May 8, 2008

LEAFS ARE PLAYING A VERY DANGEROUS GAME OF CHICKEN WITH BETTMAN

The Toronto Maple Leafs have really backed themselves into a corner in their search for a new hockey honcho.  MLSE poobah Richard Peddie is on record stating that they are searching for the hockey equivalent of basketball’s Bryan Colangelo–not realizing how fortunate they were in getting the original.  Colangelo was looking for an escape route out of Phoenix.   Such blatant luck does not exist this time around.

Despite claims that they are looking at all possible candidates the Leafs have actually targeted just one man–Brian Burke.  MLSE believes that he is the only man that possesses all the necessary qualifications.  Burke is a very experienced NHL executive with a resume that includes successfully managing a number of clubs and having worked in a prominent position out of the league office.   The parameters set out by MLSE leaves very few qualified personnel.  Bob Gainey, Lou Lamoriello and Ken Holland are not available.  This leaves only Burke.

The problem in getting Burke has been cited often–at the completion of Anaheim’s season he was mandated to complete the final year of his present contract by either the Ducks or Bettman…or both.  If it’s just the Ducks then that’s a small hill for MLSE to leap–they’ll just find a way to pay the Ducks for Burke.  But if Bettman is involved (and we know that Bettman gets involved with absolutely everything in the league including mundane stuff like players’ shoe colours when they are walking in public) then the mountain becomes that much higher to climb.

Remember, Bettman has that confidential agreement with the Leafs not to allow another team into Southern Ontario–a wink and a nod culled from the lengthy lockout.  Now, look around at the NHL landscape these days and you’ll see the usual number of struggling franchises.  You will also hear that the twice denied but fervently optimistic Jim Balsillie is sniffing around again like an ambulance chaser following the sirens. Balsillie is queitly making claims into the viability of one of these franchises at being bought, and then moved.  And moved to Hamilton.

Now the Leafs are essentially trying to backdoor Bettman.  They can’t have Burke directly so they have found a surreptitious way of getting him indirectly.  The plan is thus…

…the Leafs need a general manager and they need one soon.  Uncle Cliffie is adamant about one thing–he will not continue in the position.  So the Leafs need a replacement, and they need one fast.  If they think that Burke will eventually be the man then they only need someone for one year.  The best way to utilize that time is by getting Burke’s good friend Dave Nonis to take the interim position.

Burke would like the Leaf job.  If he were the one, after four decades of failure, to lead the Leafs to the Stanley Cup then it would be the pinnacle moment in his career as a successful hockey executive.   The perfect way to cap a career of great accomplishments–and you know that Burke’s tremendous ego would like that as a capper.  

So now you have a Burke associate working for the Leafs, and you have Burke himself working for the Ducks.  And you have Burke simply waiting out the remainder of his contract.  Here is where it gets interesting since it would be human nature for Burke to prepare himself for his next position, and burn up the lines with Nonis discussing ways to improve the Leafs.  And if this takes place–and it will–then obviously Burke won’t be spending all of his times on the job he is being paid to perform…to ensure the welfare of the Ducks.

Bettman may need to revisit his initial decision.  Having all this deception take place under his nose, and without any power to stop it, would be too much for the little control freak to handle.   He would change his mind, Burke’s contract with the Ducks would be ripped up, and the Leafs would have their man.  Oh joy in Leafland, our saviour has finally come.

But hold off on those celebrations.  Bettman will obviously be very unhappy with this latest development and would thus be looking for some form of vindication against his former partner.  Allowing Balsillie to buy a struggling franchise and move it to Hamilton would certainly cure all of Bettman’s Leaf ills. 

And the Leafs would have given up their territory to land a man with an independent mind.  Now, none of us knows how this group of businessmen will be able to handle such an unknown entity.  Independent thinking isn’t seen much around MLSE these days. 

Thursday Night’s extra inning loss to the Rays is a microcosm of the Jays season.  Good enough to compete–not good enough to win.

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