Land of the Leaf

In this installment, we take a look at Paul Maurice.  Paul was known here in Toronto as a the nice guy coach that just couldn’t make shit shine.  During his time as head coach of the Toronto Maple Leafs, it appeared Maurice had lost everything: the respect of the players, his composure, and ultimately his job.

Maurice took over the coaching duties in Carolina earlier this season and magically turned the team around and took them to the playoffs.  The Hurricanes knocked the Devils out of the playoffs last night and all the Leafs get is the prospect of dealing with the moody Ron Wilson again next season.  Congratulations to Paul Maurice on his success outside of Toronto (he had none here).

It goes to show that a roster of players built mostly from within the franchise (Eric Staal ain’t too bad), and the addition of proven veterans through trades and free agency will always have more success than stockpiling over-priced bums just because they want to be a Leaf.