The Toronto Maple Leafs GM Search

I have stumbled upon some pretty insider-y information when it comes to the Maple Leafs new GM search. With that being said,  I think it's time to step out of retirement. The Francis Report is no longer a dormant blog. We're back baby, and we're worse than ever before.

I little birdy sent me some inside information. It just happened to come from inside the Leafs organization. I need you to do me a favour though. You can't tell anyone what I am about to tell you.

Promise?

Well, a bit of a back drop here. The Leafs fired their GM, Kyle Dubas last week after the Leafs failed to make it out of the 1st round again second round. You may say "Well actually he wasn't fir" Shut up. They were bringing him back and then they didn't  because of something he did. They didn't lay him off, they didn't go their separate way mutually, plain and simple he was fired. 

Anyways, now to the juicy stuff. After one of the Jonas brother wrote an article about people crying and life as we know it is over at The Leafs offices, which may or may not be located at the Ford Performance Center, I decided to reach out to one of my contacts there to see how the search was going for a new GM.

I got a text back from my source. This shocked me as much as it did you. They sent me the top four candidates for the Leafs GM job.

Here they are in no particular order. 

Milhouse Van Houten

I'm not sure about this guy. Kinda looks like the last guy, just as nerdy too. Maybe the next guy will do a good job.

A Potato

I like this guy. He is very versatile. I feel like you could use this guy in nearly any situation. Doesn't talk much, that's an asset.  We already know he was a better GM than a couple of them out there.

If we are talking about someone coming out of retirement, then this brings us to our next candidate on the list.

Maggie the Macaque

Now, she is officially retired, she could come out of retirement and do a victory lap. She has good energy, a positive attitude, and won't take no shit from anyone, she might even throw some her self.

Tops on my list so far.

Speaking of taking no shit. The last candidate that was on the list is no slouch either. 

Sam Jackson

This BAMF right here might just be the best person on the list. Like Maggie, Sam Jackson won't take anyone's shit. He wont be pushed around by any snake GM's in the NHL. He is a great leader, assembling a world saving team in The Avengers. A++ candidate.

Now that The Francis Report is back, keep a watch for new content. But please, keep this article to your self, the information in this is super duper confidential. I can't let my source get caught.

Leafs Winning Streak a Cause for Concern?

Last seasons monumental collapse is something no Leaf fan wants to experience ever again. For the better part of the beginning of this season, the Leafs had been improving in all the areas that hindered them in the 2013/14 campaign. However, this current streak has brought up memories of last seasons hot start, and the eventual collapse The Leafs are currently on a 7-1-1 run, and all of us in Leafs nation are enjoying the current stretch of winning. However, there are far too many statistical similarities between the Leafs current streak, and last year’s hot start. The Leafs may be winning, but their play is declining, and that is concerning considering where that lead the team in 2013/14. In the last 3 games (all wins) the Leafs have been out shot 110-76, for a -34 differential, some of these shots against can be attributed to the Leafs being able to sit back on their lead, however, the Leafs sit back far too much, and this style of play is one that has come back to hurt the Leafs historically (hate to bring it up but, see Boston game 7) The Leafs have had an average shooting percentage of 13% which is unsustainable when compared to the league average 9%. One of the main reasons the Leafs have experienced success over the past two seasons is their stellar goaltending.

Prior to Saturday night, Jonathan Bernier had 9 consecutive starts for the Leafs, playing some of his best games as a Leaf. In the 9 games, Bernier had faced 303 and stopped 284 for a .937 save percentage, which is outstanding. In two of his last starts Bernier has had his best two performances during the stretch, first against Vancouver (stopping 44 of 46) then against Calgary on Tuesday. Reimer was called upon Wednesday might, in a move that had great skepticism. Reimer having not played in almost a month, had many speculating a rusty game for the Leafs backup, however it was quite the opposite , Reimer stopped 41/42 (.976 Sv. %) shots and was the sole reason the leafs were even in the game through three periods. Looking at the 9 game stretch last season, the Leafs goaltenders faced 305 shots and stopped 283 for a save percentage of .927, eerily similar to the similar stretch last season. A solid (sustainable) save percentage for an NHL goalie is about .915, if

The Leaf goaltending was playing with a .915 SV% the teams record (in both cases) without a doubt looks drastically different. In both the current streak and the streak of last season, the Leafs have been fortunate to have their goalies bailing them out with above average play, which unfortunately for them, is not sustainable through an 82 game season. Whether you are a fan of advanced stats or not, there is no denying that to win hockey games you must possess the puck.

 It goes without saying but, if you do not possess the puck, you cannot shoot it, score with it, or do anything except defend, and in the Leafs case, spend a lot of time hemmed in your own zone. Against Detroit, the Leafs had the worst single game possession percentage (26%) of any team in the league this season, low possession is something becoming a trend with this team again, and is something that cannot be ignored.

Last season through the Leafs first 9 games they were dead last in the league with a possession percentage of 43.3%, comparatively in this 9 game stretch the Leafs have a very similar, yet even worse possession percentage at 43%. Toronto finished 29th in the league with a 42.8% possession percentage, something that the team desperately needed to improve this season. Prior to this 9 game streak the Leafs had been showing improvement in their possession sitting at 47.3%, still not amazing, but an improvement nonetheless. Hopefully, with the Leafs bringing in guys like Kyle Dubas, these issues are already being brought to the attention of the team, and they're going to be fixed before we end up with another lost season.

The Leafs had been improving in their possession game prior to this 9 game run, slowly improving in managing more shots for and less against, and their goaltending wasn't forced to play at an unrealistic level. As odd as it may seem to be hoping the team can "turn in around" while in of 7-1-1 streak, the stats do not lie, and have come back to hurt the Leafs in the past. It is great to be able to watch the Leafs win, and continue to climb the eastern conference standings. However, and I hope this is not the case, we could potentially be seeing the team rewrite their collapse of last season. As Leaf fans that have experienced what we have over the past couple of years, we should enjoy when the team is winning, but realize there is more to hockey games than the final score, and during streaks like this we need to temper expectations and just take it one game at a time.

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