Blue Blood

by hypnotique on Feb 12, 2012 1:16 PM EST

There has got to be enough blue blood flowing through the streets of Toronto today, that one could take a Gondola ride down Bloor. Wow! What is going on in the "Centre of the Hockey Universe"?

First let's take a look at the Winter Classic. The main reason that the Leafs are going to the "Big Show" next year is not Burke and his rebuild or Wilson's coaching or the Leafs performance on the ice for that matter. The number one reason that this is happening is because of us_"The Leaf Fan"_. Gary Bettman is a smart man on a mission to break attendance records. He knows that on Jan 1 2013, Leaf fans will get in their cars and leave a trail of Blue Blood for miles down the 401 no matter where the Leafs are in the standings.

There is no dispute that there is a huge fan base in Toronto and has been for many years. Lack of hardware, and in most recent years even playoff appearances, has not made a difference. Be it Maple Leaf Gardens or Air Canada Centre, chances have always been slim to get a ticket to watch the Beloved Leafs play live. No wonder Burke was so confident that he could sell 50 thousand tickets in 72 hours. When you can sell that many tickets in such a short time span for a team that hasn't made the playoffs in years, then what incentive does Front Office have to build a winning team. This Leafanasaurus is tired and just about ready to become extinct. Maybe hearing some echoes in an empty ACC might light a firecracker underneath somebody. Where has all the pride gone?

The last few games are certainly cause for concern yet again and something should be done about it. Wilson has got to be sitting Phaneuf. What is good for the goose has gotta be good for him as well. I say put a C on Grabovski for a couple of games and let Dion watch from the press box. We know that is not going to happen too soon, because it would not look good for Burke and Wilson if their ne'er do wrong 6 million dollar Captain was to become a healthy scratch. Does anyone else want to know if Komisarek's vacation did him any good? We can also debate, until we are blue and white in the face, whether Wilson should start Reimer or Gus or who should be traded for who, just like we always do in these slumps. It simply doesn't matter what they do. Us fans here in the Centre of the Hockey Universe will do what we do best and faithfully support our Team. We will cheer when they win and complain when they lose and some of us will even write fan posts such as this one. In the end the cries from Leafs Nation will fall on the deaf ears of management. Oh, Burke may make a trade or two, we will go on with a glimmer of hope and history will continue to repeat itself.

There was just that kind of history made again last night with Sundin's number being raised. It was a touching ceremony that brought cheers and tears from many, as it should have. Mats Sundin played his guts out for us for years. Here in Leafland we have to celebrate what there is to celebrate and this guy gave us something to cheer about. He may not have raised the cup but he will be remembered for years to come and his number is in it's rightful place amongst the former Leaf greats.

In true Leaf Fan fashion I find I must end on this note:

"Burke, just go out and do something soon before I need a blue blood tranfusion to save me from becoming extinct!!"

PensionPlanPuppets.com is a fan community that allows members to post their own thoughts and opinions on the Toronto Maple Leafs and hockey in general. These views and thoughts may not be shared by the editor of PensionPlanPuppets.com.

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You might want to read this golden oldie (particularly the Howard Berger bit at the beginning), or this required reading, specifically # 4:

What constitutes “relentless negativity”? Constantly complaining without reasoning or proposing solutions. We’re all fans and we all get frustrated when the team doesn’t perform or has bad luck, but regurgitating the same venom over and over again doesn’t help anything or anyone – it just fouls the air, and we’re all better than that. … That said, we understand the reality of emotional responses in real-time during a game, for example, and are likely to be a bit more lenient in such cases. Bottom line: the goal is to make this community fun for everyone.

In response to your question “Where has all the pride gone”, it’s alive and well – good proof is this post from earlier today. Burke had a great interview with George Stroumboulopoulus on The Hour where he talks about fans who blame failures of past players on current players, and I think you might be doing the same with your fellow fans as well as management in this piece.
The Leafs have made progress under Burke’s tenure, and given the current management team’s track record in regards to player acquisitions, if they sit this trade deadline out then I – maybe naively – have faith that it’s because there wasn’t a good deal out there.
I also don’t know how you figure Komisarek can become better than his skill set just by being sat out. To me Komisarek might not be great, but you can’t tell me he’s happy not playing every night and isn’t giving everything he’s got to get back in the lineup.
Hockey’s a game of mistakes, and for the first time in a long time we’ve got a team that seems to be learning from them. Give it time and give it your all.
Cheers.

by Jo4nny on Feb 13, 2012 7:58 PM EST reply actions

Jeebus

When you can sell that many tickets in such a short time span for a team that hasn’t made the playoffs in years, then what incentive does Front Office have to build a winning team.

know what the incentive is?

MONEY! YOU MAKE MORE MONEY WHEN YOU ARE WINNING!

HOW MANY TIMES DOES THIS NEED TO BE SAID!

Dammit Gomez.

by elseldo on Feb 15, 2012 3:26 PM EST reply actions

I vote that every person who tries to make this an argument is banished to whatever blog FLYERROB was sent to.

Dammit Gomez.

by elseldo on Feb 15, 2012 4:26 PM EST via Android app up reply actions 1 recs

that was painful

Resident Internet Tough Guy

by JaredFromLondon on Feb 15, 2012 4:09 PM EST reply actions

now that I have some time, here we go

First let’s take a look at the Winter Classic. The main reason that the Leafs are going to the “Big Show” next year is not Burke and his rebuild or Wilson’s coaching or the Leafs performance on the ice for that matter. The number one reason that this is happening is because of us_"The Leaf Fan"_. Gary Bettman is a smart man on a mission to break attendance records. He knows that on Jan 1 2013, Leaf fans will get in their cars and leave a trail of Blue Blood for miles down the 401 no matter where the Leafs are in the standings.

you do realize that the Winter Classic has nothing to do with standings and EVERYTHING to do with money no matter who is playing? That it is the point? to sell the game and pander to the masses?
Suggesting it means anything else is thick as pig shit.

When you can sell that many tickets in such a short time span for a team that hasn’t made the playoffs in years, then what incentive does Front Office have to build a winning team. This Leafanasaurus is tired and just about ready to become extinct. Maybe hearing some echoes in an empty ACC might light a firecracker underneath somebody. Where has all the pride gone?

how about the fact that playoff revenue is pure and utter gravy? You know salary, and expenses and all that comes out of regular season profits right?
And because of that, every cent the Leafs owners would make in the Playoffs goes right into their pockets. You chime good business as a reason for not caring, but if good business means making money than the playoffs, even one round is the best business practice any NHL team can hope to achieve.
there is your incentive to win