Singing the blues in T.O

As hockey fans, there is something you never want to see, whether you are a fan or not, is the boys wearing the blue and white with the maple leaf on their chests give up! As sad as that is, it is ultimately what is happening in Toronto. When a team hurts their number 1 (arguably) goalie during the warm up, then nearly injures their 4th string net minder before the game has even started, you know the players minds are elsewhere. Then you start the game with said 4th string goalie who's scared out of his mind and don't give him any support or help - that's unconscionable! The blue and white are beat down, tired and honestly can't wait for the season to end, but it's not fair how they have just quit; not fair to the goalies, coaches and most importantly the fans who pay huge bucks to see them play like crap!
In early January the Leafs just fell off a cliff, they were doing well, everyone was happy, there was excitement in T.o........ fast forward 6 weeks and 14 teams have passed them in league-wide standings! What the heck happened? I'm going to try and narrow it down to 3 reasons the Leafs are in this mess. BUT one thing I am not going to do is blame the GM or coach, no matter how bad a job you think Brian Burke or Randy Carlysle are doing, when it's all said and done it's up to the players to do their job!

1. Goaltending
As much as I like James Reimer he is not a number one goaltender; last season he came out of nowhere, no one knew him there were no expectations hence he was phenomenal. People now know him, players have studied him add to that the high expectations and Reimer has shown he just couldn't handle it. He's a young goalie who wasn't ready to be thrust into the number 1 position. Gustavsson was also not ready to be a number one goalie, he'd always been a backup since joining the Leafs. As much as he saved the Leafs season during the stretch when Reimer was out, he's lost his confidence. Looking back, the Leafs went into the 2011-2012 season without a number one goalie, they were relying on 2, young fairly inexperienced goalies to step up and take this team back to the playoffs, which was unfair and unrealistic (Burke?). Whatever way you want to spin it; neither Gustavsson or Reimer has played well this season, Gustavsson has been a slightly less bad but in a disastrous season does that really matter? The sad thing is the team has no confidence in either goalie, and that's a recipe for disaster, when players think every time the opposition has a scoring chance it's going in, the players start playing differently (worse).
I hate being harsh on goalies I really do, but the Leafs need a new netminder; they will likely lose Gustavsson in the offseason and Reimer could use another year or two as a back up learning his craft at the NHL level. These two goalies don't cut it, they need a solid goalie they can rely on. Whether they work some magic and get Schnieder (unlikely) or someone else, if the Leafs don't get a number one net minder they will go no where!
Another issue with trying to go out and acquire a new goalie, is the Leafs goalie coach Francois Alluire. Although Burke thinks he's amazing, he's actually hurting the Leafs. He tries to change each goalies style, many of whom don't play well with the new style. Look a goalie playing in the NHL obviously knows a thing or to about being a good goalie, their style got them to the NHL. Changing their style is the worst thing you can do for a goalie mentally! Reimer was just fine in his first year when Alluire didn't have a lot of time to mess with him, but a full season with that goalie coach and Reimer is one of the worst goalies in the league!

2. Leadership
Whether you agree or not Dion Phaneuf has not been a good captain this season! As you know I don't agree with him being the captain, I think they should take the C away from him at the end of the season!

I think one of the major reasons Phaneuf has been struggling is the Leafs have tried to change his style of play. Phaneuf is a heavy hitter, not a responsible D man who plays 25 minutes a night. If you look Phaneuf is hitting less and less (unless it's against a rookie), doesn't fight anymore and isn't the mean Phaneuf everyone is used too. When you think about it, the way he plays he should be averaging 15 minutes a night, but they have him out there for 25 minutes which explains why he's always so tired in the third period! Phaneuf has not led this team, if you look at the Leafs now, they're discouraged and look lost, the captain is supposed to help rally his teammates, something he has not done this season. Other than the fact he's in charge of the Ipod in the dressing room what is he doing to benefit the team?
Phaneuf is one of the softest captains in the league this season and couldn't lead the Leafs out of a plastic bag! He's not there for his teammates, in the pathetic humiliating loss against the Flyers last night, he should have stepped up, fought someone and given the young rookie goalie some confidence, pound the crap out of anyone who touches him! He also turned down a fight after he pummeled Brayden Schenn with a cross check to the head! How about that 8-0 loss to the Bruins, he did absolutely nothing, he is a liability out there, that's not something you want from your captain!

3. Overpaid players not stepping
Tim Connolly has 31 points this season through 62 games, en route to the worst statistical year in his 11 year career! Not to mention he was stuck on the third line for most of the season; considering the Leafs gave him 2 years at $9.5 million and expected him to be the centre for Kessel this move has not panned out as of yet! Heck he's been paired with 13 different line mates! Connolly played fairly well early on in the season recording 12 points in his first 13 games, but his scoring has dried up as of late with just 19 points over the last 49 games (not including last night).

Colby Armstrong, was give a 3 year $3 million contract (too much in my opinion) he's not worth it, he was given an A to be an assistant captain yet spent a large portion of the season under head coach Ron Wilson in the press box as a healthy scratch! A waste of money, for a player who isn't worth it, he's a 3rd/4th line grinder scores a few goals and just fills the gaps!

Mike Komisarek, another player wearing an A yet spending lots of time in the press box! He's currently in the middle of a 5 year $4.5 million per year contact, too much to pay for a guy who's sitting in the press box most of the season! Then when he does get to play he plays atrocious defence, has turnovers, falls down, its just nasty! Considering he's one of the bottom 2 defenseman on the Leafs, so he should not be getting paid nearly as much as he is!

The Leafs are the highest paid team in the bottom 10 of the league, so either they need to smarten up with contracts or these players need to step up and earn their money. I wish there was an option for players who didn't perform up to their new contracts standards being required to give some of their money back or renegotiate a new contract. I know it sounds stupid and it will never happen, but it might actually help the Leafs!

The Leafs are in a terrible spot right now, 25th in the league, 2nd last in the East and looking for answers! Their passion and pride has been sucked away, they aren't giving it their all and they're sad to watch, no wait they're funny to watch. I tweeted last night that watching the Leafs is like a comedy, how many goals can they let in, how long can their home losing streak continue. This has to be one of the worst responses to a coaching change I have ever seen!
The Leafs need to improve drastically the sad thing is it could be another 2 years before we see a decent Leafs team, how much more can fans handle!?

Captain no Captain

I'm going to get right to the point here, Dion Phaneuf may wear the "C" symbolizing he is the captain of the Toronto Maple Leafs, but Phaneuf does not lead this team and is frankly not captain material. You have to wonder why the Calgary Flames let go of their prized first round draft pick, who was supposed to be the future of the team- I think Leafs fans are getting a clear picture.

The Calgary Flames drafted Phaneuf 9th overall in 2003, had his rookie season in 2005 in which he scored 20 goals and broke a Flames record for goals scored by a rookie, and became just the 3rd defenseman in NHL history to score 20 goals as a rookie. He was the semi finalist for the Calder trophy losing only to Alexander Ovechkin. He then followed that up with a whopping 50 point season, but after his sophomore year his play started to drop drastically! He had a career low 11 goals and 47 assists and a plus/minus of -11 a rating that is horrid for an NHL defenseman. Questions quickly came about Phaneuf's commitment to defense, the Flames defended him and then threw him to Leafs like a hot potato. The Flames were anxious to dump Phaneuf, but Why?
How desperate were the Flames to dump Phaneuf? Well look at the trade; They took on Matt Stajan, Ian White, Nikalas Hagman and Jamal Mayers (only Stajan is still on the Flames roster) in exchange for, potential franchise player Dion Phaneuf, Keith Aulie and Fredrik Sjostrom. Talk about a steal for the Leafs!

Upon arrival in Toronto, Phaneuf played 26 games scored 2 goals and added 8 assists, and then was named the 18th captain of the Toronto Maple Leafs. Yes that's right you read that correctly after playing just 26 games he was appointed the Leafs' Captain! In a recent poll done by Sports Illustrated magazine, Dion Phaneuf was named the most overrated player in the NHL by fellow NHLers and I'm starting to see why.

I don't know if it's just this season but Phaneuf looks absolutely atrocious out on the ice, it is extremely easy for opposing players to skate around him and get a solid scoring chance. From what I've seen when Phaneuf is out there on D, it's a liability to the Leafs and that's certainly not something you want from your captain! It's ridiculous when watching him play D, players skate right around him and he looks like he's probably the worst player I've seen above squirts skating backwards! Phaneuf was Ron Wilson's captain, he could do no wrong in the eyes of the former coach and was given full reign over the team and players, but Wilson is gone, Carlyle is in. The way Phaneuf is playing D right now is not what Carlyle wants or expects, I kind of wish he'd strip Phaneuf of his captaincy.

A captain is supposed to be a leader on the team, step up to the plate and take responsibility for not only their own play but the play of their team. If I'm the Leafs coaching staff or management I don't want any young defenseman following in Phaneuf's footsteps! He jumps up in the rush at the wrong times, coughs up the puck before getting it in the oppositions end, is far too easy to go around, doesn't back check hard enough, and misses the freaking net 80% of the time! Doesn't matter how good your shot is if it misses the net!
He is too offensively minded, he doesn't worry nearly as much as he should about his play in the defensive end, he's more offensively focused! He is far too lackadaisical out there, like he doesn't care and frankly he doesn't!

He doesn't care because he was just handed the role of captain, he didn't have to work for it, prove he could handle it or frankly earn it. They didn't give him an "A" first to test his leadership. Nope after just 26 (less than impressive) games they held a press conference and named him captain. As I pointed out earlier, Ron Wilson and Phaneuf were buddies, Wilson wanted him as the captain. Notice in all the time Wilson was the Leafs head coach I don't recall him once calling out Phaneuf or saying that he was responsible for goals, he was always Wilsons little angel and he was never criticized for his play thus making him not care to change. He's been playing like crap all season long and he's been responsible for a majority of the goals. After having a meeting with new head coach Carlyle, Phaneuf summed up what they talked about; "I'm going to keep playing the same way I have always played, and carry myself the same way" Well I sure as heck hope he doesn't because he's been playing horrible all season. The Leafs are going on their 7th year of missing the playoffs,  anyone born around 2000 doesn't really remember the Leafs being in the playoffs (heck I barely do and I'm 18). Fans aren't going to watch this Leafs team play, they're going to notice the so called captain as the worst player on the ice, they're not going to grow up being Leaf fans!

A true captain let's his teammates know that they're screwing up or not playing well, Phaneuf isn't in to that. He has said numerous times that the Leafs are not in a state where he needs to call players out! What the heck is he waiting for? Ron Wilson called players out, the media calls players out, hockey analysts call players out. A captain that is confident and has the whole team behind him should feel comfortable calling a couple players out or going to them privately and talking about their game.

Another major reason why I think Phaneuf is playing such crappy D is his weight, he's frankly too big! He's always tired by the mid second period which is why he is getting lit up in the defensive zone, and guys are blowing right past him. He needs to work on his conditioning! He's 6'3" 218 pounds, now that's not a horrible wieght for a guy of his size, but he's most defiantly out of shape it is extremely evident on the ice, he's always huffing and puffing and it seems like he's hitting a lot less this season. I don't know if he's hurt or what but he's hurting the Leafs!
If you don't want to hustle and battle every night get the heck off the ice, there is a team full of Marlies that would love to take your spot! To be honest Phaneuf is a joke as a captain, teams laugh at the fact that the Leafs have Phaneuf as a captain, the Leafs and Dion Phaneuf are one of the biggest laughingstocks of the NHL.

I'm sorry but Phaneuf is not captain material, the Leafs need someone else to be captain. His play all season has been poor to say the least, his "I could care less" attitude needs to go, and his responsibility to defense needs to improve (considering he is a defenseman). I think Carlyle should sit Phaneuf when he's not playing well, bench him for a few games get his attention, he thinks he's untouchable.
Bottom line, the Leafs will never win the Stanley Cup with players like Phaneuf leading this team!

The great 13

Possibly the best player to don the blue and white, that I myself actually had the pleasure to watch. Growing up watching hockey my dad was a Leafs fan, so that's what I watched when I was younger; Mats Sundin was pretty much the first hockey player I ever really knew about. Sundin wore the legendary maple leaf for 13 seasons and had the honour of being the captain of the Toronto Maple Leafs for 11 seasons. I have the utmost respect for Sundin and is one of my all time favorite Leafs, and Saturday evening the Toronto Maple Leafs honoured their legendary captain by raising his banner to the rafters.
Sundin is arguably the best player to never have won a cup during his career, talk about a consistent scorer, in every season Sundin managed at least 70 points (except the 2008-2009 season with the Canucks when he retired) and finished with 1,349 points in 1,346 games. Who could forget Sundin's 500th goal? Shorthanded, in overtime, to complete the hat trick! But perhaps the most important thing the Leafs and Toronto got from having Sundin, is his class. He is a truly classy guy and an amazing role model. What an honour to see your number up in the rafters joining such names as: Wendel Clarke Borge Salming,  and Doug Gilmour.

Mats Sundin was originally drafted by the Quebec Nordiques in 1989, before being traded to the Toronto Maple Leafs 5 years later. He spent 13 seasons in Toronto becoming the Leafs all time leading scorer with 420 goals, and 987 points in 981 games. Despite never winning the cup here in Toronto (or in his career) Sundin said there were no regrets. "I wouldn't trade my years with the Leafs for anything," Sundin said. Despite having many amazing moments and memories in his time with the Leafs, his two favorite moments were: The Eastern Conference finals against the Buffalo Sabres in 1999 and the Eastern Conference finals in 2002 against the Carolina Hurricanes, both times the Leafs lost, but they put up an amazing fight. "I miss driving to the ACC with a little knot building up in my stomach before the game," he said. "But the No. 1 thing I miss being retired and not being in Toronto are the people. There are no fans more loyal, passionate and committed than Leafs fans. Thanks for all your support over the years."

Many of Sundin's former teammates were in attendance on Saturday to see the Leafs take on the Habs. Tie Domi, Bryan McCabe, Gary Roberts, Thomas Kaberle, were amongst the 19,000 at the game. Unfortunatly for the Leafs alumni and fans the Leafs didn't win the game, heck they didn't even show up to win and were boo'd off the ice after the 2nd period (down 4-0). The Habs easily beat the Leafs 5-0 and showed everyone that, this Leafs team may just be the same old team we've seen for the last 7 years. Flashes of brilliance, but when it really counts and there is pressure they fold up like a cheap tent!
Before the game, all the current Leafs players wore number 13 jerseys before the game, and Sundin said this current team has the potential to be the real deal. "I like this team," said Sundin. "They remind me of the team we had when we went to the conference final the first time. "We had a young group, good skaters, guys who could play, we could score with all four lines, good goaltending -- and I see all that here."

Some of Sundin's milestones include:

Drafted first overall in the 1989 NHL draft

First European born player to be drafted first overall

an Olympic gold medal in 2006 with team Sweden

scoring a career high 114 points in 1992-1993

making it to the conference finals (twice)

1300th career point february 7th 2008

500th goal October 14th 2006

Leads Leaf franchise with 420 goals and 984 assists

Named Olympic tournament all star team in 2002

NHL all star 9 times

Congratoulations to Mats Sundin, on having his number retired by the Leafs, and joining a list of 16 other elite Maple Leafs to have their number raised. Sundin will go down as one of the best Leafs ever and will forever be in the hearts of Leafs fans, no matter how ugly the last few years was and what not, he's still legendary and dedicated his whole career to the blue and white! We miss you Mats!

Trading Leafs

It's the time of the season where trade rumours are kicking up, I previously covered the Sabres Trade Rumours so now it's time to cover the trade options of the Toronto Maple Leafs or as GM Brian Burke likes to call them, "the center of the hockey universe". (As a side note: The worst kept secret in hockey since the last winter classic in Philly, was the 2013 Winter Classic. It was rumored and pretty much a done deal that the Toronto Maple Leafs would face the Detroit Red Wings in the 2013 Winter Classic in Detroit. But the event became official today, in a press conference held by NHL commissioner Gary Bettman, and the two GM's Brian Burke and Ken Holland; The game will be back to it's original date of January 1st and will be played at the famous Michigan stadium, Jerseys and logo's have yet to be released but will be released in the next few months. So that will be a great event for the NHL, having two original six teams battle it out in the great outdoors where the game began.) But back on topic for todays blog, possible trade options for the Leafs.

It is very likely Burke will NOT make a major trade, at or during the Trade Deadline. The Leafs are right in the middle of a playoff hunt, currently sitting in 7th and are playing darn well, and you know what they say "don't mess with a good thing" and right now the Leafs are a good thing. The lines are gelling, the goalies are both playing well, and the kids on the ice give it their all every night, what more could you ask for? But still, I can't stop the blog here so, we must speculate and see what the crafty mind of Burke could be up to come February 27th I highly doubt we'll see another Dion Phaneuf deal. Just like the Sabres blog, I'll be looking at players Burke will trade and players he'll trade for.

Luke Schenn

Poor Luke Schenn, before the puck even dropped on the 2012 season his name was swirling around with rumors. Will he re-sign, will Burke trade him? Now 55 games into the season, Schenn's name is still the frontrunner for a trade come the deadline. The Leafs have more than their share of defenceman, when all are healthy there are two sitting in the press box, so Burke has to do something about his D. What Burke does need is forwards that consistently put the puck in the net, maybe if Schenn was more of an offensive minded d-man he could stay, but I think Schenn's time in Toronto is all but done. Right now it's looking like Schenn to the Flyers for James Van Reimsdyk, thus allowing Luke to be reunited with younger brother Brayden. Now no guarantees Schenn will be on his way out of town, as he's a solid young defenceman that could turn out to be quite the player once he has more time/experience. Another option for the young defenceman is Edmonton, trade Schenn to the Oilers for Sam Gagner, the way Gagner is scoring right now the Leafs would easily take him from the Oilers.

Mikhail Grabovski

Now Burke may be a little hesitant to trade Grabovski unless he was getting a super duper instant star in return. Grabo, is a pretty decent player and has been meshing well in Toronto and putting up the points. But he is a free agent at the end of the year, and his agent is in town telling Burke to either put up the money or kiss Grabovski goodbye. But Grabo is likely a player that would have to be included if the Leafs wanted to acquire the once rumoured Ryan Getzlaf from the Ducks.

Nikolai Kulemin and Clarke MacArthur

Burke has been shopping these two around for a while, but so far no bites on either. Kulemin had a career season last year playing with Grabovski, but has cooled off this season. Despite being a 3rd liner on the Leafs MacArthur actually has some pretty good trade value. Why? Because on most other teams he'd fit perfectly on the 2nd line, and be counted on to put up 50 points, in Toronto he's not counted on for that production, and is stuck on the 3rd line. The Leafs don't want a 3rd liner making 3.25 million a year.

Both Kulemin and MacArthur have picked up their play slightly as of late, so the asking price just went up a little.

Nazem Kadri

Although my opinion is not popular amongst Leaf fans, Kadri's time in Toronto is done! Burke has to be fed up with the kid, the Leafs are in dire need of a top notch scorer, something Kadri was supposed to be when he was drafted 7th in the 2009 draft. No that's not a typo 2009 was the year Kadri was drafted by Burke and he has failed to fully crack the Leafs roster, not to mention Burke didn't even want the kid, he got fooled into taking him after playing head games with some other GM's. Everyone was excited about how Kadri would make the Leafs right out of training camp finally, but just like in years past Kadri was one of the last cuts. In all fairness to Kadri it was mainly because he got hurt, but he still failed to make the opening day roster. I don't think Kadri is a complete waste, as he'd likely benefit from a change in scenery, new management and a place with a lot less media coverage. Now Kadri, himself wouldn't bring much back to the Leafs, so he'd likely be a throw in like Lupul was in the Jake Gardiner deal. But if Burke was able to get his hand on Bobby Ryan then trading Kadri would be a no brainer. Not to mention Burke has had his way with the Ducks and trades.

Matthew Lombardi
The Leafs got Lombardi for pretty much nothing, not to mention getting Franson in the deal. But Lombardi will never be much more than a 3rd liner for the Leafs. Much like with MacArthur, Lombardi is making way too much to be a 3rd liner, so it's time for Burke to dump his contract on another team. He's not really that good of a bottom six forward either, or at least not in Toronto, I think Burke could flip him for a 2nd rounder or another bottom 6 tough forward.

Now for the fun part seeing who Toronto could get in return :)

Bobby Ryan
I honestly don't think Burke will be able to pull off this deal, the Leafs don't have what the Ducks want in exchange for Ryan. Plus the Ducks are finally starting to play well, so trade talks have slowed down. All the talks about the Ducks being "blown up" have also died down. Meaning if the Leafs want Ryan they're going to have to pay big! It will likely take Grabovski, Schenn, Kadri and a pick to pry Ryan away from the Ducks, that's a lot of fire power right there, and Burke wouldn't be willing to part with all those assests if he wasn't getting a decent return. Although it would be fantastic to get Ryan in a Leafs Jersey I simply don't think it will happen, the asking price is too much. After the last trade with the Leafs, the Ducks may be a little hesitant to trade with the Buds again. (Fun fact, Burke is the GM who drafted Bobby Ryan, when he was the Ducks GM.)

James Van Reimsdyk

Now this trade has been rumored to be in the works for quite some time, but talks between the Leafs and Flyers have all but stopped. The Flyers would gladly take Luke Schenn to try to fill the void of veteran defenceman Chris Pronger. The Leafs would also love to have Van Reimsdyke, a young kid who can score, just what Burke wants plus he's locked up for another 6 seasons at just over 4 million. One slight issue, Van Reimsdyke has a history of concussions, and is currently recovering from one. It would likely take Schenn and a pick to get Van Reimsdyke out of Philly. To be honest I don't know if it's worth it, Reimsdyke has struggled this season, when he wasn't injured so he may not be an instant success in Toronto. Burke wants players that will help push the Leafs into the playoffs, not players who slack off.

Rick Nash

Another player who is fairly unhappy in Columbus. He's a long term veteran player who has never and will likely never have a chance to hoist the cup with the Blue Jackets. Many are saying Nash is fed up and wants out, and the Blue Jackets owe it to him to send him to a contending team.

Rick Nash + Huselius for Schenn + Kadri + Grabovski + a pick Now just like the trade for Bobby Ryan this is likely more than Burke would be willing to part with. Wouldn't take a lot of convincing to get Rick Nash to say yes to a trade out of Columbus.

Jeff Carter
Imagine if Burke was able to pull the trigger and get that number one center he's after. Jeff Carter would fit the bill perfectly, as he's more than ready to get out of Columbus. But let's have a reality check, there is almost no way that the Leafs can get their hands on Carter, there are way to many road blocks. First of all Carters contract is humungous, in order for Burke to be able to eat his contract is if he moves some other players first. Getting rid of Tim Connolly and his contract would help in getting Carter, but does Columbus want Connolly? The Leafs would have to give up way to much in return for Carter; a first round draft pick and a top six forward at least. (Grabovski, Bozak, Connolly)
Getting Carter to Toronto is nothing more than wishful thinking; too much money, too much to give up, and not the type of player Burke wants wearing the blue and white. He's a sulky, cry-baby type of player who was not happy leaving the Flyers.

A few other names include; Tuomo Ruutu, Sam Gagner, Ryan Malone, Ryan Getzlaf
But these are background deals that wouldn't really make a huge skake-up. Getzlaf would be too much money. Out of the list the 4, I could see Ruutu or Gagner suiting up in a Leafs jersey, not super expensive and both could benefit from a change of scenery.

But here's the kicker the Leafs DON'T need to make a deal, this team is just fine the way it is. As long as Reimer and Gustavsson keep playing well, this team should have no problem making it to the playoffs. The Leafs wouldn't enjoy a long stay but could at least drop in and say hello. The majority of players on the Leafs roster don't have playoff experience, so we don't know how they would do. There are always names that come out of nowhere to produce in the playoffs; we don't want to trade away a hidden gem. Above all else, this year's trade deadline is just a step toward building a true Stanley Cup contender.

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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!