With the Leafs out of the playoffs for yet another year, the time is again upon us to decide whether or not we want to find a playoff bandwagon to jump onto. I was thinking about this a lot yesterday, as I'm going to game 2 of the Canucks/LA series on Saturday. Last year I was definitely on the Canucks' bandwagon (sorry) because of Sundin, and my husband. But this year... I can't do it. Especially not against LA and Drew Doughty. It seems like I have a crush on young defensemen lately - ever since the Leafs got Phaneuf. I feel like I should still hate the Kings because of 1993, but Doughty, Kopitar, Brown are hard to cheer against, and then I start thinking about how much people in Vancouver still hate Jack Johnson for the 2006 World Junior Championship that was played here, and I want to cheer for them.
In fact, I am determined to track down a purple Kings' t-shirt with Doughty on the back to wear to the game on Saturday. If the Kings weren't playing the Canucks (a team I have grown to dislike, hate and now loathe ever since that horrific loss to the Hawks last year that ended Sundin's dreams) I probably wouldn't care for them to win so much, but for now, they're my team. Who is yours?
Links after the jump
- Wilson gives the eulogy
Mirtle's take on Wilson's performance, and what's on the line next year. - Notes from Leafs Media Day
MLHS looks at what the players and coaches had to say as they cleaned out their offices/lockers. - Whine and Money
Norman James Sports is unimpressed with Ron Wilson's comments about why the Leafs sucked this season. - Maple Leafs coach Ron Wilson wishes team could have started rebuilding sooner
Wilson says he wishes he had kept the young guys out of training camp who had outplayed the Vets. A lot of people around her wondered why he didn't, after all the talk of so-called "accountability". - Brian Burke Might Have To Fight To Keep Kulemin In Blue And White
Changing on the Fly takes a look at Burke's chances of keeping Kulemin, and what it might take to re-sign him. - 5 Things I Learned this Leaf Season
MF37 has 5 things he learned from this season... let's hope Burke learned some of them too. - Brian Burke returns as general manager of Team USA, this time at worlds
Burke hopes to get a gold instead of a silver at the World Championships. But don't tell Simmons, as he thinks this apparently interferes with Burke's ability to do his job as the Leafs' GM. - Boo finish
Norman James Sports isn't happy with how the London Knights' season ended, and has a few notes on Nazem Kadri. - Sedin should get the Hart nod
Elliotte Friedman's 30 points are one of my favourite features each week. This week he has some really good insight into what it's like playing for a Canadian team. - 10 years after leading Flyers to Eastern Conference finals, Boucher a key for Philly again
I didn't even read this one, I just found this headline to be mock-worthy. Have at 'er. - The Worst Management In The NHL
mc79hockey takes a look at the Oilers' management. Why am I linking to it? Because he has an interesting metric that measures how well NHL management does, which I thought was extremely interesting. - Coyotes ignore fan deluge of plastic playoff snakes at own peril
Puck Daddy takes note of something we're all too familiar with here; an "inspired moment of lunacy" from Chemmy. - Important Considerations RE:Throw The Snake (#throwthesnake)
Travis Hair likes to ruin all of our fun. - Tips for winning your office playoff pool
Timely as ever, DGB gives you some handy tips. Vintage Leaf Memories: April playoff memories - Bobby Baun’s heroics
A look back at a time when the Toronto Maple Leafs played in the second season.
