wasted.

Leafs 4 v. Devils 3 (SO): Early Thoughts

WOOOOHOOOOO!!!!!

Death to Janssen, Death to Lou, and Death to the Devils!!

More tomorrow. What a game.

One Step Forward, Two Steps Back

Leafs 5 v. Flyers 2 - Saturday February 24th
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Too often the Leafs find a way to lose games against teams like this year's Flyers. After trading away Forsberg this was a team playing the schedule out with an eye towards next season. However, on Saturday night the good guys were able to overcome any complacency (of course the next two games were a different story) to quite handily put the league's cellar dwellars to the sword. The line of Steen-O'Neill-Stajan were at their best cycling the puck well and creating numerous scoring chances. Steen and O'Neill led the way with a goal and an assist in a game in which the result was never in doubt. The win leaves the Leafs with a 3-0 lead in the season series.

Leafs 4 v. Canadiens 5 - Monday February 26th
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I defy any Leaf fans to tell me that the first two periods of this game did not give them post-traumatic stress flashbacks of the two games in March of last year which effectively killed the Leafs' playoff hopes. Against a team that borders on incompetent 5-on-5 a key to the game is to stay out of the box. When the powerplay is their one weapon and your penalty killing is 26th in the NHL it behooves a team to play disciplined.

Instead, as Raking Leafs notes, the Leafs played the part of the Montreal Canadiens in getting dominated physically while Les Habitants showed that they still possessed a bit of mettle. The third period saw Maurice juggle the lines in an attempt to revive the Leafs' flagging hopes. It worked.

The game returned to the form of the five previous games between the two storied franchises as Toronto asserted their size advantage and dictated the pace of the game. Lo and behold, the Leafs were rewarded as first Jeremy Williams and then Alex Steen tallied to bring the score to 5-4. Unfortunately, the rally ended there as Aebischer shook off the Swiss Goalie Disease to shut the door and a late, blatant high-stick on Mats was missed by all four officials.

Leafs 1 v. Sabres 6 - Tuesday February 27th
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The Leafs are running out of gas. The great stretch to start off the year has petered out into some terrible mix of MASH and Slap Shot.

This game came right out of the Bruin's book 'How to Make Leaf Fans Kick Kittens'. The Leafs came out with jump and drew three penalties in the first period and scored on none of them (Where are thou Tucker?). The Sabres promptly went down the ice and score on a rebound as the normally reliable Devereaux lost his man on the backcheck. Two bad bounces later the Leafs are down 3-0.

Finally, Ponikarovsky scores a goal and the Leafs are coming on! Unfortunately, their hands are still...somewhere in Montreal...so the chances go wanting. Then a boneheaded move by Ponikarovsky (hey, weren't you just the hero?) led to a scrambled play, another crappy bounce, and a 4-1 lead for the Sabres. 4 goals on 11 shots only tells half the story. The Leafs' shitty defensive play tells the other half. McCabe got the Alfie treatment from the home crowd which was a long time coming.

Maurice is hamstrung by the injuries to Wellwood, Tucker, and Peca. It wasn't a problem when the team was giving their all every night but that counted on contributions from guys that have never been counted upon to produce night in and night out. They were bound to hit a wall and they have done that. Unfortunately, Maurice can't institute a similar policy to that long-ago replacement coach. He cannot punish poor performance with a spot in the press box because who will he call upon?

Yanic Perreault our (Leafs) nation turns it's lonely eyes to you.

JFJ Inks Tucker to Good Deal

Don't worry people. That is not the first sign of the apocalypse. JFJ and Darcy Tucker are reportedly putting the finishing touches on a new deal for the feisty winger. This was a divisive topic within Leafs Nation as some wanted to see Tucker traded to cash in an asset at its peak (I was moving towards this view more and more) while others saw Tucker as the sort of jack-of-all-trades that the Leafs needed.

My own trepidation was based on early reports that had the negotiations centred around a 5-year deal worth between $4 and $5M per season. Tucker's injury made him almost impossible to trade for fair value and it apparently helped to depress his demands. The report states that the contract is for 3 (maybe 4 years) at an average of $3M and the no-movement clause that JFJ loves to throw around like tissues at a sens playoff party is non-existent. In its place there will likely be a no-trade clause that applies only in the last year of the contract.

All in all it's a pretty good deal in terms of length and money. Tucker had 19 goals in 39 games before getting injured and was a vital piece of the powerplay. He hits, fights, antagonizes, and fires up the team and the crowd. If he can maintain his style of play and the goal-scoring pace he has set in the last couple of years then this can be looked upon as a third great contract by JFJ (Raycroft and Kaberle being the others).

Here's a nice compilation from the guys at www.baystreetbullies.com that shows what $3M per season gets you:

Leafs 2 v. Islanders 3 (SO): Who's a D-bag?

This guy is a douchebag. Can a Catholic put a fatwah on someone's head? Who will rid me of this meddlesome referee. While not on the level of Gretzky-gate it was nonetheless another atrocious call by the head douchebag himself. If I was a Leaf and he was reffing another game this year I'd take those stripes are targets. Another lost point against an Islanders game that the Leafs for the most part dominated. Bitter Leaf Fan takes a much more reasoned approach.

I was at my sister's play, Nunsense, (HILARIOUS) so I missed the game but read The Star and you'll see that my pet peeve of player's grabbing their opponent's stick and the referees assuming that it's a hook has finally bitten the Leafs in the butt. DiPietro is a cheater and Fraser is corrupt and now the Leafs are in 10th. Flyers are up next and the Leafs need to come ready to play.

Leafs 0 v. Bruins 3: Bogey Team

The Leafs biggest weakness this season and cause of a lot of lost points has been their inability or unwillingness to jump on opponents when given the opportunity. Third period leads were lost when the Leafs did not get the next goal and teams that should have been handled have instead done the handling. Kevin McGran notes that it's a killer instinct that seems, at times, to be missing from the Leafs.

Last night was the Leafs fifth loss to the Bruins. Their games have inspired two of my more despondent posts and it usually boils down to the same problem: The Leafs do not have the high-end creative talent to break down a team that sits back and defends with five men. So much of the Leafs' offence is predicated on a successful forecheck and crashing the net. However, in the games in which the Bruins have clogged up the slot and sat back all game the Leafs have been unable to work to their strengths. How they are the only team to realize this is a mystery but thank God because if every team played the Leafs like that they would have a lot fewer points.

Luckily, the Leafs head back on the road where they apparently morph into one of the top teams in the league (4th best road record). They better find their shooting hands because Thomas is no DiPietro. Thursday night will require a much better effort. On the bright side, that game probably helped JFJ realize that trading for the future is what needs to be done at the deadline.

The Final Word

"It seems like when you're playing well, you're working hard and you do get the breaks, too," said Sundin. "Hockey is one of those sports where you do have to earn your breaks a little bit. Tonight, we didn't."

The Captain sums up the keys to the game.