It started at 8am and lasted until, well, I turned it off at round 5:30pm. 2 Major tv networks, 2 radio stations and the Score all had wall to wall coverage. Add to that the countless blogs, websites and then there was twitter. It was enough hockey coverage for even the biggest die hard. If ever the saying the numbers don’t lie were proven incorrect it was today’s deadline. Yes, there were lots of trades, but there was no sizzle. It was a day spent waiting for the other shoe to drop and at least locally it never did. In the end what Toronto Maple Leafs were left with is the uncomfortable feeling that their team is going to be life and death to get to 25 wins (they currently have 19 with 19 games to go). On the upside, Brian Burke’s nuclear destruction of the Maple Leafs continues. More on that in a bit.

So, how did the day go? Well at 8:05 TSN was having audio problems with Pierre Mcguire’ mic and a few moments later James Duthie wanted to break down all the deals that happened prior to the day. Duthie was quickly told to nix that idea for fear that all their best material could be used early on leaving the talking heads with nothing to talk about. Over at Sportsnet Rob Faulds was teamed up with Bill Watters (forshadowing?) out of the gate. All kidding aside it was a good segment between the two as Faulds asked Watters what happened on deadline day. After the usual jokes about the buffet breakfast, Watters explained how much work had to be done leading up to the deadline and that when he was with Cliff they would all sit together and Cliff would be the maestro, making sure everyone was working in concert.

Following that was really the start of the theme of the day. Tomas Kaberle. Nick Kypreos first on twitter and then with Bruce Garrioch suggested that the Leafs knew the teams that Kaberle would consider and that by the end of the day a deal would likely be worked out. The folks at The Fourth Period quickly came on twitter and said that the Ducks had inquired as to Kaberle’s availability and were told he wasn’t going to waive his no trade clause- “end of story” was how TFP ended their tweet. Inretrospect, Kypreos had it right. In fact Kaberle had let the Leafs know 2-3 teams he would be willing to go. What happened the rest of the day was quite interesting to watch if only for the Kaberle piece.

Steve Simmons on twitter and on TSN emphatically denied that Kaberle was “in play” which is NHL trade deadline speak for available or being shopped. At 8:30 Bill Watters was on Sportsnet and said that there had not been any talks between the Leafs and Kaberle. Watters did say that the only way a deal would happen is if Burke were able to make a deal and then take it to Kaberle’s agent to see if they would approve. Watters at that point was wrong, Kypreos was right- little did we know.

There was no action for several hours so we were kind of stuck listening to a whole lot of speculation. TSN was uncomfortably dull in my opinion. They had too many people saying all the expected things and to be honest we didn’t hear enough from the people we wanted to hear from. Hats off to James Duthie who put in yeoman’s work. He drove the entire show and manned one panel himself. The first panel was himself with Mike Keenan, Darren Pang, Matthew Barnaby, Craig McTavish and Michael Pecca (I am sorry if I forgot anyone.) Their was a good yet somewhat awkward exchange between Barnaby and Keenan about player reputations and players sending him text messages that they were hoping to be dealt. Keenan talked about former players and how he defended a guy last year that TSN (and Barnaby) disparaged. I liked Matthew Barnaby the player, he was pretty awful today. He’s clearly a bright guy, but is as stiff as a board. He didn’t smile, joke or look like he was enjoying what he was doing one bit. Mcguire had a few good lines during the day, at one point McTavish was asked whether he hated the media as a coach, and he said that he did but not as much as Kevin Lowe did. McGuire’s response was that had Kevin Lowe called the media a few deadlines back they could have saved him from the Ryan Smythe deal- ouch. Later in the day he quipped that Lee Stempniak was a total and utter failure.

The other panel was Dave Hodge’s Sports Reporters. Hodge was with his usual group, Damien Cox, Steve Simmons and Michael Farber. These guys just weren’t used properly. It’s not really fair either. With the exception of Cox and maybe Simmons to a degree, these guys aren’t rumor guys or source guys. They are critics or analysts. There was really nothing to critique or analyze. So we really got no added value from them today. I know why TSN had them, they just weren’t very good today.

The panel you did want to see was Gord Miller hosting Darren Dreger and Bob Mckenzie. This is there day to shine. You don’t however get to see them all that often. Most of the time you do see them they are on blackberries. Of the panels, there’s was on the least. Going to “the dealbreakers” as they were called only to break deals felt like a rip off. I wanted to hear from them way more. I know the argument is they can’t be on because they are talking to sources but they can find away, we are used to one talking while the other types or…… It was funny watching all three of Miller, Dreger and Mckenzie. Each was behind a laptop yet each was feveroshly typing on a blackberry. Of course inquiring minds wanted to know why the multiple tools and we were told that It’s easier to Twitter on laptop. Some emails on laptop too. BB for texting and emails and calls. So there you go.

Duthie tried to do a tour of the Canadian clubs but kept getting side stepped by minor deals. It was frustrating in retrospect because the deals were so minor and insignificant. The first things they should have done is a tour of the Canadian teams. Lastly the bit with Jay Onrait were brutal. They weren’t funny in any way shape or form.

By comparison, our team was impressed with Sportsnet’s coverage. Marc felt that Sportsnet’s talent did a very good job and their best content came from out west. Don Taylor was flanked by Garry Valk and Mark Spector, and the two latter men were very insightful. One of the day’s highlights was Spector’s breakdown of the Wojtek Wolski/Peter Mueller trade. He was very blunt with his thoughts on Mueller, saying that if Colorado head coach Joe Sacco was questionning Wolski’s toughness, he was going to have his hands full with Mueller.

Considering the consensus is that that trade was the day’s best, it’s a tip in Sportsnet’s cap that they were able to get Wojtek Wolski on the phone before TSN did.

The overall product was very good, although it did seem at times like they were sticking to a pre-determined lineup. They would throw to Evanka Osmak for a recap when nothing new had broken, and sometimes there was a little too much Doug MacLean and Nick Kypreos at a time. Overall though, Sportsnet made a boring deadline day as entertaining as they could.

The thing is if you are watching Sportsnet you want to hear Kypreos, and Richie Rich MacLean. They’re the insiders. So too much of them is okay. This is thier day. I thought Watters was good when he was on (and you know I don’t say that all that often) and I though Gary Roberts was pretty good too- way less stiff then Peca on the other network.

On the radio, I was unimpressed by what the Fan was doing. I was surprised at how little I saw or heard Gord Stellick either on the Fan or Sportsnet. again, the fan suffered simply by virtue that there just wasn’t a whole lot to talk about. 640 mixed it up quite a bit, Brady drove all day and had good guests, opinions and updates. They didn’t go to Jonas all that much which was also a good thing. Dennis Beyak was good today too.

Things were simpler at the Score where Steve Kouleas provided updates as they happened.

Around noon word broke that Brian Burke had dealt Martin Skoula to the New Jersey Devils for a draft pick. Skoula jokes ruled the twitter world for about 20 minutes- a real highlight of the day.

At 12:30 the Kaberle talk started again. This time it was started by 640 Toronto. The rumor they had was Kaberle heading to Washington. This of course started the whole is he “in play” or isn’t he “in play”. That talk lasted until about 2:30pm. At about 130 pm Aaron ward told a group of reporters, I am sorry I don’t remember which group he was talking to that “The worst part in the age of bloggers is they’re about as reliable as Toyota gas pedals.”

Just before 2pm the 640 crew were talking about teas, specifically chamomile tea (I am a green tea fan myself). At 1:40 or so Eklund chimed in that Kaberle was absolutely in play and that this information had been confirmed. Shortly thereafter TSN stated that there were some teams for whom Kaberle would waive the no trade clause. It was at this time that Jonas Segal tweeted that Kaberle told reporters he had a deal with Burke to consider any deal Burke found acceptable. This too set off alarm bells all over as the discussion turned into all Kaberle all the time.

Shortly after that I started looking in on the Maple Leafs war room cam that they had on their website. Talk about seeing nothing. I mean to see the guys sitting around doing nothing was truly inspiring. Dave Poulin stared at the same pages for about 90 minutes while the other guys just stared at their computer screens or ate cookies.

After the Kaberle talk started we learned that Calgary acquired Vesa Toskala which of course led to another 20 minutes of Toskala jokes on twitter. Farber and Simmons chimed in that the only problem with Calgary acquiring so many Maple Leaf players is that the Leafs as a team have been so brutal for so long. One of the guys on on TSN said of Matt Stajan that he is the wrong guy at the wrong time.

Tony Ambrogio, who would make a great Maple Leaf beat reporter by the way was all over the Burke/Kaberle story, being the first to report that infact that there was a short list of acceptable teams to Kaberle and that Burke had unsuccessfully tried to trade Kaberle to them.

Just before 3pm everyone was saying that Lee Stempniak had been traded but no one could be quite sure to whom or for what. Just after 3pm Mckenize reported that it was a deal to Phoenix for draft picks. Shortly after that word came out that Joey McDonald had been dealt and that Leafs acquired a defenceman from Pittsburgh.

Burke addressed the media around 3:30 pm and was very good.

He started by thanking Poni for his years of service to Toronto and then he confirmed as much as he could about the other deals as they had yet to be approved by the league, he mentioned them because word had leaked out. Burke then confirmed what had been reported by Kypreos in the am that Kaberle had given a short list and what Tony Ambrogio reported that Burke couldn’t get a deal done with any of those teams. Burke said that he dealt Poni because they asked for a 4 year extension and Burke was confident Poni would get it on the open market, just not from him. He said that they were offered a 2nd rounder and a 4th rounder for Poni by another team but they liked the prospect more. Burke also said that this isn’t a 5 year rebuilding plan. They are trying to do it much faster. Burke said that he looks at his defence, from 1-6 and he thinks they are as good as any 1-6 in the league. He said he wants to keep Kaberle and has told him he would talk extension with him. He looks at college free agents the same way he would if he were to find a wallet. In his closing Burke said that he doesn’t care about the Kessel picks. He said they knew the risk when they made the deal and if he was worried about saving face he wouldn’t have dealt the guys he has over the last 24 hours.

Burke did avoid the one question I had which was what now, what’s for the rest of the season. I was at last night’s game with LT and CP and the Leafs were as bad against Paul Maurice as they were when they played for Paul Maurice. Burke said he was furious with last night’s game and that the players had better realize they have a job to do and that they are all auditioning for next season. Still, Burke didn’t say what he expects the rest of the way. He certainly didn’t address the fans in that regard. They can’t give tickets away, but I’m thinking they HAVE to do something- this team is likely going to really suck the rest of the way. Burke did say that he hates being a seller that if you are more than tinkering in March you have failed.

I will say this, the folks in the room with Burke did a really good job asking the questions. They tried to get him to answer all the questions we fans would want to hear. That alone was refreshing.

The best line of the day has to go to the guys at Down Goes Brown who said that “If you want to know about Martin Skoula, take the wheels off your car and try to drive to work every morning.”

Cue the broken record. Twitter rocked today. Not only were the usual suspects all over it, the MSMers were faster to twitter than they were to old school media. A trade would be broken on twitter and at times it was 3-4 minutes before the same person broke it on tv. That is simply amazing. You can see that the guys like Mckenzie, Simmons, Cox, Brady, Ambrogio, Friedman, Kevin Allen have all bought into the medium. They use it to share info, to interact with idiots like me and to be part of the noise. The same is true in almost every major hockey network as well south of the border. It used to be you had to read 30+ newspapers to follow the league, now it is so much easier. It’s truly fantastic.
Lastly, if you are reading this then you are already a fan of the blogs. There are so many good ones that cover the game exceptionally. Here in town we are spoiled, Maple Leafs Hot Stove, PPP, Down Goes Brown to name but a few (sorry if i didn’t mention you). In the USA- Washington, florida, Minnesota, Boston, Detroit, NYR, NYI and so on. All these outlets cover the game and days like today so well.

In the days ahead we will foucs on the days ahead. Ron Wilson hasn’t been left with much to work with the rest of the day. Which gives guys like me lots to write about.

All in all a fantastic day. Yes I’m nuts. No, there weren’t huge deals but it was a great day to be a fan of the great game.

TSM

@yyzsportsmedia

Are you panicking? No, really. Three games in, have the alarm bells started to ring? When the Blue Jays were on their tear early on, where you ready to annoint them playoff bound? When a guy hits a homerun or scores a goal in game one of the season, do you project their season totals???? I mean really.

We Toronto Sports fans take a lot of shit. Some of it is deserved. Most of it is fabricated in attempt to sell papers (who reads em) or radio ads(who listens)… Listening and looking around this town, you would think the Maple Leafs are this years version of the Detroit Lions. Wholly smokes folks, it’s 3 stinking games. It’s three games with how many new faces? Get a grip.

The good news, I think is that most of the hysteria is media generated. No one I know has hit the panic button yet. It is way too early for that. With all due respect, those who call in to Leafs talk aren’t, in my mind anyways representative of Leafs fans. Seriously, do you know anyone who calls in to those shows? That is not to say that people don’t…It’s just that the notion that those who do are speaking for the larger group is bunk. I mean the larger group doesn’t think that the guy from Maple is bang on when he suggested the Jamal Mayers for a first round draft pick.

So, is it the media who creates hysteria and the fans feed off of it, or are fans really panicked as has been suggested. I am not buying that it is the fans. I don’t see it, I don’t hear it and it makes no sense. It makes about as much sense as the Bruce Garrioch Ron Wilson story today.

Look, this is really simple. If the Leafs are any worse than they were last year when the season ends and lottery positions are finalized, Brian Burke is going to have some explaining to do. If the Boston Bruins are on the podium with the Maple Leafs pick things have gone dramatically astray. If this team regresses after the overhaul the lineup has undergone, something is amiss. It’s really that simple. To reach that conclusion after game 3?????????? I am sorry. We aren’t, collectively anyways, that dumb are we???????

I certainly hope not. Saturday could be ugly by the way. If the same Leafs team shows up that did against Ottawa, Pittsburgh may have a field day.

Chins up leafs nation. It’s a long haul, and we’ve only just begun.

So with Mike Milbury apparently gone, the question to you today is, who do you think should be on CBC’s Sports – Satellite Hotstove on Hockey Night In Canada? I have some names and opinions, but considering how much we love/loathe the segment I asked a friend last night this question, who, besides Bob McKenzie and Darren Dreger is hockey’s number one insider? That is, if you were to say, this rumor/news has to be true if for no other reason ______________ said it, and I trust him/her. One caveat to your list, the person can’t be on tv anywhere else on Saturday nights.

So, here are some of my thoughts, considering that the role is rumor monger/NHL news fact finder and it’s league wide not just Toronto:

Pierre Lebrun is still a solid choice, he does great work and is watchable
Larry Brooks, love or loathe, he knows his shit and he would be good for controversy
Kevin Allen, USA Today’s hockey writer is well connected across the league
Bill Watters, word is he may not be doing much TV anymore, or a dramatically reduced role and no Saturdays. Say what you want about him, he knows everybody but seems to add the letter E to the end of everyone’s name
Kevin Paul Dupont- Boston Globe writer is solid, been around for a long time and knows his shit
Scott Morrison- Ok he’s a tad dull and or stiff, but he knows his stuff too and is watchable
Jonas Segel- Couldn’t help myself
Tim Wharnsby- Good writer, been on the beat for a long time
Matt Sekeres- Used to cover the Senators and now covers the Canucks

On the out list:
Bruce Garrioch- Way too much fiction, not enough fact
Eric Duhatschek- I love him as a writer but he is too Sr. for this
Al Strachan- do I need to say why?

So, what do you think?

So it seems Leafs Nation loves Joe Bowen. So far over 81% of you have voted against a new radio/tv voice. You have also shown me what the next question should be in the poll

Did anyone listen to Glen Healy on the Fan this am???? If so, would you mind sending me an email torontosportsmedia at gmail dot com

I did happen to catch Nelson Liriano and Jesse Barfield, and you just had to smile (even if Vic Rauter was still on ). One thing I will say about Liriano, man the guy likes to talk…

Anyone read Bruce Garrioch this am? Two interesting thoughts:

“There is talk the Rangers might waive D Wade Redden at the start of next season and send him to the AHL’s Hartford Wolf Pack to get his $6.5-million salary off the books. New York has tried to deal Redden, but nobody is willing to bite. He still has $32.5 million and five years left on his contract”

Now, do any of you recall a similar “rumour” about Bryan Mccabe last year. We were told that the PA would be all over this and that if Mccabe and others like him were sent to the minors the Leafs would have a very difficult time signing free agents in the future. Where is the same horror and outrage here? I’m just saying.

“The talk is Toronto GM Brian Burke has been trying to entice the New York Islanders, who are drafting No. 1 overall and the Bolts, picking No. 2, to trade their top pick in exchange for D Tomas Kaberle and the Maple Leafs’ No. 7 overall selection. “That’s not going to be enough to get it done,” said one league executive. “Burke is going to have to come up with more. You can’t give a No. 1 pick away. It means a lot to the franchise.”

So, sources tell me that Burke hasn’t talked to Garrioch in ages. In fact a recent quote that he ran from Burke looked, to these eyes anyways strangely similar to a direct quote from Berger’s blog a few days ago. I am not saying Garrioch stole it, but……. As for this rumour? The Islanders or any other team are going to have to evaluate their own needs and what is offered to them in exchange for anything they have. I will say this, with Tomas Kaberle you know EXACTLY what you are getting. There are no guarantees with any kid you draft and we can all list off a good list of first round busts over the year. I suspect that Snow and any other GM will do what they think is in the best interest of their respective franchise.

“Despite all the denials coming out of the Sunshine State, the Tampa Bay Lightning is trying to deal C Vinny Lecavalier. A league source told Sun Media yesterday the Bolts have informed the NHL they intend to spend at the salary floor of approximately $40.5 million next season. They already have $38 million committed to 17 players and have to sign to get to the 23-man roster limit. Getting Lecavalier’s $10 million salary off the books would clear space for the Bolts to sign blueliners. He’s not only the Lightning player being shopped. League sources insist there are others, but didn’t want to give out any names. A proposal deal to send Lecavalier to the Kings for D Jack Johnson is still on the table. Sources say Johnson, who is coming off an entry-level contract, is seeking a four-year deal worth $5.5 million per season. No wonder the Kings want to deal him. They aren’t the only team in pursuit of Lecavalier. Vancouver, Edmonton and Montreal have all made calls.”

Certainly were lots of denials around this the other day. Here is my overall sense of Mr. Garrioch, he is, in my opinion only, universally, amongst his peers anyway, the least credible of all mainstream hockey writers….even more so than Al Strachan. This is my opinion based upon what I have read, heard and seen….for the record my opinion is worth less than the paper this is written on!

Anyone else catch this last night, Jeff Marek called the Cleveland ahl team, “The Fort Erie Monsters”….ummmm, that would be Lake Erie maybe?? Fort Erie home to….the word famous racetrack…..Lake Erie, is Cleveland….honest mistake I am sure… If you saw that then you had to notice the pained look on Scott Morrison’s face each time they do that segment. I happen to like Morrison’s work, but man he looks miserable every time he is on the TV. Could it be having to sit in a tv studio in Toronto while the game is in Pittsburgh????? Man, talk about being treated like Wilner….. ouch!

A kind reader sent me this earlier…enjoy your day TSM

Garrioch is at here

Is anyone else interested to see how Howie handles his big gaff? I mean he predicted the leafs would finish dead last. For the most part all of his bold predictions were dead wrong. So the issue becomes interesting now in that he has starting to right season in review pieces in addition to next season previews. How does one do that when they were so wrong this year? For me, the only way to have any credibility is to fall on the sword. If Berger came out and said I was wrong, I blew it, I would have some respect for him. However, I don’t see that happening. There is way to much pride on the line here and he would more likely say that he, like many of his colleagues erred for the following reasons…. To the best of my knowledge Berger hasn’t said anything so it makes reading his latest blog laughable. It screams out, trust me, yet he has no credibility at all:

“As the Maple Leafs and their fans embark on another spring of watching rival teams compete for the Stanley Cup, there is reason to believe that playoff hockey may return to these parts in the not-too-distant future. …. Burke strongly indicated that management is raising the bar on this franchise, though it may be wishful thinking for another year or two.”

Huh??? What??? Semantics aside, how do you say that the playoffs are in the not too distant future from one side of your mouth, then immediately say out of the other that raising the bar is wishful thinking for a year or two???? I mean, the guy loves saying on the air how unspeakable it is that the team hasn’t made the playoffs for 4 years, he is now saying things will be better after 6????

“Cliff Fletcher’s strategy from last September worked to perfection. Though the Leafs endured enough mediocre nights in the critical mid-portion of the schedule to justify his dire forecast, the club out-performed expectation by a rather lengthy margin.”

Wait. His strategy worked to perfection yet the team outperformed his dire forecast? Huh?? What?? Are you suggesting rope a dope? The idea was to tell everyone how shitty the team would be and then surprise them by being not so shitty??? That was Cliff’s strategy?? Interesting, I guess.

“It did so in a manner quite different from what everyone figured to be a foundation strategy”

See, he can’t say that he was fooled, he has to say “everyone”. how pathetic.

“Ron Wilson was supposed to come in as head coach and — minimally — install the caliber of defensive hockey that had marked his career behind NHL benches. That way, the horribly impotent Leafs might squeeze the life out of opponents often enough to win more games than the talent-base suggested. Typically for this franchise, the opposite occurred.”

This reporter claimed this would be the worst season ever, they would finish dead last…typical for him, the opposite occurred.

“But, the beginning pieces are in place. And, the mind-set — though somewhat artificial at this point – is also of the caliber required to start thinking playoffs. Burke is a fearless, determined administrator who will eventually nudge the Leafs into a region occupied by the top teams in the NHL. His only potential flaw is becoming as fatally enamoured with U.S. college free agents as one-time Leafs’ GM Mike Smith was with players of Russian lineage.”

Enamored? The buds have been correctly chastised for having a week farm system. Burke tries to improve upon his assets and it is described as a potential flaw. It’s quite simple you see, you take raw talents, you teach them, surround them with the right systems and set them up to succeed and you see what happens. Maybe they make it, maybe the don’t. If he didn’t sign these guys you would be screaming that he is out of touch and he isn’t turning over every rock in search of talent…

“The reason it’s considered a bonus to land a top skater from the college ranks is simple: Relatively few develop into front-line performers in the NHL. It most certainlty cannot be utilized as a substitute for the universal draft system, and Burke is well aware of that. The attraction, obviously, comes from the low stakes; most college free agents command entry-level salaries and are almost exclusively handed two-way contracts. Neither draft picks nor the cap-consuming deals borne of July 1 need be sacrificed.”

Someone please explain to me what that means. The reason it is a bonus is simple. Got it. Relatively few make it? That’s the bonus? No, okay, wait, signing college guys can’t take the place of drafting 18 year olds. Then you talk about the attraction…but what happened to the bonus?

“What fans must be weary of is the chest-pounding that accompanies the acquisition of such prospects. Invariably, the successful GM will recount how he fought off “20 other teams” to land the coveted player, intimating that the reason for such wide-spread interest is Gretzky-like potential. Often, reality is that seven or eight teams have expressed true interest; the number far more reflective of no-risk opportunity than the player’s unlimited talent.”

Chest-pounding?? Who are you Bruce Garrioch? I have yet to hear or read where Burke did any such pounding. In fact it was the media who said things like “it was a good week for Brian Burke and the Maple Leafs”. The truth is, you are always telling how players don’t want to play here, so the fact that they got a coupe of guys who did, is certainly a small step in the right direction…

“Though he may regress by some measure next season — as many sophomore players do — Luke Schenn will be captain of the hockey club before 2011. ”

Wow- there is a bold prediction…again, for a guy as wrong as he was this year, how do put any faith in these words? I am not saying he’s wrong, but man it certainly seems early for captain talk. Say Schenn slumps next year. That takes us to September 2010 and training camp. In the 6 months that follow Schenn is going to do enough (coming off a season of regress) and become captain???? I don’t see how the dots connect…

“Schenn has already acquired the reputation of being a devastating fighter in the NHL. Fewer opponents will challenge him in the coming years, and a developing mean streak will widen the berth he’s accorded on the ice.”

Devastating??? WOW- That’s awesome…

“Though it’s often dangerous to make flattering comparisons, Schenn seems capapble of one day providing the Leafs the daunting presence Scott Stevens gave the New Jersey Devils in their Stanley Cup years. Such a commodity is virtually priceless.”

What the hell is this? Remember it is us sheep, the dumbest fans around who see the world through blue and white colored glasses, yet here is the anti-christ comparing a rookie defencemen to Scott Stevens??!! Just how black is that kettle?

“I’m also starting to buy into Mikhail Grabovski with fewer reservations. Perhaps the normally vigilant Montreal Canadiens did err in allowing him to escape….To me, he is the most dynamic rookie the Leafs have had since Wendel Clark burst on the scene 23 years ago”

Wow- more dynamic then the next Scott Stevens???? This reeks of kissing Ron Wilson’s ass. I mean the one guy who you said in today’s national post that Ron Wilson “embraced” was Grabovsky. Despite all the reports that he is a bad apple from your colleagues you know are comparing his persona to that of Wendel Clark.

All this is quite funny. Is it supposed to make us feel better? Are we supposed to be optimistic because you say so and you are an authority? Where was that authority this year? I’m just saying…

If not, they certainly do think alike. Get a load of this crap that Brooks spewed today:

“Excuse me, but Milan Lucic sticks out his leg and injures a defenseless Nik Antropov by going knee-on-knee midway through the second period on Saturday, and it’s Sean Avery who should be suspended for kind of stupidly using his stick to tap Tim Thomas on the back of his helmet during a TV timeout? The absence of context is the crux of the issue here, just as always. Headhunters such as Chris Pronger and Gary Roberts, who historically injure opponents, are routinely deified, notably by the sanctimonious brigade north of the border, but Avery, who has never hurt anyone but himself, must be banned for the good of the sport? Avery has been a better pure player this time around than he was in his first Broadway run, but he hasn’t had quite the same impact. That’s because he’s trying to figure out how far he can go without being hauled in for a strip-search.”

Right, Homer Brooks, it’s always only the Canadian media picking on Avery. There was no American outlet covering every other time Avery has gone cuckoo. The entire hockey media world is waiting for Avery to fall off the wagon, not just the folks up here. I can’t believe he actually thinks this is a Canadian media issue. The folks who do cover the sport up here have issues, I am the first to tell you that. Jumping on the Avery bandwagon isn’t one of them. This is one of his dumbest quotes ever. The rest of the piece isn’t bad. I find it odd that his self proclaimed savoir, Torts hasn’t been able to pull water from the stone just yet and it must be killing him to know end that Torts hasn’t been able to do the one thing he is apparently best at, pulling character from his players. Maybe, just maybe the problem was with the players and not the coach. Hmmmmm

you can read more from Homer here

Greg Brady’s portly buddy is up to his old tricks again…. Look what the moron wrote today:

“Toronto GM Brian Burke was pounding his chest after signing college UFAs Tyler Bozak (Denver) and Christian Hanson (Notre Dame). The Leafs might want to keep expectations low. On April 1, 2006, Burke signed Cornell G David McKee for Anaheim and gave him a huge signing bonus. He is currently with the Bakersfield Condors in the ECHL.”

Now, ask your self this, when did Burke pound his chest? Everything he said about these guys was that he wanted to sign 3-5 of them in hopes 1 would make it. He has said they were high on the players, but how well they did would be up to each player. He didn’t guarantee success. He said that he hated the fact that the Leafs were a viable option to the college players (because they could offer the players a good chance to crack the lineup unlike many other teams) and he hoped it was the last time this would happen. Even more so, Burke heaped praise on Joe Nieuwendyk for signing many of these players.

Bruce, there are lots of places you can take shots at the Leafs and Burke. Here’s an idea, try stick to reality, people may actually think you are credible unlike the heap of crap you usually write. How’s that Chris Pronger to Toronto rumour doing these days? You know the one you pounded your chest for breaking???? Yeah that one.

You can read more (if you so dare) of Bruce’s work here

Greetings from Berlin. For those who haven’t been here, add it to the list of places you have to visit. While my hunt for Sergeir Berezin has been unsuccessful, my first visit to Germany has been quite amazing. To see the history here and appreciate all that has gone here in the last 70 years is truly a life experience.

Back to sports. This Howard Berger thing has really got me quite upset. I listened to his interview on with Hogan and Roscoe Toth and it was so predictable. It was so pathetic. Does he think that anyone with a brain on the outside actually has any sympathy for the guy? Does he actually think that the average listener/fan agrees with him. It’s a total joke. Howard Berger is in my opinion (which says nothing) an embarrassment to anyone who calls themselves a journalist. He isn’t credible, he isn’t reliable he is total fluff. He is worse then the piece of parsley that sits on a plate at a restaurant (at least he parsley is somewhat decent to look at!) Berger is a COX wannabe. The problem is he is a jock sniffer. He grew up a fan and turned this into a job. He then realized that the only way to make it against the competition (once his sources left him) was to be negative. His comments about Wilson were so damn predictable, Wilson’s reaction was accurate, honest and exactly what it should have been. Berger’s take that Wilson is too thin skinned for this market is a crock. This market is nothing…NOTHING. There are no hard questions asked. There is no media scrutiny- NONE. While there may be power in numbers there is quality. We can count the number of good scribes on half of one hand. Good on Wilson for putting this pathetic puke where he belongs. Good luck talking to Wilson again Howie. It’s funny how you say you have learned so much from him, you clearly haven’t learned a friggin thing about the game you cover.

Meanwhile, up the dial the Garrioch thing seems to have faded into the night. Here is another guy how is just a hair, and I mean a small eyelash above Hanky. The only difference is that Garrioch actually gets real time in front of real fans. His paper should be ashamed of running his column. The problem is that his column sells because people flock to it to read the goofy rumours he posts. You know what else flocks to what else simply because it smells right??!! One day, I hope, maybe by the time little TSM is a sports fan the city will be filled with sports media that we can actually be proud of. Ask yourself this question folks… The next time a big sports story breaks in the city, is there one journalist who you would be eager to read their take on what happened??? If Burke out of nowhere pulled off a blockbuster to land the number one pick, if the Jays traded Doc, hired the next great GM etc…. and there was no internet, which newspaper would you run out to buy to see their writer’s take on the event? Which radio station would you listen to? Which if any local tv station would you watch? Right now, there are slim pickings my friends. The problem is that with most of the guys we currently have you know what you are are going to get. Their biases are so blatant that their coverage has become predictable. For now all we have, as young Jonas said the other night to Wilbur is what the Maple Leafs are selling…Hope!

Check out Bob Mckenzie’s blog today and David Shoalts’ piece on the new economy that is facing the NHL in the coming months. Here is all I am going to say, and you regular readers out there remind me of this come July 1 2009. Brian Burke better have become a better master of the cap then he has shown to be with his last team come free agency period this year. No big, long term contracts should be signed this off season…NONE. Until they have a better idea of what the following season may look like there is NO REASON to sign anyone of any significance to any deal beyond a year or 2 at small money. Teams are going to be so screwed long term that good players are going to be thrown overboard when the time is right. Burke has used the word patience, here’s hoping he is able to remain that himself and not do something stupid this summer. Nothing big, nothing long term. Wait this storm out Brian. Your fellow GM’s across the league are going to be taking on a ton of water and cap space if going to be worth way more then ever before. Wait it out. For the sake of this franchise, and your place in it’s history wait it out.

I see Peter Pocklington is facing the law. Funny story for you. While working in Detroit I had the chance to meet Peter Pocklington once. It was during the NHL labor issue in 1995. I was at a Detroit Vipers IHL game and Peter and Glen Sather were sitting in the seats above me at the game. I happened to have a friend who went to college with Pocklington’s daughter and Pocklington, Sather, a friend and I all started chatting during an intermission. After a few beers and several laughs, I said to Pocklington that I had met his daughter at a University of Western Ontario function through my buddy a few months prior. Without batting an eye, Sather looked at me and said “Oh yeah, did you !@#!@#!@# her??” Pocklington turned about 12 shades of red and started screaming at Sather….It was classic. Pocklington was a good sport that night. He bought my buddy and I beers the rest of the night. He told us if we were ever in Edmonton to let him know he would have us to his box and all. I know there are people out there whom he has harmed and hurt. I know there are lots of people out there who don’t like the guy or even hate him. From personal experience, that one night in Auburn Hills Michigan he treated a couple of hockey nuts darn well, it is something I have remembered and I can only wish him well and that he gets a fair shot at trial.

It’s midnight here in Germany. Time to hit the hay. Talk at you in the wee hours of your morning…

TSM

So get this sports fans, sources are telling me tonight that Bwoooce (Bruce) Garrioch is telling all that will listen that Greg Brady has hurt widdle Bwooce’s feelings. It gets better folks, Bwooce is apparently so bothered by it that he is contemplating threatening to never go on the the air with Watters and Brady again! What a freaking joke! GD- Can someone at all the others places Garrioch works at insult him as well so he just goes away! There is no question in my mind that he wrote the Wilson bit with the intention of getting a response. Now that he got one he doesn’t like it? Grow up! I know some folks out there like him (why?), and that is okay with me. This is plane idiocy folks. If you are in the business Garrioch is in you have to have thick skin. To call in threats is just plain childish. Who do you think gets hurt more by Garrioch not being on 640, 640 or Garrioch???

Stay tuned I am sure there is more to come…Wish I could hear Brady’s response tomorrow….

I, have what some may call a slight weight problem....

So, far no sign of Sergei Berezin. I am really hoping I can find him here. It is pouring rain and that made for a fairly unsuccessful day of sightseeing. Tomorrow it is off to the trade show so hopefully I will find some more time to hunt him down.

There are now 2 members (that I know of anyway) of the Toronto Sports Media scene who are taking advantage of the Twitter Craze. One is Jeff Blair of the globe and mail (@GloBlair) and the other is Greg Brady (@am640Brady). Other outlets are catching on, The Score does a good job @the_score, Fan 590 is very active @fan590, the Toronto Star Sports has become very active of late too @starsports. 640 Toronto has an account but it is more general focused as opposed to sports only. Anyway, Greg Brady, whom is kind enough to chime in here from time to time took on Bruce Garrioch today on his twitter account:

How friggin funny is that???? I think we all can get a good chuckle out of that. For those who can’t read that it says:

“Also, heard back from Bruce Garrioch. Wants me to stop making fun of both his obesity and the fact he has no credibility in the sport”
“At least, that’s what I think he said. His mouth was full of chicken poppers, muttering about Malkin to the Kings for a 1st and Kopitar”

Now I know there are going to be those of you out there who are going to say this is offensive, Brady shouldn’t pick on the guy for his weight… It’s in good humor and at least he didn’t do it behind his back as I am sure others do.

More importantly, it is really great to see guys like Brady and Blair adopt modern technology and trends. I don’t know how many of you out there use twitter, however I can tell you that for news and sports it is great. On deadline day it was better then sitting in front of the tv and trying to switch between the networks. Jeff Blair’s live tweets during the Jays exhibition games, are, in my mind anyway better then his live blog. Because each is limited to 140 characters you get a real sense of what he is thinking with each post. Similarly, Brady and the folks over at the Fan use twitter to promo what is coming up, to instill some levity in to our days and to try to get people to participate. Besides all the joke account which I also think are funny, as a technology fan I really enjoy the ability to interact with some of the folks in the business while they are on the job. I am curious, of you out there who use it, who would you like to see in the Toronto Sports Media market use it (legitimately)? Personally, I would like to see whomever takes the torch from Bowen to use it, not during live games, but maybe intermission, while traveling with the team etc. I am surprised a guy like Jonas doesn’t use it. Please leave others in the Toronto Sports Media Market who are effectively using twitter below… More later…

Looking for Maple Leafs tickets the rest of the way? Look no further…