CORNWALL ONTARIO – The post game interviews said it all. Toronto hosted the Vancouver Canucks who dropped their 8th straight loss. The Leafs have a modest 3 game win streak after the scrappy win. Coach Babcock could barely hide his smile as he talked about the chippy affair thatContinue Reading
Going into this season Habs GM Marc Bergevin made very few impact changes. Washington for example, clearly saw a need for some secondary scoring support and nabbed TJ Oshie, and Justin Williams. Montreal saw some lottery tickets. Alex Semin, Zach Kassian, and Tomas Fleischman. While “Flash”Continue Reading
They say to judge a sports trade you have to look at the best player involved. In this case, it was Christmas for Ottawa GM as he landed Leafs D man Dion Phaneuf in a block buster trade with the Leafs. While the Leafs are doing their fandangled rebuild fromContinue Reading
Ah the dawn of another season of NHL hockey. A day when every franchise has hope. By Spring we’ll see which team gets to sip from Lord Stanley’s Cup, but for today the playing field is even. Hockey is Canada’s game and I generally tend to cover ourContinue Reading
It has to be a disappointing off season for Leaf fans. Not quite as disappointing as for Hab fans, but pretty darn close. Neither team has really addressed their core needs even though both are near the Salary Cap. Dumping Phil Kessel was more of a statement than a tradeContinue Reading
This seems to be the season the NHL cap really kicks in. In a normal world trading Phil Kessel for a bag of pucks wouldn’t make any sense. In the cap age….well. Brendan Shanahan and his team wanted to make a point and they traded away the team’s bestContinue Reading
While this draft is highlighted as one of the best in recent vintage the Toronto Maple Leafs seem to want to rebuild? In the cap age asset management is key. Asset value is dictated by contract as well as talent now as well. For all the rhetoric of TorontoContinue Reading
CFN – Brendan Shanahan has to be feeling the pressure. No jackpot lottery pick and maybe, not even getting the coach that Leaf Nation clearly desire. Well almost all of the teams in the NHL looking for coach are looking for. With Edmonton turning Connor McDavid over toContinue Reading
CFN – With the media buzzing about a possible tear down and rebuild of the Toronto Maple Leafs it gave me pause to ponder why on earth to take that direction? The Leafs have more than the average of talent. They are near the cap ceiling as well. Essentially theyContinue Reading
CFN – Desperate times call for desperate action and for performer Steven Ryan (Steven Ryan Branchaud) who has Cornwall roots, he turned to his art and craft and shared his parody with the world. By the time you click on the link below to listen his track titled “Do Something”Continue Reading
CFN – I’m not a Corsi kinda guy, and probably not a Fenwicker either. When I created some of the stat systems I used for the Habs back in the late 90’s; some of which still aren’t being used today my philosophy is that coming up with new terms forContinue Reading
CFN – Is there really such a thing as a great hockey coach in the NHL? Is winning the sole factor? We know Scotty Bowman is the prototypical great coach, but was he really the best? Is it the X’s and O’S or handling the Prima Donna natureContinue Reading
CFN – It was one of the worst starts in Carey Price’s career as the Habs were blown right out of the rink by Steve Stamkos and the Tampa Bay Lighting Monday night 7-1. It wasn’t the final score so much as the tale of the tape with Stamkos beingContinue Reading
CFN – Whenever you start a season on the road and snatch 6 points on 3 come back wins you know something special is brewing. Yes, it’s only three games and the season is long; but all the indicators are looking great. Montreal’s best are leading the way andContinue Reading
CFN- The Habs ended the pre-season with a trade. Gone are Carey Price’s best bud Peter Budaj and Patrick Holland for Erik Tangradi. It’s an interesting move. With Tangradi already clearing waivers it gives Montreal some back up beef and helps their cap space as Tokarski’s salary wasContinue Reading
CFN – As the long hot Summer comes to an end changes have occurred across the NHL. Some more drastic than others. Some teams have new coaches and GM’s. We’re going to look at Canada’s six teams and rate their performances in their attempt to bring LordContinue Reading
CFN– Boggling. The Habs have a Norris trophy winning franchise player in PK Subban who is about to enter his prime. They just went to arbitration with their star and franchise player and yes, PK is the Habs franchise player. It’s quite a conundrum for the team; and isContinue Reading
CFN – The Toronto Maple Leafs signed 29 year old forward David Booth to a $1.1M 1 year contract today. I think that balances off the signing of David Clarkson last season. At that price point if Booth repeats his year of last season they get value as a thirdContinue Reading