While thinking about what it would be like to follow a real NFL football team, here is what's on my mind this morning:
* Well, Mike Pettine and Ray Farmer became the next in a long line of fired head coaches and general managers who have been fired by the Cleveland Browns and more specifically by that smooth snake oil salesman, Jimmy Haslam. While there was no question that Ray Farmer had to go, I really believe that Mike Pettine could have remained as head coach. Pettine's biggest problem was the decline of the most expensive defensive unit in the NFL. Firing Pettine made sense if the new general manager was going to be hiring the new head coach. But according to Snake Oil Jimmy, the head coach will be hired first and then he along with Haslam, his wife and Sashi Brown (the new V.P. of Football Operations) will hire the general manager. What a joke.
* Snake Oil Jimmy's press conference was pathetic. Oh we had to hear how he was accepting full responsibility for the failures of his team, If that is suppose to make me feel better, sorry Snake Oil Jimmy but that does nothing for me. What's clear is that Haslam has no idea what the hell he's doing. We are all suppose to be impressed because he has brought in an executive search company to assist in the hiring of the new head coach. Snake Oil tells us that this company was involved in the hiring of Jim Harbaugh at Michigan, Pete Carroll at Seattle and Andy Reid at Kansas City. Really!! An executive search company was needed to bring Harbaugh to his alma mater or Reid to Kansas City?? Give me a break!! What Haslam didn't tell us was that this company was also involved in the hiring of failed NY Jets General Manager John Idzik.
* Haslam's promotion of Sashi Brown is another example of Snake Oil Jimmy's incompetence. Brown is a lawyer who has worked for the team as its cap specialist and contract negotiator. He is not a football guy, yet Snake Oil Jimmy said that Brown will have ultimate say on the 53 man roster. Brown will also have the final say on draft day.
* Every NFL expert and former coaches have said that the Cleveland job will be the least attractive of all the current openings. But not according to Snake Oil Jimmy. His incompetence will result in the Browns settling for a guy who has never been a head coach in the NFL.
* Johnny Manziel needs to be cut. I'm tired of his defenders trying to justify this spoiled rich kid's actions. He doesn't give a damn about his team, his teammates or the fans. All he cares about is promoting himself. But here's the bigger issue, Manziel is not a pro quarterback. He's too small and his arm isn't strong enough. Couple that with him not being committed to being the best he can be and you have an Arena League QB.
* Heard Justin Gilbert, another one of Ray Farmer's disaster first round picks in 2014, yesterday on Cleveland radio 92.3. The reason why he couldn't make team meetings in his rookie season was because he was a hard sleeper. You can't make this stuff up. This clown needs to be cut too.
* I wonder what Sashi Brown thinks of the $9 million contract that Dwayne Bowe got to do absolutely nothing this year.
* What a great testament to the character of Tom Coughlin by former Giant Justin Tuck. Tuck said that not only was Coughlin a great football coach but he also taught his players how to be good husbands and good parents. Will be interesting to see who the Giants will get to replace their former soon to be Hall of Fame coach.
* So much for exciting college football playoff games. Both games were a bust and one has to wonder how good the championship game will be. In fact the bowl games on New Year's Day were also non-eventful.
* The Maple Leafs head out west for a three game road trip beginning Wednesday against the Anaheim Ducks. You have to be impressed with the job that Mike Babcock is doing. The turnaround that this franchise has made since Team President cleaned house and brought in Kyle Dubas, Mark Hunter, Lou Lamiorello and Babcock has been amazing. Maybe Shanny could give Snake Oil Jimmy a call.
* With Wild Card weekend approaching, isn't it interesting that Brian Hoyer is leading the Houston Texans into the playoffs. As was pointed out by someone in Cleveland yesterday, the beginning of the end for Mike Pettine may have been when he was forced to keep Hoyer on the bench after he was injured so Johnny Boy could play.
* Here's hoping Cincy, Washington, Minnesota and Kansas City are victorious this weekend.
* Loved seeing Peyton Manning come off the bench and lead the Broncos to victory and the number one seed in the AFC. I'm not a Denver fan but I would love to see Manning lead them to the Super Bowl.
* The best that could happen to the Browns is if Hue Jackson or Jim Schwartz were hired as their new head coach. Both have head coaching experience in the NFL.
* And finally, it was really nice listening to former Browns Head Coach Sam Rutigliano yesterday. Brought back many great memories of the Kardiac Kids Days. Not sure if we will ever get back to Cleveland being relevant in the NFL again under Snake Oil Jimmy.
Showing posts with label Leaf Nation. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Leaf Nation. Show all posts
Tuesday, January 5, 2016
Sunday, January 3, 2016
Leafs Reach .500 with 4-1 win
With four unanswered goals, the last one into an empty net, the Toronto Maple Leafs reached .500 for the first time this year completing a 2 game sweep of the St. Louis Blues with a 4-1 victory at the Air Canada Centre. For the second game in a row, Jonathan Bernier was solid as he came up with several big saves and withstood a furious attempt by St. Louis at the end of the game. With the status of James Reimer up in the air, the Leafs will need Bernier to continue his recent play.
Peter Holland looked the part of a former first round pick scoring the ultimate game winner on a bullet of a shot that Blues goalie Jake Allen had no chance on. Holland led all Leaf forwards with seven shots and really has stepped up his play since being sent up to the press box earlier this season. You have to be impressed with the overall play of Nazem Kadri as he scored a key insurance goal last night that gave the Leafs a 3-1 lead that pretty much salted the game away. What is most impressive is his play defensively as Coach Mike Babcock matches Kadri's line against the other team's top line.
As was pointed out last night during the telecast, it is remarkable to look at where the Leafs were last year compared to this year. While last year's team was seventh overall in the East, it was evident to many that they were not as good as the record showed. That became very clear after the firing of Randy Carlyle and the awful record under Peter Horachek. The biggest difference with this year's team was described by Tyler Bozak. Bozak indicated that last year when the team fell behind they knew they would lose. This year, according to Bozak, they expect to win every game and never feel they are out of a game. That has been clear to me even in October when the team could not post a win.
Many in Leaf Nation seem to be confused as to whether they should be happy with the team's play or upset that they are not losing more. My thoughts on this: 1.) Mike Babcock is developing a culture that will be long lasting. Accountability and being defensively responsible are the key along with not being afraid to go into the dirty areas offensively. When the Nylanders and Marners are ready to put the Leaf uniform on there will be no confusion as to what the expectations are if you want ice time and 2.) If we take Leaf management at its word, many current Maple Leafs will not be with the club after February 29th. I will be surprised if some of the players signed to one year contracts and pending free agents are not moved for draft picks thus further stocking the team's young talent pool. In the end, we need to appreciate the turnaround that is taking place. With a draft class that may be one of the deepest, the Leafs are certain to get a very talented player with their first round pick.
As the team heads out West this week, Leaf fans have to be optimistic with the direction of the franchise. What a difference a year makes!!!
Peter Holland looked the part of a former first round pick scoring the ultimate game winner on a bullet of a shot that Blues goalie Jake Allen had no chance on. Holland led all Leaf forwards with seven shots and really has stepped up his play since being sent up to the press box earlier this season. You have to be impressed with the overall play of Nazem Kadri as he scored a key insurance goal last night that gave the Leafs a 3-1 lead that pretty much salted the game away. What is most impressive is his play defensively as Coach Mike Babcock matches Kadri's line against the other team's top line.
As was pointed out last night during the telecast, it is remarkable to look at where the Leafs were last year compared to this year. While last year's team was seventh overall in the East, it was evident to many that they were not as good as the record showed. That became very clear after the firing of Randy Carlyle and the awful record under Peter Horachek. The biggest difference with this year's team was described by Tyler Bozak. Bozak indicated that last year when the team fell behind they knew they would lose. This year, according to Bozak, they expect to win every game and never feel they are out of a game. That has been clear to me even in October when the team could not post a win.
Many in Leaf Nation seem to be confused as to whether they should be happy with the team's play or upset that they are not losing more. My thoughts on this: 1.) Mike Babcock is developing a culture that will be long lasting. Accountability and being defensively responsible are the key along with not being afraid to go into the dirty areas offensively. When the Nylanders and Marners are ready to put the Leaf uniform on there will be no confusion as to what the expectations are if you want ice time and 2.) If we take Leaf management at its word, many current Maple Leafs will not be with the club after February 29th. I will be surprised if some of the players signed to one year contracts and pending free agents are not moved for draft picks thus further stocking the team's young talent pool. In the end, we need to appreciate the turnaround that is taking place. With a draft class that may be one of the deepest, the Leafs are certain to get a very talented player with their first round pick.
As the team heads out West this week, Leaf fans have to be optimistic with the direction of the franchise. What a difference a year makes!!!
Thursday, November 13, 2014
Leafs Redeem Themselves With 6-1 Win Over Boston
In October the Toronto Maple Leafs were embarrassed on their home ice in a 4-1 defeat at the hands of the Boston Bruins. The loss resulted in a players only meeting which has led to a 6-1-1 record that was topped off by last night's convincing 6-1 win over the Boston Bruins. Without a doubt the Leafs responded not only offensively but defensively.
Not much more you can say about Phil Kessel other than he is a world class goal scorer who the Leafs have not had on the wing since Lanny McDonald. Hopefully this puts to bed the nonsense about Kessel's off season work habits. The bottom line is that Kessel is their best player whether he skates 10 times in the summer or 100 times in the summer. The chemistry of the first line is outstanding and one of the most dangerous in the NHL.
But the line that seems to be the biggest surprise and is giving an identity to this Leaf team is the Mike Santorelli, Peter Holland, Leo Komorov line. When the Leafs brought back Komorov many were critical of the team for the contract given to the hard-hitting Finn. But so far this season, it is clear that it has been money well spent as Komorov has continued his aggressive fore-checking style, killing penalties and chipping in offensively. Mike Santorelli was brought in to do exactly what he is doing: taking the body, being defensively responsible, taking face-offs when needed and providing some offense. Peter Holland has shown so far that if given the opportunity he can be a solid all-around player. The additional ice time has given the former first rounder a chance to show his offensive ability and he has proven to be a good penalty killer. It seems pretty clear that these three have developed a great chemistry.
What really impressed me last night was how well the Leafs played inside their own zone. Their breakouts were very efficient and they weren't running around chasing the Bruins. The forwards did a nice job in back checking and Jonathan Bernier came up with big saves when he needed to. I thought last night Stephane Robidas played his best game as a Maple Leaf and the two youngsters, Jake Gardiner and Morgan Reilly, looked very comfortable and used their skating ability to move the puck out of their zone and set up offensive chances. Both of them have been taken to task for their play but if last night is any indication they have gotten the message.
I have been critical of Randy Carlyle but I give him credit for giving the fourth liners more ice time in the third period, including power play time, when the game was in hand. Josh Leivo seems to be fitting in well with Richard Panik and Trevor Smith and Carlyle needs to continue to give this unit reasonable ice time.
The score was indicative of the complete domination by the Leafs. Their special teams out-performed the Bruins as the Leafs were 3 for 3 on the power play and they killed all three Bruin power plays. Without a doubt, this was their best game of the season. The key is to continue this type of play. It doesn't mean that they will continue to win games by five goals. But what it does mean is that they will be a tough team to play against which would be a far cry from last year's team.
Next up is Pittsburgh on Friday night at the ACC and the way I see it, the Leafs have another score to settle with one of the other Eastern Conference powers.
But the line that seems to be the biggest surprise and is giving an identity to this Leaf team is the Mike Santorelli, Peter Holland, Leo Komorov line. When the Leafs brought back Komorov many were critical of the team for the contract given to the hard-hitting Finn. But so far this season, it is clear that it has been money well spent as Komorov has continued his aggressive fore-checking style, killing penalties and chipping in offensively. Mike Santorelli was brought in to do exactly what he is doing: taking the body, being defensively responsible, taking face-offs when needed and providing some offense. Peter Holland has shown so far that if given the opportunity he can be a solid all-around player. The additional ice time has given the former first rounder a chance to show his offensive ability and he has proven to be a good penalty killer. It seems pretty clear that these three have developed a great chemistry.
What really impressed me last night was how well the Leafs played inside their own zone. Their breakouts were very efficient and they weren't running around chasing the Bruins. The forwards did a nice job in back checking and Jonathan Bernier came up with big saves when he needed to. I thought last night Stephane Robidas played his best game as a Maple Leaf and the two youngsters, Jake Gardiner and Morgan Reilly, looked very comfortable and used their skating ability to move the puck out of their zone and set up offensive chances. Both of them have been taken to task for their play but if last night is any indication they have gotten the message.
I have been critical of Randy Carlyle but I give him credit for giving the fourth liners more ice time in the third period, including power play time, when the game was in hand. Josh Leivo seems to be fitting in well with Richard Panik and Trevor Smith and Carlyle needs to continue to give this unit reasonable ice time.
The score was indicative of the complete domination by the Leafs. Their special teams out-performed the Bruins as the Leafs were 3 for 3 on the power play and they killed all three Bruin power plays. Without a doubt, this was their best game of the season. The key is to continue this type of play. It doesn't mean that they will continue to win games by five goals. But what it does mean is that they will be a tough team to play against which would be a far cry from last year's team.
Next up is Pittsburgh on Friday night at the ACC and the way I see it, the Leafs have another score to settle with one of the other Eastern Conference powers.
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