Schenn-d him down, and FREE CARLO...

Fourteen games into the season, the Toronto Maple Leafs have allowed a league-worst 51 goals against. Half the league's 30 teams have allowed 35 goals or less. And we still can't kill a penalty. Is this really the environment we want Luke Schenn developing in?

Don't get me wrong, for a 19-year-old kid I think Schenn has played great. He's got all the makings of a great shutdown defenceman in the NHL. I love the fact that he loves to play the body and that he's quicker than he looks on his skates.

At the same time, he hasn't blown my mind. He hasn't left me dumbfounded. I know, a part of that is the position and style of game he plays. But, well, still. I'm left thinking that another year of junior hockey - four full years like, say, Dion Phaneuf - cannot hurt him.

Once again, before you get out the pitchforks, I dig the Schenn. But we've got to send him back to junior hockey. For the good of humanity. He doesn't need to be here right now. He can play 25 minutes a game down in Kelowna, run shit, and dominate at the World Juniors. Let Ron Wilson deal with the rest of our chumps on defence because God knows they could use some work, especially on special teams. Schenn can join us next season. Wilson and the rest of the coaching staff ain't going anywhere. They can impart their wisdom on Luke next season.

Free Carlo!

I heart Schenn, but another reason he doesn't need to be here right now is because we've got two young defenceman who can play, and who need the playing time, sitting in the press box every night. One of them happens to be Carlo Colaiacovo, and he needs to be emancipated.

I refuse to give up on Carlo Colaiacovo. Not yet. He's a 2001 draft pick with a ton of potential, and I'm just not ready to let go. We showed Antropov all the patience in the world, and he's finally come through. We need to do the same with Carlo. A  solid, top-three defenceman exists somewhere inside him. 

Carlo's finally healthy and, much to the pain of my soul, he's a healthy scratch. Injuries have just fucked with him and, now that he's finally healthy, it pains me to see him sitting on the sidelines along with another of my man crushes, Anton Stralman.

I mean, I love Jonas Frogren and his aggressive, hitting-oriented style, and Mike Van Ryn has done nothing but impress since he donned the blue and white, but who's got more of a future with the Leafs going forward? The youngsters, Colaiacovo and Stralman, n'est pas? Don't they? I would say so. And in a rebuilding and experience-building season, why aren't they playing every night? Why can't Schenn - sent down to work on his game and continue to develop - Colaiacovo, and Stralman be the anchors of our defence core two or three years down the road, with Kaberle and Van Ryn, or Kubina, providing veteran presence?

Free Carlo, Cliff Fletcher. His destiny awaits.

Deep Thoughts Vol. 10: Leafs & Rangers Edition

I'm always bitching about the Maple Leafs' perplexing inability to kill penalties, so let me be the first to raise a glass to their efforts when down a man last night. Eight for eight on the penalty kill, my friends. Outstanding.

I guess three days of practice really helped. Who knew, eh Allen Iverson?

The Leafs ended up on the wrong end of the score, losing 1-0 in a shootout, but I'm not going to make like most of the "Negative Nancy's" out there, who will tell you how bad the Leafs were last night and how the tanking of the season is off to a fine start (Lordosis at PPP, I'm looking right at you, big daddy). In the words of my homegirl Wrap Around Curl, "fuck that noise."

Vesa Toskala was sublime last night. What an effort, making 32 saves, a number of them of the difficult variety. When he's on his game he really is one of the top goalies in the league. He did get some help from his goal posts, but all the good goalies do. As a goalie, and a good one I might add, I speak from experience. My posts and I, we're tight. We help each other out. It's a give and take relationship, and I'm sure it's the same between Vesa and his posts. I actually talk to mine. We exchange pleasantries. I'm curious as to whether Vesa does the same.

Here's some deep thoughts:

• I don't know about you, but I'm really starting to hate Stephen Valiquette. Mother fucker is like nine feet tall.
• Jonas Frogren is a shot-blocking machine. I'm loving his passion.
• Poor Marc Staal got his ass kicked by Jamal Mayers. Attaboy Mayers. Pick on someone you know you can deal with. Hollweg, you taking notes, jackass?
• Matt Stajan's out of the dog house. But he still sucks. I know, he responded to his press box banishment and played better. My point is, he still sucks.
• If Ponikarovsky takes another lame hooking penalty I think Ron Wilson is going to bench him. And what's with all the Poni hate all over the place? You people are all crazy.
• Antropov and Grabs have got to start scoring.
• Nikolai Kulemin is a breakaway machine. I wonder how many more times he can go to the well and use the same move.
• I hate shootouts.
• Everyone hates Jason Blake. Except me.
• Toronto was 33-24 on the faceoffs last night. Practice man, we talking about practice.
• Seriously, I hate shootouts.
• Niklas Hagman is quickly becoming one of my new favourite Leafs.

Luke Schenn played a shade under 26 minutes last night, and blocked a number of shots. He was out there on the penalty kill and he was out there in the last minute of play. You name the situation, he can play in it. Fuck it, let's keep him. The future is now, and I'm pretty sure this guy isn't going to be too pleased about it.

The Leafs went into a tough building against the NHL's best team, killed eight penalties, shut out their high-scoring opposition, and came out with a point. I'll take it.

Some will say the Leafs have won only one game out of their first four. Not me. I say we've only lost one out of four in regulation time, against some pretty formidable competition.

Victory

Well, well, well. What a way to start the season. The Maple Leafs went into the abyss known as Detroit on the night the Red Wings raised another Stanley Cup banner to the rafters, and emerged victorious.

Now that, my friends, is what I call crashing the party. A hard fought and well deserved 3-2 victory. I couldn't be happier.

As much as I hate to say that I called it, well, umm, I called it. Seriously. Here's an email I sent to the boys yesterday afternoon at 2:48 p.m.:

"Toskala will steal the show tonight. 3-2 Leafs."

Well, whatta ya know, eh? My girlfriend, clearly impressed by my prophetic skills, asked me how I knew the Leafs were going to win. I was honest: blind faith and unbridled optimism. I'm no genius; I'm a homer.

Vesa Toskala did indeed steal the show. He was the best player on the ice, from either team. He was splendid, stopping 35 of 37 shots, including a couple of tough ones late in the game. Unlike last season, there's no question who's the man between the pipes for the Leafs, and Vesa played with a purpose. He knows how important he is to this team. God bless him.

If you missed Nikolai Kulemin's game-winning goal, don't worry. I got you:

My man Jim Hughson said it best: "Nikolai Kulemin's first National Hockey League goal is a beauty." With some serious emphasis on "beauty." I went pretty ape shit over that one. I know you did too. Filthy goal, and it showcased the immense talent Kulemin possesses.

Here are some other deep thoughts from last night's tilt:

• I was talking shit about Dominic Moore right before he scored the Leafs' second goal. Chemmy, that one was for you. And who was on the ice taking a huge defensive zone faceoff on the penalty kill in the dying seconds of the game? Dominic fuckin' Moore. He played more than Antropov and finished with a goal, five shots on net, and a +2 rating. He's huge.
• I like the #77 on Kubina's back. Pavel doesn't exactly elicit memories of Paul Coffey when he's skating up ice, but the digits suit him, still.
• I'm a fan of Jonas Frogren's facial hair. Frogger played an aggressive, physical game which I enjoyed. He really does remind me of Danny Markov.
• Matt Stajan played 9:19. I love you, Ron Wilson. 
• Niklas Hagman is fast. Very fast. One thing's for sure, this team can skate. Finally, three years after the lockout, the Leafs get it.
• Mikhail Grabovski's a playmaker, pure and simple. Grabs didn't stand out last night, but he had his moments. Kid can dangle.
• Mike Van Ryn looked good back on the blue line, and he's got decent wheels.
• Tomas Holmstrom is a beast in front of the net. There is a lot of junk in that trunk.
• Luke Schenn looked every bit like an NHL defenceman. He played 17:20, and I enjoyed seeing him paired with my heart throb Tomas Kaberle.
• The Toronto Maple Leafs beat the Detroit Red Wings, the defending Stanley Cup champions, in their barn. That's hype. It looks like even Damien Cox enjoyed it. Sure, he took a petty below the belt shot at Darcy Tucker, but he still enjoyed it.
• Alexei Ponikarovsky hit his first post of the season. There are plenty more where that came from. Hey, 40, is the Poni Express ridin' this season? Holla atcha boy.

I don't know about you, but I was full of nerves last night. It seemed like there was a lot more on the line than just two points in the season opener. With about ten minutes left to play in the third period, with the Leafs holding on to a 3-2 advantage, I sat quietly, hands folded together in front of my mouth. I was waiting for Detroit to score, and for the lead to evaporate. I was waiting for the inevitable.

But it didn't happen. Like the night ten years ago when the Leafs beat Detroit and began a new chapter in their history, I felt we turned to a new page, and to a new chapter, last night. The John Ferguson Jr. era is mercifully behind us. The Paul Maurice era is done and gone. The post-Mats Sundin era has officially begun. It's on to bigger and better things, my friends.

The Leafs held on for the win last night, and I felt vindicated. Not for me, as a fan, but for the players. I wanted nothing more than a Toronto win yesterday not so that the fans would start believing in this team, but so that this edition of the Toronto Maple Leafs would start believing in themselves.

*UPDATE* I forgot to say: PLAYOFFS!

Luke Schenn is turning me on...

I finally caught some hot, steamy Toronto Maple Leafs pre-season action last night and, let me tell you, did Luke Schenn ever impress. Could it be that the Leafs actually drafted a stud?

It's hard to believe that Schenn is only 18 years old - he'll be able to buy a beer on November 2nd - and still has a year of junior hockey eligibility. He's only a boy, but at 6'2" and 216 pounds, he plays a man's game.

I'm not a big fan of the pre-season, unlike my blogging colleague JaredOfLondon, so I didn't catch much of the Leafs' first four games last week. However, now that the Toronto Blue Jays' season is officially over and I've had a good cry over the fact that we missed the playoffs again and will probably lose A.J. Burnett to free agency, I can give the Leafs my undivided attention. They deserve nothing less.

Anyway, I tuned in last night, and Schenn did not look out of place. Actually, he looked like he belonged. The St. Louis Blues were in town and their best players - Keith Tkachuk, Paul Kariya, Brad Boyes, and Andy McDonald - were all in the lineup. The game went to a shootout and it was the rookie Schenn who scored the winner for the Leafs on a beauty of a deke.

The goal was sweet, but it was Schenn's defensive play that had me aroused. He looked poised and confident beyond his years back there, and played the man beautifully in the third period against a Blues forward who came in on him one-on-one. It was textbook defensive positioning from Schenn, and a single, solitary tear rolled down my face after he made the play. It was fucking beautiful.

Schenn finished the night with a +3 rating, the game winner in the shootout, and 20 minutes of ice time. Not too shabby for a kid who I thought was certainly headed back to junior.

I'm not so sure anymore. Even with all the depth the Leafs have on the blue line, I'm starting to believe that Schenn is playing himself onto this team. Think about it, Andy fucking Wozniewski made the Leafs out of training camp the past two years so, really, it's no surprise that Schenn is making his case.

In the four games he's played, Schenn has seen 19:37, 19:08, 18:32, and 20:01 minutes of ice time per game respectively. He's got one goal and is +5. He's come as advertised: a shutdown, defensive presence.

I know, it's a small sample size, and he had his best performance against the shitty St. Louis Blues, but it's hard not to be impressed by the man child's performance (I can't call a guy who's 6 foot 2 and weighs 216 pounds a "kid").

So, what do you think - back to junior, or is Schenn ready for prime time?

The regular season starts in just over a week - October 9th in Detroit (cue giddiness). While I'm not sure who's the odd man out if Schenn makes the team (Mike Van Ryn? Anton Stralman? Jonas Frogren? Ian White? Jesus, we have way too many defenceman), I think big Luke has earned himself, at the very least, a 10-game tryout with the Toronto Maple Leafs.