It's Getting Ugly

No one seemed to believe Paul Maurice at the beginning of the year when he boldly stated that the Maple Leafs would "compete for the Stanley Cup." We all thought he was out to lunch on that one, but the playoffs certainly were a reasonable expectation and maybe even a playoff upset was in the Leafs' sights. Maurice's claim now sounds completely ridiculous. This team is not only going to miss the playoffs, but they are going to finish near the bottom of the NHL.

Toronto is now 28th in the NHL with 40 points, six points up on the last place team that disposed of them last night, the Los Angeles Kings. They are tied with the Kings and Lightning for the fewest wins in the league however. The only thing keeping them out of the basement is the ridiculous point system the NHL uses, awarding a team a point for a loss. Apparently a loss is half a win, according to the NHL and their point system. Yes, I know it's an overtime or shootout loss that they are being awarded for. They played such a stellar 60 minutes that they deserve something, don't they? That's the sob story that the NHL would lead you to believe. The fact of the matter is the NHL loves the "parody" that exits. It's a lot easier for the NHL to "sell their product" with the standings as close as they are. That way fans in Washington for example will come out to see their "playoff contending team" down the stretch. Nearly every team in each conference is in the playoff race, but is that good for the game? Are we really seeing the best brand of hockey as a result? Outside of Ottawa and Detroit, there aren't any truly superb hockey teams. I'm not so sure that makes for great hockey.

So despite the Leafs horrific play so far this season, they sit only five points out of a playoff spot. Everyone in this market who watches or follows this team knows they shouldn't be anywhere near the playoffs the way they've played this year. The NHL is keeping it close though. If the Leafs pull off a couple of victories, they will have their ownership and gullible fan base believing they can make a run at the playoffs. That might prevent them from trading their marquee player, Mats Sundin which is crucial at this point. We all know Mats is a hall of famer, a stand up guy who works his hardest every night but this team needs to move in a new direction. Everyone knows it, including Mats himself. It should have been done last season but the organization as usual felt making a run at the playoffs was more important than building for the future. Really, how can you blame John Ferguson for being so short sighted? He's given a one year deal every season and knows that if the team doesn't contend for a playoff spot that he will be axed. He's made some bad trades and poor free agent signings, but he hasn't been given the kind of security he needs to run the team and as we all know MLSE doesn't seem to give him complete control of the hockey club. He will be fired sometime in 2008 and given his track record he should be, but I feel sorry for the man. People will chuckle when they hear his name even after he's long gone. He hasn't left himself a particularly pretty legacy, but his job is not easy.

Leafs fans can only hope that the team continues to lose and lose miserably. Then maybe MLSE will get the picture and bring in someone to run the team who is given complete control of the hockey club. Someone who has the experience and courage to withstand the abuse from the Toronto media. Even then, with this organization, who knows if they will get the picture? They might have a top pick in this year's draft, but that alone won't save the franchise. Judging by their drafting history, it's tough to say they will make the right choice or keep that player until he does reach the NHL (see Tuukka Rask and Brad Boyes). Don't keep your hopes up Leaf fans, you have a long, long, long (can I stress the length some more?) long, long way to go.