NEWS OF MAPLE LEAFS
Last Update:
Thursday July 20, 2000 10:45PM EST
Monday July 17 2000 Leafs sign 1999 first-round pick Cereda
The Toronto Maple Leafs today signed center Luca Cereda, their first-round pick in the 1999 draft, to a multi-year contract.
The 18-year-old Cereda appeared in 44 games with HC Ambri-Piotta of the Swiss National League this past season and had just one goal and five assists.
A native of Logano, Switzerland, Cereda was selected to represent his country at the 2000 World Junior Championships for the second consecutive year. He had two goals and four assists in seven tournament games with the Swiss National Team.
Sunday July 16 2000 Hoglund opts for arbitration, Karpovtsev and Perreault will wait
Jonas Hoglund stands alone.
The Swedish forward, who scored 29 goals this past season, was the only Maple Leaf to file for arbitration by yesterday's deadline.
Hoglund and fellow restricted free agents Alexander Karpovtsev and Yanic Perreault had to decide by yesterday whether to accept the qualifying offer forwarded by the Leafs earlier this month, opt for arbitration or continue negotiating with the club.
Leafs executive Bill Watters said he would resume talks with Hoglund's agent, Anton Thun, this week, in an attempt to work out a deal before the arbitration hearing, which likely will take place early next month.
"I'm not anxious to put Hoglund though the (arbitration process)," Watters said.
Hoglund received a qualifying offer of $551,076 US from the Leafs, but apparently feels he can command more through arbitration. If the Leafs do not agree with the potential ruling of the arbitrator, the team simply can cast Hoglund adrift.
By choosing to avoid the arbitration process, Karpovtsev and Perreault can ponder the Leafs qualifying offers until Aug. 1, when they are pulled off the table. Karpovtsev's offer was for $1.8 million; Perreault's was for $1.16 million.
Watters said multi-year deals have been discussed for both players.
"I don't think there's any rush now, other than the qualifiers being taken away in a few weeks," Watters said. "We can talk right up to the beginning of camp in September."
Tuesday July 11 2000 Leafs reach agreement to sell MLG
The Toronto Maple Leafs have reached an agreement to sell 69-year-old Maple Leaf Gardens to a local developer under a plan that includes redeveloping the historic arena while retaining a 5,000-seat arena.
The building will still be known as Maple Leaf Gardens.
Terms of the sale to PenEquity Management Corp., which should be completed in 90 days, were not revealed in Tuesday's announcement. Neither were too many details of the redevelopment although Bob Hunter, senior vice-president of Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment, said: "There will be significant development within the building."
The new building will also contain commercial components but PenEquiry isn't saying much.
"As you appreciate, it's a competitive market and we want to get our ducks in a row before we come forward," said Keith Travis, in charge of special projects for PenEquity.
"We specialize in entertainment centres," he added. "And entertainment centres to us contemplates leisure, interactive retail, recreation."
Travis said the company has not ruled out a residential component, through "vertical expansion," but "first things first."
The commercial level of the project would occupy the space above the reduced rink. PenEquity is currently looking at what room it can recapture from the arena, but plans to keep the plan simple, according to Travis.
The Leaf ownership, who also control the NBA's Raptors, saw six proposals from developers, "three of which were significant, three of which were competitive," said Hunter.
All involved selling the building, which had a capacity of 15,746 in its final season.
The Leafs left the Gardens, which opened its doors on Nov., 12, 1931, for the Air Canada Centre in February 1999. The NHL team continued to use it as a practice facility, however, and the arena was also home to professional lacrosse, junior hockey and concerts and other events.
Still the Leafs ownership said the underused Gardens lost more than $1 million last year.
Renovating the Gardens will take approximately two years with the Leafs using the Lakeshore Lions Arena in suburban Etobicoke as a temporary practice facility starting in August.
"We will move back in after the redevelopment is complete, as a tenant," said Hunter.
The Air Canada Centre will remain the Leafs' home but the team will rent ice time at the Gardens and will rent space for new dressing rooms. The rink will remain in its current location -- "the rink is sacrosanct," said Travis.
The downsized arena will be used as "a mid-size sports and entertainment complex." That should fill a void in the Toronto, which has several large entertainment venues in the Air Canada Centre and the Molson Amphitheatre and plenty of smaller venues but almost no middle options above 2,500 capacity.
PenEquity would retain a promoter to fill the venue.
The plan by PenEquity, "protects and retains the historic exterior elements of the building, while its unique interior restoration serves to revitalize the neighbouring commercial and residential communities," Maple Leafs Sports & Entertainment said in a news release Tuesday.
PenEquity, founded in 1984, specializes in large-scale retail and commercial centres.
The Leafs also said plans for the sale of existing Gardens memorabilia will be announced at a later date.
Friday July 7 2000 Schedule-makers easier on Leafs
Pat Quinn might like the Maple Leafs' 2000-01 schedule a lot more than last season's.
Toronto's general manager/coach is often at odds with the National Hockey League's strategists, venting his frustrations last year when nine home games were bunched in October, while 13 of the last 19 heading into playoffs were on the road.
"The league has its idea of a good schedule and I have mine," Quinn often has said.
Toronto opens with four consecutive home games again, starting with the Montreal Canadiens on Saturday Oct. 7. The Leafs then embark on one of their two western swings.
Here are some schedule highlights:
- The Leafs will play all 29 other teams at least once at home, including the expansion Minnesota Wild on Oct. 25 and Columbus Blue Jackets on Feb. 14.
- Toronto has home-and-home series against Carolina, Pittsburgh, Buffalo and Detroit.
- The Leafs play six consecutive road games during the Christmas holidays, including Dec. 23 in Montreal and a 6 p.m. New Year's Eve game in Tampa Bay.
- The Leafs play the Canadiens five times, with the extra game in the series in Montreal.
- The Leafs wrap up their 82-game schedule on Sat. April 7 in Ottawa.
- The Leafs make two Western Canadian trips, fulfilling their obligations for rivalry games to help the small markets.
- Once again, the Leafs won't visit the West Coast beyond Vancouver, skipping San Jose, Los Angeles, Anaheim and Phoenix. Also not on the road agenda are Dallas, Denver, St. Louis, Nashville, Minnesota and Columbus.
Wednesday July 5 2000 Power surge hits Leafs: Free-agent signings of Corson and Roberts give Toronto's offence a big boost
For years, Darryl Sittler and Lanny McDonald filled nets with pucks and fans with glee while wearing the blue and white of the Maple Leafs.
Now the Maple Leafs are hoping another dynamic duo wearing Nos. 27 and 7 can inject new life into the fabled franchise.
The Leafs, often criticized last summer for not making a significant free-agent acquisition, yesterday opened their arms and their bank vault to welcome veteran forwards Gary Roberts and Shayne Corson to the team. Corson will wear No. 27 in honour of Sittler, his boyhood idol, while Roberts opted for the No. 7 of McDonald, who inspired him while they were teammates with the Calgary Flames during the late 1980s.
Roberts signed a three-year contract worth $8 million US, Corson a three-year deal worth $6.75 million.
In shaking up the hockey world with the pair of free-agent signings, general manager/coach Pat Quinn has added grit, heart and leadership to his club.
"On paper we are better, but I don't know how that translates to the ice," Quinn said. "They said that about the (New York) Rangers last season after all their free-agent buys, and they didn't make the playoffs.
"I don't know if we are surprised, but we certainly are pleased. Originally we had targeted just one forward but the willingness of both guys to play in Toronto changed that."
Indeed, the key element in pulling off the daily double yesterday was the desire of the two veterans to finish their careers near home.
Roberts, 34, was born in North York and grew up in Whitby with close friend Joe Nieuwendyk, who now plays for the Dallas Stars. Roberts recently got several calls from Nieuwendyk attempting to woo him to Texas.
Roberts signed a three-year deal that features a base salary of $2.5-million US per season and a $500,000 signing bonus. Carolina GM Jim Rutherford said yesterday the Hurricanes were willing to offer Roberts a three-year, $9-million pact -- $1 million more than the Leafs.
Roberts missed the 1996-97 season with a career-threatening neck injury, suffered while with the Calgary Flames.
"Three years ago, my career was over," he said. "I owe Carolina a lot for taking a chance on me at the time. They treated my family great.
"But three months ago, when Carolina didn't make the playoffs, my body was still healthy. I decided I wanted to play in a hockey market. Playing near home makes it even better."
The Leafs knew they were front-runners in the Roberts sweepstakes Saturday night. About 24 hours later it became apparent they might land Corson as well.
"Toronto always was my top choice," said Corson, who turns 34 next month.
Corson, a Barrie native whose brother-in-law, Darcy Tucker, also plays for the Leafs, got a three-year deal at $2.25 million per season, with a $2.5-million option for a fourth season. A bonus package is included.
Quinn's initial plans for training camp have Roberts lining up alongside captain Mats Sundin on the first line. Corson is expected to start at centre, but could be moved to the wing once Yanic Perreault and Nik Antropov recover from knee injuries.
The Leafs now must shore up a defence that was rocked by the career-threatening eye injury suffered by Bryan Berard. Free agent Dave Manson's name has been bandied about, while there is talk the Leafs might make a trade pitch for the Vancouver Canucks' Adrian Aucoin.
Quinn is not thrilled at the prospect of signing Paul Coffey, 39, or other members of the free-agent crop of defencemen. A trade appears to be a more viable option, especially with the surplus forwards on hand.
Before deciding on a course of action, however, Quinn wants to see how negotiations with Group 2 free agents Danny Markov, Alexander Karpovtsev and Cory Cross turn out. The holdouts of Berard and Dmitri Yushkevich last year are still fresh in Quinn's mind.
A team source indicated the Leafs would find money in the budget to pursue Eric Lindros, but only if the concussion-riddled Philadelphia Flyers forward gets medical clearance to play.
Wednesday July 5 2000 Leafs give Corson, Roberts no-trade deals
Shayne Corson and Gary Roberts both have no-trade clauses in their contacts with the Toronto Maple Leafs, the agent for the two veterans confirmed Wednesday.
The two unrestricted free agents each signed three-year deals with the teams. Robert's package is worth $8 million US in total while Corson's weighs in at $6.75 million US.
In Corson's case, there is also a "mutual option" for a fourth year.
Corson, 33, comes from the Montreal Canadiens while Roberts, 34, leaves the Carolina Hurricanes.
"Both players got no-trades (clauses)," agent Rick Curran said.
Asked if that was an important part of the negotiations, Curran replied: "yes."
Corson had also requested a no-trade clause from the Canadiens, said Habs GM Rejean Houle.
"We offered him two years at $2 million US per season, with an option for a third year at a lower salary that I won't reveal. But he wanted a no-trade clause, which we are not in the habit of agreeing to," Houle said Tuesday.
Bill Watters, assistant to the Leafs' president, would not confirm or deny the existence of the no-trade clauses.
"That's for them to say," he said of the players.
He did say the no-trade issue "was a part of the consideration," in the negotiations.
Curran said he had spoken to more than a dozen teams Saturday with six to eight showing interest in both Corson and Roberts.
Toronto had an edge in that the two veterans wanted to play close to home -- Roberts is from Toronto and Corson from Barrie, Ont.
Unlike other recent free agent signings, both players signed for the same amount of money they made last season.
"So whatever the others (teams) did, they can't say that we ratcheted up the prices," Watters said after Tuesday's news conference.
"We've kept our salaries at a level they got last year. We obviously gave them term (three-year contracts). That opens us to the criticism of giving 33-year-olds three-year contracts. We have to live with that. That was the marketplace."
The Toronto Sun reported Wednesday that the additions of Corson and Roberts will push the Leaf payroll to the $35 million US mark for the 2000-01 season with the total bill likely to be closer to $40 million US when the team signs its restricted free agents.
Tuesday July 4 2000 Leafs add grit in Corson, Roberts
The Toronto Maple Leafs added experience and toughness Tuesday, signing free-agent forwards Gary Roberts and Shayne Corson to multiyear contracts.
Roberts, 34, had 23 goals and 30 assists in 69 games with the Carolina Hurricanes while Corson, 33, posted eight goals and 20 assists in 70 games with the Montreal Canadiens.
Roberts led the Hurricanes in power-play goals with 12 and finished third on the team in points and goals. He is only the sixth player in NHL history to score 300 goals while collecting 2,000 penalty minutes.
Roberts said it was a hard decision to leave the Hurricanes, who gave him a second chance after he missed the 1996-97 season because of a neck injury.
"My career was over three years ago and I had the opportunity to play in Carolina where they treated me with nothing but respect," Roberts told a news conference Tuesday. "I owe the Carolina Hurricanes a lot for how they took care of me for three years. It was a tough decision for me to leave there because of how good they were.
"We're excited about this opportunity and coming back to a hockey market."
Both Roberts and Corson have ties to the area. Roberts is from Toronto while Corson hails from Barrie, Ont., about an hour north. Corson's brother-in-law, Darcy Tucker, also plays for Toronto.
According to local reports, Toronto offered both players three-year contracts with Roberts' deal worth a total of $7.5 million US. Dallas., Philadelphia and San Jose were also reportedly interested in Roberts.
Corson, who turned down a deal to stay in Montreal to join the Leafs, was reportedly offered a three-year deal worth $6 million US.
"It's been a dream of mine for a long time (to play for Toronto)," said Corson. "I'm really excited about it and hopefully Gary and I can help the Toronto Maple Leafs win the Stanley Cup."
Roberts, 6-1 and 200 pounds, has 13 years experience in the NHL, the first 10 with Calgary and the last three in Carolina.
Over his career, he has 314 goals, 335 assists and 2,079 penalty minutes in 792 regular-season games.
Corson, 6-1 and 202 pounds, has 241 goals, 368 assists and 1,970 penalty minutes in 942 regular-season games with Montreal, Edmonton and St. Louis.