It’s hard to watch David Clarkson with the Leafs and come to
the conclusion that he is not working hard, not trying, or that he doesn’t
care. But somehow, from the get-go this
season things have simply not worked out for him. From the season starting with a prolonged suspension to various injuries, it's been a difficult first year in blue and white for Clarkson. Throw in some unspectacular stats (11 points in 57 games, a minus 14 on the plus/minus scale) and we don't have to say a whole lot more.
Every time we think he has turned a corner and started to produce a bit offensively, he goes quiet,
or at least his production does. We seem
to notice him mostly for not making a contribution to what should be a
formidable second line with Kadri and Lupul, or for taking ill-timed and costly
penalties.
His physical game, determination, puck-winning abilities and
leadership on and off the ice have faded into the background as the Leaf
faithful are looking in vain for something that a 5 million dollar player is
supposed to bring—fair or not. Looking ahead to next year, we don't even know what line he fits on best. Sigh.
I guess because I’m one of those typical old-time Leaf observers, I
can’t help but bring up the fact that this has happened before throughout Leaf history.
That is, that the Leafs, long before the age of free-agency (which of course is
how Clarkson came our way), would trade for coveted players only to see them
arrive and flail around, never quite (some not even close to) reaching the
heights that made them appealing to Leaf management and the fan base in the
first place.
Names? You want
names? Here are but a few:
- There may not be a player in my Leaf rooting history that I wanted more than Dan Maloney in the mid-1970s. Then Leaf General Manager Jim Gregory finally obtained the former LA King and Red Wing captain (for a high price; speedy winger Errol Thompson and two first round picks) in February of 1978. The rugged, grinding albeit slow skating winger helped the Leafs upset the up and coming Islanders in the playoffs in a massive surprise that spring, but beyond that, he was not an impact guy in Toronto. He wasn’t old (maybe 28 when he acquired him), but he was one of those players who played hard minutes, and his career ended quietly in the early ‘80s. (He went on to coach the Leafs and the Winnipeg Jets.) Solid individual, great team guy. But we got him too late.
- Brad Maxwell: the big, smooth skating offensively productive North Star defenseman who made the NHL at the tender age of 20 looked to be a find for Leaf management in the ‘80s. Unfortunately, the guy who looked calm and confident (and 10 feet tall) in a Minnesota uniform suddenly looked ordinary and never blossomed with the Leafs. (We actually picked him up in a deal that sent speedy forward John Anderson, the ex-Marlie junior, to the Nordiques.) Maxwell had been an outstanding junior in New Westminster, playing in several Memorial Cups if I remember correctly. But he ended up part of the pretty uninspiring mid-‘80s Leaf history, another really talented player we picked up too late—though he, too, was only 28 when he joined the Leafs. To provide context: the year before he played for Toronto, he was a plus 22 for Quebec. Here, he was a minus 27. He retired by the time he was 30.
- Al Secord was one of the best all-around forwards in hockey with the Blackhawks in the 1980s. A true power forward in every sense, he could do it all—score, make plays, hit and fight. Few wanted to tangle with him. The former Boston draft pick developed into an elite player. Over a two-year period, he scored nearly 100 regular season goals and piled up almost 500 minutes in penalties. I kid you not. Where can you find a player like that? So we traded for him (sending Rick Vaive and Stevie Thomas the other way…) and Eddie Olczyk. In Toronto, Secord put up the penalty minutes, but not the points. He was 29 when he became a Leaf. An excellent player, just not in Toronto.
- Lots of Leaf fans and VLM readers remember Larry Murphy. He was the guy who was a top draft choice with the LA Kings, helped Mario Lemieux and the Penguins win two Stanley Cups, and later was pivotal in the Red Wings winning two of their championships. In between, he played two unforgettable seasons for the blue and white. Granted, he was maybe 33 or so when he arrived, and his “stats” were just fine. But he was booed and criticized, never meeting expectations. Yet he was successful again in Motown. Are you seeing a pattern here?
- Eric Lindros may have been the one player in relatively recent memory that Leaf fans agitated management to get for years before we finally got him. Anyone who saw Eric in his prime knows how intimidating and formidable a presence he was. He was Mark Messier, but bigger, tougher and I dare say better. (Some may disagree, but he was awfully good.) By the time we were finally able to “bring him home” to Toronto, he was 32 years old and physically broken down. He gave everything he had here, but it wasn’t to be.
My point in all this, in the context of the season Clarkson has had?
This is all happened in Leafopia before. I’m
sure fellow VLMers can add their own names to this list.
Timing, I guess, is every thing. I have no doubt Clarkson has a big hockey
heart, and has done everything he can to contribute to the Leafs this season. As some of us have opined here, he may well
play a key for Toronto role next year and beyond.
But in reviewing my own memories today, it feels like this
is another Maple Leaf movie we have seen before. In Clarkson’s case, the acquisition cost us
only money, not assets. That said, his presence has meant some young Leaf
hopefuls have missed valuable development time here in a season that many of us
thought would at least end with a playoff berth.
So yes, we’ve seen this scenario unfold before. Will the ending
be any different this time?
Posts
Dmitri Khristich: consistent productivity 7 out 8 seasons was above 55 points and had 5 really good seasons of 73, 66, 64, 66 and 71. The last two numbers were seasons before he joins the Leafs..66 and 71.
ReplyDeleteHow many points did he get in his first season as a Leaf? 30!
How many points did he get in second season? 9!
Clarkson's decline has been relatively mild compared to Khristich and Clarkson could rebound. Clarkson could come back with 30 points next year. (That is so painful to say, but 30 points is about his career average. Wow, did the Leafs screw that up... huge money for such limited career numbers )
Khristich is another name for the list. A guy who produced numbers elsewhere, but not in Toronto. Thanks DP.
DeleteJeff O'Neil.
ReplyDeleteRead an heard a few comments on Clarkson. In NJ they play a tight system. he fit into that system and knew exactly where he should be since it was not a complicated system. We have talked about the Leafs system or lack of system at length. He just needs structure to be at least good again. I don't think he will ever live up to his UFA driven contract. Few ever really do when they go UFA.
I often think of Martin Lapointe, Pep. A really solid contributor on very good Detroit teams. Signed for what was then a lot of money to go to Boston as a UFA. As I recall, he never really lived up to expectations. Like Clarkson, fans were probably expecting more than was fair or realistic.
DeleteLapointe is a great example Michael. He might have been one of the first ones to sign the bigger UFA contract to fit the example too. People get upset with the player but in reality who wouldn't sign for big money if it was splashed at them if they became a free agent?? I fully blame the GM/Scouts who completely misread what the player is and can bring to the rink and then over pay them badly. Not sure who said it ...but one of the best quotes and most fitting is "Some of the best deals are the ones not made." That applies in spades to the "supposed high end free agents".
DeleteFrancis and Nieuwendyk . Both older, leaders on their teams and banged up by the time the Leafs acquired them. I loved both these wonderful players but neither played many games for us.
ReplyDeleteRight now I'm trying to remember a big trade that actually worked out. Gardner, Andreychuk, Sundin, Roberts,... I guess we've had a few. C.N.
Francis and Nieuwendyk were indeed wonderful players, Colleen. As you say, they had relatively limited impact with us.
DeleteNot sure if Yanic Perreault would qualify for the list but I remember he came to the Leafs from LA and had a few good years before signing with the Habs as a free agent. He was a UFA in 2006 and tried out for the Leafs but didn't make the team and then the Coyotes signed him. So later on that season the Leafs decide they need a player like Yanic and give the Coyotes a 2nd round pick for the player they cut at training camp. He scored 19 goals with the Coyotes in 49 games and then 2 the rest of the season on the Leafs and of course the Leafs didn't bother to sign him for the next season. So they gave away a 2nd round pick for a player they could have had for free but didn't want at the start of the season and didn't want at the end of the season. As a die hard Leaf fan it does get hard to take watching the same thing play out year after year and this year was just another totally wasted season where they don't make the playoffs and don't finish low enough to get a good draft pick.
ReplyDeleteI had forgotten about that, Alton.
DeleteI'm absolutely stunned we don't point out that Maloney trade more often. Those were the days when a first round pick was a first round pick! (just look who the Leafs missed out on in '77 and they had two picks in the 1st!). Thanks for the reminder, Michael... I think.
ReplyDeleteThanks Dave. I coveted Maloney back then because I felt he was exactly what the Leafs needed to compete with rugged teams (Bruins, Flyers, Islanders, etc.). And he was very helpful in upsetting the Islanders that spring ('78). But it cost the Leafs a speedy scoring winger and two first round picks. And you're right, with fewer teams, that was a case of two pretty high picks- not like 28th overall today.
DeleteThere a lot of realities of the modern day NHL that should be learned from the Clarkson signing. The salary cap has made such financial commitments a crap shoot at best. If you are going to commit upwards of 10% of your cap space to one player you had better be pretty darn sure of their value to your team. One needs only to look at the Rangers big money signings of Richards and Gaborik to see how badly splash signings can turn out.
ReplyDeleteClarkson started out poorly with his less than intelligent suspension and rarely played impactfully thereafter. Should we be surprised? A look at his record tells us that he has had only one decent offensive season and the odds are that will not be repeated. Over 25% of his goals have been scored on the power play on which he will get limited, if any chances with the Leafs. He has been a minus player the past four years and it would seem, with his limited offensive abilities, that his value to the Leafs is as a checking 3rd liner. This hardly justifies a $5,250,000 cap hit that we are stuck with for the next 5 years.
There were two big name Leaf trades that didn't work out that stand out for me. One was the Dan Maloney trade that you outlined. I can remember the positive buzz that trade caused. I think most Leaf fans, myself included, felt that Maloney was the missing piece that would propel us on to the cup but as you stated he was used up and we got him too late.
The other big name that I thought would be a difference maker, especially in the playoffs was another big power forward, Owen Nolan. He was acquired near the end of the 2002-03 season by the Pat Quinn led Leafs who were to post 98 points and who had a legitimate shot at the cup. Nolan posted only 2 assists in 7 playoff games as the Leafs were eliminated in the quarter finals by Philadelphia. In 2003-04 he was beset by back injuries and scored a mediocre 48 points. He did not appear in the playoffs and never played for the Leafs again as a dispute over lockout salary and later high salary demands led to his release. Nolan's production hardly warranted giving up 2 players and a #1 draft choice.
I guess the moral is to beware of the flavour of the day and do not get caught up in the feeding frenzy that goes with a big name available player.
Owen Nolan is another excellent example, Pete Cam. Like Maloney, he was a player I thought would be a perfect fit for the Leafs. I like that the Leafs went for it with both players, but after the fact it's natural to wonder if it was worth the cost, for sure. I remember Nolan carrying the Sharks on his back one playoff series (maybe a couple of seasons before he came to the Leafs)- scoring, blocking shots, making bit hits, just being a difference maker all series long. That Nolan never materialized here.
DeleteMichael, what a depressing series of anecdotes! All true, unfortunately. I recall all the examples you gave and I have to say I was not a big fan of any of the trades for veterans, as I always felt the loss of young players and draft picks was not the way to build a team.
ReplyDeleteThe one veteran acquisition I really was hoping would come to the Leafs never did materialize - Wayne Gretzky.
Clearly the problems the Leafs have bringing in free agents players continue to the present day, but at least with current examples the Leafs are burning cap space, not draft picks and young players.
I wonder how fans would have ended up feeling about Gretzky playing with the Leafs, Steve. He was toward the end of his career, as I recall- not the impact guy he was for so many years but it would have been something to see.
DeleteI think the difference between Clarkson and all the guys you mentioned in your article, and all the guys mentioned in the comments, is that he was never an elite player to begin with. Outside of some seasons with a really high SH% he will basically get 15 to 20 points at even strength then a bunch on the PP (if he gets PP time).
ReplyDeleteHe didn't get much PP time this season, so sadly his 9 points at even strength isn't really that far off his "potential". It was just a brutal signing. I mean if he put up back to back games of 3 points he'd be right where he was expected to be in terms of output.
I wonder, Nick, if the Leafs really believed they were getting a goal scorer- I tend to doubt it. They must have known he was the classic hard-working grinder. Whether that, and his seeming leadership skills and experience, was enough to warrant the kind of contract he received remains the question.
DeleteJohn Kordic (and a 6th rounder) for Russ Courtnall...
ReplyDeleteAlways looking for the intangibles that work on other teams instead of developing players for their own intangibles... glad to hope that we're finally seeing some of that down on the Marlies.
Perhaps there is still a brighter future possible (but Clarkson needs to play in a defined system... maybe we could retain 1M and send him back to the Devils... conversely, a different coach seems almost inevitable, and with the change, perhaps a better system for David).
I still believe Clarkson can be a contributor here. Sometimes a first season with a new team doesn't work out but you have to believe he can be more impactful- maybe, as you suggest, under a new coach/system, InTimeFor62.
DeleteI was intrigued by Alton's Yannic Perreault reference. He was a very useful 2nd or 3rd line centre for many years but was nearing the end of his career by 2006. The Leafs cut him because of his projected lack of production but they reacquired him at an admittedly high price for one reason. Yannic Perreault was the top rated faceoff man in the entire NHL from 1997-2010 at 60.5%. (Interestingly former Leafs Mike Zigomanis and David Steckel were 2nd and 3rd and both were also acquired solely for that reason).
ReplyDelete