A representation of how the Leafs have treated their fans thusfar this year. Look closely. We're the kid middle row left.
I won't do a post-game post today. The team is sliding again and the positives are few and far between. Philadelphia was on a 6-game losing streak before they beat up on the Leafs. The 7-game road trip that concluded against the Flyers - you know, the one that was supposed to make or break their season - ended a disappointing 2-3-2. That's 2-5 in any other league. And simply not good enough in any league, under any circumstances.
The Leafs are now last in their division, despite having played the most games. They're sitting 12th place in the playoff race. Their powerplay is 5th worst.
A few games ago, when Andrew Raycroft started in place of a mysteriously injured Vesa Toskala, I thought that something may have been cooking on the trade front, and that Raycroft was potentially being showcased to potential suitors. I realize it's a very far-fetched theory - Raycroft has almost zero worth on the trade front. For whatever it's worth, this possibility was echoed on Leafs Lunch on Friday afternoon.
If Raycroft's sudden #1 status is anything other than what is being reported (a groin injury to Vesa Toskala), the experiment has failed. Raycroft is again showing that his GAA will always be well above 3, and that his SV% will always be well below .900. If Raycroft had value before, he doesn't now.
On the flip side, there are several media men pondering whether Vesa Toskala's groin injury might be more serious than reported. Howard Berger said it best, via HockeyBuzz.com*:
"Vesa Toskala's groin-strain may be no more alarming than the Maple Leafs are letting on, but this is not a particularly good year to take what the hockey club says at face value. For whatever reason, the Leafs have grossly underplayed their injuries this season. Deliberately or otherwise, the club has been miles off the mark when projecting the return dates of its ailing warriors. From Kyle Wellwood's "minor" groin issue in training camp that required surgery, to Carlo Colaiacovo's "incidental" pain behind the knee that kept him out of the first 37 games, the story-line has been the same. That's why we must all consider, with a grain of salt, the Leafs' contention that Toskala's groin is getting stronger by the minute. Only the goaltender's recovery and performance off the injury will tell the tale."
The conspiracy theorist in me wonders whether Berger (and the others reporting such suspicions) have a little inside info that they are throwing out there so as to bolster their reputations when the actual news breaks.
Consider this: the people that are reporting the possibility of Toskala's injury are the ones closest to the team. They have infinite contacts within the organization. Who is to say that they haven't been given a small nugget of info, and told to keep it on the down low? Casually tossing the information out as if it's a personal theory is a good way to get the message out there without dicking around your source. These reporters are in line to look like prognosticating genii if Toskala's injury is indeed significant.
*Being away for the holidays, I am not on my home computer. After checking hockeybuzz.com (using Internet Explorer, the only browser installed on this machine) I am blown away by the amount of advertising on that site. See, at home I use FireFox; clearly a superior product over IE. FireFox blocks all ads on all sites, which means not only less annoying visual clutter, but faster page loads. If you're still using IE, I have to ask you: what kind of mileage do you get from your horse & buggy? Switch to FireFox. Now.
No comments:
Post a Comment