Along with the rest of Leaf Nation, I have watched with puzzlement and despair the sad saga of the Toronto Maple Leafs. This past season started with the Leaf coach declaring the team was the best he had ever coach and would contend for the Stanley Cup. That declaration likely surprised even the most loyal Leaf fan who were hoping the team might al least be good enough to quality for the playoffs. He might have also sealed his fate at the end of the season when the team fell drastically short of his stated goal and finished near the bottom of the standings.
Although it was evident from the early on that John Ferguson had failed to build a winning team and could not be left in charge, MLSE failed to act. When he was finally fired and replaced by Cliff Fletcher, it was already January and provided the interim manager with little time to make moves that could might help the team long term. When Fletcher was hired the organization declared the following:
- Fletcher would serve as an interim manager until a permanent manager could be found and that he would continue as a consultant.
- Fletcher declared he was not a candidate for the manager's job because he felt that the demands were to great for someone is age and the organization needed someone who could do the job for the next 10 years.
- Finding a new manager was a top priority for the team to begin to rebuild.
- Paul Maurice would continue until a new manager was hired since it only made sense that the manager decide on who should be the coach.
- Until a new manager was hired, Fletcher would "clear the table" to allow the incoming manager to rebuild from the ground up.
- In the past 5 months Fletcher has failed in his effort to "clear the table". At the trading deadline he was only able to move out 3 marginal veterans because the 5 players with no trade or no movement clauses refused to cooperate. Yet despite the fact that the team needs to go in a different direction, he is hotly pursuing Mats Sundin even though he will not be around long enough to make the team a contender.
- The search for a manager is no longer a top priority because the people deemed to be the most qualified are currently employed and could not be approached by the search team. So here we are again. The organization spinning wheels just as it did during the season when it couldn't decide when to fire Ferguson. Every other organization hires the best person from those who are available. But MLSE knows better. So the rebuilding process is delayed by another entire season because Fletcher has already indicated that he will not be making any long term commitments as interim manager. And what happens if all the prime candidates are offered lucrative long term deals to stay with their current team? Wait another year?
- Paul Maurice was fired and replaced by Row Wilson before a permanent manager was hired. Now I have no problems with Wilson who happens to be a very good coach. But there are still issues regarding compatibility with an unknown manager. Also, the next manager may decide that Ron Wilson is not the right coach for the type of team he is building or not the right coach for the current phase of the rebuilding process.
It seems when ever MLSE sets out a plan on moving forward, several weeks later the plan changes. They never seem to carry out what they said they would do. Sure they always have a perfectly good rationale for changing plans. But the constant change in direction has symptomatic of what is wrong with the Maple Leafs.
So has anything really changed at MLSE? I haven't seen it yet.
