Is it time for Leaf ownership to bring in a new management team?

By the end of the 2011-’12 NHL season, media pundits who are supposedly “in the know” were opining that Brian Burke’s job in Toronto was safe.  But they almost all hedged their bets by adding that longer-term, it would depend on how the Leafs did this coming (though now delayed/soon-to-be-cancelled?) season.

In other words, if the Leafs made the playoffs in 2012-’13, all would be well again in Shangri-Leafland.  Some “experts” even suggested that if the Leafs “almost” made the top 8 in the Eastern Conference and played fairly well during the regular-season, Burke would still be given an extension.

There seemed to be a general consensus that, if the Leafs missed the playoffs badly and did not play well this season, a change could be in the offing, especially given the new ownership group that has taken over the Leafs.

At the end of the day, it doesn’t much matter what media folks think or expect will or won’t happen.  They’re not Leaf fans.  I’m interested in hearing what you believe Leaf ownership should do, especially now that the current season is in peril.

I raise this now, in part, because Burke may not have another season to “prove” his team is on the right (or wrong) track.  All new ownership has to look at is that, in the almost four full years that Burke has been in place as GM of the Leafs, the organization has not hosted a single playoff game, much less won a playoff game—or goodness, a series.

So by next May, when the season would normally be ending, we will be right where we are now.  A team that has as its best “storyline” that it has some can’t miss (questionable emphasis is mine) prospects that will save the day—some day.  Maybe it’s Jake Gardiner, maybe it’s Nazem Kadri,  or perhaps Joe Colborne or Carter Ashton.  If you’re a super-patient fan, maybe it’s Morgan Rielly.

Here’s a question:  four years into this regime, with all the talk, all the sous-chefs that give us the most bloated NHL front-office imaginable—and given that we may not see any NHL hockey for a year or so—is this the time for ownership to make a move and bring in someone to take this team in a new and different direction?

We all remember that, coming out of the last lockout, under then still relatively new GM John Ferguson Jr., the Leafs emerged with a roster that was long on “slow”—when the rule changes meant what was needed was speed in the new de-clogged, somewhat de-trapped NHL.  Over time, it became even more evident that the Leafs were one of the franchises that had not planned successfully and did not make the transition to a cap world as comfortably they should have.

When Burke arrived in November, 2008, most Leaf observers were only too happy to lay all the blame on his predecessor.  Burke came in loud, confident and sounded, how shall I put this, very….ah, certain.

He wasn’t just sure of himself, he was absolutely convinced that his way was the right way.  He kept telling us he had this successful blueprint (hey, he won a Cup in Anaheim, although Bryan Murray had done a ton of the legwork), so we lapped up his wisdom.

On a team crying for talent and excitement, he brought us Phil Kessel.  So happy to finally have a new toy, Leaf supporters widely applauded the move as bold.  Then he shocked us with an unexpected bomb, acquiring Phaneuf from the Flames for what felt like a bag of pucks.  (In fairness, Ian White, as I’ve said here before, was a Leaf I really liked…)

Leaf fans thought Burke had to be the smartest guy in the history of organized hockey.

Those who follow this site know this has never been my perspective, though I have long conceded Burke has done some good things in his tenure as Leaf GM.  But I’ve also been increasingly concerned as time has worn on that Burke’s ego-driven agenda is harming the franchise.  Others don’t see it that way and think I’m way off base.

So I’m throwing it over to you today:  you tell me what you think.  Look at his record (one playoff series win in 11 years as a GM in his two “rebuild” projects—Vancouver and Toronto); his success at “building his teams from the back”; his trades (some very good); his drafting; his hubris.

I applaud everything Burke has done to support issues that are dear to him in a public and courageous way.  He is a fearless, tough and smart individual—and a historically shrewd hockey executive.

But when he uttered the now famous words that former goalie coach was essentially “out of touch” and hadn’t kept up, a light bulb was re-ignited in my mind.  Is that what we have in Burke—a guy that has held on to “his” way for so long that he has come to believe his way it is indeed the only way?

Throw in his often-changing stance on a variety of things (for example, no patience for a five-year re-build, yet his approach eventually morphed into exactly that, at best), which I’ve highlighted here many times in the past, and for me, it presents a very confusing picture.  Are his views simply evolving according to the changing game,  or is he a guy that just keeps changing his mind?

What should ownership do?

Is a lockout in fact the perfect time to bring in someone new, to build the team into a true contender? Someone who won’t just talk about (for four years running) bringing in a first-line center but actually does it.  Someone who won’t just talk about having a tough (and I don’t mean Colton Orr) team and brings in guys who actually play that way.  Someone who says he builds from the back and then drafts, signs or trades for a truly elite superstar goalie—as the Leafs did almost 15 years ago with Curtis Joseph.

And someone who recognizes that while acquiring prospects sounds nice and is important, and winning in the AHL is neat and all that, what you also need are hard-edged veterans who know how to win and will pull guys with questionable desire (like Kesel) beyond what they normally thought they could achieve.

Yes, the Leafs will have to be ready, post-lockout, for some new thinking.  Is now the time for a new vision- and a new man in charge?  Or is Burke the right guy to lead the way.

I’m going to leave this post up here for a couple of days.  I hope there is some interesting discussion and (respectful) debate.