Congratulations Maple Leafs, You Suck

The  Toronto Maple Leafs is the only other Canadian team besides the Vancouver Canucks that I root for (I do this very secretively). Thanks for letting go of Sundin but he didn’t work out too well for us. After the Chicago Blackhawks won their first Stanley Cup in 49 years, the Leafs now hold the DISTINCTION of being the only team not to win it all since the Original Six Era. I started watching hockey when I was about 5 years old. I still remember the classic Saturday hockey night in Canada theme song. From the time I was 5-12, I only followed the Canucks and the Sharks. By the time I started following the Maple Leafs they were a pretty bad team. In the last 12 years, they only had one good season in 1999 when they lost to the Buffalo Sabres in the Eastern Conference Finals. Other than that it’s been a decade of futility.

In the post lockout era, the Leafs have not even made the playoffs yet. They struggle with consistency all year and play well when it no longer matters. This causes them to lose out on a potential lottery pick and future all-star. Instead they draft players with potential but aren’t great. The problem with the Leafs is that when they suck, they don’t even know how to tank a season to acquire a top 3 pick. They even suck at being bad. This year they finally figured out how to play terribly throughout the whole season. (Yes they played well after the Olympic break, but their campaign in the first half was historically bad). It’s too bad that they traded their 1st round pick to Boston for Phil Kessel.

I would like to congratulate the Maple Leafs for being AWESOME. Don’t worry Leafs fans the future is actually a bright one. Two 1st round picks is a steep price for any player, but Phil Kessel will be a pivotal part of your franchise. He’s not going to be the franchise player, but he will make a good wing man. The acquisition of Dion Phaneuf is one that I like a lot. Sure, the guy is questionable because he might have slept with Craig Conroy’s wife, but he has the potential to be a Norris Trophy winner. He was once a sure thing to be selected for Team Canada, but he played poorly the last two seasons. Even then, he was still one of the last guys that were cut. Be hopeful that Nazim Kadri will be able to be a 20+ goal scorer as he will be a top 6 forward next year.

So Leafs fans, the future is bright. There’s no way that they will be worst than this year. It’s only been 43 years, what’s another 7 to you.

Do Leafs fans deserve a Stanley Cup more than Canucks fans? I believe that the answer is yes. They seem to be fanatical about a team that truly does suck. At least the Canucks routinely make the playoffs and flirts with potential cup runs. If the Canucks were as atrocious as the Leafs, G.M. place would be empty.

[EDIT]: Nazim Kadri hasn’t exactly panned out like I thought he would. The future looks promising for the Leafs though. We all know who won on that Phaneuf trade. We all know who won on the Lupul/Gardiner trade.