Maple Leafs News

Canes bounce back against Toronto
Comment
November 20
Raleigh News & Observer
 
"It was the kind of game the Carolina Hurricanes probably would not have won a few weeks ago. Maybe one week ago. The Hurricanes trailed the Toronto Maple Leafs 3-0 after the first period Thursday night at the RBC Center. The Canes trailed 4-2 in the third period, and they trailed 5-4 with just 29.9 seconds left in regulation after a goal by Leafs defenseman Ian White. And they won. It took a shootout to decide it, but the Hurricanes are used to shootouts. Tuomo Ruutu and Jussi Jokinen opened the shootout with goals, goaltender Manny Legace stopped both Leafs shooters and the Canes skated off with a 6-5 victory that could be - emphasis on "could" - a season-turner. Erik Cole's goal with ..."
Roberts rips Leafs' fitness
Comment
November 20
Toronto Sun
 
"Gary Roberts was highly respected as the Maple Leafs fitness fanatic in his playing days, but now he wonders if poor conditioning is a reason his old team is near last place. Speaking on former Leaf executive Bill Watters' radio show on AM 640 yesterday, Roberts specifically cited struggling defenceman Luke Schenn as a player who didn't train properly in the summer. "Why is Luke struggling so much?" said Roberts, who has been doing some personal training since he retired last year for among others, top pick Steven Stamkos of the Tampa Bay Lightning. "He looks like he has been riding the bike all summer. If you ride that bike all the time, you're going to get slow and you're going to get ..."
A Complete Nightmare
Comment
November 20
Toronto Star
 
"Two things seem abundantly clear this morning. One, this notion that sending big-money Leafs to the minors — Jason Blake is the most obvious target — will somehow fix what ails the club is just wrong. Blake may not be much use this season, but unless he is clearly a detrimental figure in the dressing room, just getting rid of him is essentially pointless and probably just symbolic. Unless you have a replacement, dumping a player isn't much of an answer. Two, whatever is wrong with this team, Ron Wilson seems powerless to fix it. The Leafs were the worst defensive team in the NHL last season and the worst penalty killing team. Today, they are the NHL's worst defensive team and worst penalty ..."
Splinter time for slumping Schenn?
Comment
November 19
Toronto Sun
 
"Almost every Maple Leaf that Ron Wilson has made a healthy scratch in his 101 games as coach came back better for it the next night. That message might now have to be absorbed by Luke Schenn as soon as tonight when the lineup card is made out. Wilson seemed to set the table on Tuesday in Ottawa by sitting the 20-year-old down almost all of the third period of an eventual 3-2 loss. That's about the third time in the past couple of weeks that Wilson has chained him to the bench for a bit to show he's unhappy with Schenn's work and his uncharacteristic wooden movements with the puck. But Wilson is no doubt concerned about the effect the scratch would have on last year's all-rookie team member ..."
Gionta latest Hab to come up lame
Comment
November 19
Toronto Sun
 
"Montreal Canadiens forward Brian Gionta will be out of action indefinitely with a broken bone in his left foot suffered Nov. 3. He played the next four games despite the pain, but has since sat out two contests. Gionta is tied for the team lead with eight goals with Mike Cammalleri and is third in team scoring with 13 points. Disgruntled winger Sergei Kostitsyn is not expected to be recalled from Hamilton. Kennedy backs Fleury CALGARY - Theoren Fleury's decision to press charges against disgraced junior hockey coach and convicted sex offender Graham James is not written in stone. A statement from Fleury's publicist said moving forward will hinge on the outcome of ongoing investigation of ..."
Quarter of horror for Leafs
Comment
November 19
Toronto Sun
 
"The Maple Leafs reach the quarter pole of the NHL schedule tonight against the Carolina Hurricanes. While they didn't expect to be leading the league at this point, it's quite shocking that last place in a 30-team league is at stake. Here's a look at how the first quarter has unravelled: THE DISAPPOINTMENTS - GM Brian Burke's oft-repeated vows that this team was going to be bigger, badder and contend for a playoff spot. So far, just the part about badder has come true, and we don't necessarily mean toughness. - Why, with all the money MLSEL sank into a new practice facility, with video suites, state of the art weight room, the hiring of skating and goaltending instructors on top of a game ..."
Supporters tell Leafs' Schenn to keep things simple
Comment
November 19
Toronto Star
 
"Luke Schenn said he will get through this. At least with his words. It's his body that's speaking a different language. Off the ice, Schenn is doing everything right – first to practice, last to leave, long workouts, listening to coaches, taking advice. On the ice, it's a different Schenn. It seems his every mistake ends up in the net. His ice time is diminished; his confidence shattered. "I know I've got to be better," said Schenn, seeming sullen and almost embarrassed at the position he's in. "As long as I work hard, I'll get to the point where I want to be." Schenn was benched for most of the third period in Tuesday's loss to Ottawa, and he heads into Thursday night's game against the ..."
Phil Kessel shines amid Leaf gloom
Comment
November 19
Toronto Star
 columnist Damien Cox
"One of the silver linings to an otherwise gloomy Maple Leaf season has been the remarkable health of the club so far. While other teams have been losing players by the bushel, the Leaf have only Mike Van Ryn gone indefinitely and Mike Komisarek rehabbing a short-term injury. Of course, that could also be read as a negative story. If the club is this bad without injuries, Lord help it if a bunch come along. A good news angle that comes without a similarly negative flip side, meanwhile, has been the performance thus far of forward Phil Kessel. In seven games, Kessel has been exactly as advertised in terms of ability to put the puck in the net. Including the five goals he's scored as a Leaf, ..."
Sens' Leclaire quiets doubters
Comment
November 18
Toronto Sun
 
"The Maple Leafs hit Pascal Leclaire's throat, the goal post and the cross bar -- everything but the back of the net. Such was the frustration in the final 20 minutes for the visitors, who could not find a way to tie the score in a 3-2 loss to the Ottawa Senators last night at Scotiabank Place. "I felt pretty good," Leclaire said afterward. "It was a fun game. It was easy to get into it because the crowd gets so loud. I don't know if it was my best game but I managed to make some good saves." None better than the one midway through the third period off Leafs forward Nikolai Kulemin."
Same old is getting old
Comment
November 18
Toronto Sun
 
"With Scotiabank Place buzzing with intensity and bad blood last night, it was almost reminiscent of some of the bitter Battle of Ontarios of yesteryear. Except this time, there was no Mats Sundin to save the day on the offensive end. And no Curtis Joseph or Ed Belfour standing on their respective heads between the pipes to thwart the hated Ottawa Senators. Instead, it was the same old tired story, the same old broken record, the same old warts that have plagued the Maple Leafs all season long. Yes, they played well enough to win in this heartbreaking 3-2 loss to the Senators. But with just three wins in 19 games, moral victories aren't worth a damn any more, especially when the script ..."
There's life after the Leafs
Comment
November 18
Toronto Sun
 
"Every year there are Maple Leafs fingerprints on the Stanley Cup. You just have to get far away from the centre of the hockey universe to see them. For all the ridicule and dashed hopes the Leafs have brought on themselves, all the years they've put their loyal fans through the wringer, including this year's awful start, many success stories around the NHL can be traced through Maple Leaf Gardens, the Air Canada Centre and the team so many love to hate. Sun Media checked the employment rolls of all other 29 teams, as well as the NHL's head office, and found at least one Leafs connection, whether to the parent team, its past farm clubs or the now extinct Marlie juniors. "The way I look ..."
Leafs bemoan turnovers in loss to Senators
Comment
November 18
Toronto Star
 
"It's officially broken record time with the Leafs. The last-place team is now very practiced at repeating the same refrains after each loss. Take Tuesday night's 3-2 loss in Ottawa, for example. Toronto fought desperately to tie the game, outshooting Ottawa 15-4 in the final period, and otherwise did everything within their abilities to stave off yet another setback."
Leaf fans just can't win
Comment
November 18
Toronto Star
 
"Leaf fans take note: A new study says gut-wrenching fear of defeat and outright despair are what make sporting events truly enjoyable for those watching. That's the conclusion of an academic study of college football fans, set to appear in the December issue of the Journal of Communication. "You don't want to be in a great mood during the whole game to really enjoy it," said Silvia Knobloch-Westerwick, one of the study's co-authors and a communications professor at Ohio State University."
A tale of two NHL youngsters, Filatov and Schenn
Comment
November 18
Toronto Star
 columnist Damien Cox
"Nikita Filatov, once viewed as exceptional, is now the exception. Precedent, of course, is always worth a headline, and in this case, the unusual decision Tuesday of the Columbus Blue Jackets to loan the 19-year-old Filatov to CSKA Moscow of the Kontinental Hockey League as a means of furthering his hockey development was certainly noteworthy. It's happened to other top Russian picks, but only when they have essentially failed as prospects. In Filatov's case, the Blue Jackets still very much believe that one day he'll be a 30- or 40-goal scorer in the world's best league, and that he still wants to be an NHL player."
Leafs sabotage themselves
Comment
November 18
Toronto Star
 
"It's officially broken record time with the Leafs. The last-place team is now very practiced at repeating the same refrains after each loss. Take Tuesday night's 3-2 loss in Ottawa, for example. Toronto fought desperately to tie the game, outshooting Ottawa 15-4 in the final period, and otherwise did everything within their abilities to stave off yet another setback."
Wilson says he's no `loser' coach
Comment
November 18
Toronto Star
 
"It was a simple question, one which would normally afford a coach a chance to reflect positively on his club's progress. But when asked if he has been "able to put his stamp on the Leafs," Ron Wilson was forced to face an unflattering reality. "No, not yet ... I don't want to be known as a loser and so far we've lost a lot more games than we've won," Wilson said flatly prior to Tuesday night's loss to Ottawa."
Leclaire back in goal against Leafs
Comment
November 17
Ottawa Citizen
 
"Ryan Shannon and Peter Regin will sit as the Ottawa Senators take on the Toronto Maple Leafs at Scotiabank Place tonight. In their place, Jesse Winchester and Shean Donovan will play. Pascal Leclaire will be back in goal for the Senators, after Brian Elliott was in for the last game against the Rangers. "Pascal's our No. 1 goalie," said coach Cory Clouston."
Bore of Ontario needs a jolt of playoff action
Comment
November 17
Ottawa Citizen
 
"The Battle of Ontario isn't exactly dead. It is merely comatose, dormant like a once mighty volcano, capable of erupting again, possibly as early as Tuesday night when the Ottawa Senators and Toronto Maple Leafs meet at Scotiabank Place. Ottawa took the opener of the provincial series in Toronto on Oct. 6, a 2-1 game decided on a goal by winger Daniel Alfredsson. The Senators captain noted on Monday that while the rivalry is not what it was when the Leafs featured Mats Sundin, Tie Domi and Darcy Tucker (and Ottawa had Zdeno Chara, Marian Hossa . . .), all it will take is another Battle of Ontario playoff series to fuel the passions again. "You throw everything you have at each other . . . ..."
Leaf chances of getting to playoffs? 1.7%
Comment
November 17
Toronto Star
 
"Asked to explain the root of his ongoing sophomore slump, Luke Schenn, the Leafs' 20-year-old defenceman, paused for thought before he spoke. "I'm thinking too much, I guess, instead of playing with instincts," he said. "You think too much instead of just reading the game and playing the game. You're thinking too much out there.""
One Hundred Games, Thirty-Seven Wins
Comment
November 17
Toronto Star
 columnist Damien Cox
"The first 100 days of any U.S. presidency are often viewed as critical. The tone is set, the optimism from the election is still vibrant and there's a freshness to it all. Maybe the same's the case for the first 100 games for an NHL coach with a team, a milestone Ron Wilson hit Saturday night with the Leafs against Calgary. With another loss. If you're keeping score at home, that's 63 losses for Wilson during his Leaf tenure against 37 triumphs. Of those 63 defeats, 18 have been through either overtime or a shootout."
Wilson issues new threats
Comment
November 17
Toronto Sun
 
"Looking for an early Christmas present for your favourite Maple Leaf? How about a game night alarm clock with the snooze button ripped out. Coach Ron Wilson is getting so peeved with his club's stumbling starts, surrendering the first goal in 16 of 18 games and falling behind by two in nine of them, that he's threatening sanctions for stage fright. "I have to be a lot more adamant and take ice time away from guys who don't do the right things in the first shift or two," Wilson said yesterday at the MasterCard Centre, before the flight to Ottawa for tonight's game. It wasn't that long ago that Wilson wanted to ease all that outside pressure on the team, letting them frolic with tennis ..."
Kipper, Flames ice road trip with win over Leafs
Comment
November 15
Calgary Herald
 
"If you didn't know better, you'd swear the Calgary Flames were trying to throw a hockey game Saturday night. Goaltender Miikka Kiprusoff wouldn't co-operate, however, so they were forced to take a 5-2 win over the homestanding Toronto Maple Leafs in spite of themselves to finish their three-game National Hockey League road trip in anything but glowing style. The victory made it a highly successful junket, nabbing five of a possible six points, and snapped a nine-year string of losses in the centre of the hockey universe. But it was anything but pretty. After scoring on their first two shots of the game inside two minutes, the Flames went into some kind of crazy funk that saw them stuck in ..."
Leafs' net letdown
Comment
November 15
Toronto Sun
 
"Early in the third period last night, the Air Canada Centre scoreboard read like an optical illusion. The Maple Leafs were outshooting their visitors from Western Canada by a 30-11 count and dominating just about every area of the rink. But when Flames captain Jarome Iginla broke down the right wing and blasted a shot past Vesa Toskala (yes, Toskala) for his second of the game, the Leafs were trailing 4-2. It was that kind of night and it is careening towards that kind of season for the Leafs, who ultimately fell 5-2 for a third consecutive defeat. Effort and domination matter little when you get behind 2-0, as the Leafs have done on nine occasions already. This time, the game wasn't even ..."
Flames chase shaky Jonas Gustavsson
Comment
November 15
Toronto Star
 
"The Monster had a nightmare. It starred Jarome Iginla. And it left the Maple Leafs shell-shocked. The Calgary Flames scored on their first two shots – Iginla leading the way with his first of two on the night – and chased Jonas Gustavsson by the halfway mark of the first period en route to a 5-2 win over the Maple Leafs. "I'm mad when we lose the game, I want to play good and help the team," said Gustavsson. "Sometimes, you have to move on and keep working hard and think about next practice.""
Back to the bad old '80s with the Leafs?
Comment
November 15
Toronto Star
 columnist Rosie DiManno
"Who knew the Eighties would be looked back on fondly as the good old days? Or that the Toronto Maple Leafs would try to emulate them? You remember the '80s: Mullets, glitter-rock, linebacker padded shoulders on ladies, cocaine and the absolute nadir for Leaf hockey – 56 points in '81-82, 57 points in '85-86, 52 points in '87-88."
Sour Grapes fans say
Comment
November 14
Toronto Sun
 
"Don Cherry has been talkin' smack about a couple of "good, ol' Canadian boys" who love the Maple Leafs. Now it's time for the rebuttal. Toby Glanville and his buddy, Paul Sims, were in the stands at the Air Canada Centre watching a dismal Leafs effort against the New York Rangers in a game last month. As the Leafs struggled, Glanville and Sims put "Upset Fan" bags over their heads and a Sportsnet cameraman caught them. The video appeared on Sportsnet and on the Hockey Night in Canada pre-game montage on Oct. 24. Last Saturday (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AI_SeeY4Kjg), Cherry tore a strip off them, Glanville, in particular, saying: "I'd like to get that guy and smack him ... they're ..."
Ex-Leaf Saganiuk giving back to game
Comment
November 14
Toronto Sun
 
"Rocky Saganiuk is still leaving his mark on hockey. One of the most popular Maple Leafs of the late 1970s and early '80s, Saganiuk is now a youth hockey development director in the Chicago area. Through his Rocky Hockey school and the Chicago Hawks double-A team, he has helped about 4,000 kids in the area get into the sport. "Chicago and the surrounding area has the second biggest minor hockey enrollment after Detroit," Saganiuk said yesterday, as he watched his old team practice at the United Center. "When I was finishing up (a nine year playing and coaching career) in Scotland, (sports agent) Mike Barnett asked me about running three rinks they had going here. I'd had about 13 ..."
Two little, too late
Comment
November 14
Toronto Sun
 
"Just like the old days, it takes a special kind of team to survive the first few minutes of hockey here after the Star Spangled Banner rocks the house. The Maple Leafs aren't yet at that level of confidence, though they can still give their old Norris Division rivals a scare. They were outshot 20-12 in the first period and down 2-0 with a disallowed goal thrown in, en route to a 3-2 loss, their 14th in 17 games. But two Phil Kessel goals and a good effort from Vesa Toskala made the Central Division leaders sweat out the result before a season-high 21,036 at the United Center, a 62nd consecutive sellout. "Not good enough," defenceman Tomas Kaberle said. "(Poor first periods), that's been ..."
Captaincy conundrum
Comment
November 14
Toronto Sun
 
"At the start of the National Hockey League season, the Maple Leafs waffled on naming a captain. Turns out Brian Burke and Ron Wilson did the right thing, as no one has distinguished himself six weeks and several losses later. And the search just became harder after Mike Komisarek, the team leader in hits and blocked shots, went down for three weeks with a quad muscle tear. Asked yesterday who might replace Komisarek as an alternate with Tomas Kaberle and Francois Beauchemin, Wilson's terse "I don't know" seemed more indifferent than secretive. When the game against the Blackhawks started last night, no one was wearing the other A. The Leafs don't have a credible dressing room force ..."
Leafs subdued by impressive Blackhawks
Comment
November 14
Toronto Star
 
"Two superb individual efforts almost helped the Maple Leafs catch one of the NHL's top teams napping. But what Vesa Toskala and Phil Kessel were able to achieve - Toskala played his finest game of the season, Kessel scored two more goals to continue to impress - wasn't enough to help the Leafs successfully come back from three goals down to beat the powerful Chicago Blackhawks on home ice Friday night. The 3-2 final was probably indicative of the overall measure of the game, but there are few teams in the NHL that can consistently spot opponents three-goal leads and turn defeat into victory. Maybe none."
Leafs take another step back
Comment
November 14
Toronto Star
 
"Two superb individual efforts almost helped the Maple Leafs catch one of the NHL's top teams napping. But what Vesa Toskala and Phil Kessel were able to achieve – Toskala played his finest game of the season, Kessel scored two more goals to continue to impress – wasn't enough to help the Leafs successfully come back from three goals down to beat the powerful Chicago Blackhawks on home ice Friday night. The 3-2 final was probably indicative of the overall measure of the game, but there are few teams in the NHL that can consistently spot opponents three-goal leads and turn defeat into victory. Maybe none."
Home free at the UC
Comment
November 14
Chicago Sun-Times
 
"Home-ice advantage won't belong to the Blackhawks much longer, but they're certainly enjoying it for the time being. The Toronto Maple Leafs became the Hawks' sixth straight victim at the United Center on Friday night, falling 3-2 before 21,036 -- the largest crowd of the season. Only the Western Conference-leading San Jose Sharks remain on the current homestand, however. They visit on Sunday, and then the Hawks go on a six-game road trip. ''Winning these games is huge,'' said center John Madden, who was dazzling on faceoffs with 13 wins in 16 tries. ''We need to put up some points before going on the road trip. We need to put some room between us and the other teams. We know how tight our ..."
Blackhawks stop Toronto Maple Leafs 3-2
Comment
November 14
Chicago Tribune
 
"With the circus slowly making its way toward the United Center, the Blackhawks are on a mission to pile up as many points as they can at home before heading to Western Canada next week. The Hawks extended their home winning streak to six games Friday night with a 3-2 victory over the Maple Leafs before a season-high 21,036 at the United Center. Duncan Keith had a goal and an assist, Patrick Kane and Troy Brouwer scored and Cristobal Huet earned the victory in net in the matchup between Original Six teams. The victory was the Hawks' third consecutive overall and their fifth in a row over the Leafs as they improved to 11-5-2 and 9-2-1 at home. It's the Hawks' longest home winning streak ..."
Ex-teammate Mayers sympathetic to Danton
Comment
November 13
Toronto Sun
 
"Jamal Mayers found himself drawn to his television on Wednesday night, wondering, like many in the hockey world, what Mike Danton was going to say. By the end of Danton's hour-long interview with Nick Kypreos of Sportsnet, Mayers had some sympathy for his former St. Louis Blues teammate. Mayers and Danton played together with the Blues in 2003-04, Danton's only season in St. Louis before he was caught up in a murder-for-hire plot and served just over 5 years in U.S. prisons. In the interview, Danton, among other things, said he didn't have anyone to turn to in St. Louis. "I thought it was quite sad to see ... to be around him at that time and know now he was in so much pain and did not ..."
Toskala gets another shot
Comment
November 13
Toronto Sun
 
"For the Maple Leafs, tonight's game in Chicago will be a test of mettle in a building that's roaring once again. For goaltender Vesa Toskala, it's another shot at trying to make enough noise to put himself in serious contention for the No. 1 netminding role with the Leafs. "Life is good," Toskala said after practice yesterday. "It's nice to play. Jonas (Gustavsson) was playing good and the team was playing well, so it gave me a chance to get my knee 100%. It's a long season and there still is a lot of hockey left." But how much is left for Toskala is questionable. The $4-million US man has not won a game in five appearances this season, and Gustavsson has demonstrated he has the chops ..."
Kaberle deserves our respect
Comment
November 13
Toronto Sun
 
"It is a brisk sunny morning in hockey-crazed Toronto and Tomas Kaberle, a rare bright spot during this frosty start to the Maple Leafs season, has a reason to smile. One glance at the NHL scoring leaders tells you why. There, among the top 10 point producers in the league, is Kaberle, who, as of yesterday, was tied for 10th with 20 points, best among NHL defencemen. "It's cool," admitted the normally understated Kaberle about seeing his name among the Ovechkins and Thorntons. "Cool" is a very applicable term when it comes to discussing Kaberle. On one hand, it describes his demeanour on the ice, always seemingly calm in the heat of battle. Unfortunately, "cool" also describes the ..."
Komisarek's pain is Gunnarsson's gain
Comment
November 13
Toronto Star
 
"Defenceman Carl Gunnarsson showed up, on time, wearing a jacket and tie and carrying his suitcase. He knew he was going on the road. But when he woke up on Thursday morning, he figured it would be on the Marlies' trip to Winnipeg, not the Maple Leafs' trip to Chicago. "Just before I left, the coach called me in. He said, `Walk over to the Leafs because you're going to play with them,'" Gunnarsson said of the sudden change in his life."
Healthy Toskala set to regain Leaf confidence
Comment
November 13
Toronto Star
 
"What happens when a netminder with a penchant for giving up the first goal early in a game plays a team equally adept at getting off to fast starts? Is it a recipe for another Maple Leaf loss, or an unlikely combination – as in two negatives make a positive – for a Toronto win? Fans will find out Friday night when Vesa Toskala gets his first start in nearly two weeks against the Blackhawks in Chicago."
Improved lids impress Leafs' GM Burke
Comment
November 12
Toronto Star
 
"A new helmet endorsed by Mark Messier has caught the eye of Leafs GM Brian Burke. "I like that helmet, I want to get it with the Marlies," Burke said after watching a presentation during the NHL GMs' meetings in Toronto on Wednesday. Amid growing furor over hits to the head in hockey, Messier and Cascade Sports presented their product, which is now being worn by eight NHLers, including Leafs defender Garnet Exelby."
Leafs put shaky Schenn under scrutiny
Comment
November 12
Toronto Star
 
"Luke Schenn and coach Ron Wilson both agree on the problem – the sophomore Maple Leafs defenceman has lost his physical edge. Where they differ is in how it got to this point. How Schenn, the darling of the fans and media during his sudden-impact rookie campaign, is suddenly making very little impact at all. In a city where every hockey nuance plays out under a microscope, it's an issue that isn't likely to go away, at least not until Schenn gets his grit together. Especially with blueliner Mike Komisarek now out with a leg injury."
How an ex-Leaf goalie helped bag Gustavsson
Comment
November 12
Toronto Star
 columnist Damien Cox
"After 20 knee surgeries, including one knee replacement, Mike Palmateer can't ever think about strapping on the pads again. "I'm actually walking pretty good these days, but I have to be careful," he said Wednesday from his car phone. "I'm pretty sure that if I even looked at a pair of skates, something would tear." That, however, hasn't prevented the former Maple Leaf goaltending star from doing some effective legwork for the club as a scout. In particular, according to GM Brian Burke it is Palmateer who deserves most of the credit for turning the Leafs on to Jonas (The Monster) Gustavsson last winter and starting a courtship that ultimately resulted in Gustavsson signing with the Leafs ..."
Burke against '14 Olympics
Comment
November 12
Toronto Sun
 
"This isn't the first time Canada and the U.S. have not agreed on something. A day after Team Canada executive director Steve Yzerman pushed for NHLers to participate in the 2014 Games in Sochi, Russia, Team USA boss Brian Burke said such a commitment does not make a lot of sense to the league. At least in terms of dollars and sense. "It's a disaster for our business when the Olympics are not in North America," Burke said. "We don't get any benefit out of it. We close our doors at a critical point in the season. We got no benefit from Nagano, no benefit from Torino."
Leafs lead the league again
Comment
November 12
Toronto Sun
 columnist Gary Loewen
"Sure, the Maple Leafs are barely entitled to passing grades most nights, but off the ice they certainly know their math. The Maple Leafs - majority-owned by the Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan - remain the most valuable NHL franchise, worth $470 million, according to Forbes Magazine's annual ranking. That's up from $448 million in 2008 and $413 million in 2007. Oh, to be a retired teacher. Completing the top 10: New York Rangers $416 million; Montreal Canadiens $339 million: Detroit Red Wings $337 million; Philadelphia Flyers $273 million; Boston Bruins $271 million; Chicago Blackhawks $258 million; Dallas Stars $246 million; Vancouver Canucks $239 million; and New Jersey Devils $223 ..."
Wild goalie Niklas Backstrom able to look at bigger picture
Comment
November 11
St. Paul Pioneer Press
 
"Going into the Wild's game against the Maple Leafs on Tuesday night at Air Canada Centre, Wild goalie Niklas Backstrom had his 100th NHL win in front of him but insisted on looking at the bigger picture. "It's not been an easy road for me to get here," he said, "so I just try to have fun every day. I'm living my dream; I'm playing in the NHL." Backstrom, who signed as the backup goalie to Manny Fernandez in 2006 as a 28-year-old rookie out of Helsinki, Finland, took over the No. 1 job when Fernandez suffered a knee injury that season. He continued playing so well that the Wild rewarded him last spring with a four-year, $24 million contract. He went into the game against the Leafs with a ..."
Wild goalie Niklas Backstrom busy to the end of 100th NHL victory
Comment
November 11
St. Paul Pioneer Press
 
"Credit the Backstrom Factor. Going after the 100th win of his NHL career, Wild goaltender Niklas Backstrom had to face one of the most demanding tests in hockey Tuesday night. The Toronto Maple Leafs, after scoring a late goal to pull within 4-2, pulled their goalie and then drew two Minnesota penalties, thus sending six skaters onto the ice against the Wild's three with 56.1 seconds left in the third period. "You don't see that too often. It's a big challenge. You go out there, try to do your best. You can't worry too much; try to enjoy it." So said Backstrom, the man of the hour and the fourth man on the ice in a Wild jersey during that hectic final stretch. Backstrom calmly blocked ..."
Backstrom goes extra mile in notching a big milestone
Comment
November 11
Minneapolis Star Tribune
 
"Niklas Backstrom didn't view his 100th NHL victory as the milestone everyone else saw. The real triumph, he said Tuesday, was in getting to this point. The Finnish goaltender didn't make it to hockey's grandest stage until 2006, when he was 28 years old. Tuesday, he solidified his place as one of its finest masked men in a 5-2 victory over Toronto. In the game's final minute, with the Wild down two skaters and the Maple Leafs' goalie pulled, Backstrom held firm under incredible pressure to give his team its first-ever win at Air Canada Centre. The Wild supported him with an energetic, confident effort, scoring more than three goals on the road for the first time this season. While everyone ..."
Terrible Tuesdays at ACC
Comment
November 11
Toronto Sun
 
"As the 19,053 at the Air Canada Centre last night can attest, tickets for a Leafs game there on a Tuesday should come with a warning. This might be a night to give away the tickets to the neighbour's kid. The Tuesday syndrome that has plagued Toronto in recent seasons was in effect once again as the home team was snapped back to reality in a dreadfully dull 5-2 loss to the Minnesota Wild. "It definitely wasn't our best effort," centre Matt Stajan said as his team's home record fell to 1-6-1. "You can ask anyone in the building.""
Burke bids for big events
Comment
November 11
Toronto Sun
 
"For those who think Toronto is the Centre of the Hockey Universe, Brian Burke is trying to prove that point. While giving commissioner Gary Bettman a tour of the Maple Leafs' new practice facility yesterday, Burke pitched the idea of landing an outdoor game for BMO Field. He also has stated his desire to bring the NHL draft and all-star game to Toronto. "We've approached the NHL asking that we'd like to host (all three)," the Leafs' general manager said. "We think Toronto's a pretty important market and we think we could do a good job with those things.""
Wild's Backstrom backs up Toskala
Comment
November 11
Toronto Sun
 
"Niklas Backstrom has a word of advice for frustrated fans of the Maple Leafs: Don't give up on Vesa Toskala. Backstrom, one of the leading candidates to play goal for Finland in the Winter Olympics, is a big booster of his fellow Finnish netminder, Toskala. Even if no one else is around here. "I don't know what's happened because I don't play in the East, but I believe in Vesa. He's a very good goalie. He's always been a good goalie," said Backstrom, who was very good himself last night, turning away a game-high 37 shots in a 5-2 Minnesota Wild win over the Leafs last night at the Air Canada Centre. The Monster may be the nickname of the Leafs new starting goalie but it was Backstrom, as ..."
NHL score: Toronto 2, Hamilton 0?
Comment
November 11
Toronto Sun
 columnist Gary Loewen
"Just wondering: If the CFL is successful in reducing the quota of Canadian starters to four from seven, what comes next? Don Cherry lobbying to allow NHL teams only four roster spots for Europeans? Buttressing Buffalo Maple Leafs general manager Brian Burke and NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly are speaking in vague terms of a second team being set up in southern Ontario eventually. There is nothing imminent but one message is clear: The shunning of Hamilton persists ad infinitum. With Burke and Daly both playing down the veto power of the Maple Leafs, it seems that the NHL is more concerned with the impact of a new Ontario franchise on the Buffalo Sabres. Daly, on the drawback of ..."
Maple Leafs Forum Top 5
  1. Ok...so the Old Leafs are Really Back and Are Here To Stay!!
    Last post:Byronicle
  2. Offical Maple Leafs Trade/Signing ideas Thread
    Last post:DewsSox79
  3. Fire wilson!!!
    Last post:SeenSchenn?
  4. Burke ready to use the axe.
    Last post:Lavy16
  5. Trade Kaberle?
    Last post:Nofear