Leafs Want to Copy Kings

[Mr Los Angeles]

Originally Posted by DaAnimal

Was at vegas yesterday and spoke to a few leafs fans. They said the only reason they didn't make the playoffs was because of the coach change.

I sure would love whatever they are smoking

[Sydor25]

Originally Posted by Mr Los Angeles

Toronto just seems like it be a very difficult place to rebuild because of their fan base (at least thats thr vibe i get from their boards) so it seems like doing a true rebuilding process thag was done jere would be really difficult to pull off. Id hate to have that job

I'm sure the fan base would be happy with a full rebuild if they won the cup 6 years later.

That would be copying the Kings...

[tigermask48]

Originally Posted by Mr Los Angeles

Toronto just seems like it be a very difficult place to rebuild because of their fan base (at least thats thr vibe i get from their boards) so it seems like doing a true rebuilding process thag was done jere would be really difficult to pull off. Id hate to have that job

No more difficult than it was to do one in LA. In LA you have to worry about attendence dropping and the community having zero interest in the team wheh they are sucking. In Toronto you'd at least have solid fanbase support if you're up front and present it to them the right way... Yeah dealing with the media would be a nightmare sure, but with the right staff and players in place it could be done.

Trouble is they DON'T have the right people in place to rebuild. Burke isn't a build through the draft kind of GM, the scouting staff in Toronto is terrible, and as sson as things go bad they fire the coach and throw the blame on him. Food for thought, since the 2003 draft, only Mitchell, Stralman, Reimer, Schenn and Kadri have spent significant time playing for the Maple Leafs... That's just down right atrocious scouting, drafting and development any way that you look at it. A full rebuild in THAT situation is what makes it impossible.
Compare that to the Kings which in the same time frame since the 2003 draft currently have Brown, Kopitar, Quick, Lewis, Bernier, Martinez, Doughty, and Clifford, all contributing to the NHL squad...

Toronto can say all they want that the Kings are the model but it's just lip service and in no way true.

[Live in the Now]

Originally Posted by tigermask48

No more difficult than it was to do one in LA. In LA you have to worry about attendence dropping and the community having zero interest in the team wheh they are sucking. In Toronto you'd at least have solid fanbase support if you're up front and present it to them the right way... Yeah dealing with the media would be a nightmare sure, but with the right staff and players in place it could be done.

No they wouldn't. Most of the people do not want to do this and most Leafs fans are like the people named in DaAnimal's post.

They could have picked anyone not named Yakupov and half or more of the fanbase would have blown up. There are also people who wanted no part of making a #5 pick. Those are the kinds of fans being dealt with here. Rabid, die-hard, but impatient. Their roster is almost as young as ours, by the way, so it's hard to sell them on a full rebuild, they don't buy the need for it at all.