|
Leafs Trickling Into Toronto
 Posted 9/2/2010 3:03:00 PM
TORONTO - Training camp is still about two weeks away but Leaf players are slowly making their way back to Toronto.
Dion Phaneuf, Phil Kessel, and Mike Komisarek joined a group of about twenty Leaf and Leaf hopefuls at the Mastercard Centre Thursday morning as the team gets set to begin the 2010/2011 season on September 17th.
Tyler Bozak was among those skating informally with teammates and the second-year centre wasn't shy to profess his desire to be the number one centre in Toronto this season.
"That's my goal coming in," Bozak said. "You want to be the best you can be at every level so my goal is to have that position."
Bozak certainly impressed as a rookie last season. The 24-year-old totaled 27 points in thirty-seven games and appeared comfortable in a front-line role with 30-goal man, Phil Kessel.
Meanwhile, a Leaf last season but still unsigned as of Thursday, 17-year NHL veteran Wayne Primeau was ...
Who's The Starter in Goal?
Posted 8/6/2010 2:03:00 PM
Jonas Gustavsson or J.S. Giguere?
The starter lacing up the new blue and whites remains a mystery as the days count down to opening night on October 7th against the Montreal Canadiens.
Will it be the up and coming Swede or the former Cup champ? Each has his fair share to prove.
The way people talk about the guy, you’d think J.S. Giguere was fifty years old and light years away from his best playing days in the NHL. Except he’s 33 and posted stellar numbers just two years ago with the Ducks. Hardly a peep is made about Miikka Kiprusoff’s age as his game declines and he’s actually a full six months older than his former Western Conference foe. Still the chatter is out there and the challenge for Giguere will be to hush it into nothing more than a peep.
The Montreal native saw his numbers jump across the board when ...
Leafs Forward Group Marked By Intrigue & Inexperience
Posted 7/27/2010 11:26:00 AM
With little available at the proper price-point in the free agent market and few moveable assets to speak of (not named Tomas Kaberle), Brian Burke did reasonably well in his efforts to land Kris Versteeg, Colby Armstrong, and Brett Lebda among others this summer.
But what still remains on the Leafs roster--as was the case to close last season--is a glaring lack of experience up front.
Consider that no Leaf forward has ever totaled more than 60 points in a season (Phil Kessel tallied 60 with Boston in 08/09). Tampa Bay for comparison's sake has four players (Stamkos, Lecavalier, St. Louis, and Gagne) who've notched 70+ point at least once. Or that outside of Kessel, Versteeg, and Mikhail Grabovski, no Leaf forward has amassed more than 40 points in a season (Armstrong hit 40 twice: with Pittsburgh in 05/06 and Atlanta in 08/09). Or that grouped together, the Leafs forwards have amassed just six seasons of at least ...
|