Double Trouble

You'd figure Mats Sundin would come up here somewhere. All he did was lead in the Leafs in scoring for a decade or so.

But one of the oddities of Sundin's career in Toronto is that he never found a regular linemate to collaborate with on a constant basis. The closest might have been the eminently forgettable Jonas Hoglund. Otherwise, Gary Roberts was there occasionally, Alexander Mogilny for a bit. . .but nobody ever found a permanent home with No. 13.

Phil Kessel and Joffrey Lupul, meanwhile, are an oddity to themselves, a pair that has meshed brilliantly this season, launching both players into the top 5 of NHL scorers.

Yet neither is a centre. It's a partnership between two wingers, with the identity of the pivot in between them almost an afterthought, whether it's been Tim Connolly or Tyler Bozak or whoever.

Strange, that.

Nonetheless, it surely has worked, both in the latter half of last season after Lupul came over from Anaheim, and in the first half of this season. 

We know that when the Leafs won the Stanley Cup in 1967, it was, surprisingly, the playoff combination of Jim Pappin and Pete Stemkowski that made a huge difference. But what about since then? Where does the Lupul-Kessel combo rank among dynamic duos of the post-expansion era for the Leafs? 

There was Norm Ullman and Paul Henderson. Darryl Sittler and Lanny McDonald, of course. Then 50-goal shooter Rick Vaive with Bill Derlago. Vincent Damphousse and Daniel Marois had success together, as did Ed Olczyk and Gary Leeman, particularly in that year Leeman cracked the 50-goal plateau.

Then there was that twosome of Doug Gilmour and Dave Andreychuk. They did pretty well.

Which was the best of these combinations? Give us your vote and we'll publish the results in Friday's paper, along with a more extensive analysis of why Kessel and Lupul have worked well together and our opinion on where they rank.

For more Leafs coverage:

Cox: Leafs' goalies battle for playing time

Feschuk: Best Leafs' start to a year in half a century

Dion Phaneuf voted most overrated player in SI poll

Disciplined Leafs learning to stay out of the penalty box

 

 

Comments

[Bill Ritchie]

What about Frank Mahovlich and Red Kelly.

[Daniel Malstrom]

All these pairings were pretty good. But hard ro beat Sittler and Macdonald.

[Blair]

Sittler and co were a little before my time and Kessel and Lupul have only been together for one wonderful year. I loved watching Gilmour, my second favourite Leaf all-time, and Andreychuk work together.

[sid tarsey]

My sentiments exactly Bill Ritchie, if we can go back as far as Norm Ullman and Paul Henderson certainly we could go back to the Big M and Red Kelly. And as far as your goalie poll goes, show a picture of Bower without the mask. He only wore it at the tail end of his career and it is not how he is remembered.

[wayne powers]

The problem is you have never seen a winning leafs team, so I agree with the Big M and Red Kelly, and they have cup rings to back them up

[TJ]

How about the Leafs all time line of scoring, play making, grit, and work ethic - Sundin, Robers, and Mogilny.

[Guelphdad]

Bill, Mahovlich/Kelly won't pass the post-expansion part of the question.

Sad reality that Leafs management never really stepped up and found a top notch player for Sundin to play with on a regular basis.

My money/memory is on McDonald/Sittler pairing. Sadder still what an egomaniac will do when they own the team in sending these two packing.

[Wade]

I know he won't win in this poll but I'm always baffled as to why Vaive doesn't get more recognition as a Leaf great, top 5 in the league for goals twice while on some of the worst teams in franchise history; same PPG rate (while a Leaf) as Sundin, second only to Sittler; only Leaf to score 50 three times....

[jayvk]

Mats Sundin and Stumpy Thomas...no duo was more clutch!

[Chris Rivers]

While Sundin and Mogilny weren't together long, there's no question in my mind that they were the best duo. On a two-on-one, you could turn on the goal light when they hit the blueline. It was the closest thing to a guaranteed goal in the ACC since Brett Hull set up a one-timer at CuJo at the top of the circle.

[Mark]

Is this a joke? Phill kessel is a worthless bum. Does anyone notice what he does in his own end. My answer is simply no because he is never there. He Is off cherry picking hoping to sneak by with no worry of the other team scoring a goal while they play 5 on 4. While lupul and bozak (or connolly) fight their behinds off to get the puck kessels skating around like a goof trying to avoid any and all contact. I vote kessel is an overrated bum whose only quality is a quick shot.

Seguin would have been nice to have.

[Aki Berger]

Yeah, Mark, Kessel's worthless. All those goals he scores in the OFFENSIVE ZONE, which is what they need him/ pay him for, are a waste of time.