The Official Toronto Maple Leafs Thread

[AndrewJM3D]

[Filip]

We'll see on Thursday, but I think this may be the start of the Leafs' annual choke-a-thon.

Hey, it was only delayed by a few weeks!

[AndrewJM3D]

I don't think so, they will need a few days to recover from the Boston embarrassment. Kicking Ottawas asses should do that.

[koolio]

I guess this the part where the Leafs regress back to normal I don't suppose the Leafs are as bad as the past few games but they aren't as good as they were to start the season either. They just don't have players with track records of consistency to keep up the torrid start. Either way, I ignoring the extremely promising start, I think most Leafs fans should be happy if the team makes the playoffs, somewhere in the 6,7 or 8 position.

[Marbur66]

Leafs beat the Blues 3-2 in a shootout. Parade plans are back on, bitches.

[Filip]

After demolishing the Blues last time, they're getting into shootouts with them? Oh how the mighty have fallen!

[Travis007]

Tyler Seguin is unreal....FML

[current]

An American company is interested in buying MLSE - Toronto Star article:

Star Exclusive: American Company Eyes Maple Leafs

By Rick Westhead
Staff Reporter

A U.S. investment company is interested in buying the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Nine months after the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan announced it was selling its 80 per cent stake in Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment, the Star has learned that the company has caught the eye of a huge U.S.-based private equity firm with a track record in sports and media.

Providence Equity Partners has inquired about Teachers’ stake in Maple Leaf Sports, a person familiar with the matter said, but it’s unclear whether it has made a formal offer.

Providence Equity’s interest comes at a time when marquee sports franchises are commanding more than $1 billion, making it increasingly difficult for wealthy individuals to purchase teams.

“Now it’s all about the financial play and the investment, not the emotion or getting into the locker room,” said Brian Cooper, a former Maple Leaf Sports executive, who is now president of S&E Sponsorship Group, a sports consulting company.

Teams that have been bought out by private equity firms and their founders include the National Basketball Association’s Detroit Pistons and the Philadelphia 76ers.

MLSE has added a popular soccer team and outdoor stadium to its list of assets in recent years and has a flurry of successful real estate projects. The Leafs’ average ticket price, for instance, is twice that of the Stanley Cup champion Boston Bruins, said Bob Stellick.

“They’ve done an unbelievable job maximizing revenue,” said Stellick, a Toronto-based sports marketing consultant. “They’ve taken their last speck of land and turned it into valuable condos and they’ve done better than anyone could have expected getting the most out of their ticket revenue.”

Where Maple Leaf Sports stands to make more money is in broadcasting.

Industry officials say Maple Leaf Sports’ next big-picture investment could include folding Leafs TV and NBA Canada TV, both little-watched digital channels, into a regional sports network styled after Yankees Entertainment and Sports Network. YES Network, which started in 2002, broadcasts more than 130 New York Yankees games a year.

A pioneer in television sports, the YES Network also broadcasts games of the Yankees’ minor-league affiliates and replays of classic games, and it has shown a televised game in 3D.

Providence is one of the original investors in the YES Network. While the YES Network doesn’t release financial details, analysts have estimated its annual revenue as more than $435 million. The network itself is said to be worth $3 billion.

Others have followed the YES Network model. Time Warner in California is creating a regional sports network built around the Los Angeles Lakers, and the University of Texas recently created the Longhorn Network.

Rogers Communications has shown interest in purchasing MLSE for the same reasons that Providence would want to buy the company: to maximize TV profits. Rogers, which already owns baseball’s Blue Jays, has multiple publishing platforms, such as cable, radio and wireless, and has the institutional knowledge to start a sports channel like the YES Network....

Poll: Which of these ownership groups would you like to see own the Leafs?
Providence Equity Partners (12%)
Rogers Communications (44%)
Larry Tanenbaum (28%)
Ontario Teachers Pension Plan (16%)


Read More: http://www.thestar.com/sports/leafs/...es-maple-leafs

[Taller, Better]

Nah. Don't believe it will happen.

[Travis007]

Unreal chemistry in tonight's game by the Kessel-Bozak-Lupul line and Phaneuf. I always liked the combo of Bozak playing with Kessel. Had great stats during his first season playing on the top line consistently.

Franson's fine play tonight is a clear indication of why he should be a permanent fixture on the Leafs' blueline. Thank god for this Komisarek injury, perfect opportunity for Franson to step up and show his worth.

[Marbur66]

Oh man, I think Bruce Boudreau's days as the Capitals head coach are coming to an end really soon.....

[current]

NHL.com article:
Report: Governors Adopt Radical Realignment Plan

Monday, 12.05.2011 / 9:23 PM / News
By Dan Rosen - NHL.com Senior Writer

PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. -- The NHL's Board of Governors on Monday approved a radical realignment plan, according to multiple reports. The plan reportedly eliminates the current two-conference, six-division setup in favor of a configuration that features four conferences based on geography. Two conferences will have eight teams and the other two conferences will have seven teams, according to the report.

The vote, which required a two-thirds majority of the League's 30 governors, passed on the first of two days of meetings here at The Inn at Spanish Bay. The League's new structure will go into effect starting next season.

More details to come.

http://www.nhl.com/ice/news.htm?id=604852

[current]

NHL.com article:

BOG Adopt Radical Realignment Plan

Monday, 12.05.2011 / 9:23 PM / News
By Dan Rosen - NHL.com Senior Writer

....The makeup of the yet-to-be-named four conferences is as follows:

* New Jersey, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, New York Rangers, New York Islanders, Washington and Carolina

* Boston, Montreal, Toronto, Ottawa, Buffalo, Florida and Tampa Bay

* Detroit, Columbus, Nashville, St. Louis, Chicago, Minnesota, Dallas and Winnipeg

* Los Angeles, Anaheim, Phoenix, San Jose, Vancouver, Calgary, Edmonton, Colorado

The four conferences are designed to alleviate geographic concerns among several current Western Conference teams that had been unhappy about their extensive travel through one, two, and sometimes even three time zones. Some of those teams argued that the late start of road games in the Pacific time zone were affecting fan interest, especially among younger fans.

The new alignment also enables the NHL to create a balanced schedule in which all teams will play each other at least twice every season, once at home and once on the road, giving fans a chance to see every team and superstar in the League. The remaining games will be played within the conferences.

In the seven-team conferences, teams would play six times -- three home, three away. In the eight-team Conferences, teams would play either five or six times in a season on a rotating basis; three teams would play each other six times and four teams would play each other five times. This process would reverse each season: An eight-team Conference member that plays an opponent six times in one season would play it five times the following season.

The top four teams in each Conference qualify for the Stanley Cup Playoffs. The first-place team would play the fourth-place team; the second-place team would play the third-place team. The four respective Conference champions would meet in the third round of the Playoffs, with the survivors playing for the Stanley Cup.

http://www.nhl.com/ice/news.htm?id=604852

[current]

Santa visited the Leafs' coach according to the 680News staff:

Leafs' Coach Ron Wilson Hints at Extension Through Twitter
25 Dec, 2011

TORONTO, Ont. - It appears Ron Wilson's Christmas wish has come true, after the Leafs' head coach took to Twitter Christmas morning to say he had received a contract extension.

Wilson Tweeted that "He came! He came!" Remember saying that as a little kid? Well he did: I got a new Red Ryder BB gun and a contract extension!

http://www.680news.com/sports/articl...hrough-twitter

[current]

What Santa gave Burke took away - Globe article:
Leafs Fire Head Coach Ron Wilson, Replace Him With Randy Carlyle

JEFF BLAIR
MONTREAL — Globe and Mail Update
Published Friday, Mar. 02, 2012 8:30PM EST
Last updated Friday, Mar. 02, 2012 9:35PM EST

....The fact is that Friday night in Montreal, hours after putting his team through a practice, Wilson was fired by his former college teammate, undone by a recent 1-9-1 run that saw the Maple Leafs almost single-handedly open the playoff door for four other playoff teams. The Globe and Mail’s Eric Duhatschek confirmed that Randy Carlyle, who won the Stanley Cup in 2006-2007 with an Anaheim Ducks team of which Burke was the general manager, will be behind the bench Saturday night when the Leafs play the Montreal Canadiens at the Molson Centre.

Carlyle was fired as head coach of the Ducks on Nov. 30, in his seventh season with the team. The move means Leafs players will hear a new voice in their heads starting Saturday – boy, will they hear a new voice – but Carlyle's tongue can in fact be sharper than that of his predecessor. These will not be kinder, gentler, times, in other words....


Read More: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/sport...rticle2357498/

[Filip]

I knew this was coming, but I didn't expect it so soon.

This losing streak is just embarrassing, and from what I can see, it's about to keep going.. To the Montreal Toilet Seats nonetheless.

[icemachine]

Well my Habs kept up their efforts to land Nail Yakupov, hope Leaf Land appreciated it

[Filip]

Good start for Carlyle, but beating the Toilet Seats isn't saying much...

[Marbur66]

Too little too late with the firing of Wilson. Now the Leafs are in their usual spot (just on the outside looking in), and I don't see them making up the ground they need in order to squeeze into the playoffs. Same old shit with this team....unfortunately. Oh well, baseball season starts soon!

[Filip]

The receptionist at work says it best: "they're too busy thinking about playing golf, so they forget they're still playing hockey".