Regular Season Finish: 11th in Eastern Conference
After another season of missing the playoffs, the Toronto Maple Leafs made it very clear they were ready for change. The hiring of Brian Burke as GM was an excellent starting point, as Burke has become known for his incredible ability to rebuild franchises over the past decade. The 2009 draft was the new boss’s first real chance to make his mark on the team, but he was unable to make his and every other Toronto fan’s dream come true by trading up to the top spot to get superstar John Tavares. In the end, Burke was unable to even move up two spots to get Luke Schenn’s younger brother Brayden at number 5, leaving him to take Nazem Kadri with the 7th overall pick. Kadri is still a great talent, however, having played as Tavares’ linemate in 2008-09.
Since acquiring the diminutive scorer and adding him to a growing number of young scorers that have the potential to blossom into top caliber forwards, Burke’s sole ambition it seems, has been to make the Leafs one of the most physically dominant teams in the Eastern Conference. Pavel Kubina’s large salary was dumped to Atlanta in favor of bruising defenseman Garnett Exelby, as well as Colin Stuart, who was subsequently traded to Calgary for grinder Wayne Primeau. The Leafs also added fighter Colton Orr from the Rangers and made sure they retained the rights to current enforcer Andre Deveaux.
The most important moves that Burke made, however, were the additions of defensemen Mike Komisarek and Francois Beauchemin. Komisarek, a starting All-Star from the hated Canadiens last season, is one of the most physical defensemen in the NHL today, and, combined with Schenn, Exelby and Jeff Finger (who quietly recorded 136 hits and 158 blocked shots last season), gives the Leafs 4 of last season’s top 30 hitting defensemen in the NHL. Beauchemin, on the other hand, is a solid defender, who brings veteran playoff experience and skill to the Leafs’ roster.
Another major coup that has endeared Burke to Leaf fans was the signing of Swedish superstar goalie Jonas “the Monster” Gustavsson. Gustavsson put up Lundqvist-like numbers in his last season with Farejstads BK of the Elitserien, leading them to the league championship. He was heavily courted by a number of teams, but ended up signing with Toronto, and should have the opportunity to compete with Vesa Toskala for the starting job by at least the midpoint of next season. It has been a long time since the Leafs have had a goalie that was able to carry them to the Promised Land, and Burke made it clear that he was rebuilding this franchise from the inside out.
While there haven’t been many moves to upgrade the offense as of yet, the Leafs still hold the rights to veteran All-Star Tomas Kaberle, who has been at the center of countless trade rumors all summer long. Kaberle is really the only asset that would be able to draw a real offensive talent in return, and Burke has been biding his time on making any sort of deal. Kaberle’s no trade clause will expire before the beginning of the 2009-10 season, so look for him to be moved at some point in the near future. However, the cagey nature of Burke does not indicate that he will trade Kaberle just to trade him, as has been the practice in Toronto for so long, but will move him only if he feels satisfied with what he is getting in return.
It has been a long time for the followers of the Blue and White, but for the first time in a long time, it actually looks like the Leafs could be making the necessary moves to become an actual contender for the Cup in the foreseeable future. With an offense that finished tied for 6th in the East last season, the Leafs’ young scorers should continue to develop even further, now that they “won’t be picking their teeth out of the glass every night” according to Burke. With some weight being thrown around on their side of the ice, it will be fun to watch players like Mikhail Grabovski, Jiri Tlusty and Nikolai Kulemin come into their own over the next season or two.