Thursday, December 31, 2009

What Team Canada II could look like for Olympics


The debate about who should and should not be on the Mens Team Canada Olympic hockey roster is under way. Canada has the luxury of being able to stack more then one team for a big tournament much in the same way as Brazil can for soccer tournaments of the USA for baseball. We take a look at what Team Canada II would look like if Canada had another spot at the Olympics.

Goaltenders (3)

Cam Ward (Carolina Hurricanes)
Marty Turco (Dallas Stars)
Dwayne Roloson (New York Islanders)

Reserves: Chris Mason (St Louis Blues), Jean-Sebastien Giguere (Anaheim Ducks)

Defensemen (7)

Dion Phaneuf (Calgary Flames)
Jay Bouwmeester (Calgary Flames)
Mike Green (Washington Capitals)
Robyn Regehr (Calgary Flames)
Tyler Myers (Buffalo Sabres)
Brian Campbell (Chicago Black Hawks)
Ian White (Toronto Maple Leafs)

Reserves: Francois Beauchemin (Toronto Maple Leafs), Kevin Bieksa (Vancouver Canucks), Scott Hannan (Colorado Avalanche)

Forwards (13)

Shane Doan (Phoenix Coyotes)
James Neal (Dallas Stars)
Brad Richards (Dallas Stars)
Martin St Louis (Tampa Bay Lightning)
Vincent Lecavalier (Tampa Bay Lightning)
Steven Stamkos (Tampa Bay Lightning)
Mike Fisher (Ottawa Senators)
Jason Spezza (Ottawa Senators)
Jeff Carter (Philadelphia Flyers)
Ryan Smyth (Los Angeles Kings)
Michael Cammalleri (Montreal Canadiens)
Patrick Sharp (Chicago Black Hawks)
Stephen Weiss (Florida Panthers)

Reserves: Dustin Penner (Edmonton Oilers), Nathan Horton (Florida Panthers), Jordan Staal (Pittsburgh Penguins), John Tavares (New York Islanders)

Let the debates begins on Team Canada II selection.

Monday, December 28, 2009

Brian Burke's first move of 2010, sign Ian White

As the 2009 calender year comes to a close with the Maple Leafs three points behind a playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. Brian Burke will need to look at making some decisions in 2010 and the first one on his list needs to be the resigning of defensemen Ian White. The 25 year old on many nights this season has been the teams best rearguard and overall it's not much of a stretch to say that he has been the teams second best defensemen behind only Tomas Kaberle this season. White is set to become a restricted free agent and Burke would be wise to sign the versatile White, who can also play forward when asked by the Leafs coaching staff to a long term deal. White who started off his first season with Ron Wilson as the teams head coach in the pressbox has worked hard to get regular duty under Wilson and now is firmly planted in the Leafs Top 4 defense this season. White has eight goals (one behind league lead for defensemen) and thirteen assists this season with a plus nine rating. White is on pace to shatter his career high in points in a season of twenty six, which he achieved on two occasions and is slowly starting to live up to scouts comparing his play to that of Brian Rafalski. Burke needs to draw on his experience in negotiating contracts and hopefully be able to sign White to a long term deal of around 4 to 5 years at an average salary of anywhere from 2.5 to 3 million a season, in today's market for defensemen this looks to be the going rate. The Leafs will once again have a lot of money tied to big contracts on the backend with about $15 million against the cap next season already committed to Kaberle, Beauchemin, Komisarek and Schenn not including the White signing. The Leafs do have Exelby's and Van Ryn's contracts coming off the books after the season. The Leafs could also take a look at the bloated contract of Jeff Finger at $3.5 million a season over the next two years as a buyout would be a cap hit of just under $1.2 million over the next four years if the can not find any takers on the trade front. The team would not need to worry short term about all the high salary on the backend with alot of young forwards on the team over the next few years in Stalberg, Hanson, Bozak, Kulemin and Mitchell having all low salaries. Brian Burke needs to make some moves in 2010 and why not have the first of those moves being a long term contract to Ian White. I think most Leaf fans would agree that he has more then earned it.

Saturday, December 26, 2009

TML Fan Fury announces 23 man Canadian Olympic Roster


The Toronto Maple Leafs continue their futile play 4 on 4 with another loss tonight in overtime to their arch rivals but on a different note with the Olympics less then two months away in Vancouver it will be a time when all hockey fans from around this great country will put their allegiances aside to unite for the red and white. Canada will be announcing their Canadian Olympic Hockey roster on December 30/09 and I have decided to give Stevie Y and the Canada brass a hand in the selection of their 23 man roster and reserve taxi squad in case of injuries for the Olympics as Canada try to bring home the gold on their home turf.

Goaltenders (3)

Martin Brodeur (New Jersey Devils)

Marc Andre Fleury (Pittsburgh Penguins)

Roberto Luongo (Vancouver Canucks)

Reserves: Dwayne Roloson (New York Islanders), Marty Turco (Dallas Stars)

Defensemen (7)

Scott Niedermayer (Anaheim Ducks)

Chris Pronger (Philadelphia Flyers)

Dan Boyle (San Jose Sharks)

Shea Weber (Nashvillle Predators)

Duncan Keith (Chicago Black Hawks)

Jay Bouwmeester (Calgary Flames)

Drew Doughty (Los Angeles Kings)

Reserves: Dion Phaneuf (Calgary Flames), Mike Green (Washington Capitals), Brent Seabrook (Chicago Black Hawks)

Forwards (13)

Sidney Crosby (Pittsburgh Penguins)

Joe Thornton (San Jose Sharks)

Dany Heatley (San Jose Sharks)

Patrick Marleau (San Jose Sharks)

Jarome Iginla (Calgary Flames)

Shane Doan (Phoenix Coyotes)

Brad Richards (Dallas Stars)

Corey Perry (Anaheim Ducks)

Ryan Getzlaf (Anaheim Ducks)

Rick Nash (Columbus Blue Jackets)

Mike Fisher (Ottawa Senators)

Jonathan Toews (Chicago Black Hawks)

Ryan Smyth (Los Angeles Kings)

Reserves: Mike Richards (Philadelphia Flyers), Steven Stamkos (Tampa Bay Lightning), Martin St Louis (Tampa Bay Lightning), James Neal (Dallas Stars)

Do you agree or disagree with the selections let us know.

Friday, December 25, 2009

Maple Leafs World Junior Watch


The World Junior Championship gets ready to kick off on boxing day with Canada looking to win their sixth straight Gold Medal in Regina and Saskatoon. The Toronto Maple Leafs will have two prospects at the tournament this year in Nazem Kadri and Jerry D' Amigo.

Nazem Kadri (Canada) 1st Round pick, 7th Overall 2009
Season Stats with London Knights(OHL): GP- 28 G- 20 A- 18 PTS- 38

Jerry D'Amigo (USA) 6th Round pick, 158th Overall 2009
Season Stats with R.P.I.(ECACH): GP- 18 G- 5 A- 9 PTS- 14

We wish both Maple Leafs prospects the best of luck in the tournament and wish everyone a Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays.

Monday, December 21, 2009

What the Toronto Maple Leafs should get for Christmas


The Christmas season is quickly approaching for a lot of people around the world and as many await the arrival of St. Nick on Christmas Eve, they wonder if they have been naughty or nice this past year. We take a look at the Toronto Maple Leafs players and ask St. Nick to bring a host of goodies for the team this holiday season.

Brian Burke- A first round pick in the next two seasons.

Ron Wilson- 60 minute effort from his players.

Vesa Toskala- New set of contacts, to help him with the odd bad goal.

Jonas Gustavsson- Healthy season the rest of the way.

Joey McDonald- Mandatory roster increase to three goalies.

Tomas Kaberle- Hockey Stick that shoots automatically.

Mike Komisarek- Cheers in Montreal when he visits.

Ian White- Long Term Contract in the new year.

Francois Beauchemin- An iron to place the C on the front of his jersey.

Luke Schenn- Remote control to fast forward his sophomore jinx.

Jeff Finger- Some regular playing time.

Garnet Exelby- See Finger.

Mike Van Ryn- Rubber Suit to avoid injuries.

Jason Blake- Some goals to go with his hard work.

Nik Hagman- Some consistency.

Phil Kessel- A true number one center.

Alexei Ponikarovsky- His first 30 goal season.

Matt Stajan- Some respect.

Mikhail Grabovski- A little more heart.

Nikolai Kulemin- Some powerplay time.

Wayne Primeau- New contract.

Lee Stempniak- A trade at the deadline.

Jamal Mayers- see Stempniak.

Colton Orr- Rematch with Ottawa's Carkner.

Rikard Wallin- First class ticket to Sweden.

John Mitchell- Speedy recovery.

Viktor Stalberg- Top 6 forward minutes.

Maple Leaf Fans- A Playoff in the Spring.


Merry Christmas to all and enjoy the time off with your loved ones but remember those that are not as fortunate this holiday season.

Thursday, December 17, 2009

The Leafs send down McDonald and bring up Stalberg from Marlies


The Toronto Maple Leafs made a few minor tweaks with their roster, sending down goalkeeper Joey McDonald to the Toronto Marlies while bringing back up rookie winger Viktor Stalberg. McDonald filled in admirably while both Vesa Toskala and Jonas Gustavsson were out with injuries. Gustavsson will be backing up Toskala tomorrow, while Stalberg makes his return back to the big club he is leading the Marlies in scoring this season with 21 points in 19 games and should be in the lineup tomorrow when the Leafs take on the Buffalo Sabres.

Thursday, December 10, 2009

The Greatest Toronto Maple Leafs, Decade by Decade

The year 2009 is coming quickly to an end and I have decided to take a look at the best Toronto Maple Leaf player on a decade by decade basis covering Toronto clubs from 1920-2009. The Maple Leafs were known as the Toronto St. Pats until the 1927 season when the team was purchased by Conn Smythe and the named changed to the Toronto Maple Leafs. This organization has had many outstanding players and currently boasts 57 players in the Hockey Hall of Fame who at one time or another who wore the Toronto sweater. The Toronto Maple Leafs have won 11 Stanley Cups with the Toronto St. Pats and the Toronto Arenas winning one a piece for a total of 13 but unfortunately for most fans the organization has not won a Stanley Cup since the 1966-67 season. We now give a decade by decade breakdown of who we feel was the best player of each decade, this was not an easy task as the Leafs especially during their Stanley Cup winning years had many key players that contributed to the teams success.


Click to Enlarge


Legend: GP- Games Played, G- Goals, A- Assists, PTS- Points


1920-29 BABE DYE
Career Maple Leaf/St. Pat's Regular Season Stats: GP- 218 G- 173 A- 42 PTS- 215
Career Maple Leaf/St. Pat's Playoff Stats: GP- 11 G- 11 A- 1 PTS- 12

Babe Dye was the first Toronto sniper, the Babe whos real name is Cecil Henry Dye scored an unheard of 11 goals in 7 playoff games leading the St. Pat's to the Stanley Cup. Dye also scored 38 goals in 29 games in the 1924/25 season and averaged over todays 82 game schedule would have scored an astonishing 106 goals for the season.

The Hockey News ranked him #83 on the list of the NHL's Greatest Players.

Inducted into Hall of Fame: 1970 Maple Leafs/St. Pat's Stanley Cups won: 1

Honourable Mention: Reg Noble, Happy Day

1930-39 CHARLIE CONACHER
Career Maple Leaf Regular Season Stats: GP- 326 G- 200 A- 124 PTS 324
Career Maple Leaf Playoff Stats: GP- 41 G- 14 A- 12 PTS- 26

Conacher was part of the famous kid line of the 30's and collected 14 career hat tricks as a member of the Leafs. Conacher captured the Art Ross trophy as the league's leading scorer in 1934 and then again 1935 and was selected to the end of the year All Star squad on five occasions, three times as first line right winger and the other two as the second line right winger.

The Hockey News ranked him # 36 on the list of the NHL's Greatest Players.

Inducted into Hall of Fame: 1961 Maple Leaf Stanley Cups won: 1

Honourable Mention: Harvey "Busher" Jackson, Joe Primeau, King Clancy

1940-49 SYL APPS
Career Maple Leafs Regular Season Stats: GP- 423 G- 201 A- 231 PTS- 432
Career Maple Leaf Playoff Stats: GP- 69 G- 25 A- 29 PTS- 54

Apps came into the league flying and captured the Calder trophy as the NHL rookie of the year in 1937 and then added the Lady Byng trophy in 1942. Apps Captained the Greatest comeback in Stanley Cup history when the Maple Leafs came back from being down three games to none against Detroit to win four straight and capturethe Cup in 1941-42. This feat has never been accomplished again in an NHL Final. Apps was also selected to the end of the season All Star team five times, twice as the first team center and three times as the second team center.

The Hockey News ranked him # 33 on the list of the NHL's Greatest Players.

Inducted into the Hall of Fame: 1961 Maple Leaf Stanley Cup wins: 3

Honourable Mention: Turk Broda, Babe Pratt, Ted Kennedy

1950-59 TED "TEEDER" KENNEDY
Career Maple Leaf Regular Season Stats: GP- 696 G- 231 A- 329 PTS- 560
Career Maple Leaf Playoff Stats: GP- 78 G- 29 A- 31 PTS- 60

Kennedy had the luxury of playing almost two decades as a member of the Maple Leafs in the 40's and 50's. Kennedy still holds the Maple Leaf record for most points in the Stanley Cup Final Series with 23 points in 26 games played. Kennedy captured the Hart Trophy awarded to the leagues MVP in 1955 and was named to the end of the year All Star team three times all as a second line center.

The Hockey News ranked him # 57 on the list of the NHL's Greatest Players.

Inducted into the Hall of Fame: 1966 Maple Leaf Stanley Cup wins: 5

Honourable Mention: Sid Smith, Dick Duff, Tim Horton, Tod Sloan

1960-69 DAVE KEON
Career Maple Leaf Regular Season Stats: GP- 1062 G- 365 A- 493 PTS- 858
Career Maple Leaf Playoff Stats: GP- 89 G- 32 A- 35 PTS- 67

Keon is said by many to be the Greatest Toronto Maple Leaf of All Time. Keon is the Leaf t capture the most NHL hardware winning the Calder Trophy in 1961, the Lady Byng trophy in 1962 and 1963 as well as capturing the 1967 Conn Smythe trophy as the playoff MVP. Keon was also selected to the end of the season All Star team on two occasions, both times as the second team's center. Keon was a tough as nails player and had one of the Greatest shutdown performances in Stanley Cup history when kept Montreal's Jean Beliveau off the scoresheet in the last two games of the teams 1966-67 Stanley Cup win. Keon also had eleven 20+ goal seasons as a Leaf.

The Hockey News ranked him # 69 on the list of the NHL's Greatest Players.

Inducted into Hall of Fame: 1986 Maple Leaf Stanley Cup wins: 4

Honourable Mention: Frank Mahovlich, George Armstrong, Johnny Bower, Red Kelly

1970-79 DARRYL SITTLER
Career Maple Leaf Regular Season Stats: GP- 844 G- 389 A- 527 PTS- 916
Career Maple Leaf Playoff Stats: GP- 64 G- 25 A- 40 PTS- 65

Sittler will always be remembered in Toronto for his still standing NHL record 10 point performance against the Boston Bruins where Sittler scored 6 goals and added 4 assists. Sittler holds the Leaf record for career hat tricks in a season with 18 and was the first Maple Leaf to pass the 100 point plateau, he did this twice and scored over 40+ goals on four occasions. Sittler was named to the end of season All Star team as the second line center in 1977-78.

The Hockey News ranked him # 93 on the list of the NHL's Greatest Players.

Inducted into the Hall of Fame: 1989 Maple Leaf Stanley Cup wins: 0

Honourable Mention: Borje Salming, Lanny McDonald, Ian Turnbull, Norm Ullman

1980-89 RICK VAIVE
Career Maple Leaf Regular Season Stats: GP- 534 G- 299 A- 238 PTS- 537
Career Maple Leaf Playoff Stats: GP- 32 G- 14 A- 9 PTS- 23

Vaive was the first Maple Leaf to ever crack the 50 goal plateau completing this accomplishment in three consecutive seasons with 54, 51 and 52 goals scored. The 80's were one of the teams most difficult decades but you could always count on Vaive flying in from the wing and letting a slapshot go past the opposing netminders. Vaive scored 10 career hat tricks with Toronto and currently sits 10th on the Maple Leafs all time scoring list.

Inducted into Hall of Fame: No Maple Leaf Stanley Cup wins: 0

Honourable Mention: Gary Leeman, Bill Derlago, John Anderson, Al Iafrate

1990-99 DOUG GILMOUR
Career Maple Leaf Regular Season Stats: GP- 393 G- 131 A- 321 PTS- 452
Career Maple Leaf Playoff Stats: GP- 52 G- 17 A- 60 PTS- 77

Gilmour took Toronto by storm, has any one player done as much with the team in only five season. Gilmour took the team to within one game of the Stanley Cup final in 1992-93 the closest the team has come since winning the cup in 1966-67. Gilmour is the Leafs All Time playoff scoring leader and holds the single season record for most points when he earned 127 also in the 1992-93 season. Gilmour also holds the single season record for most assists with 95 and the single season record for playoff points with 35. Gilmour went on to capture the Frank J Selke trophy in the 1992-93 season a the leagues best defensive forward. Gilmour was all heart and none of us will forget the double overtime wrap around goal in the playoffs against the St. Louis Blues. Gilmour is currently on the Hall of Fame ballet and sits 17th in All Time NHL scoring.

Inducted into the Hall of Fame: No Maple Leaf Stanley Cup wins: 0

Honourable Mention: Wendel Clark, Felix Potvin, Dave Andreychuk, Mats Sundin

2000-09 MATS SUNDIN
Career Maple Leaf Regular Season Stats: GP- 981 G- 420 A- 567 PTS- 987
Career Maple Leaf Playoff Stats: GP- 77 G- 32 A- 38 PTS- 70

Sundin is the Maple Leafs All Time Regular Season scoring leader. The Swede sits first in goals and points and for many seasons did not play with the most skilled of Leafs. Sundin has been selected to the NHL All Star game a team record nine times and was selected to the end of season All Star team twice as the second team center. Sundin holds numerous other Leaf records which include leading the team in regular season scoring ten times, most game winning goals with 79, most overtime winners 12, most 30 goal seasons with 10 to name a few more. Sundin will be looking to enter the Hall of Fame in the future as he currently sits 25th on the NHL All Time scoring list.

Inducted into Hall of Fame: No Maple Leaf Stanley Cup Wins: 0

Honourable Mention: Tomas Kaberle, Gary Roberts, Darcy Tucker, Curtis Joseph

We dont want to end this blog without mentioning two other Leaf Greats, one who's career was cut short due to a hit during a game and another who's life was cut short because of a plane crash. Ace Bailey and Bill Barilko the only two Maple Leafs two have their numbers retired on the team. The #5 and #6 will not be worn again for the Toronto Maple Leafs in their honour.

This research was great to complete and share with all the Maple Leaf and hockey fans out there and to see how many Leaf Greats put on the blue and white sweater, makes you proud to be a fan and I know that at the moment this organization is not where we as fans would like them to be but the next Leaf Great cant be that far off and hopefully the Glory of the Past will be rekindled once again.

Thursday, December 3, 2009

Brian Burke sends Jiri Tlusty packing to Carolina


Brian Burke has made his first trade of the 2009-10 season and no it was not a player on current roster and no we will not be getting a player to add to the roster. The Maple Leafs general manager had decided to send former first round pick and 21 year old winger Jiri Tlusty to the Carolina Hurricanes in exchange for the Canes first round pick of the 2009 draft, 18 year old center Philippe Paradis. Tlusty could not seem to make much of an impact in the NHL when given a chance over the past couple of seasons, the winger seems to be a tad to good for the AHL but just not good enough for the NHL and it seems that Burke has decided to not waste the organizations time any longer and has moved for a promising player from the QMJHL. Paradis is said to be a hard nosed center (Burke's favourite) with a great slapshot and has the smarts to make room for himself and his teammates in the offensive zone. Paradis currently has 19 points in 26 games for Shawinigan Cataractes this season while Tlusty has 15 points in 19 games for the AHL Toronto Marlies and zero points in two NHL games with the Leafs. Tlusty though may be remembered best in Toronto for some raunchy photos of himself on the net too bad it wont be for something a little more benefiting of the team. Good Luck to Jiri Tlusty in Carolina and welcome to the Toronto organization Philippe Paradis.

Maple Leafs face a goaltending dilemma


The Toronto Maple Leafs now face a goalie dilemma with both goaltenders Jonas Gustavsson and Vesa Toskala out of action. The Leafs will turn to third stringer Joey MacDonald to hold the fort for the next week or so. The Leafs announced earlier today that Gustavsson will undergo his second heart procedure this season. The Leafs rookie will undergo a heart ablation tomorrow which is a procedure to correct abnormal heart rythms by destroying damaged tissue. Vesa Toskala continues to nurse a groin injury and even though he is practising with the team he wont be able to go until at the earliest sometime next week. Their were some rumours that the Leafs might try to obtain New York Rangers backup Stephen Valiquette who was placed on waivers yesterday but the Leafs have decided against this move and will go with what the currently have in the organization.

Monday, November 30, 2009

The Maple Leafs can shoot and score


The Toronto Maple Leafs have decided to show some offense this NHL season. The Leafs who have won 3 out of their last 4 games going into tonights match up against the Buffalo Sabres have scored 20 goals in their past 5 games. The have not only moved out of the NHL cellar but also moved out for the bottom end of the goals scored department as well. The Leafs have been getting scoring from quite a few players over this game not just someone named Phil Kessel. Niklas Hagman is now sitting at 13 goals after scoring five in his last three games and earning himself 3rd Star honours this week in the NHL. The interesting statistic with Hagman is that he has scored a whopping ten goals on the road this season. Phil Kessel is on an amazing tear having scored eight goals in twelve games so far this season and would be among the league leaders if he was healthy all season long. Alexei Ponikarovsky has nine goals and Matt Stajan has seven goals with five coming on the powerplay where he sits tied for 10th in the NHL. The Leafs will try to continue their offensive power at home where they have only one victory in regulation and will need to add to that total if they believe in making the post season. The Leafs will need all the fire power they have to get a few goals past a red hot Sabres netminder. The Leafs can shoot as they sit atop the NHL in average shots per game but we are slowly finding out that they can also score and this needs to happen on a regular basis if this season is to be saved and tonight would be a great night to continue the goal outburst.

Sunday, November 22, 2009

The Greatest Toronto Maple Leafs Goaltenders


The season has reached its quarter mark and the Toronto Maple Leafs continue to struggle. The Leafs sit in the basement of the NHL with just 4 wins and are on pace to get under 20 wins this season if there futile performances continue. The man question that has been going around Leafland the past few years is the teams goaltending situation. Vesa Toskala, Curtis Joseph, Justin Pogge, Andrew Raycroft, J.S. Aubin, Martin Gerber and now Jonas Gustavsson have all been in the Maple Leafs goal the past few seasons for extended periods of time and all but Gustavsson who has some promise have not been able to steal the Leafs a few victories over the past few seasons. We have to go all the way back to before the lockout to Ed Belfour to find a Leaf goalie who could win us the game on their own almost on any given night. We here at TML Fan Fury have decided to go through the Leaf archives and find out who the greatest Maple Leaf goalies of all time are and have selected nine keepers with their Maple Leafs stats and then would like the fans to tell us who they feel is the Greatest Goalie of All Time.

Click to Enlarge


The 9 Greatest Maple Leafs Keepers
Legend: GP- Games Played, W- Wins, L- Losses, T- Ties, SO- Shutouts, GAA- Goals Against Average


Felix Potvin
Regular Season Stats: GP- 369 W- 160 L- 149 T- 49 SO- 12 GAA- 2.87
Playoff Season Stats: GP- 52 W- 25 L- 27 SO- 5 GAA- 2.75

Harry Lumley
Regular Season Stats: GP- 267 W- 104 L- 106 T- 58 SO- 34 GAA- 2.21
Playoff Season Stats: GP- 14 W- 2 L- 12 SO- 1 GAA- 2.98

Lorne Chabot
Regular Season Stats: GP- 214 W- 103 L- 80 T- 31 SO- 33 GAA- 2.20
Playoff Season Stats: GP- 22 W- 11 L- 9 SO- 2 GAA- 1.67
WON 1 STANLEY CUP

Johnny Bower
Regular Season Stats: GP- 472 W- 220 L- 161 T- 79 SO- 33 GAA- 2.51
Playoff Season Stats: GP- 74 W- 35 L- 34 SO- 5 GAA- 2.52
WON 4 STANLEY CUPS

Mike Palmateer
Regular Season Stats: GP- 296 W- 129 L- 112 T- 41 SO- 15 GAA- 3.43
Playoff Season Stats: GP- 29 W- 12 L- 17 SO- 2 GAA- 3.03

George Hainsworth
Regular Season Stats: GP- 147 W- 79 L- 48 T- 20 SO- 19 GAA- 2.26
Playoff Season Stats: GP- 21 W- 9 L- 12 SO- 2 GAA- 2.30

Curtis Joseph
Regular Season Stats: GP- 270 W- 138 L- 97 T- 27 SO- 17 GAA- 2.64
Playoff Season Stats: GP- 60 W- 32 L- 28 SO- 8 GAA- 2.25

Turk Broda
Regular Season Stats: GP- 629 W- 302 L- 224 T- 101 SO- 62 GAA- 2.53
Playoff Season Stats: GP- 101 W- 60 L- 39 SO- 13 GAA- 1.98
WON 5 STANLEY CUPS

Terry Sawchuk
Regular Season Stats: GP- 91 W- 42 L- 29 T- 14 SO- 4 GAA- 2.81
Playoff Season Stats: GP- 13 W- 6 L- 7 SO- 0 GAA- 2.74
WON 1 STANLEY CUP


We here feel that Turk Broda is the Greatest Maple Leafs Goaltender of All Time followed closely by Johnny Bower.


Who is the Greatest Maple Leafs Goalie of All Time
Turk Broda
Felix Potvin
Johnny Bower
Lorne Chabot
George Hainsworth
Curtis Joseph
Mike Palmateer
Harry Lumley
Terry Sawchuk
Other
Free polls from Pollhost.com

Sunday, November 15, 2009

Is it time for Grabovksi to center Kessel?


The Toronto Maple Leafs continue to stink up the joint as they get closer to the 1/4 mark of the NHL season and sit in the 29th spot in the NHL one point ahead of Carolina and four points behind Florida and Anaheim. The Leafs are averaging 2.5 goals per game this season, sit last on the penalty kill and are a league worst 1-6-2 at home. The team on many nights seem to take a little too long to realize that the game is underway and hence fall behind early as was apparent in yesterdays loss to Calgary and on Friday in Chicago. The fans at yesterdays game were just finding their seats when two goals were scored before the game was even two minutes old, coach Ron Wilson called a timeout to let his team know that the game was underway and that they were already behind once again. The coach and his staff continue to shuffle lines looking for a combo that can produce some consistency for more then a few shifts or a game or two. The time has come now for Ron Wilson to place Mikhail Grabovski with Phil Kessel. These two players are the only forwards on this team that actually have the opposing defense back peddling when they are coming into the zone with the puck. Wilson seems to be worried that both Kessel and Grabovski want to carry the puck but from watching this seasons games it looks like Grabovski is thinking pass first before thinking shoot, while Kessel is a shoot first before pass player. Grabovski has taken 35 shots on net in 18 games while Kessel has 34 shots on net in 6 games. Why not place the two together and see what will come from this? The team seems to be concerned with placing the two together, I for one dont see what the problem is? Do we have anything to lose on this experiment? These are two professional hockey players I'm sure they can talk over how much each will carry the puck and any other matters that may arise from playing on the same line. The Leafs need to start winning, these players need to be placed together and maybe a call up to a young Swede in Viktor Stalberg would compliment the duo. The time to try the combo is NOW! Is there anything more to add?

Saturday, November 7, 2009

Jonas "The Monster" Gustavsson working way to fans hearts


Jonas "The Monster" Gustavsson is slowly working his way into the hearts of Leaf fans as he slides side to side with his arms moving and his head up looking ready for every shot that comes his way. The time is relatively early but the Monster has posted a record of 2-2-3 with a goals against average 2.84 and save percentage of .908 and is set to play in his first back to back games in his short NHL career as the Leafs take on the Red Wings, tonight in the Hall of Fame game. The Monster has made some big saves and if not for his heroics last night to secure the win for the Leafs against the Canes we would still be on a losing streak. The Leaf fans have not seen this type of goaltending since the days of Ed Belfour before the lockout and Gustavsson comes to Toronto after leading Farjestads to the Swedish Elite crown last season posting a 1.08 GAA a .938 SVP and 5 shutouts in his playoff run. The Monster was pursued aggressively by Brian Burke this off season on a recommendation from Leaf scout and former keeper Mike Palmateer (who deserves alot of the credit for this signing) and the Leafs are now off to the races with the keeper. The season is still early, his career is just getting started but "The Monster" is working his way into the hearts of Leaf fans and wouldn't it be nice to see a Monster in the spring and not just at Halloween?

Monday, November 2, 2009

Toronto Maple Leafs Best Goalie Masks


The Toronto Maple Leafs have had their share of goalkeepers over the history of the club and after TSN's Best Goalie Masks in the league contest, I decided that it would be a great idea to gather many of the Leafs Keepers better masks over the years and get them together to display.

Click on the Image to Enlarge and let us know in our comments section which mask or masks are your favourite from the Masks shown. I would say my top 3 choices in no particular order are Mike Palmateer, Ed Belfour and Mikael Tellqvist. What are yours?

On a special note Congratulations to Tomas Kaberle for being named the First Star of the Week in the NHL after contributing 12 points over 4 games last week.

Saturday, October 31, 2009

Jiri Tlusty's time to step up


Jiri Tlusty has once again been called up by the Toronto Maple Leafs who decided that his play in the AHL merited a call up. Tlusty played in his first game last night replacing Viktor Stalberg in the lineup after he was sent to the Marlies to make room for him and in 13:58 minutes of ice time managed a couple of shots on net. The Leafs 1st round pick 13th Overall in the 2006 draft is ready to make his move permanent into the NHL, with his performance in the AHL this season and his big second half last season for the Marlies, he has earned his promotion. Jiri Tlusty will now need to take his game to another level in the NHL to remain a regular stalwart in the Maple Leafs lineup. The Czech native's offensive skills would be a welcome addition to this squad who has trouble scoring goals. Tlusty should be given a long look with the Leafs and fans should not be surprised to see the winger on the same line as sniper Phil Kessel once he makes his Maple Leaf and season debut in the next week or so, for the Maple Leafs and Tlusty lets hope this audition works out because the time has come for Tlusty to step up and make a statement and for all Leaf fans to just hope that his AHL play can continue at the NHL level.

Sunday, October 25, 2009

Would you swap Beauchemin & Komisarek for McCabe & Kubina now?


The Toronto Maple Leafs continue on their winless streak after losing yesterdays game to the Vancouver Canucks and setting the all time team mark for worst start in franchise history. Lets hope as fans that this is the only negative mark that we are part of this season but i wouldn't hold my breathe on this matter. The big question now is would the Maple Leafs be better off if they had kept Bryan McCabe and Pavel Kubina? The Leafs would then not have had to go out an sign Francois Beauchemin and Mike Komisarek this off season. Bryan McCabe had become the whipping boy of the franchise and his move before the start of last season for the brittle Mike Van Ryn was seen as a no brainer, now just over a year later are Leaf fans wondering if this was a smart trade? Then Pavel Kubina was sent packing in the summer in a trade that brought Toronto Garnet Exelby, a player who is rotating in and out of the lineup. The Leafs moved to dump some high salaries and by moving McCabe and Kubina got rid of $10.75 million off the books and the cap. The signings of Beauchemin & Komisarek brough back $8.3 million dollars to the Maple Leafs cap. We gave up a Stanley Cup winner in Kubina and got one back in Beauchemin.

Legend to Numbers GP= Games Played, G= Goals, A= Assists, PTS= Points, PIM= Penalty Minutes, SH= Shots on goal, P/M= Plus/Minus

Bryan McCabe stats

2009-10 GP 9 G 0 A 3 PTS 3 PIM 4 SH 16 P/M +3
2008-09 GP 69 G 15 A 24 PTS 39 PIM 41 SH 153 P/M -1

Pavel Kubina stats

2009-10 GP 8 G 0 A 5 PTS 5 PIM 6 SH 8 P/M +4
2008-09 GP 82 G 14 A 26 PTS 40 PIM 94 P/M -15

Mike Komisarek stats

2009-10 GP 8 G 0 A 0 PTS 0 PIM 23 SH 7 P/M -4
2008-09 GP 66 G 2 A 9 PTS 11 PIM 121 SH 56 P/M 0

Francois Beauchemin stats

2009-10 GP 8 G 1 A 2 PTS 3 PIM 0 SH 19 P/M -5
2008-09 GP 20 G 4 A 1 PTS 5 PIM 12 SH 45 P/M -3

This season all four defensemen have averaged over 21:00 minutes a game of total ice time, the main difference the seperates these two players it seems is their ages with McCabe and Kubina at 34 and 32 years of age while Beauchemin and Komisarek are 29 and 27. The big question for Maple Leaf fans is. Would you want to have McCabe and Kubina in the back end right now or do you prefer Beauchemin and Komisarek that is a question that seems to be going through quite a few fans minds especially with the Leafs yet to win with the latter.

Monday, October 19, 2009

Maple Leafs fortunes on the back of defense?


The Toronto Maple Leafs get a whole week off, so we know that when Saturday arrives we will still be sitting pretty in last spot. The Leafs are not as bad a team as it seems but far from how good we think they can be. The Maple Leafs fortunes could all come down to the back end, a back end that was suppose to be the teams strength and backbone and has been nothing but its achilles heel in the first seven games. Brian Burke has stated he wouldn't change a thing and as the season progresses he could be correct but Leaf Nation is an impatient bunch. The key to the Leafs turn around though lies in the back end, the goalie needs to make the first save but the defense need to clear the crease, get some key take aways and block some shots. The Toronto Maple Leafs defense have no one in the Top 30 in blocked shots for defensemen, the Maple Leafs leader is Mike Komisarek who sits tied in 38th place in the league with 13 blocks but the Maple Leafs defense does have two players in the Top 10 in the league in giveaways Ian White sits tied for 5th with nine and Francois Beauchemin is tied for 9th with eight. The Leafs can also add Luke Schenn tied for 14th with seven and Tomas Kaberle tied for 25th with six to the list. These two statistics don't work well together for our Buds as they give the puck away too often and yet don't block shots to assist their goalkeepers when this is done. The Maple Leafs do have the league leader in penalty minors in Mike Komisarek who has taken eight so far this season, when you throw in the Leafs pathetic PK who sit dead last chugging along at 60%, a good idea might be to stay out of the box. The Maple Leafs back end also have just one player who is positive on the plus/minus side. Ian White is a some how a +3, while the other six Maple Leaf defense are a combined -27. These statistics don't lie Leaf fans the team is playing lousy in many areas but the defense and not the goaltending may be the weakest point of all and until this area improves, Leafs Nation is in for a long season.

Monday, October 12, 2009

Lets smile Leafs Nation, its a long season


The Maple Leafs are winless in five games and counting, what is there to say that alot of people are not already thinking, saying or screaming so i though it might be a great time to have a look at some funny Maple Leaf cartoon pics from artist Dolighan.com. I find they are the best pics that are appropriate at this stage in the season to bring a smile or a least a smirk to peoples faces and remember lets not panic yet Leafs Nation its five games in and the Leafs could still go 77-0-0 the rest of the way with a small goaltending change.

Could change this to 2009/10 season
Might need a bit more magic

Ron Wilson is in hot water
The haunting number

Top 2 Cup winners in for long year

Thursday, October 8, 2009

The Monster pulls up lame with groin injury


The Toronto Maple Leafs Swedish content has taken a blow over the last couple of days as Jonas "The Monster" Gustavsson will be out of action for 7 to 10 days with a groin injury, its not clear where Gustavsson sustained the injury but we do know it was not during the Senators game, the same game that Viktor Stalberg suffered a concussion in the first period and is out indefinetly at the moment. The Leafs have recalled Joey McDonald to back up Vesa Toskala while Gustavsson recovers.

Though some Maple Leafs fans would enjoy this cartoon pic that I saw in the Toronto Sun this week.

Maple Leafs forwards are pretty lousy bunch


The Toronto Maple Leafs have started the season as many non Maple Leaf fans would have hoped for losing their first three games with the possibility of making it four when the defending Stanley Cup Champions come to town on Saturday. The Maple Leafs have scored eight goals in these three games but is their any forward on the Leafs that scares any opposing team that faces them? Maple Leaf fans might say that Phil Kessel brings this fear but he wont be around until mid November at the earliest and the Leafs would be about a quarter of a way through the season. The Maple Leafs need to find a player or even a line that can be consistent just about each and every night, sure the defense has played lousy and the goaltending could be better but this team will need to score and perform better on home ice if they want to have any chance of making the Stanley Cup playoffs for the first time since the lockout. The Maple Leafs do not have a player on their current roster who has ever hit 70 points in a season and this includes Kessel, Jason Blake has had the highest point total of 69 the year he scored 40 just before joining Toronto. The Leafs will be hard pressed to make the post season without at least someone hitting this plateau. Looking back over the last two post seasons out of 32 playoff teams only 3 did not have a player that hit the 70 point mark during the season and not surprisingly all three clubs went out in the first round of action. The Maple Leafs need to find someone or line that will strike fear into opposing teams because if they dont then this could turn out to be another futile season for the Buds, we are three games in and Leafs Nation is already feeling the heat of another springtime on the sidelines and with a few more lackluster performances by the Buds as the had against Ottawa this past Tuesday and its only a matter of time before Ron Wilson's and Brian Burke's temperatures start to rise.

Monday, October 5, 2009

Maple Leafs facing a goaltending problem two games in?


The Leafs have played two games this season and already fans are screaming about the teams goaltending. Vesa Toskala has looked average at best in four periods of play as the Leafs dropped both their games to start the season. Jonas Gustavsson didnt look out of place in his relief appearance and some might say looked better in the third period but lets not kid ourselves the Capitals took their foot off the gas in that period after being up 6-1 after two so the score was a little deceiving. Then there is Joey McDonald who played superb in the Toronto Marlies debut a shootout victory over the Hamilton Bulldogs. Brian Burke and Ron Wilson were said to be huddling at this game yesterday to discuss the matter between the pipes. Toronto Maple Leafs fans want to see the "The Monster" get his shot at starting tomorrow night against the Leafs hated provincial rivals the Ottawa Senators but is it not a little too early to give up on Vesa Toskala for a keeper who has proved nothing? The Leafs defensive play has been poor and Toskala has been left out to dry on many of the oppositions team goals in these first two games, besides the first goal in Washington can we honestly say any of these other goals are his fault or more in tune with poor defensive coverage? Luke Schenn has looked slow and sluggish, Mike Komisarek is parading to the box more times then necessary and Francois Beauchemin is making poor decisions on his play reading. There is nothing a goalkeeper can do about that. The season is two games in and with eighty games to go, its fair to say that the Monster will get his shot between the pipes, possibly even tomorrow night but it is too early to throw Toskala to the wolves he deserves better then that and some leeway for now and if Joey McDonald plays like he did yesterday this goaltending controversy will get a whole lot interesting.

Wednesday, September 30, 2009

Toronto Maple Leafs announce 23 man roster


The Toronto Maple Leafs have narrowed their roster to 22 men one under the limit of 23 as they prepare to take on the Montreal Canadiens in their season opener Thursday night. The Leafs look to have the roster spot open for Mike Van Ryn who along with Phil Kessel will start on the injury list and do not count as a spot on the roster. The Leafs did not surprise many by sending down Tyler Bozak, Carl Gunnarsson, Joey MacDonald and Jiri Tlusty to the Toronto Marlies but some may be a tad surprised that last seasons 15 goal scorer Nikolai Kulemin was also sent down to the Marlies over some other players. The Maple Leafs opening day roster looks like this.

Forwards (13)

Jason Blake
Mikhail Grabovski
Niklas Hagman
Jamal Mayers
John Mitchell
Colton Orr
Alexei Ponikarovsky
Wayne Primeau
Jay Rosehill
Viktor Stalberg
Matt Stajan
Lee Stempniak
Rickard Wallin

Defense (7)

Francois Beauchemin
Garnet Exelby
Jeff Finger
Tomas Kaberle
Mike Komisarek
Luke Schenn
Ian White

Goalies (2)

Vesa Toskala
Jonas Gustavsson

Monday, September 28, 2009

30 Predictions for the Toronto Maple Leafs 2009-10 season


After reading many previews on the Toronto Maple Leafs tonight and watching some videos on sports sites I've decided to write another blog tonight with 30 predictions for the 2009-10 season, also on an inspirational note I would just like to congratulate Theo Fleury for a great story its just to bad he couldnt have taken it a bit further all the best to him as he continues his recovery.

30 Toronto Maple Leafs 2009-10 Predictions

30- Jonas Gustavsson plays in 35+ games this season

29- Colton Orr is involved in 15+ fights

28- The Maple Leafs move into the Top 15 on the penalty kill

27- Rickard Wallin leads Leafs in short handed markers

26- The Leafs finish with a winning record in shootouts for the first time

25- Carl Gunnarsson plays first NHL game

24- Brian Burke blasts the media

23- Tyle Bozak plays in at least 25+ games

22- Jason Blake and Alexei Ponikarovsky score 15+ goals

21- The Leafs goaltenders record 5+ shutouts

20- The Leafs score 8+ goals in one game

19- Lee Stempniak scores 20+ goals

18- John Mitchell gets first career hat trick

17- Luke Schenn leads the Leafs in hits

16- Mikhail Grabovski earns 65+ points

15- Niklas Hagman and Tomas Kaberle make All Star Game

14- Victor Stalberg scores 20+ goals

13- Victor Stalberg finishes in the Top 5 in rookie scoring

12- Francois Beauchemin scores 10+ goals to lead team defense

11- Phil Kessel plays center for the Leafs

10- Niklas Hagman leads Leafs with 3 hat trick games

9- Tomas Kaberle returns to the Top 10 of Defensemen scoring

8- Mike Komisarek is in the Top 5 in blocked shots

7- The Leafs win season series over Montreal

6- Niklas Hagman earns 70+ points and leads Leafs in scoring

5- Niklas Hagman scores 35+ goals

4- Mike Komisarek drops the gloves with Milan Lucic 3x

3- Lee Stempniak leads the Leafs in game winners and finishes in Top 5 in league

2- Francois Beauchemin named Team Captain

1- The Toronto Maple Leafs make a return to the NHL Playoffs

The Maple Leafs look weak in the middle


The Toronto Maple Leafs continue to trim down their roster to the 23 man limit for Wednesday but no matter what Brian Burke and Ron Wilson look to do, the Maple Leafs are definitely weak down the middle. The Maple Leafs best center during the pre-season was 2009 1st round pick Nazem Kadri but he has been sent back to OHL as he should be, some would say that the second best center in camp was rookie Tyler Bozak who looks to be on his way to the AHL Marlies which leaves the Maple Leafs with Mikhail Grabovski, Matt Stajan, John Mitchell, Rickard Wallin and Wayne Primeau. These players do not place much fear into opposing teams, while Grabovski holds promise and Mitchell could bring his game up to another level, he looks to be opening the season as a winger. Stajan who is coming off a career year of 55 points would be nothing more then a third or fourth line center on most teams and Wallin and Primeau do not look like nothing more then journeymen NHLers. The Maple Leafs will be harder working team this season, they will also be a tougher team and have one of the better defense in the conference but lack that middleman. This over the years will not be the case with Kadri and Bozak waiting in the wings but at the moment the Leafs lack a true number one centermen but this could change come November if they decide to switch Phil Kessel back to his natural position. Kessel would be a huge upgrade at the center position and would move back the centers to more suitable roles with Grabovski dropping to number 2, Stajan to number 3 and Wallin or Primeau as the number 4. This Leaf fans could be a short term solution to the Maple Leafs center blues but wouldnt it be great to see Kessel centering Stalberg and Hagman when he is ready to get back in action? This Leaf fans is something i would definitely look forward to.

Wednesday, September 23, 2009

Time has come to send Kadri back to OHL


The time has come for the Toronto Maple Leafs to send Nazem Kadri back to the OHL's London Knights. Nazem Kadri has shown Maple Leaf fans that he was well worth the selection made by Brian Burke this past draft, he is a smart player with great speed and a great hockey sense and I'm sure many fans are excited thinking of this kid playing with Phil Kessel for many years to come, down the road but that time is not now. Kadri is only 18 years old and the Leafs need not rush the youngster to the show, if he has a down side, it is that Kadri is too light and is easily muscled off the puck. The youngster will need to add a few pounds to his frame over the next couple of seasons and Leaf fans should note that when the real NHL season starts and teams play their regulars and coaches start to bring in their game strategies they will quickly learn what Kadri's weakness is and use this to their advantage. The fact many of us have played hockey we know how important confidence is in the game and with a camp like Kadri has had there is no reason he should not get over 100+ points in the OHL and make the Canadian World Junior Squad. These accomplishments will garner further confidence for the youngster and dont think for a second that coach Ron Wilson will not send Kadri on his way with what he needs to do to continue on the path to Leafland. Nazem Kadri is something special but with Tyler Bozak and Victor Stalberg looking ready to make the jump as an NHL regular their is no need to rush the kid. We all know that in most cases this has not always worked out for the best in Leafland.

Monday, September 21, 2009

Toronto Maple Leafs make first cuts


The Toronto Maple Leafs have taken their first steps in moving forward towards their goal of a 23 man opening day roster. Coach Ron Wilson has trimmed down the camp roster to 44 with more cuts expected this week. The Leafs have sent Andrew Engelage, James Reimer, Josh Engel, Joe Ryan, Juraj Mikus, Phil Oreskovic, Todd Perry, Kyle Rogers, Gregg Scott, Robert Slaney, Mikhail Stefanovich, Alex Berry, Darryl Boyce, Tom Galvin, Dale Mitchell, Stefano Giliati and Richard Greenop to their AHL Toronto Marlies. Jesse Blacker, Brandon Manning and Joel Champagne were sent to their respective junior clubs, while Bill Thomas and Juha Uotila were released from their pro tryout contracts.

Saturday, September 19, 2009

Finally, Burke lands Phil Kessel


Brian Burke has finally landed his most coveted off season acquisition landing Boston Bruins scorer Phil Kessel. The Leafs GM has been chasing Kessel since the draft back in June and after numerous attempts to convince Boston GM to part with the 36 goal winger, Burke's offer was too hard to refuse. The Leafs give Boston 2 first round picks 2010, 2011 and a second round pick in 2010 to get Kessel, with this seasons draft being assessed as a rather weak one and Burke's desire to get the Leafs back into the playoff picture sooner rather then later, this was too good of a deal to pass up on. The Leafs GM then quickly signed the 21 year old to a 5 year contract worth 27.5 million dollars a cap hit of 5.5 million per season. Coach Ron Wilson will have to put a hold on where he will pencil Kessel in on the Maple Leafs roster as Kessel is out until at least mid November with a torn rotater cuff injury after having surgery. Brian Burke is slowly putting his stamp on this Maple Leafs team and Leaf fans myself included can't wait to see what he has up his sleeve next.

Monday, September 14, 2009

Battle at the Mastercard Center


The Toronto Maple Leafs are in full swing as the battle begins at the Mastercard Center to crack the Maple Leafs 23 man roster. The Leafs have a few spots open but as per Brian Burke and coach Ron Wilson their are plenty of spots open on the roster and almost no ones job is safe. Burke has gone out on a limb and said that he would have no problem sending millions of dollars in salaries to the AHL Marlies. We decide to take a look at the Leafs current camp and where the major battles are to make the roster.

Goaltending

The back up goalie spot is up for grabs between Swedish rookie Johan Gustavsson and Joey McDonald. The Monster as Gustavsson is known in Europe looks to have the inside track on the spot but he can also go down to the Marlies without clearing waivers and 60+ game starts in the AHL wouldnt hurt.

Verdict: Joey McDonald starts the year as Leafs backup with Gustavsson minding the net for the Marlies.

Defense

The Leafs look to have the 1-4 spots set in Kaberle, Komisarek, Schenn and Beauchemin and the battle will be for spots 5-7 or possibly 8. The Leafs have Exelby, White, Frogren, Finger, Van Ryn and Oreskovic battling for those last spots and a very short margin for error, look for the Leafs to make a move on the trade front in this department.

Verdict: Exelby, White, Van Ryn and Finger as the Leafs go with 8 on the backend to start the season knowing White can play up front as well.

Forward

The Leafs look to feature a few rookies on the roster after camp concludes but look for some of the fiercest camp battles to take place here. Grabovski, Ponikarovsky, Hagman, Blake, Mitchell, Stajan and Orr look set on the roster but that still leaves 6 spots to battle for with the main contention taking place between, Stempniak, Kulemin, Primeau, Mayers, Hanson, Bozak, Kadri, Tlusty, Allison, and Stalberg.

Verdict: Look for Jason Allison to earn a spot on the top six basically our best forward if he has his game, Kulemin, Primeau, Stempniak, Mayers and Bozak round out the roster.

Who to watch for Surprises

Victor Stalberg- The 23 year is a strong skater and a little bit older and wiser then some of the younger Leafs, was a finalist for the Hobey Baker Award and took his college squad to the NCAA final four.

Jiri Tlusty- The 1st rounder had a great second half of the season with the AHL Marlies finished just under a point a game player.

Jesse Blacker- Long shot to make the squad but was impressive at the rookie camp and looks like a steady defensemen of the future.

Saturday, September 12, 2009

Toronto Maple Leafs Training Camp Roster


The Toronto Maple Leafs are ready to kick off training camp for the 2009-10 season with medicals today at the clubs new Mastercard Centre with on ice activities taking place tomorrow with their first preseason game kicking off on the 16th. The Maple Leafs training camp roster looks like this.

Goaltenders

29 Joey MacDonald
34 James Reimer
35 Vesa Toskala
50 Jonas Gustavsson
71 Beau Erickson
72 Andrew Engelage

Defensemen

2 Luke Schenn
3 Garnet Exelby
4 Jeff Finger
7 Ian White
8 Mike Komisarek
15 Tomas Kaberle
22 Francois Beauchemin
24 Jonas Frogren
26 Mike Van Ryn
36 Carl Gunnarsson
40 Phil Oreskovic
59 Todd Perry
60 Juraj Mikus
62 Joe Ryan
63 Josh Engel
66 Andy Rogers
69 Barron Smith
70 Jesse Blacker
78 Brandon Manning

Forwards

9 Niklas Hagman
11 Jiri Tlusty
12 Lee Stempniak
14 Matt Stajan
18 Wayne Primeau
20 Christian Hanson
21 Jamal Mayers
23 Alexei Ponikarovsky
25 Ben Ondrus
28 Colton Orr
32 Alex Foster
33 Jason Allison
37 Tim Brent
38 Jay Rosenhill
39 John Mitchell
41 Nikolai Kulemin
42 Tyler Bozak
43 Nazem Kadri
44 Kyle Rogers
45 Victor Stalberg
46 Dale Mitchell
47 Darryl Boyce
48 Ryan Hamilton
49 Stefano Giliati
51 Rickard Wallin
52 Greg Scott
53 Alex Berry
55 Jason Blake
56 Andre Deveaux
57 Robert Slaney
58 Mikhail Stefanovich
64 Richard Greenop
67 Jamie Devane
68 Joel Champagne
76 John Kurtz
84 Mikhail Grabovski

Tuesday, September 8, 2009

Brian Burke toying with Peter Chiarelli and Glen Sather


Brian Burke made a very interesting move over the weekend when he acquired the Maple Leafs second round pick for the 2010 draft from the Chicago Blackhawks for the Leafs second round and third round picks for the 2011 draft. This move allows the Leafs to be players if they decide to go out and sign a high priced restricted free agent as the compensation if the team does not match the Leafs offer sheet would be the teams first, second and third rounders from the 2010 draft. The two players being talked about out there are the Bruins Phil Kessel and the Rangers Brandon Dubinsky. Phil Kessel registered 60 points with 36 goals while Brandon Dubinsky registered 41 points with 13 goals on paper this looks like a no brainer for Kessel but Dubinsky fits more the mold of what Brian Burke is looking for with the team and thats a player with some sandpaper. In the end should Burke offer an offer sheet to one of these players i think not, why would he do such a thing when the Leafs could be just toying with both Chiarelli and Sather looking to make a deal with two teams that are close to the cap and are having a tough time fitting these players requested salaries into their team payroll. The Leafs have nothing to lose here as either player would be a welcome addition to the team that looks hard pressed to score goals this upcoming season. The fact that the Leafs have the picks from each of the first three rounds from the 2010 draft just lets the teams they are negotiating with know that they can make your job miserable and lay down an offer sheet to any of these players if we feel that what your offering or wanting in return is not to our liking. The Leafs have acquired a great hand over the weekend and if we were playing poker the Leafs would be closing in on a flush, they question is will they play the hand and wait for the river card to turn or will Burke fold when he gets the deal he is looking for, only Burke knows the answer to that.

Monday, September 7, 2009

Maple Leafs rookie camp starts off with a win


The Toronto Maple Leafs rookie camp has gotten underway as the team takes on similar rookie teams from Boston, Ottawa and Pittsburgh in a four game mini tournament in Kitchener. The Leafs rookies opened up the tournament with a 3-1 victory over the Penguins rookie team, in a game that saw the "Monster" Jonas Gustavsson play a steady game for the Blue & White between the pipes turning aside 35 Penguin chances. Victor Stalberg, Greg Scott and Alex Berry scored for the rookie Leafs while Joe Vitale got the only marker pass the Monster, next up for the Leafs will be today against the Boston Bruins rookies.

The Maple Leafs rookie camp Roster

Forwards

Alex Berry
Tyler Bozak
Joel Champagne
Jaime Devane
Stefano Giliati
Richard Greenop
Christian Hanson
Nazem Kadri
John Kurtz
Dale Mitchell
Greg Scott
Robert Slaney
Victor Stalberg
Mikhail Stefanovich

Defensemen

Jesse Blacker
Carl Gunnarsson
Simon Lacroix
Brandon Manning
Juraj Mikus
Barron Smith
Adam Wallace

Goalkeepers

Andrew Engelage
Jonas Gustavsson
James Reimer


Sunday, August 30, 2009

Who we could have had in Leafland


The Toronto Maple Leafs have made numerous trades in the history of the franchise and we have decided to take a look at the draft picks they were traded away from 1995 up until the lockout year and see if we would have been better off if we had retained the pick then give it away.

1995-96 Season

Wendel Clark, Mathieu Schneider and DJ Smith from the New York Islanders for Kenny Jonsson, Darby Hendrickson, Sean Haggerty and the Leafs 1st Round pick in 1997.

Player Taken by Islanders G- Roberto Luongo

Outcome- Luongo looks to be Canada's number one goalie in Vancouver 2010, the Leafs would have been set between the pipes for years, now part of the Vancouver Canucks organization.

1996-97 Season

Darby Hendrickson from the New York Islanders for the Leafs 5th Round pick in 1998

Player Taken by Islanders F- Jiri Dopita

Outcome- Dopita never played an NHL game

Craig Wolanin from the Tampa Bay Lightning for the Leafs 3rd Round pick in 1998

Player Taken by Oilers(via Lightning) D- Alex Henry

Outcome- Henry has played a total of 177 NHL games mostly for the Minnesota Wild currently a part of Montreal Canadians organization, Leafs have depth at backend.

Jason Smith, Steve Sullivan and Alyn McCauley from New Jersey Devils for Doug Gilmour, Dave Ellett and the Leafs 3rd Round pick in 1999

Player Taken by Devils D- Andre Lakos

Outcome- Lakos has never played an NHL game.

Kelly Chase from Hartford Whalers now Carolina Hurricanes for the Leafs 8th Round pick in 1998

Player Taken by Whalers/Hurricanes F- Jaroslav Svoboda

Outcome- Svoboda is a lesser version of Ponikarovsky has played in 144 NHL games

1997-98 Season

Jeff Brown from the Carolina Hurricanes for the Leafs 4th Round pick in 1999.

Player Taken by Predators(via Hurricanes) F- Evgeny Pavlov

Outcome- Pavlov never played an NHL game

1998-99 Season

Bryan Bedard and the New York Islanders 6th Round pick for Felix Potvin and the Leafs 6th Round pick in 1999.

Player Taken by Lightning (via Islanders) F- Fedor Fedorov

Outcome- Fedor is Sergei's little brother, played total of 12 NHL games.

Yanic Perreault from the Los Angeles Kings for Jason Podollan and the Leafs 3rd Round pick in 1999.

Player Taken by Kings G- Cory Campbell

Outcome- Campbell has never played an NHL game.

1999-2000 Season

Dmitri Khristich's rights from the Boston Bruins for the Leafs 2nd Round pick in 2000.

Player Taken by the Bruins F- Ivan Huml

Outcome- Huml has played in a total of 49 NHL games.

Darcy Tucker and a 4th Round pick from Tampa Bay Lightning for Mike Johnson, Marek Posmyk and the Leafs 5th & 6th Round picks in 2000

Players Taken by the Lightning F-Pavel Sedov, D- Aaron Gionet

Outcome- Sedov & Gionet have played in no NHL games.

2000-01 Season

Bryan McCabe from the Chicago Blackhawks for Alexander Karpovtsen and the Leafs 4th Round pick in 2001.

Player Taken by the Blackhawks D- Vladimir Gusev

Outcome- Gusev has played in no NHL games.

Aki Berg from the Los Angeles Kings for Adam Mair and the Leafs 2nd Round pick in 2001.

Player Taken by the Kings F- Mike Cammalleri

Outcome- Cammalleri has had 132 goals in 364 games played is now a part of the Montreal Canadians organization, would be top six forward in Leafs lineup.

2001-02 Season

Tom Barrasso from the Carolina Hurricanes for the Leafs 4th Round pick in 2003

Player Taken by the Hurricanes G- Kevin Nastiuk

Outcome- Nastiuk has never played an NHL game

2002-03 Season

Owen Nolan from the San Jose Sharks for Alyn McCauley, Brad Boyes and the Leafs 1st Round pick in 2003

Player Taken by the Bruins (via Sharks) D- Mark Stuart

Outcome- Stuart has appeared in 196 NHL games and is a regular stay at home defensemen with the Bruins, possible regular Leafs starter #5 or #6 defensemen

Glen Wesley from the Carolina Hurricanes for the Leafs 2nd Round pick in 2004

Player Taken by the Bluejackets (via Hurricanes) D- Kyle Wharton

Outcome- Wharton has yet to play an NHL game

Doug Gilmour from the Montreal Canadians for the Leafs 6th Round pick in 2003

Player Taken by the Canadians D- Mark Flood

Outcome- Flood has yet to play an NHL game

2003-04 Season

Brian Leetch from the New York Rangers in exchange for Maxim Kondratiev, Jarkko Immonen and the Leafs 1st Round pick in 2004 and 2nd Round pick in 2005.

Players Taken by Flames (Via Rangers)/Rangers F- Kris Chucko & D- Michael Sauer

Outcome- Chucko has played in 2 NHL games so far while Sauer has yet to play an NHL game

Ron Francis from the Carolina Hurricanes for the Leafs 4th round pick in 2005

Player Taken by Bluejackets (via Hurricanes) F- Jared Boll

Outcome- Boll is a regular with the Bluejackets playing in 150 NHL games so far, Boll would be on the Leafs 4th line

There seems to be alot of talk about the Leafs giving up alot of picks but after reviewing the draft list in our time horizon for the most part the Maple Leafs obtained players who would play many seasons in the blue and white and take on significant roles and all but possibly 4 out of the 20 picks would be on the Leafs current roster. There is of course Roberto Luongo who the Leafs would have been set in goal for many years to come but as is the risk of trading away your picks for that chance at Lord Stanley.

Saturday, August 29, 2009

The Leafs announce Jason Allison coming to camp

The Toronto Maple Leafs have announced that former center Jason Allison has been invited to training camp to see if he still has anything left. Allison will attend the Leafs training camp without a contract and has not played in the NHL since the 2005-06 season. Brian Burke wants to make the post season and he knows that the Leafs have nothing to lose by giving the 34 year old a chance to crack the lineup, if he made the team, he would most likely being offered the league minimum in salary. Jason Allison's greatest season in the league was the 2000-01 with Boston where he notched 95 points in 82 games. The best part of Allison is we wont need instant reply to watch any of his goals as he is not the fastest skater in the league from what most of us Leaf fans remember. We just want to offer Jason Allision the best of luck as he looks to revive his NHL career.