SB Nation - Francois Beauchemin

Maple Leafs 4 v Senators 1: If Only Mike Fisher Had Played!

PPP — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 04:47:04 -0000

More photos » Sean Kilpatrick - AP

Taking cheap runs at opponent - You're doing it wrong.

The Toronto Maple Leafs waltzed into their home away from home and left with a 4-1 win to give them a 4-2 edge in the season series with the Ottawa Senators (gee, that looks familiar) on the back of Jonas Gustavsson's strongest outing of the year. Phil Kessel continued his dominance of the Senators with another goal to get the ball rolling. Then, in 19 seconds, the Maple Leafs were able to triple their lead. First, John Mitchell's strong individual effort got him past Andy Sutton's molasses-like attempt at a hip check before an absolute snipeshow picked the top corner over Elliott's shoulder. Some strong forechecking by Viktor Stalberg and Luca Caputi led to Mikhail Grabovski sneaking one under Brian Elliott's body. Rickard Wallin finished off the scoring by...actually, let me use the best description courtesy of Archimedies:

Heard Wallin's goal was scored into an empty net. Or, as Sens fans call it: Pascal Leclaire

The result was great but it was not without it's faults. The Leafs made a number of glaring giveaways that led to the Senators outchancing the Maple Leafs. Gustavsson's 30 saves included a number of really good close in saves because the defence seemed especially scrambly. The goal came as a result of a combination of Tomas Kaberle coughing up the puck in his own zone (after nicely stripping the puck from a Sen!) and Phil Kessel's failure to cover his point man Andy Sutton:

Andy Sutton

#5 / Defenseman / Ottawa Senators

Height: 6-6

Weight: 245

Born: Mar 10, 1975

You can't lose track of a guy that big.

Of course, as is usually the case, with the game getting away from Ottawa Chris Neil began his usual routine. He tried to elbow Kulemin who luckily side-stepped the gap-toothed gutless wonder. When Luke Schenn tried to collect his pound of flesh Jarkko Ruutu jumped in as a third man in. Par for the course. And it was topped off by their fearful leader Daniel Alfredsson who, on the day that Alexander Ovechkin was suspended two games for hitting Brian Campbell from behind in what should always be a slam dunk decision, hit Francois Beauchemin from behind. As you can imagine, Happy Trails was not happy:

I got lucky I didn’t get hurt more than that actually. I heard little cracks in my neck but I’ll get that adjusted tomorrow and everything will be fine. There’s nothing I could’ve done. I was facing the wall, never saw him coming. It’s one of those hits we’re trying to take out of the game and it happened again tonight. He asked me if I was alright and I said ‘What do you want me to do? I’m alright, but it could’ve been a lot worse.

I look forward to the first meeting between these two teams and not just because Orr-Carkner 5: The Reckoning..Again was never fought. I assume that Frankie will have a thing or two to say to Krusty. Until then, we can watch as the Senators, no longer receiving completely insane and unsustainable goaltending, slide down the standings on their way to a four game sweep in the playoffs. As for the Leafs, it will be tough but the Leafs are 4 points back of the Hurricanes and seven away from getting out of the top five draft picks.

A few more thoughts on the game from the advanced statistics:

The Leafs' powerplay was once again horrific. Not only are they failing to create chances but they have now spent two games gifting the best chances to the opposition. 0-for-5 moves them to about 3-for-458 since the trade deadline.
Luke Schenn also loves playing the Senators. He picked up an assist and was + 3 in just over 19 minutes of ice-time.
Schenn managed that despite almost being a double digit negative in Corsi.
Tomas Kaberle and Carl Gunnarsson led the way at +10.
The Senators outshot the Leafs by one at even strength.
The scoring chances for the game were 21 - 15 for the Senators.
That number includes a string of seven in a row to end the first period when the Leafs were losing their grip on the game.
Francois Beauchemin and Dion Phaneuf were heavily outchanced while they were on the ice.

Struggles continue as Senators lose 4-1 to Maple Leafs

PeterR — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 03:08:55 -0000

More photos » Sean Kilpatrick - AP

2 days ago: Toronto Maple Leafs' Jonas Gustavsson stops a break-away shot from Ottawa Senators' Milan Michalek during the second period of an NHL hockey game in Ottawa on Tuesday, March 16, 2010. (AP Photo/The Canadian Press,Sean Kilpatrick)

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Anyone out there who, like me, thought a return to Ottawa would reverse the fortunes of the Senators as they took on the Toronto Maple Leafs on Tuesday night turned out to be depressingly wrong. The Sens played the same urgency-starved game that has earned them a 1-4-1 record since the Olympic break, and lost 4-1 as a result.

Although the Senators didn't deserve to win the game, there were some positives to take out of it. A few players, particularly Milan Michalek and Chris Kelly, had glorious chances to score, but just couldn't get the puck past Jonas Gustavsson. It's not as much that Gustavsson was stellar--he was pretty good, but certainly didn't steal the game--but the Senators' ongoing struggles to score just continue. Ottawa actually outshot the Leafs 31-30, but just couldn't capitalize on their chances.

Sens heroes: Chris Campoli, Nick Foligno
Oh, look, the two guys who've just returned from injury; apparently they haven't been affected by the losing their teammates have allowed to get them down. Campoli might have been the Senators best defenceman tonight, with a shot on net and a couple of hits. What he did more effectively than any of his teammates was contain the young, quick, and energetic Leafs players by forcing them to the outside and limiting their ability to get to the middle of the ice. His fellow defencemen would have benefited from following his lead (and I'm not sure I've ever said that about Campoli before).

Foligno, on the other side of the puck, also played a game that was tailored to the opposition: He drove to the net, forechecked hard, forced turnovers, and made life difficult for Gustavsson. He had three takeaways, one shot, and a couple of hits, but played the blue-collar style that made Ottawa so successful through January and February. Again, the rest of the team needs to follow his lead.

Sens zeros: Matt Carkner, Andy Sutton
The long-term costs of having a defenceman on whom you rely for over 15 minutes a game consistently drop the gloves for your team are really adding up, or at least it looks that way where Carkner's involved. He didn't fight against the Leafs, but he's slowing down as the season goes on, and seems to be losing his focus. The reason Carkner made the team this season, ahead of guys on one-way deals like Alex Picard and Chris Campoli, was because he played a simple game; he needs to get back to that, and soon, to be effective in the playoffs. As it is, he looks like he could be the odd man out when Filip Kuba returns.

I feel badly for putting Sutton on this list, given that he scored the Senators only goal, but he was off tonight. Similar to Carkner, he was a step behind, and (although I'll give him credit for trying it) was embarrassed when he missed a big hip-check on John Mitchell in the second and the Leafs centre roofed it past Brian Elliott.

Sens killers: Phil Kessel, Jonas Gustavsson
Kessel's become a regular on this list. He opened the scoring tonight, and now has six goals and an assist in five games against Ottawa since joining the Leafs. He had a game-high seven shots on net.

Gustavsson was solid, and there when the Leafs needed him. Toronto had eleven giveaways (which pales in comparison to Ottawa's 18 giveaways, but it still kind of bad), some of which put the team in a tough spot, but Gustavsson backed up his teammates.

Room for improvement: Daniel Alfredsson, Chris Kelly
These guys have different problems. Alfredsson can almost score at will when he's playing hard, but he hasn't had that je ne sais quoi in his game lately. I have a feeling it's got something to do with his play at the Olympics, and perhaps the disappointment with his team's finish, but he's got to get over it: The Senators aren't finished just yet. Alfredsson, though, can't be said to lack emotion, but his dirty hit-from-behind on Francois Beauchemin is the wrong avenue for him to vent it. (The fact that Beauchemin broke Alfie's ribs in the 2007 playoffs, reported by Ian Mendes, makes the hit more understandable, but still not excusable.) He's the captain, and this team will only go as far as he's going to take them

Kelly, on the other hand, is working his ass off, but can't score to save his life. He led all Senators with five shots on net, and probably had the Senators best scoring chance (goal notwithstanding) but couldn't convert. He finished -2, which isn't good for a defensive centre, but more importantly he's been given an opportunity to step up in the absence of some of the team's elite talent. With Mike Fisher out, Kelly moved up the lineup, but couldn't make the most of his chance.

Disappearing act: Matt Cullen, Ryan Shannon, Peter Regin
The three above-mentioned players? Combined for one shot on goal. Which was off the stick of Cullen, who also had an assist and wasn't completely missing. Still, the Senators were running at a good clip when he came in, and he was only supposed to add to the offence; he needs to put in the work to do that.

The most frustrating part of watching Shannon, and likely the reason he's had a hard time staying in the NHL, is his wrist-slitting inconsistency. Some games, he's Theo Fleury; others, he's just gone. On the bright side, he's not a liability, but unfortunately 'not a liability' is not good enough. He needs to be an asset more consistently.

It's easy to forget Regin is still a rookie based on his season so far, but he's got the gifts of a good playmaking centre and a knack for the net. When the going gets tough for the Senators, particularly in the playoffs, it's going to be players like Regin, Shannon, and Cullen who will need to provide the offence when the big guns are contained. They need to step it up to do so.

Shot map:
The shots are there. The finish is missing.

Game highlights:

Seven Thoughts on the Current Leafs

SkinnyFish — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 12:00:39 -0000

More photos » Frank Gunn - AP

Luca Caputi - One member of the "New Hotness".(AP Photo/The Canadian Press, Frank Gunn)

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Why seven? Because 10 is too much for me to think of at 11 o'clock at night, and 5 would make it seem like I were lazy.

1) Nikolai Kulemin is no longer a 3rd line plugger; he's a legitimate 2nd line scoring threat. In the 5 games since the trade deadline, he has 5 points (2G, 3A) and is a +3. Aside from scoring he brings great hustle, grit, and flair that was previously buried on the third line behind guys like Hagman, Stempniak, Blake, and Ponikarovski.

2) The penalty kill may no longer be broken. Since the trades for Dion Phaneuf and J.S. Giguere, the Leafs have been shorthanded 32 times in 11 games. They have given up only 5 powerplay goals during that span (1 each in the last 4 games), and 2 of those goals came in 5 on 3 situations. After the math, that results in a whopping 84.4% PK rate. Over the course of the season that would be good for 5th best in the league.

3) Kaberle is not who he once was. Scoreless in his last 7 games with a -6 rating over that span, he's a team worse -15 on the season. While he has a team best 46 points; only 12 of those have come since Christmas. Brace yourselves for the offseason should he be traded; the days of Jeff Carter + a 1st are over.

4) Carl Gunnarsson is the new defensive hotness. In his 28 games played this year, he has 2 G and 7 A, and somehow for the season is a team best +10. Enjoy the Marlies next year Jeff Finger.

5) The goaltending might finally be average. Since the trade that sent Vesa Toskala to Anaheim and brought JSG to Toronto, Toronto goalies have posted a collective .911 Save %. While not stellar, it's way better than the sub .900 goaltending that was present during Toskala's time here, and behind what amounts to half of the Toronto Marlies.

6) This team needs some offense. Since the Phaneuf for everybody trade, the Leafs have averaged 2.36 goals per game. To let you know how bleak that is, over the course of the season that puts us tied for dead last in scoring with...the Boston Bruins.

7) Phil Kessel is still Phil Kessel. With the shortened season due to shoulder surgery, Kessell has only played in 55 games this year. But in those games he's score 23 goals including last night's OT winner. Over the span of an 82 game season, that's on pace for 34 goals. Then factor in that his centres have ranged from Matt Stajan, to Mikhail Grabovski, to John Mitchell, to Tyler Bozak. Then factor in that he's has goal scoring droughts of 5, 8, and 5 games and it's pretty obvious that he's a future perennial 40 goal scorer at the age of 22.

On to some links!

Lackadaisical veterans; old and busted. Go getter rookies; new hotness [Globe and Mail]

Another game recap courtesy of [The Hockey News]

Presenting the NHL in graph form. Special guest appearance by an old picture with a new look [Bangin Panger]

Further proof that ESPN sucks at all things hockey related [Behind the Net]

The Leafs have exactly zero players in this list of the Top 50 NCAA prospects [WCH Blog]

Bloge Salming and DGB sneaked in to the Awesome Leafs Meeting [Bloge Salming]

The guys at Five Hole Fanatics normalize Carl Gunnarsson's +/- rating, and provide a formula to use for all the Leafs [Five Hole Fanatics]

A fantastic interview with former assistant GM Jeff Jackson [Mirtle at The Globe and Mail]

Another good piece about assistant GM Jeff Jackson leaving the club [The Score]

Gunnarsson making his case as a Top 4 defenseman for Toronto [Globe and Mail]

Francois Beauchemin shined in net last night according to Joe Bowen [Heroes in Rehab]

Something ain't right with Tomas Kaberle [general borschevsky]

MLSE C.O.O. to lead a delegation with The Cup to Afghanistan [NHL.com]

Ever wanting to drive the Zamboni? Of course you have. Here's how [NY Times]

Leafs put in bids to host All-Star Game, the Draft, and the Winter Classic [The Hockey News]

Since finding footage of llamas playing hockey is apparently hard to come by, LD had to get creative for her Youtube Yoinkage [WWoLD]

It's all about the young guns in town. Not hard when more than half the team is under 25 [Hockey Analysis]

Morning Additions

The Leafs Playoff March continues! [Youtubes]

Maple Leafs 4 - Lightning 3 (OT): Young, Dumb, and Full of...Win!

PPP — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 06:07:39 -0000

More photos » Frank Gunn - AP

THANK YOU JEEBUS!

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The Toronto Maple Leafs picked up a second straight win in overtime with a 4-3 win over the Tampa Bay Lightning. There was also a 6.9 earthquake in Chile. Clearly, these two events are related and the world is about to end. At the very least, it's going to end while we are watching a team that gives you a feeling of...what's the opposite of dread? Less dread. That's it.

Watching Viktor Stalberg (24) score two goals on Luca Caputi (21) assists and Tyler Bozak (23) scoring after creating a turnover with his forechecking and setting up Phil Kessel (22) for the winner in overtime made me feel less dread. Toss in Luke Schenn (20) being a plus three on the night and Carl Gunnarsson (23) helping out on the blueline on top of Nikolai Kulemin (23) being an absolute beast and the sun might be shining a bit brighter over the next couple of week.

The Leafs' first game after the Olympic break was, I am told, a disgusting, listless display by a group of players playing out the string. Prior to their second game, Elliotte Friedman interviewed Brian Burke about what was said in the dressing room. Burke was visibly upset as he spoke about how he basically read the entire team the riot act as he clearly outlined the situation: every player owes the fans a 100% effort every night if only because they are also competing for their future.

Since then the Leafs have played four strong games that have for the vast majority of the time not lacked in effort. They are finally getting the results that they deserve. All of the following comes with the caveat that this is a small sample size. Since the Phaneuf/Giguere trades the Maple Leafs are 5-5-1 which, while not stunning, represents almost a quarter of their win total this year in just over a tenth of the season. Before the trade there was increasing chatter about whether Ron Wilson was a good coach. His work with other teams was becoming largely ignored because of his failures here in Toronto to create a good penalty kill. In those 11 games the Leafs have killed 27 of 32 for a 84.4% kill rate. In addition, of those five goals two actually came when the team was down two men. Of course, the focus can now move to the powerplay which has not scored in seven games and has plummeted to 29th in the NHL.

Now, seasoned observers of the Maple Leafs should not be surprised at all that now that they have been eliminated by James Mirtle. Of course, I tried telling you guys this a few days ago to help prevent mass suicides in Leafs RAUP:

Past East Playoff Battles After The Trade Deadline - Bird Watchers Anonymous
You want good news? The Leafs are poised to make their 5th straigh post-lockout winning percentage improvement.

- PPP, 'Information Overload', March 6, 2010

Don't say I don't give you guys good news! In the post game thread there were some comments questioning whether this late season semi-surge was any different than past years' and whether there was really anything to get excited about. The big difference is that the players that make up this Leafs squad are parts of the team's future. For at least until the end of the year gaps are going to be filled with kids. Whatever mistakes occur are not just reasons to pull out your hair but are teachable moments. At the very least, there is...not dread...and not less dread...but...'hope' and that feels pretty good.

A few other observations from the advanced statistics and the game sheets:

Luke Schenn was +3 on the night in almost 21 minutes of ice-time to bring his yearly total to +4. Last season he was a -12. He also picked up another assist and I think he was ripped off on the first Leafs goal.
Luca Caputi had two assists. One of the things that I have liked of Gianluca so far is that he knows the style of game he has to play and he is doing his best. In an interview this week he said that he wanted to make Leaf fans feel that they got something good in the trade. Baby steps but he's off to a good start.
Jean-Sebastien Giguere made 31 saves today and gave us all a huge heart attack when he raced out in overtime to prevent a breakaway.
Luke Schenn, Nikolai Kulemin, Phil Kessel, and Tyler Bozak led the way with double digit, positive Corsi ratings as the Leafs dominated the Lightning at even strength. Despite being terrible 4-on-4 the Leafs had a period during regulation where they looked like they had a powerplay.
A few guys still struggled: Jeff Finger, Jamie Lundmark, and Fucking John Mitchell. Yeah, yeah, yeah. He stinks. But he's cheap. Don't forget that!
On the other side, the only ones in the black were Nate Thompson and Brandon Bochenski.
Dion Phaneuf and Francois Beauchemin seem to be the chosen shut-down pair for Ron Wilson. The trio they faced the most was the Lightning's top line of Steven Stamkos - Martin St. Louis - Steve Downie. Luke Schenn was tasked with facing Vincent Lecavalier while Jeff Finger was given the "Gustavsson Protection" role.

And just because it makes us smile:

Poll

What are you feeling right now?

Maple Leafs 4 - Bruins 3 (OT): Call Ripley's!

PPP — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 04:49:25 -0000

More photos » Frank Gunn - AP

Reeee-United and it feeeeeels sooo goooood!

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The Toronto Maple Leafs triumphed over 4-3 over the Boston Bruins in Luca Caputi's home debut. The local boy started out slow, along with the rest of the team, but settled down as the game went on he grew into his expected role. He also tallied his first goal as a Leaf in front of about 40 family and friends to knot the game for the third time. After a scrambled ending to the third period the game headed towards overtime.

The first period did not give an indication of the kind of game that we would be witness to with it's dire play and lackluster effort. However, something happened during the intermission because for the rest of the game the Leafs' young forwards (only one over 30 in Wayne Primeau) used their speed to harrass a Bruins defence shorn of its steadiest member. The end result was an increase in up ice pressure and the creation of many more scoring chances off of the rush, the cycle, and from turnovers. Unfortunately, no words were able to improve the Leafs' finishing.

Wayne Primeau opened the scoring for the home team after Luke Schenn forced Milan Lucic into a turnover at the Leafs' blueline. He quickly pushed the puck up to Primeau who went down on a 2-on-1 with Colton Orr (yes, that Colton Orr). He fired five-hole and tied the game up. After a Bruins' powerplay marker gave them a second lead Carl Gunnarsson long-range effort finished off some excellent puck pursuit by Nikolai Kulemin. Patrice Bergeron's third period goal then set the stage for Caputi's equaliser. Phil Kessel turned two amazing plays by Kulemin and Tyler Bozak into partial breakaways but his luck against Tim Thomas, who was incredible all night, continued to be poor.

The overtime was fast-paced and the Leafs created a number of chances but Thomas continued to stymie them. It looked like the Leafs were headed to yet another shootout. And then just when you think you have seen everything in sports (DO NOT CLICK IF SQUEAMISH) the Leafs scored the game winning goal. Dennis Wideman hilariously face planted in the corner of the Leafs' zone and Grabovski muscled and hustled his way into a 2-on-1. As he passed the puck to Kulemin Michael Ryder continued the Keystone Kops routine by sliding past the puck and into Tim Thomas leaving a patient Kulemin with a yawning cage in which to pot the Leafs' first overtime winner of the year.

That gives the Leafs five points since Chemmy famously bet that they would not pick up more than ten of their final 40 points. Next up: Tampa Bay Thursday night. The Leafs are now six points back of the New York Islanders in 28th and seven back of Columbus and Carolina in 27th and 26th. There's a lot of ground to make up but...well, we can still dream.

A few observations:

One game after winning 8 of 9 draws Christian Hanson got dummied in going 1 for 8. The Bruins' opening goal came after a lost face-off and they held a 61% - 39% edge.
Francois Beauchemin and Dion Phaneuf both logged over 27 minutes of ice-time tonight. Both were even. Beauchemin blocked five shots to Phaneuf's one while Phaneuf laid six hits to Beauchemin's lone bodycheck.
Beauchemin and Phaneuf played fourteen minutes together at even strength. The vast majority of both of their time on ice was against the line of Mark Recchi - Marco Sturm - Patrice Bergeron.
That trio combined for eight points and were a combined + 6 as they were the only line for the Bruins that had any sustained success against the Leafs. Interestingly enough, they were also heavily outshot at even strength.
Luke Schenn picked up two assists and was + 2 in over 21 minutes of playing time. He's matched his points from last year in 10 fewer games while also improving his + / - by 13.
Carl Gunnarsson had a hell of a game. He was + 3, scored a goal, almost had another, and moved the puck very well. At $800K including bonuses next year he highlights the value of kids on their entry level deals. He's the kind of bargain that allows the team to shift assets to fill other holes
Mikhail Grabovski played 16 minutes in his return, was + 2, and used his speed to help create the game-winning goal. He was clearly rusty but just as Ron Wilson hoped he had some incredible chemistry with Nikolai Kulemin.
Speaking of my newest Russian best friend, the guy is really coming into his own. The winning goal showed a tonne of patience and awareness as did his excellent defensive play and his puck moving. The loss of Ponikarovsky is going to be mitigated in large part (if not completely) next year by this guy.
The Leafs powerplay has only allowed four goals in their past 10 games and two have been on 5-on-3s. While the Leafs improved their discipline coming off of the Flyers game but they still managed to parlay their only two penalties against into a goal against.
The Leafs dominated the Bruins in Corsi. This led to a huge edge in offensive zone draws. In the absence of Zdeno Chara the Bruins leaned heavily on Dennis Wideman and Mark Stuart who was the last Boston Bruin drafted by the team using a Toronto Maple Leafs' first round draft pick.
When the Leafs had offensive draws Ron Wilson was making sure that Dion Phaneuf was getting the start. He took six more offensize draws than defensive.

A Final Assessment on the Gainey Regime

Robert L — Sat, 13 Feb 2010 18:19:34 -0000

Opinions on Bob Gainey's effectiveness as Canadiens GM over a little more than six seasons are more diverse and fractured than any managerial tenure in Habs history.

It's aggreeable and conclusive that Frank Selke and Sam Pollock were masterminds. Irving Grundman's days as GM had both masterstrokes and bumbles, but he was deemed a failure working under long cast showdows. Serge Savard brought the team back up with a pair of Stanley Cups, thanks in no small part to Patrick Roy, who he drafted. Rejean Houle's era undid Savard's work with minute and precise incompatibility. Andre Savard was an improvement, in the midst of restoring respectability when Gainey arrived.

In June of 2003, the mere thought of Gainey as Habs GM spelled promise. There was a buzz in Habs fandom from the moment he arrived. A photo from an old cover shoot of Les Canadiens magazine that had him donning a white sleeve shirt, pulled open to reveal the "CH" in Superman costume style, became an image representative of that hope. Gainey did deliver, but the ultimate promise land remained elusive. That he suffered while leading, rarely spared him a poisoned dart. In the eyes of many, no Cups equals no merit, and that isn't always the most fairest of ways to assess.

At this site, I write a great deal about Canadiens history. I should write a whole lot more about not being blinded - and rendered stupid - by the richness of it. In short, times and expectations have changed in a salary capped 30 team NHL. Yes, the ultimate goal of bagging Stanley does remain the same, but it is a more difficult and complicated achievement in this day and age. This site is named after the team's focus - having their eyes on the big prize - but it is the "getting there" that I hoped to document when I began filling pages.

Ask the Detroit Red Wings if winning a Cup isn't a long process, and then judge Gainey's term on more even standards. The Wings knocked and knocked and knocked for years, before finally lifting the big ol' mug. By then, after years, everyone invloved in the Detroit stake were qualified geniuses.

If you have not seized this notion, don't bother reading on. In fact, delete this site from your favorites, because translating the patience required is not getting throught to you. Might as well watch Antichambre or 110% and revel in your incomprehension.

In six seasons at the helm of the Canadiens, Gainey's teams played 468 games and ran up a combined record of 241-155-7-46.

2009-10 59-28-25-6

2008-09 82-41-30-11

2007-08 82-47-25-10

2006-07 82-42-34-6

2005-06 82-42-31-9

2003-04 82-41-30-7-4

In old school terms (pre 2005 lockout) that would be 33 games above .500 overall. In today's NHL setup, it is 86 games over .500, or 528 points of a possible 988, for a winning percentage of .534.

In the six seasons before Gainey arrived on scene, the Canadiens combined record in 492 games through those years was 198-211-61-22. On the whole that is 13 games under .500 and winning percentage of .486.

2002-03 82-30-35-8-9

2001-02 82-36-31-12-3

2000-01 82-28-40-8-6

1999-00 82-35-34-9-4

1998-99 82-32-39-11

1997-98 82-37-32-13

All tallied, Gainey run clubs swung the Habs winning percentage .048 points over that that time, a marked improvement over the previous regimes. In plainspeak, it works out to an average of seven more wins per season, or 14 standing points.

Team based statistics are but one surface assessment of Gainey's work , but player management is another misconstrued miscomprehension altogether. No stats here, I'll simply run off names in comparison.

Players drafted during the six season Gainey regime that played games with the Canadiens from 2003 to present are:

2003: Andrei Kostitsyn, Maxim Lapierre, Ryan O' Byrne, Corey Locke, Jaroslav Halak

2004: Kyle Chipchura, Mikhail Grabovski, Gregory Stewart, Mark Sreit, J.T. Wyman

2005: Carey Price, Guillaume Latendresse, Matt D' Agostini, Sergei Kostitsyn

2006: Ben Maxwell, Mathieu Carle, Ryan White

2007: Max Pacioretty, P.K. Subban, Yannick Weber

No players yet from the 2008 and 2009 drafts.

Between 2003 and 2007, twenty players chosen by the Canadiens in the NHL Entry Drafy have played at least 1 NHL game with the club. In those five seasons, the Canadiens drafted 42 players. With all variances understood, that is 48% of drafted players making their way to a big league game.

Players drafted between 1997 and 2002, prior to the Gainey regime that played games with the Canadiens are:

1997: Jason Ward

1998: Eric Chouinard, Mike Ribeiro, Francois Beauchemin, Andre Bashkirov, Andrei Markov, Michael Ryder

1999: None

2000: Ron Hainsey, Marcel Hossa, Josef Balej

2001: Mike Komisarek, Alexander Perezhogin, Duncan Milroy, Tomas Plecanec, Martti Jarventie

2002: Chris Higgins, Jonathan Ferland

Between 1997 and 2002, seventeen players chosen by the Canadiens in the NHL Entry Drafy have played at least 1 NHL game with the club. In those six seasons, the Canadiens drafted 57 players. That is 30% of drafted players making their way to a big league game.

Of those 17 players, 8 are currently still on NHL team rosters. Markov and Plekanec are Canadiens at present, while the six others: Ribeiro (Stars), Beauchemin and Komisarek (Maple Leafs), Ryder (Bruins), Hainsey (Thrashers), and Higgins (Flames) are on teams that have thus far not won more games than the Canadiens.

From the 2003, 2004 and 2005 drafts alone, there are 11 players currently on NHL rosters. Seven of those (Andrei Kostitsyn, Maxim Lapierre, Ryan O' Byrne, Jaroslav Halak, Carey Price, Matt D' Agostini, Sergei Kostitsyn) are still with the Canadiens, while Kyle Chipchura (Ducks), Mikhail Grabovski (Leafs), Mark Sreit (Islanders), and Guillaume Latendresse (Wild), are on teams below the Canadiens in overall standing.

Taken all together, the Gainey era has provided the Canadiens team with 18% more draftees reaching the Habs lineup for at least one game, while the overall team record during those comparative seasons between 1997-2002 and 2003-2010 and drafts improved by a 0.48 winning percentage, or seven wins a season.

The most telling stat of all is that Gainey's teams have made the playoffs in four of five seasons, missing by a single win in 2006-07. In those post seasons, the Canadiens have won two rounds. Comparatively, the six previous seasons yielded only three playoff appearances with no round wins.

Fans following hockey often point to drastic improvement as a measure of assessment, but steady and progressive improvement over time has as much merit.

Going from playoff dreamers to post season regulars is but the first step. It's a step that can take time to achieve and maintain, but the Habs have essentially remained a playoff bound team annually during Gainey's tenure. That has been a big improvement for the Canadiens, from that of the 1997-2002 period. The next step, and that will be Pierre Gauthier's task, is to have the Canadiens consistently rank among the leagues top ten clubs and become perenial contenders.

It may take several seasons before the final assessment on Gainey's tenure with the Habs is properly filed and understood. The highs and lows have pretty much evened out over the course of six seasons, and the Canadiens have consistently been a top eight divisional club as opposed to being outside, looking in and up from the bottom seven.

Gainey may not have taken the Habs to the promised land, but he did deliver in bringing the club to the next level of standing and respectability. In years to come, the body of Gainey's work may appear more important than it does now.

Breaking Down the Last Intentional Power Play Goal Scored by the New Jersey Devils

John Fischer — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 01:36:54 -0000

More photos » Bill Kostroun - AP

The New Jersey Devils were celebrating a power play goal that tied the game at 3-3. How did this power play goal happen? Maybe by looking at it we can learn what it takes for a power play to be successful? (AP Photo/Bill Kostroun)

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The date: February 5, 2010, Ilya Kovalchuk's first game as a New Jersey Devil. The situation: After being beaten on for nearly 37 (or 57) minutes straight and losing 3-1 to the Toronto Maple Leafs, the New Jersey Devils get a lifeline with a backhand goal scored by Dean McAmmond. Alexei Ponikarovsky tripped a Devil in the front of the Leafs net 17:38 into the game. The ensuing power play would run to near the end of the game; clearly, it was an important man-advantage for the Devils.

As it turned out, the Devils converted: the equalizer came with less than a minute remaining, when Travis Zajac scored on the power play. With a monster shift by the third line, Jay Pandolfo put home a giant rebound past Jonas Gustavsson to win the game with seconds remaining. Here's my whole recap of the game, in case you're interested, but I think it's important to look at the goal Zajac scored.

Since that game, here's the total power play figures for the Devils: 0-for-5 against the Rangers on 2/6 with 5 shots on net; 1-for-7 against the Flyers on 2/8 with 8 shots on net; and 0-for-3 against the Flyers on 2/10 with 1 shot on net. The one power play goal was a total accident, as Zach Parise's pass to the slot bounced off the toe of Chris Pronger's skate and went in the net. Outside of that, it hasn't been consistently threatening and it definitely hasn't been successful. It really hasn't been during the slump the Devils are currently in, despite the addition of an elite forward in Kovalchuk.

Therefore, I think it can be enlightening to breakdown the last intentional power play goal that the Devils scored. It's something I've always wanted to try, so hopefully I can convey what I saw bit by bit that led to the goal. What I did was take the NHL.com video of the goal and take screenshots as best as I could (the action of hockey leads to some blurriness, I do apologize) to highlight what went on. Believe it or not, a successful power play is more than just a great shot beating the goaltender. As you'll see, the puck movement on this play was impeccable as was Zajac's shot. There's a lot going on off the puck that also plays an important role, both by the Devils and the Leafs.

The Devils pulled Martin Brodeur at the start of the video, Rob Niedermayer jumps in a few seconds in to make it a 6-on-4 power play.

The other Devils on the ice were Kovalchuk, Zajac, Dean McAmmond, Dainius Zubrus, and Zach Parise.

For the Leafs, Gustavsson was in net with Francois Beauchemin, Dion Phaneuf, Rickard Wallin, and Fredrik Sjostrom.

Here's the video from NHL.com. Please watch it if you can as a refresher for the goal. The breakdown continues below the clip:

Wasn't that such a great moment? OK, let's see how this looks when this play begins:

Notice how deep the Leafs' PK is here. They are protecting the slot, hoping the Devils will be relegated to taking low percentage, long range shots. There aren't any passes available up front and Brodeur's still getting to the bench, so it's just the outside men who move it: Kovalchuk, Zajac, and McAmmond. Zajac passes it easily to the open man on the point, who is Kovalchuk. The Devils just got it in to set themselves up.

Kovalchuk's first move it to pass it to the wing, where McAmmond is open.

By the way, notice where everyone's positioned. Sjostrom is the Leaf closest to McAmmond on the right wing; Wallin is playing up closer to Kovalchuk on the point. Phaneuf is down by the crease where Zubrus and Parise are, planning to set up a screen. Normally, the Devils have one player screening, and Parise plays down low to set up looks into the slot or to take it himself. Given the score and the situation, he's being more aggressive and hoping his body throws Gustavsson as well. Beauchemin is guarding any passing lane to the front for Zajac.

Where everyone's positioned is important. McAmmond takes a moment after taking this pass to see Sjostrom is going to slide over enough to block any easy pass to the slot or a shot on net. Wallin looks back and shifts so he sees what's going on. Zajac is alone on the other side, but Beauchemin's watching him closely. At this point, Brodeur is still getting to the bench.

McAmmond doesn't really have anything he can do going forward. Sjostrom is blocking the passing lane so passing to Zubrus won't work, nor will taking on Sjostrom one-on-one. Parise is behind both Zubrus and Phaneuf, so he's not open. And even if McAmmond wants to dump it to the opposite corner, Beauchemin is ready for it. Wallin drops into the high slot to prevent any cross-ice passes, which rules out Zajac.

McAmmond has no other good options, so he looks back and passes back to Kovalchuk at the point. A simple, no-frills pass to the point.

Now, notice that Zubrus and Phaneuf are now right next to each other. This commits a Leaf player to a Devil right in front of Gustavsson's vision. This is more clearly seen in the video, but during this whole sequence, you'll see Gustavsson shift from post to post just to see what's going on. Zubrus' big body is enough to deal with, but now it's him and Phaneuf's body. That's even harder to see around.

Do you see that? Kovalchuk's wound up for a slapshot as the pass from McAmmond comes closer. This is real smart here. Wallin immediately turns to face Kovalchuk and starts moving up. This is one of two moves that has Beauchemin's and Sjostrom's attention. The second? Rob Niedermayer streaking off the boards to join the attack as the extra man. While he's not even in the zone, the Toronto penalty killers do have to note that there's a sixth man joining in. Granted, I think they are obviously more concerned about Kovalchuk's slapshot.

The other four Devils? Well, Zajac and McAmmond are wide open on the wings; though Sjostrom and Beauchemin are still in that shooting/passing lanes. Parise and Zubrus are now camped out in front of the crease with Phaneuf in the middle. Granted, should Kovalchuk fire it and miss, the Devils would free up the slot completely and would have to make a mad rush to ensure the Leafs don't get it for an important clearance.

Thankfully, Kovalchuk continues the intelligence with an excellent move.

Kovalchuk does not shoot it here, he just one-touches it back to McAmmond. This was smart and crucial to the success of the play. Given that Kovalchuk wound up, he couldn't do this on his backhand toward Zajac nor just lay it off for Niedermayer. It has to either be a shot or a pass to McAmmond, who is open.

Yet, here's why this is brilliant. Wallin clearly thought Kovalchuk was going to shoot it when he wound up. He moved up and he's basically committed to trying to block the shot. That's why his legs are together, his stick is held kind of like a goaltender would, and he's right in Kovalchuk's vision. It's risky, but a block here could knock the puck out of the zone, leading to a clearance or an empty net goal. Of course, Kovalchuk wasn't shooting it, so Wallin can do nothing about the pass Kovalchuk's made to the wing.

Interestingly, Sjostrom turns away from McAmmond and heads closer to the slot. Figuring if it's going to be a shot, he needs to protect that area from Devils pouncing in to go for any loose pucks or ensure that a block that goes behind Wallin will be cleared properly. Again, since Kovalchuk just moved the puck back to McAmmond, Sjostrom has to waste precious moments to turn around and react should McAmmond do something.

Beauchemin sidles off into the slot while this happens, looking ahead at about Kovalchuk and Niedermayer about to enter the zone. This gives Zajac a path to the net, but since the puck isn't in that area, surely Beauchemin isn't too concerned, the puck isn't on that side. Besides, if it was a shot, he'd be in a great place to clear any hard rebounds. Meanwhile, Phaneuf is still battling with Zubrus, Parise is an extra body, and Gustavsson is trying to look over the left shoulder of Zubrus to fully see what's going on.

This is the second most critical component of the play. Here's the first:

The one-touch pass was quick enough to give McAmmond a gigantic lane to Zajac on the other side of the rink. This is a golden opportunity for McAmmond and the Devils. Of course, McAmmond takes the pass and immediately looks to Zajac for a pass. Zajac knows this too, so he's already acting as if he's going to get this pass.

Again, notice the positioning of everyone else. Wallin is committed to the point (and Niedermayer) and short of making a miraculous dive or the pass being terrible, he's basically out of the picture. Sjostrom is in a little better spot than Wallin. If McAmmond fires this just a little bit ahead of Zajac, Sjostrom could attempt to disrupt the pass. But because he slid closer to the slot when Kovalchuk faked the shot, there's enough space for McAmmond to work with to make a good cross-ice pass.

Beauchemin turns to face McAmmond, he's watching the puck instead of being overly concerned with Zajac or even Parise in front of the net. Odd since Beauchemin is no where near the passing lane. Phaneuf is behind Zubrus here, and Parise is behind both with a little space for him to work with. You could argue that thanks to Sjostrom moving closer to the slot, McAmmond has a shooting lane. But Zubrus and Phaneuf are in the way. Not that the two have ruined anything; in fact, they played an important part in this play. Look at the goalie, Gustavsson is now leaning around to his left to see what's going on.

In short, three of the Leafs' penalty killers are looking at McAmmond, who's looking across ice, but they aren't in a position to do anything about what McAmmond does. Even the goalie is moving around just to see what's going on. This is where Zajac is going to make them pay.

Zajac winds up for the one-timer. Sjostrom just turns away from McAmmond, he made no attempt at the cross-ice pass. Beauchemin is still in the act of turning, so he's not in the shooting lane with any hope to do anything about the shot. Gustavsson realized where the pass went, so he's going post-to-post. He's kneeling down, hoping it's going to be a low shot, I suppose. At this point, he can't really see much with Phaneuf, Zubrus, and Parise

Zajac is about to release the one-timer. We know what happens. Yet, again, notice where everyone is right now. Kovalchuk's back on the blueline ready to react should it go awry. Niedermayer is now in the high slot with Wallin on him. Sjostrom didn't react at all to the pass and really couldn't, so he's just turned towards Zajac. Phaneuf and Zubrus turn but they are still battling. They aren't involved anymore; but that's OK, they played their role on this particular play.

Right at this moment in time, Zajac's already shooting and Beauchemin is the only Leaf nearby. But like Sjostrom on McAmmond's cross-ice pass, his positioning prior to the play hurts his cause. Beauchemin leans over, hoping this shot is low and that he can get a piece of it, but he's not in Zajac's lane when he's firing here. Here's another look at it:

I think Gustavsson did see McAmmond going for the cross-ice pass, so he's sliding across. He's looking at Zajac, but his body isn't in front of him; it's still mostly turned to Parise, who's in front and ready for any short rebounds. Phaneuf was too focused on Zubrus, leaving Parise alone as a "back-up plan." In any case, Gustavsson is really just going from post-to-post hoping he can get in front of the shot. That he's kneeling here gives plenty of the net for Zajac to aim for. In retrospect, his decision to stay low doesn't look good.

Beauchemin doesn't look good either. At the beginning of the play, he was right in the shooting lane for Zajac. Yet, he reacted to Kovalchuk's shot like Wallin (now focused on Niedermayer, ignoring Kovalchuk completely) and Sjostrom. He and Sjostrom went closer to the slot and Wallin acted as if it was a shot. All three didn't react quickly enough when the shot turned out to be a one-touch pass. McAmmond's pass was fast and well-placed, ensuring Beauchemin wouldn't recover and get in Zajac's way. Zajac was just wide enough relative to Beauchemin, so the defender has no chance of doing anything here.

All that's needed here is for the shot to be in the right place, and it was. That's a power play goal.

***

It's not about just firing it on net through traffic when a Devil has the puck. It's not about just moving the puck around just to move it around. This whole play was happened on making quick, smart decisions with the puck, recognizing when to take advantage when ice is open. The Devils were able to keep the puck in the zone, set themselves up, and - this is the important part - set up a good shot on net. Even if Gustavsson somehow made a save there, it was a very good play.

This whole breakdown shows the importance of positioning on a penalty kill. Where your vision is and how you move is important. At the start, the Toronto PK looks in place; they aren't giving much for the Devils to work with. By the time Zajac shoots, all of them were rendered ineffective. In a matter of thee passes, McAmmond has the space to fire a killer pass cross-ice to Zajac for a one-timer. All because three of the Leafs moved from their initial positions and one of them was too busy dealing with a screen. That's why you see so many teams look like they are standing around on a PK. They're standing in common passing and shooting lanes around or in the slot. How they react to what's going around them can make the difference between a penalty killed or a power play goal against.

Another takeaway is the usage of screens themselves. No, Zajac didn't score through a screen, but they played a role. Zubrus commanded Phaneuf's attention the whole time on this play, so the other forwards just had to deal with three Leafs. More importantly, the two of them along with Parise forced Gustavsson to move just to see what's going on. If it wasn't for those screens, then Gustavsson probably has the time to get in a better position when Zajac fires the puck.

By the way, consider a hypothetical. What if Wallin doesn't move up and look for a block, what if he wasn't in front of Kovalchuk? Kovalchuk may consider firing the puck, hoping for something to get through the bodies in front. And why not? He would have the space to at least get it deep at the least. That may explain why he shot the puck so much on the Devils power play on February 8 against the Flyers, where the Flyers PK played away from him, challenging him to shoot. On this play, that didn't happen, and thankfully it didn't. Sometimes it's a good idea to have the pointman fire a shot, sure; but I think this shows that it can be more effective to set up a shot where no one is really in your way - like Zajac's shot.

Since I'm bringing up recent games on special teams, the Devils normally put a body on a man screening Brodeur. As seen with this play, a screening player can be effective just by taking a defender away from the PK effort. This play shows a good reason why it can be costly to put a man on a screen in front. Maybe why the Devils don't normally guard a screener on Brodeur is to avoid adding to the screen and taking themselves away from what goes on.

At the same time, this play shows the benefits of setting up a screen, especially multiple screens. Maybe the Devils should use them move often on the power play? Zubrus is well-suited for the role, so that's one unit. As for the other unit, why not try someone like Brian Rolston? He's not small and he's certainly not going to be point man if Kovalchuk continues to play on both units. I'd like to see it for a few man advantages, it's not like it'll hurt the cause any. Of course, when David Clarkson comes back, he could step back into that role.

Lastly, and most importantly, I fully realize from this why the top power play in the league is usually around 25% and shots are low on a power play. A different decision by a player on either team or a misplayed pass changes the whole situation - most likely not resulting in a Devils goal. This whole play took place in a matter of seconds. If McAmmond's cross-ice pass wasn't hard enough or if Beauchemin or Sjostrom were more committed to their original positions, then this doesn't happen for New Jersey. At least, not how it worked out at the least. The attacking team needs to do more than just shoot it well, but they need to make the right passes whilst judging how the defense reacts in a matter of seconds. If a team isn't doing a good job passing or if they can't react accordingly to an aggressive or passive PK unit, then a goal is that much harder to get.

With a man advantage, you want to set up a high-percentage shot; but at the same time, that's very difficult to do when most PK strategies are centered around the slot and common angles at the net - even with a man advantage.

Hopefully this breakdown of a successful, intentional power play goal has highlighted how a good power play works, how a penalty kill operates (unsuccessfully for the Leafs in this case), and the importance of off-the-puck movement and positioning. Feel free to add your thoughts (e.g. did this help show what it takes for a power play to be successful; what you took away from this breakdown) - in the comments.

Mirtle Mailbag No. 1

James Mirtle — Wed, 10 Feb 2010 17:00:28 -0000

More photos » Darren Calabrese - AP

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Editor's Note: Welcome to the inaugural edition of the Mirtle Mailbag here at Pension Plan Puppets. Thanks to everyone that sent in questions. If you don't see yours answered it's because there were so many to choose from. Definitely keep trying when the call for questions goes out again. You can read James' writing at the Globe and Mail as well as on the Globe on Hockey blog where you can find the features that you loved like the Playoff Push. The easiest way to track his writing is through his eponymous blog which has been resurrected. Without further ado:

1. Given the Leafs/Sharks game on Monday, Bobby Orr being in town (Kaberle/Setoguchi), SJ reputedly wanting to move Ryan Clowe and us having Alexei Ponikarovsky ready to go, can you envision a huge multi-player deal here, and if so, what would you do/like to see?

- Kidkawartha

What, you want more?

I do think we're going to see more deals made by the Leafs, but I doubt they'll be "huge" ones unless something shifts with Kaberle. (Then again, who saw the Phaneuf deal coming?) Alexei Ponikarovsky and Lee Stempniak either need new contracts or to be moved out, and I think the organization's leaning toward letting them go.

I think they should move Kaberle, but it doesn't have to necessarily be by the deadline. Maybe he fetches more in the off-season when there are more teams in the mix?

The Leafs appear to pretty much have their top five on the blueline figured out at this point (Phaneuf, Beauchemin, Schenn, Komisarek, Gunnarsson) and with Kaberle's minutes down into the 17, 18 minute range lately, I don't see him as an integral piece going forward. Yes, he's produced points, but I can't help but look at his QCMP and GA/60 at even strength and think it's time to move his salary for some help up front.

2. By trading away so many regular players, Burke has gone to the kids and Marlies to fill out the roster, and with some pretty impressive results thus far. This then brings up a big questions about free agency and Burke's plan for it. Do you feel that Burke plans to keep the kids up for next year and therefore will won't be as active as he was last offseason? Or do you believe that he'll ship them back down and fill out the roster with free agents in their place?

- SkinnyFish

It's going to be somewhere in between. The thing is, there aren't that many great UFAs available this summer, and even if there were, Burke doesn't have a ton of dough to spend. I think they'll make a big push for at least one veteran forward who can make an impact and then keep the youngsters around in more of a support role than they've been forced to play lately.

Players like Tyler Bozak and Carl Gunnarsson have shown they belong in the big leagues, two of the good news stories out of this season. I bet Nazem Kadri comes in to play, too, so there'll be plenty of youth.

3. Since the lockout the Leafs' goaltenders have posted uniformly terrible save percentages--usually well below expectations coming in. To what extent is this attributable to goalies being on the downside of their careers (which would certainly seem to apply to Eddie Belfour, Andrew Raycroft and Vesa Toskala), and to what extent has the Leafs defence corps given up higher than average shot quality? In other words, is the addition of a league-average or better goalie all we need to really solve our defensive woes, given that the Leafs are smack in the middle of the pack in shots allowed?

- The '67 Sound

That's a great question, one I wish I had a better answer for. This is something I've chatted with Gabe Desjardins about a few times, and he says the stats show that the Leafs haven't been doing their goaltenders many favours the past few seasons.

It's interesting with Toskala though because I think he's the perfect example of a goaltender dramatically affecting the way the team in front of him plays. He lacked confidence, his teammates and coaches lacked confidence in him, and it was just a complete disaster.

Enter Giguere, and after three games, it's a different story. Toronto hasn't been a strong defensive team in, well, it seems like a long, long time, often relying on strong goaltending from guys like Cujo and Belfour and being one of the top scoring teams in the league to get it done.

All that said, I blame the goaltending a little more than defensive play. Raycroft and Toskala are just not NHL starters -- and especially not in a market this demanding on a No. 1. It makes you realize just how special the guys who did it well were because this has to be the toughest city in the league to carry that load.

4. Based on what you have seen thus far, do you believe that Viktor Stalberg and Tyler Bozak can be top-six forwards on a playoff team?

- The '67 Sound

Bozak more so than Stalberg, although both have shown that they're going to play in this league for a while. What I really like from Bozak is his work ethic and hockey sense -- he's not a very big guy, but he can overcome that with the skills he's got.

Right now, he looks like he'll be a 60-point second-line centre. I'm not sure on Stalberg yet, but the guy's got some real physical gifts that could make him a solid third-liner. He's just not generating enough offensively to merit much acclaim right now.

5. What is the single biggest missing piece of the puzzle for the Leafs moving forward (looking at their organization as a whole, including junior, college and AHL players in the system)? I think it's a big, top 6 centre -- both Kadri and Bozak project more as the shifty playmaker type.

- The '67 Sound

Exactly, which immediately makes me think Patrick Marleau would look nice as a Leaf.

Problem being, his history with Wilson isn't exactly great.

They really need a first-line centre who can go up against the other big dogs around the league, but those are really tough to come by and a lot of teams have to get by without one. The other option is to find a 1A or 1B who can take some of the load off the smaller, speedy pivots they've got a lot of. (Grabovski is in that group, too.)

6. What is Mikhail Grabovski's future in the organization? For 2011-12 I project Bozak and Kadri, in some order, as the top 2 centres. Grabovski doesn't strike me as a 3rd line type, but he's under contract for that season. What do you think Burke has in mind?

- The '67 Sound

Another good question. Grabovski's play here after the Olympics is going to be really important I think for his future with the Leafs, as he has not been all that impressive to date. Is he going to peak as a speedy, 50-point centre or is there more there?

And, as a sidebar, does he have trade value given his contract? Because I could see him being moved if there's a buyer.

7. What is Burke's plan for Jeff Finger? Does he really plan to have him on the NHL roster next year? Are the Leafs trying to set a record for "highest cap hit for a defence corp"?

- The '67 Sound

Hard not to feel bad for Finger. Yes, he's overpaid, but he should be able to be a depth guy somewhere in the league.

That said, he's been brutal this year -- worse, somehow, than Exelby -- and needs a change in scenery. Burke tried to send him to Anaheim with Toskala instead of Blake, but the Ducks didn't want him.

It's quite likely the Leafs need that cap space for next season, so if there's not a taker for Finger, I think we'll see them try and either eat half his deal by dumping him on re-entry waivers or a buyout ($1.17-million on the cap for four years if they go that route, joining the $1-million a year Tucker is taking up).

My guess is that Burke would like to avoid putting him in the minors and allow him to continue his career somewhere, but it might come to that.

What's crystal clear is that he's very unhappy with the current circumstances.

8. The issue of the Maple Leafs' captaincy seems to perennially be on the minds of the fans. There's been a lot of discussion about who 'should' be the Leafs Captain and some silly names have been thrown around, including several players who are no longer with the club as a result of the recent trades.

My question is this: what specifically is the process that the Leafs use to assign the honour? My understanding is that at least in the old days, the team Captain was selected by his team-mates, rather than management. The idea was that the players identified and supported the leader among them.

Is that idea - that the Captain is chosen by his peers - an outdated concept now, something like a vestige from the pre-PA days when there was a lot more "us vs. them" division between the players and management? How is the issue currently handled by the Leafs (could the players designate a captain if they wanted, or does MLSE purport to reserve some sort of domain over the assignment of that honour?), and are those practices just understood through tradition or are they formalized somewhere?

Also, how does the Leafs' practice in relation to the captaincy relate to the way the issue is handled in other organizations? Does anybody let the players choose the captain anymore?

I promise my next quesiton will be more about x's and o's, but the Captaincy of the Leafs is such a great honour, and there's been so much discussion about who the next Captain ought to be, and I feel like we don't really know a whole lot about how it all works.

- jrwendelman

I'm afraid I'm going to have to take a bit of a pass here. I've been around the team a lot the past four months and this is one of those topics no one will offer anything on other than "we have plenty of leadership in the room, etc." The media is just as curious as the fans over how this will be handled, but Wilson isn't interested in talking about it at all.

What I think the concern is is that they're worried the 'C' is just going to put way too much unnecessary pressure on one player. It has to be someone who can deal with the press well given the interview requests (and scrutiny) will shoot up considerably once they add that letter, and the organization just doesn't seem to think anyone's ready for that.

I'd give it to Beauchemin -- although that might change if they add a more suitable someone this summer.

9. What would your best shutdown line look like for the Leafs if you could choose any five players? Also, if you had the reins, what would you do to improve the overall team defence, esp. on PK and GA?

- kidkawartha

Tough call given current personnel. They obviously need more of their top players to be better defensively overall, and I think that'll be one need up front addressed in free agency.

If we're talking even strength, I'd go with Nikolai Kulemin and Fredrik Sjostrom out there on the wings and probably Wayne Primeau at centre. Gunnarsson and Francois Beauchemin have been fine in their own end, although Schenn's come on in that department lately.

Hard to say if Primeau's going to be back given he's a UFA, but they could definitely use an upgrade in the big, checking centre department.

Thanks a ton to everyone that sent in questions. Unfortunately the tragedy on Friday held me up from getting to these a bit quicker but looking forward to weighing in as the season goes along.

Maple Leafs 5 v. Senators 0

PPP — Sun, 07 Feb 2010 08:42:05 -0000

More photos » Frank Gunn - AP

Just another day at the office in the ACC. Ho hum. No goals.

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Less than 24 hours after being informed of the death of Brian Burke's son Brendan the Toronto Maple Leafs turned in one of their most complete performances of the season. They outplayed the Ottawa Senators in every aspect of the game Saturday night. The Leafs had spoken about the importance of performing tonight of all nights:

"I think our goal here is to make sure Burkie and his family don’t have to worry about us," said Giguere, who has known his GM for years dating back to their time with the Anaheim Ducks. "They have enough on their plate right now. It’s hard enough as it is to lose somebody you love like this. I can’t even imagine a kid."
- James Mirtle, Globe and Mail

In my recap last night, which I wrote between the end of the game and reading the news of Brendan Burke's passing, I hoped that Wilson's strategy of putting his younger charges in difficult sitations would pay off:

We'll see how the team reacts tomorrow night. That will play a big part in how I feel about this game. Right now, I think that there are enough young players here that you can look at the first 56 minutes and think that they are learning something. But if they come out flat tomorrow night it's much harder to cushion the blow.

It is most certainly small comfort but the win tonight immediately reminded me of another almost exactly two years ago. On that Monday night, on the day that we buried my beloved uncle, the Maple Leafs provided two and a half hours worth of distraction as they pummelled the Senators 5-0. The crowd was certainly into the game. Sure, the wave is lame but at least that means that the crowd was doing something other than checking their stocks on their blackberries. Even still, I expect DGB to be compiling a kill list.

I think that the best part about the game was...well, it was the score but the second best part was who led the charge. Luke Schenn posted probably one of his best games as a Maple Leaf. He scored two goals including a rocket for his second, an assist, and he finished the night +4 in 21:40 of ice-time. He was matched in production by Phil Kessel who extended his recent run of play to 6 goals 11 assists in the past 13 games.

Riding shotgun was Tyler Bozak who scored a goal, an assist, and won 61% of his draws. In fact, since he was re-called by the Leafs he has been below 50% in the face-off dot just three times. He's been over 70% twice and over 60% 5 times. In addition, Christian Hanson, Lee Stempniak, and Fredrik Sjostrom did yeoman's work on the penalty kill using their speed to craft out some chances of their own.

As for Jean-Sebastien Giguere what else can be said? These two games is a hell of a start to his career as a Maple Leaf. Don Cherry touched on it and a friend mentioned it when the trade was made but every strong game that Giggy puts together decreases Jonas Gustavsson's contract leverage. If he would have started Friday night the Gig-era would like be off to a 3-0 start mostly because Giguere is apparently invincible:

JS Giguere on pace to never allow a goal as a Toronto Maple Leaf. Bad news for Senators.
- Kid Canada

As for the Run From Number One the Leafs sit in 29th, tied on points with 28th place Carolina, and 5 points from the New York Islanders in 27th. The teams are tightly packed after that so the Leafs' annual futile push for the playoffs could get them comfortably away from the lottery. If, of course, they keep up their newfound dedication to playing good hockey.

Face-Offs: Tomas Kaberle was only on the ice for two of them while Luke Schenn and Dion Phaneuf were on for five. Carl Gunarsson and Francois Beauchemin were on for six apiece. I think that's another sign that Ron Wilson doesn't trust Kabby's defensive abilities.

H2H TOI: Looks like the Phaneuf and Beauchemin were in charge of making sure Daniel Alfredsson didn't score any goals while he was being booed. Schenn and Gunnarson were given the task of containing Alex Kovalev. Colton Orr's fists were given the tasks of making Matt Carkner disappear:

Boom. Headshot.

Corsi and Fenwick: The Leafs actually didn't do very well tonight but the only Senators that did well were their scrubs. Carkner, Peter Regin, Jonathan Cheechoo, and Chris Neil all ended up on the positive side of the ledger but the Leafs would give that up 11 times out of 10.

Maple Leafs 3 v. Devils 4: New And Exciting!

PPP — Sat, 06 Feb 2010 02:29:21 -0000

Rickard Wallin still loves YOU

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Well, that sucked. Tough end to the game and it highlights just how focused the Leafs have to be to beat one of the top teams in the East. The second goal came when Wallin let McAmmond walk past him and Schenn couldn't catch him. The third goal came after the Leafs got swamped and Poni took a good penalty. The Devils passing was good but Gustavsson kneeled on his way from post-to-post. I noticed him do it a few times before and it was just enough to let the shot through. The Leafs had a chance to clear the zone and it just got stopped by Ilya Kovalchuk.

On the fourth goal the Leafs again lost a battle against the boards. The initial shot was screened and going back across Gustavsson's body so I hesitate to blame him for the rebound. Lee Stempniak didn't cover his man and there's the game. The sad part is that the Leafs wasted 56 minutes worth of good hockey. Even when the Devils were pressing to start the third period they seemed much more in control. Not to mention, Rickard Wallin's goal now comes in a losing cause when it could have been the winner.

We'll see how the team reacts tomorrow night. That will play a big part in how I feel about this game. Right now, I think that there are enough young players here that you can look at the first 56 minutes and think that they are learning something. But if they come out flat tomorrow night it's much harder to cushion the blow.

Some quick thoughts because, having written this part after the jump at 130am, frankly it's hard to get too worked up right now about the mistakes that the Leafs made at the end of the game.

Corsi - Once again, the Leafs were hammered at even strength. In fact, the only player that has a positive rating was Dion Phaneuf. He also played over 27 minutes and finished even on the night.

EV Face-Offs - Luke Schenn and Francois Beauchemin were Ron Wilson's go-to pairing for defensive zone face-offs.

Shift Charts - It is hard not to lay a portion of the blame on Ron Wilson. Frustratingly, after the tying goal he did not call a timeout. One of the big complaints about Paul Maurice was how often he'd sit and watch his team lose control of the game without trying to break up the opposition's momentum.

After the tying goal Wilson ran out the following players: Alexei Ponikarovsky, Carl Gunnarsson, Luke Schenn, Phil Kessel and Tyler Bozak. I was going to criticise those choices but he put out 4 of his top 7 plus-minus players. Tyler Bozak was the only centre on the positive side of the face-off ledger (56%) and Phil Kessel who had two assists on the night and was even. I initially thought about Fredrik Sjostrom as an alternat to Kessel but he had just been killing the penalty. That's where the timeout would have come in handy.

However, on the bright side, four of those players were under 24 years of age ( Schenn 20, Gunnarsson 23, Bozak 23, Kessel 22) and represent the future of the Toronto Maple Leafs. They were being put in that situation to learn how to handle it. Player development is one of the principal goals of this season. Players will not learn in one game. They need to repeatedly be exposed to a variety of pressure situations so that they learn how to handle them. Of those four, Gunnarsson and Bozak have played fewer than 30 NHL games while Luke Schenn is just in his second year and Phil Kessel is the only one with any real experience. This was always going to be the case. Even if the Leafs decided to keep all of their picks and tank for a few years the players drafted would need to learn how to handle these situations. Let's keep that in mind. Now, if they are making the same mistakes next February or the February after then we've got some serious problems. Until then, remember that this is all part of the process.