Leafs should return Schenn to junior

For the Maple Leafs, history is something to be packaged and sold, never something to learn by.

They like to talk about the team's status as a famous, ancient franchise, but not about the 41 years without a Stanley Cup. They forgot why, after four Stanley Cups in the 1960s, they got rid of Punch Imlach, and were then stunned when Imlach didn't do a great job when he was hired again.

We've run into this dichotomy again at Leaf camp this year with the Luke Schenn debate, and we in the media are as much at fault as anyone else. Schenn is fresh and new, and thus a good story, and any mistakes he has been making have thus been papered over to serve the story.

The very same people that continually slam the Leafs for failing to draft and develop effectively are now suggesting the right move is to keep this teenage defenceman with the big club this season.

It's as though Jim Benning, Fred Boimistruck, Bob McGill, Gary Nylund, Luke Richardson, Al Iafrate, Drake Berehowsky and Jeff Ware, among others, never happened.

The Leafs only have one blue-chip prospect, and that's Schenn. Why would you risk anything with this young man? There's no risk sending him back to junior and having him lead the national junior team, and all kinds of risks inherent in keeping him in the NHL.

Why risk anything for a team that's not going to be very good at all this season? Marc Staal played four full years of junior and look how good he was in his first season last year with the Rangers. Look at the impact Dion Phaneuf made after four years of junior.

Then remember Rostislav Klesla, the fourth pick in 2000, rushed to the NHL by Columbus at age 18 after only one junior season in Brampton.

Ever hear people talk about Klesla as an impact defenceman anymore? And he was just as highly-touted as Schenn.

But Schenn is a lot more interesting than, say, Mike Van Ryn or Jonas Frogren. Moreover, the Leafs are going to say only positive things publicly about Schenn, so that gets turned into a story about how the kid is wonderfully ready.

Folks - reality check time. It doesn't matter how good Schenn is now. It matters only how good he is by age 24 or 25 when the team, possibly, is back to contender status.

It just shouldn't matter whether he's capable of playing in the NHL right now. The young man could be a treasure, and that needs to be handled with care.

To be fair, neither Ron Wilson nor Cliff Fletcher has committed either way on Schenn, so perhaps there's still time for common sense to prevail.

Having seen this exact same episode played over and over with the Leafs, however, it seems common sense always ends up losing.

It's always going to be different this time with this kid. This kid's more mature. This kid can handle playing against men.

We've heard the same thing so many, many times.

Leaf fans should rejoice in the fact that the team, it would appear, has drafted a bona fide stud to build the blueline around. If it all pans out, he'll be a fixture for a decade or more.

Which means letting him to continue to develop in junior hockey for one more year is the right thing to do.

Comments

[Gabe Byarr]

Patience should be allowed to triumph sometimes...but in leafland patience comes in june...(april or may recently).

[Honest Hockey]

So Leaf history in a pre lockout era of clutch and grab, fight for your life in front of the net, with unprepared rookies is the same as post lockout, positionally sound play, with well prepared rookies?

It seems as though LA, St. Louis and Atlanta will all keep their rookie defensemen but they are all wrong in doing so in your opinion. Or is it just your dislike of the Leafs that makes them wrong?

[Confused]

I'm not sure if I agree with that in this case. Would it not be better to keep Schenn here owing to the circumstance? For the next few years, the only pressure the leafs have is to play hard. There are no Stanly Cup results expected, and most fans would prefer they end up last. Wouldn't Schenn be better of learning from better players and coaches? He is not going to learn playing with people (in junior) that are not as good as him. He has certainly showed that he can play decent hockey at this level, and think that learning from better people will help him more considering the less pressure for results.

[Mongtomery C. Burns]

Honest Hockey, the Blues will probably keep Pieterangelo for a 9-day trial, but are expected to send him back to the Ice Dogs to finish the season.

[Sufferin Suckotash]

Yes, but you're forgetting that the guys you named: Jim Benning, Fred Boimistruck, Bob McGill, Gary Nylund, Luke Richardson, Al Iafrate, Drake Berehowsky and Jeff Ware were being tutored by the likes of veteran D-men Bill Root, Chris Kotsopoulos, Terry Johnson, Dave Hutchison, Robert Picard.....wait, ... where was I going with this?... I guess nowhere, much like the Leafs D continually does!
And they never gave Ken Spangler a chance! (the D-guy they drafted 2nd after Wendel in '85)

[Joe B]

The decision shouldn't even be a hockey decision. Is he capable of playing in the NHL? Is he mentally and physically prepared for a year in the bigs?

It doesn't matter. Send him to junior.

Why would the Leafs waste a year of his entry-level deal when the coach and GM have already laughed off any chance of winning the cup? This year is about playing through a few contracts and building as much cap space and picks for the next GM to use - isn't it? So send Schenn back to junior and give the next GM his entire entry-level deal to work with.

[Glen]

100% right on!

[David Bacque]

I hate it when I agree with you....much more fun to debate issues. Schenn is indeed a potential stud defenseman but he needs seasoning. An NHL season in Toronto? How does an 18 year old cope with the relentless pressure of the media and the grind of the NHL. It is one hell of a lot tougher than junior - he belongs there, growing, developing, gaining confidence and experience. That will translate to a horse at 23, 24 or 25.

Since the Leafs won't challenge for a playoff spot let alone the Cup why take risks with your best prospect. You're right Damien, it makes no sense.

[Honest Hockey]

Correct Mr. Burns and the same can be said of all of them. However, if each succeed beyond expectations all may be given a full time slot. By just keeping them for the 9 day trial indicates that maybe just maybe ........

[Nick Martin]

Absolutely, send Schenn back to Junior, let him learn to be a leader at the Worlds, give him time to develop. I well remember how they messed up Benning and so many others. In Nylund's case, he looked like the real deal --- people had visions of Larry Robinson when they watched him --- but were those knee injuries a result of the Leafs' rushing him to the NHL?

[Newton]

By playing in Junior Schenn will learn to dominate at both ends of the ice.

He'll be used in all situations and will have the precious opportunity to fully develop offensively while under far less scrutiny. This is an element of his game that has more potential than I think people give him credit for. It will never develop if he starts in the NHL from the get go.

Furthermore why waste two precious years of his pre-arbitration time with the Leafs on meaningless rebuilding seasons?

[Brad Mitchell]

Monty - I don't know about that one... with Johnson hurt for a long time, I wouldn't be surprised if Alex stays awhile with the Blues.
Regardless, Cox (as usual) is missing the point.
You can't just throw the same blanket on Schenn, or any young defenceman for that matter. Just because he's only 18, he automatically shouldn't make the team?! Ridiculous !!!
Like coach Wilson said... if a young kid is ready, he's ready. And sending him back to junior for seasoning can actually sometimes do more harm than good. e.g. picking up bad habits because you're already above that level.
Plain and simple - Cox intentionally looks for any negative spin to write about. If the Leafs had publicly stated "we're going to send Luke back, because he's still too young" Cox would have criticized them for not thinking outside the box and treating all young defencemen the same way.

[Adeel]

I think Damian is right.
The confidence one gains from playing against guys that you can dominate is something you won't get losing 50% of the games you play. Realistically, the Leafs are going to suck this year and if Schenn plays with them - his confidence (even if he's the gem of the team) will be eroded. IF however, he plays in junior (as he should) he will be a stronger contribution to the Leafs at that time. The Leafs will also beefit longterm because if Schenn doesn't play, the Leafs will suck worse this year which will heigten our chances of getting a higher draft pick - and in 3 years - when they can BOTH join the team -we will make the playoffs and be respectable for some years to come as Tannenbaum says is ther mantra.

[RJ]

The Leafs would benefit to keep Schenn on the team for the brief time allowed and send him back to juniors. If he ends up being a top leader for Canada's Juniors it will be more experience than being defenceman #5 or 6 with the leafs. Phaneuf should be the example followed here, Not Jordan Staal. If Schenn was a forward and played the was Staal did in his fist year, fine, but that is not the case. We need to build solid players who have strong leadership and he won't be a leader on the Leafs until he gets that experience in junior and during World Juniors. Plus we have Jeff Finger, why not make the guy earn his contract than rely on our future. In four years Finger will be gone and Schenn will be ready for primetime.

[Sandy T.]

Four years of top flight junior competition never hurt anyone. Send him back. Kelowna will be a better 'mental-health' place to play this year than will Toronto.

[wax]

You think Ron Wilson hasn't had to make a decision like this before.. if the kid is ready he'll know it! I say he stays with the big club, he will no doubt get better being at practice with them.. and who knows maybe his learning curve is shortened to 2 years, instead of 5!

[Honest Hockey]

Would Phaneuf be any less of a player if he had played that first year in Calgary? How would you know? The kid shows he can play well in the NHL, how does it make sense to send him backwards to learn at the junior level. So he learns to play better offensively at the junior level how does that help him at the NHL level? Why not let him learn in the NHL? One year on his entry level contract. Whipee! I'm sure teams like Chicago and Edmonton really worried about that.

[Matthew]

Drop Van Ryn onto waivers. Or trade him for draft picks. We totally don't need him this year - Fletcher was on crack for making that trade.

[Jason Locey]

I believe that Ron Wilson said just the other day that another year in junior could actually hurt the progress of Schenn. Something about picking up bad habits and not improving his game in sub-par competition?
If Luke Schenn is ready for the NHL, what does it matter what his age is? I don't recall anybody sending Sidney Crosby back to junior. Schenn is no Crosby, but you're not arguing about the level of talent, you're argument is based purely on his tender age and the Maple Leafs history of bumbling prospects. You also omitted from your argument the many many NHL players who came into the league young and flourished. Look no further than Toronto's own Thomas Kaberle. I believe he came in at 19 years old with no North American experience.
He's done OK for himself.

One last criticism of your argument: What does Jeff Ware have to do with Luke Schenn? These are two different players in two different era's. From the owners down to the towel guy, the Leaf brass and coaching staff are different. The fans expectations are different too. This might actually be a perfect season for Schenn to make the jump. If he makes some mistakes while learning on the job, who cares? It's not as if a Schenn Gaff will cost us anything.

I say if he's ready bring him in. Another year in junior and he'll still need to come ina nd learn the NHL game. He'll still need to make mistakes. He'll still be a rookie. Why make him play another year against boys?

[Chris]

Damien is right, face it leaf fans. Don't tell me you'd rather see the maple leaf offense leave him high and dry in the defensive zone as a result of being unable to mount any offense at the opposite end of the ice?? MLSE should wait until this team plays more like a unit and less like a shinny game at the community center in Ajax, Ontario.

[rob s]

Lets let this kid be a kid, he has probably been out of his parents house since 14 haha, so lets put him in jr and let him party one more year.

[mcs d'ailleurs]

Can't believe that I agree with Cox- I've said the same thing thru camp. There is no benefit to keep him all season, however, I think he should be called up thru the course of the year to motivate and educate him to regular season action at this level.

[kwilson]

Hey RJ. Marc Staal, not Jordan Staal!

[Andy]

Frankly, i don't know what they should do with Cool Hand, but I do know that Benning, McGill, Nylund, Iafrate, Richardson and Ware et al (he plainly stunk anyway) are completely irrelevant to this debate. The league has changed and thankfully, the Leafs coaching staff has changed, McGill himself said in today's Post. I am confident that Ron Wilson knows how to make this decision, from listening to myriad interviews on hockey central, the bill watters show, primetime sports etc. He was asked this questin repeatedly, and he answered honestly. he must be a top four defenceman out of camp, he must have proven himself being matched against the best, and he must be mentally and physically prepared. he then referenced Vlasic in San Jose and his handling thereof. As it stands, he is probably in teh Leafs top four right now, and 9 games or so in thr league won't hurt.

[Conn Smythe]

Great post, Brad Mitchell.

Let's stop comparing Schenn to all the others that Cox continually likes to bring up.

If the kid is ready to play in the NHL, so be it. If he's not - send him back to junior.

I thought that was the whole idea to pre - season? To see which players rise up to the challenge? So because Schenn has played well, and because the Leafs have a history of rushing defenceman, he should be sent back to junior because he's only 18?

It's not like the Leafs are the only team to ever bring up (and keep) an 18 year defenceman.

Both Drew Doughty and Zach Bogosian have good shots at also making their respective teams.