Toronto Maple Leafs: November's When it Matters

I play shinny early Saturday mornings. Good bunch of older guys. The ice is full of their young kids skating laps while we assemble our gear and try to remember to put our jerseys on before our helmets (it's not as easy as it sounds at 6:30 AM).

Each week we look at who showed up, try to pair guys off according to their skill level and then red and yellow pinnies are passed out. We chase the puck for an hour or so and hope the 10 year olds that hit the ice after us don't smirk too much at the old men and the sloppy play.

Recently my side got stuck with a few too many of the guys who struggle on the ice. The teams are usually pretty balanced but we certainly missed the mark that morning. It was so lopsided that after the game our goalie turned to me and said, "Does this mean we get to play dodge ball at practice tomorrow?"

It’s the Goaltending, Stupid.

I haven't been writing much about the Leafs this season because there hasn't been much worth writing about.

It was pretty clear that the big challenge for the club was between the pipes and until the team addressed the goaltending situation they wouldn’t be able to compete. Thin forward corps and poor goaltending is a deadly combination. Giving up four goals a night is only a viable strategy if your team can notch five or six. Yes, the Leafs might have the odd six goal night but there’s going to be three times as many games where it’s a stretch for this team to score one or two.

Without any real offensive punch and unable to score at 5 on 5, it’s not much of a surprise that this team is 1-11.

That said, the Leafs are not as bad as their record and they're certainly not as good as many fans hoped/expected.

I think the main thing fans can take away from the first twelve games is that the pre-season is pretty much meaningless. A month ago, Viktor Stalberg looked like a Calder candidate and, for the first time in a long-time, the Leafs looked like a team with an identity. A dozen games into the real season and Stalberg is with the Marlies while the Leafs have the identity of an amnesiac.

Centre of Attention

Looking ahead, if goalie Jonas Gustavsson is the real deal, the biggest challenge for this team is up the middle.

How far can any team go when their top pivot is Matt Stajan? He might have outstanding comparables for a guy his age, but he’s built for the soft parade not to clash with the top lines of the East.

If the Leafs are to make the most of their high-cost acquisition Phil Kessel they also need to find a centre that can get him the puck. Yeah, Stajan had 40 helpers last year, but too many of those were secondary assists and he also tends to disappear for long stretches at time.

Ideally, the Leafs can land a pivot that can also dominate on the face-off dot. It’s an essential part of an effective PK. Jamal Mayers currently leads the Leafs in shorthanded face-off wins (admittedly with a tiny sample size) having won five of six shorthanded face-offs. The Leafs top three are not faring so: Stajan 52%; Wallin 46%; Primeau 40%. (Minnesota has the best PK in the league and their top three centres have much better results: Belanger 57%; Koviu 54%, Brodziak 43%.) It's hard to kill a penalty when you can't win a face off to get possession of the puck.

This Team Could Be Your Life

It’s November, when the games officially matter. Over the next month Leaf fans will get a chance to see how Kessel has recovered, how he fits into the line-up and if the it looks like a good deal was made to land the high-scoring winger.

We’ll also get a better idea if Gustavsson is the real deal. It’s one thing to look pretty good when you’re an unknown in the league. Once tape of him gets out and teams can isolate and identify his tendencies it may be a whole new game. Conversely, the more games Gustavsson gets under his belt, the quicker he can adapt to his team, their systems and the NHL style of play.

Should be an interesting month of hockey ahead, I certainly hope that the Leafs put up better numbers than October or is two wins in a month too much to ask?

An Ambulance Only Goes so Fast

I missed the Leafs game against Colorado as I was busy losing a hockey game of my own.

The winning (losing?) goal in my 2-1 game was scored from out near the red line. It beat our goalie clean from 60 feet out. I've always dreamed of playing for the Leafs and for one magical night I got to know just how it feels to see a hard fought game lost on a routine shot.

Continuing with the personal take, the good news about the Leafs current six game losing skid is I think I've already moved through four of the five stages of grief.

1. Denial: "We totally outplayed the Habs and deserved the win. It took two blown calls for the Senators to beat us. This team cannot be this bad."

2. Anger: "My grandmother could have stopped that Ovechkin shot. How many times can this team go down a goal a few minutes into the game?!?"

3. Bargaining: "If the team only had an average goalie...maybe the D just needs time go gel."

4. Depression: "Can't say I've seen a team down by a single goal roll over a play dead in the third like that."

5. Acceptance: With the absence of a first round pick, I'm not sure I can get past level four. I hated the Kessel deal when it was made and I hate it even more now. I'm not at acceptance yet, maybe in February I'll be numb to the horror.

I was a big proponent of keeping the kids on the farm this season. Shelter them from the tough minutes at the NHL level and let them play 20+ minutes a night in all situations for the Marlies. Bring 'em up next year, give them PP time and let-them have free reign on the soft-parade.

But I'm starting to re-consider.

If the club is going to be this bad, and let's face it, the young season has produced some atrocious hockey, maybe the kids should get thrown into the fire.

Why not give Hanson, Boazk and Tlusty a 10 game run alongside Stalberg? Sure two or three vets are likley going to get exposed to waivers and might be lost, but isn't this organzation all about players earning their spots and being held accountable?

In 2005-06, the Leafs had a number of underachieving, older veterans on the club and struggled with the inconsistent goaltending of an aging Eddie Belfour and a tandem of Mikael Tellqvist and JS Aubin. It was only when the old guard was hurt and the kids were given a chance that the Leafs reeled off a number of wins. That's how Ian White got his shot.

Maybe it's time to see what the kids can do.

After all, they couldn't do any worse.

Toronto Maple Leafs: Ugly numbers

After playing three hundred and four minutes and forty seven seconds of hockey this young season, the Leafs have held a lead for all of six minutes and forty seconds. That's about 2% of total time on ice.

The Leafs trailed Montreal for 7:12, Washington for 58:43, Ottawa for 33:15, Pittsburgh for 56:40 and the New York Rangers for 57:26.

All told, the Leafs have been in the hole for 213:16 of this season or 70% of their time on the ice.

The Leafs have yet to score the first goal of a game and have given up a goal in the first three minutes of play against Washington, Pittsburgh and New York.

Vesa Toskala has given up at least one goal in every single period he's played. The longest Toskala has gone without surrendering a goal is 29:12 (part of the second and part of the third period) against Montreal.

Gustavsson has put up zeroes in two of the three periods he played.

The Leafs have given up 24 goals in five games and are dead last, 30th overall, in goals against.

Averaging 2.5 goals a game, the Leafs are 24th in goals for.

The Leafs are 29th in the NHL on the PK (let's hear it for Dallas!) and 10th on the PP.

With an, ahem, winning percentage of .100, the Leafs are last in the North East Division, last in the Eastern Conference and dead last overall.

With 77 games remaining, to hit the 95 point mark (the presumed cut-off to qualify for the playoffs) the Leafs have to play .611 hockey for the balance of the season.

These are your 2009-2010 Toronto Maple Leafs.

On the Leeds side-streets that you slip down

Before Leaf fans start to panic, one has to wonder what the best case scenario was for this young season. Looking at the strength of competion, I'd say the best this team could have hoped for was to be 2-2-0 in their first four.

The Leafs played well and deserved to win game one against Montreal. It took two bizarre calls and some bad officiating to lose the game against the Sens. Losses to Pittsburgh and Washington shouldn’t surprise anyone.

Now, don’t get me wrong, the Leafs have looked absolutely atrocious in three of their four starts this year.

The team didn’t show up for the Sens, got outclassed by Washington and in the last game against Pittsburgh the Leafs had more turnovers than a Pillsbury factory. (Crosby scored two PP goals from the exact same spot on the ice. He was untouched and unguarded on both plays. Maybe it’s just me, but somebody might want to keep an eye on the #87 out there or maybe Wilson’s coaching cheat sheet mis-spelled Crosby’s name and the leafs weren't sure who to cover.)

I don't know if it's physical, mental or both but Vesa Toskala looks about as comfortable as a woman in burqa a at a Klan rally.

Keeping the Story Straight

Does anyone think management set expectations at a level that’s remotely in line with the talent (or lack thereof) on this club?

The organization said playoffs was their goal and then iced a team with Matt Stajan as the #1 centre and Vesa Toskala as the starting goalie - even though he hasn’t been able to approach the league average save percentage in three years.

Burke also promised an entertaining team. Other than game one against the Habs, I haven’t seen any entertaining hockey - have you?

Remember the old competition in camp theory? You know, the one where guys were going to earn their jobs. Well it turns out the Leafs couldn't get the msessage straight on that front either and some guys earned their starts this year based on last season's play. That would be the same season the team put up 81 points and missed the playoffs for the third year in a row.

A few days ago, Ron Wilson compared public criticism of Vesa Toskala to waterboarding. Your read that right, the Toronto media were metaphorically torturing the goalie.

Tonight the coach decided to throw that same goalie under the bus.

The only consistent thing coming from the Leafs is the stench of incompetence.

Shortcomings and Off-Season Moves

The two biggest issues that dogged the Leafs last year were the penalty kill and goaltending. The Leafs were dead last in both categories.

In the off-season, Burke shuffled the defence - moving out Kubina and bringing in Komisarek, Exelby and Beachemin. He also added Rickard Wallin to the forward mix (as well as pugilist Colton Orr)

In nets, Burke actively pursued the Jonas “The Monster” Gustavsson, who unfortunately is battling injuries and has only started a single game.

Four games into the Season and the Leafs are, once again, dead last in goals against and dead last on the PK.

Until goaltending and special teams play is resolved, this team will remain winless.

Oh, and a question the media horde might want to ask Coach Wilson: what the heck is Wallin doing on the PP?

Leafs and Goaltending: Playing the Percentages

Even though the Leafs are just two games into the season the team is dealing with a so-called goaltending "controversy."

Fresh from off-season hip-surgery, Toskala has looked decidedly sub-par in pre-season and regular season action. He's surrendered 14 goals in his last seven periods of play and was pulled after giving up three goals on just eight shots against Washington, including whiffing on a forty-foot wrist shot just 17 seconds into the game (go team!).

His save percentage is a frightening .800

Waiting in the wings is one of Burke's big off-season signings, goaltender Jonas Gustavsson. He was considered by many to have been the best goalie outside of the NHL last season (note to so-called experts: does Raycroft being in the league have any bearing on this title?)

Leafs management are waiting until game day to confirm whether Vesa "punainen valo" Toskala or Jonas "the Monster" Gustavsson will get the start against The City That Fun Forgot^TM SNES on Tuesday night.

It may be early, but given how tight playoff races in the East have been over the past three years - where every single point really matters - this decision could have a significant impact on the Leafs post-season aspirations.

The bad news is, the Leafs may be in trouble if they can't sort out their goaltending situation.

The good news is, the Leafs are covered by about 40 professional journalists who have incredible access to players, coaches, managers, agents and other various insiders. Sometime in June 2010 one of them will report on what was really going on in the room and just what Nonis, Burke and Wilson were thinking about Toskala early in this 2009-10 season.

Leafs: 2 games down, Eighty to go

When the Leafs lost the opening game of the 2006 season 4-1 to the Ottawa Senators the reaction from the media was swift.

Game 2 of that long-ago season was decreed a "must-win" for the Leafs.

Must-win.

In October.

It always seems peculiar to me that the majority of so-called hockey experts have picked the Leafs to finish in the lower tranche of Eastern Division for years, yet lead the panicky charge when the Leafs are a little slow out of the gate.

There's no such thing as a must-win game in October but I bet it's a burning topic leading up to the Tuesday night game versus Ottawa.

Speaking of the Leafs and media topics, 2gp 7gf isn't iot time for the media to step up and ask: "Who's going to score on this team?"