....He wasn't really getting in their faces...not any more then any other reporter was that was there. Those are the kinds of questions that get asked when you suck so much for so long and show little to no sign of improovement. The same things are said about the Buffalo Bills in football when they miss the playoffs year after year. The players are going to have to get used to it, and learn to give a decent answer to the questions, especially the captain.
OK I actually just watched it and it wasn't that bad, as far as the questioning. Those were pretty obvious questions, I thought. The players did not seem very heart broken over it, but there's not a whole lot you can say about it.
The Leafs fans want to make the playoffs. I don't think that was asking for too much this season, but there is some serious competition and they just weren't good enough.
Here's the question I hope to see someone ask Burke this offseason:
"Last year you bragged how the Leafs had the 4th best record in the NHL after ___ date. This indicated to you the team would be godly this season, which you told everyone. But now you're coming off the by far worst record in the NHL after Feb / Mar ??? Does this mean the Leafs will be awful next year, or will you tell us they were in the playoffs on Feb ??? and the early part matters this time, not the late part of the season?"
Obviously a reporter would word this WAY better than I have.
I will laugh my head off if Burke starts bragging about how good the team was BEFORE X date in late February. Last year the end mattered, now it's the early part that mattered. We'll see if he uses selective statistics like this again. We'll see how many Leaf fans drink his mighty strong kool-aid and start parroting Master Burkey's mantras.
That reporter was a total loser. I hate when "journalists" take a weak subject and try to make it serious news with their ridiculous tough newsman stance.
"The puppies are peeing in the park and ruining the grass which is making some old ladies angry. I asked the municipal government just what the hell they were going to do about it and the answers....will shock you."
It's sports. Don't get pious and pretend that it's a critical human rights issue because you're not good at your job and stuck doing what you didn't imagine you'd be doing when you were in J school.
why cant the captain (phaneuf in this case, nash in columbus, and any captain of any failed team) take responsibly and say on behalf of the team : "we havnt played well enough. We failed the fans".
why cant the coach, even if it's a new coach in this case, say : "My system hasnt worked"
why cant the GM say "I made some mistakes"
why cant a kessel say "I played badly when the team needed me the most"
that's all this reporter, and a sizable portion of the fans of all failed teams want. They want an acknowledgement from the players, and from the management, that they are aware that mistakes have been made. Yes, they would simply be stating what every one already knows, but they have to say it. What annoys a fanbase is this laissez-faire attitude of '**** happens' that they are getting. How can a fanbase trust in the same management, coach, and players going forward if they dont see them taking direct responsibility for what has happened?
Exactly man. All these players go to Sports U. and get taught canned answers to the usual questions. This guy asks different questions and they are baffled. He asked what was on the mind of the fans for a change. Not the usual crap.
I guess I just prefer to think that other people see the same thing I do, as opposed to looking at the world through rose-colored glasses. It also applies a bit of pressure to the players and management when they are forced to answer for their mistakes.
The reporter's job is to approach the players, coaches, and management with the questions that the fans want to ask... it doesn't matter as much how they are answered, more so that they are being asked in the first place (at least that's the way I see it).
Here's the question I hope to see someone ask Burke this offseason:
"Last year you bragged how the Leafs had the 4th best record in the NHL after ___ date. This indicated to you the team would be godly this season, which you told everyone. But now you're coming off the by far worst record in the NHL after Feb / Mar ??? Does this mean the Leafs will be awful next year, or will you tell us they were in the playoffs on Feb ??? and the early part matters this time, not the late part of the season?"
Obviously a reporter would word this WAY better than I have.
I will laugh my head off if Burke starts bragging about how good the team was BEFORE X date in late February. Last year the end mattered, now it's the early part that mattered. We'll see if he uses selective statistics like this again. We'll see how many Leaf fans drink his mighty strong kool-aid and start parroting Master Burkey's mantras.
I'm a Leaf fan and I think that would be a true "Ballsy" question, not what this reporter did asking a rookie like Gardiner the "Tough" questions.
Dion is a lazy player. He's either both lazy and a dumb player or just doesn't care and is lazy since he's making 6.5 mill. a season. He's been caught just standing around on countless goals against. He doesn't look like he's trying most of the time and doesn't do much physically unless it's a smaller player.
He's been rated most disliked or unpopular player in NHL player polls. He's captain but the Leafs collapsed in the latter half of the season so it's justifiable for a Toronto sports reporter to ask him anything. Saying otherwise is blatant bias.
This isn"t "Ballsy", it's about the reporter getting attention on himself and helping his career.
If it was simply helping his career don't you think a lot more reporters would step up and do this? The reporter is going to get blacklisted by the Maple Leafs possibly even CTV as a whole, this does not help his career at all.
It is really ballsy to ask the questions the media want asked instead of the standard "how did you guys perform tonight" "what do you think of this loss" "Where do you guys see yourselves in the standings next year" with all the rehearsed responses
