Posts Tagged ‘Jonas Gustavsson’

Maple Leaf selling points when signing free agent prospects

April 22nd, 2010

There are a number of reports suggesting the Toronto Maple Leafs are close to signing goalie Jussi Rynnas. Rynnas, a Finnish goalie, is this year’s version of Jonas Gustavsson – a highly touted European goalie who’s elected to sign with the Leafs after seeing and talking with a bunch of other NHL clubs. This signing will mark the second consecutive time Brian Burke and the Leafs have ousted other NHL teams to sign a sought-after free agent goaltender.

I know what you are thinking. “How are the Leafs out-selling other teams that actually win and have less goaltending depth??” Here’s some of the selling points I’ve heard Brian Burke uses to sign these highly touted free agents.

  • Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment is owned in majority by the Ontario Teachers Pension Plan. As a result, it’s been agreed to have the Maple Leafs schedule closely follow that of an Ontario-based teacher. Every year work starts in September/October and concludes for the year in April.
  • The Toronto Maple Leafs are closely affiliated with the NHL. Many former Leaf employees have gone on to great careers in the league. Take Joe Nieuwendyk for example. Wait, nevermind. You are the second good goalie we’ve stolen away from him now. Sucks when you aren’t working with us, right Joe???
  • Under performing for most of your time in Toronto is OK. All of Toronto’s other pro sports teams suck too. However, if you happen to fall in deep slumps, please make sure you do more interviews than normal and stress how hard you are working. Everyone likes to root for the loser.
  • Signing with the Maple Leafs as a goaltender gives you so much opportunity without much competition. In fact, the Leafs haven’t had a good goalie since the 1990s.
  • The Toronto Maple Leafs currently staff 9 NHL-caliber defencemen, so you know you’ll be well supported. The only problem is, we can’t promise how many of them actually show up on a night-to-night basis.
  • Sometimes in Canada, the pressure to perform is too much. Luckily, there’s something very unique about Toronto and the Air Canada Center: No one in the first 15 rows shows up until the 2nd period. And as a bonus, they usually leave before the 2nd period ends.
  • Note that if you turn out to be pretty good and look to have more potential than the average NHL player, you will probably be traded to a team that plays the Leafs 8 times per year. A team like Boston, for example.
  • Our AHL affiliate, the Toronto Marlies, are down the street from the ACC, so getting called up/sent down isn’t a big deal. It’s also not a big deal because both the Marlies and Leafs staff pretty much the same level of talent and depth.

Stay classy, Toronto Maple Leafs.

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Are the Toronto Maple Leafs for real?

December 14th, 2009

After the Toronto Maple Leafs raced out to the worst start in franchise history, they quickly became the laughing stock of the NHL. They were the bud ends of many jokes and even us Stayclassy guys had some fun at their expense.

Ron Wilson of the Toronto Maple Leafs has some classy quotes

Ron Wilson of the Toronto Maple Leafs

As of Monday morning, the Leafs have gone 8-3-1 in their last twelve games and many die-hard Leafs fans are suggesting that Toronto are on the verge of tearing up the league. Hmm, really? I’m not sure if I’m buying that just yet. Over the past week or so, I’ve even heard discussion that Toronto have a good chance to finish in the top 4 in the Eastern Conference come playoff time. Huh? Wasn’t this the same team that, approximately a month ago, were said to have less than 2% chance of making the playoffs? Regardless, I’m going to dissect Toronto’s season to date and attempt to provide an accurate assessment where the Leafs are right now and where they’ll likely finish at the end of the year.

When Brian Burke revamped the Leafs and injected the team with a heavy dose of truculence and belligerence, we all knew that the 2009-2010 edition of the Maple Leafs would be a very different looking team. Toronto started the year a league-worst 1-7-1, and it’s safe to say that’s not what anybody expected. In fact, Toronto lost their first 8 games in a row, including 7 straight without registering a single point. Despite the brutal hockey the Leafs played, it’s probably fair to say that they weren’t as bad as they looked. Clearly, there was a lack of chemistry on the ice and in the dressing room. Players like Mike Komisarek and Luke Schenn were trying to do too much and it ended up costing Toronto big-time, as 6 of those first 8 losses saw the Leafs give up 4 goals or more.

The losses continued to pile up for Toronto, but the good news was that at least they were getting some points. Toronto lost each of their next 4 games in overtime and it looked as though they were making some progress. The YTD record now stood at 1-7-5 – yep, still last place and Leafs fans were becoming increasingly frustrated with the team.

Phil Kessel makes his classy debut with the Toronto Maple Leafs

Phil Kessel makes his classy debut with the Toronto Maple Leafs

Hope was on the way, as Phil Kessel made his long-awaited and highly anticipated debut. To call him the Leafs saviour might be a little much, but then again, things definitely changed once he got into the lineup. Toronto’s lineup finally had one of the game’s elite, game-breaking players. His presence on the ice drew the attention of the opposing team’s top defenders, which in turn, freed up some time and space for Toronto’s other forwards. Toronto showed some jump in their stride and began the Phil Kessel era 2-0-1, essentially doubling their total number of points for this season. If I recall correctly, Brian Burke was officially labeled a genius for the Kessel trade around this time, although this remains to be seen.

Toronto began another cold streak as the Kessel buzz wore off. Their next eight games netted them only 5 points, which was equal to the number of regulation losses they endured in that same time. Consequently, they fell further away from that elusive playoff spot that Burke said they’d challenge for. Many of these losses featured extremely questionable goaltending from the duo of Jonas Gustavsson and Vesa Toskala. Then something happened – yes, another OT loss. This loss was against the New York Islanders., but really, Toronto deserved to win the game. They outshot the Islanders 61-21 and if not for the brilliance of Dwayne Roloson, probably could’ve won the game by 10 goals. This loss seemed to spark something in Toronto. It was almost like the forwards suddenly realized what they needed to do to score goals and the goaltenders rapidly learned how to stop pucks.

That brings us to Toronto’s latest 10 games, where they’ve gone 7-3 and have restored their fans faith that yes, Toronto are not quite as bad as we thought they were. They were scoring more goals than they were allowing and for the first time all season, were getting some timely goaltending from both goalies. The Leafs moved up to 28th in the NHL in this time.

All of this begs the question, where does Toronto stand now? Well, 32 games into the season, they’re tied for 13th place in the Eastern Conference with Philadelphia (Flyers have 2 games in hand), but only 4 points out of 8th place. That’s the good news. The bad news is that there are 5 teams between Toronto and 8th place Montreal. You get the sense that for the Maple Leafs to leap-frog all of these teams, they’re going to have to win 70% of their remaining games this season. They also need to find a way to win at home – they have the second lowest number of home wins in the league (5 – only Florida has less with 4), as well as the second lowest point total at home. Not good.

The main problems the Leafs need to avoid are the prolonged scoring droughts and losing streaks that have plagued them so far this year. They have this strange affinity to go down by a couple of goals early in the game and they seem to wait until the last 10 minutes of a game before they wake up and attempt to equalize the game. Sometimes this works, but most of the time it doesn’t.

With so many teams ahead of them, I’d be quite surprised to see the Leafs wind up in 7th or 8th place come April, let-alone the 4th place finish I heard talk of earlier this week. Let’s be honest, Toronto are not a 4th place team. They’re not anywhere close to the standard of teams like Washington, Pittsburgh or New Jersey and it’s just foolish to think that they are. I’m not even convinced they’re an 8th place team, especially when I look at the standings and see teams like the Rangers, Lightning and Flyers all ahead of them, none of these three teams are currently in the top eight in the Eastern Conference. I don’t believe the Leafs couldn’t beat any one of those three teams in a best-of-7 series either.

At the end of the season, Toronto are very likely to finish in that same 11th or 12th place spot that they’ve hovered around for the past few years. Toronto are a team on the rise, there’s no doubt about that, but they’ve got a lot of work to do to become a legitimate playoff contender. Winning 7 of 10 games doesn’t make you a 4th place team or an 8th place team. The harsh reality is that Toronto are exactly where we expected them to be, and perhaps more importantly, they are going to stay there for the balance of the year.

Your Reporter in the Field,

Fantana

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Did you know…

November 10th, 2009

We are nearly one-quarter through the NHL’s 2009-2010 season with no shortage of interesting story lines and revelations. Who predicted the Colorado Avalanche and Phoenix Coyotes would be at the top of the Western Conference? Or that the Boston Bruins and Detroit Red Wings would barely contend for the playoffs?

As with any season, some players have gotten off to terrific starts while others don’t appear to have their season under way. Did you know…

  • Florida Panthers forward Steven Reinprecht has 9 goals in 15 games this season. He scored 14 goals last season… in 73 games.
  • Zack Stortini and Vincent Lecavalier have both scored two goals this season, however, Stortini still has more goals than Jason Spezza, Ryan Clowe and Martin Havlat, among others.
  • “Interesting stat of the night….Price is 10W, 32L in last 42 stars. Hmm.”
  • Vancouver Canucks goalie Andrew Raycroft has twice as many wins this season as he did in the entire 2007-2008 with the Toronto Maple Leafs.
  • Some of the season’s top performing players could have been claimed off waviers in recent years (Rich Peverley, Andrew Raycroft, Rene Bourque, Ilya Bryzgalov and Craig Anderson to name a few). Perhaps waiver wires should be looked at a little closer?
  • The Boston Bruins lost two of their 13 games in November during the 2008-2009 season. The Bruins have lost three of four games this November.
  • New York Rangers star Marian Gaborik is one game away from matching his games played total from last season. Amazingly, he has virtually identical stats as last year with a brand new team and coach.
  • The Dallas Stars were reportedly interested in signing Craig Anderson this summer but placed a higher priority on signing Jonas Gustavsson. Having Anderson as the ‘backup plan’ was probably a bit foolish (hindsight is always 20/20).
  • Chris Neil (1st), Matt Carkner (7th) and Jarrko Ruutu (8th) each rank among the league’s top 10 in penalty minutes this season. Out of shear coincidence, the Ottawa Senators are the most penalized team in the league (they average 20.1 minutes per game).

Stay classy, surprising NHL storylines.

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I think Jonas Gustavsson is overrated

November 7th, 2009

From the moment the Toronto Maple Leafs became interested in signing Swedish goaltending sensation Jonas “The Monster” Gustavsson, the hype machine had started. No fan had even seen this guy play live, yet unreasonable expectations existed and hope of post-season hockey was created.

Intrigue continued throughout the summer with grainy YouTube video’s, great European playoff stats and stories of braveness (OK, I may have made that last one up). So finally pre-season comes and we still don’t see much of Gustavsson – except the odd period here and there.

Eventually, Vesa Toksala’s leash is pulled and the reins are handed to Gustavsson (yeah, I didn’t see that one coming either…), but after a decent outing against the Ottawa Senators, Gustavsson is placed on the shelf with a sore groin.

Since he’s returned from injury, The Monster has been good, posting a record 2-2-3 for the Leafs.

Is Jonas Gustavsson overrated?

Forget his highlight reel saves against Anaheim’s Erik Christensen or last night on Chad LaRose. Every game I see Gustavsson play, there’s always one or two soft goals that he lets in. Really great goaltenders don’t allow soft goals that often. His overall performance is fine – not great – but fine.

I’m not throwing Gustavsson under the bus… yet. However, I question if he’s ready to be a starting goalie in the NHL (for the record, I don’t believe Toskala is capable of this either and who are we kidding – between the two, Gustavasson is clearly the starter). I’m not buying the hype that surrounds this goalie. Gustavsson holds a 2.48 goals against average – good for 26th in the NHL and nearly double the average of one Mr. Andrew Raycroft. (I couldn’t resist throwing that one in there). Hardly elite numbers for a goalie with the hype machine running at full blast.

I know it’s not Gustavsson’s fault the hype has him pinned as the next Henrik Lundqvist, but it’s fair to say Gustavsson isn’t anywhere near that level at the present moment. Perhaps I’ll eat my words and he’ll steal a win for the Leafs against the Detroit Red Wings tonight. That still won’t change the fact he’s been OK in his rookie season and nothing more. Even Toskala has made some good saves this season.

Whatever the case may be, Gustavsson does own Toronto’s only two wins this season while Toskala’s riding a winless record, a 5.13 GAA and .836 save percentage. This doesn’t exactly help unhype Gustavsson, nor does down play his mediocre performance.

Stay classy, Jonas Gustavsson.

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Restricted Free Agency In November?

November 3rd, 2009
Jonathan Toews is one of 3 Chicago Blackhawks that are RFA's this summer.

Jonathan Toews is one of 3 Chicago Blackhawks that are RFA's this summer.

Unrestricted free agents (UFA’s) are the most hyped free agents in the NHL but are they the best free agents? Last week, we looked at unrestricted free agents in October and today, we’ll look at restricted free agents in November.

Since the lockout, things have changed and the league has become a younger league. Top draft picks used to require a few years of ‘seasoning’ because they could crack the NHL, and even then, it would take a few more years before they became impact players. Yet in today’s league, we have 18 year olds that flat-out dominate men in their 30’s. The emergence of young talent across the league makes restricted free agents (RFA) a better deal that UFA’s. Here are some of next summer’s top RFA’s:

Bobby Ryan – Anaheim Ducks

Value of Contract on September 1st, 2009: $765,000/season
Value of Contract on November 1st, 2009: $3.5 Million/season

Fantana’s Thoughts: Bobby Ryan exploded into the NHL last season, his first full year in the league, where he scored 31 times and was a finalist for the Calder Trophy. With the likelihood of retirement looming for Teemu Selanne, Ryan becomes an even more critical component of Anaheim’s future. $3.5 Million per season might seem pretty rich for a guy who will only have 2.5 years of NHL experience under his belt, but if stretched over 4 or 5 years, could look like a steal.

Ondrej Pavelec – Atlanta Thrashers

Value of Contract on September 1st, 2009: $850,000/season
Value of Contract on November 1st, 2009: $3 Million/season

Fantana’s Thoughts: After watching Pavelac steal the show against the Sens on Halloween (he made 50 saves!), I’m convinced he’ll be Atlanta’s future starting goalie. During the game, CBC’s Garry Galley said that Pavelac was a few years away from becoming a star goalie in the NHL but I think it’ll happen sooner than that. This year looks like his breakthrough season and keeping Pavelac around long-term could help Atlanta keep Kovalchuk in the fold too. The key in resigning Pavelac won’t so much be about money, but rather, giving him the starting goaltender position next season.

Jonathan Toews, Patrick Kane, Duncan Keith – Chicago Blackhawks

Value of Toews Contract on September 1st, 2009: $850,000/season
Value of Kane’s Contract on September 1st, 2009: $875,000/season
Value of Keith’s Contract on September 1st, 2009: $1.9 Million/season

Value of All 3’s Contracts on November 1st, 2009: $4.5 Million/season

Fantana’s Thoughts: Chicago have a big problem and the clock is ticking. Three of their best players are RFA’s and they’re all due for big raises next year. Chicago’s best bet is to try and negotiate with all three together to keep the core of their team in tact. Having said that, I think it’s clear that something, rather someone or some people, have to give. Names like Patrick Sharp and Kris Versteeg come to mind. And if the Hawks are really lucky, they’ll find a team willing to take Brian Campbell, but don’t count on it.

Kyle Quincey – Colorado Avalanche

Value of Contract on September 1st, 2009: $550,000/season
Value of Contract on November 1st, 2009: $3 Million/season

Fantana’s Thoughts: Quincey broke out last year with L.A. and looked great quarter-backing their powerplay, scoring 38 points. He’s one of the reasons why Colorado are off to such a torrid start too, scoring 8 points and being +4. Comparable salaries are Marek Zidlicky in Minnesota ($3.5 Million) and Joe Corvo ($2.75 Million), though I think Quincey is better defensively than Corvo and Zidlicky.

Josh Harding – Minnesota Wild

Value of Contract on September 1st, 2009: $1.1 Million/season
Value of Contract on November 1st, 2009: $2.75 Million/season

Fantana’s Thoughts: Minnesota are off to a slow start and as usual, it’s their offense that’s letting them down. Well, that and all their injuries. Either way, you have to wonder how long they’re going to hold on to Josh Harding, who happens to be their best trading chip to acquire another forward. I think Harding will get $2.75 Million next season, but it won’t be in Minnesota. Like Pavelac, the most important aspect of the negotiation will be whether Harding’s a starter next year or not.

Marc Staal – New York Rangers

Value of Contract on September 1st, 2009: $765,000/season
Value of Contract on November 1st, 2009: $3.5 Million/season

Fantana’s Thoughts: Marc Staal is probably one of the most underrated defensemen in the league, though that may change with his next contract next year, especially since he’s on pace to have a career season. When you watch the Rangers play, Staal is their go-to guy when it comes to shutting down the opponent. The only problem is that New York will be tight against the cap next year, and they’ve got Dan Girardi and Vinny Prospal, among others to resign.

Braydon Coburn – Philadelphia Flyers

Value of Contract on September 1st, 2009: $1.4 Million/season
Value of Contract on November 1st, 2009: $3 Million/season

Fantana’s Thoughts: I’m still amazed Atlanta traded Coburn for Alexei Zhitnik! Having said that, Philadelphia may have to trade Coburn themselves as they’ve already got $46 Million committed for next year including only 3 defensemen and no starting goalie. Coburn’s easily worth $3 Million a year, especially if that can be stretched out to 4+ years. The only way the Flyers can keep him is by trading one of their forwards – Scott Hartnell is most likely to go but the Flyers would like to move Daniel Briere first.

Kris Letang – Pittsburgh Penguins

Value of Contract on September 1st, 2009: $625,000/season
Value of Contract on November 1st, 2009: $3 Million/season

Fantana’s Thoughts: If the NHL goes to the Olympics in 2014 in Russia, I think Letang will be on this team. He seems to get better with every month and he didn’t look out of place last year when Ryan Whitney and Sergei Gonchar went down with big injuries. His 33 points last year, plus the 13 points he scored in the playoffs make him a value part of Pittsburgh’s future. The problem is money, and I can’t see Pittsburgh going much higher than $3 Million a year so I expect Letang to resign in Steeltown for only 2 or 3 years.

Devin Setoguchi – San Jose Sharks

Value of Contract on September 1st, 2009: $765,000/season
Value of Contract on November 1st, 2009: $3.5 Million/season

Fantana’s Thoughts: Playing alongside guys like Patrick Marleau and Joe Thornton will certainly help you score some goals. Just ask Setoguchi, who scored 31 goals last year for San Jose. He’s in the same boat as Bobby Ryan in terms of experience and goal scoring and I think they’ll wind up with similar-sized contracts. Expect both to point to Phil Kessel’s deal in Toronto as a comparable for dollars and term.

Jonas Gustavsson – Toronto Maple Leafs

Value of Contract on September 1st, 2009: $810,000/season
Value of Contract on November 1st, 2009: $2.75 Million/season

Jonas Gustavsson will be an RFA this summer.

Jonas Gustavsson will be an RFA this summer.

Fantana’s Thoughts: The Monster has finally arrived in Toronto, having played well on the team’s road trip this past week. Notably, he scored the Leafs’ only victory of the year against Anaheim. If Gustavsson continues his strong play, it’s very likely he’ll become Toronto’s starting goaltender next season. I’m sure that won’t stop the ‘J.S. Giguere to Toronto’ rumour though.

Ryan Kesler – Vancouver Canucks

Value of Contract on September 1st, 2009: $1.75/season
Value of Contract on November 1st, 2009: $4.5 Million/season

Fantana’s Thoughts: Ryan Kesler is the straw that stirs the drink for the Canucks and Vancouver can’t afford to let him go. Dave Nonis will get him resigned, but I hear Kesler doesn’t want to take a ‘hometown discount’. Regardless, it’s hard to place a value on Kesler and consequently, Vancouver have no choice but to pay Kesler market value.

Nicklas Backstrom – Washington Capitals

Value of Contract on September 1st, 2009: $850,000/season
Value of Contract on November 1st, 2009: $5 Million/season

Fantana’s Thoughts: Backstrom is one of the elite playmakers in the NHL and I’d be shocked if Washington didn’t resign him. I’d also be surprised if he didn’t want to stay to play with guys like Alex Ovechkin and Mike Green. Based on Backstrom’s point-per-game average over his 2 season career thus far, I’m expecting Washington to sign him to a long-term deal, somewhere in the 5-8 year neighbourhood.

Alexander Semin – Washington Capitals

Value of Contract on September 1st, 2009: $5 Million/season
Value of Contract on November 1st, 2009: $6 Million/season

Fantana’s Thoughts: Apparently contract negotiations have already begun and they aren’t going very smoothly. There’s still plenty of time to get a deal done, but Semin has a reputation for tough bargaining – he did go and play in Russia rather than reporting to the Caps AHL team during the lockout season and it wouldn’t be a big surprise if he defected to Russia again. I’m sure the KHL will offer him a lot of money. If it comes down to it, I think Washington would keep Backstrom over Semin.

Your Reporter in the Field,

Fantana

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October update: The top NHL rookies of 2009-2010

October 27th, 2009

As the Pittsburgh Penguins and Detroit Red Wings battled for the Stanley Cup last June, I took an early look at some of the top projected rookies for the 2009-2010 season. Now, after their first month in the NHL, we’ll take a look at how some of those players have adjusted so far, and some other freshmen who’ve emerged as early Calder candidates.

John Tavares (NYI) – JT’s had a decent start to his NHL career with 7 points in his first 9 games. He hasn’t looked out of place so far but he doesn’t exactly have much to play with. I’m very curious to see how he’ll manage the strain of a full NHL season, especially given that he currently plays over 19 minutes per game, which is tops among rookie forwards.

Victor Hedmen (TBL) – Victor Hedmen leads all rookies in average icetime, playing 25 minutes a game, which is unbelievable. Tampa Bay obviously has a lot of respect for Hedman, because he’s seeing more icetime than Niklas Lidstrom, Kimmo Timonen and Sergei Gonchar. Wow.

Matt Duchene (COL) – I wasn’t convinced that Duchene would be strong enough to play in the NHL this season and I was totally wrong. Duchene has looked pretty good for Colorado so far and he just got word that he’ll stay with the club for the whole season. The only knock on Duchene is that he’s not the most impressive rookie playing for Colorado right now.

Ryan O’Reilly (COL) – I think O’Reilly has to be one of the biggest surprises in this year’s rookie class. Through, 11 games, he’s scored 10 points and he’s a +10. He’s a one of the reasons for Colorado’s hot start this year and was their strongest rookie in October.

James van Riemsdyk (PHI) – Injuries have slowed van Riemsdyk’s debut season a little, but he still has 7 points in his first 6 games. There’s no doubt about his skill, but the biggest questions facing van Riemsdyk are his ability to play a full NHL season and how much ice time he’ll see on a deep Philadelphia Flyers roster.

Matt Gilroy (NYR) – Matt Gilroy has lived up to expectations that came from all the buzz he generated last spring. He has certainly helped the New York Rangers develop a quick transition game that most teams underestimated at the start of the year. I’ve been impressed with Gilroy’s poise this year, and his +4 rating through 11 games is a testament to how smart of a player he is too.

Davis Drewiske (LAK) – Drewiske was signed as an undrafted player this summer by the Los Angeles Kings and has fit in very well so far. I watched him play on Sunday night against Columbus and he’s got a great first pass and he plays a smart game. He’ll definitely be a player to keep an eye on as a cheap pickup for your hockey pools – the Kings certainly think so, as they’ve already re-signed him for the next 3 seasons.

Tyler Myers (BUF) – Tyler Myers can do everything. He’s big, he’s tough, and he can score goals too. With 5 points in 8 games, he’s also a +8 and the shootout winner he scored last weekend is just another intangible skill he possesses. I wouldn’t be surprised to see Myers as the Buffalo Sabres top defenseman by the end of the season.

Michael Del Zotto (NYR) – The entire hockey world has been raving about Del Zotto for the past few weeks now, and for good reason. He’s an exciting player to watch and he gives the New York Rangers what Mike Green gives the Washington Capitals. Del Zotto also leads all rookies in points and trails only Dan Boyle for the league lead in points by a defenseman.

Jason Demers (SJS) – Most hockey fans had never heard of Jason Demers before, but that’s going to change quickly. He was San Jose’s 7th round pick in 2008 and spent last year in the AHL, where he scored 33 points in 78 games. This season, he already has 8 assists in the NHL. He started the season as the probably 6th or 7th defensemen, but with his strong start, he looks like he’s battling for top 4 minutes! Add this man to your fantasy roster now!

Honourable mention goes to Erik Karlsson (who was just sent down to the AHL), Peter Regin, Viktor Stahlberg, Evander Kane, Niklas Bergfors and Semyon Varlamov. These guys have played very well at times this year and are definitely worth following over the next few months.

Other players I had discussed as potential rookie standouts included Nikita Filatov, Tyler Bozak, Cody Hodgson, and Jordan Schroeder. None of these players have permanently cracked the rosters of their respective teams at this point in the season and are likely to spend another year developing in the minors. However, a few of these players could jump up to the big show if their team’s depth charts get depleted with injuries.

I also listed Jonas Gustavsson as a potential breakout rookie and really, at this point, it’s just as much a question mark as it was last June due to his recurring injuries. It’s still possible that The Monster has a huge freshman season, and to me, it seems very probable given all the opportunities Vesa Toskala is affording him. You have to figure that eventually, Jonas Gustavsson will take advantage of this.

Your Reporter in the Field,

Fantana

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Toronto Maple Leafs skills competition suggestions

October 23rd, 2009

Recently, I purchased and received tickets to the Toronto Maple Leafs annual Skills Competition (December 6th).

I’ve never been to a Leafs Skills Competition, but have attended a few of the Ottawa Senators ones in the past. I’ll refrain from the obvious “but the Leafs don’t have skills, how can they have a whole competition” joke, but since I’m unsure what to expect, I have a few suggestions for the Maple Leafs Sports Entertainment and event organizers.

Fastest Skater

Normally skills competitions have players skate one full lap around the rink as quickly as possible. That’s a bit boring, so to make things more dramatic, the Leafs should have their players skate around GM Brian Burke’s ego instead. Players should take note this will be marathon more than a speed skate. Completing this challenge is a victory in itself.

Stay classy, Toronto Maple Leafs skills competition

Stay classy, Toronto Maple Leafs skills competition

Hardest shot

This is very straight forward. Whoever shoots the hardest shot wins. But we can spice this up a little. We’ll have Leafs players shoot at coach Ron Wilson and whoever can finally shut him up wins.

Shot Blocking

This is a new event open to anybody on the team, including equipment managers. As silly as this challenge may sound, it is a fairly critical challenge. No Leafs defensemen or goaltender has been able to do this in 7 NHL games so far this season. The winner will be signed to a ridiculous contract, and Brian Burke will inexplicably send the rest of his draft picks to another team.

Penalty Killing

This one is pretty simple. It’s a competition that breaks the Leafs team into groups of 4. Each group is tasked with not allowing a goal to be scored for two full minutes. While the expectation is that Toronto might be able to prevent a few goals, Colton Orr has been warned to not punch the group of 6 year old skaters they will be playing against.

Verbal Submission

Another new event for the Leafs Skills Competition. It’s an open challenge to any Leafs player who can out-duel Ron Wilson in verbally attacking Howard Berger. In order to garner the best response, Berger will make a rather innocuous statement as insults and negative quotes are directed at him.

Long Distance Shooting

All Leafs players, front office employees and fans can line up and shoot on Vesa Toskala. Participants will shoot from a faceoff-dot all the way down to the ice to the other net, where Toksala must save the shot. For every shot Toskala lets in, it means another start for the Monster. Sources are saying that Jonas Gustavsson will now finish the season for the Leafs.

Stay classy, Toronto Maple Leaf skills competitions.

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Will they or won’t they – Toronto Maple Leafs

September 28th, 2009

The big question in Leafsland right now is if Toronto will make the playoffs this year. Before I answer this question, I have a few Maple Leaf jokes I’d like to share.

Q: What do the Toronto Maple Leafs, Blue Jays and Raptors all have in common?

A: None of them know how to play hockey.

Q: What do Maple Leafs fans do when Toronto scores a goal at the ACC?

A: They stand up and straighten their ties.

Q: What will Toronto say if Hamilton is awarded an NHL franchise?

A: They’ll say, “We want one too!”

Q: What do Leafs fans do when Toronto wins the Stanley Cup?

A: They turn off the X-Box.

Okay, that’s it for now. If you have any funny Leafs jokes, post them in the comments section below. This should be fun. I brought these jokes out because after this season, they probably won’t be as true as there are right now.

Reasons Why Toronto Will Make the Playoffs

Toronto have overhauled their team (for the better) this season. They’ve got a solid back end, led by experienced blueliners like Mike Komisarek, Tomas Kaberle, Francois Beauchemin and Garnett Exelby. Jeff Finger and Luke Schenn will continue to improve and are likely to have strong seasons this year. Finally, Ian White is a great two-way defenseman who can contribute at both ends of the rink.

Up front, Toronto has a roster that could do some damage this year. The second half of last season saw a line of Nik Hagman, Mikhail Grabovsky and Jason Blake develop some terrific chemistry. Notably, Jason Blake seemed to find his speed again and actually went to the net. Who knew you could score goals from there? Toronto’s also got some promising youth breaking into the lineup and it’s been quite a while since Leafs fans have been able to say that. You can’t help but be impressed with Viktor Stahlberg’s size and speed this pre-season. His chemistry with Tyler Bozak has been fun to watch and once Phil Kessel returns in November, this line will be even better. Jiri Tlusty and Matt Stajan will also figure into Toronto’s plans up front and are both in need of strong seasons. For these two, it’s a make-or-break season, with players line Nazem Kadri and Christian Hanson on the bubble of making this team. Thus, I expect both players to have career years.

Reasons Why Toronto Won’t Make the Playoffs

As many fans and experts have predicted, Toronto’s fate this season is directly linked to the quality of goaltending they receive from the tandem of Vesa Toskala and Jonas Gustavsson. While Toskala didn’t do much to endear himself to Leafs fans last season, it turned out that he was playing injured for much of the year. He’s apparently much healthier this season, but the jury is still out on that. He’s also got Gustavsson right behind him, and that could either serve as a motivator to play well or to be completely unnerved. Ottawa Senators fans will remember how Martin Gerber fell apart with a young Ray Emery playing behind him. Toskala’s never struck me as a clutch performer and I could seem him crumbling like Gerber did. While Gustavsson had a strong playoff last year in Sweden, he’s a rookie in the NHL now and this league is much faster and much more skilled. All this makes me apprehensive about the Leafs goaltending this season and ultimately, about their post-season chances this year.

Also, with such a new-looking team, Toronto appears to be missing a clearly defined captain that can help steer the ship while players adjust to their new teammates and roles. I could see Komisarek being named captain, but it’s kind of hard to lead your team when you’re one of the newest guys on the squad. I mean, if he were to organize a team-building exercise, he’d have to ask for directions from someone like Jiri Tlusty. Weird! Where’s Doug Gilmore or Wendel Clark when you need them? Haha.

Final Prediction

My final prediction is that while I believe the Leafs will be much more competitive than they have been in previous years, I can’t see them squeezing into the 7th or 8th spot in the Eastern Conference. I’m not sure they’re at the same level as teams like Buffalo, Montreal or Ottawa, who will definitely be fighting for those last playoff spots. While Toronto’s revamped roster is stronger than it has been in years, building chemistry as a team will take time and it could be months before all of their new acquisitions settle in to their roles. I also feel that the lack of an established captain will hurt them. Finally, I think that with all of their truculence and belligerence, the Maple Leafs are going to need some really, really good penalty killers and I don’t think they’ve got that at the moment. Expect Toronto to finish in that familiar 9th place position, as they have done in previous seasons. The big difference this year is that the future looks promising and a 9th place finish will be considered a pre-cursor of things to come.

Your reporter in the field,

Fantana

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Toronto Maple Leafs – v.Burke.0

July 8th, 2009

I am not a Leafs fan.  I don’t have the pseudo-aggressive attitude required to properly cheer for the big Blue.  But I am impressed with Brian Burke’s work since taking over a Toronto Maple Leafs organization that frankly was unintimidating and in complete disarray.

The Maple Leafs are one of those franchises that should always be strong.  Like it or not, they should always be a legitimate Stanley Cup contender.  Since their stronger teams in the 1990s, it’s no secret to anyone they’ve dropped off considerably.

To note: I am not a member of the Brian Burke fan club.  I don’t think Burke is the best GM the NHL has ever seen.  I also don’t think he’d be a good fit in any organization.  But for the Leafs and what they need/needed, Burke is the best guy for the job.

Brian Burke... a job well done, so far.

Brian Burke... a job well done, so far.

With exception to his over the top man-crush on John Tavares, I like nearly every move Burke’s made for the Leafs.  You can argue any other GM would of selected Nazem Kadri 7th overall and you are probably right.  But one-by-one, Burke has made the right decision at every juncture.

The first thing he addressed was defence, acquiring 3 new defencemen in the last week alone.  However, the Leafs currently sit on 8 NHL defencemen – Luke Schenn, Jeff Finger, Francois Beauchemin, Mike Komisarek, Tomas Kaberle, Mike Van Ryn, Ian White and Garnett Exelby.  That doesn’t include up-and-coming prospects either.  I believe any of Finger, Van Ryn and Kaberle could be traded soon.

I look to Kaberle as the biggest prize as the Leafs forwards are clearly the new area of focus.  Burke’s addressed the tough factor he so famously loves on his teams.  What he lacks are top 6 forwards who can deliver when it counts most.  Kadri could very well fit in here, but not right away.  Jiri Tlusty ripped up the AHL last year, but still shouldn’t be expected to carry the load in the immediate future.  I believe Jason Blake and Mikhail Grabovski to be legitimate top 6 forwards, with the proper insulation.  It remains to be seen how some of Burke’s college acquisitions (Chris Hanson, especially) fit into the mix.  But clearly, high end forwards will be the priority and something Kaberle might help fetch.

And while the ruling is still out on goaltending, Burke managed to convince Euro-star Jonas Gustavsson to sign on as the newest Leaf.  As DownGoesBrown.com said, I’m betting Gustavsson to be the unanimous decision for starting goalie by the Olympic break.  The thing I don’t get with Gustavsson – what took so long to decide on Toronto?  With exception to Ian White, every defenceman of the Leafs roster is atleast 6 ft tall.  The only other team Jonas was looking at was the Dallas Stars.  Hmm, he wants to be a starting goalie, between beating out Marty Turco and Vesa Toskala, was this really that difficult a decision for him?

But most importantly, Burke deserve’s praise for not overpaying on UFA signings or handing out long term contracts his team will be forced to eat for the next decade.  Good job.

As an Ottawa Senators fan until the bitter end, this blog was especially difficult to write.  I foresee many painful Saturday night Leafs/Sens battles in the future.  Hopefully, for the sake of my Senators, I’m wrong on this one.

Stay classy, Brian Burke.

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