Another Piece of the Puzzle

The Maple Leafs, having more success off the ice in recent days than they enjoyed all season, have outfought several other clubs for the right to sign talented Denver University forward Tyler Bozak.

Bozak, 23, has told the Leafs they are his preferred destination for his first NHL contract, with a contract expected to be signed sometime today. The Leafs are believed to have outmaneuvered Ottawa, Colorado and Anaheim, among other clubs, to sign the U.S. collegiate star.

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Tyler Bozak had 18 goals in 41 games with Denver in 2007-08.

After signing Christian Hanson of Notre Dame, who will make his NHL debut tonight in Philly, earlier this week, snaring Bozak gives the Leafs two of the top U.S. collegiate free agents available, with Boston University defenceman Matt Gilroy still on Brian Burke's radar.

Quite clearly, these free agents are looking at the Leafs and seeing opportunity for immediate NHL work based on the club's lack of depth at every position. This week, in a way, has turned into the draft before the draft for the Leafs, who desperately need to add prospects to their bare talent cupboard.

Bozak, a native of Regina who played his junior hockey in B.C. before heading to Denver, is thought to have more of an offensive upside than Hanson, but is smaller and missed most of the past season with a knee injury. Both are skill players, and Burke undoubtedly made it clear to both that he intends to add muscle around them to make their introduction to NHL competition easier.

Getting both players, meanwhile, is in part a credit to the stability the Leafs are enjoying these days.

With Burke clearly in charge, the Leafs are now a team that speaks with one voice. There's no players hanging out with owners undermining management, no assistant GM fighting with the chief scout like the days when Mike Smith and Anders Hedberg couldn't get along, no lame duck coach lobbying for a different approach and none of the nonsense that has plagued this franchise for, well, decades. When Pat Quinn was running the show, he was fighting with Ken Dryden. When Cliff Fletcher was having some success in the early 1990s, it was after Steve Stavro tried to have him removed before he even started on the job.

When you talk to Burke, however, you're talking to the Leafs, and you're talking to the guy who is going to be speaking for the Leafs for the next five years or more. You also know that Ron Wilson isn't going anywhere, and that if you sign with the Leafs he's going to be your coach. For comparison, check out what's going on in Edmonton right now, with the owner, Daryl Katz, making sporadic comments on the future of head coach Craig MacTavish, while president Kevin Lowe and GM Steve Tambellini try to speak with a united voice at the same time folks there wonder which man is actually running the hockey organization.

Now look at some of the other teams that were in the hunt for Bozak.

First, Ottawa. Well, if you're talking to the Sens, you can't even really say you know who is going to be coaching or managing the team next year, can you? If you're a kid like Bozak with a choice between upwards of 20 teams, and with none of them able to offer more money than any other, that would be meaningful.

Then there's Colorado. You might think the Avalanche would have the inside track on Bozak given his history of collegiate hockey stardom in the state.

But nobody knows who is going to manage or coach the Avs next season, only that it isn't likely to be Francois Giguere or Tony Granato, respectively.

The rumours won't go away that Patrick Roy may be heading to Denver to run the Avalanche, but that's a ways away from being confirmed, if it happens at all.

Signing Bozak layers another good prospect on top of Hanson. Throw in a first rounder in June and two more picks in the top 50, and you have the beginnings, at least, of some depth in an organization that for the first time in a long time is presenting a united front to the hockey world.

Troubles in Net, Troubles on the 'Net

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Brian Burke doesn't seem like a "twitter" type. And he's not.

Now, I don't particularly pretend to totally understand the twitter fad, although this blog is linked to it for reasons that, again, I don't totally get but am willing to go along with.

Burke, however, has been fighting a battle with twitter for some time now because someone out there has been, well, impersonating him at twitter.com/brianburke. There are actually some funny "tweets" on the site, which apparently orginated with a prolific local blogger who goes by the handle of Down Goes Brown and occasionally comments on this blog. The latest addition read, "In honor of Earth Hour, the Leafs and Bruins will be turning off our defence and goaltending for 60 minutes tonight," a reference to Saturday night's shootout at the ACC.

Another reads, "For the last time, Darcy Regier, I don't care if you kep the receipt for Dominic Moore. No refunds."

Not bad.

Burke, incensed by fake and insulting comments directed in his name towards former Leaf GM John Ferguson, had his lawyer try to put a stop to it about a month ago, which left Burke somewhat surprised yesterday to hear it was still up and operating, albeit with a disclaimer attached now that reads, "Yes, it's a parody."

"I guess I don't have a problem with that," he grumbled. "It's the age we live in, I guess.

"But there has to be a degree of responsibility on the Internet. If someone's going to try and impersonate Brian Burke, I'm going to sue his ass."

There are numerous other fake twitter accounts, including one with Gary Bettman's name attached to it that doesn't have the parody disclaimer attached.

Maybe it's all fun. Maybe it's just web pollution. You decide.

SCHOOL'S OUT

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Tyler Bozak has been on the radar of several NHL teams.

This should be the week the market for U.S. college hockey free agents heats up, and the Maple Leafs are hoping to make a big splash.

When Notre Dame was upset in the NCAA playoffs on Saturday, that meant Fighting Irish centre Christian Hanson is now available to sign with an NHL club. The Leafs are one of many teams chasing the 6-foot-4 centre, the son of Dave Hanson of "Slapshot" fame, and are considered one of the favourites to land him.

Until now, under NCAA rules, players can only have "family advisors," not accredited NHL agents, but that also changes now. Hanson is likely to be represented by Bobby Orr.

Another top free agent, Tyler Bozak of Denver University, also saw his team eliminated last week and could, according to his agent, Don Meehan, sign with an NHL club as early as tomorrow. Bozak flew from Denver to Toronto yesterday and will meet with Meehan today.

During the season, upwards of 20 teams met with Bozak, so a great deal of groundwork has already been done.

"There's so much interest in him we just need to sit down and go through all his thoughts and ideas," said Meehan yesterday. "We want to get to a short list. That's the game plan."

Bozak missed three months with a knee injury this season, but returned to play for last week's playoffs. The Leafs are hot on his trail as well and would love to make a splash by inking one or two of these free agents over the next two weeks.

Meanwhile, the player who may be most coveted, Boston University defenceman Matt Gilroy, advanced with the Terriers to the Frozen Four in Washington, D.C. April 9-11, the final eight NCAA teams, and so won't be available to be signed for at least another two weeks.

CHERRY BOMB

Got blasted by Don Cherry on Coach's Corner on Saturday night for having an "agenda" to get fighting out of hockey.

Guilty. If they put that on my tombstone, I'll be okay with that.

Don't get me wrong. Grapes may not like me, but I like him fine. Have suggested several times he belongs in the broadcaster's wing of the Hockey Hall of Fame, so I think I'm on the record as having respect for his accomplishments as a broadcaster. As a junior coach, not so much.

All I can say is I haven't made a dime off pushing the notion that fighting has no place in hockey.

Wonder how much he's made off the Rock 'Em, Sock "Em hockey video collection? And given that most hockey fans apparently want fighting in the game still, doesn't that make him by definition a purveyor of political correctness?

YOU DON'T HAVE TO YELLE

Even as a non-fighting fan, I at least sort of understand the logic of stepping in for a teammate that's been wronged or even the victim of a destructive body check.

But when Steve Montador feels its his role on the Boston Bruins to step in for Stephane Yelle after Yelle is bodychecked by Toronto's Luke Schenn - you know, protecting the skill guys - we're officially en route to hell in a handbasket.

FOR THE RECORDS

Neither Olaf Kolzig nor Jamie Heward may ever play a game for the Leafs, but if you're keeping score at home, both have officially been assigned numbers.

Kolzig is No. 37, Heward is No. 28.