Is Cody Hodgson Turning Into Another Tim Connolly?

When Tim Connolly left the Buffalo Sabres there were few people sad to see him go; He joined the Sabres in 2001, playing 8 seasons managing only 464 games with the blue and gold and only participating in 1 full season. His time in Buffalo was defined by injuries, if the guy sneezed he would throw his back out, he was almost snake bitten with injuries. Although talented and capable of providing a leadership role, fans were most concerned about him being "injury prone" and were willing to drive him out of town on his crutches. Finally fans got their wish when Connolly decided to leave Buffalo and sign with their divisional rivals, the Toronto Maple Leafs. But have the Sabres stumbled upon another injury riddled possible superstar?

If you've followed me on twitter or have been reading my articles for awhile, you know I am a huge Cody Hodgson fan and have been following him ever since his Junior days. When Darcy Regier pulled the trigger and managed to steal him away from the Vancouver Canucks during the Trade Deadline I was ecstatic, but there was still a lingering question; Why would the Canucks be willing to let their "blue chip" prospect go so easily? At first I ignored the question and was thrilled at the fact the Sabres acquired a possible first line centre and future superstar, but after his latest injury I'm starting to wonder if the Canucks were on too something...

Hodgson's rough patch with the Canucks organization is well documented; He hurt his back training with their training coaches and then their medical team misdiagnosed the injury which in turn forced him to miss more time on the recovery. Things went south, Hodgson had a tough time battling back from injury and the he began to blame the team for his misfortune, the Canucks were then accused of attempting to "barry" the young star in the minors because he was "too much trouble". Sure he was talented but he carried a lot of baggage.

Taking a further look into Hodgson's injured past; He was originally diagnosed with a bulging disc in his back, it was later revealed that it was just a muscle strain and his rehabilitation for his back only made the muscle strain worse. It was then revealed that the doctors had missed severe nerve damage in his leg which was preventing him from showing his full speed and potential to the Canucks scouts. Once his back issues cleared up and he rejoined the OHL he suffered a broken toe, just 8 days after returning from his back injury forcing him to miss the remainder of the season. He then admitted publicly that he was not healthy very often during the 2009-2010 season and was looking to put his injuries behind him. Before jumping to the AHL for the 2010-2011 season, it was found his toe had not fully healed and was not cleared for assignment by the Canucks, in addition to his toe not healing there was speculation he had re-aggravated his back. Late in 2010 he suffered a broken orbital bone after a high stick while at practice in the AHL with the Manitoba Moose. He was finally able to crack the Canucks roster in 2011 and remarkable remained healthy the entire season, despite being traded to the Sabres. It was speculated that Hodgson was unhappy with his ice time and complained to Canucks managed, which lighted the final spark in his fire with the Canucks.

Due to the NHL lockout, Hodgson was assigned to the Sabres affiliate the Rochester Americans and to say his numbers haven't been overly impressive would be an understatement. In 9 games he has just 1 goal but has managed to rack up 9 assists, still not the kind of numbers expect from a number one centre. In case you missed the news, he is back on the injury list with a broken bone in his hand after being slashed in a game on October 27th. Hodgson is on the shelve
for the next 2-3 weeks depending on the severity of the injury.

Ponder this; If the NHL ended it's current lockout disputes and training camp opened next week, would Hodgson be ready to go for the Sabres?

While Hodgson has all the skill to be a top play making centre and help become one of the building blocks of the future for the Sabres, the question becomes can he stay healthy and keep out of trouble? Based on his injury riddled past it's going to be difficult to keep the potential star on the ice and playing in games. Back injuries are complicated injuries, once the back has been damaged, it is more susceptible to damage in the future. What if someone leans on him awkwardly or he gets crunched into the boards, can and will his back hold up?

Only time will tell if the young prospect can stay healthy, if he can the Sabres have got themselves a future star, if he can't the Sabres will need to move on and quickly.

What Does Luongo to the Leafs Mean For Current Leaf Goaltenders?

Usually when a sport is in a lockout state all talks about trades are put on hold until the league breaks the lockout, but apparently the never stopping Toronto sports media missed that memo. A report surfaced on twitter last week, that the next time Roberto Luongo plays in the NHL it will be for the Toronto Maple Leafs. The report is initially from SportsNet and hockey reporter John Shannon. While neither team has confirmed the trade, nor can they because of the lockout, fans got pretty excited over the news.

Vancouver Canucks GM Mike Gillis has denied the rumour, stating that talking about trades without a CBA is not allowed, there are as many as 5 teams that have expressed interest in the goaltender and further talks would not continue until a new CBA is worked out. As I said earlier the Toronto sports media loves to cause drama, their motto seems to be; "If there isn't a story, make one up".

Whether the rumour is true or not, and frankly we may never know as there are several variables in a situation like this, the possibility of Bobby Luo ending up in Toronto is pretty good. The Leafs are in desperate need of a veteran goaltender and depending on the new CBA would be one of the few teams that could afford his contract. But the point of this article is not to debate whether Luongo will be a Toronto Maple Leaf but rather to see how his addition to the Leafs would effect the current goaltending situation in Toronto.

James Reimer

Reimer burst onto the Toronto Maple Leafs radar halfway through the 2010 season when then goaltenders Jonas Gustavsson and Jean-Sebastien Giguere began to play poorly and drove the Leafs out of the playoff race. He was then named the starting goaltender for the remainder of the 2010-2011 season playing in 37 total games and becoming an instant fan favourite, many of whom referred to him as the "Leafs saviour". Reimer had a injury riddled 2011-2012 season that saw him get injured twice and as a result his play suffered. He played in just 34 games and finished with a 3.10 Goals Against Average and a .900 Save Percentage.

Reimer is a solid goaltender and has the capability to be a solid number one goaltender, but not with the Leafs. He's still young and inconsistent a recipe for disaster for a goaltender constantly under the spot light in Toronto. Leafs GM Brian Burke told the media that Reimer and Marlies goaltender Ben Scrivens would battle it out in training camp to decide who will become the starting goalie. Interesting that the Leafs won't name Reimer their clear cut number one and a sign that management is looking elsewhere.

Verdict: Reimer Gets Traded- He's a great guy and a solid goaltender. But questions have arrised about his mental toughness and ability to handle the media pressure. As a result Reimer needs to play for a team that is out of the limelight so he can develop his game without the constant criticism.

Ben Scrivens

While there are questions about the young goaltenders attitude there is no question he is a solid netminder. He lead the Toronto Marlies to the Calder Cup finals  and had a fantastic season racking up 22 wins. His play earned him a call up to the Leafs, where he played in 12 games and won 4. With his play in the AHL last season, there is no question he deserves a chance to crack the NHL roster and challenge for the starting job. But is he ready?

Scrivens was an un-drafted prospect who signed with the Leafs in 2o10 because of goaltending coach Francois Allaire. Although Scrivens is older than Reimer (26) he is still very much a rookie who needs more experience at the NHL level. He is off to a rocky start with the Marlies going 1-2 in his 3 games with a .896 Save Percentage.

Verdict: Scrivens Becomes Luongo's Backup- Last season's run to the Calder Cup finals was fantastic to watch and Scrivens showed he can play. The fact the Leafs are willing to let him battle to become the starter shows they have some faith in him and see a future with him between the pipes. He needs more experience and could benefit from the guidance of a veteran goaltender. If there's another media outlet nearly as bad as Toronto it's Vancouver, Luongo would not only help him on the ice but potentially help him with the media as well. Having the veteran in Luongo and the rookie in Scrivens might be the right formula for success for both goaltenders.

Jussi Rynnas

Rynnas is another un-drafted goalie who signed with the Toronto Maple Leafs as a free agent. Rynnas joins the Marlies after playing for Assat of the SM-liiga the top professional league in Finland (2009). After winning a job with Assat out of training camp he went on to post the top Save Percentage (.927) and a solid Goals Against Average of 2.47. His play earned him attention from several NHL teams and he ultimately chose the Leafs, he was sent to the Marlies where he played 30 games in 2010. Last season saw him split time between the Marlies and their ECHL affiliate, but this year he's back with the Marlies and looks to backup Scrivens until he is recalled to the Leafs at the end of the Lockout.

Verdict Rynnas Becomes Marlies Starting Goaltender- With more experience and playing time Rynnas has the possibility and skill to become a solid starting goaltender, if and when the NHL lockout ends he will get that chance with the Marlies.



There you have it folks, my thoughts on the goaltending situation should Luongo indeed end up in Toronto. Of course if he does land in Toronto he will be the new number one goaltender and be faced with the task of bringing the Leafs back to the playoffs. I would not be surprised in the slightest to see the Leafs having a goaltending tandem of Luongo and Scrivens for the next few seasons. What do you think folks, will Loungo end up with the Leafs? If so how does it effect their goalies?

 

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!

#FireWilson

Last night while watching the Blackhawks vs Senators, news broke the Toronto Maple Leafs fired head coach Ron Wilson and replaced him with Randy Carlyle. Right away I turned on twitter to see if it was true and to see the reactions of Leafsnation, I don't know how Leafsnation didn't break twitter! But nevertheless Brian Burke fired long time friend Ron Wilson as he just wasn't getting the job done in Toronto.

Wilson was given a 4 year deal on June 10th 2008, by interim GM Cliff Fletcher. The 4 year deal was worth $5.6 million. To Wilson's credit he lasted most of his 4 years behind the bench in Toronto no easy task. During his 4 year tenure with the Leafs he failed to lead the team to the playoffs in 3 straight seasons, and was on pace to again miss the playoffs, which would bring the Leafs playoff drought to 7 years. Something had to give, with Leafs fans calling for Wilson's head, the Leafs one game above .500, and a couple of lackluster games by the Leafs, Brian Burke had no choice to pull the plug on his head coach and longtime friend. Wilson coach 310 games with the Leafs only winning 130 and as previously stated he failed to make the post season in 3 straight seasons. Some are saying this is the most dramatic firing of a Leafs coach since Pat Burns was fired on the plane ride home 16 years ago. Wilson was in Montreal with the team and even led practice on Friday morning.

There is a lot of speculation this was a spur of the moment decision by Burke, saying the decision was made Friday or Thursday evening. But Sportsnet radio 590 claimed Burke had made the choice to fire Wilson Wednesday/Thursday morning, but kept his decision quite until he found a replacement. Although I'm not sure if the story is true, it's certainly interesting!

After receiving a contract extension in December, Wilson supposedly lost control of the players, and he started "throwing them under the bus" in the media. Some players were beginning to speak out against him. It's the same situation that happened in Washington, the players shutout the coach and the coach got the short end of the stick. Now I'm not saying Wilson was doing a fantastic job coaching the Leafs by any means, but it was a decision that was inevitable, the players made sure of it! Wilson was often critiqued of not showing any emotion coaching behind the bench. But whatever happened, many including Burke believe that this group of Maple Leafs is good enough to make it to the playoffs, and under the coaching of Ron Wilson that just wasn't happening. Whether you like Ron Wilson or not, he is a good if not great coach! He's one of only 7 other coaches to win at least 600 games, tied for 4th with 18 seasons as a coach, and is 3rd all time in games coached with 1,400 games and a legendary coach, he will likely be behind a bench again sometime soon.

Ponder this for a moment, something no other blogger or analyst has openly discussed. Conserder this: What if Ron Wilson came to Burke and asked him to find a new coach?

No coach would ever publicly quit on their hockey team, they'd never get hired again. But being the head coach of the Toronto Maple Leafs is no walk in the park, and this season has been particularly rough on Wilson. Coming into the season not knowing if he'd have a new contract, being faced with the task of getting the Leafs in the playoffs, hearing the #FireWilson chants, having players not battling every night for you and having a GM taking the players side and not doing any significant deals at the Deadline. Not to mention how well Dallas Eakins is doing with the Marlies, Wilson was on borrowed time before he would have been replaced with Eakins anyways. You got to admit it can't be easy going to work everyday and having 20,000 people screaming to have you fired, and basically being called public enemy number 1. So knowing all that it is possible that Wilson said to Burke "hey it's been 4 years I can't seem to motivate these guys, I'm not having a good time coaching here I think it may be time for a change" You never know after all Wilson didn't look like he was having a lot of fun coaching these guys, he'll probably be on some beach somewhere hot with his wife and grandkids tomorrow just chilling out!

The New Guy
Shortly after the news broke that Wilson was out in T.O, it was announced that former Anaheim Ducks coach Randy Carlyle had been given a 3 year contract to be the new Maple Leafs head coach. Carlyle becomes the 28th head coach in Toronto Maple Leaf history, and is one of 8 coaches who actually played for the Leafs. Much like Burke and Wilson, Carlyle too has a past relationship with Burke, the two won the Stanley Cup in 2007 with the Ducks. He started coaching in 1995 and has NEVER had a losing record in a full season, that's a great stat, but welcome to Toronto Randy.

In 6 seasons with the Ducks he missed the playoffs just once and won a Stanley Cup in 2007. Carlyle has been brought in to help salvage (if he can) what is left of the Leafs season. It will be no easy task as the Leafs have just 1 win in their last 10 games, and are in 12th 5 points back of 8th. But Carlyle is the type of no nonsense coach the Leafs may need right now, if anyone can get them back on track I believe it's this guy! Another added benefit to the Carlyle hire is he comes with a ton of playoff coaching experience. You can see it, if Carlyle and the players get at it, he just holds up his Stanley Cup ring and asks if any of the Leafs have one, that should shut them up in a hurry!
Carlyle will likely make the Leafs a more disciplined and organized team. He pays extra attention to the defensive zone and makes sure his team can kill of penalties.  Not to mention guys that are playing for contracts will have to get their butts in gear.

Some things to watch out for
Carlyle and Leafs forward Joffrey Lupul don't exactly have a great history. Lupul was traded twice while Carlyle was coach of the Ducks, and is known for giving up and saying Lupul isn't good enough to play in the league. In fairness to Lupul injuries played a major part in the situations, but the Ducks and Carlyle basically gave up on Lupul.

Another thing to watch, is if the Leafs actually do make the postseason this season under a new head coach. This move can go one of 2 ways; either it blows up in the Leafs faces and the players don't respond well to Carlyle. Or this will light a fire under them and force them to wake up and play some of their best hockey.

Who will ultimately get to takeover the goaltending duties Gustavsson or Reimer, one thing most fans were sure of was the fact Wilson gave up on Gustavsson and wanted Reimer to be the guy. But neither goalie was performing well so Wilson couldn't make up his mind. Carlyle is coming from a team that had star goalie Jhonas Hiller, he's going to want a goalie to step up and be number one. How will he figure that out? The Leafs have 18 games left, pick one to give 4 straight starts, if he handles it, let them ride out the last 14 games. If they can't, pick the other one. One thing is for sure goalies can't get into their grove and play well when given spot starts which is what Wilson was doing, which is also why the goaltending wasn't working. I believe if you give one of these guys a nice stretch of hockey games the Leafs goaltending woes will be gone. This could also be Gustavsson's last chance to become a Leafs goalie of the future.

Carlyle has the fortunate position of not HAVING to make the playoffs. He's got a built in excuse and one he should use to start looking toward the future.

This was the only way of lighting a fire under the player's butts, for some reason Burke made no significant roster moves at the deadline, so the only option was a coaching change. Ultimately this was a stall tactic for Burke to save his own butt, if things don't start panning out in Toronto it could and should be Brian Burke packing his bags next!

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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The Contract Trap!

When players play super well, in their rookie season their respective teams often sign them to monstrous contracts with big money attached. When young players gain these huge contracts from their teams, they often stop playing as well, as they did to get the contract. One explanation is-  due to trying to live up to the hype of their contracts! Right now there are perfect examples of 2 young players not playing up to their "standards" in the NHL. Luke Schenn of the Toronto Maple Leafs and Tyler Myers of the Buffalo Sabres. These are two players whose teams are trying to build franchises around them, and they are pegged to be the future captains of their teams.

Let's start with Tyler Myers, Myers was drafted 12th overall by the Sabres in 2008, after 2 seasons in the NHL, the 21 year old Myers signed a contract that will keep "The Big Easy" in Buffalo for the next 7 years. Back in September Myers and the Sabres agreed to the 7 year deal worth $38.5 million. Myers is coming off 2 great seasons with the sabres, in which saw him win a Calder Trophy and surpass the 30 point plateau both seasons. But this season "The Big Easy" has become a major concern on defence, for the Sabres. Now last season Myers got off to quite a slow start but picked up his play down the stretch, "I felt the pressure last year and at times I was way too hard on myself," He said. "I got off to a tough start but was happy with my game after Christmas, especially after the All Star game." It appears lightning has struck twice, as Myers is playing very poorly to start off the season. Through this seasons' 8 games, Myers only has 2 points, which are assists. Myers is currently averaging a bit more than 21 minutes of ice time, and has gone 28 games without scoring a goal and 2 games without recording an assist. But it's not just his point totals that have fans worried, it's his play on defense, that's worrying everyone. He is making very poor choices on the ice; pinching at the wrong times, making bad passes, has to many turnovers and is losing his checks. Myers is now paired with veteran defence partner Robyn Regehr who will hopefuly help calm Myers down. One thing Myers needs to pick up is his aggressive play, through 8 games he only has 12 hits - less than 2 hits a game. Defenceman need to be aggressive and hit the opposition regularly, when defenceman are not hitting, often their point totals are effected, like in Myer's case. But here is a good thing for Sabres fans-, Tyler Myers will be fine! Based on last seasons' turn around from a slow start, this is nothing to panic over for Myers and Sabres fans everywhere. He is having a difficult time living up to his big contract, he just needs to get back to basics and become the reliable Tyler Myers that everyone loves! Myers is a player that the Sabres want to stick around for the foreseeable future and maybe even take over the captaincy one day, but first he needs to fix his slow starts to the regular season. Myers and Regehr should soon fine chemistry and Myers can stop worrying about the big contract looming over his head. But Myers slump will soon end, I'm positive about it.

Next up is Luke Schenn, despite Mike Komisarek being chirped hard by all the Leafs fans, it's Luke Schenn who needs to step up his game the most. Schenn's ice time has been reduced by 25% this season, making his new ice time average 15:43, which is the lowest amongst the Leafs D-men and to boot he is struggling majorly in his own defensive zone. Schenn was a big part of the major turnaround with the Leafs in last seasons' 2nd half. The Leafs rewarded him, with a huge contract extension; 5 years $18 million. Since he signed the contract, Luke has been uptight and has had trouble moving the puck. “He has had trouble starting games and I think Luke has put a lot of pressure on himself,” Wilson said. “He has to relax and he will be fine.” Coming off a strong season last year, in which he set a career record for assists. As soon as Schenn calms down, and just simplifies his game, his defence he will be just fine. For Schenn to succeed his game needs to be as simple as possible, 1 pass and out, nothing fancy, or he becomes flustered. Many bandwagon fans are calling for a trade, but HELLO after signing this contract, Scheen is not going anywhere! His future and the future of the Leafs is together and he's likely the future captain. Schenn should find a little extra motivation this season as he will be facing his younger brother several times with the Flyers. Plus if the Flyers make it to playoffs and the Leafs don't! i wont be a very fun time at the Schenn house this summer! No older brother wants to be chirped by their younger brother for playing better! Good news for fans, is Schenn has never really been, nor is he expected to be, a big contributer on offence, but he did lead the league in hits and blocked shots last season, and could very well do it again this season.

Unfortunately for these young defencemen fans jump on and off bandwagons faster than it took the two of them to sign their new multimillion dollar contracts. Right now they are trying to do to much and prove to bandwagon fans that they are worth the money they're being paid. They both need to simplify their game! For Myers he needs to be more physical for Schenn he needs to keep it simple. I have no doubt that these two defenceman will settle down and be just fine. It's part of the jinx of rookies signing their next major contracts, they always play like crap afterwards, someone needs to break that jinx, maybe one of them will win an award this season.
So my message to fans is to stop freaking out over their poor starts to the season, you are not helping them any by booing and chirping these young players. Give them time it is STILL early in the season, their teams are winning and the most important time for these two to play well is down the stretch!

Who's hot and who's not

Well were roughly 6 games into the regular season (depending on teams) so Lets see who's producing and helping their teams and who's not.

Phil Kessel
I know for myself I did not see this super start to the season for Leafs superstar Phil Kessel, I was just hoping for an ordinary season out of him, but right now he is on pace to reach the 40 goal plateau. Kessel has 7 goals in 5 games, and 12 points to go with it. Now Kessel will likely not be able to keep this pace up for the whole season, but he's helping the Leafs win right now, and thats what counts. With this amazing start to the season Kessel has been dubbed Phil the Thrill Kessel. I am very impressed with his start, and what makes this fast season start different that other seasons, is that he is more mature; He is now playing a full 200ft game, and he thinks about passing almost as much as shooting now.


Luke Schenn
Schenn has not gotten off to the start the he and everyone else would have liked him to have. Last season Schenn averaged 22 minutes a game, but so far this season Schenn has yet to see any ice time close to that. Worse than the diminished ice time, is he looks horrible when goals are scored against the Leafs, he losing coverage and cant seem to clear the puck out of his own defensive end. The early season struggles has many saying Schenn has caught the Komisarek virus. One possible reason to the slow start, his the massive contract Luke Schenn and The Leafs agreed to right before camp, a 5 year extension that will see Schenn earn 3.5 million per year. i think its just a matter of time before Schenn steps up his game, but until than Leafs fans can expect to see Schenn's minutes stay low. For him to snap out of this funk he needs to keep his game simple; 1 pass out of the zone.

James Neal

Not going to lie here, when I heard that Pittsburgh penguins forward James Neal was scoring all these goals, I had to think to myself; Pittsburgh has a James Neal? Low and behold they do, and he is a Canadian to boot. In 8 games with the penguins he has 6 goals (2nd) and 7 points. He is helping fill the void of not having Crosby, Malkin and Letang. Making life for the Penguins a little bit easier. But I have never heard of this kid? so where did he come too. The Penguins required Neal at the trade deadline from the Stars last season. Right now Neal is on pace to score 30 goals, and its not seeming so far fetched anymore.


Thomas Vanek

Now you had to know there would be a Sabres player in the mix somewhere in this blog, so its a good thing Vanek is playing well right, or else I would have to stretch the truth a little, (jokes). In the 5 games the Sabres have played thus far Vanek has been producing; 4 goals and 4 assists for 8 points. Now that may not be as many goals as Phil Kessel. but its when Vanek is scoring his goals, they are coming at crucial times. Vanek scored the second goal of the win against the Canadians, with 2.8 seconds left in 2nd to put the Sabres up 2-1 heading into intermission. Vanek a little upset that he was an assistant captain instead of the captain is showing the Sabres organization that maybe they should have given a little more thought to him wearing the C. Regardless he is playing like a leader on this reformed Sabres team, that has new faces from right to left. Im  hoping Vanek will be able to keep this pace up and help this Sabres team make a deep run into the playoffs.

Matt Read
A Philadelphia Flyers rookie, who no one knew, until Tuesday when he put up 4 points in a 7-2 win over the Senators. The young kid has 6 points in 5 games this season. This is Reads first time playing in the NHL, and he`s making a case, to play a whole season with the Flyers. with 2 goals and 4 helpers, he`s making a name for himself in Philly.

Roberto Luongo
I hate to say it, well actually I dont since I`m not a fan of Luongo, but he is playing horrible to start the season. Remember Luongo`s less than Stellar play in the cup finals last spring? yeah well he`s decided thats how he will start this year! with less than stellar goaltending. Luongo is ranked 37th out of goaltenders with his GAA of 3.70 goals a game and a very sad Save Percentage of .856% Luongo can be quite a spectacular goalie, when he decides to actually play like an elite goaltender. Until Luongo steps his game up, he will remain the ire of Canuck fans. Right now Luongo has forgetton the basics of goaltending and his flopping around like a fish out of water. As much as everyone loves to blame Luongo, unless his teammates score, their not going to win no matter how well he plays.

Dwayne Roloson

The grey haired veteran who helped get the Lightning into the 2nd round of last years playoffs, has not a a good start tot the season to say the least. The Lightning as a whole have given up 26 goals in their first 6 games. (4 goals a game) and a 6.73 goals-against average in his last three starts. The 42 year old will need to pick up his play if the Lightning are going to claw their way out of 12th in the east into a playoff start.

Ryan Nugent-Hopkins
Now the first over all draft pick in this past draft may not be considered as playing "hot" so to speak, but he did record his first NHL career hat- trick in only his 3rd NHL game. Pretty impressive for such a young star. Right now in Edmonton Hopkins is being dubbed the "oilers savoiur" as with the addition of Hopkins to an already star studded team, they believe he will lead the team back to the post season. Strange that he is getting higher rating than Taylor Hall and Jordan Eberle, but hey cut the kid some slack and let him play his game, maybe in a year or two, we will see the oilers back in the post season. So far Nugent-Hopkins has 5 points in 5 NHL games, the hat trick helped with the points thats for sure. There is no question this kid is going to be good, the question is how good?

Alexander Ovechkin
This one breaks my heart a little bit, I love Ovie and I though he's have a better start to a year, he knows the Capitals need to go big. But through 5 games this season Ovechkin only has 1 goal! 1 goal?!?!?!? are you kidding me??? Its not like he's helping else where either, only 2 assists and a +/--2. Where is the Ovechkin we all love, or at least love to hate.  Lucky for Capitals fans the Washington Capitals are still 5-0-0 without Ovechkin doing anything at all. But this success without Ovechkin contributing can not last long and will lead to another early exit from the post season. Want to know a secret? Ovechkin is afraid to hit! He thinks if he hits someone he will suspended. When Ovechkin hits without any remorse he plays just fine and is on fire, but when he doesn't hit, he plays like crap. This new crack down on hits is making Ovechkin get off his game. Ovechkin needs to get his game back up to full speed, hit a few guys and not worry about the consequences of his hits only then will Capitals fans get to see the real great 8 at his best.

Marc-Andre Bergeron
The Lightning's best player thus far to be sure. Has already matched the numbers he put up all last season and were only 6 games in. Right now Bergeron is sitting a 2 goals and 6 assists for 8 points. Another positive is he doesn't have a negative -/+ rating quite yet. He is currently leading the league in goals scored by defenceman, pretty impressive for a guy who had 8 points all of last season. All of the drafties are kicking themselves for not taking a chance and drafting this guy thats for sure. With Bergeron riding hot and quarterbacking this Lightning power play there is no telling how many goals and points this guy will rack up, maybe even doubling his points from last season. 


John Tavares
What can I say about this kid, he signed a deal keeping him on long island for the foreseeable future and stating that he has faith in his team. This could have easily jumped ship and found another team in an instant, but he believes in the new Islanders team. Good thing he stayed because he is on fire right now! on a 3 game win streak right now Tavares has put up 5 goals and 3 assists for 8 points in 4 games to start off the season. Now it may become the same old story for the Isles, and they mall fall short of the playoffs again, but I think this is the year we will see Tavares step up and be a league leader in goals and points. This kid has a lot of maturity and has a lot of talent. I see good things for Tavares and the islanders


P.K. Subban
The young flashy Montreal Canadian is off to quite a slow start, and he's hearing about it. Whats being dubbed as the PK show is starting to really get on peoples nerves, with just 1 win int he first 5 games, the Canadians need players to step up. Montreal is relieing on Subban quite heavily as the youngster is averaging 24:55 minutes a game. But Subban has made a couple of boo boo's and has been out of position for many a goal scored against the Canadians.  But Subban is sticking to his guns and is not about to change his game anytime soon. But right now he should reconsider it, as he is off to a very slow start, something the Canadians do not need. One reason Subban is getting hung out to dry is there have been a number of injuries to Canadians defencmen, making it near impossible for them to "rest" Subban when he isn't on his game. With many errors to start off the season many are wondering if his rookie season was a bit a fluke, and if he has returned to being a diva who still needs to learn his place in the league. 


Please not this blog was made on Thursday Afternoon, right before 11 games on Thursday night, some of these stats may be slightly altered based on Thursday nights games. So for those of you who's players are not playing well right now, don't worry its still early, remember it is an 82 game season, still lots of time. For those of you, who's players are playing well, remember its still early, stuff could change, almost all NHL players go into a slump at some point during the season. Hope you enjoyed this edition of "who's hot and whos not".

Nazem Kadri

Nazem Kadri, a name all to familiar to Leaf fans.
Kadri was the leafs top draft pick in the 2009 NHL Entry Draft. The Toronto Maple Leafs selected Kadri 7th overall. But since all the hype over the young rookie, Kadri has failed to crack the starting roster of the Maple Leafs. After two straight seasons of being cut from the team right after training camp, Kadri is looking for a long stint with he big club this year. He better hurry Brian Burke is starting to loose patience in his young "superstar" he has not been performing up to the expectations Burke has for him or the expectations of any first round draft pick for that matter. Kadri has not had overly flattering numbers in the minors, and has not shown great leadership ability, raising major doubts about his future in the NHL. For the 2011-2012 NHL season Burke has made himself clear there is only 1 sport available, ""If you've noticed we've left one spot open, we want some competition for one of the forward spots,"  The line currently consists of Tyler Bozak and Colby Armstrong. Both Bozak and Armstrong benefited from lack of a number 1 center last season, and saw their ice time sky-rocket, but both players know they will be back playing a 3rd or 4th line role this coming season. Competing against Kadri for that 3rd line wing spot are fellow leaf rookies; Joe Colborne and Matt Frattin. Many have stated that Kadri is much to small to play on the kind of team Burke likes, Joe Colborne has the size advantage of the 3 rookies Colborne is in at 6 foot 5 210 pounds. The leafs acquired Colborne in the trade that sent Thomas Kaberle to Boston. Colborne impressed Burke and Wilson right away quickly earning himself a shot to play some games in the big league. That is something Kadri has never done, impressed Burke and Wilson right away. Many leafs fans are getting restless and are abandoning the Kadri bandwagon, I am one of those fans. I don't think drafting Kadri was a smart choice by Brian Burke. I believe Burke got tricked into drafting Kadri. He took him so another team could not have him, not because he wanted him. Many believe it is now time for Kadri to put up or shut up, It is basically Kadri's spot on the 3rd line to loose.
Basically there are two major "knocks" on Kadri; 1. he is too small. 6 feet and 185 pounds. despite being 6 feet tall, he gets shoved around out there like a little rag-doll. Kadri said he lost wait to gain speed.. but his speed wont help when someone clocks him with an open ice hit. 2. He is a one way hockey player who is very poorly defensively. We got to see a bit of that in the 29 games Kadri played with the Leafs last season, he made way to many very poor give-always and the defense always had to bail him out, as he was the last one back for the back-check. Kadri also needs to gain more "hockey sense" you know; when to pass, when to hit, and where to be on the ice at a certain point. He looked all to lost out there for many of his 29 games.
Another aspect of Kadri that has ruffled a few feathers shall we say, is his cockiness. Now don't get me wrong confidence is good in young players. But I think this rookie just might have a little too much cockiness. He is always saying how he has done everything the Leafs have asked him to do and is confident he can make the team.. but as no surprise to many, Kadri gets sent back down. This season he is taking the cockiness to the next level by saying he can't wait for the season opener to play along with Tim Connolly! alright so lets get this straight...... first Kadri just made a clear statement that he believes he will win the only spot left on the roster, with no trouble at all and second the spot is for a 3rd line position not a 1st line position in which Connolly will be occupying. I'm sorry but Kadri is no more a member of the Leafs than new rookie Matt Frattin. Yes Kadri is highly scouted draft pick, and not a drunken party animal who lost his scholarship as the case with Frattin. Every time Kadri steps on the ice or talks to the media he seems entitled to make the squad... But I got a news flash for Kadri he hasn't earned anything, if he keeps this mindset intact he will see himself back in the Marlies and quickly on the trading block rather than in the starting line-up for the Leafs. A positive thing for the leafs is the take no nonsense captaincy from Phaneuf, he'll take Kadri's cockiness and drown it in a river.
So for Kadri this is the year, he's had 3 years to develop and get ready (longer than most 1st top 10 picks). Either he makes the Leafs out of training camp or spend the rest of his Leafs career in the minors and turn out to be a horrible draft pick.
In 29 big league games last season he scored 3 goals and tallied up 12 points helping with 9 assists. So in 3 years Kadri has played 30 games with the Leafs, and it took him an extremely long time to score his first goal, it didn't come till half way through March.

K so I'll put on my GM hat and tell you what I would do if I was Brian Burke...... I would give Kadri the job, but make it clear if he doesn't produce that he's gone. If Kadri doesn't have decent rookie numbers by Christmas at the latest, send him down and call up Colborne, who will most likely be ripping it up in the minors like last season. Now outside of the Kadri situation I would fire Wilson if he isn't getting the job done and promise leafs fans that even though we didn't make the playoffs in the 2011-2012 season that there is still hope for 2020, and mention that I have spoken with the NHL on expanding the playoffs to the teams that are in last place in the divisions.

So in short I suspect we will see Kadri start the season with the big boys, Burke is tired of having to explain why Kadri isn't ready for the NHL yet, so this will allow the media to see the reasons Kadri has been sent down. But all sarcasm aside, Kadri will be in the big leagues come October, but with a very short leash.