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<BR>Maple Leafs Update (01/30/01)
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<BR>LEAFS WELCOME ALL-STAR BREAK
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<BR>The all-star game is coming soon and thousands of you will watch as some of
<BR>the games best stars strut their stuff in a game that is meaningless to the
<BR>standings and not so fun to watch. I can\'t remember the last all-star game I have
<BR>watched from start to finish. For some reason it just doesn\'t appeal to me
<BR>watching the best goalies get bombarded with shots that they normally wouldn\'t
<BR>face. It must be hard being a star goalie going to the game knowing that you will
<BR>be made a fool of giving up so many goals. There is no checking allowed so the
<BR>defense can\'t do much to stop the rush leaving the goalie helpless. It\'s like
<BR>watching an all-star NFL football game only your not allowed to tackle anyone.
<BR>Wonder how high the score would be?
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<BR>The reason I have interest this year is that all the GM\'s will be together. This year
<BR>more then most you have quite a few big names floating around as trade bait.
<BR>Will this be the weekend some of them actually are asked to pack their bags?
<BR>It\'s no secret the Leafs have to improve in order to make any strides at all this
<BR>year and some would say they need improvement just to stay as good as they
<BR>were last year. Back in October I started reporting that this team was in trouble,
<BR>it took awhile for many to agree but more and more fans have fallen off the
<BR>bandwagon. Back in October there was so much optimism, we added three
<BR>players with \"grit\", now were ready for anything, bring me on.
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<BR>It was a different team from the start but was it a better team. Its easy to see
<BR>now that this team is no better if not worse than last years squad. We don\'t get
<BR>pushed around as much but the game isn\'t decided with the amount of hits given
<BR>or penalty minutes but with goals for and against. Last year had a team that was
<BR>fast,skilled and scoring goals wasn\'t a problem. Slowly over the coarse of the
<BR>year young players with speed were traded or let go and we turned into a slow
<BR>team with aging veterans that has trouble scoring,but one with more toughness.
<BR>Fans brushed off the teams non success early saying wait till this team gels. We
<BR>are made for the playoffs, wait till then and you\'ll see how great we are. Well
<BR>folks if this team doesn\'t start to show something we might not make the
<BR>playoffs. Right now this team is in fifth place in the conference with the top eight
<BR>making the playoffs. We are only three points ahead of Buffalo and Pittsburgh
<BR>and 6 points ahead of Boston. Buffalo has three games in hand,Pittsburgh two
<BR>and Boston one. Six points is only three games. What ever happened to the
<BR>team that was first in the division?
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<BR>There is a few problem areas with this team and where you start is at the top.
<BR>Pat Quinn has to take much of the blame as holding both positions of GM and
<BR>coach isn\'t working. As a G.M. he has not improved the quality of talent and
<BR>some would say he made it worse. Wouldn\'t Steve Sullivan be a nice addition
<BR>right now,or Jason Smith etc. As a G.M. in Vancouver he was criticized for not
<BR>making the big trade to shake things up and he is doing the same here. He loves
<BR>to tinker,making small insignificant moves. As a manager he brings up players
<BR>from the farm to watch him as coach sit them in the press box.
<BR>As a coach he has made very poor decisions.He waited way too long before
<BR>sending Svoboda back to the minors, should bring up McCauley to give him
<BR>some youth and spark on a team that needs one but prefers to stick with his
<BR>veterans who have tuned him out. Quinn says the team plays like it practices.
<BR>Well who is it that runs the practices? Isn\'t it the coach who is suppose to make
<BR>sure his troops take the practices seriously.The team plays lazy with no
<BR>emotion, no hustle. Very few players have the fire in their eyes of a Tucker. The
<BR>power play is useless with no real method to the madness, it seems like they
<BR>don\'t know what to do when they have a man advantage. Quinn says he wants
<BR>them to do this and that but they don\'t do it. But as a coach it is his
<BR>responsibility to make sure they play his system. They don\'t. I have said plenty
<BR>in the past of their captain playing like a fat cat. He hasn\'t changed much. He
<BR>does play the odd game like he should play everynight but he takes two many
<BR>shifts and games off and offers little leadership to a crew that\'s sinking. This
<BR>team has a first line of Hoglund,Sundin and Thomas so maybe that explains right
<BR>there that we are a team that deserves to be where its at. That first line doesn\'t
<BR>scare anyone and produces very little.
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<BR>Which brings us back to the all-star game. Will this team finally bring one of the
<BR>rumored players to this team? Quinn the coach isn\'t complaining to Quinn the
<BR>manager to shake up this team. But as the manager he has to do something.
<BR>Other teams managers have fired the coach for having a team play so poorly, but
<BR>Quinn won\'t fire himself. As a coach he has the luxury of not having someone
<BR>over his shoulder watching him. Pat Quinn as the highest paid coach in the
<BR>business runs his team like many on his team play it, like a fat cat that isn\'t very
<BR>hungry.
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<BR>Lionel Corbeil,
<BR>Toronto Maple Leafs Columnist
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<BR>Written by Lionel Corbeil, A Puckfans.com Toronto Maple Leafs Writer.
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