Two games for Tootoo

This is just a quick update, not a full out blog, a full blog will be out tomorrow! So for all my Sabres fans that were watching the game on Saturday and were outraged by Nashville's Jordin Tootoo running over Ryan Miller, I have good news! Brendan Shanahan suspended Tootoo for two games this morning.


I'll post the video so you guys can see what happened;
As you can see, Miller was run into by Tootoo at full speed, Tootoo made no attempt to avoid hitting Miller, and even left his feet to hit Miller. "I obviously did my best to jump out of (Miller's) way," Tootoo told The (Nashville) Tennessean. "When you're going that fast and you get a little nudge (from Christian Ehrhoff) from your back right on your hips, in that split second it changes a lot of momentum. I tried to leap out of the way. If I wanted to bury (Miller), my feet would be planted and I would be in a hockey stance. But Shanahan didn't by Tootoo's excuse, this time and banned him from 2 NHL games. Now 2 games may not seem like much to Sabres fans, but I think it's a step in the right direction, it was more of a statement then a punishment for Tootoo. After the situation that unfolded between Miller and Milan Lucic, Sabres coach Lindy Ruff stated that it was now "open season" on the goalies, but Shanahan insisted it wasn't, which is why he ultimately had to suspend Jordin Tootoo, to prove that it wasn't open season. "The goaltender must feel protected in his crease," Shanahan said.

Now I am in no way defending what Tootoo did, as it was a dirty play and he fully deserved the 2 games if not a couple more for his running of Miller. There needs to be a precedent that goalies are not and never should be open season for hits. During Tootoo's 2 game suspension, will cost him $13,513.52. For Tootoo him running Miller, was bad timing, it is a topic of discussion right now, and it was Miller's first game back, from suffering a concussion form a dirty hit by Milan Lucic. So Tootoo's timing was not the best on this play. During the game Tootoo, was given a 5 minute major for charging and a game misconduct.

I'm happy that Tootoo was suspended, I believe this was the right call, and needed to be done, so player's realize that they can't just hit a goalie. I was also quite impressed with the beating Miller Laid on Tootoo, good on Miller to stand up for himself!
So as I stated earlier, this is not a full blown blog post, their will be a full blog tomorrow, about the realignment of the NHL.

Two games for Tootoo

This is just a quick update, not a full out blog, a full blog will be out tomorrow! So for all my Sabres fans that were watching the game on Saturday and were outraged by Nashville's Jordin Tootoo running over Ryan Miller, I have good news! Brendan Shanahan suspended Tootoo for two games this morning.


I'll post the video so you guys can see what happened;
As you can see, Miller was run into by Tootoo at full speed, Tootoo made no attempt to avoid hitting Miller, and even left his feet to hit Miller. "I obviously did my best to jump out of (Miller's) way," Tootoo told The (Nashville) Tennessean. "When you're going that fast and you get a little nudge (from Christian Ehrhoff) from your back right on your hips, in that split second it changes a lot of momentum. I tried to leap out of the way. If I wanted to bury (Miller), my feet would be planted and I would be in a hockey stance. But Shanahan didn't by Tootoo's excuse, this time and banned him from 2 NHL games. Now 2 games may not seem like much to Sabres fans, but I think it's a step in the right direction, it was more of a statement then a punishment for Tootoo. After the situation that unfolded between Miller and Milan Lucic, Sabres coach Lindy Ruff stated that it was now "open season" on the goalies, but Shanahan insisted it wasn't, which is why he ultimately had to suspend Jordin Tootoo, to prove that it wasn't open season. "The goaltender must feel protected in his crease," Shanahan said.

Now I am in no way defending what Tootoo did, as it was a dirty play and he fully deserved the 2 games if not a couple more for his running of Miller. There needs to be a precedent that goalies are not and never should be open season for hits. During Tootoo's 2 game suspension, will cost him $13,513.52. For Tootoo him running Miller, was bad timing, it is a topic of discussion right now, and it was Miller's first game back, from suffering a concussion form a dirty hit by Milan Lucic. So Tootoo's timing was not the best on this play. During the game Tootoo, was given a 5 minute major for charging and a game misconduct.

I'm happy that Tootoo was suspended, I believe this was the right call, and needed to be done, so player's realize that they can't just hit a goalie. I was also quite impressed with the beating Miller Laid on Tootoo, good on Miller to stand up for himself!
So as I stated earlier, this is not a full blown blog post, their will be a full blog tomorrow, about the realignment of the NHL.

Goalies return!

On Saturday night Ryan Miller and James Reimer made their returns to the net, after suffering a concussion and concussion like symptoms. Miller and Reimer are my two favorite goalies in the NHL, so I myself was quite excited to see both of them back on the ice. Their returns were quite different; one got blown out by the Bruins and the other got run over AGAIN! So let's dive into these returns and see how it effected the games.

Let's start with Miller's return to the net; in Miller's return we found out that not only can Miller stop pucks he also has a Mean Left hook. This was Miller's first start since getting hit hard by Milan Lucic in a game on November 12th, but unfortunately for Miller and the Sabres, his return was overshadowed by yet ANOTHER player running full speed into Ryan Miller. Jordin Too Too, cut toward the net and ran over Miller full speed, but this time Miller and his teammates, jumped Too Too right after the play. 

"What happened in the game is a joke. It's a joke. All it does is just prove the fact right, that when I said it was open season (on goaltenders), it appears it is open season," Sabres coach Lindy Ruff said. "You get a guy that comes off a concussion, and you've got Jordin Tootoo — Jordin Tootoo running over your goaltender? We used to get a two-minute power play for that. We got a one-minute power play out of that. That's a joke." Miller started landing left jabs on Too Too and it was quite the scene, 4 Sabres including Miller were piled upon Too Too beating the crap out of him; when all the smoke was gone; Too Too received a five-minute major for charging and a game misconduct. "He (Tootoo) is going to come hard to the net every time," Miller told The Associated Press. "I got in the mix right after that. I can't sit back and let other guys take advantage of me. "I got right in the pileup and tried to do what I could do, which wasn't a whole lot. But I showed that I am not going to take it." it was extremely sad to see Too Too go and do everything he possibly could to again injure Ryan Miller, anyways I'm not going to get fully into this situation, all I will say is that Too Too rightfully has a hearing with Shanahan Monday Morning. I highly doubt Shanahan will do anything with Too Too, sorry but it's the truth Shanahan has been a little to inconsistent for my liking. Anyways back to the actual game that was happening before and after this incident. Miller played amazing! The way he played on Saturday night would apply that the old Miller is back, which is great news for the Sabres, they need the old Miller in between the pipes if they intend to go far! Miller made several amazing saves, that are potentially the best saves of the season. So I was quite pleased to see Miller play so well and get the Sabres a much needed victory! Miller made 32 saves in his return on Saturday night, and many of them were challenging shots; “I’m happy to be back,” Miller said. “I’m happy to get a win. It has been a while since I have felt like I have put together a game I could pride myself in. It was important for me to go out there and play a solid game. I did the things I wanted to do" The way Miller played instills a hope in Sabres fans that the old Miller is back and ready to win some hockey games for his team. needless to day it was great to see Miller back in the net fighting hard to get the win, I though he played a pretty decent game, but most importantly he got a win. But like always goalies can't do it all on their own, so to help solidify the win for their goalie; Luke Adam, Zack Kassian and Tyler Ennis all put the puck in the back of the net, giving Miller more than enough goal support for him to do his thing. it's fairly safe to say that the Predators outplayed the Sabres, who were limited to just 14 shots, while the Predators racked up 34, emphasizing the importance of Miller's return, I'm not sure if the Sabres would have had the same out come if Enroth had been in net. It was a good thing Miller and his teammates pounced on Too Too as there is no chance for another second chance, Saturday was the only time this season these two teams will meet. Despite the fact the Sabres scored 3 goals, I'd like to say that Miller stole the game for his team; just look at the difference in shots, seems to me like Miller was able to stand on his head and withstand the pressure, sure he let in 2 goals, but no goalie is perfect. I'm happy to see Miller back in between the pipes, can't wait to see what he will do in his next game, if he continues playing like he did on Saturday we should be seeing a few more wins chalking up in the win column for the Sabres.

Let's move on to the Leafs game which marked a surprising start by James Reimer. Why was this surprising? Because Ron Wilson had earlier reported after Friday's practice to the media that Jonas Gustavsson would be starting the Saturday game against the Bruins, then later changed his mind and thew Reimer in the net.  It was a smart move by Wilson to me, in the first 3 meetings between these two teams, the Bruins won by a combined score of 19-5, but since Reimer was 4-01 with a 2.58 GAA and a .912 save percentage before his injury, it seemed like a good move to put the goalie who never seems to get fazed by anything. Plus it was a good move to not throw Gustavsson under the bus, imagine if it had been Gustavsson in net getting bombed, all his haters would be out in full swing. Reimer had missed 18 games since getting hit by Brain Gionta on October 22. But unfortunately Reimer's return didn't quite turn out as well as expected, the Leafs got dominated by the Bruins and lost 4-1. “During November, we’ve been playing really well,” said defenceman Johnny Boychuk, who scored a goal to help the Bruins beat the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-1 on Saturday night – their 13th win in 14 games. “We just needed to make sure we started December the same way.” But the Bruins also had a surprise up their sleeves, while all the media were focusing on Reimer's return to the net, and why head coach Ron Wilson "lied" to them about the starting goalie, the Bruins decided to play Tukka Rask instead of the expected Tim Thomas. “It’s always tough (to sit), no matter if you win or lose,” Rask said. “You’re eager to keep the winning streak going, at least give the team a chance to win.” Reimer stopped 26 shots in his return and all in all had a decent game despite allowing 4 goals; “He was very solid, looked like he hadn’t missed a beat,” Toronto coach Ron Wilson said. “But we didn’t help him very much.” Wilson was very right, the Leafs did not help out their netminder at all, through 2 periods Phil Kessel was the only one with multiple shots on Tukka Rask. At the moment it is looking very tough to beat the defending cup champions who went 12-0-1 during the month of November, and just had their 100th straight sell out game! Kessel has not had a lot of success against his former club, scoring just 2 goals and 5 assists in 16 games against the Bruins, and he was held scoreless in the game on Saturday as well. Grabovski was the one bright spot for the Leafs who scored the one goal for the Leafs, on a sweet one timer around the hash-marks that sneaked right under the cross bar over Tukka Rask's shoulder. So Reimer got back in the net after recovering form concussion like symptoms, not a concussion, just concussion like symptoms! “I was happy with how we played in the first two periods,’’ observed Wilson-pants-on-fire afterwards. “But the third period, they just ground it out and we couldn’t get the puck out of our zone — a few extended shifts, some breakdowns, a bid of bad luck.’’ Reimer was disappointed with his play despite stopping 26 of 30 shots against the Bruins;

“That third goal, to me, it’s embarrassing. I have to make that save. If I have that shot, we have a chance to win.“The way I see it, Rask outplayed me today. That frustrates me more than anything.’ When all is said and done, the Leafs did not help Reimer out, which is something they didn't do, if Reimer had only let in 2 goals the Leafs still would have lost.

So my two favorite goalies were back on the ice on Saturday, and they both played pretty well, I'm very happy to see them both back, and helping out their teams. Reimer has a bright future whether it be Toronto or somewhere else, he is going to be a solid net minder for a long time, Miller is nearing the end of his career, but is showing folks that he can still get the job done as the number 1. Despite his age Miller is and will continue to be a solid number one goalie for a few more years and I think it's safe to say that Miller is coming back to his old awesome form. I'm behind both of these goalies 100 percent. Looking forward to seeing how well these goalies will play now that they are both back and have already faced some adversity this season.

Goalies return!

On Saturday night Ryan Miller and James Reimer made their returns to the net, after suffering a concussion and concussion like symptoms. Miller and Reimer are my two favorite goalies in the NHL, so I myself was quite excited to see both of them back on the ice. Their returns were quite different; one got blown out by the Bruins and the other got run over AGAIN! So let's dive into these returns and see how it effected the games.

Let's start with Miller's return to the net; in Miller's return we found out that not only can Miller stop pucks he also has a Mean Left hook. This was Miller's first start since getting hit hard by Milan Lucic in a game on November 12th, but unfortunately for Miller and the Sabres, his return was overshadowed by yet ANOTHER player running full speed into Ryan Miller. Jordin Too Too, cut toward the net and ran over Miller full speed, but this time Miller and his teammates, jumped Too Too right after the play. 

"What happened in the game is a joke. It's a joke. All it does is just prove the fact right, that when I said it was open season (on goaltenders), it appears it is open season," Sabres coach Lindy Ruff said. "You get a guy that comes off a concussion, and you've got Jordin Tootoo — Jordin Tootoo running over your goaltender? We used to get a two-minute power play for that. We got a one-minute power play out of that. That's a joke." Miller started landing left jabs on Too Too and it was quite the scene, 4 Sabres including Miller were piled upon Too Too beating the crap out of him; when all the smoke was gone; Too Too received a five-minute major for charging and a game misconduct. "He (Tootoo) is going to come hard to the net every time," Miller told The Associated Press. "I got in the mix right after that. I can't sit back and let other guys take advantage of me. "I got right in the pileup and tried to do what I could do, which wasn't a whole lot. But I showed that I am not going to take it." it was extremely sad to see Too Too go and do everything he possibly could to again injure Ryan Miller, anyways I'm not going to get fully into this situation, all I will say is that Too Too rightfully has a hearing with Shanahan Monday Morning. I highly doubt Shanahan will do anything with Too Too, sorry but it's the truth Shanahan has been a little to inconsistent for my liking. Anyways back to the actual game that was happening before and after this incident. Miller played amazing! The way he played on Saturday night would apply that the old Miller is back, which is great news for the Sabres, they need the old Miller in between the pipes if they intend to go far! Miller made several amazing saves, that are potentially the best saves of the season. So I was quite pleased to see Miller play so well and get the Sabres a much needed victory! Miller made 32 saves in his return on Saturday night, and many of them were challenging shots; “I’m happy to be back,” Miller said. “I’m happy to get a win. It has been a while since I have felt like I have put together a game I could pride myself in. It was important for me to go out there and play a solid game. I did the things I wanted to do" The way Miller played instills a hope in Sabres fans that the old Miller is back and ready to win some hockey games for his team. needless to day it was great to see Miller back in the net fighting hard to get the win, I though he played a pretty decent game, but most importantly he got a win. But like always goalies can't do it all on their own, so to help solidify the win for their goalie; Luke Adam, Zack Kassian and Tyler Ennis all put the puck in the back of the net, giving Miller more than enough goal support for him to do his thing. it's fairly safe to say that the Predators outplayed the Sabres, who were limited to just 14 shots, while the Predators racked up 34, emphasizing the importance of Miller's return, I'm not sure if the Sabres would have had the same out come if Enroth had been in net. It was a good thing Miller and his teammates pounced on Too Too as there is no chance for another second chance, Saturday was the only time this season these two teams will meet. Despite the fact the Sabres scored 3 goals, I'd like to say that Miller stole the game for his team; just look at the difference in shots, seems to me like Miller was able to stand on his head and withstand the pressure, sure he let in 2 goals, but no goalie is perfect. I'm happy to see Miller back in between the pipes, can't wait to see what he will do in his next game, if he continues playing like he did on Saturday we should be seeing a few more wins chalking up in the win column for the Sabres.

Let's move on to the Leafs game which marked a surprising start by James Reimer. Why was this surprising? Because Ron Wilson had earlier reported after Friday's practice to the media that Jonas Gustavsson would be starting the Saturday game against the Bruins, then later changed his mind and thew Reimer in the net.  It was a smart move by Wilson to me, in the first 3 meetings between these two teams, the Bruins won by a combined score of 19-5, but since Reimer was 4-01 with a 2.58 GAA and a .912 save percentage before his injury, it seemed like a good move to put the goalie who never seems to get fazed by anything. Plus it was a good move to not throw Gustavsson under the bus, imagine if it had been Gustavsson in net getting bombed, all his haters would be out in full swing. Reimer had missed 18 games since getting hit by Brain Gionta on October 22. But unfortunately Reimer's return didn't quite turn out as well as expected, the Leafs got dominated by the Bruins and lost 4-1. “During November, we’ve been playing really well,” said defenceman Johnny Boychuk, who scored a goal to help the Bruins beat the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-1 on Saturday night – their 13th win in 14 games. “We just needed to make sure we started December the same way.” But the Bruins also had a surprise up their sleeves, while all the media were focusing on Reimer's return to the net, and why head coach Ron Wilson "lied" to them about the starting goalie, the Bruins decided to play Tukka Rask instead of the expected Tim Thomas. “It’s always tough (to sit), no matter if you win or lose,” Rask said. “You’re eager to keep the winning streak going, at least give the team a chance to win.” Reimer stopped 26 shots in his return and all in all had a decent game despite allowing 4 goals; “He was very solid, looked like he hadn’t missed a beat,” Toronto coach Ron Wilson said. “But we didn’t help him very much.” Wilson was very right, the Leafs did not help out their netminder at all, through 2 periods Phil Kessel was the only one with multiple shots on Tukka Rask. At the moment it is looking very tough to beat the defending cup champions who went 12-0-1 during the month of November, and just had their 100th straight sell out game! Kessel has not had a lot of success against his former club, scoring just 2 goals and 5 assists in 16 games against the Bruins, and he was held scoreless in the game on Saturday as well. Grabovski was the one bright spot for the Leafs who scored the one goal for the Leafs, on a sweet one timer around the hash-marks that sneaked right under the cross bar over Tukka Rask's shoulder. So Reimer got back in the net after recovering form concussion like symptoms, not a concussion, just concussion like symptoms! “I was happy with how we played in the first two periods,’’ observed Wilson-pants-on-fire afterwards. “But the third period, they just ground it out and we couldn’t get the puck out of our zone — a few extended shifts, some breakdowns, a bid of bad luck.’’ Reimer was disappointed with his play despite stopping 26 of 30 shots against the Bruins;

“That third goal, to me, it’s embarrassing. I have to make that save. If I have that shot, we have a chance to win.“The way I see it, Rask outplayed me today. That frustrates me more than anything.’ When all is said and done, the Leafs did not help Reimer out, which is something they didn't do, if Reimer had only let in 2 goals the Leafs still would have lost.

So my two favorite goalies were back on the ice on Saturday, and they both played pretty well, I'm very happy to see them both back, and helping out their teams. Reimer has a bright future whether it be Toronto or somewhere else, he is going to be a solid net minder for a long time, Miller is nearing the end of his career, but is showing folks that he can still get the job done as the number 1. Despite his age Miller is and will continue to be a solid number one goalie for a few more years and I think it's safe to say that Miller is coming back to his old awesome form. I'm behind both of these goalies 100 percent. Looking forward to seeing how well these goalies will play now that they are both back and have already faced some adversity this season.

To sign or not to sign

Hey Leaf fans, I haven't written a blog for you guys in a while, so I thought it was about time to appease you guys. Time to write a blog about Ron Wilson's contract situation; Should Brian Burke resign him now or later.

Ron Wilson has not exactly been overall popular in Toronto during his tenure as head coach of the Leafs, and it is no easy task. Being the coach of the Toronto Maple Leafs in this hockey driven market, can drive almost any one to their breaking point, answer for all the loses, the poor play, missing the playoffs year after year, players not playing well, and how long until you lose your job. But this year it has been a little easier for Wilson and the media he loathes so much, this year the questions are more positive; can you explain Phil Kessel's amazing play, why is this team playing so well, When will Burke resign you.

That is the big question this year in TO, besides the obvious goal of ending a post season playoff drought of 6 years, will Wilson receive a contract extension from Brian Burke or will he ultimately be let go, and look for his 5th team to coach. On  Wednesday when Randy Carlyle was let go by the Ducks, rumors started to fly that Carlyle would be ideal to replace Wilson, and that is why there have been no new contract offers to Wilson. Not to mention the fact the Burke and Carlyle teamed up to win a Stanley Cup with the Ducks in 2007. But Brian Burke took to Twitter to defend his head coach, and imply that there is no coaching changes in the near future. Burke twitted; “Sad to hear about Randy Carlyle,” “But our coach isn’t going anywhere!” Seems to me that Burke wants to remain loyal to Wilson, and at the very least let him rid out his 4 year contract. But even before the season started the talk was about why Wilson had not received a new contract yet, and if that was bothering him. But so far this season there has been no opportunity to fire Wilson even if Burke wanted too, Wilson has this team playing well, in fact very well, right near the top of the Eastern Conference, something no one saw coming. So a coaching change at this point in the season would not be sensible.

Alright so let's dive right in on this one, I do believe Burke should resign Wilson, but not till after Christmas at the earliest or the end of February at the latest. See how this team responds to their strong start from before the break to after the break. But let's be honest here, Wilson hasn't exactly had the worst 4 years here in TO, yes he's only had 1 winning season and has missed the post season in the past 3, but they haven't been absolutely horrible seasons. He has reached 30 wins in all 3 seasons, and the Leafs have been right on the edge of the playoffs. He was even named the Head coach for the USA Olympic Mens hockey team in 2010. S he sure as heck isn't a horrible coach, plus in the first 3 seasons with the Leafs, they were still in the rebuilding stage; restocking the minors and getting rid of players who didn't really want to play hard. But now, the Marlies are filled with players who want to reach the NHL level and make a difference, and the players currently playing for the Leafs are battling hard to earn their spot in the line-up each and every game. For the first time in a very long time the players know if they don't give it their all, they will face the reality of being a "healthy scratch" or be sent down to the Marlies. It would also appear that Wilson has learned to handle the media a lot better, he now uses a sense of humor, and doesn't take it to seriously like a good Leaf coach, don't worry about the media. Right now the young players on this team are especially buying into Wilson is saying; look how well Bozak has played, and if my biased opinion means anything, I'd say he is doing just fine on the first line with Kessel and Lupul, no need to demote him to third! Most remarkably look at how well rookie Jake Gardiner has played; coming into camp, steeling a spot and being able to stay in the line-up consistently thus far, plus he is becoming a reliable D man, and is showing great maturity. Even Phil Kessel seems to have drunken the Ron Wilson Kool-aid, look at how well he is playing, not just offensively but more of a complete game. But what is even more amazing is how much these players have grown to like Ron Wilson, yes that is correct they LIKE their head coach! 6 or 7 of the players including Phaneuf, Schenn, Bozak and Grabovski all went to Brian Burke and asked him to keep Wilson around for this season because they wanted to play well and save their coaches job, that is saying something! for NHL players to approach their GM and petition him to keep the head coach, Wilson must be doing something right.

With the Leafs off to arguably their best season since the lockout starting at 14-8, and currently have the leading NHL scorer in Phil Kessel. All the lines are meshing (minus the grabo-kulemin line), but other than them, the lines are producing and showing great chemistry. So it begs the question why not print the papers and sign Wilson for another few seasons? Here's why; why sign a coach that is still yet to prove themselves, despite everything Wilson is doing, he still has not made the playoffs in his 3 seasons as Leafs head coach. Yes the Leafs are currently sitting snug in the top in the Eastern conference, they are a 5 game losing streak away from missing the playoffs for the 7th straight season. On Thursday morning the Leafs had 30 points, the New Jersey Devils who are currently in 9th have 25 points, not a huge margin of error for this young Leafs squad, who may get a rude awakening, once teams start to figure out how to properly play the Leafs. So yes Wilson has led this squad near the top of the conference, but he is just as close to being out of a playoff spot and have the negative attention of the Toronto media, thrust back on him and his team. Now Burke isn't fond of having head coaches play out the last year of their contracts without a back-up deal, but the fact that Wilson and Burke have a great relationship that dates all the way back to their college days, has to stand for something between these two, and maybe a silent nod of agreement for now. But to sign a guy less than half way through the season, who has yet to lead his team to the post-season is very rare and likely not going to happen. Why would you? Despite the Leafs being 32-17-8 since last seasons all star break under Wilson, those numbers mean nothing IF the Leafs Miss the post season again! All the good things we just talked about go out the window and Wilson will be back on the firing block again. Lets take a stroll down memory lane shall we; remember Pat Quinn, he was fired after only failing to make the post season 1 time in the last 7 years, he consistently brought the Leafs to the post season 7 times but got fired for one mistake.

It is in all likely hood that Wilson will finish off the season without a contract, if the Leafs make the post season Wilson will stay, if they fail to do that, Wilson and Burke will "part" ways. Wilson and Burke are long time friends, I highly doubt he will officially fire Wilson; plus Burke has already virtually told Wilson that if he makes the post season he has a job for another season at least. Wilson finally has the "tools" to make this team successful, now it is up to him to get the "tool" to do the job! It would be nice to see Dallas Eakins of the Toronto Marlies called up to be the next head coach if things don't work out with Wilson, after all he is doing an amazing job with the young ones down in the Marlies, and is extremely good at developing players. But Burke will have to do some very careful thinking on his next move, resigning Wilson to a long term contract, could cost the Leafs, Dallas Eakins. Eakins wont want to stay a AHL coach forever, and many teams are in need of new coaches, so if Wilson stays Eakins could go!
Just a little interesting tidbit of information, the Leafs currently have 16 Canadian born hockey players on their roster, I'm glad a Canadian team, is dressing so many Canadians. Hockey lives in Canada!

To sign or not to sign

Hey Leaf fans, I haven't written a blog for you guys in a while, so I thought it was about time to appease you guys. Time to write a blog about Ron Wilson's contract situation; Should Brian Burke resign him now or later.

Ron Wilson has not exactly been overall popular in Toronto during his tenure as head coach of the Leafs, and it is no easy task. Being the coach of the Toronto Maple Leafs in this hockey driven market, can drive almost any one to their breaking point, answer for all the loses, the poor play, missing the playoffs year after year, players not playing well, and how long until you lose your job. But this year it has been a little easier for Wilson and the media he loathes so much, this year the questions are more positive; can you explain Phil Kessel's amazing play, why is this team playing so well, When will Burke resign you.

That is the big question this year in TO, besides the obvious goal of ending a post season playoff drought of 6 years, will Wilson receive a contract extension from Brian Burke or will he ultimately be let go, and look for his 5th team to coach. On  Wednesday when Randy Carlyle was let go by the Ducks, rumors started to fly that Carlyle would be ideal to replace Wilson, and that is why there have been no new contract offers to Wilson. Not to mention the fact the Burke and Carlyle teamed up to win a Stanley Cup with the Ducks in 2007. But Brian Burke took to Twitter to defend his head coach, and imply that there is no coaching changes in the near future. Burke twitted; “Sad to hear about Randy Carlyle,” “But our coach isn’t going anywhere!” Seems to me that Burke wants to remain loyal to Wilson, and at the very least let him rid out his 4 year contract. But even before the season started the talk was about why Wilson had not received a new contract yet, and if that was bothering him. But so far this season there has been no opportunity to fire Wilson even if Burke wanted too, Wilson has this team playing well, in fact very well, right near the top of the Eastern Conference, something no one saw coming. So a coaching change at this point in the season would not be sensible.

Alright so let's dive right in on this one, I do believe Burke should resign Wilson, but not till after Christmas at the earliest or the end of February at the latest. See how this team responds to their strong start from before the break to after the break. But let's be honest here, Wilson hasn't exactly had the worst 4 years here in TO, yes he's only had 1 winning season and has missed the post season in the past 3, but they haven't been absolutely horrible seasons. He has reached 30 wins in all 3 seasons, and the Leafs have been right on the edge of the playoffs. He was even named the Head coach for the USA Olympic Mens hockey team in 2010. S he sure as heck isn't a horrible coach, plus in the first 3 seasons with the Leafs, they were still in the rebuilding stage; restocking the minors and getting rid of players who didn't really want to play hard. But now, the Marlies are filled with players who want to reach the NHL level and make a difference, and the players currently playing for the Leafs are battling hard to earn their spot in the line-up each and every game. For the first time in a very long time the players know if they don't give it their all, they will face the reality of being a "healthy scratch" or be sent down to the Marlies. It would also appear that Wilson has learned to handle the media a lot better, he now uses a sense of humor, and doesn't take it to seriously like a good Leaf coach, don't worry about the media. Right now the young players on this team are especially buying into Wilson is saying; look how well Bozak has played, and if my biased opinion means anything, I'd say he is doing just fine on the first line with Kessel and Lupul, no need to demote him to third! Most remarkably look at how well rookie Jake Gardiner has played; coming into camp, steeling a spot and being able to stay in the line-up consistently thus far, plus he is becoming a reliable D man, and is showing great maturity. Even Phil Kessel seems to have drunken the Ron Wilson Kool-aid, look at how well he is playing, not just offensively but more of a complete game. But what is even more amazing is how much these players have grown to like Ron Wilson, yes that is correct they LIKE their head coach! 6 or 7 of the players including Phaneuf, Schenn, Bozak and Grabovski all went to Brian Burke and asked him to keep Wilson around for this season because they wanted to play well and save their coaches job, that is saying something! for NHL players to approach their GM and petition him to keep the head coach, Wilson must be doing something right.

With the Leafs off to arguably their best season since the lockout starting at 14-8, and currently have the leading NHL scorer in Phil Kessel. All the lines are meshing (minus the grabo-kulemin line), but other than them, the lines are producing and showing great chemistry. So it begs the question why not print the papers and sign Wilson for another few seasons? Here's why; why sign a coach that is still yet to prove themselves, despite everything Wilson is doing, he still has not made the playoffs in his 3 seasons as Leafs head coach. Yes the Leafs are currently sitting snug in the top in the Eastern conference, they are a 5 game losing streak away from missing the playoffs for the 7th straight season. On Thursday morning the Leafs had 30 points, the New Jersey Devils who are currently in 9th have 25 points, not a huge margin of error for this young Leafs squad, who may get a rude awakening, once teams start to figure out how to properly play the Leafs. So yes Wilson has led this squad near the top of the conference, but he is just as close to being out of a playoff spot and have the negative attention of the Toronto media, thrust back on him and his team. Now Burke isn't fond of having head coaches play out the last year of their contracts without a back-up deal, but the fact that Wilson and Burke have a great relationship that dates all the way back to their college days, has to stand for something between these two, and maybe a silent nod of agreement for now. But to sign a guy less than half way through the season, who has yet to lead his team to the post-season is very rare and likely not going to happen. Why would you? Despite the Leafs being 32-17-8 since last seasons all star break under Wilson, those numbers mean nothing IF the Leafs Miss the post season again! All the good things we just talked about go out the window and Wilson will be back on the firing block again. Lets take a stroll down memory lane shall we; remember Pat Quinn, he was fired after only failing to make the post season 1 time in the last 7 years, he consistently brought the Leafs to the post season 7 times but got fired for one mistake.

It is in all likely hood that Wilson will finish off the season without a contract, if the Leafs make the post season Wilson will stay, if they fail to do that, Wilson and Burke will "part" ways. Wilson and Burke are long time friends, I highly doubt he will officially fire Wilson; plus Burke has already virtually told Wilson that if he makes the post season he has a job for another season at least. Wilson finally has the "tools" to make this team successful, now it is up to him to get the "tool" to do the job! It would be nice to see Dallas Eakins of the Toronto Marlies called up to be the next head coach if things don't work out with Wilson, after all he is doing an amazing job with the young ones down in the Marlies, and is extremely good at developing players. But Burke will have to do some very careful thinking on his next move, resigning Wilson to a long term contract, could cost the Leafs, Dallas Eakins. Eakins wont want to stay a AHL coach forever, and many teams are in need of new coaches, so if Wilson stays Eakins could go!
Just a little interesting tidbit of information, the Leafs currently have 16 Canadian born hockey players on their roster, I'm glad a Canadian team, is dressing so many Canadians. Hockey lives in Canada!