trial

Name	GP	Record	SV%	GAA
Elliott, Brian	55 43*	15-27-9 13-19-8-3*	.893 .894*	3.34 3.19*
Leclaire, Pascal	14	4-7-1	.908	2.83
McElhinney, Curtis	7	3-4-0	.917	2.56
Gustavsson, Jonas	23	6-13-2	.890	3.29
Guguere, Jean-Sebastien	33	11-11-4	.900	2.87
Reimer, James	37	20-10-5	.921	2.60
Anderson, Craig	51 18*	24-20-4 11-5-1*	.913 .939*	2.83 2.05*

*record with Ottawa

Brian “1 thru 5 holes” Elliott was traded before the trade deadline in a goalie swap for Craig Anderson. Bryan Murphy is a thief. Elliott was never intended to play more than 15 to 20 games a season so it was a rough situation to be put in. We wish him well. Evaluation No longer a factor going forward.(fuck yeah, Bryan!)

Pascal “Hasek Pt II” Leclaire was supposed to be the starting goaltender this year and things started out that way. He was perhaps the only player in the early goings who was effective in his role. He played stellar hockey while the team in front of him failed to yield any support. What was once thought to be a groin injury occurred on a seemingly innocuous stoppage of the puck. It has since been re-evaluated as an extremely difficult to diagnose hip injury. He was playing lights-out until that unfortunate development. Leclaire was waived and has not been offered a new contract. Evaluation: No longer a factor going forward.

Curtis “Even the Irish can’t pronounce it” McElhinney had an interesting route to Ottawa. Traded by the Anaheim Ducks for Dan Ellis in a backups trade then - 5 hours later - waived by TB and subsequently collected by Ottawa as their backup going forward (who paid for him this year??). McElheinney, you may recall, has a little relationship to the Leafs goaltending history in that he was traded from Anaheim to the Ducks in exchange for Vesa “Doctor, I smell” Toastkala. McElhinney played reasonably well in the games he started. He appears to be a capable backup, but has never played more than 14 games. McElhinney is presently unsigned by the Senators and thus this Evaluation Unclear how he will be a factor going forward.

Jonas “The Non-ster” Gustavsson was once proclaimed by Brian Burke as ‘The best goaltender not playing in the NHL’. That’s some awesome vision on Burkie’s part. A Francois “I’m still relevant!” Allaire type goalie, The Non-ster is a questionable backup to a first year rookie. Huge misstep by Burke in signing this guy. Expect him to play portions of back-to-back games when the opponent is not one of Boston, Montreal or Ottawa. Evaluation: Could become the starter if (when) Reimer’s bubble bursts.

J.S. “I <3 Burkie” Giguere was acquired from Anaheim for Jason Blake and Vesa Toskala. Who was the dumber GM in that situation? Draw. Will Burke’s penchant for signing and keeping his friends on payroll despite abysmal performances (more on Wilson later) keep Giguere as an option in net? Brodeur never needed pads his size. Will Giggy retire? Will he stick around as a completely unnecessary ‘assistant goalie coach’ or will he get a modest 1-2 year contract as insurance. Evaluation: Unknown factor going forward.

The Starters

And now we arrive at the main event - the starters.

First up is “future Hall of Famer”, “best rookie goalie in, well, forever”, “the Great Mormon Hope”, “It’s up to Him” James “Optimus” Reimer. Ok, he’s got a cool nickname and a pending trademark infringement suit. I admit, I was originally confused by the nickname as I would pronounce it “Ree-mer” and then giggle at the possible connotations. It wasn’t until I heard Kypreos proclaim him the real deal (he’s fuckin’ cursed now) or something to that effect, that I figured out the pronunciation. The same things are being said of Reimer that were being said of Gustavsson in April of last year, and the same things that were said of Toskala leading in to his first season. He does have a respectable SV% & GAA at .921 and 2.60 respectively. Was this just the result of the now-traditional April surge by the Leafs or he a genuine solid goalie from which we can expect similar numbers going forward? Reimer will play backup-backup for Canada at the World Championships. No other Canadian goalies were available. One interesting thing to note: Reimer isn’t a Burke guy - he was JFJ’s work. Evaluation: If he sucks next year then Jesus clearly hates the Leafs.

This brings us to the Ottawa Senators starting goalie Craig “hey Brian, I stop pucks!” Anderson. He was on Murray’s radar for sometime (Murray’s daughter lives in Colorado so Murray would watch him with some frequency) and was an intended July 1 target of the Senators. A 4 year contract at a modest valuation and no NMC/NTC makes him trade-able if things don’t work out but his numbers with the Senators bested Toronto’s All World Rookie Phenom by quite a bit and on a team with practically no quality defensive defensemen (sorry Phillips - here’s hoping for a rebound). As soon as he stepped on the ice, he was controlling the movement of his defensemen by instruction, approaching the bench to encourage/direct players during stoppages in play and making sound positional decisions. Evaluation: solid foundation in net for a multi-year rebuild.

Coming soon...... Ron Wilson stays, Better coaches fired and a really sweet look at special teams!

The Goalies

Breakdown by the Ottawa Citizen:

Brian Elliott, Senators		Marc-André Fleury, Penguins
25	Age	25
6-2	Height	6-2
201 pounds	Weight	180 pounds
Newmarket, Ont.	Hometown	Sorel, Que.
Left	Catches	Left
29-18-4	Record	37-21-6
2.57 (19th)	Goals-against average	2.65 (24th)
.909 (24th)	Save percentage	.905 (33rd)
1,424 (21st)	Shots faced	1,772 (13th)
3,038 (19th)	Minutes	3,798 (10th)
5 (7th)	Shutouts	1 (33rd)

The Alanis curse?

Say it ain't so!

Playoffs!

Man - the sun is shining on Ottawa this morning. What a day to wake-up and get jacked about the playoffs.

I've read a lot of the previews and while Crosby could take over this series I think if Ottawa wins it will because of better play by Michalek, Regin, Cullen, Fisher, Foligno, and Kelly over Pittsburgh's Staal, Guerin, Dupuis, Kunitz, Ponikarovsky, and Cooke.

Elliot is going to have to play solid for sure and either goalie is capable of being the reason the team loses/wins the series.

A couple of previews over at Milks, Silver Seven, and Five for Smiting.

My prediction - Sens in 6, Fisher has a huge series, Karlson makes a difference, and Malkin is invisible.

Ladies and Gentlemen

Team Canada's new captain.



Dates Cuthbert, hacks darts, drinks pints, black belt in karaoke, lays out mutherf*&kers.
What's not to like?

What you really missed

If you look at the advert by MLSE and de-focus your eyes like with those 3D puzzles, you'd find this text appearing on your page: 

To Our Fans THANK YOU for your passionate support of our financial report this season

The vision impairment of Toronto Maple Leaf fans is second to none (except maybe Ray Charles). We have the most delusional fans in the NHL and certainly in all of professional sports.

We end this season with a Maple Leaf team that is not really all that different in character from the one that left the ice last April. Today there is greater need for Adult Accompaniment at the local Cineplex among our players. We have a hardworking team that is less experienced, more impressionable and more convinced they are great without ever succeeding at the professional level with other teams.

Our offseason begins with an even stronger commitment to our blueprint for building a winning team, and that team is Boston. It starts with solid goaltending that we traded for Andrew Raycroft and a formidable first round selection in this year's entry draft.

We've acquired some of the pieces that support our philosophy - but our work is not complete. We expect to have a busy summer as we continue to build a winning team by providing another top first round pick to Boston in next year's draft.

There is optimism in the Maple Leafs organization as there is every September and we hope Leafs Nation shares our spirit (we're just asking you to start sharing it earlier this time so you can forget about the draft and not be distracted by all those teams playing for the Cup).

Once again, thank you for your unwavering support. It ensures our dividends remain high and that our executives can afford that third Harbourfront condo, perhaps in Trump's towers if he ever gets around to finishing that shit. We look forward to seeing you in September, just not in the lower bowl.  

Sincerely, Your Masters and Overlords, the Executive and Shareholders of MLSE.

Cheechoo

Binghamton paper has a few quotes from Cheechoo as he's one of a few B-Sens players coming up as reserves:

A former 56-goal scorer with San Jose, he was sent down to Binghamton in February after spending the first four-plus months of the season with the big club. In 61 games with Ottawa, he had five goals and nine assists. In 25 games with Binghamton, he had eight goals and six assists, and Monday, he acknowledged getting his confidence back during his stay in the AHL.
"It's always good to go up there," Cheechoo said. "That's where I want to be. And I had fun down here, but at the same time, I think that's where I can play -- at that level -- and you never know if you're going to get a chance."
He added later, when asked if he expected to crack the Ottawa lineup during the postseason: "I think it's just a wait-and-see thing. I don't see myself cracking that lineup unless there's some injuries. So hopefully they can stay healthy, but at the same time, I'll be ready if they need me."

In case you missed it...

This is the copy from an ad that ran yesterday in the Toronto Star page S7. I've just retyped it here and if there are any errors they are probably mine:

To Our Fans THANK YOU for your passionate support this season.

The loyalty of Toronto Maple Leaf fans is second to none. We have the best fans in the NHL and arguably in all of professional sports.

We end this season with a Maple Leaf team that is different from the one that stepped onto the ice last October. Today there is greater chemistry among our players. We have a hardworking team that is younger, faster and more entertaining.

Our offseason begins with an even stronger commitment to our blueprint for building a winning team. It starts with solid goaltending and a formidable defence.

We've acquired some of the pieces that support our philosophy - but our work is not complete. We expect to have a busy summer as we continue to build a winning team.

There is optimism in the Maple Leafs organization and we hope Leafs Nation shares our spirit.

Once again, thank you for your unwavering support. We look forward to seeing you in September.

Sincerely, The Toronto Maple Leaf Hockey Club.

The Future is now.

The Future for Ottawa commences Wednesday night as Tier I teams begin the true hockey season starting with the one-year-rebuilt Ottawa Senators visiting the defending Stanley Cup Champion Pittsburgh Penguins.   Tier II teams, including those that would be relegated to the minors if this were a serious league like those of European football, will be licking their wounds, making excuses, and denying realities.  The Future for those teams (or their fans) is somewhere far away.  But, despite evidence to the contrary, these Tier II teams are judged has having brighter days ahead than those of teams who are set to compete for what matters.    So, let's look at a small piece of the alleged Silver Future of one of said Tier II teams in detail and see if the prognostications are realistic or if there is something, some direct compatible, perhaps, which might give better insight into the best-case realities one might expect.

Let's start with Kadri.   Through a campaign of mis-education, mis-interpretation and - possibly - a severe case of delusional alcoholic rantings (we're concerned about Muppet here at BoO), Leaf Nation has been led to believe that his 'outstanding' OHL numbers translate into the best player slated to start in the NHL next year at centre or any other position.

Here are his OHL numbers from the last two years: 

YR         GP  G  A   P  PPG

08/09   56  25 53 78  1.39  

09/10    56  35 58 93  1.66  

The numbers, were they NHL numbers (and not OHL gift points) would be impressive.  As they are, nothing we haven't seen many times before by far more complete players.

Now here is a quote from a reporter who follows Kadri's play throughout the year: "there are still many holes in [Kadri's] game. In order to play in the NHL, the kid has to stop turning the puck over in bad places."

Ah, HA!  This sounds decidedly familiar to an oft-repeated (by Leaf fans) knock on one 1st line centre of the Ottawa Senators.  

Dear friends, what we now have is the basis for a fair in-house comparison of two BoO players at the same position and a reasonable projection of NHL performance.

Nazem Kadri v. Jason Spezza.

I've presented Kadri's final two OHL season totals.  I now give you Jason Spezza's totals for his final two OHL seasons and invite you to observe the comparables in light of Kadri's numbers above:

YR         GP  G  A   P    PPG

00/01   56  43 73 116  2.07   

01/02   53  42 63 105  1.98       

In each case, Jason Spezza outperformed Nazem Kadri at the OHL level substantively and without the aid of someone as talented as single season OHL record setter in goals and points: John Tavares.  Steve Ott and Brian McGratten were as good as it got.

Gentlemen and Leaf fans, it appears entirely conclusive that the Toronto Maple Leafs have drafted, at 7th position in the 2009 Entry Draft: 

one class-B Jason Spezza.

Congrats leafers! It seems my opinion of the little throat slasher has risen ever so slightly.  I suspect the comparison will not be met with as much favour in Leaf hamlet for fear of acknowledging the supreme skills of our big, reliable centre. 

At least I know why Muppet won't back up his misspoken statement that Kadri will be rookie of the year next year

Quiz time!!

Ok, it's quiz time here at the BoO.  Today's quiz will be easy for some, difficult for others, the divide likely based on the colour of hockey jersey you wear in the basement.

Today's question:   is the following quote (after the jump) from an Ottawa Senator or Toronto Maple Leaf?

“It’s so funny how, especially when you’re locked in the playoffs, you get to the end of the season and you kind of feel tired. It’s been a long year, and all of a sudden you wake up the next day and you’re excited and you have energy, because the playoffs are here. It’s so much mental. That’s why we play the game, that’s why we’ve gone through all these ups and downs in a long season. It’s just to get to the post-season.

“Now we’ve given ourselves an opportunity to win the Stanley Cup, and that’s what everyone’s dream is.”

Question 2 : in what grade would a child be if said child was conceived on the night of the last Leafs playoff game?  Here is a little assistance for answering this question.

Ten Things

The hangover has just begun for Leaf fans. Thankfully, we will have 6-8 weeks of playoff hockey to keep our minds off what has just transpired. In the meantime...

1. Ottawa and Montreal are the only two teams in the playoffs who had a minus goal differential on the season. The Habs would be in 12th place in the west and if the Sens were an expansion team from Seattle instead of Ottawa, they would be emptying their lockers today with a 9th place finish. They would also be in Seattle, looking forward to a beautiful ocean view and incredible restaurants instead of dinner at a Kelsey's next to a river.

2. Raise your right hand if you are very seriously considering NOT picking ANY San Jose Shark players in your office playoff pool.

3. This link deserves more applaud so I'll re-paste it ask: "Evander, could you do this to Avery next year too"?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xW9Sp-WndwA

5. Brian Burke's outgoing press conference today will consist of a lot of negative marks for himself, his coaches and his players. He'll be right. Although he will get some good marks for how the team finished, how he did as GM at the Olympics, and how he handled his son's coming out and then sudden death. It's been a tough year for Brian. One hopes he takes a few weeks and gets some sleep because with all due respect he looks just terrible.

6. Raise your left hand if you're now suddenly worried that if you don't take any Sharks in your pool will this be the year they go to the finals...

7. ODDS OF WINNING THE CUP: Washington Capitals 4/1, Pittsburgh Penguins 5/1, San Jose Sharks 5/1, Chicago Blackhawks 5/1, Detroit Red Wings 6/1, New Jersey Devils 10/1, Vancouver Canucks 10/1, Phoenix Coyotes 12/1, Buffalo Sabres 12/1, Ottawa Senators 20/1. ODDS THAT SENS FANS WILL MENTION THE LEAFS AT LEAST 27 TIMES TODAY AT BoO: 2-1

8. Speaking of bets, who wants to bet me that Ottawa don't make it out of the first round? $100. Money can go to a 3rd party until the series is over. Any takers? DC?

9. Raise both your hands if you're now completely insane trying to make your office playoff pool picks because now you're worried Colorado might upset San Jose...

10. You put down your arms and take all Detroit and Pittsburgh players and call it a day.

Alfie: Awesome

Reporter:  'How long with the pre-game ceremony last, Alfie?'

Alfie:  “Eleven minutes.  Hopefully”

(pause)

Alfie:  “It could end up being 13, but then I’d have to throw my stick again.”

Tonight, the Ottawa Senators and 19,000+ of their fans will stand and give a wildly raucous ovation in recognition of the accomplishment of the Great Anti-Leaf, Daniel Alfredsson.  While over 200 players have managed 1,000 games in the NHL, under 50 have accomplished this feat with one single team.

One great irony of the ceremony being today is that the Ottawa Senators face the Buffalo Sabres, the team Alfie sent home from the ECF with an amazing OT goal in the 5th game.

My money is on the Sabres cheering Alfie's accomplishment along with the Ottawa Senators and their faithful while the douchebags who wear Leaf jerseys to this game have their boos go unheard except in the canyons of their heads.   Go ahead and boo him tonight Leafers.  The louder you boo, the more respect you show for his person.

P.S.  Make sure you read the Globe link that Don posted below.  It's a lovely Saturday read.

Mirtle on the Leafs

A good read for a Saturday morning coffee.

Leafs could do what Ottawa might not...

Eliminate a team from the playoffs.

For a few days this was looking insanely unlikely, but now Toronto's ability to eliminate Montreal from the post season on Saturday night has been upgraded to just "highly unlikely".

These FOUR things need to happen:
(Thanks to SENS4LIFE for facts):

1. Rangers need to win both their remaining games
2. Philadelphia can lose both games against NYR but must get at least 1 OT point.
3. Boston need one point from their remaining two games
3. Leafs must beat Montreal on Saturday, on HNIC, in Montreal.

It's a freaking long shot but if it comes down to it, the Leafs could taste a small bit of joy before the misery of watching 16 teams not named the Maple Leafs fight for the Stanley Cup.

IN OTHER NEWS... Ottawa have one game remaining in their season. What's noteworthy for me is that Ottawa fans, going by their enthusiasm here at BoO, seem to consider 09/10 an exceptional bounce-back year. Faith in the team is at an all-time high. And yet, if they don't win their final game, the Sens will go into the post-season with the exact same amount of points (94) as they did two years ago when they were bounced in four straight. Adding to the eeriness, Ottawa could face Pittsburgh again who could mathematically end the season with the same points as they did in 07/08 also.

I'm hungover, How about you?

Kadri last night in Kitchener...

Me and a few friends drove down for the Knights and Rangers playoff game. On the way down in bumper to bumper traffic I informed my friends (who are not as deeply invested in these types of things as I seem to be), that the London goalie has horrific numbers and that 3 goalies already eliminated from the playoffs STILL have better numbers than him. It would be a goal filled game.

We wouldn't be disappointed.

He allowed 8 goals, while the Rangers goalie allowed 7. Frankly, neither goalie looked good at all. But for three guys sitting in plain clothes, there to see a future Leaf, with no real care about which team won or lost, it was as entertaining a hockey game as I've maybe ever seen.

15 goals.
50+ shots.
2 fights.
20 big time hits you almost never see in the NHL anymore.
2 goals and 1 assist for Kadri.

Seeing Nazem for the first time live was awesome but not all positive.

1. He was by far the most talented player on the ice.
2. He's always banging his stick for the puck which was kind of annoying.
3. Nobody on the team can actually get him the puck regularly, which is even more annoying because he could have had 5 goals.
4. Kitchener fans HATE HATE HATE him. Every time he touched the puck they rained down boo's. I asked a fan why, and I was reminded that Kadri used to play in Kitchener but wanted to play at "home" in London.
5. Kadri seems almost disinterested unless he's on the rush. Not exactly showing warrior-like backchecking either. I thought he looked a bit disinterested since it was a playoff game.
6. There is an incredible cockiness about him that I actually like and opposing fans hate. Nothing wrong with having tons of confidence. I think it's simply the result of him playing in a league he probably outgrew a year ago though, I didn't see him act like this in the NHL.
7. His teammates do seem to like him. They are always over talking to him between plays and while he wears the "A" he more the captain. When a Kitchener player low bridged him in the 2nd period, the smallest guy on London went apeshit and took an instigator penalty trying to punch the Rangers player's head off. So he seems to be a good teammate.

Overall, I can see why he lit it up in the NHL pre-season because even if he had John Mitchell skating beside him last night giving him the puck with some precision, he easily would have scored a few more. He knows how to sneak into scoring spots and when he takes off out of his zone he ends up slowing up to wait for his teammates which just kills the buzz, frankly.

I was impressed that he scored both his goals with shots from 25-30 feet away from the net. The Leafs wanted him to work on improving his shot this year. Looks like he's accomplished that.

He also plays the point on the PP and won all his faceoffs or at least most of them, which shows that against OHL players he has more to his game than just scoring. We'll see if that's the case in the NHL.

I wish that he could have played this season in the AHL because he really does look like his talent is completely wasted playing against OHL competition. He now has 25 points in the playoff. That's in only 9 games. It's a shame he's not on the Marlies right now. Can he go there if London get eliminated before the Marlies season is over?

2nd overall

The Leafs clinched 29th yesterday. Congrats.

FYI - before Hedman, here's the past 10 2nd overall picks:
Drew Doughty
James Van Riemsdyk
Jordan Staal
Bobby Ryan
Evgeni Malkin
Eric Staal
Kari Lehtonen
Jason Spezza
Dany Heatley
Daniel Sedin

Next year, right?

25 games.  1 goal.  Dion Phaneuf everyone.  Now watch him keep the goal judge busy.  

1 game.  5 goals.  Jonas Gustavsson everyone.  Now watch him seal up that five hole.  

10 games.  4 wins.  The much-improved Toronto Maple Leafs everyone.  Now watch them go on a winning streak to end the season.

For all the talk about how Toronto is the best team since the Olympic break, in the last 10, there are but 7 teams with worse records.  Looking at it from a positive perspective (or negative if you're a Leafer), that means there are 22 teams better than the Leafs over the last 10 games.  Given that last 10, I guess Hakim Optical must be having a sale on pink-tinted glasses in the GTA.

Ottawa winning 66.7% of games since the beginning of the 11 game win streak.  Now that's positive.

Afterthought:  Having a look at the standings and remaining games as of this morning, the Leafs may have done something good by losing last night (not considering the Boston outlook).  By losing to NYR, the Leafs allowed the Rangers to have a shot at the post season.  AND, it is maintaned that the Habs could still miss.  With a loss tonight to Carolina and a NYR win tomorrow night against Philly, the stage could be set for the Leafs to eliminate the Canadiens in the final game of the season in the Bell Centre with a regulation win.

Imagine the Habs fans watching the Leafs take out their team on home turf.  This would be EPIC.

So, in a show of solidarity in seeking the demise of the co-hated Habitants I say this (and only in this situation does it avoid an ulcer):  go leafs go.

Lacklustre

The term that defines the Leaf season. Not pugnacity, testosterone, truculence or belligerence.

The Star:

Leaf fans booed their club off the ice after a flat second period which saw the powerplay blanked three times, including a final time in the last two minutes of the frame. Boos also rang out at the end of the game. The players gathered at centre ice and saluted the fans with a stick-raising gesture, but at least half the patrons had exited the building by then.

The Sun:

Leafs leading scorer Phil Kessel shook off the muscle strain or cramp that had caused him to miss much of Saturday's game against Boston as well as practice on Monday and was back in the lineup. That too came with a message from Wilson after a relatively soft effort from Kessel. "We want him to play and he's got to play through (the injury)," Wilson said. The game was likely the chance for a handful of Leafs to play in front of a Toronto home crowd and what a bad
taste that will leave.

Look forward to next year though Leaf fans - Boogard and Bertuzzi are UFAs!

GDT - Hockey games playing tonight.

For the Leafs it's all about finishing strong and heading into the summer and next season with the feeling that things have changed and better days are ahead.

For Ottawa it's waiting for the playoffs to start.

We didn't talk much about Ottawa losing 4-1 to NYI, not that it matters much in the standings, but one would think the Senators don't want to go on one of their losing streaks at this point in time. Maybe Captain 1000 can help ensure his team doesn't go out in the 1st round for the 5th time since 1999?

Frankly, I would rather be waiting for the playoffs to start than looking for signs that next year will be better. So Leaf fans, you can't really say much this week that will ruffle the feathers of Sens fans. But hitting rock bottom after the first 20 games I guess Leaf fans should just be happy things are actually looking up. It could be worse. Burke could have traded Rask for Raycroft instead of Blake and Toskala for Giguere. Things will be better for you starting in about 6 months. We just have to hang in there.

Flyers @ Leafs 7pm.
Ottawa @ Florida 7pm.

Leaf fans will take note that Ottawa play the Lightning and Panthers in the next few days. So the Leafs rise out of 28th will be partially in the Senators hands. So you can secretly cheer for Ottawa unless you, like me, don't see any value in Tampa getting Hall or Sequin over Boston. An eastern team is drafting in the #2 slot. That much is pretty certain.

The Leafs may still have the chance to eliminate Montreal from the playoffs this Saturday, but it will require a loss against the Ranger tomorrow to stand a chance of that so I don't know how you feel about that!

Lastly, a few buddies and myself are heading to Kitchener to see Kadri and the Knight's tomorrow night. Front row, $21. Last time we'll ever get to pay that littloe to see Nazem, future Calder winner!

1000 games

King Alfie plays his 1000th today.

989 career points in his 999 games so far.
101 playoff games so far as well with 80 points in those.

Lots of stuff at the Sens site .

Talk about franchise leader. 9 seasons as captain and team leader in gms, pts, goals, assists, etc, etc. OT winner against Buffalo in the ECF, separated Tucker's shoulder then scores game winner, shot the puck at Neidermayer, mocked Sundin, infuriates Leaf fans, Calder trophy winner, deferred salary for the club, sported some of the best haircuts in the league, etc, etc.

Praise Alfie!

Numbers

The season is quickly winding down.  The leafs play their third last game of the season tonight with Philly in the ACC.  The Leafs look to be without their top scorer, Phil Kessel who is out with a rumoured muscle pull.   There's nothing of consequence except, you know, 2 points on Florida to pull draft balls from Boston.

Meanwhile, the NHL's longest serving captain is set to play his 1,000th game tonight in Florida.  the number of games left for the Senators this year is open ended.  We could see an additional 20% or more as we did a few short years ago.  With regards to Alfie's thousanth, all you Leaf fans will be able to trip it to the HHoF at season's end to view one of Alfie's game-worn jerseys.  Look for it in the "all time greats" section.

THM has tickets to the final game of the season where Alfie's achievement will be honoured.  I may have to dish out for an Alfie jersey in recognition thereof.

Toronto still the better playoff team.

I want to congratulate the Ottawa Senators and their fans for making the playoffs this season. As a gift I'd like to run you through some stats that maybe prove that Toronto despite not making the playoffs for 6 years now is still on a better run. When I started digging around I was truly amazed by what I found, quite honestly.

BoO PLAYOFF PERFORMANCE FROM 1999-2009

Toronto made the playoffs 6 times
Ottawa made the playoffs 9 times.

Toronto has won 7 playoff series.
Ottawa has won 7 playoff series.

Toronto have won 41 playoff games
Ottawa have won 38 playoff games

Toronto eliminated in 1st round 1 time.
Ottawa eliminated in 1st round 4 times.

Toronto made the conference finals 3 times.
Ottawa made the conference finals 2 times.

Toronto made it to the cup finals 0 times.
Ottawa made it to the cup finals 1 times.

Toronto beat Ottawa 4 times.
Ottawa beat Toronto 0 times.

+++

Will Ottawa catch up to the Leafs playoff success in almost all categories with now their 4th extra visit to the playoffs?

If the standings remain the same Ottawa will play New Jersey in the first round. It's gonna be tough...

We're bAAAAAAaaaaaak!!

With less than 8 seconds left, Erik Karlsson fires an absolute rocket from the blue-line down the slot past Manny Legace to guarantee Ottawa at least the single point needed to return to the playoffs.  It's his 2nd goal of the game.  Dion who?

All Hail King Karlsson.  Sweden needs a 4th crown for this guy.

Also, 3 assists in regulation for Jason Spezza .  The guy now has 7 points in 2 games (16 points in 8 games).  

update:  Spezza with the SO winner! !

NBC pimps the Ottawa Senators

For those of you who have not yet seen or heard of this: 

Apparently the 30 Rock producers were looking for a stadium that actually shows fans in the lower bowl.  Also, suck-it Vancouver.

Happy Easter - wish me luck

Totally unrelated, but check out this hilarious commercial that one of my buddies emailed me earlier in the week.

I'm off to Mont Tremblant for the weekend for my bachelor party... hopefully I can score more than Phil Kessel will against the Bruins on Saturday.

Have a good one folks.

woo-woo express

I didn't want to be a prick and merge with Muppet's post, so stare at this picture for 45 seconds and then get back to the Ron Wilson Don't Be Hatin' post below.

So who do you believe?

Some reporter's "anonymous" source, or, in the spirit of my partner in crime here at BoO, The Horses Mouth?

Maple Leafs defenceman Tomas Kaberle has denied reports that he "can't stand playing for (head coach Ron) Wilson" and downplayed rumours that he is prepared to make the move from Toronto to a different team. "I'm here over 10 years in the league and I've never (had an) issue with the coach and I hopefully never will," Kaberle said before Thursday's game against the Sabres.

No doubt Kaberle could be doing the political thing here, and rest assured some players on this team and every other team don't love their coach (see Danny Heatley), but he said it and he said it without the cloak of anonymity.

Too bad we can't get the same transparency in player polls on who is the most overrated player huh?

Shiny, happy, go-go time.

Lest it be suggested too much of my time is focussed on the Leafs 5th consecutive season of abysmal performance, it's time for an Ottawa Senators post (usually I let Muppet take these, but I'm pretty sure the Paxil cocktail he might've started yesterday has yet to begin working).  

How good is it to play for the Ottawa Senators?  Well, we certainly don't have the NHL's losingest (is that a word??) coach in the last three years [notwithstanding Paul Maurice whom, not coincidentally started his shit record with the Leafs] treating his players like garbage.

Well, I'll spare you my interpretation and go directly to a quote from newcomer Andy "Mount" Sutton:

“This is the most committed bunch of guys I’ve ever been around,” said Sutton, an 11-season veteran of five NHL teams. “You just feel it and I think guys feed off it. I’ve tried to lead that way and I think we’ve got guys here who will do whatever it takes to win.

“That’s a team you want to play for.”

A sentiment not shared for the Blue & White down the 401.

Two things....

....that hockey fans knew, but Leaf fans didn't:

1) Ron Wilson treats his players like shit. Ok, so not only is he the first coach ever to miss the playoffs three years straight and keep his job (good business decision Burkie!), but it's being confirmed that many of his players dislike him. You might've heard of this one particular unimpressed player, one once considered by Leaf fans a top contender for the Captain position, once touted as the best offensive D-man in the league, once considered untouchable (no wait, that was this guy), currently serving out his last 5 games as a Leaf: Tomas Kaberle.

Well it seems Kaberle has an issue with Wilson. Kaberle is "unhappy with the manner in which Wilson coaches the Leafs and the lack of respect he shows for the players." The only quality veteran on the TMLs, the only one around when the Leafs were a playoff team and hence the only one who has seen several coaching changes thinks Wilson is a bad coach. It's been clear to the rest of us that Wilson can't coach a team of anything less than superstars, and I'm looking forward to a mutiny of this undeserving and overrated Burke buddy-buddy sometime next December.

Next time you're in Ottawa, Kabby, and out of the poo and white jersey, drinks are on me.

2) Speaking of being overrated, alleged future Leaf Captain Dion Phaneuf was voted the NHL's most overrated player in a recent poll. "Bah!" says the average leafer in response. "Those polls are unreliable, just a bunch of fan monkeys selecting radio buttons for their hated rivals".

But wait! No, this is not a poll of fans, or of Howard Berger et al., but a poll of NHL players. You know - the guys who actually face Phaneuf on the ice (and, quite possibly inclusive of current and former teammates given the sample size). You can't get a more knowledgeable group than that, now can you?

"Yeah," retorts leafer, "but the next guy was probably within the margin of error of the study".

Think again, Leaf fans: "His 21% of 272 votes was almost as many as the next four combined;Wade Redden, Scott Gomez, Shawn Horcoff and Sean Avery."

Isn't this guy supposed to save your defense in the all-world-all-amazing-rebound of 2010/11? NHL stars don't take him seriously, so why should anyone else?

THE BIG DRAFT COMPARISON PART #1

Inspired by the draft discussion* in the thread before this one, I thought it might be a good time to do a full up comparison. It's a big job to tackle, so this will be a 2 part thing. First up the 1990's draft comparison.

Here are the players drafted by the Leafs and Sens from 92-99. They played a minimum of 100 NHL games to make this list and any time I mention "NHLers" in this comparison that means players with over 100 games.

OTTAWA
1992: (1)Alexei Yashin, (3)Patrick Traverse.
1993: (1)Alex Daigle, (2)Radem Bicanek, (9)Pavel Dmitra.
1994: (1)Radek Bonk, (2)Stanislav Neckar, (6)Danielle Alfredsson,
1995: (1)Brian Burard, (3)Brad Larsen
1996: (1)Chris Phillips, (6)Andreas Dackell, (9)Sami Salo
1997: (1)Marian Hossa, (3)Josh Langfeld, (5)Magnus Arvedson, (9)Karel Rachunek
1998: (2)Mike Fisher, (4)Peter Shastlivey, (6)Chris Neil
1999: (1)Martin Havlat, (3)Chris Kelly

TORONTO
1992: (1)Grant Marshall, (3)Nikolai Borchevsky, (8)Ryan Vandenbussche, (11)Nathan Dempsey.
1993: (1)Kenny Jonsson, (1)Landon Wilson
1994: (3)Freddy Modin, (10)Sergei Berezin
1995: (6)Yannick Tremblay, (9)Dani Markov
1996: (8)Thomas Kaberle
1997: (4)Adam Mair, (7)Shawn Thornton
1998: (1)Nik Antropov, (4)Alex Ponikorovsky
1999: NIL

This era quite easily goes to the Senators who picked 1st overall three times in this span. What's strange is that most of Ottawa's best players weren't from those top three picks that Ottawa had a whopping five straight years. So there was some luck involved for Ottawa. Unless Sens fans think it was all part of the plan that Ottawa took Mike Gaffney with their 131st and Afraidsson with the 133rd pick in 1994? I didn't think so.

This doesn't mean Leaf fans have anything to snicker about. Antropov was a 10th overall pick, sure, but he's only the 2nd best player on that list next to Kaberle who was sheer luck as an 8th round pick. The Leafs also drafted absolutely NO NHL players in 1999. That's kind of pathetically amazing actually, but you'll only have to wait until tomorrow to find out when ttawa accomplished this same feat.

Tomorrow I'll dig up 2000-2009 when neither club was an expansion team, so the gloves will be off.

* - by discussion I mean guys with white gloves slapping each other across the face until somebody gets a bloody nose.

It's official

The Leafs miss the playoffs again.

It guarantees that this counter will hit at least 2500 days! I'm think we'll see it get to 3000.

Post game thread

Atlanta @ Toronto

Post Kovalchuck Atlanta Thrashers continue to press for a playoff position with a lovely little win over the NHL Future All-Stars Team to eliminate said team from any hope (was there any?) of making the playoffs. Going forward Toronto's only hope is keeping Boston out of a top lottery spot for the Two Tylers - both of whom, coincidentally, have outscored Kadri over a prolonged OHL season. Oh well, there's always next year, right? Right?

Ottawa @ Washington

Next year's apparent 30th place team must be getting all of it's winning mojo out of the team CNS this year. Taking out the Capitals in a high-scoring affair to hand them their 6th home OT loss this year, the Senators were forced to rely on 'no future' Peter Regin to start things out with an early goal, 'going nowhere fast' Erik Karlsson dealing out 3 assists (including the winner to Kovi), greater-than-point-per-game (but too old and decrepit to play in this league anymore) Daniel Alfredsson for another three, and 'no use to any team' Jason Spezza for a 4 point effort. Nevermind that the Capitals have already locked the EC top spot, they were on a one game losing streak to start this game so they were clearly not to be taken seriously.

Just another typical night in the BoO.

GDT - Trashers and Capitals

Sens @ Caps: Brian Elliott will get the start because he's been playing well, yes, and also because the failed Bryan Murray trade experiment named Pascal Leclaire will be sitting in his front row season ticket seats wearing a ball cap. So you know, Vermette WILL be playing for Columbus in their next game and could finish the season ahead of Afraidsson in scoring. Makes one wonder doesn't it?

Thrashers @ Leafs: Gustavsson will get the start in net, along with his 7-0-0 record, 1.93 GAA, .929 SV% since the trade deadline. Pretty incredible what this guy has done after a) some time under Francois Allaire, b) some time learning a new culture/game/team and c) going heart-attack-free for a good stretch now. The Leafs newest addition, 6'5" Brayden Irwin is also with the team as of today but no word on whether that means in the line-up, as far as I can tell.

Phil Kessel will now work on making it to 35 goals, while Jason Spezza will try to get 21. Volchenkov will play maybe his last few regular season games as a Sen, while Luke Schenn will continue his recent play looking every bit the beast that Jared Cowen fans hope he might hold a candle to.

All in all I'm over-caffeinated, and also on some pain killers from back spasms, so if it's thorny conversation you're looking for today I'm your huckleberry.

How to have good prospects AND make the playoffs

Ok, so Fu*king Opera ate my goddamn post about Senators Prospects in response to Muppet's fellating of Burke, so I'm rather pissed and not in the mood to recreate the whole thing.

In short(ish):

Big news to counter the idea that Kadri is the only guy in the BoO worth his salt.

Ottawa Senators today announced the signing of top NCAA scorer Bobby Butler. Remember some kid named Tyler Bozak from the NCAA? Yeah, this kid could eat Bozo. Bigger news: he may dress on Thursday.

Also likely to see some action with the big club this year is Patrick Weircoch. The linked article suggests he could see some action with the Senators in case of injury to the regulars. This kid, once he starts eating a little, could make the Senators the biggest defense in the entire league with Sutton, Carkner and himself.

Oh, and about that whole "Kadri [being] the leading scorer in the OHL playoffs" thing?

Yeah, not in goals. In the BoO prospects pool, that'd go to one Senators prospect, hometown boy (and big one at that!) Cory Cowick.

UPDATE: Brian Elliott named the NHL's top star of the week. Goalies with names starting with G unsurprisingly absent.

UPDATE 2: Weircoch officially signed and headed for Ottawa. Robin Lehner also signed today and headed for Bingo. Link.

In Game Thread...

Leafs trailing the Pens 3-2 here with 5:30 left in 2nd period.

Nope wait, just as I was typing, Gunnarsson ties it up.

3-3

Kessel has his 30th if you're not watching.

Anyway, if anybody is around and wants to talk about it, I'll be half-assed paying attention.

I'll say it. Thanks Ottawa.

Beating the Panthers helped you guys, but it helped the Leafs too.

Toronto now 3 points out of 13th spot. 4 points out of 11th.

Can you name the 3rd overall projected player in this draft, without looking it up?
Neither can I. So if Toronto can get out of this jam it should quiet down this Kessel/draft pick nonsense substantially. I mean really, who cares if Boston pick the next Jared Cowen?

I didn't see the Ottawa game at all so no comment there, but as far as the Leafs it was a nice comeback win and Gustavsson slammed the door after a couple of stoppable goals. It's too bad Avery got hurt in the 2nd period... Phaneuf looked to be enjoying hitting him and throwing him around. Shelley wanted nothing to do with Orr either, which is at least the 4th or 5th time in the past 3 weeks I've seen opposition tough guys turn down Orr. His reputation precedes him.

Come on Buds, 7 games left, lets get the hell out of 15th. It's not nearly as tasty as making the playoffs, but it sure beats the hell out of finishing 28th and will provide some redemption. I keep looking back to that 2-16-2 start and wonder what might have been if Toronto had even went 8-10-2. Still bad, but we would be in the playoffs. It's gonna burn come April.

Game Day Thread - Saturday night is alright edition!

What a night in store for those of us here who follow the UFC.

Starting at 7pm, it's hockey for both sides of the BoO aisle, and then right into an exceptional UFC 111 featuring St Pierre VS Hardy.

I hope for your sake you've earned lots of credits with the wife or GF because this would be a good night to cash them in.

RANGERS AT LEAFS
As I was just saying in a previous comment, the Rangers missing the playoffs will be an absolute disaster. Would Sather finally be axed if that's how it goes down?
Toronto has been playing real well lately and I'm sure they're not a team the Rangers want to face with their season hanging by a thread. I say Lundquist and co leave the ACC real disappointed. Leafs 3 Rangers 1. Kessel gets his 30th.

PANTHERS AT SENATORS
Ottawa have won 3 in a row now and look perhaps to be over their struggles since the Olympic break. I read that Elliott made 41 saves last night, so we'll assume he's back in there tonight? I don't watch enough Ottawa games, so you'll have to tell me - is Elliott the main reason for the 3-0 stretch? If so, I'm gonna wager he's pretty tired after last night and call this one a 4-1 win for Florida. Spezza with at least 2 giveaways. If they play Leclaire, lets make it 5-1 Panthers.

GSP VS HARDY
Every time GSP fights I can't help but buy into some of the hype surrounding his opponent. Alves was gonna knock him out I was being told, and so I was pretty nervous for that one. Penn was going to be his biggest challenge ever, which had me biting my fingernails down to nubs. Neither of those fighters came close.
Now everybody is saying the same thing about Hardy, that he has the knock-out power to take this one. The odds are still heavily in GSP's favour but as it goes, one lottery punch is all it takes and Rush's reign at the top will be temporarily over. So in staying with tradition, I'm nervous, but looking forward to it.

Enjoy your weekend.

We interrupt this program to salute a deserving fellow.

Dion Phaneuf sets up the OT winner. Grabovski scores it. Phil Kessel edges his way closer to a 30 goal season. The Monster wins his 6th straight game. Tyler Bozak has exceeded all expectations. Nazem Kadri is now the leading scorer in the OHL playoffs. Jimmy Hayes led the NCAA tourney in scoring and his team wins the championship.

The Toronto Maple Leafs are officially a franchise chalk full of talented youth, something I've never been able to say about this team since I first started following them in the 80's.

I'd just like to take this moment to give credit where it's due. You have a plan, you've made the bold moves, you weathered criticism and doubt and panic from a fanbase to start the season, and yet here we are - with not just hope but proof that this franchise has indeed turned the corner.

Thank you Brian Burke for all your hard work. It feels good to be a Leaf fan again.

Walking the Talk

Gustavsson with his 6th straight win.
Kessel with his 29th of the season.

Leafs end their 1 game losing streak.

Perhaps there is something to all this "talk" huh?

GDT: All Toronto, all talk.

Senators are idle tonight.   2nd last place Toronto faces Atlanta whom are 3 points back of Boston for the last ticket to the show.  The Thrashers will be hungry like a Hawk (get it???)

7-4 Atlanta.  Discuss.

GDT - Short and sweet.

Tonight the Leafs will end their one game losing streak in Atlanta while the Sens will be unable to add to their 3 win total since the Olympic break because, well, they don't play tonight.

I fully expect two goals from Phil Kessel as well. For good measure.

Also....

.... fantastic win by the Senators last night.  I was curious if there'd be calls for A-Train to get a game or two, but the league probably looked and said, "It was on Gagne?.  Naaaaaah".

Here's hoping we get to see more A-Train and Sutton havoc deep into the playoffs and well into next year.  

Fun with math? Fun with facts!

A previous posting had Muppet saying this of his Leafs:

"[They have] become almost unbeatable"

Ok.  Unbeatable by whom?

DJ, over at Stats-Я-Us is fond of attempts to contextualize data that doesn't favour his loyalties,  Student T, ek chai and Weibull be damned!  Well, it's time for us over here at the BoO to contextualize the 'unstoppable' Toronto Maple Leafs March, '10. Volume 443.    Let's have a look at the post-Olympics streak. We won't count last night because, well, 4-1 to the 11th placed team will mess up our numbers, right?

Win 1:  2-1 over Ottawa.  Context:  Including the last two wins,  the Sens are 3-6-1 in the last 10.  Everyone was beating Ottawa.  

Win 2:  4-3 SO win over Boston.  Context:  Including the last two wins,  the Bruins are 5-4-1 in the last 10.  Mediocre team.

Win 3:   4-3 OT over Tampa.  Context:  Tampa.  That's all you need to know. (3-6-1 in the last 10)

Win 4:  6-4 win over Edmonton.  Context:  Edmonton has shit the bed the entire season. Nothing has changed.  And yet Toronto still needed to score 5 goals to win.

Win 5: 4-1 win over Ottawa.  Context: supra.

Win 6:  2-1 win over Jersey.  Context:  Ok, these guys are 2nd in the Conference.  This'd be a somewhat respectable win if not for the sub 0.500 performance if you don't account for the last win.

Win 7:  3-2 SO win over Montreal.  Context:  Hey! Montreal is 7-2-1!  A "solid" (I'm snickering hard here) win decided by shooters.  How Euro-posh.  Hm.  And then the Habs go get beat 2-0 by "abysmal" Ottawa.  

Throw in a couple of losses against the likes of Carolina (5-1: 4-4-2, 69 pts), Philly (3-1: 4-5-1, currently in 3 game slide), NYI (4-1; 4-4-2, 68 pts!) and now FLA and man, it's impressive what they've accomplished with so little on the line.

So feel good about your 5th edition of the late-season streak Leaf fans.     I'm looking forward to next year's edition where Muppet will be cussing a blue streak about the $150 he's destined to lose.

Why the blackout?

Sportsnet East is blacked out for Toronto viewers. Is Sportsnet Ontario blacked-out for Ottawa viewers regularly as well?

Why do they do this? What's the big deal allowing me, a Toronto viewer, last night when no local Leafs team was playing, to catch some of the Habs/Sens?

Anybody understand this?

GDT - Welcome Back Sens fans

Both teams in action tonight and it's nice to have all the BoO fans feeling good all at the same time. Lets not waste this rare opportunity, I expect some smart-ass banter for the next few hours folks.

Panthers @ Leafs: If you ask Bryan McCabe, he'll say Florida are still in the hunt for 8th place. The Leafs are in the hunt for Florida and their very juicy 11th place in the Eastern Conference. Frankly, I like the Leafs chances of reaching their goal better than the Panthers. Which makes this game actually quite important for both teams.

Sens @ Flyers: Ottawa won't clinch a playoff spot if they can win again tonight. Not mathematically anyway. But emotionally it would go a long way and after dropping a bunch of important games since the break, the Sens could prove that last night wasn't just a dog having it's day. We'll see if that's true.

If you can't see the games tonight, or, if like Anshu you end up in a desolate outpost like Florida where you don't get hockey scores, stop by here tomorrow and gauge the mood. You'll be able to tell what happened the minute you read a DC comment. I promise.

TEN GAMES LEFT - FUN WITH MATH!

For the last few months Ottawa fans have had the advantage of a playoff spot firmly in their grasp. All was going swimmingly, and then the Olympics came and went and for some reason Ottawa has looked like the Edmonton Oilers ever since.

On the flipside, Toronto removed the last remaining players from its roster who had any memory of the 2007 season (except you Thomas Kaberle), and have since become almost unbeatable. My how the times have changed. And quickly.

So how about this scenario:

Toronto goes 10-0 to finish the season while Ottawa go 2-8.

The standings would look something like this:

Toronto 84pts
Ottawa 83pts

As the Lotto 6/49 tagline goes... Just Imagine!

Happy Monday.

Game Day Thread - Better Late then Never...

Sens down in Dallas to play the Stars which is starting probably right about NOW.

Habs at the ACC to face the buds which will start at the regular old 7pm time slot.

Gustavsson has had an incredible March and will get the start. I just checked NHL.com to see who is starting for Ottawa. I would guess LeClaire?

Game chatter and post bitching and moaning or gloating can happen here for those needing a place.

Enjoy your weekend.

What's Wrong With Ottawa?

I realize the previous post doesn't do much for conversation. Maybe this one will. It's simple really. What's the problem?

Goaltending seems like an obvious one I guess, but did Elliott just suddenly become crappy? I don't buy it.

Be nice to Leaf fans or else...

Had the Sens managed to beat a few teams since the Olympic break, we wouldn't be having this conversation. But lets face it, Ottawa are hanging in there in the standings only because of some equally crappy play by some of the teams behind them. The Rangers especially.

So what does this have to do with the Leafs, who, are still mired in the cellar despite 6 wins in their last 8 games?

Have a look at the Leafs schedule for the final 11 games of the season.

You'll note that the Leafs face the Rangers, Atlanta and Habs two times each. Round it out with games against the Flyers, Boston and Buffalo and it's not hard to imagine the Sens playoff hopes ending up in the hands of Phil Kessel.

Ottawa could of course end this nonsense and just string together a few victories. Until that happens, we have some drama still in the BoO tank.

Game Day Threads - Atliens and Devils!

The Sens are in Atlanta tonight, the home of really delicious food and of course, Outkast.

ATLIENS!

Something tells me Nik Antropov isn't fitting in too well with the hip hop scene down there, but he is on the Thrashers with 59 points in 65 games. He'll be making Karlsson (sp?) look as bad as EVERY LEAF FORWARD did on Tuesday. I'm sure.

Leafs stay put here in Sunny Toronto where the Devils will visit the the Leafs who are easily the Northeast's hottest team right now other than Buffalo, Boston and Montreal.

This one's a bit obvious but who didn't rock out to THIS on a portable stereo in their small town, Nikki Sixx pins in their jean jacket, looking for trouble that just wasn't there? Oh, that was just me?

SHOUT!

Phil F'n Kessel. And don't you forget it.

The Leafs young budding star is on pace to play 70 games this season, as he did last year, so long as he stays healthy.

When he came over to the Leafs, many people said his 36 goals last year was all thanks to Marc Savard. He would never accomplish the same on a pathetic Leaf team. Apparently, he also came with baggage, an attitude, poor discipline, blah blah blah. It would seem Sens fans will throw all caution to the wind in order to downplay a Leaf player.

While it may be true that Kessel will not reach 36 goals again, here is a comparison between this year and last:


Sadly, Kessel will not play against the Sens again this year. He seems to like the BoO a lot more than the Bruins tilts where he want pointless. In fact he had a few stretches of no output, along with a missed training cam, 12 missed games, and of course recovering from surgery on his shoulder. Yet, here he is, 11 points away from matching last years points totals with 12 games to go.

Enjoy the draft picks Boston, you deserve them for this guy...

On ice BoO 09/10 edition complete.

And here's the theme for the post-game thread. 

I'm taking wagers that more of these will be used by Leaf fans crying over the alleged dirtiest hit on the ice this year (Ovechkin got 2?  Alfie should get the fucking season for that! [paraphrase of one dumbass leafer on the sports pages this evening])

Try not to use too many guys.  You'll need some when you start getting excited about the Kaberle trade in July.

BoO Game Day Thread - the politically correct edition!

No jokes about the sexual orientation of hockey players. No hysteria-inducing references to ballet's, and no postings of that guy in the Maple Leafs fairy costume that comes up every 3 months or so. Not yet anyway.

Just the final game of the season series.

Here's where we stand before the puck drops on game #6:

WIN/LOSS: Toronto 3 Ottawa 2
ORR/CARKNER: 3-2
GOALS SCORED: Toronto 13 - Ottawa 8

Besides the one 5-0 blowout, every game has been decided by a single goal.

If you look at the standings it would appear this game means more for Ottawa. Simply not true. The Buds are a measly decimal point away from being the youngest team in the NHL and there are a lot of players who are fighting hard to instill enough confidence in Brian Burke that he keeps the cheque book in his pocket come July 1st.

Ottawa do need some wins. They have an 8 point lead on the Rangers who sit in 9th, so it's by no means desperation time, but another 5 or so games like they've had since the Olympic break and it could get ugly.

There will be fights. There will be booing of the hometown captain in his own barn. There will certainly be a fight between Orr and Carkner. Neil will definitely push a 150 lb rookie around after the whistle and not drop the gloves when Orr comes knocking. And going by the goaltending lately, for both teams, there will be some lamps all brightly red.

THM or Don post right over me this afternoon if you feel so inclined, I came into work early for a 9am conference call and thought I'd get started on the back and forth.

Sens suck. Nice day out though huh?

I'm just sayin...

Bozak, Stalberg, Hanson and Gustavsson...

It won't be long before the College players of 2010 become available to sign. Burke has already said he will dip in again looking for young talent to add to the Leafs growing depth in that category.

I would say going by all of the above players progression, the college route may be an important cog in the future Leaf machine. Stalberg's play lately suggests something has clicked for him. He almost had the hat trick last night and there is simply no Defence against him screaming up the wing at full speed. Other than the big hit which Volchenkov taught him early and it's a lesson he seems to have learned.

Looking at the Kessel trade alone, one could still argue that the Leafs might have been better off with the 3 picks down the road. But looking at the big picture, you add all these young guns along with trading for Phaneuf and then you factor in Kadri, Giguere, and the removal of some old faces that frankly fans were just sick of looking at, and I think you'll have a hard time finding anybody who can argue that the team is far more promising right now than it was when Burke arrived.

I truly enjoyed that game last night.

I doubt Ottawa fans enjoyed that one quite as much. I had no audio where I was, what the hell was with the giant glass delay??

Game Day Thread - Lots of Leafs Edition

Tampa @ Toronto 7pm

Stamkos will edge his way closer to 50 goals tonight as the Lightning fight for their playoff lives against the Buds. Stamkos, like all home town boys, seem to save their best for the ACC. Unlucky for us.

Sens @ Calgary 9:30pm

The Sens also play the Leafs, in a way, with 5 players recently from the blue and white possibly in the line-up for the Flames. The Sens would only be so lucky to face Toskala, although I think Toskala's only shutout of the year was against Ottawa wasn't it?

Good night of hockey on tap. Have at 'er if you got something to say.

Ten Things

1. Several weeks back I was screaming at my TV during a Leafs game. I said "For Christ's sake Stalberg, start skating and hitting or get the Fu¢k off my team". I can't believe it worked! He has been a beast these last few games. My only regret is that I used up this magic on the Leafs instead of those GM commercials during the Olympics.

2. Kessel can't score on Thomas. One would have to assume that Thomas knows all of Kessel's moves.

3. Kessel needs more moves. Not just for Thomas but for the whole NHL. His whole MO of spinning into the slot to take a wrist shot is about as surprising as those GM commercials after the 3,467th time you saw them. "Ya ya, you're crying and here comes the windshield wipers... kill me". So come up with more moves Kessel, you god damn GM commercial.

4. I didn't realize how much I missed Grabovski. Sure he missed a wide open net and lost the puck in our zone a few times, but he throws wood on the offensive fire and isn't afraid of anything. In fact I heard that in that bar fight in Vancouver he knocked out 26 guys using only his horrific accent.

5. Gustavsson is terribly inconsistent. I suppose that's the mark of a rookie, but still, he can't just play like shit every second game and expect to win. Both him and Giguere are prone to big rebounds. Get the hell on it Allaire.

6. I can't think of one aspect of the game of hockey that Jeff Finger excels in. That guy better be really funny in the dressing room or have a pick-up truck so the other players can call him when they need to move shit around. Contribute something.

7. Dion Phaneuf will be the captain of the Maple Leafs by next December. Calgary are in a playoff spot and scoring goals. Everybody happy with that trade? Excellent!
(...and yet, I still search for the scores of Calgary's game praying they win and that the ex-Leafs helped out so that nobody will suspect that Burke absolutely took Sutter to the cleaners. Anybody else feel this way?)

8. Leafs PK has been better than 90% since January 30th and yet it remains worst in the league. 72% on the season. You have to have one friggen piss poor PK that it can be 90% for 6 weeks and not even move up to 29th in the NHL??

9. I don't even want to talk about the powerplay.

10. It's nice to see a hometown kid like Caputi score his first goal as a Leaf in front of 40 family and friends. Even if it was a tap in that was only available because of a ton of really hard work by Stalberg and Kulemin. Basically, Caputi, Leaf fans are far too damaged to be all enthralled with you because you grew up next door to Canada's Wonderland and you have a Doug Gilmour poster. Keep your head down and your ass in the gym between games. You're on a short leash!

Game Day Thread: Draft position Edition.

Leafs vs Boston:
With Savard injured the Bruins can't like their chances of making the playoffs anymore. In fact it's such a huge loss that this actually could mean they draft twice in the top 5 for the first time since the Islanders did it in 2000. Boston are 8 points away from a 4th or 5th overall pick as of today. It's gotta be on Chiarelli's mind and frankly wouldn't that be better than just missing the playoffs?

The Leafs do 3 games in 4 nights for the second straight week, but the first 3 games are at home. So if I decide to go to a game I won't have my "Go Leafs Go" chants met with Philly fans screaming U-S-A, nor will some 350 lb guy tell me in a parking lot that my country has no army and that America has to protect us. He was a little puzzled when I asked him "protect us from what"?

Grabovski is back in the line-up and Gustavsson will get his first start since Spezza and Kovalev couldn't get one past him in the SO on Saturday.

Ottawa at Edmonton:
Ottawa on the other hand haven't tasted victory since the Olympic break, just a lot of vomit. One question I would have: Why did everyone play with the flu except for Afraidsson?

It looks like netminding has once again become the topic of conversation in Ottawa. Although maybe that will subside a little since Leclaire played pretty good against Toronto. Ottawa probably want to win this game. Not only to avoid embarrassment, nor to help themselves in the standings, but to help keep Toronto from wearing "last in the NHL" for the entire summer.
We would appreciate it.

BoO quickie

Muppet is in Philly and THM is stuck doing some outing with the girly.  So there's no live-bloggy goodness today unless Don or Five-0 manage to put something up in the next few hours.  

There's little meaning to the BoO these days (really, since the lockout there hasn't been much) but the young guys on TO's squad are playing for jobs and contracts next year so they'll be peppy.  Once September rolls around they'll realize that you don't need to work hard once you're on a 1-way or the cap starts to fill up.

Meanwhile, the Sens might have a fair portion of the team full of non-regular rookies and Bingo call-ups.  The latest number I've heard is 8 guys out with the flu, but the hand of Alfie might miraculously cure them all.

So, aside from a meaningless game between kids playing like they have nothing to lose (they don't!) and kids filling in for a game while everyone else recovers, what does tonight bring?

Carkner-Orr 4.

Bring it!

Game Day Thread - Post Trade Deadline Edition

Both teams will get to see their newly minted deadline acquisitions in action tonight and both games go at 7pm.

Ottawa @ Carolina
The Hurricanes have in the last week subtracted 5 players from their line-up. It would appear that Rutherford maybe wants to halt this winning streak knowing damn well that at this point a 3rd overall pick is better than a 7th. Too bad JFJ didn't figure this out a few years ago. It's good news for the Sens, although LeClaire will get his first start in what feels like forever so the game may come down to how he responds. Leaf fans will tell you, that Peters kid in the Carolina net isn't half bad. I'll predict that the team who has thrown in the towel on the season with the hot rookie goalie wins. That would be Carolina, 4-2.
javascript:void(0)
Leafs @ Bruins
Some day in the future a game between these teams won't be wrapped around the Kessel deal and the Leafs place in the standings. Right now it is. Boston beating the Leafs helps them in the standings and at the draft. Toronto's new kid on the block Caputi will make real his childhood dream and put on a Leaf jersey. Raise your hand if you're Leaf fan who has long since cared if a kid is from Toronto. We just want somebody to be good. The Leafs won't be, however and this will be yet another defeat. I'll go with 2-1, since Boston can't seem to score.

As a Leaf fan I can't wait for these last 20 games to just be over...

Actually, the Leafs season is not lost!

Andy's mention in the previous thread of the Sens remaining schedule not being too tough prompted me to see what the Leafs have in store from now until game #82.

A couple of games against the Sens, a few against the Isles... maybe a little bit meaningful (Toronto could technically catch the Islanders I suppose, and playing the Sens is always a good one).

However Leaf fans might really really enjoy the final game of the year against the Habs. Who could forget knocking them out of a playoff spot a few years ago? That was fun. Given Montreal's current hold on 7th spot as I write this, this opportunity might present itself again!

BTW, I'm in Philly this weekend. Probably won't be able to partake in the BoO Battle blog as our teams meet, but I will be at the Flyers-Leafs game on Sunday. Wearing my Leaf jersey. Getting beers thrown at me.

Feeling secure Ottawa?

The Leafs are finishing 29th this season. Maybe 30th. It's not really much of a discussion at this point.

Ottawa on the other hand, after a pretty incredible run of wins are sitting pretty in 3rd this morning. However upon further review, is their lock on a playoff spot all that secure?

Of the top 12 playoff seeds in the NHL (top 6 in each conference), Ottawa are the only team who have allowed more goals than they have scored. Ottawa's top goalie Elliott has a 9.07 save % which is the same as Giguere, and the latter has a losing record because of it. In short, Ottawa's goaltending while great during stretches is not exactly carrying the team when you tack on Leclaire's .891%.

Looking at the points table, Ottawa have played more games than everybody else in the conference except the Habs. Yet, Ottawa only have a 1 point lead on Buffalo which is the difference between 3rd and 5th, and while the Rangers in 9th are a whole 11 points back of the Sens, it's the kind of distance that can be traversed quickly with a coinciding losing and winning streak of any kind.

My guess is there are too many teams chasing for them all to catch up to Ottawa and Ottawa will get at least a 6th seed. But are Sens fans a little nervous about these last 18 games? After all, we saw what happened to the Sens the last time they won a ton of games in a row during a season. It wasn't pretty.

After the dust has settled: July 1st cap situation

TORONTO:
$43M committed to 17 players.
Approx $20M in cap space.

OTTAWA
$49M committed to 16 players.
Approx $14M in cap space.

source: nhlnumbers.com

Also, it appears Toronto also got a defenceman in the Stempniak deal named Matt Jones.

Trade Deadline Thread...

It's 11:17. I have TSN live feed on the laptop. I'm sure everybody is on a tracker of some sort, except maybe you Ottawa Government types who should be focused on running our country, god-dammit!

Anyway we're 3:45 away from deadline, lets think this will pick up considerably after lunch?

Latest trade is Skoula to Jersey for a 5th round draft pick.


UPDATE: Pogge a Hurricane. Add him to Tlusty as Carolina try and become a team that misses the playoffs every season...

Poni gets a crack at a cup!

Ponikorovsky to Pitsburgh for LW Luca Caputi and D Martin Skoula.

Talk about the least shocking trade so far of the trade deadline. At least now Poni doesn't have to answer the same question every day at the rink about being traded.

Luca Caputi I can understand. 6'3", 200lb - 47 points in 54 games and 61 PIMS to go with it. A total Burke player and only 21 years old.

Admittedly I don't even know how to pronounce his name.

The Leafs also get Martin Skoula. A head scratcher for sure. The Leafs need another defenceman like Ottawa need to trade another draft pick for a rental. Over at Toronto Sports Media they think Skoula will be dealt by tomorrow for a late round pick.

Me personally, I wonder if the Leafs have trades in place for perhaps more than one of our defenceman and Skoula was brought in to finish out the season in place of Exelby and whomever else who gets shipped out.

Caputi is a Toronto boy, seems to have some good AHL numbers and is listed as a top three prospect for Pittsburgh. Really though, have the Leafs simply bought themselves some years at a cheaper salary for Poni? Looks that way.

I guess it's better than a 2nd round pick from a team likely to pick near the back of the round.

We had our eye on you since this....

Ottawa acquires Andy Sutton from NYI for draft pick

Ottawa trades a draft pick (2nd rounder) to NYI for Andy Sutton.

Sutton is 34, has 4 goals, 8 assists in 54 games played and a -3.  

Cap hit is $3M this year and he's a UFA at the end of the year.  This is a depth pickup to be sure.

Not terribly inspirational, but not terrible either.  At least he's better than Picard.

Good for Matt but is it good for hockey?

The Calgary Flames resigned Matt Stajan to a four year deal today worth $3.5M a year.

You can read about it here.

That's a substantial raise for him and he's on pace right now to finish with 59 points. I suppose that's what $3.5M players do nowadays? It seems like a lot of money for a guy of his skill. I would have guessed he was more of a $2.7M/year kind of player.

Is it just me or do GM's regularly hand out bloated contracts? No wonder we end up with lockouts and strikes and teams losing money.

Wow.

Sens win!

SENS	10
Ruutu	3
Alfie	3
Michalek	2
Kuba	1
Volchenkov	1
Daugavins	0
LEAFS	7
Kessel	2
Kaberle	3
Monster	2

Trade Deadline: The action just doesn't stop!

This is fantastic. Still feeling the hangover from the Gold Medal Win and already we have an NHL trade.

Jordan Leopold to Pittsburgh for a 2nd round draft pick.

That makes Leopold and Moore both traded for 2nd rounders, both on expiring contracts. Is it just me or are teams throwing around 2nd round picks like monopoly money? Good news for the Leafs who are looking to move a few lower tier players of their own.

What will Ottawa do? What will Burke with his shiny silver medal do?

Should be a good few days.

CANADA VS USA: Lets put a tidy little bow on this Olympic thing shall we?

Before every stand-up performance, Jerry Seinfeld sits alone backstage for 30 minutes completely soaked in his own fear. The best comedian of our generation, arguably, and still the guy gets stage fright. I always found that strange.

Until today. I think I finally get it.

Right now I'm thinking about all the things that can go wrong. I'm thinking that Canada has shown vulnerability while the US have not. I'm thinking that the US have nothing to lose and Team Canada has the weight of 30 million people on their shoulders. I'm thinking that Luongo hasn't been as good as Miller, that the USA can almost match us in depth up front, and I'm thinking that this funny game of hockey taketh away and giveth in the most unpredictable of ways.

Now that that's out of the way...

GO CANADA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
This is gonna be one hell of an afternoon folks!

Cut out of work early and then try not to sober up!

USA and Finland go today at 3pm eastern. Then you'll have to wait until 9:30 to see Canada vs Slovakia. During the break there are a ton of events going on today including the 4-man bobsled, speedskating finals and some snowboarding. Never a dull moment!

As far as the hockey, the Slovak's have taken 198 shots on net so far in this tournament. 75 of them have come from Gaborik (27), Hossa (23) Zednick (10) and Chara (10).

The Leafs and Sens are down to Ruutu and Kessel as far as BoO representation in Olympic hockey, as Don pointed out. But Nik Hagman was a Leaf until a week or so before the tournament so does he half count? He leads the Fins with 5 points.

If we want to go back further than this season, there are four ex-Sens still kicking: Hossa, Heatley, Meszaros and Chara.

Go Canada!

Jarko vs Phil

Two left from the BoO
Sens up by 2.

SENS	9
Ruutu	2
Alfie	3
Michalek	2
Kuba	1
Volchenkov	1
Daugavins	0
LEAFS	7
Kessel	2
Kaberle	3
Monster	2

A chip and a chair.

Seems like Canadian hockey fans are down. Our cockiness diluted by too many games against inferior countries and not enough success against those with talent. We've all done the math. Canada has not yet beaten, in regulation, a top hockey nation in these Olympics. It's not the bicep flexing we had hoped for and that seems to hurt. We may have all wanted a cake walk, deep down. I don't know? What I do know is that Canadian fans seem just a little edgy, recklessly throwing hall of fame defenceman and tried and true forwards under the bus, still bitching and moaning about roster choices. I'm hearing a lot of sounds coming out of mouths that when you remove the phonics and just listen to the tone you would think we've already been eliminated. A bunch of excuse-making and whining.

Enough already.

Canada is still, on paper, the best hockey team remaining in these games. Nobody can match up at all positions with the red and white. Nobody has the mix of youth plus veteran players so highly decorated and nobody else has a fourth line that could be the first line on most of the teams in this thing.

We are alive and we haven't even scratched the surface on our best performance, which, in my opinion, means that no team still standing has a better chance to win this over us. It's all square, all even, and down to 8 teams. It's the beginning, not the end.

So pull up your bottom lips, stop bashing away at players for what they've done or haven't done in your opinion and just get behind them. Quantum Physics. Think good thoughts. It could be the most incredible night to be a Canadian in a span of time when there have been many. Lets drop the suckhole attitude.

Ra Ra Ra.
The Muppet

Has Brodeur played his last game for Canada?

Luongo it is.

Hope that changes the fortunes of this team.

Leafs pull out front....

Including Sunday's games....

SENS	6
Ruutu	2
Alfie	2
Michalek	2
Kuba	0
Volchenkov	0
Daugavins	0
LEAFS	7
Kessel	2
Kaberle	3
Monster	2

*Roman Wick, Sens pick playing in/for Switzerland has 4pts.

Murray versus Burke: Olympic Edition

A quick comparison:

Brian Burke: Put together a USA team that got a lot of criticism for some of his player choices. Puts Ron Wilson in charge who many people think he should fire from the Leafs. USA then goes perfect in the round robin and beats the world's best hockey team in their own rink.

Bryan Murray: He drafted Getzlaf and Perry. Getzlaf takes a dumb and costly penalty in the game which the US shoves right down our throats with a PP goal. And later, Corey Perry lets Kesler score easily on an empty net to seal the game and kill what was at that point a barrage by Canada trying to tie the game up.

Lets make Burke GM of the Canadian team next Olympics. Who is with me?

I hate Phil Kessel.

For one game at least. Tonight him and that bastard Ron Wilson are the enemy. I wish them nothing but misery for the entire 60 minutes. They should know the feeling well.

7:40PM. Battle of Ontario united and cheering for the same team on CTV. Go Canada!

Speaking of the TV coverage, which of these 6 TV commercials we watch over and over are starting to do your head in? The Tim Hortons one just entered the rotation and I already want to claw my eyes out.

GDT - Canucks vs Swiss - Is it bar worthy?

I don't know about you, but I'm not spending my drinking money just yet. Going to the pub and dropping a bank roll to see Canada beat Switzerland just doesn't add up for me. Then again, I'm old as dirt compared to probably most of you.

Except DC.

No, I think my first visit to the pub to watch Canada will be Sunday against the US, who just beat Norway 6-1 btw. Kessel with a goal and an assist.
So far it looks like the top teams in this tourney are Canada and Russia with everybody else a step back.

Looks can be decieving, so I won't be too cocky. Wait, what fun is that?

Canada 7 Switzerland 0.

I think Team Canada is going to get better and better as this thing rolls on.

Olympic jerseys you wish you could buy

BoO Olympic style

So, which teams reps will gather more points in the Olympics?

We'll give 'the MONSTER' 2pts for a win and an extra 1 for a shutout.

Update: The Sens take the early lead!

Sens	1
Ruutu	1
Alfie	0
Michalek	0
Kuba	0
Volchenkov	0
Daugavins	0
Leafs	0
Kessel	0
Kaberle	0
Monster	0

GDT - DON'T MESS AROUND CARLO!

Game day thread. Leafs and Blues.

I'm heading from the office back to the hotel at 4pm local time to crack open a $12 minibar beer and watch this sucker online.

Leafs will face Steen and Colaiacovo, the latter a focus in some trade rumours. So if you're keeping track, he's motivated by facing his old team as well as performing for potential suitors at deadline.

Great.

Enjoy this one as it's the last for Leaf fans for a few weeks. Thankfully we'll have some good hockey to focus on over that time, when Canada's OTHER team starts working towards gold.

REALITY IS SETTING IN FOR THE LEAFS.

Forget that JS Giguere has a 1.01 GAA with a 9.65 save percentage since coming over. Or that the Dion Phaneuf has solidified the blue line and made everyone around him play better. Forget Phil Kessel's 21 goals and counting, or the emergence of Tyler Bozak.

Toronto are 29th in the NHL with 22 games left to play. To make matters worse, they are a full 7 points behind 27th place, with the Panthers having a game in hand. In short, it's fucking dire. Sorry about the language.

As of late Toronto are playing better but in all the excitement I'm hearing some pretty crazy ideas floating around. And I'm not talking crazy as in "wacky", but crazy "you're out of your bloody mind".

So lets break down three potential goals for Leaf fans to have as the season winds down for Toronto.

1. MAKE THE PLAYOFFS.
Lets break the hearts of those who think this is still even possible. The Leafs need 41pts to get to 90pts [which is thought to be the playoff cutoff this season]. That would require the Leafs to finish the season 20-1-1. You're more likely to grow a tail between now and then. Let it go. No really. Let it go.

2. NO TOP TWO PICK FOR BOSTON.
With no playoffs Leaf fans can only cheer for Boston not to get the top pick. This goal requires finishing 24th in the NHL. Why 24th? Because even if the Leafs win the draft lottery they can only move up 4 spots. Finishing 24th means Boston can at best get the 3rd overall pick. To finish 24th it will require the Leafs to get around 80 points. That's a record of 15-6-1 from here on in. You're more likely to win a proline where you chose 6 outcomes, but that actually happened to my brother last week so lets call it stupid, odds-wise, but not impossible.

3. FINISH 4TH LAST AND PRAY
The lottery pick usually goes to the 30th place team who has the most odds. So, to stay out of the top three the Leafs need around 75 points. That's a final run of 13-9. This is still uphill all the way, but at least reasonable to hope for. You're more likely to grow an increased interest in the Raptors over this span of time, but if it's a goal you're looking for, this is one to root for.

Kadri to play tonight against the Sharks.

Couldn't believe when I read this.

I'm away on a work thing and won't be able to see any of this game. What a bummer.

Barf.

Ok, so last night actually happened. I'd been hoping it was a nightmare.

Well, the Senators completely mailed it in and gifted a win to the perpetually awful Leafs. I don't really understand why the Senators chose not to play very hard last night, but it's not for me to analyse why they elected to throw the game.

Whatever the case, it's still miserable for the fans of the playoff-bound team and especially me as I have to spend it in downtown TO listening to the blue-and-white fans talk about Giggy's pending Vezina, Phaneuf's Hart, and Kessel's Richard trophies that they're going to get this year. (If you think I'm kidding about the Vezina, you should check out some of the comments in the multitude of sports websites...)

Alas, I'm off to Spadina. At least last night will keep the Senators and their fans in check. Of course, the reverse is true of the baddies.

BoO 4: GDT. Senators @ Leafs

Launching @ ~6:45 pm

(assuming the regular outages all of blogger.com is experiencing today are fixed)

Here goes the 2nd round of live-blogging which should be a regular event for all BoOs. Comments are moderated so dickheads will be removed with extreme prejudice. If you're not an invited panelist, you may have to wait a few minutes to get your first comment posted and the rest should appear without moderation.

Enjoy folks. Have fun, but stay respectful, especially given the tragic loss of Brian Burke's son Brendan last night. Those not complying with that request will be banned from all future live-blogging events on the BoO.

Panelists - If I'm not online @ 6:45 and you have the capability (as invited Producers), please launch!

The passing of a trailblazer.

As suggested by Steve in the comments section and confirmed by tsn.ca, Brian Burke's son Brenden was killed in a car accident today.

While I've never respected Brian Burke as a GM, I very much respected him for his openness and candor in discussion about Brendan.   His support for Brendan, whom some of you may not know came "out" this past year in an interview with ESPN, was impressive for perhaps setting the tone from the very top of the NHL that homophobia would not be tolerated in a sport which has been called the least open to recognition of hockey players for whom they are off the ice.

The Battle of Ontario doesn't matter so much tomorrow, though one could not be surprised if the Leafs are driven to gift a win to Burke as a small measure of support for their dedicated GM.

Sympathies to the family of Burke and all who looked to Brendan as a trailblazer.

Late GDT - So far so good...

Third is about to start.

Brodeur in. Kovulchuk in. But it's the Sjorstrom/Wallin/Kulemin line that's been the best of the night - who would have thought the "spare part" in the Phaneuf deal would be this good after 5 periods? Powerplay working. PK working. Gustavsson standing tall which means the Sens will see Giguere, and Kessel has a pair of assists for good measure.

Hold on for the last 20 minutes boys...

Coming soon....

There should be another coveritlive thread here for tomorrow's game.  I'll be sending out a few invites via email tomorrow as I did last time.   If any of you remember my email, send me a request to be added to the unmoderated.  I'll be rigging some of the 'faithful' as producers so you can give commenting privileges to people who pop on.  I hope to be on at the beginning, but I might not be alive after breathing in some downtown Toronto air.

Eleven is heaven.

For the first time since Gee moved overseas I've got my drink on during a week night, and what a way to celebrate it.

11 wins straight to join only the somewhere-in-the-50s Habs and present day Washington as the only 10+ streaking teams.  Fuck yeah, it feels good - just as good as that ice-pack must've felt on Glass's face after Carkner performed upper mandibular surgery thereupon.  

I can't go to bed tonight.  Fuck a rational posting, I'm heading *back out* to the Heart & Crown to celebrate.

I'll be back on sometime after my impending hangover subsides following next Zorfubvzutday.