Dust off those Edmonton Oiler jersey’s, Pat Quinn has a new gig, as head coach of the Edmonton Oilers. Wow what a staff too, he has Tom Renney as an assistant!

Press conference will be later today. Count me as a HUGE Pat Quinn fan. The guy has it all, character and class. I do have one large knock on him and many may disagree, but I truly believe that he allowed the Maple Leafs to become a country club, unaccountable group. I think much of what Fletcher and Wilson and now, Wilson and Burke had to clean up was the atmosphere that Quinn, if nothing else allowed to exist here in Toronto. Having said that I like the guy, the coach and will root for the Oilers.

By the way, it says here that in some time, Quinn will be the GM and Renney the coach, but that’s putting the wagon before the horse. I know Lowe is higher then GM, as Tambellini has that role right now, but these types of situations seem to follow Pat around.

Good luck and congrats to Pat Quinn- I will be at the Leafs Oilers first home game!

TSM

This is priceless. No really, this is the quote of the decade!!!!:

“That’s a good question, my future in the NHL, I don’t even know myself,” Sundin said. “Last summer, obviously, I didn’t know whether I was going to play or not and I definitely am going to take my time to make a good decision this summer. Right now, I wouldn’t know what my future is going to be, whether I will play or not.”

The only thing funnier than this would be something like this ” A Sherpa in Sweden tells me that Mats Sundin is going to play next season and return to his excellent level of play of yesteryear. He is going to go to one of the following teams: New York Islanders, New York Rangers, Philadelphia Flyers , Pittsburgh Penguins, Buffalo Sabres, Montreal Canadiens, Ottawa Senators ,Toronto Maple Leafs, Carolina Hurricanes , Florida Panthers, Tampa Bay Lightning, Washington Capitals, Columbus Blue Jackets, Detroit Red Wings, Nashville Predators, St. Louis Blues, Colorado Avalanche, Edmonton Oilers, Minnesota Wild, Vancouver Canucks, Dallas Stars, Los Angeles Kings, Phoenix Coyotes, San Jose Sharks”

Read more from Mats here

Happy Mother’s Day to all you mothers out there. Lots to get to it:

“”We were a little bit troubled to see three sweeps,” Kelly told the FAN 590 last week. “From our standpoint, from a business perspective … we like to see six- and seven-game series. “If the suggestion is somehow you’re telling players to blow games to extend series, number one we would never say that, we’re not saying that, and even if we did say that, players would ignore us. I mean, these guys are out to win,” Kelly said the other day. “I’m stating the obvious, which is, when we have large-market clubs in the playoffs and we have six- and seven-game series, it generates more revenue for us and particularly in a year like this one, that’s a good thing. I don’t think there’s anything controversial about it.” “If (the players’ association was conspiring to lengthen playoff series) you wouldn’t have had three sweeps in the first round,” said Kelly. “If you were ever going to do it, you would have done it in the first round – right? – when it was less of a gamble.”

Certainly strange comments from the NHLPA teamster, I mean boss. What exactly is Kelley saying? If he is stating the obvious, why say it? There must be something else he is getting at. He is really smart. He only makes comments for reasons. So what is he trying to say here?

Here is Damien’s latest on Hamilton:

“All in all, it sure sounds like Hamilton is being used again as it has been on countless occasions – remember Peter Pocklington’s threat to move the Edmonton Oilers to Hamilton? The chances of a team actually landing on the shores of Burlington Bay remain remote. Is that a bad thing? Joyce told the National Post in a weekend interview he doesn’t think the NHL could survive financially in Hamilton today and that he’s glad he didn’t get the team back in ‘90.”

This isn’t a knock on Hamilton or those who live there. Does anyone else think that a second team for the GTA is different than a team in Hamilton? I think that a team in Hamilton will put more pressure on the Buffalo Sabres then on the Toronto Maple Leafs. I know lots of folks in the St. Catherines, Oakville areas who are Sabres season ticket holders. I suspect that all of them would line up to get tickets to a new team in Hamilton. I doubt that these folks would line up to get tickets to a second team in the GTA for the same reasons they don’t get leaf tickets. First would be price. You put a team in Vaughn or anywhere else in the GTA and you are going to be charging Maple Leaf prices. Why? Two easy reasons, you can and you have to. Teams charge what the market will bear, the Leafs have proved what the market will bear. Will it be entirely the same price? No, but it will be damn close. The owners would have to charge the same price because of the costs involved in securing a franchise in the GTA. They aren’t going to do it to lose money.

Back in Hamilton, who are going to be the corporate sponsors? Who is going to buy the luxury boxes? I am not being cynical, I am asking the question because I don’t have the answer. There is no question Hamilton is being used here. The difference is that in the past cities were used against cities that currently have teams. For example, Kansas City is clearly being used by the Islanders as a threat to the folks in NY. The owners are saying (indirectly) if you don’t help us with a new building, then we will move to Kansas City. In the Hamilton case, it’s more like pressure on the league. The league is desperate for new owners in multiple cities
The only ones around want to move those cities to areas where the owners think they can make money. Fans in Hamilton are being abused in that there are hopes are probably getting raised unnecessarily.

Not entirely new, but the Editors at the Toronto Sun want to give the commish the old heave ho:

” After 16 years in the job, it’s time Gary Bettman stepped down as NHL commissioner. The league needs a new public face, and a less polarizing figure, to take it to the next level of success. Someone who can look with a fresh and unbiased eye, for example, at whether BlackBerry billionaire Jim Balsillie’s $212.5 million US bid for the bankrupt Phoenix Coyotes –if he can move the team to southern Ontario — is in the best interests of NHL hockey and the fans. While it’s team owners who will ultimately make that decision, Bettman’s enormous influence as commissioner and his previous fierce and successful battles against Balsillie’s efforts to purchase and move the Nashville Predators in 2007 and Pittsburgh Penguins the year before, naturally raise questions about his objectivity. ”

It’s an opinion, and one that quite frankly means squat. To me you have to look at a combination of issues not just one before turfing someone after 16 years. Unless of course this is the straw that breaks the camel’s back.

” In his time, Bettman, a tough-as-nails New York lawyer, has been good for the game of hockey, dramatically raising revenues from $400 million a year when he became commissioner in February, 1993 to over $2.2 billion two years ago. He has done what the league’s owners hired him to do — presided over a substantial expansion of the game in the U.S. and negotiated a hard-won salary cap on players’ salaries, albeit at the cost of the entire 2004-05 season, along with a dramatically shortened one in 1994-95, due to another labour dispute.”

” Needless to say, Bettman’s repeated opposition to Balsillie’s attempts to bring a financially troubled U.S. team back to the Great White North, particularly Phoenix given its history, re-enforces the feelings of many that he has a bias against Canadian hockey. That said, don’t forget that Bettman was also instrumental in developing the plan which saw smaller market Canadian teams like Ottawa, Vancouver, Edmonton and Calgary receive substantial financial assistance from the league, including teams in the U.S. Overall, Bettman’s tenure as league commissioner has been a success and he deserves the thanks of hockey fans. ”

Credit to the folks at the Sun for presenting the good, the bad and the ugly. There is no way this will result in Bettman’s demise though.

Bill Lanhkoff has a good piece in the Sun today about all things attendance in the GTA. For all Jays fans who have varying opinions on all things attendance with the Jays, here is the word form the head hauncho:

“The Yankees, the White Sox coming up on Victoria Day weekend and Boston, after that, it will be the measure of where we are,” Beeston says. “This week, we’d like to get three in the 30s (30,000 fans). If it were middle of summer, we’d like three in the 40s, but it’s still May, kids in school, people still not travelling. “But it’s going to be the litmus test. We’re playing well enough that that should happen.”

So there you have it. Big games at big times. 35,000 three times this week. Anyone think they will get it? OK, anyone not named Eye think they will get it? Anything under 30 any of the nights and it’s a disaster for the Jays.

It hasn’t been too often that I say this but Simmons is off base in his column this week:

“MLSEL, owners of the Maple Leafs, stand to be most affected by the possibility of another team in southern Ontario, yet it is mum on the subject. Not a word from blabbermouth CEO Richard Peddie. Not a call returned from chairman of the board, Larry Tanenbaum, who always returns calls. Even quiet from Brian Burke, who is never quiet. While the Leafs clearly don’t want company in the marketplace, the market does want competition. It wants available tickets. It wants more affordable tickets. It wants a playoff team. It wants an organization it can trust and believe in. By remaining silent, MLSEL comes off as arrogant and monopolistic. The Balsillie-Gary Bettman fight isn’t about the Maple Leafs, but it affects their business. Hockey fans want to hear from them.”

I don’t agree. The media wants to hear from them because what MLSE would say would make for excellent media fodder. Theressa Tedesco was on the radio with Doug Fairway the other day and said that the despite all the passion around this issue as it relates to the Maple Leafs, the powers that be there do have a business to run. Most businesses don’t publicize their business plans. That is why MLSE isn’t saying a word. If they were to come out and say we support another team in Southwestern Ontario, (which many a fan want them to do) the press would be calling them liars. If they said we will fight this to the bitter end, (which we all know they would do) then the media would call them greedy whores. So if you are MLSE, why bother? For once they are doing the right thing and keeping quiet. Just as they should.

“Another Bettman quickie: He insisted media people were guilty of “irresponsible reporting” when questioning the financial state of the Coyotes … A question for NHL owners: The league is the second largest secured creditor, at $35 million, in the Phoenix bankruptcy. So how does the commissioner explain to the owners he works for that he is fighting against getting the league’s money back?”

Two great points by Simmons. Bettman inc. are liars. They were lying then (as the media suggested) and are now caught in it. (precisely why MLSE should keep quiet). If this mess becomes Bettman’s undoing it will be for flushing good owners cash after bad. I guess teams like the Leafs won’t care as long as each team is sharing in the expenses. What’s a couple million here or there? Ask the owners of Tampa and Florida, to name a few how they like spending it.

“Another team certain to be against Balsillie’s bid to move a team to Hamilton — the Detroit Red Wings. The Wings, who want out of the Western Conference, would not agree to any team moving from West to East …”

One of Simmons colleagues this week wrote to me that one allay for Balsillie and his makeitseven.com push is Mike Illitch. You know what they say about opinions….

Bruce Garrioch, Brady’s buddy has some interesting stuff today:

” ‘Those longer-term deals can hamstring you a lot as far as future planning goes,’ said Chiarelli. ‘It’s going to come down to this: Whose concept of a short-term will prevail? A player might think a four-year deal is short-term and a team may think a two- or three-year deal is a short-term.’ There aren’t a lot of teams with money to spend. Only seven franchises — Atlanta, Chicago, Montreal, Nashville, N.Y. Islanders, Phoenix and Vancouver — have committed less than $35 million in salaries next season. The Thrashers, Isles, Predators and Coyotes won’t spend to the cap.”

You mean those 7-10 year deals aren’t going to be the trend? So three teams currently have lots of money to spend (about 10 million each at least).

” ‘Any time you’re a free agent, there is a degree of uncertainty,’ said Healy, a former NHL goalie. ‘The year I was a free agent, I wondered if I was going to have any offers and I had four teams bidding on me. Teams have to decide how they’re going to build their club. ‘The average difference between the top five (point-getters) last season and the bottom five (point-getters) is an average of $1.8 million. So, it’s not how you spend your money, it’s who you spend it on. Teams that are well managed will typically do well.”

Classic! it’s not how you spend your money , it who you spend it on???? What the fuck’s the difference???????

“TORONTO: $44.523 million to 18 players — $1 million to Darcy Tucker buyout; $733,000 to Andrew Raycroft buyout”

Garrioch has a list of both restricted and un-restricted free agents in today’s paper. In his second column he has these two gems:

” All eyes will be on Toronto GM Brian Burke. He has $44 million US committed in salaries next season, but the belief is he’ll either free up cash with trades or simply bury some players with the AHL’s Marlies to make room for the Sedin twins.”

” ‘The best team in hockey is the Detroit Red Wings. They get the cap number they want and they recognize the risks involved,’ said Glenn Healey, the director of player affairs for the NHLPA. ‘They make their choice because they owe it to their fans to give them their best team.’ ”

Let’s hope Burke is able to dump some JFJ and Cliffy decisions! I have been told from several folks that Mikhail Grabovsky is getting serious offers from the KHL. To be honest, don’t let the door hit him on the way out. If he can get $2m in Russia, go get it. The Healey comment is almost as moronic as the previous one. I have to wonder when Kelley will wake up and realize he has a clown for his spokesman. There are lots of teams who make their choices because they don’t owe it to their fans to give them their best team. Classic.

You all know I am a big Adrian Dater fan. So I am going to guess there is a technical issue and that this gem wasn’t yanked off his blog:

“I just tried watching 10-15 minutes of the Nuggets’ Game 3 against Dallas. That should about complete my NBA viewing quota for the year. Absolutely god awful.
There was a foul on, I’d say, 95 percent of the possessions I watched – a stretch in the third quarter. Every trip down the floor – a foul, followed by whining, followed by an out of bounds play or a free throw. The announcers were awful. Some female was doing the color. Sorry, I’m a chauvinist on this one. How many women play in the NBA? Zero you say? Oh. So why is a woman doing the color analysis for the game? I’ll stick with hockey, and every other sport in the universe over the NBAwful. Thanks, that’s all.”

I had 2 friends over last night. I asked them if they had watched 5 minutes of the NBA playoffs. Neither said they have watched very much. Me, not one minute. Dater’s post isn’t on his blog anymore…

Great piece in today’s NY Times on Jim Balsillie:

“But the clearest template for how Balsillie will handle the N.H.L. in court is provided by Research in Motion’s entanglement with NTP, a tiny intellectual-property holding company based in Virginia, which claimed that BlackBerry service violated its wireless e-mail patents. Many experts shared Research in Motion’s view that NTP should never have been granted wireless e-mail patents. Similarly, there was widespread sympathy about the apparent unfairness of the patent litigation system. Where analysts and others parted ways with Balsillie, however, was his scorched-earth approach. Despite repeated court defeats, Research in Motion rejected the idea of settling with NTP. That ultimately led to a point where BlackBerry service was in danger of being shut down by a court order. After spending millions on its legal defense, Research in Motion was ultimately forced to pay NTP $612.5 million to drop its suit. Foxcroft is among many in Canada who doubt that Balsillie, despite that bitter experience, will readily back down against any challenge from the N.H.L. “He’s the most dynamic, competitive sports guy in the world,” Foxcroft said.”

Happy Sunday, back at ya later. Here are your links:

http://www.thestar.com/sports/article/632001
http://www.thestar.com/sports/article/631996
http://www.torontosun.com/comment/editorial/2009/05/10/9410241-sun.html
http://www.torontosun.com/sports/columnists/bill_lankhof/2009/05/10/9410616-sun.html
http://www.torontosun.com/sports/hockey/2009/05/10/9410656-sun.html
http://www.torontosun.com/sports/columnists/steve_simmons/2009/05/10/9410576-sun.html
http://www.torontosun.com/sports/hockey/2009/05/10/9410661-sun.html
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/10/sports/hockey/10coyotes.html?_r=1&ref=hockey

Elliotte Friedman’s blog on the Vinny situation is as good a read as I have seen. The only thing missing from it is an accurate read on how dire things are in Tampa Bay. Elliott’s analysis of the current financial implications and the realities of a trade of this magnitude are bang on.

“So, how many teams are really in this race?

Montreal, for sure. Vancouver definitely could be. It has cap room and prospects. Toronto has cap room, but no prospects. It fits Edmonton’s profile, since the Oilers threw bags of cash at Jaromir Jagr and Marian Hossa. I also wonder about a Colorado, a Dallas, or an LA.”

Take the Leafs out of the picture. It’s not happening. Could you imagine Vinny in Vancouver with Sundin??? Almost happened in TO!

“Lecavalier is a great talent, and a durable one, too. Only twice in his nine seasons has he played less than 80 games – 68 in 2000-01 and 76 in 2001-02. Those two things are extremely attractive to any GM interested in anyone with a long-term deal. But you know what’s become even more important to these GMs? Flexibility.”

Damn straight. Look at the ducks current cap situation, ummmm, who made that mess again ?

“Other execs are wondering what Chicago is going to do with Jonathan Toews, Patrick Kane, Duncan Keith and Brent Seabrook – tough choices despite Nikolai Khabibulin’s $7 million per season clearing this summer. Even Detroit, the model franchise when it comes to drafting, developing and getting players to take hometown discounts, has team-altering decisions to make. Henrik Zetterberg, Marian Hossa, Johan Franzen and Jiri Hudler (restricted) are all up, and Zetterberg is testing the Red Wings’ limits. (They gave Hossa a one-year deal equal to Nicklas Lidstrom’s $7.45 million, and a 10-year, $75 million offer to Zetterberg has apparently been rejected.) The Lightning themselves are in this situation because of the Stanley Cup gifts awarded to three players, Lecavalier being one.”

Folks- this is why it is good to be a Maple Leaf fan right now. Keep your heads up. If Burke plays this right he is going to be able to have a buffet of choices for top players fairly soon. Be patient. Wait until the cap goes down, then watch teams squirm to get under the cap! This is going to be interesting as hell.

“Then, there is the economic collapse. Teams are under the impression that, at best, the cap will stay the same next season, before decreasing in 2010-11. From Oct. 1, 2007, until the financial lunacy began in mid-September, 37 NHL players signed contracts of at least five years in length. That’s an average of three per month. Since then, there have been three in total .”

That’s right. How would you like to the Isles with a goalie tied up for 13/15 more years who has suffered long term injuries of late. The goal is to build properly. Our building is full every night. MLSE is patient enough to get this built properly.

“Managers exhibiting buyer’s remorse are recognizing a painful reality – that if you want to trade one of these contracts, you’re going to have to make the kind of deal that is difficult to explain to your fans. What they’re hearing from potential partners is some variation of this: “If you want me to help you take this contract off your books, well then you’re going to have to take my brutal contract. Oh, you don’t want to do that? Well, you’re going to have to take something else I don’t want – like a middling prospect or a later-round draft pick. You’re not getting anything of value from me for an asset you’re desperately trying to get rid of.”

Keep an eye on guys like Jason Blake and even, gulp Sean Avery…..These are guys who’s contracts get moved in order to accommodate other moves.

The focus in the trade market has changed drastically.:

“As much as Senators fans are making Jason Spezza the scapegoat, how happy would they be if Bryan Murray traded him for a mid-level prospect and a draft pick that wouldn’t be in the first round? A couple of different executives said unless Murray is willing to take on an ugly contract in return – and he probably isn’t – he may not get much more for his best centre. If you believe the whispers, that’s why number 19 remains in the nation’s capital. A harsh reality for the Senators and their fans. But, if you think trading Spezza is going to bring in the players who will start an immediate turnaround, you’re mistaken.”

This is the reality of life in a cap world. In the NBA they talk of trading salary slots. The NHL is moving towards that. For those who love trades and banter, it’s boring as hell.

“Considering some pretty smart hockey people are now saying they knew about the captain’s availability a week ago, chances are the Lightning know all this already. They might as well roll up the sidewalks outside the rink if they screw up this one. Maybe they can’t afford to keep him. But they can’t afford to trade him for what’s being made available, either.”

I am not so sure on this one. If things are as bad as I am hearing (and who the hell am I?) then I cant imagine how bad things really are.

Under 50 days to go until the deadline…. Buckle up!

Interesting times in the world of money indeed. Let’s not talk about the world markets here, it is enough everywhere else. However, the Globe is running a pretty interesting story on the hockey $ markets, and it has me thinking, that this could get ugly….

“According to information compiled by The Globe and Mail from various sources, the six Canadian NHL franchises contributed more than $40-million (all figures U.S.) to their fellow owners last season, and about $50-million when playoff revenues are taken into account.And at the other end of the spectrum, several teams are becoming increasingly frustrated at the skyrocketing salary cap, which now forces teams to carry a minimum payroll of $40.7-million.”

It is amazing how the times have changed and how different things are in the various leagues. The Blue Jays rely on revenue sharing in MLB. Yet in the NHL, the Leafs (12m) Habs (12.5), Canucks (10), Flames (6) Senators (1)and Oilers (800k) are the ones shelling out the dough.

“Another part of the problem is that some teams build their business models around their revenue-sharing windfall and strive to keep their own revenues below the threshold where they will have to contribute. The Buffalo Sabres and Nashville Predators, like other teams who spend near the midpoint of the salary-cap range, are often singled out as examples.”

So, lets get this straight, you plan on making just under the limit to ensure you get the handout from the league????? What a great way to run a business… No wonder the PA is suspicious….

“”The cap was supposed to solve everyone’s problems, but all it’s done is prevent six or seven teams from spending $80-million,” said an ownership source who exchanged candour for anonymity. “Some folks are pretty upset: We sat out a whole year to get the cap, and some people are saying, ‘Well, why?’” As one long-time executive with an Eastern Conference team pointed out, the bottom of the NHL salary scale now exceeds the top-end figure from the first postlockout year ($39-million).”

Next to the “player to be named later” the “anonymous source” is my favorite sports character of all time. It is wild when you think that the league floor on salaries already exceeds the first year cap.

“”Some teams are pretty pissed off at the whole thing: We didn’t manage to get rid of salary arbitration, and some teams just can’t afford to pay their restricted free agents or arbitration-eligible players,” the executive said. “There are probably 10 to 12 teams that can’t afford a $40.7-million payroll,” added a source with extensive knowledge of league operations.

So, one has to ask the question then, what now???

The Canadian dollar exploded today (so much for a soft landing). The Canadian NHL teams will be taking in a devalued Cdn dollar and paying out in USD. Ouch.

You know who is going to pay for this???

“For example, Daniel Briere and Scott Gomez each earned US$10 million last season. They’ll both get back the $950,000 they paid into escrow plus interest and an additional $48,000 or so to cover the shortfall in overall salary payments.”

Remember, the league witholds, almost like a tax a certain % of each player’s paycheck as an escrow to ensure “cost certainty”, that is that salaries don’t exceed the threshold of hockey revenue…So guess what will happen when the canadian dollar heads south and the Canadian teams don’t make as much money or gulp, lose money? Guys like Daniel Briere and Scott Gomez aren’t going to be getting their 950k back. That will be a big issue when Paul Kelly contemplates re-opening the CBA…

So we are clear, the owners aren’t happy, the players certainly aren’t going to be happy, why did we have this lockout again??????

Just got back from a quick trip to Detroit. In reading the two local dailies it was hard to get beyond the scandal that is the mayoral situation there. The Lions and Tigers (and beard oh my) were on the front cover of the sports pages. The Tigers for trading Pudge, the Lions as they start training camp. The Wings were buried later in the paper as the news of Scotty’s departure was discussed. One paper explained the move as one out of compassion. Scotty’s son, who works for the Blackhawks is unwell and the article urged fans to view the move as exemplary, a father wanting to live and work closer to his ailing son.

On the 4 hour drive back to the big smoke, it occurred to me that as teams around the NHL try to follow the Red Wings front office model how difficult it will be to accomplish that. It was hard not to find it a tad ironic when i read John MacKinnon’s article in the National Post:

“By design or not, the Oilers front-office begins to resemble the gold standard, that of the Stanley Cup champion Detroit Red Wings.

In Detroit, single owner Mike Ilitch has an all-star hockey department, led by GM Ken Holland, assistant GM Jim Nill, vice-president and GM-in-training Steve Yzerman, with longtime hockey man Jim Devellano in the mix as senior vice-president.”

As the Oilers add Steve Tambellini as GM and move Kevin Lowe to the President’s office it will be very interesting to watch this from a far. The Red Wings model, in my opinion will be very difficult to replicate. You had a very experienced senior adviser in Scotty Bowman, the ex coach. You also have the very senior ex Jimmy Devilano, who has been there for decades. You then have Ken Holland the GM and Jill Nill his assistant. Lastly you have Steve Yzerman the face of the franchise for the last couple of decades as a newly groomed exec. What all of these guys have in common is longevity with the Red Wings.

it won’t be hard for the Oilers, the Leafs or anyone else for that matter, to add in layers of experience in building a hockey department in attempt to replicate the Red Wing model. It will be very difficult to replicate its functionality because of the lack of synergies and years of working together. It wasn’t so long ago that the Leafs had Mike Smith, Ken Dryden and Pat Quinn as an executive team. We all know how well that worked. The solution is not just putting together a list of guys with experience. Rather it is putting together a TEAM that can and will work together. That is not easy to do. Detroit works because, with the exception of Yzerman, who played his entire career for the DRW, all of the guys have worked together forever too. Holland as a scout, Scotty (even though he is gone) as a coach, Jimmy D as a life long exec and so on.

Keep in mind that the Wings haven’t always been the success that they are today. There were some pretty dark years there to. When Illitch first bought the team times were pretty lean. In the early 90’s before becoming hockeytown, they lost in the playoffs to the Leafs and the Sharks in playoff disapointments. However, by putting the right pieces in place, and building a foundation they became the definitive model for the rest to try to replicate.

This is not going to be easy given all the different egos, as you try to build the foundation. Kudos to the Oilers new owner for trying. Hopefully the Leafs too will get there. For neither team will it come easy.