Well, this blog comes fresh off the Leafs first win of the season! FINALLY! It only took until October 27th Eastern Standard Time, but they got it. Jonas Gustavsson was outstanding in the Leafs 6-3 victory over the team formally known as the Mighty Ducks. He made many saves, stopping 25 of 28 shots...most of which were incredible, including this one:
It's been so long since I heard Joe Bowen yell "HOLY MACKINAW" like that, and as always, it gave me shivers.
But now that this losing streak is over, there is something that I have noticed during the losing streak. The official Toronto Maple Leafs site is horribly biased. What a shocker right? But I mean..the Leafs are on a losing streak, and what are the articles on? The Leafs 3-on-3 tournament they had with each other. Great, that's some great insight. I DON'T CARE, what about the reality? What the Leafs bloggers want you to forget is how us fans are blowing our money to watch a horrible team continue to lose.
What about Ian White being the best Leaf so far . Fantastic, except there are 17 other crappy players on this team (not counting last night's game).
But they don't stop there: the Leafs were having fun at practice? Who cares? This is like the TML's version fo E! News "look who was grocery shopping, guess who was at the beach, look who got fat!" It's all trivial, it's a distraction from the distraction that hockey is!
Now, I believe mapleleafs.com needs a blogger more like me. I'm not the most objective guy out there, but I do give the point of view of the typical Leafs fan. I may not have the same insight, may not have access to the dressing room or the players for a one-on-one interview, but in the end, my checks are not signed by MLSE. I see myself as giving the fans view, and mapleleafs.com need more fan views.
Of course, the Leafs offer a blogsite for fans known as Leafspace . They allow fans like me to write blogs, and even have Vlogs (video blogs) and they host some of them on a weekly online show (and it's shown on Leafs TV if one has it). Again though, the Vlogs they show are not people criticizing the Leafs, but people who still have some hope. Don't get me wrong, hope is good, but at the same time, people need the realism. Just last night, during the pre-game show, they showed a Vlog from a Leafspace contributor. His Vlog: on his superstitions to make the Leafs win, which involve him sipping beer out of one of those little mini Stanley Cups you get in beer packs. Again though, the people involved on the Leafs news are focusing primarily on unnecessary little tidbits to distract us from the fact the Leafs are still only 1-7-1 and still in last place and still eight points out of the playoffs!
That's my rant for now, until next time.
Nicholas Porretta
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
RIP Leafs 2009-2010
Well, it's been seven games, and still a BIG goose egg in the Wins column! The only point the Leafs have so far this season was from the season opener against Montreal. As one would expect, Leafs fans are upset. The Leafs have absolutely NO goaltending. If there is a bright side however, it is that the Leafs seem to allow less goals with Toskala NOT in goal: in 4 games played this season, Toskala has allowed 19 Goals against, when Toskala has not been in goal, the Leafs have only allowed 13 goals in 4 games (In game 2 Toskala was yanked and replaced with Gustavsson, who allowed 3 goals in 2 periods, Toskala allowed 3 goals in the first period). Doing the math, that sits Toskala with a 5.71 GAA! Gustavson has played 1 game and 2 periods allowing 5 goals (one of which was a penalty shot) sitting him with a 2.99 GAA and Joey McDonald, filling in for Toskala while he is injured has a 4.00GAA. So right now, it looks like Gustavsson could be this team's savior. The stage is set for the monster: he needs a couple of good games, and just like that he'll snag the number one spot from Toskala.
But what can the Leafs do about their goaltending situation, well...Brian Burke, if you're reading this, pay attention! I play a lot of street hockey with my friends, sign me to a one-year contract! I can stop shots...in fact I have a video for your scouts:
I'll be waiting for your phone call Burkie.
Now, how badly are the Leafs doing exactly? Well in 333:16 of play this season, the Leafs have held the lead for 6:40! That's 1.9% of play that they've held the lead!the other 98.1% they've either been tied or screwing up. Seven games have gone by in this young season, but already the Leafs have gone through 3 goaltenders. Yes, I'm going back to goaltending. Out of the 5 periods Gustavsson has played, he blanked shooters in two of them. Two more "shutout" periods than Toskala.
As if the Leafs don't have it bad enough, the oft-injured Mike Van Ryn is done for the season, after playing a whopping 0 games. Because of his long-term injury status, the Leafs have a lot of extra cap room, many people speculated that the Leafs should try to sign free agent Brendan Shanahan, Burke says the Leafs need to be more competitive for the playoffs for Shanahan to want to come to Toronto. "Burke also addressed a newspaper article suggesting the Leafs would be wise to sign the 40-year old Shananan. However, the Leafs' rebuilding plans likely rule that move out.
'To me a team has to be a lot closer to competing for (Shanahan) to make sense,' Burke said.
Well if you're like me, and horribly embarrassed to call yourself a Leafs fan today upsetfan.com has a great product for you! It's a bag to put over your head. Seriously, I'm not joking. For every bag they sell, they will donate money to the Sick Kids Foundation. Go check it out if you're interested...or embarrassed...
Until next time folks, let's just hope the Leafs can get a W...and soon.
Further Reading:
http://bitterleaf.blogspot.com/2009/10/toronto-maple-leafs-ugly-numbers.html
http://www.sportsnet.ca/hockey/2009/10/19/leafs_burke_shanahan_goalies/
And seriously check out: http://www.upsetfan.com/ it's for a good cause!
But what can the Leafs do about their goaltending situation, well...Brian Burke, if you're reading this, pay attention! I play a lot of street hockey with my friends, sign me to a one-year contract! I can stop shots...in fact I have a video for your scouts:
I'll be waiting for your phone call Burkie.
Now, how badly are the Leafs doing exactly? Well in 333:16 of play this season, the Leafs have held the lead for 6:40! That's 1.9% of play that they've held the lead!the other 98.1% they've either been tied or screwing up. Seven games have gone by in this young season, but already the Leafs have gone through 3 goaltenders. Yes, I'm going back to goaltending. Out of the 5 periods Gustavsson has played, he blanked shooters in two of them. Two more "shutout" periods than Toskala.
As if the Leafs don't have it bad enough, the oft-injured Mike Van Ryn is done for the season, after playing a whopping 0 games. Because of his long-term injury status, the Leafs have a lot of extra cap room, many people speculated that the Leafs should try to sign free agent Brendan Shanahan, Burke says the Leafs need to be more competitive for the playoffs for Shanahan to want to come to Toronto. "Burke also addressed a newspaper article suggesting the Leafs would be wise to sign the 40-year old Shananan. However, the Leafs' rebuilding plans likely rule that move out.
'To me a team has to be a lot closer to competing for (Shanahan) to make sense,' Burke said.
Well if you're like me, and horribly embarrassed to call yourself a Leafs fan today upsetfan.com has a great product for you! It's a bag to put over your head. Seriously, I'm not joking. For every bag they sell, they will donate money to the Sick Kids Foundation. Go check it out if you're interested...or embarrassed...
Until next time folks, let's just hope the Leafs can get a W...and soon.
Further Reading:
http://bitterleaf.blogspot.com/2009/10/toronto-maple-leafs-ugly-numbers.html
http://www.sportsnet.ca/hockey/2009/10/19/leafs_burke_shanahan_goalies/
And seriously check out: http://www.upsetfan.com/ it's for a good cause!
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Rock Bottom
The Leafs are in dead last in the NHL and to add insult to injury, this is the worst start in Leafs history, they have lost 5 games in a row to start the season (0-4-1), this is a first in their entire history (including when they were the Arenas and St. Patricks). As a result, Vesa Toskala's Goals Against Average sits at just over 5.00 after a 7-2 lost in Madison Square Gardens last night.
Coach Ron Wilson decided to shake things up, for tonight's game (versus the Colorado Avalanche) he's sitting out Matt Stajan and Niklas Hagman, Viktor Stalberg returns from injury and college free agent Tyler Bozak was called up from the Toronto Marlies for his NHL debut.
Also being called up is James Reimer, backup goaltender for the Marlies. This is due to a knee injury (severity pending on MRI) Toskala received in the 2nd period last night against the New York Rangers.
Fans are growing impatient at this team that is supposedly going to make the playoffs. Saturday night's game against the Penguins showed that. The team left the ice with 19000 fans booing them, as well as Vesa Toskala getting the "Bronx cheer" whenever he made an easy save.
Tonight the Leafs play the Colorado Avalanche, they will face former Leaf Darcy Tucker. This is the first and only meeting this season between the two clubs, they only played each other once last year, and that game ended in a 7-4 victory for the Leafs. If the Leafs want to make the playoffs, go time is now!
Coach Ron Wilson decided to shake things up, for tonight's game (versus the Colorado Avalanche) he's sitting out Matt Stajan and Niklas Hagman, Viktor Stalberg returns from injury and college free agent Tyler Bozak was called up from the Toronto Marlies for his NHL debut.
Also being called up is James Reimer, backup goaltender for the Marlies. This is due to a knee injury (severity pending on MRI) Toskala received in the 2nd period last night against the New York Rangers.
Fans are growing impatient at this team that is supposedly going to make the playoffs. Saturday night's game against the Penguins showed that. The team left the ice with 19000 fans booing them, as well as Vesa Toskala getting the "Bronx cheer" whenever he made an easy save.
Tonight the Leafs play the Colorado Avalanche, they will face former Leaf Darcy Tucker. This is the first and only meeting this season between the two clubs, they only played each other once last year, and that game ended in a 7-4 victory for the Leafs. If the Leafs want to make the playoffs, go time is now!
Tuesday, October 6, 2009
As We Begin...
The first two games have come and gone, and the Leafs currently have a 0-1-1 record. Not the start Leafs Nation was hoping for. However there have been some positives: Burke's promise of a bigger, tougher Leafs team has been realized.
That being said, Leafs Nation still has question marks on Vesa Toskala. In his first two starts, he's been mediocre at best. In the Leafs season opener, he allowed some very weak goals which lead to the Leafs 4-3 Overtime loss. And on Saturday night, Vesa allowed 3 goals on 10 shots versus the Capitals in the first period, which caused him to be yanked and replaced with Jonas "Monster" Gustavsson, whom also allowed 3 goals, but on 18 shots. The Leafs lost that game 6-4 (the Leafs were down 6-1 but were able to score a few goals to at least make the score respectable).
Tonight, the Leafs play against the Senators, Ron Wilson backed Toskala but is opting to start the Monster in goal tonight. Although he allowed 3 goals on Saturday night, Gustavsson blanked Ovechkin who netted two while Toskala was in goal. It has been argued on Leafs talk radio shows that Toskala's performance is a result of bugs still being worked out in the new defensive pairings.
From the back end to the front end: the Leafs most dominating line on Saturday night was the line of Stempniak, Wallin, and Mitchell. Wallin was signed as a free agent from Farjestads. He played with the Minnesota Wild in the NHL before, but went over to Europe to fine-tune his game. Burke and his scouts noticed Wallin's improved two-way play while scouting his team mate Jonas Gustavsson. His two-way play earned him a contract and a spot on the Leafs roster. For Saturday night's game, Wilson moved Wallin from the wing to Centre, and Mitchell from centre to the wing. As a result, this line was the most dominant of Saturday night's game...one of the few positives from Saturday.
Tonight, the Leafs will play the Senators, who are still looking for their first win as well. This bigger Toronto team will surely make the Battle of Ontario more interesting for this season. Only time will tell if the Leafs will be playoff bound for the first time in four seasons (5 if you count the lockout).
Nicholas Porretta
Further Reading:
http://mapleleafs.nhl.com/club/news.htm?id=500746
http://www.sportsnet.ca/hockey/2009/10/06/gustavsson_start/?utm_source=Hockey%20lineup%20RSS-Images&utm_medium=feed&utm_content=Gustavsson%20gets%20first%20start%20Tuesday%20vs.%20Sens#
That being said, Leafs Nation still has question marks on Vesa Toskala. In his first two starts, he's been mediocre at best. In the Leafs season opener, he allowed some very weak goals which lead to the Leafs 4-3 Overtime loss. And on Saturday night, Vesa allowed 3 goals on 10 shots versus the Capitals in the first period, which caused him to be yanked and replaced with Jonas "Monster" Gustavsson, whom also allowed 3 goals, but on 18 shots. The Leafs lost that game 6-4 (the Leafs were down 6-1 but were able to score a few goals to at least make the score respectable).
Tonight, the Leafs play against the Senators, Ron Wilson backed Toskala but is opting to start the Monster in goal tonight. Although he allowed 3 goals on Saturday night, Gustavsson blanked Ovechkin who netted two while Toskala was in goal. It has been argued on Leafs talk radio shows that Toskala's performance is a result of bugs still being worked out in the new defensive pairings.
From the back end to the front end: the Leafs most dominating line on Saturday night was the line of Stempniak, Wallin, and Mitchell. Wallin was signed as a free agent from Farjestads. He played with the Minnesota Wild in the NHL before, but went over to Europe to fine-tune his game. Burke and his scouts noticed Wallin's improved two-way play while scouting his team mate Jonas Gustavsson. His two-way play earned him a contract and a spot on the Leafs roster. For Saturday night's game, Wilson moved Wallin from the wing to Centre, and Mitchell from centre to the wing. As a result, this line was the most dominant of Saturday night's game...one of the few positives from Saturday.
Tonight, the Leafs will play the Senators, who are still looking for their first win as well. This bigger Toronto team will surely make the Battle of Ontario more interesting for this season. Only time will tell if the Leafs will be playoff bound for the first time in four seasons (5 if you count the lockout).
Nicholas Porretta
Further Reading:
http://mapleleafs.nhl.com/club/news.htm?id=500746
http://www.sportsnet.ca/hockey/2009/10/06/gustavsson_start/?utm_source=Hockey%20lineup%20RSS-Images&utm_medium=feed&utm_content=Gustavsson%20gets%20first%20start%20Tuesday%20vs.%20Sens#
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