| Jeff Cargerman. 28th December, 2008 - 1:17 pm
 The Leafs have been stuck in mediocrity the last three seasons. While they have missed out on the playoffs the past three years, they have played respectably, missing the postseason usually by only a couple of points every year. The Original Six team is one of the most storied franchises in the NHL with 13 Stanley Cups and a rich history of great players. However, the Leafs have not won a Cup since 1967, and this year looks like history will keep on repeating itself. Toronto is presently on the outside of the playoff picture looking in. They only have 34 points through 35 games, sitting 11th in the Eastern Conference postseason race.
On November 29th, 2008 the fortunes of Toronto Maple Leafs’ fans in Ontario finally changed for the better. That was the day the organization lured front office genius Brian Burke away from the Anaheim Ducks.
Burke was in Anaheim as their General Manager for only three seasons. In those three seasons, however, the Ducks were a Western Conference powerhouse, ultimately winning a Stanley Cup in the 2006-07 NHL season. Toronto fans hope that Burke can get the Leafs over the top as he did with the Ducks.
The apparent problem with the Maple Leafs that Burke will have to address is the lack of a team identity. Teams like the Chicago Blackhawks, Pittsburgh Penguins, and Vancouver Canucks all have players synonymous with their respective franchises. When you think of those teams the first thing that pops into your head is Toews and Kane, Crosby and Malkin, and Roberto Luongo. The Maple Leafs simply do not have that “it” factor or player going for them.
Toronto has an abundant amount of role players but no stars. Their point leader this season is 25 year old center Matt Stajan with 30 points in 34 games. He is already topping last year’s offensive output, but he does not project to be a front line center, nor the face of the franchise. On the forecheck, the Leafs also have solid forwards Nik Antropov and Alexei Ponikarovsky, 2nd and 3rd in points on team, respectively. Antropov and Ponikarovsky are great 2nd or 3rd line type wingers, but they are certainly not the top line forwards that the Leafs desire.
The Leaf’s goaltending is what is really holding the team back from making the Stanley Cup playoffs this season. Toronto has the forwards and defensemen to perhaps sneak in at a 7th or 8th seed, but their top netminder Vesa Toskala is not performing up to last year’s play. In the 2007-08 season, Toskala won 33 games and had a respectable 2.74 goals against average. This year,however, he is giving up an average of 3.32 goals a game and has a horrid .881 save percentage. With play like that between the pipes, there is no hope for the Maple Leafs this season.
The Maple Leafs were going nowhere fast until the day that ownership was able to snag the apparent savior Brian Burke from Anaheim. However, a turnaround is not going to just happen overnight for the Toronto Maple Leafs. First, Burke will have to address the plethora of bad contracts paralyzing the team’s payroll. If Burke can move some of those contracts and with the Leafs presently 7 million dollars under the salary cap, then this offseason should be a lively one for the city of Toronto. Superstars like Henrik Zetterberg, Marian Gaborik, and Marian Hossa will all be available via free agency on the open market after the season. If the Leafs can land a player like that, then Brian Burke will be well on his way to a masterminding a second Stanley Cup winner and returning a great franchise to glory. |
