a quick look

Steve says:

I haven't done this for a bit...but since we have won a couple, the parade is back on,

Here's what needs to happen to help us out tonight...

Jersey over Florida
Edmonton over Carolina
Atlanta over Buffalo
Tampa over Penguins

then we'll see what happens on Sat night...

will Fletcher be our new GM on Mon/Tuesday when he gets back fomr Mexico?
Why isn't Peddie speaking to media all of a sudden? Neither is JFJ either...
Will they fire JFJ if the Leafs win3 or 4 in a row?

interesting....

mo winning = mo problems

Steve says:

I just watched the interviews with Sundin and PM on the Leafs TV online clips and I thought they they both were in really good spirits considering everything going on around them.

Sundin said that he wants to stay in Toronto, PM put Steve Simmons in his place about starting firing rumours (that was great cuz Simmons is a tool).

2 great interviews....

but

both guys state that winning makes the problems go away...and I don't agree...I think winning a few more games this season..even squeaking into the playoffs actually creates more problems than it fixes.

If they win, JFJ will get an extension.

If they win, JFJ will not trade away Tucker for someone who can still take a slapshot one timer and hit the net.

If they win, Woznewski and White will continue to police our blue line with as many wholes in their play as the Mexico/ US border.

I hope some big changes happen this week...

Chris:

Ferguson is gone baby gone. At this stage in the game it doesn't matter how much they win. The fans don't believe he's got it, the board doesn't believe he's got it...right now, dumping him overboard would be akin to a mercy killing.

I will say this for him. I don't believe the man ever got a fair shake at doing his job, without unessecary interference.

I also think that it's really easy for us to sit back and armchair manage the whole team, but let's be reasonable, if all of Leaf Nation can spot the obvious it's pretty clear that JFJ can see it too. He's inexperienced, not a moron. The level of politcal intrigue that he has to deal with on a daily basis is probably more than any one of us will have to deal with in our entire lives.

Three years ago the Leafs brought in a rookie GM, someone so inexperienced that he wasn't able to dictate the terms of his own employment. An older, wiser, more experienced GM isn't even going to sign his name on a contract without EXPLICIT guarantees that this is his team to run as he wants.

So the board walked all over him, kept him dancing from one year to the next, and the result is the kind of team you see us icing now.

Change is in the air. But how significant the change is likely to be is anyone's guess. The Leaf's are great at cosmetic changes, but wholly crap at dealing with systemic failings.

Looking ahead to Philly

Steve says:

Saturdays game against the Flyers is pretty crucial as is is really a 4 point game. If we win, we jump over a few teams into the 10th spot right on the heels of the Flyers and in a position to sneak into a playoff spot.
Looking even further ahead, we have a few tough games against the Duck and Sharks...We should be able to beat the Kings...

so another interconference game and then a chance to gain a few points from west coast teams...we need to leave the past in the past and look forward...

A few wins against the west coast teams would do a lot for both team morale and our positioning.