Full Panic Mode - Pogge to the Rescue

LOS ANGELES-With the club having all but quit on head coach Paul Maurice after two one-sided losses in California, the Maple Leafs are in full panic mode today.

As first reported by The Star, the Leafs summoned blue-chip goaltending prospect Justin Pogge from the minors after last night's appalling 5-2 loss to Los Angeles, possibly setting Pogge up to start tomorrow night in San Jose. No. 1 netminder Vesa Toskala has suffered a relapse in his ongoing battle with groin problems after being recklessly forced into action for the final two periods of the embarrassing loss to the Kings.

The Leafs have also claimed Domenic Moore, brother of Steve Moore, on waivers from Minnesota. Moore is an energetic checker who could add some pizzazz to the team's fourth line.

Meanwhile, confusion reigned this morning in the Leaf camp. Practice was cancelled, which was a surprise to some of the most senior members of the team, including captain Mats Sundin.

There is growing speculation head coach Paul Maurice could be in jeopardy after desultory way in which the club responded to a critical game against the Kings, as well as the manner in which Toskala was rushed back into service last night after the Leafs were already down 4-0.

Toskala was expecting to have the night off, but played after former starter Andrew Raycroft surrendered four goals on 11 shots in the first period against the Kings.

If that happens, it will be a difficult task indeed for Pogge, with all evidence suggesting the club is no longer responding to the direction of Maurice after 10 losses in the past 12 games. All political antennae are on high, and even the Leaf players are aware team president Richard Peddie is hovering over the club in what is turning out to be a disastrous California road trip.

A smarter decision would be to bring back veteran Scott Clemmensen, who left the club on Thursday and returned to the Marlies. But with the entire hockey organization expecting major changes because of the dreadful results of late, recalling Pogge is likely to make a bigger splash, perhaps the last ditch effort of the Ferguson regime to put the club into a playoff position.

The Leafs were nightmarishly bad Thursday night, managing only seven shots on the L.A. net in the opening 27 minutes of action as the Kings cruised to a 5-0 lead. It was only after the game was decided that the Leafs got busy, putting 43 shots on Jason Labarbara in the Kings net after the game was already decided.

Maurice denied that his team has quit on him.

"If they'd quit you'd have seen three periods like the first period," said the Leaf coach.

Truth was, the lazy, disinterested manner in which the Leafs played the opening 27 minutes was much more reflective of their attitude towards their coach than the final half of the game.

"Trust me, we're under a lot of pressure," said centre Matt Stajan. "We know what's going on."

Comments

[Nathan]

This team has quit playing for Paul Maurice and I agree with an earlier comment, Richard Peddie's presence on the road trip hardly inspired any fear and to be honest, I wouldn't expect it to. It may be hard for some fans to digest but it is time to blow this thing up and start from the ground up and as a Leaf fan I am willing to see this team struggle for a few years if it means we develop a strong foundation and field competitive teams year after year.

As for Raycroft, anybody who has ever played the position can see his confidence is completely shot right now, along with technique and just about everything else. He needs a trip back to the minors to get his game back on track. I think one person put it best, he plays as if he is expecting the puck to go in...hardly the demeanour one would expect of a number goalie. The remainder of the season should rest between Toskala and Pogge.

As for the GM, Ferguson has to go and so does this entire ridiculous management structure. We need one Owner and one GM who doesn't need unaninmous approval of a board of Governers to pull off a trade. I will leave out coach because we have a decent one in Paul Maurice, but it seems like he's been left high and dry and will take the fall for this season.

It sound cliche but anyone looking at this organization knows that things are going to get alot worse before they get better.

[a s]

There's no need to be hysterical and fire Maurice. He's at least TRYING to do his job well -- more than I can say for JFJ or Peddie. The only reason we've all been encouraged to think Maurice should be fired is because this front office (and board) full of self-serving, overpaid, profit-driven, utterly incompetent hacks want to keep THEIR jobs instead.

Keep:

- Maurice and his coaching staff. It's not that they suck; it's that the players they manage suck as a whole.
- Sundin. DO NOT run the risk of him not returning ... he is the only real offensive threat the team has.
- Wellwood. Assuming he can stay healthy: 'nuff said.
- Raycroft. Does no one else remember that he TIED A FRANCHISE RECORD for wins in a season? We know what he's capable of if he puts his mind to it.
- Clemmensen/Pogge. They would (theoretically) be an impressive duo.
- Kaberle. He may not shoot, but he's far and away a better defenseman than McCabe will ever be.
- Kilger. He, at least, CAN shoot and hit the net.
- Belak. I know, not that valuable, but he's capable of firing up the team.
- Antropov. Yes, he has sucked as of late, but he's shown some sort of worth.
- White. More reliable than most defencemen on the Leafs.
- Gill. Kicks a** on the penalty kill and blocking shots -- both areas the Leafs need major help.

Dump and replace:

- JFJ. His incompetence is self-evident.
- The Teachers' Pension Fund. They care only for bloated profits, and we all know where that will continue to take the team.
- McCabe. No offensive threat at all, now that opponents know he can only shoot from a single spot and in a single way. Never a defensive threat, period.
- Blake. The most abominable underachiever on the team. Also would lose a shooting skill competition to Belak.
- Tucker. Ooooh, an "agitator". Pity he can't score.
- Toskala. Seriously, is he the best JFJ can bring in?
- Kubina. Too many damn bad penalties.
- Steen. Mediocre offensive skill, can't give or take a hit. Good trade bait though.
- Stajan. Too many prolonged slumps. Good trade bait though.
- Ponikarovsky. Like Antropov, only ... even LESS reliable. Sucks in shootouts.

[Elizabeth]

Leaf fans are all so angry, perhaps we should have a protest march down at the Air Canada centre next time the Leafs play at home. Make management pay attention to us.

[Adam Zettler]

I have to laugh at all the silly Leaf fans suggesting that the Leafs rebuild....but resign Sundin. LOL.
Cmon guys, this kind of silliness is exactly the reason why this team is the joke of Canada and the NHL.
Second point: the person who says to blame all the so called "fans" who continue to buy tickets, continue to buy ten dollar beers from their corporate boxes, continue to buy the overpriced jerseys, and continue to subscribe to LeafsTV. Most of these people spend more time in the clubrooms drinking and playing with their BlackBerries than actually watching the game, so what do you expect. Memo to the REAL FANS: MLSE will never commit to winning until you put your wallets away and let cobwebs grow on them, when they correlate losing with loss of profit, maybe, just maybe then they will start to care and bring in some real hockey people to run this sorry franchise.

[Bruce Gates]

The Leafs are disgrace to Toronto and a disgrace to professional hockey. The whole bunch of them ought to be sent down to the Marlies, with the exception of Mats Sundin, and the Marlies should be elevated to the big team. They couldn't do any worse.

[Winston]

Fire JFJ, get rid of anyone possible not named Steen, Antropov, Toskola or Pogge, and let Peddie build condos -- just keep him away from the sports side of MLSE.

The fans are not to blame here as the true fans of this team can't get or afford the seats! They have 18000 + season tickets sold so if nobody showed up to the rest of the games it would mean nothing.

Hopefully there is a dip in renewals and Teachers' gets out of the organization. Only when someone has pride in the organization they own (see the Red Wings, or even the NBA's Mavs) will this type of disgrace not be tolerated.

[Gary]

Putting Justin Pogge in is yet another example of the absolute stupidity of the sad sack leaf organisation.
Let the kid stay with the Marlies, maybe win a Calder cup and bring him up next year when he has confidence. Though I'd keep him with the Marlies another year. Putting him in now at a time when leaf confidence is at an all time low is insane, but typical of the idiots running the leafs.

[David]

It just doesn't matter what happens...
1. The ACC will always be a sell-out
2. Ticket prices will continue to rise
3. Businesses will continue to pay advertising dollars
4. Leaf fans will still watch games on tv
There is nothing wrong with the coach, but JFJ should be fired asap and replaced with a GM who can make decisions for this year and next before the trade deadline. The team will not make the playoffs this year (again) and if they do there is something wrong with the League.

[Matt]

as a young lad i used to get upset at the leafs sucking (at the end of the Gilmour era). now i laugh. i can't wait for the heads to roll. please trade the entire team, oh wait, there is no other GM in the NHL dumb enough to take overpaid turds like mccabe, gill, tucker, and blake, or even low paid turds like white, stajan, and steen.

[bhockey47]

Without a doubt you should have panicked on the day that the sensational Leafs signed Jason Blake. He is unquestionably a lost soul on your team, many of us noticed it when he came to the Coliseum last month...oh yea many booo'd him too. We weren't a good enough fan base for him. He'll never give you or anyone else another 40 goal season. It's my biggest complaint,,,guy has 1 good year, then the checkbooks come flying...it's just to bad it had to happen to the great Toronto Maple Leafs. Go Islanders!

[Michael]

Remember that John Ferguson Sr. was the guy who drafted Jimmy Mann as his #1 pick and passed on Wayne Gretzky because Wayne was too expensive, too skinny and not physical enough.

Sounds familiar?

[cdevu]

Leafs should bring back Pat Quinn and Curtis Joseph.

[Bhalla]

I'd like to think of myself as a die-hard leaf fan...you know the one that bleeds blue and white, but this season...wow, its a tough one to stand by your team...but I still am!

Okay all this talk about playoffs, c'mon!!! Stop sugar-coating everything, its obvious that re-building is a must, and that was clear even before the season started....WHO CARES even if they did make it to the playoffs, what kind of goal is that? We don't need another team to barely get it...then just to get sweeped in the first round! NO THANKS, and why, so MLSE can get a couple of extra dollars in their pockets from jacking up the playoff ticket prices!!! Its Lord Stanley that we want, and that's it, not 8th, 9th or in this case 13th seed in the conference....

Maurice, I expected a lot more from him, but in all honestly not his fault, the upper management really has to change...For all the money MLSE has, they really need get some "knowledge" that could run the day to day operations.

Yes, trade Sundin...Yes, trade McCabe...Yes, trade anybody, there all on the trading block, in all honesty, even the "future" we have on our team (Steen, Stajan, Wellwood, etc.)will at best amount to 3rd or 4th line players....we have no future 1st liners...at least I don't see it.

I really hope upper management is reading this, from a die-hard fan, please take the appropriate mesures to bring a successful franchise to the city, we've been waiting for sooo long, and as you can, we as a city stand behind the team, (financially that is, and I know that's all that matters to you in the end!) We'd hate to see you lose some of the corporates support/seats that flood the lower bowl seats, hint, hint! Maybe that's the only way they will learn! Go Leafs Go!!!!, as someone aformentioned, hopefully we can get a good draft pick out of this dismal season!

[cam]

A lot of people seem to be upset with the teachers pension plan and their ownership of the Leafs. The prevailing belief seems to be that they don't care about winning as long as the tickets and jerseys are selling, that all they care about is maximizing profits. Of course they want to maximize profits, and the best way to do that is to get a bunch of home playoff games.

The current board may be incompetent, but to suggest that they don't care about winning is foolish, not just from an emotional perspective but from a financial perspective as well.

That being said, let's hope they can bring in someone new to breathe some life in to this organization. They've proven they can do it, as evidenced by the tremendous turn-around of last year's Raptors.

[Faraz Farooqi]

FIRE PEDDIE, TELL THE TEACHERS TO GET LOST! OR HARBOR FOR MORE CLASS TIME AND FIRE JFJ --> THEN GET A REAL HOCKEY GM/PRESIDENT FOR THIS CLUB.

Wozionewski -- WHAT A SORE LOSER OF A DEFENSEMAN; I am upset with Maurice for putting him on ice; i guess he has no optios--- Do they not have "willing" defensemen in the marlies who will stand up their guy and play the man and not the puck!?! AND NOT TAKE STUPID PENALTIES -- HE IS BIG OVERGROWN SISSY

SO LONG MATS -- WE ARE ALL PREPARED TO SEE YOU GO (FOR NOW)
AND IF WE LOSE TOMORROW -- SO LONG MAURICE -- YOU ARE A GOOD COACH WHO CAN GUIDE US TO A STANLEY CUP BUT NOT WITH JFJs OR PEDDIEs

[Chris M]

This team has no prospects, no cap space, no ownership, no coaching, no GM - no hope of getting better.

It's a team built by the Teachers Pension Fund. Period.

[Dan Daoust]

Regarding the following statement by Nathan from above:
"...as a Leaf fan I am willing to see this team struggle for a few years if it means we develop a strong foundation and field competitive teams year after year."

Nathan, what do you think this team HAS BEEN doing for the past few years already???
They've been excellent at the struggling part, but they're really lacking on the rebuilding!

[Ray Floreani]

I have been around for three cup wins for the leafs and I sure hope my 3 year old son lives long enough to see them win their next one. When are all the Toronto fans going to learn that the only thing that would panic the MLSE gods is not a losing season, but an empty arena with unsold boxes and seats. Until the fans stay away in droves putting a second rate organization on the ice is just fine. I haven't watched a game this season,and I refuse to buy tickets to go to a game. Fans if you must cheer for a Toronto team Go to see the Marlies, at least those guys play with heart and you will see a better game than the Leafs. Besides your wallet will love you. Can you beleive what it costs to see a team as lousy as Toronto?

[Alan]

The Leafs made no real trades, didn't participate in the entry draft and spent all their payroll on the same old team. Then Ferguson starts the season saying "we will compete for the cup this year." Is he on drugs and if so why doesn't he share them.

First the senior management needs to be blown up. I don't blame the coach I blame management for continuing to feed Leaf Nation this pablum because the seats are always sold. And all the big wigs don't even sit in their seats behind the Leaf bench for the start of each period.

I next blame the Leaf fans for putting up with this crap since the last time they won the cup. They should be screaming "I'm mad as hell and won't take this anymore." Leaf management has no incentive to build this team into a dynasty with all the seats sold all the time. If Leaf fans want to cheer for and see a great team, take a drive down the road to Hockeytown. The Detroit economy is sucking more than the Leafs so tickets are available to see good hockey.

The Toronto Make Me Laugh is a sorry excuse for a franchise.

[Andrew Barrie]

PLEASE! Just let Jim Balsillie buy a team to move to Hamilton, or buy the rights to an expansion team, so I can finally cheer for a team that is owned by someone as passionate about the sport and the team as the hard core fans!

[andrew colby]

raycroft is done. a pain to see him in net. toskala is not #1 material and is unreliable. put poggy in now will kill his future instantly. ship sundin away to simply give this gentleman a chance to win at least a game if not the cup. no need to mention junior, he should not have been hired in the first place. as to maurice, he is very average at best. what a sad organization in maple leafs. i am considering moving myself to ottawa just to be away from the pathetic leafland.

[Paul]

Leafs grab Dominic Moore off of waivers. 2 Questions. Are the Leafs still trying to find a winger for Sundin? and, who the frig is Dominic Moore?

[Andre]

"...Pogge to the Rescue"? When will we stop believing that goalies are the root of the Leaf problems. After bringing in Raycroft and then Toskala once has to wonder if there are more deep rooted problems.
Perhaps the rest of the team does not have the talent to compete.

[Victor]

Go Habs GO The Leafs should take lessons from Montreal and be patient with the young players. Also, The difference: Toronto is a corporate crowd as Montral has fans that know their hockey.

[andrew colby]

pathetic record so far. the self-crippled gutless board takes zero action for change. what a sad bunch!