We can’t seem to attract big-name UFA’s, but how often have we lost star players? As for Phil Kessel….

The ongoing discussion—and we’ve had a fair bit of it here at VLM—around why the Leafs just can’t seem to attract elite UFA’s (taxes, media scrutiny, a mediocre team, unwillingness to over-spend, following the "plan", etc.) got me thinking.  While certainly conceding that we haven’t really landed a big fish in almost 15 years (Curtis Joseph being the most recent in 1998; am I missing someone else?) via the free-agency net, conversely, have we really lost any/many big-name guys who leave town when the opportunity arises?

I guess what made me think on this is seeing how difficult it must be for a franchise like Nashville to spend years developing a player (e.g Ryan Suter) and yet, the first chance he gets- despite being offered more money than he could ever spend in his lifetime by his current team- he bolts.  It's his free choice, of course.  But whenever I see a player leave an organization that has paid him exceptionally well over the years and been fair in its interactions with that individual, it has to be tough lose that player.  That simply hasn't happened much to the Leafs over the years.

Now, this may speak to the fact that, frankly, other than Mats Sundin (left), we really haven’t had many truly elite skill guys here over the past decade plus. Oh, we had Alex Mogilny, but he was old and pretty broken down at that point.  Gary Roberts was a treat to watch, but again, he was more high-end hockey warrior/role player as opposed to a superstar scorer.  So maybe I’m raising a bit of a moot point, since the occasion for “superstar” or even star players to leave this market just hasn't really arisen all that much, though this is something that has certainly afflicted the Leafs' MLSE partner, the NBA Raptors, over the years.  (If you can think of one Leaf that I’m missing off the top of my head as I pen this piece, let me know…)

Now, not to jump too far ahead in this discussion, but I do wonder if things will ‘turn’ in this regard when Phil Kessel has his opportunity to fly the coop in a couple of years.  I’m thinking Burke will try to lock him up before Phil hits the open market, but of course there is that small issue of whether Kessel can become the kind of 200-foot player Carlyle seems to expect him to be.  Maybe I’m misreading the climate—both parties seemed to say all the right things at the end of last season—but unless Carlyle has had a sudden reversal, he historically has expected even his star players to compete all over the ice.  He did not click (understatement) with Lupul in Anaheim, and suggestions have surfaced that Duck forward Bobby Ryan was not exactly a Carlyle fan, either.

This is not to say Carlyle can’t work with star players, simply a reflection on the reality that Kessel has not, to this point in his career, fully morphed into that all-around player that fans (and coaches) dream about.  Who can argue with the statement that he is flat-out exciting with the puck on his stick?  There aren’t many guys who can make the plays he does at high speed.  He is a dangerous offensive player.

But, his defensive work with Lupul last year at times was, well...is ordinary a fair word?

In any event, the relationship between Carlyle and Burke’s ‘chosen one’ (he who shall forever likely be spoken of in the same sentence as Tyler Seguin) should be fascinating to watch as it evolves.  Maybe Kessel will mature as a player (I think we all saw some growth last season) and if so, there will simply be no issue.  Maybe Carlyle just lets him 'run', and there is no collision course brewing between player and coach.

Whatever, maybe we can rely on recent Toronto hockey history that tells us that, generally speaking, star players like Sundin liked it here, and wanted to stay.

Do we feel any better now?