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

[FRT]

As someone who has literally devoted and wasted 41 years of my life waiting for the Leafs to return to the Cup final...which have been filled with 41 years of false hopes & promises...I would have made a better GM then JFJ. There is no school to learn how to be a hockey GM...and anyone like myself who has been involved in hockey for 50 years as a player,coach,ref & fan...we know as much as half of these dupes do! FACT - I said to trade Tucker last season after his good year for draft picks and youth while he had value instead of re-signing him. I just felt that his peak playing days were over. FACT - When JFJ signed McCabe I said it was a mistake. He should have let him go to FA and have signed Chris Pronger to replace him. How nice would that have been? FACT - I was totally against his stupid draft day trade last June to obtain Toskala and a washed up Bell. Even though Toskala has been above average...it was a stupid move to cover up a more stupid move in acquiring Raycroft! FACT - It has proven to be a waste of money and time in signing Blake...a one-hit wonder...instead of going out & signing Brier, Drury or Gomez. These are just 4 blunders an incompetent JFJ did as GM of the Leafs. Blunders I would not have made!

[Sean]

OK, let's give Ferguson the "Fletcher Treatment". Let's talk about his best moments.

He signed Kaberle and Antropov. He has players he drafted (even though most of them don't seem to be very good). Let's keep going. The Toskala deal may still turn out to be decent. Peca was a good pickup before he was hurt. He... um... picked up Chad Kilger on waivers. His team made the playoffs once. I think that pretty much covers it.

Now let's give Fletcher the Fletcher treatment.

He fleeced the Flames in one of the most lopsided deals in sports history. He had the guts to trade arguably the most popular player in franchise history in his prime, a deal that in hindsight may have been even better than the Gilmour deal. He hired a coach who turned the team from joke to contender in one season. He traded a veteran goalie on the downside of his career for a back-to-back 50 goal scorer (and got them to throw in a first round pick).

You know, Damien, call me crazy but I think I'm starting to see why fans like Fletcher more.

[Darryl]

For starters Damien, I am just as appalled as you at bringing back Cliff Fletcher so don't count me in as part of that majority. As has been mentioned, Peddie is the primary problem this club has although Tannenbaum and the Teacher's are the ones empowering him so a pox on all of them.

However, Ferguson's miscues go much deeper than just Raycroft and McCabe. He gave Eddie Belfour a huge payday when nobody else was interested in the guy. Giving Pavel Kubina 5 mil a year for 4 years to watch him play like a pylon most nights hurts and Jason Blake just buzzes around the ice but doesn't produce much (another $20 mil bust). That's $8 million a year that produces little except work for the Zamboni driver. Fergie, although a classy guy who was treated like high-grade fertilizer by this pathetic organization was rigid and unable to explain his moves while tying up under-performing players to multi-year contracts, often with no-trade clauses. He had to go. Now if they can just get rid of the rest of the flotsam, jetsam and lagan there might be hope for this organization once again.

[ken]

Thank god someone else out there sees that guys like Domi and Tucker are way overvalued only in Toronto. It kills me to see how so many Leaf fans love DOmi and Tucker more than skilled guys that actually win us hockey games like Mogilny and Sundin. That kind of attitude is why MLSE and feed us a losing team for years.
A previous poster sstated that many teams would like tohave Tucker on their team for playoffs and I agree that teams do need players like Tucker to succeed, but the problem is that I am sure on a "real" contending team, Tucker would be playing as a rrd line player while in Toronto fans see him as a 1st/2nd line player who is supose to score big goals and be a leader etc. etc. and blow his contributions way out of proportion. Hence, he is getting paid as though he really is a star by the Leafs and thus we are stuck with his contract...

[DGL]

If one looks at the contracts Tucker signed years ago with the Leafs, he was probably underpaid compared to the other jokers they had on the roster. Ownen Nolan..et al. I didn't hear one dang reporter writing at that time how underpaid Tucker(or any other player for that matter) was compared to his value to the Leafs. Now that he is probably overpaid, if you look at the bigger picture, he's probably about even now. So cut him a some slack. I'm willing to bet half my paycheck that he's playing on one half of a knee. Doesn't help when the Leafs try and trade him however.
Damien, here I thought you were starting an article on the "good things" JFJ had done during his watch, but no, off on a tangent, putting another Leaf's head on your pike pole.
Most reporters are all the same, news reporters report death and destruction over good stories. Sports reporters set flames to players, GMs and coaches so we will all read and watch.
When was the last time Damien Cox wrote a story about a sports figure who does good in the community? NEVER why? cause it doesn't sell papers.

[nugentmania]

Who thinks the Habs have a better team than the Leafs? Anybody with a clue, I would hope. The Leafs have nothing even remotely close to the core of youngsters Montreal has that has made them better once they mature....Chris Higgins, Mike Komisarek, Latendresse, Plekanec, etc.

And don't compare Heatley and Alfredsson to ANYONE on the Leafs roster other than Sundin, who has been healthy all year.

And for that matter, forget the Philadelphia comparisons of turning this disaster around in a calendar year. Other than the Sundin equals Forsberg bargaining chip, that's where it ends. Wellwood, Steen and Stajan are no Jeff Carter or Mike Richards. Kevin Lowe coveted a puck moving defenceman, so he gave up a captain in Jason Smith and Joffrey Lupul. Other than Kaberle, who is the equivalent in Pitkanen? Ian White? The myth that Toronto has great young defense exists only in the Big Smoke. Philly had a lot more chips to play than the disaster that plays in this city.

[Dave]

I'm sticking up for Damien. Although I don't always agree with him, his candid comments are refreshing compared to other reporters.

Among JFJ's worst moves was not only trading for Raycroft (Boston's 3rd string goalie), but signing him to a 6 million dollar contract before he even played a game. Hardly any of JFJ's moves worked out. No matter how good a guy he is, you can't argue that.

[Gus Zomparelli]

Damien
Are you trying to re write history to suit your colunm? How can you compare the Fletcher part 2 hiring to the time Imalach was brought back? When first hired,every GM says that you build through the draft. Back then, the leafs had genuine allstars like Salming, Sittler and Lanny Mcdonald. The team was decent,competitive and fairly young.No overhaul was needed.Imalach tore the team apart beacuse of his ego. This is a completly different issue, the team is not doing well and drastic changes are needed.Where are all the young players and draft choices that JFJ said would be the building blocks for the future? His trades have'nt worked out.
At least Fletcher's trades then worked for a while and created excitement with 2 cup runs in the 90's.
Give Fletcher a chance and show some class by losing the Draft Shmaft crap.You have run with it on and off for 11 years and it's getting old.

[Rosco Randall]

Please minimize your criticisms of Darcy Tucker. He is very busy managing his investments, checking out condo properties and working on his golf wardrobe. He'll get around to playing hockey if he has time for it. In the meantime, he has an appointment with his masseuse and then a facial.

[Clark]

DAMIAN NEEDS TO PUT HIS HATRED OF FLETCHER ON THE BACK-BURNER.

HOW MANY TIMES DO YOU WRITE "DRAFT SMCHAFT"? WHO DRAFTED KABERLE?

WHO HAD GRETZKY SIGNED TO PLAY WITH GILMOUR AND SUNDIN? IT WAS OWNERSHIP THAT SCREWED WITH CLIFF.

JUST BECAUSE FLETCHER WAS MEAN TO YOU WHEN YOU WERE A CUB REPORTER, COX?

[Sam]

The focus seems to be on trades and acquisitions. But as a Habs fan - let me point out that a more important change has to happen in Leafland. Scouting. Before Gainey was brought in, Andre Savard was the GM and he completely revamped the scouting staff and recognized the talents of Trevor Timmins. He essentially cleaned up the mess left by Houle - who made some good trades (Souray), but didn't have a clue on scouting and drafting. Gainey inherited this shift when he was brought in, and also added decisive leadership, patiences, and a focus. But Savard did help lay the groundwork.

I don't really get Cox's doom and gloom over Fletcher, but I think accomplished that to a degree with Pheonix and the way I see it, if he can do the same in Toronto, then the Leafs will be much further ahead. Now if only Peddie can act like Boivin and let go.

[Newton]

Why JFJ shouldn't have signed Tucker:

1. Tucker scored the preponderance of his points on the power play last season with about a third of his goals coming in 5 on 3 situations. If I'm searching for bargain talent I look for even strength production and discount PP points.

2. He's getting older and given his style of play a breakdown was inevitable.

3. He's a stupid penalty machine and discipline is the most under-analyzed attribute of consistently successful teams (see Detroit/NJ). Power plays need to be viewed as akin to turnovers in football by hockey coaches and managers.

[kenny d]

Ok, Fergie has had some problems but hey he was a first time GM and Toronto might not have been the place to start but I think he will be a good hockey man before his time is up. I don't think the McCabe contract was all his fault. I mean somebody had to tell him that McCabe was worth what he got. Those are the people that should be questioned. McCabe is Ferguson's most glaring error. I think Kubina is a good player, ok maybe not 5mill a year but still a pretty good defenceman and I like Gill being a Leaf. There is definetly more positives than negatives. Leafs have issues no question but I would like to say something about Sundin. I sure hope he is a Maple Leaf next year. As for this year if the Leafs can't reel in 90 percent wins thru the trading deadline then There are two teams I would like him to go too. Calgary first because obviously I would like a Canadian team to win the cup and I think the Flames have the best chance of any Canadian team and if not Calgary then the Red Wings. But don't get me wrong. My first choice would be for the Leafs in the playoffs because as we have seen in the past any team in the playoffs has a chance.

[Ian]

Great Column,

I am starting to put Rhodes up there with Steven Brunt as Canada's best sports columnist. It's great to hear a different perspective on the Leafs disaster than "Good 'ol Pat got own Nolan for us and we beat Ottawa, JFJ kept draft picks and is awful".

I can hear this palaver (unfortunately) on HNIC every stinking Saturday.

[Sam]

Kenny D - I hear what you are saying - a Canadian team winning the Cup is preferable. But I respectfully disagree that you really think that way. Calgary has the best chance? Over Ottawa, Vancouver or Montreal? Would love to hear why, on each case. Going with your expressed p.o.v., Sundin behind Spezza would be good. Or Sundin with Higgins and Ryder. Wow. But only Calgary?

[Paul]

Damien,
You are right on about Raycroft. That deal was a colossol blunder by Ferguson. Boston would have given him away for a 5th rounder but Fergy gives them one of the best prospects in the most important positions in the world. The Leafs could have moved Rask for a top forward prospect. But the real error with Raycroft was continually putting him out there. Half way or 3/4 way through last season he should have been gone. Raycrofts loser mentality has infected the whole team. But who is to blame for this??? Who kept playing him?? Who played him openning night this year despite having Toskala (an excellent theft by Fergy I might add)??. Who kept trying to have Raycroft battle for no.1 starter in the first quarter??? IT WAS PAUL MAURICE!!! This team will never win anything with this coach. I could have stomached Ferguson. He corrected his error, but Maurice doesn't have a clue!!! Maurice seems like a smart and savy guy but he can't coach. Any coach knows goaltending is most important position, but not him. And one other note: Would you please give up on the McCabe contract. McCabe is a much better player than you give credit. If the Leafs were to trade McCabe on the open market right now there would be teams happy to take his salary. Of course he would have to waive his no movement.

[Rob]

Damien, were we watching the same JFJ? - the only bad deals were McCabe and Raycroft? I've lost a lot of respct for your hockey knowledge through this whole JFJ thing. You're simply a contrarian - if the Leafs resigned JFJ, you'd be all over them for making another stupd move. Fletcher made a couple of bad moves when he was forced to dump salary - I am sure his heart wasn't in it by that point. He made many more postive trades. Draft Shmaft was the correct approach for teams with deep pockets in pre cap days - get off your high horse Damien and pay attention.

[Moe Green]

Being a fan of hockey without being a fan of a particular team is like saying you’re a fan of war but don’t care what side you are fighting for.

That’s what guys like Damien Cox would have us believe. You see, he’s a fan of hockey but not a fan of the Leafs. Now let’s say you’re a red-blooded Canadian hockey fan who has grown up in Toronto and have been a Leafs fan all your life. Now let’s say you get an offer to be the columnist for a newspaper in Toronto writing about the Leafs and another offer to be a columnist for the Columbus Blue Jackets. Assuming the pay is equal, how are you going to decide which job to take?

Damien would say that objectivity is predicated on the fact that one isn’t a fan and therefore – if objectivity is important – one should take the job in Columbus. Let’s think about that a minute. He’s saying that a dispassionate observer of a team is going to deliver a more relevant insight than one who is passionately interested in that teams’ fortune. Isn’t that like saying an Armenian journalist will necessarily give a more relevant insight into Canadian life that a patriotic and passionate Canadian journalist. Am I making sense here?

I guess it really depends upon your definition of relevance. If by relevance you mean a disconnected objectivity then I guess that Damien is the right guy to write about the Leafs. If by relevance you mean a clearly connected and passionate analysis of the team, then Damien is the wrong voice. Perhaps a bit of both is in order? It’s not that I think that Damien Cox isn’t a good Leaf columnist – on the contrary, I think he is one of the best in the business. I just don’t think that he is dispassionate about the Toronto Maple Leafs. I think he is perpetrating a lie.

It seems to me that Mr. Cox – despite his claims to the contrary – clearly has a powerful rooting interest with regard to the Leafs. I think Mr. Cox is an “ashamed to admit it” fan of the Toronto Maple Leafs. You see, I think this team betrayed him. I think he hates the people who have run this franchise into the ground (as all true fans do) but loves the soul of this team. I think that Damien would smash his shiny head on the rafters if our beloved Buds ever managed to get into the finals, let alone actually drink from the cup again.

I say this because of a little informal analysis of his writing when the Leafs are either sinking or soaring. When the Leafs are winning the volume of and passion in his writing diminishes. However when the Buds are falling, the number of and intensity in his written pieces increases. You see my friends, in my opinion; Mr. Damien Cox is a disillusioned and disenfranchised Leaf “anti-fan.” He is no more “objective” than Jim Ralph, Dennis Beyak or Joe Bowen. He hates what management has done to his beloved team. He is too smart to overtly remain a fan and cannot admit the fact that if the ownership changed he would fly to Vegas and get a secret tiny little blue maple leaf tattoo on his bum – if there isn’t one there already. Go Damien, Go!

[Peter]

You are right on, Damien. One doesn't have to look too far back to the "clean out you locker" interviews from last year (2007). The whole time I was waiting for at least one passionate Maple Leaf to speak about how terribly unacceptable it was to miss the playoffs for a second consecutive year. To paraphrase, Darcy Tucker spoke how "it wasn't too bad that the Maple Leafs only missed the playoffs by one point.. that they were right there". The moment he and certain other Maple Leafs shrugged off the 2006-2007 season, how they had to "move on" and look forward to next season, I told my wife that this year was going to be a complete write-off. The attitude of the Darcy Tuckers are the problem with this Maple Leafs team. JFJ really missed the boat on many fronts with this current group of players. Who knows if he had the autonomy to put his stamp on the franchise. If he did, he did one pathetic job of it. Darcy is a shining example.

[TrueNorthPatriot]

Interesting to see Damian write an almost glowing report about Brian Burke since Burke's hockey philosophy (eg. fighting, rough stuff, instigator) are diametrically opposed to his. What gives?

[Bil]

Damian, it's funny how you are switching your opinion of JFJ. You were calling for the Leafs to dump him for so long, and now you think he was not so bad. Well he made way more mistakes than just McCabe and Raycroft. Antropov is having a decent season and now JFJ looks brilliant in your mind, when really it's hit or miss with Antropov and he could just as easily tank the rest of the season.

JFJ had to go but to his credit, he was not given the power by management to do what he wanted. He came here with a plan to build through the draft, then was forced to switch that plan when the Leafs missed the playoffs (and profits) two years in a row.

[LeafsAreTrash.com]

Ferguson did get no credit for positive moves but that is only because the positive moves he did make were so small compared to some of the massive mistakes he made. What can you expect though from a rookie GM with a guy like Richard Peddie breathing down his neck.

All we can hope is that Fletcher comes in and immediately starts making moves for young talent. Although some people seem to think that any trade is worth taking if it moves someone old for someone young. Value is so important right now. If the Leafs open up a fire sale, other teams aren't going to give them serious offers and will try to take advantage of their desperation. A rebuild is needed, but not if it means liquidating players for far less than they're worth.

[Pronger]

Give McCabe a credit? a break? Does anyone in MLSE or in the world really believed he is worth 7.1 mil a season? You can get Pronger and one more spare for that money and you get third class performance in return... and of course is not the only blunder,,, but is one of the biggest along with Raycroft as a No 1 goalie. I am sure even mediocre Leafs team last year would have made playoffs with a decent goaltender.

[Brad Mitchell]

Kudos to "smokey" for his remarks.
I think Damien intentionally, and almost always, writes with a negative tone because the alternative would be too boring for him. It wore thin years ago.
What do you expect from the same guy who said wins, and wins alone, are the best measure of a goalie's value (pitchers as well). Articles like those will never stop being funny, and thank goodness for the internet to store the madness.
Ironically, the one guy Damien often defends (Fergie) was CLEARLY in over his head and made some of the worst moves this team has seen since Tom Kurvers was acquired. Ferguson is a man of integrity, an all around good guy for sure, but let's face it - this team started its rapid fall very soon after he took over.
1) Resign a 39 year old goalie, with a bad back, for 3 years? ouch
2) Let's fire Pat Quinn and bring in a young coach who has never won anything. People may dislike Quinn, he may even be overrated, but his record speaks for itself - the guy knew how to win.
3) Let's give McCabe more money than Kaberle. AND a no-trade contract. Are you kidding me?
4) Let's throw big money at Kubina also, AND a no-trade contract. Are you kidding me again?
5) Let's trade a top goalie prospect for a one hit wonder... Fergie must have REALLY liked Tommy Tutone.
6) Bring back an aged Yanic Perrault for 2 prospects ?! um
7) Trading a 1st round pick for a 30 year old goalie who's never been a starter ?!
8) Throwing money at Tucker after a career year, AND a no-trade contract ?!?!

What's with Fergie and his no trade contracts, anyways?
The list goes on. Kudos on the Niewendyk and Antropov signings, but that list ends here.
Enough venting.