They Deserved A Better Fate!

I, for one, am tired of hearing it. With a tired Calgary team, they couldn’t take advantage of it. Why? Their team game still isn’t anywhere close to being there. Their polar opposite special teams definitely didn’t help. The Leafs came into the game with the 3rd ranked powerplay and it’s the first time I have seen it function as such. In a game against Anaheim they brought their powerplay percentage up by clicking 5 times. The Leafs needed 42 minutes and 23 seconds to get a powerplay against Chicago the Friday night, mostly because you need to forecheck and frustrate the opposing team to draw penalties.

The Leafs penalty killing continues to be atrocious. So every time they take a penalty it’s a sphincter agitating proposition. Not to mention Toskala has not quite redeemed himself after just one competent game. After facing few shots and the Leafs pressing hard, Toskala once again failed to hold his team in the game. Then let’s take a penalty, down 2 late in the 3rd period. This is the familiar recipe for a 5 – 2 Leafs loss.

Don Cherry, who would have to practically wear my ass as a hat to get me to agree with him lately, is spot on in his assessment of Rickard Wallin. Where has this guy been so far this year? I know he’s supposed to be a third line checker with a slight offensive upside, but he has done nothing. Basically, he’s wasting a roster spot. Speaking of which, there has been a gross mismanagement overall of the roster. Jamal Mayers was one of the only men on the ice in blue that looked like a hockey player. He’s been sitting out, not due to an overflow of talent in the roster, but of some idea that he isn’t benefitting the team? I like Primeau in the line-up as well as Orr, but who should be sitting? Wallin as it is right now. Primeau wins face-offs, Orr beat the living snot out of McGrattan(great fighting name by the way) and the usual fall-guy, Kulemin, is the only forward who finishes every check and backchecks. Lets give the Wallin experiment a break, shall we?

With 3 total wins there is a time to admit defeat. How about now? Our goaltending saviour is human, our $4 million backup has the worst numbers in the league and our expensive back end can’t keep a puck out of the net. Let’s get the kids up to the big team. I shelled out for Center Ice this year to watch my favourite team play. I have only seen it happen half of the time. Last year’s team that never gave up is gone. We’re looking at winning over 70% of the rest of the season to get into the playoffs. ENTERTAIN ME ALREADY.