Leafs Picking Up the Pieces After Boston Beatdown

(photo courtesy of cp24.com)

Losing isn't something new to Toronto Maple Leafs supporters. Fans in this city have a pretty thick skin on that front. Every now and then however we witness an event so gut-wrenchingly atrocious it feels like we've just been bitch-slapped by our dream girl. Boston presents the model for the type of team Brian Burke promised to build upon his arrival in T.O. as G.M., but last night's 8-0 demolition was a true measuring stick for how far Toronto is from truly competing. The Bru-Tang Clan is big, strong, skilled, and wicked nasty. The Leafs can't be typified by any of those traits. The difference is one team are reigning Stanley Cup champs, and one team is heading for another off-season of heavy rebuilding.

*Why Tomas Kaberle Hates Money

    

    Tomas Kaberle's playoff goatee looks like it belongs on a greasy carney magician. Fitting because he's actually pulled off a pretty sloppy magic trick of his own: He's making three plus million dollars disappear from next year's contract! Ta-daaa! 

    Hockey karma manifested itself all over Bruins GM Peter Chiarelli's face when he gave up a first round pick and top prospect Joe Colborne in an attempt to bolster the B's powerplay with the pass-happy Czech. Boston's powerplay percentage has literally been cut in half since Kaberle's arrival on the team, and that struggling aspect of their game could prove to be their undoing in this Stanley Cup final. Suddenly the Phil Kessel fleecing is not quite as painful.

    On paper the pairing of Kaberle and Chara on the PP was a match made in heaven. Chara has the hardest shot in the league, and Kabby has a no-shot clause in his contract. But here we are in the middle of the Cup finals and Chara is trying to do his best Dustin Byfuglien impression in the blue ice in front of Bobby Lu. Something seems terribly wrong about that. 

    Granted, it isn't Tomas Kaberle's fault that the hulking Milan Lucic has played like a pussy cat all through the playoffs and can't do that duty himself. One would think however that the absence of Chara from the blue line might allow Kaberle a little more space and opportunity, but whatever the case may be he is not capitalizing in the slightest.

    In a perfect scenario Kaberle and the Bruins could still pull out a series win and take home the cup, but as his contract runs out can anyone reasonably expect Boston to re-sign him based on his performance in Beantown? 

    Kabby has shown all the hallmark signs of a player in decline. His skating and decision making have both begun to slow down, and it seems evident that he'll have to start readjusting his style of play if he wants to continue to be employed in the NHL. He's not played himself out of the league, he has too much Toronto clout for that, but he has certainly played himself out of a contract anywhere near the 4.25 million dollars he's earning now. He can kiss that no-movement clause goodbye as well.

    After considering all he has at stake, we have to wonder just what is it that went wrong for Tomas Kaberle? Is his heart still in Toronto?The last time we saw him playing meaningful hockey was the year before the lockout, when the 100-point Leafs were ousted in the second round, and Kaberle was one of the most solid players on that squad. He had a track record of playing well in the playoffs for Toronto, so why has this experience in Boston been so difficult for him? 

    It will be interesting to see where Kaberle's career takes him after this, whether he can rebound, and whether he can fit in on a team not called the Maple Leafs. If he can regain form he could wind up being a home run signing for a lucky GM, but I would suspect a deal like that to be in the short term. No one is going to commit four to five years to an aging creampuff whose only trademark is a quickly eroding ability to pass. Regardless, he will forever be an enigma. The most over-rated under-rated player the league has ever seen, and potentially the most irrelevant player to ever win a cup. 

*The Most Wonderful Time of the Year

  

    It's every puckhead's favorite time of the year (unless you're a Leafs fan): playoffs. Business time. Downtown Beardsville. When the Canadian media is overrun with predictions and analyses, and American media is brimming with indifference, and discussions about Brett Favre's latest comeback. Well, this year is no different. There are plenty of story lines writing themselves in the days leading up to the start of the 'second season', and most of them don't even have anything to do with Brett Favre (sorry, America).

    The most intriguing by far has to be the best in the west, the Vancouver Canucks, facing off with the reigning Cup champs, and recurring nightmare incarnations, the Chicago Blackhawks. The 'Hawks barely snuck into the playoffs this year, and are a far different team than the one that spanked the 'Nucks the past two playoffs. On paper it would seem that this is Vancouver's year; Chicago is relying on a rookie netminder, and there's no more Byfuglien unfolding his lawn chair in Luongo's crease and enjoying a relaxing spring picnic. To write off the 'Hawks however would be foolish. Jonathan Toews is an absolute beast in pressure situations, and Vancouver is missing two key cogs in their bottom six in Manny Malhotra and Raffi Torres (not to mention a perpetually battered blue line). Upsets are bound to happen and this might be the sleeper that compulsive gamblers are looking for. I'm still taking Vancouver in seven.

     The Red Wings could have their hands full with a Coyotes team that most people are writing off before the puck even drops. Bryzgalov is an elite goalie and that could be a huge difference in the series as Jimmy Howard has been beat up down the stretch and is struggling. Having Joey MacDonald on the bench isn't very encouraging either. Add to that a pair of hobbled stars in Zetterberg and Datsyuk, and the time might be just right for a 'Yotes upset. Smart money takes Goliath though, no matter how good David is with a sling. Detroit in seven.

    The Sharks should be able to take care of a depleted Kings squad, but are they deep enough to exercise their demons and go on a legitimate run? I doubt it. Niemi was brilliant winning the cup for Chicago last season, but San Jose is nowhere near as well rounded as that team was. San Jose should fizzle out by the second round. Sharks in five.

    Nashville and Anaheim has the potential to be a seven game slobber-knocker, and a lot of experts seem to be leaning towards the Ducks. Not a bad assumption, given how Anaheim blazed down the stretch to clinch home-ice advantage in the first round, and Corey Perry's MVP-calibre season. Nashville however is one of the best defensive teams in the league, and Pekka Rinne has grown into a bona fide star between the pipes for the Preds. He's got to be a finalist for the Vezina this season, and everybody knows goaltending wins cups. Anaheim has the edge, but Rinne could very easily be this year's Niemi. Anaheim in six.

    In the east we see some usual suspects at the top of the standings, with Washington taking first place yet again. Although their seeding hasn't changed this year, the method by which they attained that seeding certainly has. These Caps, while still being an offensive heavyweight, have a newfound commitment to team defence, which should bode well for a team with three young goalies who all have upside, but are also all far from being upper-echelon. This team is deeper, bigger, tougher, and should make quick work of a Rangers unit that will be reliant on King Henrik to carry them on his back. Lundqvist is bound to have a lights-out post-season sooner or later, but it's doubtful it will happen against an Ovechkin-led powerhouse that has home-ice advantage. Washington in five.

    Buffalo is the trendy pick this year as the most likely upset, over the struggling Flyers. Current team ogre Chris Pronger is battling the injury bug and is doubtful for game one of the series, which could be a major blow to Philly's blue line. Bobrovsky is an unproven rookie tender who has shone behind one of the league's deepest rosters all season, and would likely be in over his head in a goalie's duel against Ryan Miller. Buffalo plays a stifling trap system that would be ideal for shutting down the talented Flyers. Hard to count out a team that boasts Mike Richards, Danny Briere, Jeff Carter, and Claude Giroux, but Philly may very well be a victim of the match-up game. Buffalo in six.

    Another very intriguing matchup is Pittsburgh versus Tampa Bay. Not many people would have picked Tampa as a playoff team this season, but they quickly established themselves in the "not-effing-around" category early on. The prolific Pens on the other hand have cobbled together another fantastic season despite missing two of the best players on the planet. That says alot about your team's depth, tenacity, goaltending, and coaching. Those are all qualities equated with playoff success so Pittsburgh is by no stretch of the imagination a pushover. Tampa has had an amazing season, as Stamkos continues to shine as one of the world's best, St. Louis has re-established himself as a top player in the league, and Roloson has provided stability in net. This is going to be one hell of a series, as both teams match up very evenly. Too close to call, but I'm saying Pittsburgh in seven.

    The juiciest rivalry of the year has been between original-sixers Boston and Montreal. There is so much bad blood between these two teams, with bench-clearing brawls, classless taunting, and one unfortunate instance of a near-crippling. Montreal doesn't have the same make-up as last year's Cinderella team. This year's Habs are more rouge and mascara: SOFT. The big bad Bruins will have their way with les Habitants, no matter how brilliant Carey Price can be. There's a guy on the other side of the rink named Tim Thomas who led the league in GAA, and set a new record in save percentage. Yeah, he's okay. Oh, and if he gets injured there's this Finn on the bench who led the league in GAA and save % last season. With the addition of Kaberle, and one of the deepest forward units in hockey The B's are as poised as ever to go deep. Boston in six.

    As for the big picture, I'm sticking with the picks I took at the beginning of the year, and I think The Vancouver Canucks will fall in six games to the Boston Bruins. No matter how it shakes out this spring, it's going to be one hell of a show. Get out your shovels and dig it.