How can the Buffalo Bills top this years game next year? and the year after that?...other then getting people to show up. This years match up in the Miami Dolphins was poorly selected.
A division rival, a potential playoff implication match-up and a game that is most notedly know for being playing in the worse possible weather conditions at Ralph Wilson Stadium was a bad match-up to have at The Rogers centre because next year they are going to have to really one up it to try and bring at least someone to watch the game.
The only possibilities I can think of are bringing either the New York Jets or the New England Patriots to Toronto to play a match-up but then still you are put in the same situation and the Bills lose out on home field advantage. What they should have done this year was put the game earlier, without conflicting with the CFL schedule.
After looking at their schedule the best possible game I can think of that should have been played here was week seven's match-up against the Chargers. Even though the Chargers have been sub-par this year there was no way of knowing that prior to the year, so you can sell people on bringing in a potential Superbowl fav and you can also sell people on seeing the best runningback in the league in LT.
I look forward to how they decide to fix the mess simply known as the NFL in Canada for next year because the opponent is not the only piece of the pie that needs fixin'.
Wednesday, December 10, 2008
Canada will stick with its ugly girlfriend...the CFL
After this weekends fiasco that some may call "Sunday Night Football" it was made evident that Toronto is not a Bills city, you could also say that it's not a NFL city, the best way to put it is, Toronto is a football city. The city of Toronto has an illustrious history from the burning of York, Upper Canada Rebellion, Maple Leaf Gardens, the Santa Claus Parade and now the football disaster. Not only did Sunday's Bills-Dolphins game let down fans but putting together such a more showing but it was also a financial let down. Rogers believed that they would be able to sell tickets as a package and everything would be smooth sailing, when that didn't happen they put tickets on sale for a game at a time and they still did not sell. 24-hours prior to the game it was possible to go online to http://www.ticketmaster.com/ and buy a group of seven tickets in a row. The idea that had originally surfaced when the games in Toronto were first announced was that the Buffalo Bills would soon become the Toronto Bills and everyone would be joyous and jolly. What Bills management found out though was, even though Toronto's closest NFL city is Buffalo, Toronto residents show no loyal ship to the team just down the QEW. This is why the NFL will not be coming to Toronto on a permanent basis, as much as Toronto loves football and the NFL.
A new NFL franchise estimated to be worth $1-billion US and for a Toronto group to pony up that kind of money, the group would have to include some major buyers. Well there is such a group and from here on out I will refer to them as the super group. The super group includes former CEO of the Toronto Blue Jays Paul Godfrey, Toronto Maple Leafs Chairman Larry Tanenbaum and former head of Rogers Communication Ted Rogers. When the group originally got together to try and make this happen it convinced some cynics like Stephen Brunt to have a second thought on the idea. "We now have a group that actually has the money to bring an NFL team to Toronto, and that wasn’t the case before.” The super group have reportedly already tried to purchase one National Football League franchise. ESPN's Peter King reported that a Canadian group offered New Orleans Saints owner Tom Benson $1-billion US for the team, only to have the offer rejected. It was not the full super group that were part in bringing the Bills to town, as Tanenbaum has made sure to let people know that he had no part in the fiasco, it was mainly set up by Ted Rogers. Unfortunately for the group the recent loss of Ted Rogers will negatively effect their chances of bringing a team to Toronto because Rogers Communications as a company may choose not to stay involved with the hunt. The super group will also suffer with the loss of Rogers because the stadium they had wished to use in the Rogers Centre which is currently not up to par with NFL standards and because the Canada's own Toronto Argonauts currently lease the stadium.
CFL Commissioner Mark Cohon believes all signs point to an NFL team being placed in Toronto, but this doesn't mean it will happen. "All of the tea leaves are indicating that it's shifting," Cohon said. "You have guys like Ted Rogers and Larry Tanenbaum and Phil Lind, very powerful Canadians who are interested; you have an owner in Ralph Wilson in Buffalo who has said, 'When I die, my estate will sell the franchise'; you have the Bills interested in marking Toronto as part of their territory, which I believe is indication that, 'Hey, this our territory, we don't want another NFL team coming here. So I think there's all these things lining up as an indication that it could happen. So I'm not sticking my head in the sand. That would be the worst thing for the CFL commissioner to do. So I think there's a real potential." So why would one draw up the conclusion of Toronto not getting an NFL team with the commissioner of the CFL so sure that they will. An NFL team in Toronto would have to come to some agreement with the CFL and I don't believe that that would be the case. The NFL would be so arrogant to think that they would be able to just come right in to Toronto and Canada and take over without having to pay any infringement costs. If the NFL were to come to Canada, Canadian government would make sure that the CFL would be properly taken care of.
Canadian government would not allow for an NFL team to come to Canada for many reasons. Toronto Mayor David Miller as already stated that City of Toronto would not put fourth any compensation towards bringing a team to Toronto. “If private people want to raise a billion dollars for the NFL franchise, good for them,” Miller said. “But the health of the CFL is very important to this city and to the country and I don’t want to see anything happen that’s going to risk this league." I believe Stephen Brunt put it best in his article from the Globe and Mail; "Quietly, behind the scenes, the CFL has been sending out a subtle but pointed message. Its game is motherhood. Its game has history and tradition. Its game comes wrapped in the flag." Simply put the CFL is Canada's game and the NFL in Canada would destroy whats left of an already fragile game.
Buffalo Bills vs. Miami Dolphins Game Report
The Buffalo Bills(6-7) could not take advantage of their so-called "home advantage" at the first ever regular season game held in Canada at the Rogers Centre. Chad Pennington and the Miami Dolphins(8-5) took advantage of a stagnant Bills team, leaving Toronto with a 16-3 win Sunday.
J.P. Losman got his first start of the season and it showed, with a performance full of rust. Losman went 13-of-27 and threw for 123 yards. On Buffalo's most successful drive of the game late in the third quarter the Bills faced first-and-goal from the 3 yard line, Losman underthrew Lee Evans, and the pass was intercepted by Will Allen ending their scoring threat. After Sunday's game Buffalo's offense has now gone nearly nine consecutive quarter's without a touchdown.
Miami's defense had a strong outing holding the Bills to just 163 yards of total offense. The Dolphin's defense has now held their last two opponents without a touchdown.
Pennington showed Toronto fans why the Dolphins were so quick to pick him up after being cut by the New York Jets(8-5). He threw for 181 yards and completed 23 passes, including his final 11 attempts. On the lone touchdown of the night, Pennington hit Anthony Fasano for a 20-yard touchdown as the Dolphins have now won six of their last seven games.
Pennington became just the third Dolphin to reach 3, 000 yards in one game.
Ricky Williams of the Miami Dolphins looked steady in his return to Toronto. He spent the 2006 season with the Toronto Argonauts of the CFL. Williams had 11 touches for 40 yards and a touchdown that was recalled due to a penalty.
Kicker Dan Carpenter provided Miami with the rest of the offense they needed. He booted three field goals, including a 50-yarder.
Kicker Rian Lindell of the Bills provided their only offense. He blasted a 40-yard field goal late in the first quarter.
The loss also adds fuel to the fire that Buffalo Head Coach Dick Jauron is on the hot seat and is close to losing his job. Jauron is in the final year of his contract and coming off two consecutive 7-9 seasons. With the loss the Buffalo Bills have now lost six of their last seven after starting the season 4-0 and are now mathematically out of the playoff contention. It will be the Bills ninth straight season without making a playoff appearance.
Notes
Bills QB Trent Edwards was dressed but did not play due to a groin injury...Dolphins LB Joey Porter matched the team's single-season record with two sacks...Bills CB Leodis McKelvin had 56 kickoff return yards, he now has 1, 233 on the season passing Eric Moulds for most by a Bills Rookie...The Dolphins have improved this season going 8-5 from last years record of 1-15...The Bills improved to 4-2 on the road while the Bills feel to 4-5 at home...Chad Pennington passed 3, 000 passing yards, 12 touchdowns and six interceptions with a QB rating of 93.7 on the year...
J.P. Losman got his first start of the season and it showed, with a performance full of rust. Losman went 13-of-27 and threw for 123 yards. On Buffalo's most successful drive of the game late in the third quarter the Bills faced first-and-goal from the 3 yard line, Losman underthrew Lee Evans, and the pass was intercepted by Will Allen ending their scoring threat. After Sunday's game Buffalo's offense has now gone nearly nine consecutive quarter's without a touchdown.
Miami's defense had a strong outing holding the Bills to just 163 yards of total offense. The Dolphin's defense has now held their last two opponents without a touchdown.
Pennington showed Toronto fans why the Dolphins were so quick to pick him up after being cut by the New York Jets(8-5). He threw for 181 yards and completed 23 passes, including his final 11 attempts. On the lone touchdown of the night, Pennington hit Anthony Fasano for a 20-yard touchdown as the Dolphins have now won six of their last seven games.
Pennington became just the third Dolphin to reach 3, 000 yards in one game.
Ricky Williams of the Miami Dolphins looked steady in his return to Toronto. He spent the 2006 season with the Toronto Argonauts of the CFL. Williams had 11 touches for 40 yards and a touchdown that was recalled due to a penalty.
Kicker Dan Carpenter provided Miami with the rest of the offense they needed. He booted three field goals, including a 50-yarder.
Kicker Rian Lindell of the Bills provided their only offense. He blasted a 40-yard field goal late in the first quarter.
The loss also adds fuel to the fire that Buffalo Head Coach Dick Jauron is on the hot seat and is close to losing his job. Jauron is in the final year of his contract and coming off two consecutive 7-9 seasons. With the loss the Buffalo Bills have now lost six of their last seven after starting the season 4-0 and are now mathematically out of the playoff contention. It will be the Bills ninth straight season without making a playoff appearance.
Notes
Bills QB Trent Edwards was dressed but did not play due to a groin injury...Dolphins LB Joey Porter matched the team's single-season record with two sacks...Bills CB Leodis McKelvin had 56 kickoff return yards, he now has 1, 233 on the season passing Eric Moulds for most by a Bills Rookie...The Dolphins have improved this season going 8-5 from last years record of 1-15...The Bills improved to 4-2 on the road while the Bills feel to 4-5 at home...Chad Pennington passed 3, 000 passing yards, 12 touchdowns and six interceptions with a QB rating of 93.7 on the year...
Monday, November 17, 2008
Peter Gross Radio Test: 2 Min. Update
Leaf's lose their third of their last four, Monday Night Football provides another thriller, and the award goes too...
I'm Andrew Zwarych and this is a CSM Sports Update...
The Toronto Maple Leaf's returned home after a 3-game road trip and had hoped to get back in the winning column against Boston. Unfortunately for them they were playing against one of the hottest goalies in the NHL, Tim Thomas. Thomas made 27 saves in a 3-2 Bruin victory. Micheal Ryder sniped just his third of the year, but it turned out to be the winner as the Leaf's found themselves trying to claw from behind yet again. Phil Kessel and Matt Hunwick scored the Bruins two other goals. Jason Blake and Mikhail Grabovski scored the two Leaf marks. Boston goalie, Tim Thomas, has been the most notable surprise of this young year, he leads all goalies in Goals Against Average and Save Percentage while posting a record of 6-2-3 and 2 shutouts. The Bud's get a break until Saturday when they host the Blackhawks.
[MONDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL UPDATE]
Four other games in the NHL Monday;
The Islanders and the Rangers both needed a shootout but were able hold off their respective opponents.
Ty Conklin made 20 saves for his fifth career goose-egg, the Wings beat the Oilers 4-0.
The San Jose Sharks took a chunk out of the Predators with a 4-1 victory. Nashville captain Jason Arnott was taken off the ice on a stretcher at the end of the first period after crashing into the net. He was taken to a near by hospital but no word on his condition as of yet.
The Colorado Avalanche have locked up a big part of their future as the team announced the signing of Paul Stastny to a five-year contract extension worth $33 million.
The NL MVP was named Monday, taking the award was St. Louis Cardinal slugger Albert Pujols. This is Pujols second MVP honour, he won the award in 2005.
Sports Every 30 Minutes here on CSM Sports Radio...
I'm Andrew Zwarych and this is a CSM Sports Update...
The Toronto Maple Leaf's returned home after a 3-game road trip and had hoped to get back in the winning column against Boston. Unfortunately for them they were playing against one of the hottest goalies in the NHL, Tim Thomas. Thomas made 27 saves in a 3-2 Bruin victory. Micheal Ryder sniped just his third of the year, but it turned out to be the winner as the Leaf's found themselves trying to claw from behind yet again. Phil Kessel and Matt Hunwick scored the Bruins two other goals. Jason Blake and Mikhail Grabovski scored the two Leaf marks. Boston goalie, Tim Thomas, has been the most notable surprise of this young year, he leads all goalies in Goals Against Average and Save Percentage while posting a record of 6-2-3 and 2 shutouts. The Bud's get a break until Saturday when they host the Blackhawks.
[MONDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL UPDATE]
Four other games in the NHL Monday;
The Islanders and the Rangers both needed a shootout but were able hold off their respective opponents.
Ty Conklin made 20 saves for his fifth career goose-egg, the Wings beat the Oilers 4-0.
The San Jose Sharks took a chunk out of the Predators with a 4-1 victory. Nashville captain Jason Arnott was taken off the ice on a stretcher at the end of the first period after crashing into the net. He was taken to a near by hospital but no word on his condition as of yet.
The Colorado Avalanche have locked up a big part of their future as the team announced the signing of Paul Stastny to a five-year contract extension worth $33 million.
The NL MVP was named Monday, taking the award was St. Louis Cardinal slugger Albert Pujols. This is Pujols second MVP honour, he won the award in 2005.
Sports Every 30 Minutes here on CSM Sports Radio...
Leafs/Flames Game Report
Dustin Boyd made the most of an oppourtunity on the first line, helping the Flames beat the Leafs 4-3. Boydfilled in for a flu-strucken Mike Camallari and played along side Jarome Iginla and Curtis Glencross scoring two goals.
Boyd gave Calgary a 4-1 lead at 11:13 in the third and it looked like the Flames had it all wrapped up. He potted in a loose puck from a Marc Giordano point shot for his first career two goal game. Before Calgary could call it a game thoughthe team thats becoming known for its comebacks tried to do just that.
Third period goals by Nik Antropov and Matt Stajan brought the Leafs close but they were unable to complete the comeback. Alexei Ponikarovsky scored Toronto's other goal.
Jarome Iginla and Dion Phaneuf also scored for the Flames, who had lost four of their last five.
The Toronto Maple Leafs got off to an early start but rookie Luke Schenn muffled a puck and Todd Bertuzzi was able topick it up and set up Boyd, at 11:20, for his first of the game making it, 1-1.
Iginla scored his 10th of the year which put the Flames in front at 12:46 in the first. Vesa Toskala struggled with reboundcontrol for most of the night. Iginla's goal was a rebound from a Phaneuf point shot during a Leaf's penalty kill.
Phaneuf blasted his third goal of the year with 32 seconds left in the second, making it 3-1. Iginla set up the goal with across-ice pass that Phaneuf blasted past Toskala.
Nearing the end of the game, a pivotal faceoff deep in the Flames zone looked to be crutial in Toronto's comeback. Craig Conroy clearly won the draw, pulling it back past all of his teammates right into his own net.
Countrymen, Mikka Kipprusoff made 29 saves in the win and Vesa Toskala made 28 in the loss.
The Leaf's continue their western road trip in Edmonton on Thursday.
Notes:
Mike Camallari missed tonight's game with the flu...the flu has run rampant through the Flames team...Cammalleri’s absence gaveRW Andre Roy the chance to get back in the lineup after sitting out the past 12 games... Flames rookie D Adam Pardy took the spotof D Jim Vandermeer, who broke a bone in his ankle Sunday and will be sidelined for six to eight weeks...Calgary RW Rene Bourque played in his 200th game. … Toronto LW Jason Blake was a healthy scratch with LW Ryan Hollweg inserted in his spot.
Boyd gave Calgary a 4-1 lead at 11:13 in the third and it looked like the Flames had it all wrapped up. He potted in a loose puck from a Marc Giordano point shot for his first career two goal game. Before Calgary could call it a game thoughthe team thats becoming known for its comebacks tried to do just that.
Third period goals by Nik Antropov and Matt Stajan brought the Leafs close but they were unable to complete the comeback. Alexei Ponikarovsky scored Toronto's other goal.
Jarome Iginla and Dion Phaneuf also scored for the Flames, who had lost four of their last five.
The Toronto Maple Leafs got off to an early start but rookie Luke Schenn muffled a puck and Todd Bertuzzi was able topick it up and set up Boyd, at 11:20, for his first of the game making it, 1-1.
Iginla scored his 10th of the year which put the Flames in front at 12:46 in the first. Vesa Toskala struggled with reboundcontrol for most of the night. Iginla's goal was a rebound from a Phaneuf point shot during a Leaf's penalty kill.
Phaneuf blasted his third goal of the year with 32 seconds left in the second, making it 3-1. Iginla set up the goal with across-ice pass that Phaneuf blasted past Toskala.
Nearing the end of the game, a pivotal faceoff deep in the Flames zone looked to be crutial in Toronto's comeback. Craig Conroy clearly won the draw, pulling it back past all of his teammates right into his own net.
Countrymen, Mikka Kipprusoff made 29 saves in the win and Vesa Toskala made 28 in the loss.
The Leaf's continue their western road trip in Edmonton on Thursday.
Notes:
Mike Camallari missed tonight's game with the flu...the flu has run rampant through the Flames team...Cammalleri’s absence gaveRW Andre Roy the chance to get back in the lineup after sitting out the past 12 games... Flames rookie D Adam Pardy took the spotof D Jim Vandermeer, who broke a bone in his ankle Sunday and will be sidelined for six to eight weeks...Calgary RW Rene Bourque played in his 200th game. … Toronto LW Jason Blake was a healthy scratch with LW Ryan Hollweg inserted in his spot.
Wednesday, November 5, 2008
MLB: Free Agent Spending vs. THE ECONOMY
Andrew Zwarych
November 6, 2008
Will the nagging economy really affect the MLB?
Let me start of by congratulating Barrack Obama on his newly elected position of President of the United States of America. Obama represents change when change is neccessary. Hopefully the change that he will bring about will help world economics and the tumbling North American economy. Obama already has a financial plan in place that is suppose to help the middle class, almost a Robin Hood-esk type deal, take from the rich and give to the poor/middle class. But how much will this new plan mixed with today's nagging economy affect November 14th? November 14th is D-Day for MLB free agents and teams to discuss contracts and the question I found myself asking is "will the economy even matter?"
The piles upon piles of money that MLB owners have and use toward player salaries, I assume, would almost be in its own little world with little insight to the outside world. Player agent Scott Boras was quoted as saying, "(We are) in our myopic world, there's a lot of fixed elements that frankly are not as applicable to the outside world." Boras' quote confuses me only because he has also stated that he will be pursuing more money because of the new President's financial plan. The new plan will tax society's better off giving the middle class more of a financial break. The magic number is $250, 000. For those who make 250K and over, their taxes will jump from 35% to 39.6%, thus affecting the amount of money baseball players will recieve after they have signed their new contracts. Boras continued by stating that he will be looking to get bigger signing deals, so that players recieve more now. Excuse me if I am out of line here but, who cares? I couldn't care less if a guy who plays baseball for a living and is making 23 million dollars per year has to pay 5% more in taxes.
This offseason crops of free agents are outstanding. The amount of staff ace's and solid number two pitchers that are available this year far exceed any prior year past, at least that I can remember. The likes of C.C. Sabathia, Francisco Rodriguez, AJ Burnett, Derek Lowe, Ben Sheets, Randy Johnson, Brad Penny, Jon Garland and many more reliable pitchers can help transform any team's bullpen and rotation. Even with the uncertenty of the economy if an ace is dangled out, there will be more then just a few bites. C.C. already turned down a 5-year 100-million dollar deal believing he is worth more and he will most likely get more then that. Pitching is the backbone to any and all baseball franchises and when an owner and manager have a chance to improve their pitching, the struggling economy won't be a factor.
Much like pitching, there are vast amounts of talented fielders that are availble to the highest bidder. There are top of the line fielders available at almost every position. At catcher, Ivan Rodriguez and Gregg Zaun are available. Both are now past the pinacle of their career but both can still do the job that is needed. At first base there is Mark Teixeira and Jason Giambi. Teixeira is one of the most saught after free agents and will likely be making a hefty pay increase even with the poor economy. Orlando Hudson, Rafael Furcal and Edgar Renteria finish out the rest of the infield. Adam Dunn, Pat Burrell, Bobby Abreu and Milton Bradley are just some of the outfielders that are available and will all likely make an impact on whichever team is able to sign them. MLB owners are more likely to make a free agent splash to bring in a key defensive player, a big booming bat or just filling a hole they may have rather then keeping a tight wallet and suffering through the year.
The idea that the economy may in some way shape MLB free agency is absurd. Last year the MLB grossed $ 6.5 Billion in revenue, there is no way that an economic turn for the worse, even as bad as this one is, will negativly effect the way owner's spend their cash. If you want a winner, sometimes you have to pay for a winner.
November 6, 2008
Will the nagging economy really affect the MLB?
Let me start of by congratulating Barrack Obama on his newly elected position of President of the United States of America. Obama represents change when change is neccessary. Hopefully the change that he will bring about will help world economics and the tumbling North American economy. Obama already has a financial plan in place that is suppose to help the middle class, almost a Robin Hood-esk type deal, take from the rich and give to the poor/middle class. But how much will this new plan mixed with today's nagging economy affect November 14th? November 14th is D-Day for MLB free agents and teams to discuss contracts and the question I found myself asking is "will the economy even matter?"
The piles upon piles of money that MLB owners have and use toward player salaries, I assume, would almost be in its own little world with little insight to the outside world. Player agent Scott Boras was quoted as saying, "(We are) in our myopic world, there's a lot of fixed elements that frankly are not as applicable to the outside world." Boras' quote confuses me only because he has also stated that he will be pursuing more money because of the new President's financial plan. The new plan will tax society's better off giving the middle class more of a financial break. The magic number is $250, 000. For those who make 250K and over, their taxes will jump from 35% to 39.6%, thus affecting the amount of money baseball players will recieve after they have signed their new contracts. Boras continued by stating that he will be looking to get bigger signing deals, so that players recieve more now. Excuse me if I am out of line here but, who cares? I couldn't care less if a guy who plays baseball for a living and is making 23 million dollars per year has to pay 5% more in taxes.
This offseason crops of free agents are outstanding. The amount of staff ace's and solid number two pitchers that are available this year far exceed any prior year past, at least that I can remember. The likes of C.C. Sabathia, Francisco Rodriguez, AJ Burnett, Derek Lowe, Ben Sheets, Randy Johnson, Brad Penny, Jon Garland and many more reliable pitchers can help transform any team's bullpen and rotation. Even with the uncertenty of the economy if an ace is dangled out, there will be more then just a few bites. C.C. already turned down a 5-year 100-million dollar deal believing he is worth more and he will most likely get more then that. Pitching is the backbone to any and all baseball franchises and when an owner and manager have a chance to improve their pitching, the struggling economy won't be a factor.
Much like pitching, there are vast amounts of talented fielders that are availble to the highest bidder. There are top of the line fielders available at almost every position. At catcher, Ivan Rodriguez and Gregg Zaun are available. Both are now past the pinacle of their career but both can still do the job that is needed. At first base there is Mark Teixeira and Jason Giambi. Teixeira is one of the most saught after free agents and will likely be making a hefty pay increase even with the poor economy. Orlando Hudson, Rafael Furcal and Edgar Renteria finish out the rest of the infield. Adam Dunn, Pat Burrell, Bobby Abreu and Milton Bradley are just some of the outfielders that are available and will all likely make an impact on whichever team is able to sign them. MLB owners are more likely to make a free agent splash to bring in a key defensive player, a big booming bat or just filling a hole they may have rather then keeping a tight wallet and suffering through the year.
The idea that the economy may in some way shape MLB free agency is absurd. Last year the MLB grossed $ 6.5 Billion in revenue, there is no way that an economic turn for the worse, even as bad as this one is, will negativly effect the way owner's spend their cash. If you want a winner, sometimes you have to pay for a winner.
Schenn's Play Warrant to Staying with Buds
Sports with Zwarych
Andrew Zwarych
November 2, 2008
Schenn's Play Warrant to Staying with Buds
The question of whether or not Luke Schenn was going to stay with the Toronto Maple Leafs has now been answered. But ever since his first preseason game Schenn has given Leafs management no reason why they should have sent him back to minors. As of Sunday night Luke over 11 games played has accumulated 2 assists and -1 plus/minus. He currently leads all NHL rookies in blocked shots (19), is second in average ice time per game (21:39) and is third among rookies in hits (25). Schenn's play warranted him staying on the Leaf's roster, he has been put in several hard situations and has been dominate. Over his young career Schenn has already participated in four years of junior play and has most likely learned as much as possible from that situation, he is now presented with an opportunity to learn and grow as a player again playing with the likes of Tomas Kabele, Pavel Kubina, Jeff Finger, and Mike Van Ryn. Schenn's play has answered all critics who ask whether or not he should stay.
Luke Schenn's play on the ice has allowed Leaf's coaches and management to make the easy decision to keep him around. It is not just the fact that Schenn is near the top in blocked shots, average ice time and rookie hits he gives no reason to not believe he can succeed when given the chance. Coach Ron Wilson has gone on about how he believes Luke deserves to be in the lineup and will continue to do so. Schenn's ability to protect his teammates has also been part of the reason why Schenn has stuck around. After incidents like his altercation with Chris Neil last Saturday or what happened between him and Denis Wideman after his devastating hit on Matt Stajan. This ability to stick up for his fellow player's show how dedicated he is for the team, doing anything to give the boys that much added adrenaline. With Luke Schenn being so young and still developing, the Leafs are able to mold him into the defenseman they want. By keeping him with the team and playing with the likes of Tomas Kaberle, he is more likely going to pick up Kaberle's and the others good habits. If Schenn would to be sent back he wouldn't be going back to a crappy defense that would make him worse (Schenn's d-partner last year was Tyler Myers who was also a 1st round draft pick this past year-12th overall by the Buffalo Sabres) but the talent that he can play with in the NHL is that much better. The only possibility the Leaf's have in the near future that should in compass looking at moving Schenn or not is if they find themselves in a tight bind and are unable to move any players, being forced to send Schenn down.
If the Leafs choose to shake things up via a trade, under no circumstance should Schenn be looked at as any part to the deal. Even if it is to get a top of the line talent. According to the Toronto Star, "(Ilya) Kovalchuk, one of the few pure snipers in the NHL, sounds as if he wants out of Atlanta. Russian newspaper Sports Express Daily said the Leafs and Montreal Canadiens were the front-runners for his services."* Leafs General Manager Cliff Fletcher was quoted as saying "trade (talks won't) heat up until December."* Even if a deal is made for Kovalchuk the Leafs management should take a long hard look before decided to include Schenn. Unless a blue-chip blueliner is coming with him, I wouldn't do it. I think its easy to say that Luke Schenn has become an essential role on the Leaf's roster and has answered all critics who asked if he deserved to be on the this team or not. *http://www.thestar.com/
Andrew Zwarych
November 2, 2008
Schenn's Play Warrant to Staying with Buds
The question of whether or not Luke Schenn was going to stay with the Toronto Maple Leafs has now been answered. But ever since his first preseason game Schenn has given Leafs management no reason why they should have sent him back to minors. As of Sunday night Luke over 11 games played has accumulated 2 assists and -1 plus/minus. He currently leads all NHL rookies in blocked shots (19), is second in average ice time per game (21:39) and is third among rookies in hits (25). Schenn's play warranted him staying on the Leaf's roster, he has been put in several hard situations and has been dominate. Over his young career Schenn has already participated in four years of junior play and has most likely learned as much as possible from that situation, he is now presented with an opportunity to learn and grow as a player again playing with the likes of Tomas Kabele, Pavel Kubina, Jeff Finger, and Mike Van Ryn. Schenn's play has answered all critics who ask whether or not he should stay.
Luke Schenn's play on the ice has allowed Leaf's coaches and management to make the easy decision to keep him around. It is not just the fact that Schenn is near the top in blocked shots, average ice time and rookie hits he gives no reason to not believe he can succeed when given the chance. Coach Ron Wilson has gone on about how he believes Luke deserves to be in the lineup and will continue to do so. Schenn's ability to protect his teammates has also been part of the reason why Schenn has stuck around. After incidents like his altercation with Chris Neil last Saturday or what happened between him and Denis Wideman after his devastating hit on Matt Stajan. This ability to stick up for his fellow player's show how dedicated he is for the team, doing anything to give the boys that much added adrenaline. With Luke Schenn being so young and still developing, the Leafs are able to mold him into the defenseman they want. By keeping him with the team and playing with the likes of Tomas Kaberle, he is more likely going to pick up Kaberle's and the others good habits. If Schenn would to be sent back he wouldn't be going back to a crappy defense that would make him worse (Schenn's d-partner last year was Tyler Myers who was also a 1st round draft pick this past year-12th overall by the Buffalo Sabres) but the talent that he can play with in the NHL is that much better. The only possibility the Leaf's have in the near future that should in compass looking at moving Schenn or not is if they find themselves in a tight bind and are unable to move any players, being forced to send Schenn down.
If the Leafs choose to shake things up via a trade, under no circumstance should Schenn be looked at as any part to the deal. Even if it is to get a top of the line talent. According to the Toronto Star, "(Ilya) Kovalchuk, one of the few pure snipers in the NHL, sounds as if he wants out of Atlanta. Russian newspaper Sports Express Daily said the Leafs and Montreal Canadiens were the front-runners for his services."* Leafs General Manager Cliff Fletcher was quoted as saying "trade (talks won't) heat up until December."* Even if a deal is made for Kovalchuk the Leafs management should take a long hard look before decided to include Schenn. Unless a blue-chip blueliner is coming with him, I wouldn't do it. I think its easy to say that Luke Schenn has become an essential role on the Leaf's roster and has answered all critics who asked if he deserved to be on the this team or not. *http://www.thestar.com/
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)