A Leaf Fan’s Blues

Well, it’s that time of year again. The time when the once promising Toronto Maple Leafs free fall down the eastern conference standings to that all too familiar 10th-12th place. You know the spot just low enough to be out of the playoff hunt, but just high enough to miss out on the prized top 5 draft picks.

Don’t get me wrong, I’ve always been a die hard Leaf fan. Both Matt Stajan and Joffrey Lupul’s jerseys hang proudly on my University of Louisville dorm room wall. In fact I even purchased NHL Gamecenter to keep up while I’m in the states. I even try to talk hockey with anyone I can find on campus that knows the basics.

But recently something has changed. Maybe its my absence to the constant chatter about the Leafs or not being able to feel the magic of the Maple Leaf under the ice whilst my friends and I play on the pond for hours on end. Things are different now…. the passion inside of me for the blue and white is dwindling.

I find myself watching the Chicago Blackhawks play against the St. Louis Blues instead of watching the Leafs get shutout by another sub-par hockey club. The difference? These teams play at such a high pace, passes are crisp and every hit is finished, oh and you better not make a mistake because these teams will make you pay.

What it all comes down to is winning. Unfortunately the embarrassing month of January 1-10-1 doesn’t cut it anywhere, let alone the toughest market in hockey. Is it the defense first style that Horachek is preaching? Maybe. But even if the leafs can’t cheat to get a odd-man rush like they used to under Carlyle, it doesn’t explain why Kessel of all people can’t put the puck in the net. There’s a key element lacking in the Leafs organization. The sense of pride that a fan feels when they put on that Maple Leafs sweater before Hockey Night in Canada, just isn’t present in the dressing room anymore.

Maybe one day the Leafs will figure it out, but until then you can find me watching the 33-17 Raptors!