Eddie Litzenberger: the good luck charm

Many fine players go through their entire career without being on a Stanley Cup winner. That should not diminish their legacy, but there is ...

New Exclusive Interview: Jim Dorey

I recently had the opportunity to chat with former Maple Leaf defenseman Jim Dorey. Jim spoke with me from his office in Kingston, Ontario....

Jim Dorey: A tough and talented Leaf

By the late 1960s, as I have discussed on this site, Punch Imlach was desperately trying to re-shape the Leafs. The team had been in relat...

Carl Gunnarsson: the signs are there, but it’s still early

It’s funny how one goal, or a break here or there that leads to a win lightens the mood on a hockey team—and within the fan base. When th...

Bobby Hull: Still smiling after all these years

You often wonder what it will be like to meet a “celebrity”. Will they be nice? Will they blow you off? I can’t absolutely pinpoint the yea...

Dave Keon: Three against Charlie Hodge and the Habs

One of the most famous games in Leaf history is Game 7 of the 1964 semi-finals against Montreal. The Leafs were coming off two Cup years...

Ian White: The next Pat Stapleton?

The continued emergence of Ian White as perhaps the best all-around Maple Leaf defenseman evokes memories of another “under-sized” defender ...

Cesare Maniago: Covering the Canadian hockey landscape

If you mention the name Cesare Maniago to most hockey fans who were around from the 1970’s forward, chances are the team they will associate...

Do you have a vintage hockey memory to share?

As our site grows, we would love to post interesting memories from those who follow Vintage Leaf Memories. If you have a story to share, co...

New to the site?

For those of you perhaps visiting the site for the first time, a little background may be helpful. The site focuses on my memories and expe...

Luke Schenn could benefit from the Rod Langway approach

During the 1978-’79 NHL season, I was working in the broadcast industry in Montreal and consequently attended a lot of games at the Forum. ...

Would the ‘80s have looked different if only…

The Leafs recently held yet another pre-game ceremony. I didn’t pay close attention, but there was an ‘80s theme to it. With that as a bac...

The '80s What happened Part Two

Of the many things that went wrong in the 80s, somewhat chronicled in my earlier post, we can add that some of the young players the Leafs ...

The '80s- What the hell happened?

Knowing that this site is primarily about my memories from the ‘50s, ‘60s and ‘70s, someone asked me recently—“do you have any Leaf memorie...

Vintage Interview: Audio Clip - Gretzky makes the jump to the WHA

Back in the spring of 1978, I was 24 and striving to make headway in my fledgling broadcasting career. I was offered – and accepted - a job ...

Dan Maloney: If only he’d arrived a few years sooner

Trades are often tremendously difficult for athletes and their families, but for fans, talking about potential trades—and how they could pos...

Check out our interview with Dickie Moore

Some of you who are new to this site may not have had the opportunity to listen to my recent interview with Montreal Canadiens (and one-time...

Flashback interview with Leaf legend Johnny Bower

Back in the year 2000, I was asked to write an article for a sports collectibles magazine. It was always enjoyable developing those kinds o...

Today’s Leafs may be like the Big M

Scott Young, the outstanding Globe & Mail writer from the 50s, 60’s and 70s, covered the Leafs closely during the early days of the Pu...

Jonas Gustavsson stands tall compared with his predecessors

I was trying to think of the last time the Leafs employed a goaltender who had both tons of skill – and size . This made me do a quick men...

Phil Kessel and Mike Walton: It’s time for some old-time flair

As hockey fans, especially as Leaf fans, we sometimes strain a little too hard to try to find similarities between an up and coming player ...