Toronto Maple Leafs
30 June 2008
It was reported in the media Friday that the Leafs are trying to cut ties with defenseman Bryan McCabe. I was reading the story on Sportsnet.ca, which states that Cliff Fletcher is frustrated because he's offered to trade McCabe to a destination of his choice, but he won't waive his no-movement clause to facilitate a trade. McCabe's agent has gone on record saying that if the Leafs are that interested in parting ways, they'll have to buy out his contract. As I finished reading, I couldn't help noticing the sheer quantity of comments posted under the news feed. There are a few who defend McCabe, but the rest of those comments were very quick to attack him as a player and as a person. Some sentiments included that his play wasn't up to the hefty contract the Leafs signed him to, others pegged him as arrogant and disloyal for not accepting a trade "for the good of the team", and others contend that he lacks the heart and drive required at the NHL level. Here's where I go out on a limb and try to defend the defenseman.
Posted by Wayne Gryde | No comments yet
26 June 2008
The Second Trade Deadline) is done for 2008 and this year marks the first in recent memory that the Toronto Maple Leafs actually used a first round pick for something other than procuring the temporary use of a post-prime big-named player. For those of you who follow the Leafs, the name Owen Nolan probably comes to mind at this moment...you may remember the price being Brad Boyes, Alyn McCauley, and their 1st round pick in 2003 - a draft that boasted names such as Marc-Andre Fleury, Eric Staal, Dion Phaneuf, and Ryan Getzlaf. In fact, even though the Leafs would've picked 21st, the draft was so deep that Mike Richards, Corey Perry and Patrice Bergeron were still available. I'll let you decide whether that was a good trade or not.
Posted by Wayne Gryde | No comments yet
16 June 2008
outing operations, which can't be a bad thing, as this has been a long-documented weak-spot for the Toronto Maple Leafs in the past.
Now if the media could just finally convince Brian B
Posted by Wayne Gryde | No comments yet