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Leaf Rumours

Man... just pathetic.

I was very big on being patient with Gus. But after last game, exactly, what in the hell is there to lose by giving Reimer a start?

I just hate reading about or listening to anything this guy has to say.
 
Wilson =
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Link

Trades are on the horizon. The status quo is not an option. Change is coming.

This is what Brian Burke tells me when we meet for lunch on Tuesday.

It's high noon and we are sitting inside e11even, the swish new bistro on York Street in Maple Leaf Square. The place is hopping merrily with a lunch crowd of Bay Street power brokers and MLSE suits.

But the mood at our table, as you might imagine, is far from festive.

This lunch date was booked last week, prior to the team's latest losing skid. Since the universe has a keen sense of irony, Burke arrives just as Coldplay's "Don't Panic" is playing. He shakes my hand and looks more than a little drained.

"How are you feeling?" I ask.

"Horseshit," he replies.

Burke is not sleeping these days, something I've heard from a few people. His team is not performing the way he expected. It's been a season full of, well, equine excrement.

And so on behalf of Leaf fans everywhere, your humble emissary starts asking questions.

What has gone wrong? What are the objectives of management at this point? What can we expect in the new year? Can this team turn things around without an intervention? Or to paraphrase Chris Martin, why should we not panic?

"I think this group has established to my satisfaction that we're not going to come out of this without some outside help,"concedes Burke. "We're not looking at a coaching change. So we have to see if we can make a player personnel change.

"We're at a critical point of the schedule where most of the games are against Eastern conference teams. We need some regulation wins if we're going to get back in there. And we haven't seen the progress that we'd like to see. So we're looking to be active again as soon as we come out of the trade freeze."

Despite my begging, he refuses to get into specifics. But he is working the phones. He knows change is needed. He is searching for size and scoring punch.

"We need a big forward," Burke says, as a couple of suits stroll past and nod hello. "Everyone points to the center position. But I think if we had a Top 6 forward with size, center or wing, it would help us. Right now we're not getting to enough loose pucks in front of the net. We're not creating enough traffic in front of the net. So that to me is our biggest need."

But why is this team still struggling after it was blown-up?

"Without pointing a finger at any one player, we're not scoring goals like I thought we could," says Burke. "We're not keeping them out of our net like I thought we could. That's a bad combination.

"Special teams haven't been what we hoped they would. But I don't think it's a multi-system breakdown every night. I think we are playing 50 to 54 minutes of good hockey every night. But that's not good enough...

"I liked our game in Calgary except for three minutes. I liked our game in Vancouver except for four minutes. I liked our game (Monday night) except for the first two minutes."

Since he mentions special teams, I ask about the chants of "Fire Wilson" that continue to erupt inside Leafs Nation. Has the coach lost the room?

"We outshot our opponent by 2 to 1 (Monday)," says Burke. "We had the puck all night after the first two minutes. We outplayed them badly. We out-chanced them badly. It's clear the players have not quit on the coach. We are not even contemplating, considering or discussing a coaching change at this point.

There is a tendency in all markets, Burke adds, to blame the coach when a team is struggling. But that tendency is taken to the next level in Toronto. Wilson can also be his own worst enemy at times.

"I think Ron brushes some people the wrong way with his mannerisms when in fact he's a great guy and a great teacher and a great coach," says Burke. "But I think his mannerisms with the media – which, by the way, have been developed over a very frustrating period of time – have led some people to turn on Ron unfairly.

"That doesn't change my thinking. We are not looking at a coaching change."

So Burke is standing behind his coach. And he is looking to make some trades, sooner rather than later. In fact, there could be a number of trades. Does this mean he still believes the team can make the playoffs?

"The goal for the season was the playoffs, it is the playoffs," Burke says. "But we are rebuilding. It's not a classic rebuild. I don't think in a cap system, you have to finish last or dead last for four or five years...

"I think we've added assets that will enable us to compete without going through that cycle. Now, obviously, it hasn't borne fruit yet. So it's a rebuild in the sense that we are one of youngest teams in the league but it's not a classic rebuild where you try to finish bottom five and draft patiently."

This rebuilding model, he notes, has no precedent. There are no blueprints. What Burke is trying to do is remain competitive in the short-term while not sacrificing long-range planning.

"We're trying to do it on the fly. It's a totally different model than anyone else has followed. I still believe it will work. It's just not working right now."

But how do you rebuild without draft picks? Does he have any regrets?

"People say the Kessel deal cost more than we thought it would and it did. I didn't think we would finish 29th last year. We may have a low finish again this year. But I got the player I wanted and I still believe in him.

"You look at how well he has played in the last five games and what he can do without a true center with him. He's still generating offence and working hard making good defensive plays. So no regrets, other than our record."

Later on, as we're eating, I show him some of the comments you guys have left recently. And I ask if he has a message for us.

"The message is, 'I'm as frustrated as you are.' It's a work in progress. We're not there yet."

What about the fans who are leaving? What about the fans who are throwing waffles? What about the fans who say there is no light at the end of the tunnel Brian Burke is rebuilding?

"I think hockey fans in this market are very sophisticated," he says. "If that's what they've concluded, then I have to live with that. I'm not going to tell people how to think. But that's certainly not what I am hearing...

"I think people see a defence with an average age of 23. I think they see the goaltending prospects in the system. I think they do see a light at the end of the tunnel. And the tunnel does not run from here to Spain. It's a manageable wait."
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Well i'm glad to hear that Burke is losing sleep over this, because there are probably thousands of diehards who are also losing sleep over it.

I'm glad he's not satisfied, and i'm glad he's finally admitting certain things. ie. that he was wrong about how competitive this team would be, and that we need more help.

The only thing i still can't stand is that after all this, after the PP/PK being near league worst and having losing records for 4 years he still isn't even contemplating a coaching change.

It's not always the players, sometimes the coach can make a huge difference, Washington is a good example of that. Washington had the players but were doing poorly, but they fired their coach and brought in Boudreau and it was a huge turn around for them.

Also, Volcan, i'd like to see Jamie in a leaf uniform, but to be honest, we are not getting out of the basement unless we make a big blash (ie. Richards). Which i know at this point is one of the least likely things to happen.

I just don't see anyone making a big enough difference to push us into the playoffs unless it is a star calibre forward/goaltender.
 
2 guys like Rolston & Langenbrunner who work the boards well, retrieve pucks and score from the dirty areas would make a world of difference for kids who need open ice like Kessel, Bozak, Kadri.

Just 1 won't do it though
 
Cojo said:
Also, Volcan, i'd like to see Jamie in a leaf uniform, but to be honest, we are not getting out of the basement unless we make a big blash (ie. Richards). Which i know at this point is one of the least likely things to happen.

I just don't see anyone making a big enough difference to push us into the playoffs unless it is a star calibre forward/goaltender.
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Don't hold your breath on that. Dallas is the best team in the Western conference right now. If Richards can't be re-signed he won't be moved until the deadline which is another 2 months away.
 
Oh i'm not, precisely why i said it would be one of the least likely things to happen. Its never easy.

:thumbsdown:
 
words don't make me happy. taking action does. there is nothing revelatory about what burke is saying. 'we're losing and i'm not happy about it.' so ****ing do something about it, windbag.
 
Yeah, stfu about the fact that you're not happy Brian and do something.

Not sure what impactful "big forwards" are out there that we can pick up without selling our prospects/pics AGAIN. Rolson and Langenbrunner are good, but not sure what it will take to get them, nor are they top line material.

Also, when will we reach the point of "hey maybe its the coaching"? We have completed almost a complete roster makeover and are still dead last in special teams and in various important team categories.
 
Geez people, you rip on him for not giving interviews, and you rip on him for giving interviews where he says stuff you all agree with.

How many trades have there been so far this season in the entire league? It's pretty hard to fault Burke for not having pulled of a blockbuster by new years, because it almost never happens.
 
johnunit said:
Geez people, you rip on him for not giving interviews, and you rip on him for giving interviews where he says stuff you all agree with.

How many trades have there been so far this season in the entire league? It's pretty hard to fault Burke for not having pulled of a blockbuster by new years, because it almost never happens.
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i rip on burke for putting a shit product on the ice, and doing absolutely nothing to make things better. yeah, he deserves to get ripped for that. why should he be fellated for saying he's unsatisfied. that's ridiculous. it borders on the pathetic to commend him for that. thanks, burke.. great insight.. your 28th place team isn't playing well enough to make the playoffs. thanks for telling me that.

burke hasn't done a good job here. end of story.
 
Its been more than 2 years at the helm and the product on the ice has worsened under his watch. He's made some decent additions, but he's done others that have been disastrous for the team. It took him a little less than half the season to realize that this team constructed mostly by him is not going to get it done, and seemingly has yet to realize that Wilson and his minion coaches are also part of the problem.
 
msun30 said:
words don't make me happy. taking action does. there is nothing revelatory about what burke is saying. 'we're losing and i'm not happy about it.' so ****ing do something about it, windbag.
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well, when the words say that he definitely WILL do something which he said he wouldn't do just a few weeks ago, then that should probably make you a little bit happier.
 
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