Maple Leafs' Run Ends
Leafs Eliminated from Playoff Contention, but with Solid Effort
Before there was Boston, there was Philadelphia.
Two wins in two nights for the Toronto Maple Leafs against the Flyers - oddly enough, the same team that eliminated the Leafs in the second round of the playoffs in the pre-lockout season - just a few short weeks ago kept the Leafs' playoff hopes alive, albeit by an ever-splitting piece of already thin twine. And then came the big, bad Bruins, minus leading scorer Marc Savard (lest we not forget future captain Patrice Bergeron either, out since early in the season after being driven into the boards head first by Flyer Randy Jones). The writing was on the wall for the Leafs to continue on with their improbable journey towards that elusive playoff berth, for a few more games at least, anyway. But, in this second series of back-to-back games, the Leafs could not deliver on their promise to their fans. Dropping the two head-to-heads by a combined 10-4 scored, the Leafs were finally officially eliminated from playoff contention this past Thursday. This, of course, coming after an impressive stretch during which the team went 14-6-1 following a devastating 8-0 loss to the equally mediocre Florida Panthers.
Indeed, for the third straight season, the Leafs made it far enought in their last-ditch drive to the posteseason to capture the hearts of most Torontonians (except the few who were holding out for a lottery pick, but more on that later) only to let them drown, sunken in the deepest depths of Lake Ontario. Oh, why torture them so? Last year, the Leafs were alive up until the final day of the regular season when the New York Islanders eliminated them with a shootout victory over the New Jersey Devils. That victory, of course, coming after the Isles had given up a 2-0 lead late in the third period to force overtime. Had the Islander lost that game, the Leafs would have held on to capture the eighth spot in the Eastern Conference. Instead, they missed out by a single point. Two years ago, a similar story unfolded with the Leafs falling just two points short.
Most around the league likely would likely balk at the thought of caring for another team's downfall, but the Leafs, and their fans, clearly deserve better. It wasn't too long ago that the Habs were in the same boat, maybe captaining a dinkier one, a tugboat lacking steam, even. Last year, the Habs lost to the Leafs in their final game of the season to likewise be eliminated. A few years prior to the lockout, when Rejean Houle was still in charge, and Andre Savard had yet to take over the helm as general manager and start to right the ship, the blue, white, and red were suffering Old Yeller style. Why somebody didn't just come and put the team down is an. At one point, the Habs were briefly the worst team in the league (just as the Leafs were at one time the worst in the conference this year), not even sporting a 20-goal scorer on their roster one season. And while the high draft picks were coming, the Montreal scouts (or just the inept Houle) weren't doing their due diligence in stockpiling blue-chip prospects. Instead, we got the likes of Eric Chouinard, Terry Ryan, Jason Ward, and Matt "the other" Higgins. It's easy from a fan's perspective, especially one in his teens who's bright-eyed and naive, to think these players will one day soon help turn around the organization. It gets hard quick when years pass and you realize they'll never get close to amounting to the career potential they showed, playing in the Canadian Hockey League. It really shouldn't have been that hard for those in charge to pick instead Simon Gagne, Jarome Iginla, Marian Hossa, and Daniel Briere.
Now the Leafs are in an awkward position. They've lost out on a chance to draft the next Sidney Crosby in Steven Stamkos or any other of the top players in this year's upcoming draft, likely finishing in the middle of the pack. But, for Leaf fans all over, would you have preferred that the team really threw games these past few weeks to improve on their draft position to try their luck at landing the no. 1 position when it's never even guaranteed in the first place to the league bottom-feeder (now Los Angeles)? The Leafs showed class in playing their hearts out and it would be great to be able to believe that true fans of the organization have enough of their own to applaud the effort their team has shown when all, once very recently, seemed lost.
Before there was prosperity, there was suffering. They may seem like empty words now (as do, I'm sure, all the years since 1967), but when they finally come to fruition, that "one" cup-full of champagne will taste so much sweeter.
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