Mis-diagnosing the Maple Leafs

Toronto Maple Leafs’ history shows that this NHL franchise has now hit ‘rock bottom‘ (8 pts from the final Playoff spot in the Eastern Conference).

However, in sharp contrast to the current chatter in ’Leafs’ Nation’ …

January 22, 2008 Leafs call back Cliff Fletcher
February 15, 2008 Leafs future hinges on Sundin deal

… ‘The Remedy’ for their present plight does NOT revolve around:

a) Their search for a competent, full-time GM
b) Their lack of high-ranking draft picks (in the next few seasons)
c) The ‘no trade’ clauses in the contracts of their most highly payed (and, in some cases, least productive) players
d) The overall lack of ’skilled hockey talent’ on their roster
e) The overall ‘lack of Grit’ on their roster
f) The ‘price of (hockey) tape in Orilla (ON)’, or
g) Whatever else you might care to mention …

but the disappointing work of Paul Maurice (Head Coach), game-to-game.

When a team performs in this manner …

DATE	VISITOR	HOME	RESULT	REC’D	v 1-10	v 11-20	v 21-30
Jan 1	Tampa Bay (2	Toronto	W	1-0		1-0
Jan 3	Toronto	Pittsburgh (7)	L	1-1	0-1
Jan 5	Philadelphia (T-12)	Toronto	L	1-2		1-1
Jan 9	Toronto	Anaheim (5)	L	1-3	0-2
Jan 10	Toronto	Los Angeles (30)	L	1-4			0-1
Jan 12	Toronto	San Jose (6)	L	1-5	0-3
Jan 15	Carolina (T-1	Toronto	W	2-5		2-1
Jan 17	Toronto	Boston (T-16)	W	3-5		3-1
Jan 19	Buffalo (T-14)	Toronto	W	4-5		4-1
Jan 20	Toronto	New Jersey (9)	L	4-6	0-4
Jan 23	Washington (T-21)	Toronto	W	5-6		5-1
Jan 24	Toronto	Washington (T-21)	L	5-7		5-2
Jan 29	St. Louis (T-21)	Toronto	L	5-8		5-3
Jan 31	Toronto	Carolina (T-1	OT-L	5-9		5-4
Feb 2	Ottawa (3)	Toronto	W	6-9	1-4
Feb 5	Florida (T-26)	Toronto	L	6-10			0-2
Feb 7	Toronto	Montreal (	W	7-10	2-4
Feb 9	Detroit (1)	Toronto	W	8-10	3-4
Feb 13	Toronto	Buffalo (T-14)	L	8-11		5-5
Feb 14	NY Islanders (24)	Toronto	L	8-12			0-3

(over the course of its last 20 games, since Jan 1/08, while striving to make the Playoffs for the first time in 3 seasons)

- Winning games vs top teams in the league (v 1-10)
- Losing games vs middle (v 11-20) and low-end teams (v 21-30)

… it’s the responsibility of the coaching staff.

In the NHL, when a team’s Specialty Units perform at the bottom of the league … 

Power Play - 14.4%/28th
Penalty Kill - 78.4%/29th

while their

“Shots” Per Game/30.6/5th
“Shots Against” Per Game/29.2/18th 
” Goals For” Per Game/2.7/17th

are solidly in the middle-of-the-pack …

and, their

“Goals Against” Per Game/3.17/28th

is 3rd from the worst …

it speaks directly to the type of ’strategic/technical defensive coaching’ their players are getting, consistently (or not), in practice and games.

What the Leafs should NOT do, right now, to right their sunken ship, is trade Mats Sundin (their best player & Captain), for a combination of future draft picks & burgeoning younger players, yet to hit their stride in the NHL.

This would be another backwards step for this franchise … without a Stanley Cup, since 1967.

What the Leafs NEED to do, in this specific situation, is …

(in order)

1) Replace Paul Maurice with a (better?) Defensive-minded head coach, who has been involved with a Stanley Cup winning team before, in some capacity;
2) Trade away/Give Away/Buy Out non-achieving veteran players with ‘No Trade’ clauses in their contracts, i.e. Darcy Tucker & Bryan McCabe;
3) Re-sign Mats Sundin, to a ’short-term’ contract extension;
4) Hire a different & improved Scouting Staff, to better utilize their existing (up-coming) draft picks; and,
5) Hire a competent full-time GM/President, in-charge of their complete hockey operations.

A 5-Step Process … without any short-cuts.

Yes, ’blowing it up’ in Toronto … and, starting again from scratch … would be the ’right thing’ to do … but, to do so, right now, involving Mats Sundin … without a full-time GM/President in place, for the long term … is (almost) unbelievably (incomprehensibly) STUPID. 

9 days left … until the NHL’s trading deadline … tic, toc, tic, toc … and, KABOOM!

Note: To Cliff Fletcher … With the ‘puck on your stick, in the high slot’ … sometimes, the ‘best move’ (available) … is to pass. - Khandor’s Hockey Handbook ($19.95, Cdn)

Tags: Bryan McCabe, Cliff Fletcher, Darcy Tucker, Mats Sundin, Paul Maurice, Toronto Maple Leafs