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fly4apuckguy
PickupHockey Pro
Canada
834 Posts |
 Posted - 11/15/2007 : 14:53:55
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quote:
Originally posted by Antroman
Yea, Dad was from down around Weyburn or Pangman. Their family were your original dirt farmers and my dad was one of thirteen kids. He is in his eighties now and still sits and curses the Habs when they play the Leafs. He always brings up the fact that they heard the very first Leaf broadcast with Foster Hewitt and claims it was such an event for them that he remembers it like it was yesterday. I'm afraid to call since Saturday night as I am going to get an earful about the those same stinkin' Habs beating us in OT.
It's those older guys like your dad that make me love the game and this country even more, seriously. That is awesome.   |
Edited by - fly4apuckguy on 11/15/2007 14:54:45 |
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Guest9799
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Posted - 11/15/2007 : 16:12:34
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hey guys, im doing a speech for school on what i would do i i were JFJ. im not finished, but let me know what u think so far please.
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Odd as it may sound, my first task on day one of the job is going to be the hardest of all. It’s called chilling out. Let me explain.
Since his arrival in August of 2003, John Ferguson has facilitated the acquiring of about 40 notable players. With all due respect, all they cultivated into were a bunch of old farts.
Brian Leetch, Ron Francis, Joe Nieuwendyk, Ed Belfour, Jeff O’Neil, Jason Allison, Eric Lindros and Michael Peca are all arguably future Hall of Famers. In Toronto though, they were about as useful as a bunch of pylons.
Ferguson brought them all in as they pushed the 36 and 37 marks, and now they’re all gone. Talk about blowing it big time.
The reason is very simple. Mr. Ferguson is selfish.
That’s a nice way of putting it, considering the other options were a toss up between plain old dumb, and ignorant.
As Paul Maurice, coach of the Leafs – at least for the time being – put it: ‘The two hardest jobs in Canada are being Prime Minister, and GM of Toronto.’
The media is always on his back. He, in turn, tries to find short term solutions to get himself out of the spotlight. He creates a whole bunch of fanfare by signing old ‘have-beens’, and making us believe, as we have for the past 40 years, that this year is the year.
When we win a preseason game, Toronto fans are cheering ‘Stanley Cup’ in the streets. But all it takes is twenty games, by which the injuries have taken their toll, and the city is going after the infamous scapegoat that is JF Junior. This vicious cycle keeps repeating itself over and over.
And money is the source of the other form of selfishness.
Wade Belak has been caught saying that he doesn’t lose sleep over missing the playoffs, since he knows that the fans will remain loyal regardless.
The Toronto Maple Leafs are primarily a business venture. Larry Tanenbaum, the Teachers’ Association, and Mr. Ferguson have a hidden agenda. It’s called filling seats.
As long as the big name players are in Toronto, the money is in Toronto. And if they win a few games – well that’s an added bonus.
At this point the choice, really, is ours. Do we really want to see another decade of mediocre hockey clubs? Or rather, is it time for change?
It might take a few last place finishes. But 1967 is becoming a number known oh too well by fans of the blue and white.
Right here, right now, we rebuild. They have the core guys.
I see no reason why Justin Pogge, now a third string, 21 year old goaltender for the Leafs, can’t be anchoring a Stanley Cup run by the time he is 26.
By that time, both assistant captain Nik Antropov and Alexander Steen will be 32. Matt Stajan will be 33. Throw in Tomas Kaberle, Kyle Wellwood, Carlo Colaiacovo, John Poll, Jiri Tlutsy and Simon Gamanche, and you have a core nine guys who you can hone into superstars of the future.
It’s funny now, because half these guys are just benchwarmers. But consider this.
Daniel Alfredsson was a sixth round choice. Henrik Zetterberg is a seventh rounder. They have led the NHL in points through the first quarter of this season. Even Mark Messier, second all time in NHL scoring, was a third round pick. And Luc Robitaille, a 9th round 171st pick, is the highest scoring left-winger of all time.
Meanwhile, all the talent in the Toronto system were high prospects. All it takes is time.
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Scudworth
Top Prospect
Canada
23 Posts |
Posted - 11/15/2007 : 16:23:26
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| Problem is, do you really think that if the Leafs continue at their sub (or near) 500 level, that all those players you mentioned would want to stick with the Leafs for a 5 year period? You said it yourself, some of the best players turn to pylons when wearing a Leaf jersey, so what's to keep a bunch of current pylons when they realize they could shine somewhere else where they're not as much under the microscope? |
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Guest9799
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Posted - 11/15/2007 : 16:34:31
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Well look at Sundin
For all the crap he takes, he has had 70 or more points for the past 11 seasons
plain and simple, he is the heart and soul of the club beause he is dedicated
if you can get the guys i mentioned on baord with the idea that they can win a cup in the near future, i dont see why not |
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Scudworth
Top Prospect
Canada
23 Posts |
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nashvillepreds
PickupHockey Veteran
Canada
1053 Posts |
Posted - 11/16/2007 : 15:06:27
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quote:
Originally posted by PuckNuts
Yes there are a lot of jealous people out there. They think that their team should get all the attention, and not Toronto.
Well one day your favourite team will be at the center of attention, and guess what everyone else will hate your team then...
When the Leafs win the Cup one day there will be so many of those fans that said they hated the Leafs waiving a flag from their car, and they are going to totally deny ever hating them...
I don't necessarily agree with everything I say.
- - Marshall McLuhan
All the people that hate leafs now will be dead before the leafs win the cup
GO PREDATORS GO |
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Guest9646
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Posted - 12/06/2007 : 00:54:52
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I don't understand why people hate the Leafs...Most Leaf fans don't "hate" the other teams in the league or Canada. I have been to the Leaf/Montreal rivalries in both cities, and there is way more hostility in Montreal towards the Leafs then I ever saw in Toronto towards the habs...the way I see it, you can cheer for whatever team you want, but unless you are a fan of one of the original 6 teams, you have no understanding of hockey tradition, because your team hasn't been around long enough to appreciate the legacy of a team. When your team has been around more than 50 years in the league, then perhaps some infant stage of history can be considered to be developed. And as far as people concerned about CBC showcasing the Leafs....it is about money....if you live in a smaller market, and want to pay $500 to go to a game, and huge municipal and provincial taxes(as a subsidy for the lost television revenues and viewership) then by all means, write your business proposal remembering that most of the cash in TV comes from the advertisers who want a big audience. The Leafs are a dynasty in the sense of more people having the experience of being taken to their first game not just by their parent, but by their grandparent, and their grandparents being taken to their first leaf game by their grandparents. Anyone who attended a game at Maple Leaf Gardens could feel the history of the team in the building....and let's face it, the salary cap was the worst thing that ever happened to the Leafs. They were finally positioning themselves like the Yankees in Baseball, where they could have spent 100 million on payroll and bought whoever they wanted. They would have made the playoffs every year, at the expense of some smaller market teams, and they still would have been more profitable. The Salary cap killed a big dollar team like the leafs because they now had to change the entire way they approached talent, and they had very little cultivated within the organization. They are still feeling the effects of this. Of course, the ownership group of the Leafs is happy because it padded their pockets by the league forcing them to spend less...while they continually become the richest hockey franchise by far. So don't hate the Leafs, love your own team, and be glad that the salary cap allows your small market team to compete in this league every year and that your team doesn't have the fan and media pressure to always win now! It's like trying to be a day trader with stock and always pick the winners, it just can't be done.
If you want to pick a guy to hate in hockey, I vote for Brian Burke. I know Anaheim won the cup last year (good for the players), but that guy is just a true ass. Neidermayer decides to come back and help his .500 team and Burke says that they are glad to have him, but doesn't want another shenanigan again next year. What an ass Burke is. |
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Guest2594
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Posted - 12/06/2007 : 06:49:49
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| Ur questions should be reveresed, Why do people styll like the leafs. Ive been to many games around the NHL, and you would be surprised how many leaf fans are in your home town, even if you live in the USA there are fans everywhere. Leafs are one of the original 6 teams, so back then some ciies that didnt have teams before have teams noww, but they styll follow the leaf tradiions |
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Guest4912
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Posted - 12/06/2007 : 08:05:58
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you are completely right antroman, the current popularity of the toronto maple leafs can be accredited to all of the factors that you mentioned. their success as one of only two canadian teams made them heroes anywhere outside quebec. one could argue that the canadiens should be equally popular, but their popularity has been mainly restricted to French Canada. therefore, the leafs were in fact the team of choice for anyone who had the means to catch hockey.
this success has simply carried through from generation to generation. what angers me is that they still receive the same attention from the media, broadcasters are always biased toward them, and they are made out to be the center of the hockey universe.
the toronto maple leafs have the same status as the dallas cowboys or green bay packers, but even those teams are not hyped up over the rest of the teams in the NFL the way the leafs are over other teams in the NHL. just because their is a large population base in southern ontario and that amounts to more tv revenue for that area doesnt make it right to propagate the leafs across the rest of canada and shove them in our faces. if fans down their like them so much, which they do, then give em all the leafs they can get.
ultimately, the media is responsible for the well-known hateful attitude towards the leafs. they feed and fuel the anger day in day out, whether it be cbc, tsn, or sportsnet. |
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Guest4912
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Posted - 12/06/2007 : 08:17:12
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Everybody is posting these stupid ass topics (who are probably posted by leaf fans) crying and whining about why we dont like the leafs, why do they suck, IT starts from the net out. Two busts and poor defence spells the teams demise in black and white. especially on the stat sheet.
there a .500 team at BEST |
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Why Do People Not Like The Leafs 
