Maple Leafs Trying Not to Wither and Die

By Annie Detroit

Ok, so the headline was a little over dramatic, but it got your attention, didn't it? As if the Toronto Maple Leafs COULD wither and die. They've been around since the first World War. They have 13 Stanley Cups and are all that is right with the 51 state we call Canada. If the Leafs were to go down, so would civilization north of the border.

That is why the Leafs made a desperate move in trading goaltender Vesa Toskala for the Ducks Jean-Sebastien Giguere. Unfortunately, Toronto GM Brian Burke may have made the wrong move in this trade. Giggy has not pulled down the numbers he did when he led the Anaheim Mighty-less Ducks to their first Stanley Cup in franchise history. His GAA so far this season is an inflated 3.14 with only four winds in 20 games. Then again, Vesa Toskala is also a shadow of his former self, reeling in a whopping 3.66 GAA in 26 games and a whole 7 wins.

Had this trade taken place three years ago, it would've been a HUGE deal. These two still relatively young (born only four days apart 33 years ago) goaltenders seem to have already hit and passed their stride. Had this trade happened three years, Don Cherry may have had a coronary embolism. I guess in a effort to spare the life of the Canadian hero, the two teams waited until just before the Olympic Break to make the deal.

Remember that Brian Burke was the GM of that same Stanley Cup winning Ducks team that Giguere goal tended for. So what is it about the French-Canadian that gives Burke a hard-on? What is it the Maple Leafs expect Giguere to do in Toronto aside from getting Giggy with it?

Well, Giguere's playoff statistics really aren't that bad to look at. A career 2.08 GAA in the postseason really does play in his favor. He does have a tendency to come up big in the playoffs when his team needs it. But in order for that to happen, the Leafs actually have to make the playoffs. They're hold steady in the bottom half of the league in team scoring and they are currently dead last in penalty kill situations, killing off only 70%. In this deal for Giguere, the Leafs also acquired defenseman Dion Phaneuf out of Calgary. Not very good looking statistically, Phaneuf is only a +3 in 50 games this season and only 22 points.

So is Burke trying to re-create the magic of the 06-07 Ducks team in Toronto? Or is he waving the white flag with another 26 games still to play? With Toronto's last Stanley Cup coming in 1967, I guess they're willing to try anything. I wonder what Tie Domi is doing these days? Now that would at least be entertaining.