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Forums :: Blog World :: Adam Kirshenblatt: How Important is History to You?
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Adam Kirshenblatt
Location: Thornhill, ON
Joined: 09.15.2005

Sep 13 @ 1:46 AM ET
Adam Kirshenblatt: How Important is History to You?
leafer89
Toronto Maple Leafs
Location: ON
Joined: 06.28.2010

Sep 13 @ 8:52 AM ET
First?


History is important. What built up the Leafs and the reasons that they are where they are is important. The real question is does it change the players when they're on the ice.
Dozzer
Referee
Toronto Maple Leafs
Location: Somewhere over the rainbow since I’m way up high
Joined: 09.15.2010

Sep 13 @ 9:26 AM ET
nicely written

with respect to the history.. i think removing it isnt the answer.. but using that legacy as the bar for the current players to reach.

the new ownership is a bit self centred.. ah well.. at least they arent a faceless pension fund anymore
jmatchett383
Philadelphia Flyers
Location: Newark, DE
Joined: 03.09.2010

Sep 13 @ 9:27 AM ET
First?


History is important. What built up the Leafs and the reasons that they are where they are is important. The real question is does it change the players when they're on the ice.

- leafer89


I think most young players would be in awe the first time they stepped onto home ice wearing a Maple Leafs or Canadiens jersey. There's a certain "aura" about wearing those crests and playing for them. But I would expect, after the jitters are gone, it's just hockey.
PatC80
Toronto Maple Leafs
Location: I would never let my children play hockey. The risk of getting drafted by Edmonton is too high", ON
Joined: 08.11.2011

Sep 13 @ 9:27 AM ET
Adam Kirshenblatt: How Important is History to You?
- MasWE



What do I win?

1917–18, 1921–22, 1931–32, 1941–42, 1944–45, 1946–47, 1947–48, 1948–49, 1950–51, 1961–62, 1962–63, 1963–64, 1966–67
HellsBells
Toronto Maple Leafs
Location: halifax, NS
Joined: 07.23.2007

Sep 13 @ 9:36 AM ET
If a Leafs fan can't name the cup winning years maybe they should put their time and effort into something else, just like Tim and Sid should do in regards to their show.
Rockhead_37
Toronto Maple Leafs
Location: Bolton, ON
Joined: 09.11.2010

Sep 13 @ 9:42 AM ET
Adam Kirshenblatt: How Important is History to You?
- MasWE

Tim and Sid - pfffft

That's the first problem.

that's almost as bad as the Liles argument
Dissent
Colorado Avalanche
Location: Flavor Country
Joined: 03.28.2009

Sep 13 @ 10:09 AM ET
A bunch of very wealthy men give moderate wealth to a select group of athletically skilled men so that they may entertain a large group of other men for the express profit of the original group of said very wealthy men.

A question: if that large group of men giving up their money to be entertained understood that in the end, they're doing nothing more than rooting for the economic success of a select few that are already very wealthy, would they continue on being so passionate about such entertainment?

Round about answer to this blog: I care about the history of my hockey team in the same way I care about the history of the corporation that makes my video game console or the film company that produces the movies I watch. Do I know the history? Yes. Do I feel a part of it, as though I'm a member of a tradition? No. Don't get me wrong, I love playing and watching the sport, and I do have a team I root for, but being die-hard for a team is akin to rooting for a corporation you have no direct stake in, and I don't see the sense in that...
BorjeFan4Ever
Season Ticket Holder
Location: not the BigSmoke anymore
Joined: 10.29.2007

Sep 13 @ 10:29 AM ET
Adam Kirshenblatt: How Important is History to You?
- MasWE


solid thought provoking write up.

I said it shortly after the "LA Ding Dong" showed up.. and I'll say it again.

A good businessman would not "waltz" into a new situation and say "everything around here needs to be changed"... particularly when the business of the MLSE is do swimmingly.

Mr Lewieke should humbly "shut up" until he can credibly state that he has some minimal understanding of the team, its history and emotionally what the team means to the city and its fans. Having just seen more hockey fans on the street outside of the Air Canada center than he probably saw in his entire time with LA, he should have had a frame of reference that things are "just a little different here".

It can be sugar coated or reworded any way you like, he tried to make a bombastic entrance... and he succeeded. However he chose to focus on the ass part of bombasstic.... and the big question is why does the guy who's basically the head of marketing and business operations for an entertainment company feel he needs to make his presence felt within the hockey operation.

It would seem to me that he should take his seven figures and attempt to figure out how to repair whats broken within MLSE... not how to break what works.

.... climbs off soap box.

PS. Why do organization like the Leafs or the Habs entertain having leadership who don't understand the history and emotional connection of the franchises to the fanbase... baffles me.
LeftCoaster
Location: Valley Of The Sun, AZ
Joined: 07.03.2009

Sep 13 @ 10:55 AM ET
Why would anyone want to erase their history? During the original six time there was a great winning history for the Leafs, although all original six teams won the Cup at one point in time or another during that era, you can't just erase history.

If he wants to forget anything, it should be the past 46 years of post expansion losing history. But you can't have one without the other.
magmoo
Atlanta Thrashers
Location: Garf is expendabilittle., HI
Joined: 01.26.2012

Sep 13 @ 11:26 AM ET
Why would anyone want to erase their history? During the original six time there was a great winning history for the Leafs, although all original six teams won the Cup at one point in time or another during that era, you can't just erase history.

If he wants to forget anything, it should be the past 46 years of post expansion losing history. But you can't have one without the other.

- LeftCoaster

I agree with you on this....and it feels awful.
Lytes9
Detroit Red Wings
Location: Kelowna, BC
Joined: 08.20.2013

Sep 13 @ 11:44 AM ET
I cant believe I just read you say "Having a history like the Maple Leafs shows that you’ve been successful, fan recognize that success and want to be part of it." In what (frank)ed up world do you live in that the Leafs have a successful history? Because they won a bunch of championships when there was 6 teams in the league? How many people still alive today were born and remember the '60s, let alone any of their other championship wins? Part of a history that matters is a fan base who experienced that. At some point history is just that, in the past and it doesn't really matter to anyone.

You further go on to compare them to the Red Wings. What a HORRIBLE comparison! Both original 6 teams, but most of Detroit's championships came after the Original Six, tacking on 4 in the last 15 years. That's a history people remember. And what players, living or dead, do the Leafs boast that can hold the jock of the Gordie Howe's and Ted Lindsay's of the world? Not a single one.

There was a Hockey News article sometime last year that showed all the Leafs in the HOF compared to other teams. How they have the same number of people there as the Montreal Canadiens yet only maybe 2 or 3 players who wore the white and blue should have even been considered. The Leafs are a pathetic disgrace to the game and have been a stain on hockey since the league started to grow, claiming to be a great team run by great people with great players, yet they have never had anything but a mediocre assortment of misfits who get outclassed by real teams.
Bouncing_Bettys
Toronto Maple Leafs
Location: UP, DOWN, EXPLODE!!!, BC
Joined: 08.28.2013

Sep 13 @ 12:18 PM ET
Well it would mean not having to wait a lifetime for the puck to drop as there would be far fewer pregame ceremonies. All the young fans with ADD would like that at least.
mykokes
Toronto Maple Leafs
Location: RELEASE THE LATVIAN!, ON
Joined: 11.09.2009

Sep 13 @ 12:20 PM ET
Great blog man.
seabass21
Boston Bruins
Location: Life is nasty, brutish and short. T.Hobbes, BC
Joined: 10.22.2010

Sep 13 @ 1:06 PM ET
Very nice blob,
So they take down all the pictures etc from the past, and replace it with what? More corporate whoring? One of my favorite things going to games with my Dad was seeing all the photos of the players and teams from the past
seabass21
Boston Bruins
Location: Life is nasty, brutish and short. T.Hobbes, BC
Joined: 10.22.2010

Sep 13 @ 1:09 PM ET
@ Lytes9
A little harsh, don't ya think? Need a hug?
ShayneCorsi
Location: Teedot
Joined: 07.09.2012

Sep 13 @ 1:17 PM ET
I cant believe I just read you say "Having a history like the Maple Leafs shows that you’ve been successful, fan recognize that success and want to be part of it." In what (frank)ed up world do you live in that the Leafs have a successful history? Because they won a bunch of championships when there was 6 teams in the league? How many people still alive today were born and remember the '60s, let alone any of their other championship wins? Part of a history that matters is a fan base who experienced that. At some point history is just that, in the past and it doesn't really matter to anyone.

You further go on to compare them to the Red Wings. What a HORRIBLE comparison! Both original 6 teams, but most of Detroit's championships came after the Original Six, tacking on 4 in the last 15 years. That's a history people remember. And what players, living or dead, do the Leafs boast that can hold the jock of the Gordie Howe's and Ted Lindsay's of the world? Not a single one.

There was a Hockey News article sometime last year that showed all the Leafs in the HOF compared to other teams. How they have the same number of people there as the Montreal Canadiens yet only maybe 2 or 3 players who wore the white and blue should have even been considered. The Leafs are a pathetic disgrace to the game and have been a stain on hockey since the league started to grow, claiming to be a great team run by great people with great players, yet they have never had anything but a mediocre assortment of misfits who get outclassed by real teams.

- Lytes9


Does it make you feel good bashing other teams?
The original six teams started Hockey and created the culture we have today. The players trained hard to win games even if their pay cheques were tiny. These guys wanted to win the same way the players want to win today so a championship is a championship regardless of how many teams there are.
poohcrumbs
Toronto Maple Leafs
Location: I think Loov is going to become another Lidstrom- matt1337
Joined: 09.12.2009

Sep 13 @ 1:30 PM ET
Drunk History is the only history I believe
xXwagzXx
Toronto Maple Leafs
Location: THE PHILASH
Joined: 02.09.2010

Sep 13 @ 1:32 PM ET
Well it would mean not having to wait a lifetime for the puck to drop as there would be far fewer pregame ceremonies. All the young fans with ADD would like that at least.
- Bouncing_Bettys

poohcrumbs
Toronto Maple Leafs
Location: I think Loov is going to become another Lidstrom- matt1337
Joined: 09.12.2009

Sep 13 @ 1:33 PM ET
I cant believe I just read you say "Having a history like the Maple Leafs shows that you’ve been successful, fan recognize that success and want to be part of it." In what (frank)ed up world do you live in that the Leafs have a successful history? Because they won a bunch of championships when there was 6 teams in the league? How many people still alive today were born and remember the '60s, let alone any of their other championship wins? Part of a history that matters is a fan base who experienced that. At some point history is just that, in the past and it doesn't really matter to anyone.

You further go on to compare them to the Red Wings. What a HORRIBLE comparison! Both original 6 teams, but most of Detroit's championships came after the Original Six, tacking on 4 in the last 15 years. That's a history people remember. And what players, living or dead, do the Leafs boast that can hold the jock of the Gordie Howe's and Ted Lindsay's of the world? Not a single one.

There was a Hockey News article sometime last year that showed all the Leafs in the HOF compared to other teams. How they have the same number of people there as the Montreal Canadiens yet only maybe 2 or 3 players who wore the white and blue should have even been considered. The Leafs are a pathetic disgrace to the game and have been a stain on hockey since the league started to grow, claiming to be a great team run by great people with great players, yet they have never had anything but a mediocre assortment of misfits who get outclassed by real teams.

- Lytes9


Some ones Nintendo DS broke, its okay lil fella, have a glass of milk and go nap it off
BoBBeR56
Toronto Maple Leafs
Location: Leaf Nation, ON
Joined: 06.30.2010

Sep 13 @ 1:49 PM ET
I cant believe I just read you say "Having a history like the Maple Leafs shows that you’ve been successful, fan recognize that success and want to be part of it." In what (frank)ed up world do you live in that the Leafs have a successful history? Because they won a bunch of championships when there was 6 teams in the league? How many people still alive today were born and remember the '60s, let alone any of their other championship wins? Part of a history that matters is a fan base who experienced that. At some point history is just that, in the past and it doesn't really matter to anyone.

You further go on to compare them to the Red Wings. What a HORRIBLE comparison! Both original 6 teams, but most of Detroit's championships came after the Original Six, tacking on 4 in the last 15 years. That's a history people remember. And what players, living or dead, do the Leafs boast that can hold the jock of the Gordie Howe's and Ted Lindsay's of the world? Not a single one.

There was a Hockey News article sometime last year that showed all the Leafs in the HOF compared to other teams. How they have the same number of people there as the Montreal Canadiens yet only maybe 2 or 3 players who wore the white and blue should have even been considered. The Leafs are a pathetic disgrace to the game and have been a stain on hockey since the league started to grow, claiming to be a great team run by great people with great players, yet they have never had anything but a mediocre assortment of misfits who get outclassed by real teams.

- Lytes9


Who pissed in your Corn Flakes this morning?
If it wasn't for the Leafs and their history, the fan base wouldn't be what it is today, and therefore the revenues also wouldn't be what they are today, and without the fan base and revenues a lot of these current NHL teams wouldn't be teams.
Oh, and BTW 13>11
mlindsay
Montreal Canadiens
Location: ON
Joined: 06.16.2010

Sep 13 @ 1:54 PM ET
I too believe that history is important.
As a hab fan I look back fondly over the years I have been alive and seen some great championships.
More remarkable than that though is what happened before my time. I love seeing the old players in ceremonies before games (Leafs too, to be honest ... gotta love Johny Ballard!).
Erasing the past will not make a team somehow work harder towards a championship... however, I do believe letting them know they are part of a rich history may indeed give them a little extra push.
But... let's be honest...
We're talking about a guy who ran a team in California! History means very little there; they try to hide age in LA using copious amounts of surgeries so that a 35 year old can still play a teenager on TV!
Dissent
Colorado Avalanche
Location: Flavor Country
Joined: 03.28.2009

Sep 13 @ 2:05 PM ET

- xXwagzXx

...Putin gets my vote as troll of the week so far...
Cptmjl
New York Islanders
Joined: 11.05.2011

Sep 16 @ 2:38 PM ET
I cant believe I just read you say "Having a history like the Maple Leafs shows that you’ve been successful, fan recognize that success and want to be part of it." In what (frank)ed up world do you live in that the Leafs have a successful history? Because they won a bunch of championships when there was 6 teams in the league? How many people still alive today were born and remember the '60s, let alone any of their other championship wins? Part of a history that matters is a fan base who experienced that. At some point history is just that, in the past and it doesn't really matter to anyone.

You further go on to compare them to the Red Wings. What a HORRIBLE comparison! Both original 6 teams, but most of Detroit's championships came after the Original Six, tacking on 4 in the last 15 years. That's a history people remember. And what players, living or dead, do the Leafs boast that can hold the jock of the Gordie Howe's and Ted Lindsay's of the world? Not a single one.

There was a Hockey News article sometime last year that showed all the Leafs in the HOF compared to other teams. How they have the same number of people there as the Montreal Canadiens yet only maybe 2 or 3 players who wore the white and blue should have even been considered. The Leafs are a pathetic disgrace to the game and have been a stain on hockey since the league started to grow, claiming to be a great team run by great people with great players, yet they have never had anything but a mediocre assortment of misfits who get outclassed by real teams.

- Lytes9

wow