Welcome to Toronto, Mr. Burke.
Saturday night's win over the Philadelphia Flyers made Brian Burke's arrival in the city even sweeter. The Leafs got a visit from their new general manager prior to the game and whatever his message was it was well received. The Maple Leafs held a 4-2 victory with Burke looking on in the press box.
Role in Toronto
Recently the Maple Leafs had hit the skids; lacking effort, teamwork, and organization. Three things that Burke hopes to drastically change. “We require as a team proper levels of pugnacity, testosterone, truculence and belligerence,” said Burke in a press conference on Saturday at the Air Canada Centre. In Burke's eyes these are the words that he hopes will define his new team.
His new team structure consists of "central pillars, an aggressive, entertaining style and clear delineation between the first two lines of skill players and two more lines of fighters, shot blockers and penalty killers. On defense, he advocates two skill pairings and one set of plumbers." Another point that Burke focused on was the sense of community. He believes that if you play in a great city such as Toronto, you should give back to the fans. Those players not to keen on the idea might find themselves looking for another team.
What this means for the Maple Leafs
Since the 2000-01 season, Burke’s teams have qualified for the Stanley Cup playoffs all seven times, playing in 13 total postseason series. In addition, all seven of those clubs recorded at least 90+ points, including four 100-point seasons. Having a substantial record such as this brings hope to the Maple Leafs in their pursuit fot eh Stanley Cup.
Coach Ron Wilson agreed with a lot of sentiments saying, ""He can't turn water into wine any more than I can," Wilson said. "It's going to take some time to get everything into place."
A little pressure has been put on Burke's shoulders. "The guy who turns this team around and wins a championship,” he said, “they’re going to name schools after him.”
Burke's Background
From mapleleafs.com, "Born in Providence, RI and raised in Edina, MN, Burke was named the Vice President and Director of Hockey Operations by the Vancouver Canucks in June of 1987. Burke left Vancouver to serve as General Manager of the Hartford Whalers for one season in 1992, before joining the NHL front office as Senior Vice President and Director of Hockey Operations in September of 1993."
