Interesting reading the papers today as the experts respond to Brian Burke’s selection for the USA Olympic team:

“Burke would choose a Canadien over his dead body simply for his having been nearly booed out of the Bell Centre last June at the NHL entry draft. A Size XL ego who is loved or loathed with no grey area beyond his snowy scalp, Burke immediately claimed that he didn’t take the podium abuse personally. But …”

That from Dave Stubbs of the Montreal Gazette.

Choosing the team is thankless, unless of course you win. No one is ever going to be happy and neither Brian Burke or Steve Yzerman are exempt from the criticism.

However, Burke, if nothing else wants to win. I can’t imagine that being booed in Montreal entered Burke’s mind for 1 second when he was picking his roster. His ego, as Stubbs points out is too big. There is no way he would let being booed get in the way of winning gold.

“There will be no better time for Gionta and Gomez to thank Brian Burke for Friday’s vote of non-confidence than on March 20 and April 10, when they personally can stick it to his Maple Leafs.”

We shall see then how much Gionta and Gomex are insulted by their omission from Burke’s roster.

Meanwhile, Larry Brooks, Burke’s number one fan chimes in:

“So if Tim Gleason played for the Maple Leafs and Mike Komisarek played for the Hurricanes, which defenseman do you suppose would have been named to the Olympic squad by Team USA (and Maple Leafs) GM Brian Burke and which would be left at home?”

All kinds of thoughts on this one. My first response is identical to the one above. Burke isn’t going to pick his own players as opposed to others if he knows better. He wants to win. Having said that, he did go out and sign Komisarek this off season, he must like him. Would I think for one second that familiarity played a role in say a tie-breaker situation where it was down to 2 players of, in Burke/Wilson’s minds, equal talent- then the answer is yes. If they were trying to decide between 2 guys whom they thought were equally talented I could see them giving the advantage to the one who plays for the Maple Leafs- the old devil you know adage right?

Then, as Burke was being interviewed on TV tonight during the Swedish game at the WJHC fans rinkside were chanting “Leafs Suck”- according to Damien Cox on Twitter. I would think that of all the attention, Burke enjoys this one the most.

I am having my knee scoped tomorrow so may not be many posts during the day

TSM

@yyzsportsmedia

Stubbs is here

Brooks is here

Here’s your bikini of the day from bikinibeat.org:

On Fan 590 Tonight-

- open phones with McCown from 4:05 to 4:40
- co-host from 5:00 to 7:00 is Jim Kelley
- Ryan Zander, General Manager Of Baseball Products For Sport Vision
- Buck Martinez, TBS Analyst
- Rob Becker, Legal Analyst
-Dr. Christiane Ayotte, Lab Director At The Richmond Oval In BC
- Mike Boone, Montreal Gazette

On 640 with Brady and Watters thanks to Mike S.:

- guest host is Brian Duff of NHL Network
- Dave Naylor of the Globe & Mail on football
- hockey insider Pierre McGuire at 6:10
- Sean Baligian, fantasy football expert

Here’s your bikini of the day from bikinibeat.org:

On Fan 590 Tonight- thanks to Mike S.

- open phones with McCown from 4:05 to 4:40
- co-host from 5:00 to 7:00 is Jim Kelley
- Herb Zerkowsky of the Montreal Gazette
- Shane Malloy from Satellite radio & ea sports

On 640 with Brady and Watters Thanks to Mike S:

MATT STAJAN – LEAFS FORWARD
RICHARD GRIFFIN – TORONTO STAR JAYS COLUMNIST
JIM LAMPLEY – OLYMPICS HOST/BOXING ANALYST
BOB COWAN – NFL PROGNOSTICATOR
RON WILSON – LEAFS COACH
INSIDE THE NHL WITH DREGER & MORRISON
TED LEONSIS – OWNER WASHINGTON CAPITALS

Maybe it’s just me but I found an article in the Montreal Gazette quite amusing. It seems that the Maple Leafs signing of Mike Komisarek has set off some nerves in the land of the Habs.

“Among the thoughts that avoided our delete key, posted before and after Komisarek signed a five-year, $22.5-million contract with the Maple Leafs:

- “I really don’t want to hate Komisarek’s guts, but I can see that’s where this is going.”

- “Mike, I wish you all the success the Leafs have enjoyed for the last 40-plus years!”

- “Good riddance, Komi. Welcome to hell.”

A few suggested that Habs heavyweight Georges Laraque should be instructed – ordered, even – to pummel Komisarek, that despicable traitor, during the new Leaf’s first shift against his old team.

A few deleted comments indelicately questioned the marital status of Komisarek’s parents upon his birth, or suggested that he engage in an activity that is anatomically impossible.”

Really? Now, do you think that is any different if he went elsewhere? I would imagine when a Boston Red Sox bolts and joins the New York Yankees similar things occur. Yes, I know the whole Leaf/Habs thing flared up last season with Grabovsky. My question is, do you really care about the Habs? Seriously, and maybe I am in the minority here, but if Sundin (I can’t think of some other life long Leaf) signed with Montreal last season, I wouldn’t have cared. I would care a lot more if he went to Ottawa, but the reality is there are few places a Toronto player could go that would motivate me to go to a newspaper website and post this type of stuff. When Curtis Joseph, one of my favourite Maple Leafs bolted to go to the Wings, one of my most despised teams growing up, I started to root for the Wings (except when playing the Leafs).

Am I alone in this?

I think the time for this type of stuff went out the door when the NHL expanded beyond 6 teams. Did Seinfeld have it right? Do we root for the clothes or the player? I think in most cases it’s the jersey. There are obviously exceptions. Once the puck drops though we want our team to win.

Is it an erosion of the Habs/Buds rivalry or is it that I just don’t care all that much? I don’t get overly jazzed to see the Leafs play the Habs. When they were in the playoffs last season I rooted for them and not because they were a Canadian team. I think that those of you older than me will say that you still despise the Habs, so maybe it’s a generational thing. I suspect that it’s an inferiority complex on the part of our friends up the 401. I mean, Their baseball team was taken from them, they don’t have a basketball team (do we?). All that is left on the MAIN stage is the Habs. The Nordiques were taken from them too. What remains of their age old rivals is Toronto and Boston. Ottawa is closer geographically, would the same hatred be spewed if Komisarek had signed with the Sens? Maybe our team’s failures have dulled the rivalry from this end.

Little TSM has no clue who the Habs are. He knows you boo the Senators, he roots like hell for Crosby and when he plays on his DS or PSP he wants to be the Leafs or the Pens. The only Maple Leaf he can name is Cliff (ya think he listens to his dad talking to LT too much?). Seriously, he couldn’t name one maple leaf, except maybe Cujo.

I find the Montreal perspective amusing. Am I out to lunch or are you like me?

TSM

Follow me on twitter at @yyzsportsmedia

Habs article is here

Here’s your bikini of the day from bikinibeat.org:

On Fan 590 Tonight- thanks to Mike S.

- open phones with McCown from 4:05 to 4:40
- co-host from 5:00 to 7:00 is Jeff Blair
- director of CFL officiating Tom Higgins

- Peter Keating, ESPN The Magazine senior writer

- Michael Boone of the Montreal Gazette on the Habs

- Jamie Campbell of Sportsnet on baseball

On 640 with Brady and Watters:

440 – Dale Tallon
5:40 – Garnet Exelby – new leaf dman
6:10 – Darren Dreger
6:45 – David Naylor – Globe & Mail CFL writer

TSM Take- I like Tallon, I liked him more before yesterday, however GM’s with no time left on a contract have been known to do strange things. Exelby, one of the more interesting names in sports. I can’t wait to see him play Heatley and the Sens ( ) Dreger is on, Darren, can you share your new found love and admiration for one Dwayne Eklund? David Naylor is on to talk CFL- Little Watters may be out of the game, but pops sure loves his CFL. Speaking of CFL I have to admit I had to google Higgins to see who he is. IF you are curious why the director of officiating is on look below. Keating isn’t my cup of tea, sorry. The Habs spent a lot of money on small guys. Curious to see what beat writer has to say. Blue Jays playing like we expected, what’s Campbell got to say?