It's six games, not six years. Let's try to relax

Let me get this straight.

Brian Burke is hired on a six-year contract to change the temperature of the Maple Leafs and now, six games – six games! – into his run, there are big black headlines saying he is staying calm and sticking the course and wondering whether the team will hit the reset button or the panic button.

Let’s review here: This is six games into the season for a tream that was lousy last year and may have improved marginally in the off-season. Who was under any kind of illusion that things were going to be great right from the start?

The whole point of a six-year contract, one would think, is to take into account that rebuilding to the desired point will be a long and drawn-out process. It might happen quickly, but that’s not the way to budget. Yet six games in, people are shooting flares into the sky and carrying on like it’s the end of the world?

Let us further surmise that the Leafs don’t beat the Rangers this Saturday night. They might, but let us say they don’t. That would be seven winless games to start the season. The team then has a full week off, before it starts up again in Vancouver on Oct. 24.

My god, if people are wringing hands and the newspapers have about 30 pages of woe-is-me stuff at this point, what will everyone do for the next eight or nine days?

How about this: How about everyone calm down and recognize that progress will come, sooner or later, in short steps and there’s no sense in getting all crazed about it at this point.

This lack of calm common sense brings to mind the 1993 Blue Jays, who were merely the World Series defending champion that year in spring training. This was a veteran-heavy team with a number of new faces that pretty much couldn’t have cared less about wins and losses in spring training. But the Jays lost three consecutive exhibition games in an 11-19 spring and I remember getting a call from a radio station in Toronto asking me to go on the air and talk about “what’s wrong with the Blue Jays.’’ Nothing, of course, was wrong. It was just people going off the deep end.

Kind of like the way a lot of people are going about the Leafs these days. And they weren't even good last season.

------------------------------

And in other news, Ernie Els had a good idea the other day at the Presidents Cup.

When this event reconvenes at Royal Melbourne in 2011, it will be held much later in the year. The last time it was held at Royal Melbourne, in 1998, it was played in mid-December.

Whenever it is played, there will be a large gap between the end of the FedEx Cup (or whatever ends the PGA Tour’s real season then) and the Presidents Cup. Els suggested the International team assemble for a couple of days during that gap, play some alternate-shot golf and sort of see which their best teams are.

Mike Weir, who is as fed up with losing (0-4-1 in five Cups despite his own 13-9-2 record) as anyone, seconded the idea.

“I think Ernie’s got something there. I would be in favour of that,’’ Weir said. “We’ve got to turn this thing around and maybe that kind of session will get us better prepared for playing team games.’’

One thing for sure: These guys can certainly afford to assemble anywhere for a couple of days and Greg Norman, who surely will be the International captain in his home country, has his own jet to round up strays. There are some pretty good players getting waxed every other year and clearly the time is long overdue to radically change the way they approach this event.

Comments

[Martin]

"Who was under any kind of illusion that things were going to be great right from the start?"

Brian Burke was actually. Just as he was/is under the illusion that Mike Komisarek is a good defenceman and adding a bunch of thugs to a team with the league's worst PK last year would equal success.

Also, what's with all the Americans on this team? U.S. General Manager, U.S. Head Coach, a bunch of useless American players like Blake, Stempniak, Komisarek, etc. Is there something sinister in the works here?

[Mark]

The sooner fans realize that the Leafs are going to be bad for the next couple of year, the less anguish people will feel. So they don't make the playoffs for the next 2 or 3 years - what else is new? At least they can use their high draft picks to rebuild . . . oh wait, those were traded for Kessels. Uh oh! We're done for . . .

[Joe Hutter]

You miss the point Dave. Most Leaf fans are upset because they ARE patient. It was Brian Burke who pulled the trigger on a "Playoffs NOW at all costs" trade showing that he's just as short sighted as every other Leaf GM over the past 40 years. If they finish in the bottom 2 or 3 this year, they'll once again give up the chance to land a franchise player. Who was the last one? Darryl Sittler? Borje Salming? That was a LONG time ago!

[Leafsdrought1967]

"Also, what's with all the Americans on this team? U.S. General Manager, U.S. Head Coach, a bunch of useless American players like Blake, Stempniak, Komisarek, etc. Is there something sinister in the works here?"
Great point there, genius. After all, Stajan, Schenn, Mitchell and Beauchemin have been so wonderful and are carrying the team! The Leafs (who I love) haven't won a Cup in 42 years....is that America's fault too? The team sucks right now -- American, Canadian, and European players included. Of all the comments I've read since the Washington debacle, yours is by far the stupidest and most juvenile. Are you Pat Riggin by chance?? BTW: If Kessel lights it up, remember he's American, too.

[Frank C]

Here's the problem: Leaf fans were expecting the team to lose for a few years but now that Burke has traded the 1st and 2nd round picks away what's the point? He went off plan by trying to make the playoffs this year? Why? The Leafs are nowhere near good enough to make the playoffs and didn't even have to before Burke started giving away lottery picks.

[Sam]

The issue isn't that we expected success ... we just expected the team to be competitive. I wouldn't mind if all those games lost were like one goal games .. we're losing by touchdowns and field goals here! I don't think many expected the Leafs to score goals given the talent or lack of upfront, but we all expected the defense to be A LITTLE better than last year given 9 million spent on D in the offseason.

[Perplexed]

Why are Leaf fans getting upset? They have been losers since 1967 and nobody seemed to care so why now? Leaf business has never been greater so why would a winning team be any better? Punch broke the Leafs and they never recovered. What I can't understand are all the players dying to be drafted or traded and play for the Leafs? Storied franchise for sure as there are only stories of glory days well before these players were born. Those stories must be mythical and border on the magical.

[PeterW]

Frank and Joe are right. Burke traded away the future. It's not the fans who are impatient.

[Steve C.]

Dave, all of this (losing) wouldn't be a problem for the fans if they felt that the 'rebuilding' (for once) was actually happening. We did feel it happening once Burke first arrived, and indeed he did make some positive moves....BUT....this Kessel trade has DESTROYED the confidence the fans have in Burke and the future. Yes, Kessel is young and talented but there may not be much upside to him, and he certainly doesn't seem like a franchise player. I could be wrong but try to find one person out there (besides Burke) who really thinks he is, or could be.

[Tom]

Dave you don't get it. We Leaf fans have earned the right, by virtue of 40-years of futile loyalty, to be uppity. Larry Robinson said that in Montreal, they love you win or tie, just don't tie too often. In Toronto, we treat them like our lazy, underachieving kids, and kick their butts every day, all because we love them regardless.

[Mary Shaw]

Ron Wilson and Brian Burke are the problem. Maurice was fired for coming within a whisker of playoffs both years. With street smarts Wilson announced last season "we won't make the playoffs" and we all accepted it. Its his job to get the team to the playoffs and he is well paid for it. Burke gets a hot dog stand and buys 2 habs players and we are all surprised that they are not giving their all on the ice for the Maple Leafs!!!! For the love of Mike!!!! Habs in a Leafs uniform and this is a solution. Calling time outs and yelling at players, benching players is getting a bit tiresome. If thats all you have up your sleeve you are not fit for the job. What did the players do in training camp. Learn to fight because Burke wants a tough team. Wilson is planning his Olympic win not a stanley cup

[Carm B]

What's ironic is that while there is a call here for people to relax, one point is not even remotely being disputed, namely that the Leafs are going to have a horrible season and clearly miss the playoffs.

Let's consider even that assumption as being rather panicky on anyone's part. The Leafs have not, despite their poor start, been eliminated from the playoffs. Fact is, if they win a couple of games on the road trip, they're right back in it.

Not to blame it all on goaltending but it hasn't exactly been stellar and last night against the Rangers, the calibre of goaltending was pretty much the difference. It was certainly not the case that the Rangers for the most part outplayed the Leafs. Quite the opposite. White makes a good defensive play, eliminating the pass as an option on a rush while giving McDonald a clear view of the player with the puck. McDonald goes down too soon, and that's the end of that. How does a coach and any of the skaters on the ice prevent a goal when the goalie simply blows it.

Is the season toast and Taylor Hall destined for the Bruins? Highly unlikely. There is too much competent personnel on this Leaf team for that to happen.

All we're getting right now are fans and media, eager to bury this team, rushing to issue a post-mortem. The playoffs remain in the mix, people. What we have here is poor goaltending, so far, contributing to a bad start. It happens, even to teams that go on to make the playoffs. My advice is deal with it.

[Moe Green]

Burke knows this team, this city will not accept a playoff-less team for six more years. In fact we didn't hir savvy Burke to hold our hands through six years of tanking for top five picks. JFJ coulda done that. This is the way the Leafs have to build: with smart draft picks, trades and by signing a franchise centre. The problem this year is two-fold. First, expectations were set high by the GM himself. Second, the team is performing miserably - far worse than any Leaf fan could have reasonably expected. And those who thought the team played with the Rangers this past Saturday didn't watch closely. Few good scoring chances were had by the team, certainly not chances that would get past a top flight goaltender like Lundquist.