After over a decade of arguing in favour of the tank, I am officially abdicating my position as the president of Tank Nation. I am sure many of you are disappointed
but hear me out here. (You can replace "I" with "Member of tank nation" throughout , as I believe many people cheering for the tank have shared these concerns): Why Tank Nation ever existed:
Tanking is degusting, but it is often the last resort for a desperate fan base. If you can't be an Anaheim Ducks, then let's try to be a Chicago Blackhawks even if it comes at the risk of becoming the Columbus Blue Jackets.
- Tank Nation existed because at no point in the past few years fans had the confidence in a Leafs' management team to create a program in which the focus was on drafting and developing players. Given the ever diminishing quality of free agents, tank nation was the only way to give the team any hopes of winning a cup.
- Tank Nation also existed because fans did not believe that winning a cup was actually a goal here. Everyone from ownership, to management, to players, consistently acted like and/or talked about making the playoffs, and how "when you get there, anything can happen". Such short-sighted mentality, no 'anything' doesn’t happen in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, in combination with management's inability to draft studs, left those of us who cared about actually winning the cup, with no choice other than to cheer for the tank.
Am I Sorry for fighting for Tank Nation all these years?
NO:
- It was a miracle if we drafted a high quality player outside of the first round. In addition, we almost never drafted a stud outside the top half of the first round.
- We kept trading picks and other valuable assets for short term fixes with hopes of getting in the playoffs so that "anything could happen"
- We did not develop players properly. Even when a player with potential was drafted, fans simply never had confidence that he would be developed into a bonefied NHL player. 3rd liner? Sure, but an all star? Not very likely.
- We have been taught to accept mediocrity over the years. While other fans' favourite players are Stamkos, Halls, and Roy's of the world, our favourite players are Domis and Roberts, and Kaberle's of the world. We demanded, and continue demanding, more Sundins, and more Gilmours, and given the way things were, tanking was the only way we could get those players
- "But Burke said all the right things too and you were excited to have him around": Yes I and many other members of Tank Nation were excited to have him around because he talked tough and had a track record BUT, and history shows this, we deemed his hatred for the long term fix his biggest flaw. We kept telling ourselves that maybe he saw something that we didn't, but ultimately we remained members of Tank Nation due to lack of true confidence. While Mr. Burke was a great improvement over many of the previous management teams, his mentality was never going to resolve our biggest issues: 1- we needed to draft well 2- We needed to develop well.
- We had management groups that allowed the media to feast on our players. Sadly, even if I were a hockey player, I would have refused to sign with my beloved Toronto Maple Leafs. When Damian Cox expresses his hate for a coach, like he did with Pat Quinn, you know you are doing something right. When a 5th rated 'journalist' like Dave Feschuk gets to come into the dressing room and tell our player that he is uncoachable, you know your management team has opened the gates far too wide. In this setting our only hope to win was to get players that were not just good, but clear cut Sakic-level, hall of famers who no one could criticize; and of course Tank Nation was our only way to get that.
So why are you leaving Tank Nation?
After years of wanting to see a true Stanley Cup worthy hockey "program" from the Leafs, I finally see it happening. We can be an Anaheim ducks without deigning to levels of tanking like the Buffalo Sabres, or the Chicago Blackhawks.
- Management: We have a management team that includes people who excel at different key departments, from talent evaluation, to drafting, to analytics. We have a management team who has publically announced, stressed, and more importantly, hired, based on the mentality of building a solid hockey program that is sustainable for years to come.
- Ownership: I believe the ownership has finally bought into the program and I believe, hope, that such commitment can last throughout the tough years.
- Coaching: We have the best coach in the league, or at least one of the best coaches, who is signed to a long term contract, and who has had long stays at just about any organization he's been part of. We have a coach who got a team of hall of famers in Sochi to play a style that was so detailed and so far from run'ngun hockey, that was basically unbeatable. We have a coach who understands, and has been a major part of, a true hockey program before. We have a coach who is not scared of losing his job after four seasons, and has publically announced his love for draft picks (not free agents, and not other teams' cast offs). We have a coach who hates losing, but also hates 'just making the playoffs'. We have a coach who will make the dressing room safe for our players and hence attract more of them to come home and maximize their talents.
Would you ever go back to Tank Nation?
ABSOLUTELY! If any of the major concerns I've outlined above, from managements' talent in drafting and developing, to long term thinking of creating a program, to coach's patience with the program as well as with the media etc. end up not being successfully addressed, Tank Nation will come back and will come back with force.
Thanks for reading and let's go win a goddamn cup!
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