Four reasons the Leafs want the season canceled

by Brandt Corbin

    Toronto Maple Leafs General Manager Brian Burke has been less than successful in getting the storied franchise back to the promise land, one would say they’d accept a playoff berth. I've got four big reasons why they hope the 2012-13 season gets cancelled in its entirety, none of which include Vancouver Canucks goalie Roberto Luongo.

 

1> With this season more than likely being shut down, this gives the team’s top prospects another full season in the AHL & Junior Hockey. If the season would have started on time, it was likely that Carter Ashton, Joe Colborne, Leo Komarov, & Matt Frattin would have been up and down all year long. It is to their advantage of playing a full season on the same line, getting top six minutes & power play time.

    Same could be said for Morgan Rielly, arguably the Leafs top prospect. Getting another complete season in Moose Jaw, & playing in the World Junior Championship; is the very best for his progression. Compare that to the Leafs rushing him into this years line-up. The same can be said for 2011 first round pick Tyler Biggs whose playing top minutes in Oshawa of the OHL.

    I’ll go this far, there are those folks who thinks the Leafs are hopeless. The fact remains the Leafs have a deeper pool of prospects compared to most other teams.

2> While the Leafs could lose potential unrestricted free agents like Clarke MacAthur & Joffrey Lupul, they also would shed bad contracts and get rid of those who are quite nicely said not needed. Tim Connolly and Matthew Lombardi are not bad hockey players, but they are overpaid and undersized to be on the Leafs team. They are the opposite of a Brian Burke or Randy Caryle type players.

  Same can be said for Tyler Bozak, a slightly better than average NHLer, but would not be needed as a bottom six forward. Another reason not keeping him around, the Leafs would be higher on Frattin & top prospect Nazim Kadri, who have allot more upside compared to Bozak.

3> With the emergence this season of Frattin & Kardi in the AHL, the Leafs are now allot less likely to trade either for a goalie, named Luongo, or LA’s Jonathan Bernier. Frattin has 7 goals in only 7 games this season with the Toronto Marlies. Kadri meanwhile has 17 points in 19 games.

4> One of the bigger reasons why Leafs fans should be optimistic, (if they keep Burke around) would be two names. Ryan Getzlaf & Corey Perry, who come 2013 are unrestricted free agents.

    The reasons are plentiful on why they’ll be donning the Blue & White Jerseys but where to begin? The obvious, their connection to both Burke & Leafs coach Randy Caryle, all of which won a Stanley Cup in 2007 in Anaheim. No matter of the terms of the unsettled CBA, the Leafs will offer those two line-ups the max contract allowed. Why not both would be 28, and in the middle of their prime.

    Two other reasons for both are the following. Perry is a local Ontario boy, one would only assume he’d love to play closer to home. Getzlaf is the big, nasty and skilled centerman the Leafs have always dreamt about. If and when the Leafs sign those two linemates, they have plenty of options to go with them. Whether it be Phil Kessel, James Van Riemsdyk, Nikolai Kulemin, Kadri or Biggs.

    The biggest reason these coming to Toronto is possible, the Leafs have only 39 million committed to in salaries for the 2013-14 season. These two are without question top 25 players in the league, and anyone saying they’re not game changers need to get help and lots of it.