The good folks at the Fan 590 summed this one up pretty good today, with respect to the Maple Leafs, there’s nothing left to say. 20 games in and we all know the score. We all know where they stand. We all know what they face ahead. The reality is, this team with 62 games to go are in SALVATION MODE. Yes, it has already come to that. The season is now about small moral victories and good god, positive signs. It’s still only November!!!

Not sure if you heard Barry Melrose on the Fan this morning, but the most recent coaching success of your, Tampa Bay Lightning, forecasted a long, hard, cold winter in Leafs land. He talked about how hard it is to manage and coach teams in February when they are out of the hunt that early…STOP LAUGHING! He basically said that Wilson and Burke are going to want to off themselves.

Meanwhile, Damien checks in with his own commentary on the newless Leafs:

“Two things seem abundantly clear this morning.

One, this notion that sending big-money Leafs to the minors — Jason Blake is the most obvious target — will somehow fix what ails the club is just wrong. Blake may not be much use this season, but unless he is clearly a detrimental figure in the dressing room, just getting rid of him is essentially pointless and probably just symbolic.

Unless you have a replacement, dumping a player isn’t much of an answer.

Two, whatever is wrong with this team, Ron Wilson seems powerless to fix it.

The Leafs were the worst defensive team in the NHL last season and the worst penalty killing team. Today, they are the NHL’s worst defensive team and worst penalty killing team.

Faces have changed. Bodies have left town, others have been brought in. The blueline was rebuilt.”

Them’s fighting words, but true nonetheless. Now, in fairness, new faces doesn’t necessarily mean better faces does it. I mean look at the guys brought it. None have exactly been, ummm, effective save for Phil Kessel. Maybe the problem is Wilson’s assistants. I can think of one for example who has been around along time, and never seen a winning moment as an assistant coach…

“The off-season is when important change is made. Not November.

So Leaf fans can scream all they want, and they have good reason to scream.

But that won’t change much. In terms of the playing roster, the options are almost non-existent.”

Well, in that case, let’s go cancel our subscription to the Toronto Star. If the season’s as over as he alludes to, and there is nothing left to do until the off-season, then why bother reading the paper?

While on the topic of not reading or buying, check out this load of utter crap that Berger has, in all places, the National Post. No really, it’s the Seinfeld sports column, the one about nothing! As Steve Martin says to John Candy in Planes Trains and Automobiles, next time you tell a story, here’s an idea- HAVE A POINT! It makes it so much more interesting for the listener. What they hell kind of crap is this? Hell, it’s more readable when you call Leafs fans morons for listening to the Fan 590 and supporting their advertisers. This isn’t even fluff, it’s total and utter crap. Here’s what the guys at the post don’t get, for every great Bruce Arthur piece, there is utter crap from one Stay At Home Berger.

What a night, 2 paper subscriptions canceled. We are a Gary Loewen column away from a weekend of big savings. If I lower my Rogers bill to the point where I don’t have to get Leafs TV I may be able to afford Directv and get some good old US television. As a recent road warrior, I have to tell you that the US verison of the History Channel kicks the Canadian’s ass.

Tomorrow (today now) is the littlest TSM’s 5th birthday. Hard to believe but 5 years ago my little one was born in Royal Oak Michigan and my family was complete. Almost more amazing is the fact that it has been a little less than 5 years since I relocated the clan to Toronto.

Time flies….

TSM

@yyzsportsmedia

here is Melrosebarrymelrose-ms-20091120

Listen to the Chat here

I have suggested it for a long time, but to no avail, here’s hoping Simmon’s has better luck than I have:

“Why allow J.P. Ricciardi to trade Roy Halladay at all?

“Why not just fire the highly unpopular general manager of the Blue Jays now rather than have him charged with the responsibility of dealing away the most treasured asset in Toronto sports?Ricciardi and his Jays are where they always are — nowhere — which has been his condescending history on the job. Eight years of spinning his wheels, going nowhere, talking a better game than his team played. If Ricciardi isn’t going to be around beyond this season — and please, tell me why he should be? — why not strip him of his powers now, rather than place him in a position to deal away Halladay and establish the template for the Blue Jays’ future. This is not unlike John Ferguson Jr.’s last year on the job with the Maple Leafs, although in fairness to Ricciardi, he is no Ferguson. He hasn’t set this franchise back a decade, although he has signed enough questionable contracts along the way to do so. If trading Halladay is deemed in the best interest of the Jays — and that itself is open to debate — then trade him. But don’t have Ricciardi do it. His time has come and gone. He won’t be here to see the prospects he picks up make it. Someone else will be in his chair. And that someone should be making this all-important transaction: Not a lame-duck general manager certainly on his way out.”

Not a lame duck who has performed as lousy as this one has! What doesn’t matter is what the fans think. GM’s don’t get into lame duck years unless ownerships desire to keep them is in question. Never before has a GM been left hanging when ownership was funny sold on him. Either they are re-upped or they won’t be. Why then let JP deal the most valuable asset? Success in the guys tenure is easy to measure. He has been around that long. You either believe in him or you don’t. I say they don’t and therefore he should be the guy setting up the most important move in the last 10 years.

“Brian Burke has invested more than $22 million in the Maple Leafs defence, which is about $5 million more than the Boston Bruins will pay for their defence this coming season. The Bruins, for the record, allowed 96 fewer goals against than did the Leafs last season”

And the point is??? Look, as you will see in a minute, Burke inherited a mess. He has also brought on salary. You have to start somewhere.

“Burke is still victimized by lousy contracts he had nothing to do with — Jeff Finger at $3.5 million; Jason Blake at $4.5 million; Lee Stempniak at $2.5 million; Jamal Mayers at $1.4 million; and the buyout dollars of Darcy Tucker and Andrew Raycroft at $1.7 million. And if you include the $3.3 million for the rarely healthy Mike Van Ryn, that’s almost $17 million worth of useless contracts — or just about one Vernon Wells deal.”

The Wells deal sucks, but at least everyone is being honest in saying they endorsed it. Cliff and JFJ really had some gems didn’t they? Am I crazy, or I am the only guy who isn’t stuck on this anti-Jeff Finger parade. He is what he is. He got market money for last year. N E X T

So I wasn’t the only one was ready to puke every time @chrisbosh tweeted over the last couple of weeks…

First Simmons:”The Chris Bosh Twitter update you can’t live without: “Hello world! Left my iphone on the plane last night, definitely not happy about that one.”
Then Blair” Chris Bosh’s agent, Henry Thomas, is moving to Creative Artists Agency and taking his clients (Bosh, Dwyane Wade and Devin Harris, among others) with him. I wish he’d take Bosh’s BlackBerry with him and throw it in the garbage. The Charlie V thing was good for charity but enough is enough. We’re verging on Bosh overkill”

Funny how twitter has been used and then in some rare cases abused by some in the sports world. Quick all you social media guru’s how many of CB’s 50,000 followers are active users???

“This could very well be our last homestand,” she said. “We’re leaving on Monday. If something happens before the trade deadline, I won’t be back. That’s difficult. That’s more than difficult.”

The “she” is Mrs. Halladay. Wow- talk about one foot out the door already! I mean come on. Are the kids things packed too???

The Espy’s were on tonight. Did you watch? Me neither.

So tomorrow is d-day for Jarett Jack. Here’s hoping he becomes a Raptor and that 640 locks him up for a weekly appearance. The guy brings it (whatever it is) on the radio.

Let’s see, one week one, one week off, doesn’t that put Mccown off this week? Faulds???? Anyone????

For those who keep emailing me about updates on the Phoenix Coyotes thing, I will be happy to do so when there is news. By the way, what was the name of the Balisillie drive to get another team in the golden horseshoe again? Make it what?????

Have a good night

Simmons is here
Blair is here

Amazing what time in a mall waiting for my wife can do for deep thoughts. It occured to me that with about a month a change left in the Maple Leafs summer/off-season that Brian Burke has one major thing on his to do list, provide his team with 1 guy that fans will cheer for, the guy that will give the team an identity. Every great team has at least one, the Leaf didnt’ have that last year and I know this is going to be really unpopular, haven’t had one for a long time. Mats Sundin was not universally loved, and in fairness may that isn’t possible today. However, Brian Burke, if he wants to build this team in to something that fans of all ages can identify with then he needs someone. At least one guy.

As a parent, I can tell you that there wasn’t one guy on the Leafs last year that little TSM knew. In fact he never once asked for Leaf jersey with a name on it. In contrast, he wanted an Ovechkin, he wanted a Crosby. On the basketball side, only a crow bar could take away his TJ Ford Raptors jersey and he is dying for a Bosh jersey. Neither he nor I may be the Leafs target audience but I can’t imagine we are too far off. I am not going to suggest that Burke hasn’t gotten that guy, or that the guy may not emerge from his current roster. Schenn may become the guy, I think it’s too early for that though.

Someone said on the radio the other day that no matter how good things sound to Leaf fans now, if the team is in the shitter again next year people are going to be pissed. The inverse is that if the team is winning, all will be good. I think in either case the team needs the guy. I don’t think Burke has found him yet. That isn’t to say that every time someone scores, throws a big hit or a Maple Leaf is in a fight that the place isn’t going to go hog wild, it will. It doesn’t mean that you won’t see Leaf jerseys throughout the ACC, you will. However, I saw as many Sundin’s, Mccabe’s and Gilmour’s last season as any other player (in total) that was on the roster.

Burke has a couple of weeks to give this team an identity. If you were printing the media guide, who’s face is going on it? In my book Schenn isn’t that guy. Kaberle may not be here, he isn’t that guy. The kid they drafted this year likely won’t be here, he isn’t that guy. Toskala certainly isn’t that guy. None of the free agent acquisitions nor the the guys picked up via trade are that guy either. Burke knows it too. When he gets asked about a captain and he says it’s likely there won’t be one this season, it’s because he doesn’t have the guy. Think about this, if Kaberle goes, and Joesph is already gone and May doesn’t come back, who is the Leaf veteran guy? Jason Blake????!!! Poni?????

If Burke wants the fans to really get behind this team, he needs the face of the team. He needs to find the guy. He needs to find the guy we all root for, we all want the jersey and we all want to win here. So far, he hasn’t got em. Do you think he will?

TSM