Let The Rebuild Begin

The Toronto Maple Leafs are very close to the New York Yankees in the list of professional teams that I just have little or no use for. The coverage that they get in the media and the fans that they have don’t help their cause. I think that it is actually the fans that I have more of a problem with then the team itself. If they weren’t so ignorant and self-righteous I may not have the same destine for them. In an effort to be unbiased I am going to give credit where credit is due. Brian Burke has come in and put his stamp on the team in a very short period of time.

Pierre McGuire has said many times that this would be close to a 5 year re-build but in this cap system I am thinking that it may take far less time then that and they look to be off to a running start, especially when you have a little extra money to play with. Despite the fact that they currently have little or no one that can put the puck in the net they also won’t be allowing too many in their own. It may come down to a lot of 2-1 losses and/or shootout games. So far in just 1 off season they have done a great job at building from the goal out. They have 2 solid options in goal with Vessa Toskala and Jonas Gustavsson that can split time and add a good level of competition between the two tenders for the number 1 job.

They currently have 9 + guys on defence and will have to whiddle that down to probably 7 so some of those guys may be available in deals that can acquire something up front that can step in and help out the offence. The pickups of: Francois Beauchemin, Michael Komisarek and Garnet Exelby add size and solid play. When you add in Jeff Finger, Tomas Kaberle, Luke Schenn, Ian White, Mike Van Ryn, Jay Harrison and Anton Stralman you have formidable back end.

Right now there is little or nothing in the cupboard up front in either the minors or on the roster. the Colton Orr pick up clearly does not fill that need but there are pieces in play that could be added through trade or a mid level free agent move. Don’t look for Jason Blake Alexei Ponikarovsky or Matt Stajan to become dynamic scorers anytime soon. They have already signed their first round pick from this year in Nazem Kadri.

I still hate those dirty Leafs, but again, coming from a neutral position you have to give ol’ Burkey at least a head nod for a good step forward. It makes you wonder how just about every other regime since ‘67 could have been so inept.

Quick Hits

The Tour De France is now in full force which means we should hear about a bunch of positive drug tests, Lance Armstrong allegations and criticisms, poor North American ratings and if all goes well 1 or 2 huge crashes. Other then that there is little to hold ones interest until the last day...when it is over.

The Toronto Blue Jays are reportedly shopping the service of ace Roy Halladay, guess that is the white towel we have been waiting for. Halladay is almost the only pitcher on the team without a broken wing and can actually throw strikes so I guess it is time for him to move on. It is too bad that they can’t rid themselves of the albatross that is Vernon Wells and his massive contract.

The Reds managed to loose last night 22-1 to the Phillies. That is the worst loss in team history. This is not an expansion team either that means it was the worst loss in some 119 years, not good. The Phillies plated 10 in the first inning, not a great way to set the table for the rest of the game.

Remarks by Maple Leafs’ head coach Ron Wilson on a Toronto radio station could prove to be very costly. The Leafs are being investigated for tampering as it relates to the Vancouver Canucks Sedin twins. Wilson stated "You’re hearing right now, and this sounds very contradictory but, there’s a real possibility, I would think, that we would be going after the Sedins. Let’s just speculate there."
This they investigate but they look the other way when Brian Burke was rumored to go to the Leafs as GM. Seems like the NHL only investigates things that they feel like sometimes. Guess that is how 1 owner can lend money to the prospective buyers of a team or another can buy a team with no money. Guess It is very selective and subjective.

Almost A Done Deal Now- and not a moment too soon

Finally we can move on from the incessant Brian Burke rumors to Toronto, Burke agreed to terms yesterday and not a moment too soon. Burke will become the President and GM of the Leafs and have "complete autonomy". That, "It is what it is", "secondary scoring", "puck moving defenceman", "compete level" and "soccer mom" and all terms that in my opinion can’t stop soon enough. It is buzz phrases like that that just make you want to bang your head against the wall, but I digress...
But back to the complete autonomy. In the deal it is apparent that he wanted and it would appear that he would get the same type of deal that Bryan Colangelo gets for the same position with thee Raptors. Granted I am more comfortable with Colangelo then Burke, I mean clearly "Bryan" with a "Y" carries more respect then one with an "I". Apparently Burke will get up to $3.1M per year if he reaches incentives listed in the contract and have the final say with only Richard Peddie to report to on the MLSE Board. It will be interesting to see how long it takes for him to put his stamp on the team and purge Europeans and high ticket players.
Now if we can just get Mats Sundin to sign somewhere maybe people can go back to talking about the games and end all the speculation talk for a while.

In a side note Luke Richardson was waived by the Sens and all but ends his long career. If not claimed it is likely he becomes a coach in some capacity with the organization and would be a valuable addition to young defenceman in the system. It also allows for a little more cost flexibility or the team...Is this just the first move? Is something in the works? We will just have to keep an eye on that pipeline.