Consistently Inconsistent - By Mike Byrne

  As we all know the past two seasons of Toronto Maple Leafs hockey have been headlined by monumental collapses, both in single game (the game that shall not be named) and in the well documented final 14 games of last season that saw the buds go 2-12-0 and free fall out of a playoff spot, in a fashion that only the Leafs could.

    This past weekend the Leafs played back to back games on Saturday and Sunday, with both games showing two very different Leaf teams. After Saturday night's loss to the Pens, a game which epitomized the entire 13/14 season in a 60 minute game, the Leafs came out against the Rangers and played lights out, chasing Henrik Lundqvist from the net (not a small feat by any stretch of the imagination) As giddy as Leafs nation was after the Rangers win, personally it left me with an uneasy feeling of "here we go again"

  Don't get me wrong, I was as pleased with Sunday nights victory as the next blue and white blooded fan. However one word stuck in my mind throughout my analysis of the past weekend, inconsistency. Inconsistency has plagued the Leafs for the better part of the post lockout (2004) era. Many theories have arisen in regards to what is the cause of all of these record setting debacles. Whether coaching, the players, or the culture of the franchise, each aspect has played a role in the demise of the previous two seasons.

    The most mind boggling move  the Leafs neglected to make this offseason was the firing of Randy Carlyle (insert Carlyle rant here) a move that not only was negative for the players, but one that aids in the narrative of what a joke the Leafs management is. Giving an extension to a coach that has been at the helm for two seasons, with the most recent season ending in more misery than the shortened season, a task that seemed impossible, but then again nothing appears to be impossible for the Leafs (except of course making the playoffs on a regular basis) every game when the camera flashes to a shot of Carlyle the only I see is an uninspiring guy, standing behind the bench , keeping it warm for his inevitable replacement, yet another opportunity for The league to point and laugh at the disarray of our management structure. It is abundantly clear Carlyle is not in control of his lineup or roster moves any longer (see Marlies for Orr and McLaren) so why keep him around ? Because the Leafs....that's why.

 Now I cannot in good conscience complete this article without of course placing some blame on the players, after all they are the ones making the money, and tasked to actually do the job of putting the puck in the net, and preventing the puck from going in the net. However , after we all watched HBO 24/7 last season, it doesn't take a rocket scientist to see that these players just don't want to listen to Carlyle. The bottom line is, the Leafs are a more talented team than the last two years would lead us to believe, get a decent coach in there, with some stability in the front office, and stop making the team and organization as a whole, the punch line for jokes that we all have to hear throughout the season.

    To wrap it all up, it is my firm belief that as long as Carlyle is behind the bench, the Leafs will be poised for inconsistency and further collapses. Hopefully I am I horribly wrong, but there is no evidence to support any different outcome. Here's hoping for a win against the Avs tonight, hopefully we see the better side of this Jekyll and Hyde team for tonight's matchup ! Stay positive Leafs nation, after all, no matter what, we are all in this together!

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@ByrneMGL

Bye Bye Burke

So by now I am sure all 8 of my readers have heard the Brian Burke has been relieved of his duties today by MLSE today causing quite a stir on Twitter.

Dave Nonis will take over as the GM and Senior VP of the Toronto Maple Leafs.

A lot of people were saying that Burke got fired because he didn't want Luongo, and a lot of people were saying he got fired because he wanted Luongo.  As dumb as a corporation, such as Bell/Rogers, is when it comes to sports, I highly doubt that they would fire the GM because of him wanting or not wanting a specific player.  It probably has more to do with them being the new owners and and not wanting Burke there or possibly a disagreement on something on a bigger scale..

I liked Burke.  Any time he spoke, you knew he was being sincere.  He was the hard worker that liked "truculence" and didn't take anyone's guff.  I thought them firing him was a bit premature.  He has only had 3 and a half seasons running the team and has really did a good job restocking the farm system, considering what he was given to start with.

I'll always be thankful to burkie for giving me the opportunity to play in TO...as well as his tireless efforts in the community. #respect
— John-Michael Liles (@hoosierjm26) January 9, 2013

This changes absolutely nothing for our players. We are focused- ready to go for day 1 of camp and that will not change.
— Joffrey Lupul (@JLupul) January 9, 2013

The Leafs record while under Burke was an unimpressive one to say the least.  The were 128-135-42.

I do have to say I am going to miss press conferences where Burke looks like this.

COLIN MCCONNELL/TORONTO STAR

The crappy part of all this is there is a possibility that Kessel could be on his way out now.   Burke was a big supporter of Kessel.  Even when the critics, and there are a lot of them, that claimed, and still do, that he over paid for Kessel.  Ok, maybe two 1sts (Tyler Seguin and Dougie Hamilton) and a second rounder (Jared Knight) was a little over payment, but none the less, Kessel is the real deal and was top 6 in points in the NHL last year.

All this being said, getting rid of Burke was the inevitable thing to do, but the timing is just completely wrong. You don't do it at the beginning of a season.

It was a long 9 years when the Teachers Pension Plan owned the Leafs, why do I think then next 9 years are going to be any better?

Oh did you know that Bell owns 28% of the Leafs and 18% of the Montreal Canadiens?