REV-G Posted October 31, 2007 Share Posted October 31, 2007 To me the problem with the Maple Leafs is very clear. The team's key decisions are being made at the top by a board made up of business men wanting to protect their investment and make money. They are not hockey men. The facts? Richard Peddie was put in charge of both the Raptors and the Leafs. They both have done poorly. Finally they took the Raptors out of Peddie's hands by bringing in Bryan Colangelo, and the Raptors have had a huge turn-around. Go back a few years to when the board brings in John Ferguson Jr. to be the GM of one of the original six in a huge hockey city like Toronto. He had never been a GM before and because of the pressure to succeed now, and keep his job, he has traded away something like 4 first rounders and a few second rounders to end up with suspect goaltending and the highest paid defence in the entire NHL, with a very poor record. I'm a Canadiens fan, so my loyalty is not with the Leafs, but I believe Ferguson came into his position wanting to build through draft picks but the pressure to succeed in order to keep his job has put him in a no-win situation. The problem? Absolutely with the guys at the top. As long as they're making the decisions and wanting to keep control Toronto will never gain ground. The best decision they could make would be to do with the Leafs what they did with the Raptors. Work at bringing in the best hockey man they can, even if they have to give up players or cash [i donlt know if that's ever been done] and give him total control the way Bob Gainey has. Until the Leafs can get a Brian Burke, or someone of that quality, and take control of the team out of the hands of the men currently running it, they'll continue to spin their wheels. The question is, who can pressure the board to let go? The answer. Probably only the media and the fans. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JMMR Posted October 31, 2007 Share Posted October 31, 2007 I love the way the Leafs are and would not change a thing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Punkned Posted November 1, 2007 Share Posted November 1, 2007 As long as the leafs suck, it's all fine Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mont Royale Posted November 1, 2007 Share Posted November 1, 2007 I think the day is coming when they bring in an experienced, competent GM, because the fans and media are increasingly demanding it, especially after seeing how the Raptors responded to such a change. I don't think a Colangelo-esque quick turnaround in fortunes can be done with the Leafs, though, simply due to having too many (marginal) players locked up for too long, and for too much, and the aforementioned lack of draft picks. As the others said, it's all good! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoeLassister Posted November 1, 2007 Share Posted November 1, 2007 Colangelo is so good that he could even turn the leafs around. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JMMR Posted November 1, 2007 Share Posted November 1, 2007 Colangelo is so good that he could even turn the leafs around. I really doubt that. 1. He has no in league connections. 2. There is a real salary cap in the NHL. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnnyhasbeen Posted November 1, 2007 Share Posted November 1, 2007 Leafs have Maurice/JR Fergie/Sundin/Tucker/Mcabe/Raycrap/Tonsgola......... No problem there Hope they stick to it, should draft about 9th, just out of the top picks, gamble on a huge slow Slovak D-man {or simular} rated 102nd overall, 40 more years of losing tradition!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JMMR Posted November 1, 2007 Share Posted November 1, 2007 Leafs have Maurice/JR Fergie/Sundin/Tucker/Mcabe/Raycrap/Tonsgola......... No problem there Hope they stick to it, should draft about 9th, just out of the top picks, gamble on a huge slow Slovak D-man {or simular} rated 102nd overall, 40 more years of losing tradition!!! No way the Leafs would keep that pick they will trade it for their next starting goalie! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
InsaneHABSfan Posted November 1, 2007 Share Posted November 1, 2007 I really doubt that. 1. He has no in league connections. 2. There is a real salary cap in the NHL. Me thinks that was a joke. HOWEVER There is a semi-real salary cap in the NBA that majority of cheapskate owners adhere to. Teams like NY suck even though they pass the threshold by a large margin. Plus BC is one who would bring in proper pro scouting to evaluate talent. so yes in theory I think he would be as good with no experience. hehehe can you tell I am a Raptor fan? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RobRock Posted November 2, 2007 Share Posted November 2, 2007 The real problem is in talent evaluation. They thought they had goaltending problems two seasons ago, so they dealt for Raycroft. He sets a club record for wins, and they go out and get another goalie? What heppens if and when they don't make the playoffs this season? Deal for yet another goalie? Their blue line, as a group, stinks. Their team defense stinks. And some bonehead figured that getting Toskala was the cure for what ails them. Guess what? It didn't. And yet everyone is still on the goalies. Except for the ones blowing smoke up everyone's asses by floating stories about signing junior-aged "phenoms" (who a lot of scout aren't even ranking as the top pick for 2009). They don't just need a GM, they need a whole new scouting staff, from the top down. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trizzak Posted November 2, 2007 Share Posted November 2, 2007 To me the problem with the Maple Leafs is very clear. The team's key decisions are being made at the top by a board made up of business men wanting to protect their investment and make money. They are not hockey men. The facts? Richard Peddie was put in charge of both the Raptors and the Leafs. They both have done poorly. Finally they took the Raptors out of Peddie's hands by bringing in Bryan Colangelo, and the Raptors have had a huge turn-around. Go back a few years to when the board brings in John Ferguson Jr. to be the GM of one of the original six in a huge hockey city like Toronto. He had never been a GM before and because of the pressure to succeed now, and keep his job, he has traded away something like 4 first rounders and a few second rounders to end up with suspect goaltending and the highest paid defence in the entire NHL, with a very poor record. I'm a Canadiens fan, so my loyalty is not with the Leafs, but I believe Ferguson came into his position wanting to build through draft picks but the pressure to succeed in order to keep his job has put him in a no-win situation. The problem? Absolutely with the guys at the top. As long as they're making the decisions and wanting to keep control Toronto will never gain ground. The best decision they could make would be to do with the Leafs what they did with the Raptors. Work at bringing in the best hockey man they can, even if they have to give up players or cash [i donlt know if that's ever been done] and give him total control the way Bob Gainey has. Until the Leafs can get a Brian Burke, or someone of that quality, and take control of the team out of the hands of the men currently running it, they'll continue to spin their wheels. The question is, who can pressure the board to let go? The answer. Probably only the media and the fans. so....what's the problem? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pierre the Great Posted November 2, 2007 Share Posted November 2, 2007 I like making fun of loser nation, my leader in the student union he's from toronto, we joke about that "sad leaf nation". I know I'm not from Montreal which would like Toronto to be imploded and I'm not getting into old feuds that are really pointless. But, I see Habs-Leafs turning into something like Cardinals-Cubs. At least to me anyway. Leafs are lovable losers with the whole CBC and TSN openly rooting and begging for leafs wins. Its comical. Its funny and the egg is always on the Leaf fans. anyway that's my soon to obsolete phrase "my two cents" (we're ditching the penny if you didn't know) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prime Minister Koivu Posted November 2, 2007 Share Posted November 2, 2007 The leafs are owned by the teachers pension fund and they don't give a crap about winning. They will maximize profits at the expense of the product on the ice. The teachers pension fund just bought Bell Canada, it is a sad, sad day for Bell. :puke: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnnyhasbeen Posted November 2, 2007 Share Posted November 2, 2007 (edited) The leafs are owned by the teachers pension fund and they don't give a crap about winning. They will maximize profits at the expense of the product on the ice. The teachers pension fund just bought Bell Canada, it is a sad, sad day for Bell. :puke: Do you not mean the Aircanada Place? Oh bell canada, not Bell Center, I see! Got to stop reading through Jager glazed eyes. Edited November 2, 2007 by johnnyhasbeen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Athlétique.Canadien Posted November 2, 2007 Share Posted November 2, 2007 Problem with this team is the imbalance. When Quinn came in he put together a system of drafting that was a success. Stajan, White, Colaiacovo, Steen and others were good draft acquisitions. He hired Barry Trapp and it seemed that finally the leefs were on the road to draft success. As it turned out due to a power struggle at the top, the leefs went with JFJ and nullified Quinn. During all of this nonsense the leefs missed out on hiring their desired target who went to Montreal instead. We call him BOb. There's an old saying, "How you wish for it to conclude and how you wish for it to proceed is how you should begin. Well, this silly team doesn't do this. They shoot first and ask questions later. In doing so they have managed to almost tear down what good Quinn built into this team and now Trapp has left in disgust and even Craig Button quit recently too. Dummy weafs Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RobRock Posted November 4, 2007 Share Posted November 4, 2007 They made have drafted well, which is debatable on its own merits, but they didn't use their prospects for anything more than trade bait for old vets who never paid off. Dealing Brad Boyes was a dumb move. The last goalie they drafted and developed was Felix Potvin. They were lucky enough to have Pogge and Rask in their system at the same time so they could use Rask as bait (I like Pogge better personally after the 06 world juniors), but they dealt him for a player they probably didn't need in the first place. The smartest thing JFJ has done is leave the kids alone for the most part and let them develop before deciding whether or not they were going to be able to fill spots on the roster or would be more valuable as trade assets. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ch_nl Posted November 6, 2007 Share Posted November 6, 2007 I think the Leafs are the team that has scored most goals this season. Good for us Habs, they has also allowed the most. (How can it be with superstars like McCabe on the blueline?) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
simonus Posted November 6, 2007 Share Posted November 6, 2007 I think the Leafs are the team that has scored most goals this season. Good for us Habs, they has also allowed the most. (How can it be with superstars like McCabe on the blueline?) to be fair, McCabe is out of the lineup with an injury (groin i think). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Athlétique.Canadien Posted November 6, 2007 Share Posted November 6, 2007 McCabe is great sometimes but so boneheaded along his own blueline against the boards. Him getting beaten along the boards is a a true McCabe staple. But, they could use him. Ian White impresses me as a prospect they actually kept. Stajan, Steen and Wellwood are the other notables. But White is rugged. He has excellent speed. I'm really surprised that he is this flat right now. He's good. Maybe he just needs to get out of that blue rag. So, to sum it all up, they have no defence. Leaf fans know it. I've heard it. No D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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