Toronto Maple Leafs News

By HOWARD BERGER TORONTO (Oct. 6) – Prior to watching the Maple Leafs during their nine-game exhibition schedule, I had been slightly wavering about where they could fit among the NHL’s bottom- feeders this season. But, there is no longer any question. Hold onto your hats, Leafs Nation. For the first time in 24 years, the Blue [...]

By HOWARD BERGER TORONTO (Oct. 5) — With an unimpressive and exhausting 2-5-2 preseason schedule finally over, it is no less apparent now than it was during the summer which areas will be most challenging for the Maple Leafs. A smarter, more energetic performance against the Columbus Blue Jackets on Sunday was ruined by yet another late-game [...]

By HOWARD BERGER TORONTO (Oct. 5) — The usual mantra of Leafs Nation at this time of year — “Hey, it was only an exhibition game” — has one more day of shelf-life before fresh excuses are required to explain fiascos like Saturday night’s loss to a glorified Detroit farm team. This embarrassment, at the Air Canada Centre, [...]

By HOWARD BERGER DETROIT (Oct. 4) — The standard is predictably low, but Ron Wilson appears to have a base from which to work as he begins his first season behind the Toronto Maple Leafs’ bench. Regardless of which combination Wilson pencils in during the exhibition schedule, his team pretty much finds its level, and now Wilson’s [...]

By HOWARD BERGER TORONTO (Oct. 2) — News flash: Jeff Finger’s “minor” foot problem has been down-graded to moderate, and he’ll miss the first week to ten days of the regular season. How shocking it is that the Maple Leafs have publicly underestimated an injury to one of their players. Ron Wilson is quickly falling in line with [...]

By: David Alter Newly acquired defenceman Jeff Finger has been off the ice for the past week with a foot injury, now comes confirmation from Leafs Head Coach Ron Wilson that he will be out for the first week of the regular season.  “It’s just a bruise and it’s point tender” says Wilson.  “Hopefully he’ll only [...]

By HOWARD BERGER ST. LOUIS (Oct. 1) — The Maple Leafs are suffering through a rash of what coach Ron Wilson describes as “minor” injuries in the final week of the preseason, and one of the club’s most important players may not be ready when the puck drops for real — in Detroit, Oct. 9th. Defenseman [...]

By HOWARD BERGER BUFFALO (Sep. 28) — Another night, another implosion by the Maple Leafs, and the new coach is quickly growing fed up with a pattern that established itself last season. This one, at HSBC Arena, was more spectacular than the late loss at home to Pittsburgh on Friday, as the Leafs held a 2-0 [...]

By HOWARD BERGER TORONTO (Sep. 27) — He may have been coaching three time zones away last season, but Ron Wilson is well aware that the Maple Leafs repeatedly folded in the third period en route to missing the playoffs by nine points. Friday night’s 5-4 exhibition loss to Pittsburgh at the Air Canada Centre provided [...]

By HOWARD BERGER TORONTO (Sep. 25) — With the Maple Leafs between exhibition starts, and with Ron Wilson beginning to understand the challenge his group of forwards might present this season, there was precious little to talk about on an otherwise quiet Thursday. Filling the void, somewhat conveniently, was Larry Tanenbaum, chairman of Maple Leaf Sports [...]

By HOWARD BERGER TORONTO (Sep. 23) — There’s a pretty good chance that Ron Wilson couldn’t have drawn up a better script for his first appearance behind the Maple Leafs’ bench last night. Though the two points earned in a 7-4 victory over Buffalo at the Air Canada Centre will not show up in the standings, [...]

GOAL- Justin Pogge; Curtis Joseph DEFENCE- Luke Schenn: Jeff Finger; Ian White; Carlo Colaiacovo; Mike Van Ryn: Staffan Kronwall FORWARDS- Jiri Tlusty; Matt Stajan; Dominic Moore; Boyd Devereaux; Ben Ondrus; Mark Bell; John Mitchell; Nikolai Kulemin; Ryan Hollweg; Darryl Boyce; Robbie Earl; Jason Blake

By HOWARD BERGER TORONTO (Sep. 21) — On the eve of the Maple Leafs’ pre-season opener against Buffalo at the Air Canada Centre, there appears only one indisputable element of the 2008-09 club. With Ron Wilson behind the bench, the Leafs are said to be in the hands of a perfect coach for their uneasy circumstance; a [...]

By HOWARD BERGER TORONTO (Sep. 18) – The Maple Leafs begin training camp on Friday with expectations as low as they’ve been in the past decade. In fact, it was exactly 10 years ago that the 1998-99 squad similarly appeared to be in dire straits. The ’97-98 Leafs, under head coach Mike Murphy, had trouble moving [...]

By HOWARD BERGER TORONTO (Sep. 16) — The National Hockey League and the NHL Players Association are working towards renewing the World Cup of Hockey Tournament, last contested prior to the lockout in September, 2004. Though neither side will offer confirmation, an event involving at least six nations will take place prior to the 2011-12 NHL [...]

National Hockey League Predictions 2008-2009

Howard Berger: TORONTO (Aug. 26) – The moment you have all been waiting for is here.

The summertime fog in the crystal ball has dissipated, providing yours truly with a 20/20 look at the up-coming National Hockey League season. These predictions have been copyrighted and filed with top government agencies on both sides of the border. They are foolproof, and should be consulted on a regular basis as a guide for your hockey viewing enjoyment in 2008-09. Compiled with the exclusive, one-time-only cooperation of all 30 general managers and coaches, this forecast renders meaningless the futile comparisons you may come upon elsewhere. Ignore them, as you would any person with the gall to suggest your favorite team may not qualify for the playoffs.

I begin by telling you, without reservation, that the Pittsburgh Penguins will avenge their defeat in the 2008 Stanley Cup final by hoisting the cherished mug next June, having subdued the Anaheim Ducks in a six-game championship skirmish. All Canadian-based teams other than Vancouver and Toronto will make the playoffs. The Maple Leafs will have the right to draft either John Tavares or Victor Hedman, as they will finish ahead of only the New York Islanders in the overall standings. Montreal and Calgary will be the other Conference finalists. Boston and New Jersey will fall from playoff territory in the East, replaced by Buffalo and Tampa Bay. Nashville will be the only Western playoff qualifier from last season to miss out, usurped by Edmonton.

Here, then, is the cast-in-stone, unequivocal, not-to-be tinkered with, final standings for the 2008-09 NHL season*:
EASTERN CONFERENCE
1. PITTSBURGH 107 pts.
2. MONTREAL 104 pts.
3. WASHINGTON 100 pts.
4. OTTAWA 103 pts.
5. PHILADELPHIA 96 pts.
6. NEW YORK RANGERS 93 pts.
7. BUFFALO 92 pts.
8. TAMPA BAY 91 pts.
9. CAROLINA 88 pts.
10. NEW JERSEY 86 pts.
11. BOSTON 85 pts.
12. FLORIDA 83 pts.
13. ATLANTA 76 pts.
14. TORONTO 73 pts.
15. NEW YORK ISLANDERS 69 pts.

WESTERN CONFERENCE
1. SAN JOSE 114 pts.
2. DETROIT 111 pts.
3. CALGARY 100 pts.
4. ANAHEIM 104 pts.
5. DALLAS 100 pts.
6. COLORADO 97 pts.
7. MINNESOTA 95 pts.
8. EDMONTON 93 pts.
9. CHICAGO 91 pts.
10. PHOENIX 89 pts.
11. VANCOUVER 88 pts.
12. NASHVILLE 85 pts.
13. COLUMBUS 82 pts.
14. ST. LOUIS 79 pts.
15. LOS ANGELES 74 pts.

By HOWARD BERGER TORONTO (Sep. 15) — Veteran Maple Leafs’ defenseman Tomas Kaberle took part in his first pre-training camp skate at Lakeshore Arena earlier today, and he looked a bit lost afterwards. That’s understandable, given that Kaberle in no longer in the company of long-time teammates Bryan McCabe, Darcy Tucker and Mats Sundin — none of [...]

By HOWARD BERGER TORONTO (Sep. 13) — Sitting in arguably the most uncomfortable stadium on earth Friday night, and watching yet another Toronto team get its nose rubbed into the dirt, I began to wonder if this city’s professional sports environment has reached an all-time low. The Toronto Argonauts of the Canadian Football League are considered [...]

By HOWARD BERGER TORONTO (Sep. 11) — Fans of the Maple Leafs that are hoping or expecting to see No. 1 draft choice Luke Schenn in the NHL this season are likely to be disappointed. That’s because general manager Cliff Fletcher confirmed today that Schenn will have to “overwhelm” management and coaching in training camp to make [...]

By HOWARD BERGER  TORONTO (Sep. 10) – Maple Leafs’ coach Ron Wilson spent an hour in studio today with Darren Millard and Nick Kypreos on Hockey Central at Noon. The simulcast was carried by THE FAN-590 and Rogers Sportsnet, and the entire interview can be replayed in the “Hot Audio” section of FAN590.com. As it pertains [...]

By HOWARD BERGER TORONTO (Sep. 8) — If I were Maple Leafs’ forward Mark Bell, I wouldn’t be walking the streets of this city without some form of body protection. Bell is liable to notice the shadow of a short, stocky figure with an enlarged noggin approaching from behind. If so, he’d be wise to either run [...]

By HOWARD BERGER TORONTO (Sep. 6) – For the first time since 1997, it appears the Maple Leafs will have the task of naming a new captain, as Mats Sundin has given no indication he’ll be returning to the club. And it can be argued that for the first time since George Armstrong assumed the captaincy [...]

By HOWARD BERGER TORONTO (Sep. 4) — The Maple Leafs are not leaving behind much evidence of the eight years that Darcy Tucker and Bryan McCabe wore the blue and white. The long-time jersey numbers of both players have been re-assigned for the 2008-09 season. Former Dallas winger Niklas Hagman will slide into Tucker’s familiar No. [...]

By HOWARD BERGER TORONTO (Sep. 3) – As Mats Sundin prepares to repeat his off-season mantra in front of a live media audience on Thursday – those in attendance might be able to pull a Richard Peddie and mouth along with big Swede – the debate over Sundin’s future in the NHL will doubtlessly flare up [...]

By HOWARD BERGER TORONTO (Sep. 2) — Full-term pregnancies have evolved faster than it took the Maple Leafs and Florida Panthers to consummate the Bryan McCabe-Mike Van Ryn trade, but it finally came to fruition today around 5 p.m. Eastern. The legal beagles in the NHL office spent more than seven hours poring over the language [...]