This particular NHL season has a little more riding on the line in the early going, as countries prepare to name their rosters for the Olympic competition in 2010.
In the Western Conference, there is a clear group of contenders, followed by a small group of teams on the rise, with a group of pretenders in the caboose.
The Final Four is now set, but which players have had the greatest individual success through the first two rounds of the 2009 Stanley Cup Playoffs?
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After seasons of disappointment, turmoil and failure, optimism reigns supreme among Leafs' nation and it’s all thanks to the man with a plan: Brian Burke.
No, they are not a championship contender, nor are they a lock for the playoffs, but they are on the right track and just knowing that the team you cheer for and watch no matter what, when they suck and when they soar, has a plan is enough to give many fans a good night’s rest.
Brian Burke’s mentality is clearly obvious: failure is not an option. He had only been with the team for less than five months when they were eliminated last season and yet was probably the angriest person in the organization.
He’s the man with a plan and it’s about time the Toronto Maple Leafs had someone with a swagger as big as Burke’s. His plan is quite simple too: win. In one off-season he’s changed the attitude this team, management, media and city have for the blue and white. Most believed this was a three or four-year plan that would revolve around the Leafs picking in the top five at the NHL Entry Draft, well that’s not going to happen.
He sets his sights high and he doesn’t care what people think. He wanted John Tavares and he didn’t care who knew it, you can argue whether or not it was a good tactic to go public with it so early on but Burke doesn’t hold back.
He signed two top-four defensemen in Mike Komisarek and Francois Beauchemin on the opening days of Free Agency and kept Tomas Kaberle, although some luck, or bad luck in the case of the Bruins, has to be given credit there. Add to that Luke Schenn and you have without a doubt one of the best defenses in the NHL.
He then set his sights on a 21-year old free agent by the name of Phil Kessel.
He finally got his guy last weekend when they gave up draft picks to acquire his rights and immediately after signed him to a five-year deal (more on this in another article). If it wasn’t clear to people before, it should be now: all Burke wants to do is win. He’s not going to be a part of a long-term rebuilding plan, not that he really can anymore if he chose to due to the lack of first round picks.
Signing top college free agents Tyler Bozak and Christian Hanson as well as drafting Nazem Kadri has allowed him to give up what he did for Kessel. Of course, credit should be given where credit is due and not all of the youth that the Leafs have showcased this camp has come from Burke, a few players have come from the previous regime ...yes, the John Ferguson Jr. era wasn’t so hopeless after all. Viktor Stalberg and Carl Gunnarsson, two stand outs from training camp thus far, were brought in by the much maligned Ferguson Jr.
With Brian Burke at the helm as Toronto's general, they finally have an identity and a plan, what may be more important is the fact that the plan is public.
The Joker said it best in ‘The Dark Knight,’ “nobody panics when things go according to plan, even if the plan is horrifying.”
Somebody tell The Joker that Brian Burke doesn’t accept failure.
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