The Leafs gained another valuable point last night and edged ever closer to the final frontier, i.e. a return to the postseason after an eight-year absence which has spanned two lockouts.

However, one of the few causes for concern from the game against the Rangers was yet another shootout loss for James Reimer, who is now winless in five attempts this season.  The only other winless shootout teams are the Hurricanes, who’ve been involved in just one all season, and the Flames (0-3) who can be excused for being……..well……..the Flames!

As such, Leafs GM Dave Nonis has been considering other options that can specialise purely in shootout situations.  Fortunately, he may well have found the solution, although for some reason Reimer (and Ben Scrivens) could potentially be offended:

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• By paul.taylor
• April 11, 2013
• Comment

Big game tonight for the Leafs as they host the first of a home-and-home with the Rangers at the ACC.   With only four points seperating the sides, these two games could be key in deciding their playoff futures, especially as we enter the home stretch in the regular season.

As such, what better way for Henrick Lundqvist to prepare than to go suit-shopping in Toronto?  And who better to go with than the lovely Aliya-Jasmine Sovani!

Before the Argonauts Mike Bradwell gets too concerned, the trip was being filmed at Tiger of Sweden in Toronto, for a segment on MTV Canada.

Finger crossed Sovani mesmerised the Rangers goaltender just enough to have his mind elsewhere during these next two games. (I’ve struggled to complete this blog and I only had the photos above distracting me.)

Photo credits: @AliyaJasmine & @Tiger_of_Sweden

If you have any questions, please email me at paul.taylor@bluetoro.ca

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• By paul.taylor
• April 8, 2013
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Click here for part one.

4) Phil Kessel and Joffrey Lupul

It’s important, no, make that essential, Kessel and Lupul continue to progress in what is potentially an explosive partnership.  Both players finished with career-highs in points and Leafs fans are hoping there’s more to come.

While the two couldn’t be more different personality-wise, there’s no doubting they developed a chemistry last season that has everyone excited.  It’s a shame this development was compromised by Lupul missing 16 games through injury.

One last key that could play a part in the partnership is whoever joins them on the first line.  The problem is, this isn’t exactly clear, especially as Carlyle has yet to confirm his lineup for tonight.

As the teams best centre, in theory Mikhail Grabovski should be playing alongside them to start the season.  However, there are rumours that Tyler Bozak will start on the first line, due to concerns about how well Grabovski fits in with Kessel and Lupul.

Whoever gets the call, its worth keeping in mind the Leafs are also considering converting James van Riemsdyk to the centre position at some point (although this has been put on the back-burner for now.)  While Kessel and Lupul should shine regardless of who plays with them, finding the right centre could help their play transcend to another level.  Watch this space.

5) The first week of the season

I’m serious.  Everyone can dissect this team to death and analyse every minute detail as much as they want, but it’s imperative the Leafs get off to a good start.

As such, the first week of the season* should provide a clue as to what to expect from the team, especially in a campaign being characterised as ‘a sprint rather than a marathon.’

Of the first five games, three are on the road; in the cauldron of Montreal, against the Sidney Crosby-led Penguins and a match-up with the Rangers, picked by many experts to make it all the way to the Stanley Cup final.

And while the Leafs should expect to beat the Islanders at home if they are going to have any chance this year, the game against Buffalo will provide another tough challenge.  A good start will galvanise this team.  A bad start doesn’t bare thinking about.

* Okay, I know the first five games will technically be played over eight days rather than seven, but you get the idea.  It’s all about hyperbole in the world of sports and saying ‘the first week and one day of the season ‘isn’t quite as catchy.

Prediction:

Making predictions in this business is a fool’s game, which might explain why I’m going to make one anyway.

I don’t know if it’s because I only came over to Toronto for the first time in 2006, thus I have more limited exposure to the failure and underachievement of recent times, but I’m still pretty positive about all of the teams in general.  And yes, regardless of all the jokes I make at their expense, this includes the Leafs.

I’m optimistic Randy Carlyle is the man to lead this team, I’m optimistic the shortened season will actually help them, I’m optimistic the team can repeat the form they showed during the first 53 games of the last campaign and I’m optimistic Kessel and Lupul will continue to develop their dangerous partnership.

But most of all, I’m optimistic that this is the season when the Leafs somehow, someway, finally end their playoff drought and drag themselves back into the postseason for the first time since 2004.

And if I’m wrong?  Well, we’re used to the feeling now anyway, so at least you’ll all be prepared for it.

Photo credit: @carterbaxter79

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• By paul.taylor
• January 19, 2013
• Comment

I apologise in advance for the lack of any (attempted) witty or amusing comments.  As you know, this is meant to be a fun, light-hearted website, but Gary Bettman and everyone involved in the lockout for some reason have managed to temporarily suck out all of my love and enthusiasm for sports.  Please note that all views expressed here are purely those of myself as opposed to the Blue Toro staff as a whole, who, rather worryingly, seem to love hockey more than life itself.

I actually debated whether to even write about the end of the NHL lockout; a boycott if you will.  However, at the end of the day we cover Toronto sports teams and whether I like it or not, people want to read about hockey, no matter what has happened.  Translation: I may have been ‘persuaded’ that it was the right thing to do.

At the risk of sounding like a miserable sod, I’m not yet in a position to get excited about the prospect of seeing the Maple Leafs back on the ice.  (Oh hold on, that’s normal for Leafs fans right?)  I’m still pissed off with the way Bettman, the owners and to a lesser degree, the players, have treated the fans.

More than any of the other major sports in North America, the NHL is a gate-driven league, i.e. it depends on the fans.  And yet, the league has shown their total disdain and lack of respect for those very same fans by having three lockouts since 1993*, leading to the loss of two partial seasons and one full campaign.  That is disgusting.

* All of the lockouts have happened since Bettman took over as Commissioner. I’m not implying anything, just reporting the facts……..Oh, who am I kidding, we all know exactly what I’m implying.  People can talk all they want about revenues rising from $400 million to $3.3 billion during Bettman’s reign.  However, while the actual increase can be debated, this would have happened regardless of who was in charge. 

Unlike the majority of you, I actually wanted the season to get cancelled*.  It might have been the only way to make supporters wake up and realise how little the NHL actually gives a toss about them and in the event persuade fans to make some kind of stand next season, whatever that may be.

* As a guy not obsessed with hockey, i.e. not Canadian, I’ve been able to review the lockout more objectively.  And yet, ironically, still get as annoyed.

Hockey fans remind me of my mate who continually stays in relationships way longer than he should, even though it’s obvious to everyone else it just isn’t working and she’s taking him for a ride.  But no matter how much you advise him, how often he is neglected, how expensive the women are, how depressed he becomes, my mate still has to be left to get on with it until eventually working it out for himself.

It makes me laugh (sarcastically as opposed to joyfully) when the media says the NHL now has a lot of work to do in winning over their fans again.  No they don’t!  The fans that are hardcore, i.e. Rangers, Bruins, Blackhawks, Flyers, the whole of Canada, will come flocking back regardless (see last paragraph.)  And for those people who are either fairweather fans or didn’t care anyway, again nothing has changed.  If they didn’t give a damn about the NHL beforehand, how is any attempt to apologise after a lockout going to make things any difference?

It will be interesting to see if the NHL still has the gall to go ahead with the rumoured idea to increase the playoffs to 20 teams for this season, under the ruse of being a big thank you/apology to the fans.  Everyone knows this is total bull.  Really it’s just a way for the owners and players to rake in some of the money they have lost from this latest lockout.

(It’s basically on a par with the NHL attempting to say moving up from their original offer for the new CBA was a ‘shared sacrifice’.  Not really the case when that original offer was so insulting/unrealistic and you know whatever agreement is eventually reached will result in your side making more money than the previous deal.)

I did hear suggestions of giving everyone free access to Centre Ice for this season, which would be a good move.  In effect, at this point it can’t hurt the league to give fans half a season at no cost.  And if it happens to peak the interest of people who don’t normally follow/care about hockey, then all the better.  (Free stuff often has that effect on folks.)

Anyway, I’m going to stop talking about this now as despite being a so-called objective observer, I’m getting riled up again about this whole farce of a situation and resorting to swearing more than usual.

I promise to return to a lighter mood for my next article.

Photo credit: @JakeRoy30, JohnnyMateri & @USAmjs

• By paul.taylor
• January 7, 2013
• Comment

While Blue Toro is renowned for its attempts to look at the more humorous side of the Toronto sports scene, there are just some things that you can’t laugh about.  Take, for example, the NHL lockout.

Leafs Nation can’t help but be concerned about how the Maple Leafs are being affected by the current labour dispute.  However, I’m here to tell you that you can stop worrying.

Owners of both the NHL’s longest current playoff and (more importantly) Stanley Cup drought, the Leafs are often accused of caring more about making money than producing a successful product on the ice.

Today’s announcement by Forbes is unlikely to change this opinion.  According to Forbes.com the Leafs have become the first NHL franchise to be worth…(Doctor Evil voice)…$1 billion!  At least we now know the Leafs can afford to take on Roberto Luongo’s contract whenever the lockout does end.

While the valuation was undoubtedly aided by the sale of the team, this still represents a staggering figure, especially when you consider the franchise was worth $521 million last year.

I guess it also helps that, despite the rising cost of tickets and merchandise, Leafs fans keep plying the team with money.  In fact, it reminds me a lot of a needy guy desperate to keep hold of his girlfriend, who, once you get past the bleach-blonde hair, fake tan and false breasts, isn’t actually that special.

The only two NHL teams that come even remotely close to the Leafs are the New York Rangers ($750 million) and the Montreal Canadiens ($575 million.)* Overall, the average NHL franchise is now worth $282 million.

It will be interesting to see how these figures are affected during the coming twelve months, especially when you factor in the lockout.  How long it lasts and what deal is eventually reached will likely go a long way to determining the valuations next year.

Oh, in case you’re wondering, the Phoenix Coyotes are worth $134 million, which is less than the $140 million the NHL paid for them in 2009, when the previous owner went into bankruptcy.

* Shockingly, the Leafs, Rangers and Canadiens accounted for 83% of the league’s income during the 2011-12.  Hmmm, why are we having a lockout again?

• By paul.taylor
• November 28, 2012
• Comment

We appreciate that Gary Bettman is an easy target at the moment.  However, rather than taking the moral high ground, Blue Toro felt it was more important to follow the crowd and join in the fun.

As such, we present our top five images of the NHL commissioner:

While this appears like an obvious characterisation, Gary can only hope to ever be as funny as Doctor Evil.

For the benefit of anyone who might be a bit slow on the uptake,  The Hockey News didn’t really go to print with the above edition.

This one is particularly amusing.  However, we’re not sure how popular the NHL 13 Lockout Limited Edition will be, because you can only play as Gary Bettman.

Despite Bettman’s comments about the NHL having the greatest fans in the world, we think this picture perfectly captures his true feelings.

We felt it was important to end on a serious note. While acknowledging Mr. Bettman’s trendy hairstyle, we’ve been here before.

In 1994, despite coming off a season in which a team from the biggest market in North America won the Stanley Cup, Gary still decided a lockout was necessary, thus negating any possibility of building on the NHL’s momentum.

Now, Bettman is doing exactly the same again, after a season when a franchise from the second-biggest market in North America finally clinched it’s first Stanley Cup.

It makes you wonder how serious Bettman really is about improving the popularity of a sport that is perennially looking up at the NFL, MLB and NBA in the United States.

Photo credit: The Score

• By paul.taylor
• September 26, 2012
• Comment

Ricky Romero is a big hockey fan, most likely because he plays in a market where hockey is king. He also has many friends across the NHL, inclunding Brandon Prust.

Romero was delighted to watch the NY Rangers-New Jersey Devils battle yesterday, where 3 fights broke up in the first seconds of the game. Here is what he tweeted.

@RickyRo24 : WOW!!! Just saw how the #Rangers #Devils game started today. My boy @BrandonPrust8 is the man… #PunchesComingHot

He then added the link from hockeyfights.com to let everyone see what happened. Looks like the Blue Jays’ ace has some Canadian blood in him!

• By Manny Frag
• March 20, 2012
• Comment

Watch Phil Kessel sing along to O Canada prior to puck drop at MSG last Monday night at versus the New York Rangers. At the 52 second mark Phil Kessel is caught singing O Canada. Not bad for an American!

Video: NHL

• By ed
• December 6, 2011
• Comment