Getting the Job Done

A couple of final thoughts on the departure of John Ferguson. . .

RICHARD LAUTENS/TORONTO STAR

It's an interesting contrast that while so many want to focus on only the good things that happened during Cliff Fletcher's first swing through Toronto from 1991-97 and are so willing to shield their eyes from all the bad things, JFJ could never, ever get any credit for anything positive he accomplished and the focus was always on his errors.

Give Ferguson the Fletcher treatment, and all you'd hear about is how cheap the Leafs got Tomas Kaberle for, or how wise it was to hang on to Nik Antropov, or how under his watch the Leafs have again become a team sporting significant numbers of drafted players.

The two mistakes that dogged JFJ were the huge contract he gave to Bryan McCabe and the decision to trade for Andrew Raycroft and try to force feed him to the Toronto market as a bona fide No. 1 goaltender.

But of the players he invested heavily in, none let him down more this season than Darcy Tucker.

By giving Tucker a four-year, $12 million no-trade deal last winter JFJ believed he was getting a truculent, heart-and-soul team leader and a consistent 20- to 25-goal man.

Instead, Tucker has become almost a total non-factor, has six goals in 43 games and seems most intent on making sure people blame all these injuries he's supposed to have rather than him.

If Tucker plays like what Ferguson believed he was buying, you could argue the Leaf season never gets quite so desperate and JFJ still has his job.

Now, with Alexei Ponikarovsky and Alex Steen both out, Leaf fans better get ready for increased doses of Tucker. Against Washington on Thursday night, he skated 17 minutes and 54 seconds, about double what he was starting to receive on a regular basis.

For that, Tucker delivered no points, two shots on goal and another minus. On Washington's winning goal, Tucker was easily banged off the puck by Alex Ovechkin, then seemed frozen as Ovechkin hustled back into a dangerous position to begin the sequence that led to the goal.

Other than the big clatter he causes when he misses yet another hit and hits the glass, you'd have little reason to notice Tucker on most nights. He's now been infected by Tie Domi syndrome, a player who consistently vocalizes his value and his determination and his team-first attitude, but rarely actually shows any of it on the ice.

It's reasonable to suggest the majority of Leaf fans were happy to see Ferguson go and happy to see Fletcher return.

Now we'll see if any of the players truly responsible for the state of this 14th place team - like Tucker - turn their seasons around.

Comments

[smokey]

Are there any Leafs that you do like Damien? What a negative, writer you are. I guess you are like one of those shock radio types who say or write outrageous things to get a following.

Yeah, the Leafs are down and have been for a while but most of us still support the team. We believe they are still trying hard and doing their best. Maybe Tucker is under achieveing on the stats sheet but also maybe he was underpaid previous years. I suspect there are plenty of teams would love to have him for a playoff run.

Let's compare to the Canadiens who are having a fantastic season. Does anyone really think their roster is that much stronger than the Leafs? Look at the Sens reord after their fast start...wonder how they would be if Alfredson and Heatley were out of the lineup for a prolonged time.

I think the last thing anyone should do no is panic and it sure would be good Damien if you start writing about the Raptors.

[Brian Griffin]

I think his issue is two-fold. Yes, he probably has Domi syndrome to some extent but I also bet that his knee is still more injured than anyone on the team is letting on. So combine those 2 items and he's sucking a** out there for sure, no argument here and an unfortunate disappointment to this season.

[Mo]

Bang on, Damian! I have been saying for the past 2 years that guys like Tucker and McCabe and Belak are always first to take the accolades of being the go to guys in the dressing room and important to the younger guys - well, how many "dressing room" guys can you have who don't do diddly on the ice? Look at the Leafs, and they are proof that the overrated locker room guys don't really mean squat unless they back up their word on the ice. Tucker is the first to complain about the media being full of it and "protecting" his mates, noble; however, do something worth your $4m contract first.

[Jeffrey Size]

so JFJ signed kaberle and antropov to good deals, and yes, there are some prospects in cupboard. big whoop...how about khavanov? belfour? lindros? allison? all signings by JFJ that did virtually nothing except suck up cap space. and as for JFJ's 'prospects', only 1 (pogge) is listed in the top 50 prospects according to hockeyfutures.com, and he's listed at #44 (behind 4 other goaltenders)! hey...fletcher might not be the answer, but getting rid of JFJ and his moronic, reactive, bland version of GMing, is addition by subtraction! i hope for the sake of the toronto maple leafs, some of these prospects work out...but i'm not holding my breath.

[Conn Smythe]

The focus was on JFJ's errors? Are you kidding me? The past few blogs you have done nothing but focus on MLSE and Fletcher's 'errors'. So spare us your sentimental garbage about the press focusing on JFJ's errors.

If anything, you haven't focused enough of JFJ's errors and have over shadowed his poor performance because he is such a good guy and has endured MLSE private/public bungling on his termination.

You aren't the least bit objective, and make it blantantly obvious who you like and dislike (remember calling Pat Quinn 'gutless').

[Ken]

Damien. Can you think of any other team that can match defensive prowess when the Leafs ice Wozniesky along with Tucker and Blake. What is the Leaf facination with the Woz, do you see it. It is chaos ever time he is on the ice.

[charade]

I hardly think the team would let anyone play with a serious knee injury. It's already bit them on the a** recently.

[Sanj]

Last year everyone was on Kubina and his poor play. However in Tucker's case - oh he must have an injury. As Damien says, how come people are willing to attribute Tucker's poor play to an injury? Why was Kubina not given that same courtesy? Is it cuz Tucker is a good old Canadian boy while Kubina isn't?

BTW, If Tucker is truly hurt then he shouldn't be playing. He isn't helping the team.

[Ronaldo]

Can't believe what I am reading.While Damien vaunts what a great deal Kaberle was, hey-it was what the market would bare-not the ongoing stupid signings and contracts over the last 5 years.Forget Balfour? Domi? Lindros? O'Neil? Allison? the trade for Yannick perreault? JFJ was a complete and monumental disaster. And what about the plan? What was that plan? As for Tucker, take away his garbage powerplay goals and you 're left with a 10 goal a year guy who has minus (plus minus) even strength numbers.You can't give this guy away at his $ numbers.

[Patrick G]

Aagain, people expecting Damien to be a shill for the Leafs. If he was pro-Leaf as much as he's accused of being anti-Leaf, would there be such an outcry of his support for the team? I doubt it.

Hey, Damien's even admitted that he and Tucker don't get along, but at the end of the day, despite Damien's continued swipes at Tucker, what exactly did Damien say that wasn't true?

smokey, the Canadiens arguably have better talent overall and a promising future, but also better ownership, management and coaching too. Also, I understand the grief you must feel concerning the Sens, but it just goes without saying that if the Sens lost Alfie, Heatley and/or Spezza that they might not win as much.

But trying to compare the Leafs' injuries and losing games to the Sens potentially losing games due to potential injuries 3 Hart candidate players, as if that's the prime reason why the team is where it is, is absurd. I'm a Leafs fan, but I'm not an apologist for the roster, the injuries, the way the team is coached, managed or owned. MLSE loves fans like you.

[Richard Dram]

Damien I love your Column . You are the only Toronto based media type that states the real facts, not afraid to say what everyone else outside of Toronto knows.. the leafs suck, they have no talent, they are the most overated , over paid team in the league. Don Cherry, Ron Maclean, Greg Millen and the rest of the Leaf media lovers are only misleading the poor delusional leaf fans by heaping undue praise on the Leafs and making excuses for them when they lose.
I have to laugh when I see a post such as do the habs really have a better roster than the leafs ?
You have to be kidding, The habs have a team that is only going to get better and be a true contender for the cup for years while the leafs will be basement dwellers for a long time. There is no comparison at all between the two teams and what their potentials are. yet the Leaf fans are lead to believe that they can trade Tucker, McCabe, Raycroft etc.. for some good prospects and high draft picks and Sundin ...well Crosby straight up would be fair and then he sighs back with leafs in The off season as he loves being on a loser.
Leaf fans the truth hurts but has to be told ..keep up the great work Damien. maybe someone at CBC will read your column and they will stop force feeding the rest of Canada The leafs every Saturday night on Hockey night in Toronto or where ever they are playing.

[Stephen]

Are you kidding - I will take the Canadiens roster for the Leafs any day of the week - young, fast, and economical.

The Sens wouldn't be as good without Heatley or Alfredson - are you attmepting to draw comparsions to 'alleged' Leaf injuries. That would require the Leafs to have players in the same ball park as Heatly and Alfredson.

[pj taylor]

Sure thing, Damian. It's Darcy Tucker's fault that your good buddy John Ferguson got canned. I love seeing critical observations of this hockey team, but only ones that make sense. You've spent months defending the indefensible Ferguson record, and it's cost you all your credibility, as far as I'm concerned. It's clear you're motivated by personal interaction -- Ferguson answered my calls so he's great; Pat Quinn insulted me so he's "gutless" -- and I won't be reading your column with any respect again. I just can't understand how you can be so out of touch with the reality of Ferguson's damaging work. What about the Kubina contract? The Belfour contract? The acquisition of jail-bound Mark Bell? The molly-coddling of franchise-humiliating Jiri Tlusty? Sure thing, Damian. All Tucker's fault.

[Heaton]

Smokey, what are you smoking?!? Tucker was never underpaid and if he was so what!! If JFJ had a brain he would've traded him or simply let some other team overpay pay him as an UFA. Same thing with McCabe whose mistakes were often covered by Kaberle during the Quinn era. Signing Blake who soons turns 35 with 4 yrs left was even a bigger mistake!! Small guys like Blake and Tucker usually become fringe players in their mid/late thirties at best. Toskala has worked out so far but he was very very expensive in terms of the slew of draft picks given up and having to take on Bell's contract.

[Mahovlich27]

Spot on, Damien. Completely accurate on Tucker and the Leafs. As noted by the other poster here, the Habs ARE much better than the Leafs. Wake up! From goal to defence and forwards, I'll take the Habs team any day. As GM, Bob Gainey has installed a solid team led by youth that is gaining experience every day. Gainey has also exhibited stability, patience and respect to an organization that is significantly closer to reaching the Stanley Cup than the Leafs.

[Vic]

Holy hanna Damien, you really do have it in for Fletcher and Tucker by the sounds of it. To address your point about Fletcher getting an easy ride, and JFJ being treated unfairly, it's very simple. JFJ achieved 0 results in his more than ample time in charge. Cliff Fletcher put together a team that was twice a LEGITIMATE Cup contender, that but for a bounce or 2 was going to the finals at least once, so spare me the boo hoo for JFJ. Yes he may have made a good start where it comes to young players and the farm system etc, too bad he realized it about 2 years after every other GM in the league following the lockout. And I haven't exactly heard you previously heaping any praise on all these great young prospects you speak so highly of. As for Tucker, I haven't heard him making any excuses as far as I know. The only thing I know, is that they give him the contract and then don't give him any minutes, because the GM decides to bring in a Tucker clone in Jason Blake and give him the power play minutes instead. All Tucker did last year was score when give the opportunity, so if the coaching staff wants to then restrict his opportunities, whose fault is that. Try to be a little more objective for petes sake.

[Drew]

Hey Smokey ... seems you would prefer a writer who sees the Leafs through the same rose-coloured visors that most Leaf supports seem to wear ... go speak to any of the blind "it's all good" Leafs supporters who can tell you that the last 41 (and counting ...) years of futility are due to ... any or all of ... bad officiating/bad luck/a conspiracy by the US influences in the league/etc/etc ... so if a person does not share your biased and twisted sense of reality, they should write for the Raptors?? ... why don't you exercise your free will and not read Damian, or for that matter anything written or said by anyone other than Jim Ralph, Joe Bone-head, or Donald S Cherry ... you will be happier, and the loosing may not seem so bad, because you coulda/shouda/may win ... leave your head in the sand, and enjoy!! Been so long since you have seen good hockey or players that you can’t recognize it any more, eh?? But I do hope you keep reading and writing ... we all need a little humour in our day!!

[chris]

Tucker should have been traded last year for prospects and a draft pick or two. Instead, the idiot faction of Leaf Nation whined and cried about how he's needed in Toronto because he's a stand up guy who gives it his all and does nothing wrong and is a really swell guy who may do the wrong things but for the right reasons, blah blah blah blah blah...

Had JFJ did that kind of deal, those same fans would be burning him in effigy. This is what happens when you let emotions get in the way of making sound decisions.

[mark]

I agree with your assessment of Tucker's play, but I really don't think it's fair to catagorize him as someone who talks the talk but doesn't walk the walk. Your article questions his heart and does not accept the theory that he is physically damaged goods (thus not producing). I disagree. I am disappointed in the results, but I don't question the resolve. And, while we are on the topic of disappointments and JFJs demise, there are two things I would point to more than Tucker's signing. Signing Blake would be #1 and not signing Pronger would be #2. Blake not only has not produced, his style of play (puck hog who likes to shoot at the goalies chest from the blue line) doesn't indicate that's going to change. As for not signing Pronger, my understanding is that the Leafs had a legitimate shot at him. I would've opened the vault and I gaurantee it would have improved play in the Leafs defensive end 50% (about the % of minutes logged by Pronger every game).

[Per Trown]

Despite all this talk about tumult in Leaf Land, I'm happy to report than none of this nonsense will in any manner delay completion of Phase One of Maple Leaf Condominiums! Profits uber alles! MLSE!! MLSE!!!

p.s. what's "Smokey" been smokin? No one I know supports this team because they're uniformly terrible and the organization is even worse. Does anyone honestly believe that it would be difficult to put together a team made up of juniors, Euro-league players and recently retired NHLrs that could beat the Leafs in a 7 game series? Easily. How's about Peddie lip-synching Fletcher's press conference comments? You can't make this stuff up. It's worse than the Ballard days.

[Drew]

... and Smokey ... on the Habs question - undeniably ... not even close ... on the Sens ... I guess we are seeing what they are made of ... mixed results, too, eh?? Will be interesting to see how they make out. Big difference between fans of those teams, however ... they seem to be more honest with themselves in their views of their teams ... and more demanding of the people who run them ... and by the way, read some writers in those towns, and you will see that they are much harder on their teams ... you may not know it, but most of your writers/announcers in Toronto sound like they were trained by former Soviet propaganda experts. suddenly Fletcher is a genius - guess it was the success of running Phoenix that warrants the praise ... hope that is a face-lift-gone-wrong that makes him look like he is about to get hit by a transport truck

[Guido]

The issue with JFJ is that talk is cheap. Even in his exit interview he talks about youth and building through the draft. Yet in action, he did neither. They Leafs have very little in the way of young talent and have constantly over paid for older players.

Let's add to the letdowns. Jason Blake. I'm sure this is cancer related (hey how can it not be), but he's been a major disappointment. Tucker is a shadow - playing on the 4th line. Wellwood has regressed severely.

Kubina has played ok .. just not $4million a year worth. Gill is the same, he's played well but $2.5 should get you more.

His biggest mistake was lacking the stones to make a bold move. This roster is so similar as to Quinn's days it's unreal. Signing an injured Belfour was the first sign of the bad days and shortsightedness to come.

Sometimes you need to give up on players that show no promise. Like somebody explain why Andy Woznewski is still in the league??

JFJ's biggest positive moves have been by the waiver wire, with both Kilger & Devereoux being solid pick ups.

[Hockey Fan, therefore by Definition Not a Leaf Fan]

Smokey, you speak like a true Laff fan, which is to say, completely delusional.

The reason the Laffs are as bad as they are is simply because the fans allow them to be. MLSE will post a bigger profit this year than last, and post a bigger profit yet again next year.

Why? Because of people like you. Laff fans continue to support this organization financially, because they, and I quote: "believe they are still trying hard and doing their best". Bet you own at least 3 pieces of Laff paraphernalia, and would likely sell your children for season tickets.

If people stopped buying Laff related crap, including 9 dollar ACC beers, suddenly MLSE would wake up as profits go down. A better on-ice product would surely follow.

And as for comparing the Laff roster to Ottawa or Montreal....wow. Hate to break it to you, but both rosters are head and shoulders better than your heroes. Oh yeah, both organizations are better managed, with better owners, and with much more discerning and demanding fans.

Mr. Cox is the one of the few in the media in the city who act like the child in the story of the emperor with no clothes. Until the vast majority of the GTA stops drinking the MLSE Kool-Aid, nothing will change in La-La Land, otherwise known as Leaf Nation.

[Kman78]

One for thing for sure
Tucker deserves a lot less than he makes.

[John Hunt]

We all can agree that Damien clearly will not be on Tucker's (or Domi's) Christmas card list.