It may be a stretch to attempt to inject some importance in a late February meeting between the 26th and 27th place teams in the NHL standings, but the outcome of the Toronto Maple Leafs game against the Carolina Hurricanes at PNC Arena in Raleigh, NC could have a dramatic impact on the future path of both organizations.
The Hurricanes have 47 points(four points behind Toronto) with two games in hand, who have played over .500 hockey under new coach Bill Peters since forward Jordan Staal returned from injury in late December.
Carolina has traditionally given the Leafs a difficult time and are 2-0 against the Blue and White this season, including a 4-1 win in Raleigh on December 18 that ended Toronto’s six-game winning streak and marked the beginning of the losing skid that cost former coach Randy Carlyle his job.
Cam Ward will be between the pipes for Carolina and James Reimer is expected to get the start for Toronto, who will not have veterans Joffrey Lupul and Dion Phaneuf in the lineup.
Defenseman Andrew MacWilliam was recalled on an emergency basis prior to the club departing for North Carolina on Thursday due to the illness/injury of one of the Leafs six defensemen. According to Leafs TV’s Paul Hendrick, whether the 24-year-old blueliner gets his first NHL start will be a game-time decision.
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Although it is assumed that another disastrous collapse will guarantee Leafs GM Dave Nonis sharing the same fate as head coach Randy Carlyle after the season, recent signs have hinted that Nonis could survive with Team President Brendan Shanahan implementing a full rebuild going forward.
Earlier in the month, Shanahan confirmed that Nonis would continue to be the organization’s point man through the March 2 trade deadline and the Leafs GM did most of the legwork in the deal to acquire a first round pick and prospect Brendan Leipsic from Nashville for Cody Franson and Mike Santorelli.
The Toronto Star’s Kevin McGran pointed out Thursday that in spite of the failed signing of free agent David Clarkson and costly extensions for team captain Dion Phaneuf and leading scorer Phil Kessel, many moves made by Nonis in his 25 months as Leafs GM have been good.
The economical contracts of Santorelli, Daniel Winnik and David Booth will yield valuable picks and prospects integral to the Leafs coming rebuild, 23-year-old Richard Panik was plucked off of waivers from Tampa Bay, Toronto gave up little to Los Angeles to get goalie Jonathan Bernier, even the signings of Kessel and Phaneuf can be justified as asset management, since the Leafs would have received nothing for them if they had walked as unrestricted free agents.
TSN’s Darren Dreger indicates that Nonis and Shanahan are on the same page when it comes to the direction the franchise is taking and that his solid reputation in the hockey community and connections would be of use with the tearing down and rebuilding of the roster, while assistant GM’s Kyle Dubas and Mark Hunter concentrate on scouting for the draft.
The Leafs landscape is uncertain since Shanahan has been loath to express his intentions publicly, but Nonis returning next year could be just as likely as Boston’s Peter Chiarelli becoming available or Hunter getting promoted.
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The Leafs will announce another two names to Legend’s Row on Saturday night, raising the amount of names to six of the expected 10 to 11 former Toronto hockey greats to be immortalized with bronze statues at Maple Leaf Square just outside Air Canada Center.
Hockey Hall of Famers Ted “Teeder… Kennedy, Johnny Bower, Darryl Sittler and Borje Salming have been named thus far. Candidates to possibly be named are Dave Keon, Tim Horton, Frank Mahovlich, George Armstrong, Syl Apps Sr., Charlie Conacher, Harvey “Busher… Jackson, Walter “Turk… Broda, Wendel Clark, Doug Gilmour and Mats Sundin.
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