NEWS OF MAPLE LEAFS
Last Update:
Tuesday October 6, 1998 5:22PM EST
Tuesday October 6, 1998 Cat going for walk?
Sometimes a man has to do what a man has to do -- even if it means risking $9,000 US a day in salary. Goaltender Felix Potvin yesterday said he is close to walking out on the Maple Leafs. He'll decide one way or the other by Friday. Players of Potvin's status rarely have exhibited the patience he has shown since the Leafs put his career into limbo three months ago by signing a new No. 1 goalie, Curtis Joseph. Now Potvin is fed up, and he's not the only sour Leaf. Backup goalie Glenn Healy yesterday threatened to quit, too, if he's forced to spend a lot of time in the minors waiting for the Leafs to clear a roster spot by trading Potvin. Joseph is scheduled to start Saturday's season opener against Detroit with Potvin as his backup. Healy, who cleared NHL waivers yesterday, could end up in St. John's of the American Hockey League or with an International Hockey League team. Potvin said his problems have nothing to do with his contract. "This has nothing to do with money," Potvin said. "But I'm in a situation I don't feel comfortable in, and while the players have been great, I know they're uncomfortable, too." Potvin also feels badly for Healy, who's caught in the middle of this goaltending soap opera. "I think it's tough for Glenn to be in that situation, I really do feel for him," Potvin said. "I don't know what I'm going to do yet. I'll (decide) on Friday." The Leafs must set their regular-season roster by Thursday. Teams are allowed to carry 24 players, including goaltenders, and the Leafs can't afford to include Healy in their head count. Healy, 36, hasn't played in the minors since the 1985-86 season with New Haven of the AHL. "Of course I'll have input (where I go)," Healy said. "I'm the one who makes the decision. If it's a situation I don't find bearable ... "Life is short. You're dead for a long time." Leafs coach Pat Quinn understands Healy's reluctance to report to the minors. "We value Glenn Healy. But because of roster restrictions, there have to be some moves made," Quinn said. "(When Potvin is traded) I want a guy who has played in some games. If he's at home, he's not active and playing." Meanwhile, Leafs associate general manager Mike Smith said he would be surprised if Potvin quit in a huff, and at this point has no plans to suspend the unhappy goalie should he leave.(Con't Oct.6)
Tuesday October 6, 1998 Rangers take shot at acquiring Schneider
The New York Rangers have offered to play peacemaker in Mathieu
Schneider's contract dispute with the Maple Leafs. The Rangers, who have coveted the free-agent defenceman since the summer, made another pitch for Schneider last week. Two New York newspapers reported trade discussions had taken place between the clubs, although Leafs associate general manager Mike Smith remained coy about the Rangers' overtures. "We've had calls from various teams," Smith said when asked directly about the Rangers' interest in the defenceman. Another team with interest in Schneider, the Carolina Panthers, called off its pursuit last week. Players the Rangers reportedly have made available to the Leafs include defencemen Jeff Beukeboom and Eric Cairns. Toronto's negotiations with Schneider reached an impasse when the
team took its $2.5-million US offer from the table. The Group 2 free agent wants $3.25 million US a season to return to Toronto.
Meanwhile, Todd Warriner's four-year career as a Leaf could be
nearing an end. Lonny Bohonos and Garry Valk appear to have supplanted the left winger. The Mighty Ducks of Anaheim are said to be interested in Warriner, a speedy forward who produced five goals and 13 points in 45 games last season.
Monday October 5, 1998 Cat trade out of the bag?
Either the Maple Leafs management is good at poker or, for once,
the truth is being told. During the first period last night, a torrid rumour ripped through the Gardens that a three-way deal involving goaltender Felix Potvin either had been completed or was near completion, involving the Leafs, New York Islanders and Vancouver Canucks. "We can't guarantee anything, but it's not done," Leafs general manager Ken Dryden said. ESPN radio reported two different deals, each similar to rumoured deals reported in The Toronto Sun last week. One scenario had the Leafs acquiring defenceman Bryan Berard and forward Trevor Linden from the Islanders. The Canucks would get forward Bryan Smolinski from the Islanders and Potvin. The Islanders would receive disgruntled star Pavel Bure from Vancouver and defenceman Mathieu Schneider from Toronto.
The second reported deal had the Leafs getting Linden, the Canucks acquiring Berard and Potvin, and the Islanders landing Bure. "There is no substance to it," Leafs associate general manager Mike Smith said. "You can bet your mortgage nothing will happen (today). "I have talked to the Islanders. I know they have interest in a goalie, but I haven't had any serious talks with them. (Canucks general manager Brian) Burke has called, but we haven't had any serious talks."I wish they would call me before they announce trades like this just to let me know I made a trade," Smith said. It should be noted that amid reports this summer that the Leafs were trying to sign free-agent goalie Curtis Joseph and were shopping Potvin around, Smith said that Potvin would be his No. 1 goalie this season. Potvin said he had not been informed by the Leafs about any trade. "No, I don't feel any different or any more optimistic," he said. Potvin sold his Mississauga home two weeks ago. Following the waiver draft this morning, the trade freeze will be lifted, meaning a Potvin deal could be done as early as tonight.
Monday October 5, 1998 Gilmour is primed for Gardens party
Doug Gilmour has two meaningful dates circled on his 1998-99
Chicago Blackhawks schedule. "There are two games I'm looking forward to," Gilmour said yesterday as he returned to Maple Leaf Gardens for the second time since being dealt by Toronto 19 months ago. "I'm looking forward to our season opener and the next time I'm here to play at the Gardens." The Blackhawks open their season Saturday at home against the New Jersey Devils, the team he bolted as a free agent during the summer. The next time Gilmour plays at the Gardens will be Feb. 13, the final NHL game at the arena. "It will be a special night," Gilmour, who scored one of Chicago's two goals last night, said. Although he would have considered a return to Toronto this season, Gilmour, 35, said yesterday the Leafs didn't make him a pitch when he became an unrestricted free agent on July 1. "I don't have connections with the Leafs management, so I didn't bother calling," said Gilmour. "I had offers from Chicago and two other teams. I wanted to make my decision quickly in order to get settled in. I liked the Chicago offer the best because it's a city similar to Toronto. "Chicago has great fans, a very lively building. There were times in New Jersey when you really had to dig down and motivate yourself to get up for a game. That won't be the case in Chicago. It has one of the loudest buildings." The Tampa Bay Lightning and Buffalo Sabres also made bids for the Kingston native. Gilmour missed 19 games last year with a knee injury, but collected 13 goals and 53 points in 63 games with the defensive-oriented Devils. His brief stay in New Jersey, however, ended on a sour note when the Ottawa Senators upended the Devils in the opening round of the playoffs in six games. But Gilmour was at his best in the playoffs. He had five of the Devils'
12 goals and assisted on two others. He signed a three-year, $18-million US contract with the Blackhawks on July 3.
The only free agent to sign a richer deal was the Leafs' Curtis Joseph, at four years and $24 million. The Blackhawks are Gilmour's fifth team after stops in St. Louis, Calgary, Toronto and New Jersey. He won a Stanley Cup with the 1989 Flames.
"I'm happy with the way things have gone in Chicago so far," said
Gilmour, who was slowed for a few days with a groin injury. Entering his 16th NHL season, he is gunning for three career
milestones. He needs 19 goals for 400, five assists for 900 and 24 points for 1,200.
Monday October 5, 1998 Borschevsky released
On a day Doug Gilmour returned to Maple Leaf Gardens, another part of the Leafs' past exited. One time Leafs overtime hero Nikolai Borschevsky arrived at the Gardens yesterday morning to find a pink slip in his locker. The Leafs released Borschevsky and Steven Rice and sent down left winger Nathan Dempsey to the Baby Leafs. Borschevsky, a scrappy left winger who scored the dramatic goal in overtime in the Game 7 victory against the Detroit Red Wings on May 1, 1993, was attempting a comeback with the Leafs after spending the past two seasons in Russia. The Russian had one goal and an assist in three pre-season games.
"He showed he can still play at this level," Leafs coach Pat Quinn said. "It's just that nobody who was already here played themselves out of a job." Borschevsky, 33, said he would explore opportunities in Europe and possibly with some other pro clubs in North America. Rice's release was no surprise. The writing has been on the wall for the eight-year National Hockey League veteran since he suffered his second concussion of training camp on Sept. 23 in Edmonton. He had no points in two pre-season games.
Sunday October 4, 1998 Waiver-thin pickings
A picky fat guy would starve looking at the smorgasbord of NHL
players available in the waiver draft tomorrow. The Maple Leafs' long-shot hopes of possibly plucking a No. 2 centre or a No. 3 defenceman are slim. There is high-priced centre help, such as Los Angeles Kings' Ray Ferraro, 34, or ex-Leaf Kirk Muller, 32, of the Florida Panthers. But when asked if the youth-oriented Leafs would be interested in taking on one of these veterans, associate general manager Mike Smith shook his head. "It's a typical waiver draft list," Smith said. "Do I see a possible No. 2 centre or No. 3 defenceman? Not likely." As expected, the Leafs left backup goalie Glenn Healy unprotected, along with minor-leaguers Niklas Andersson, Nathan Dempsey, Scott Pearson, Brian Wiseman and Greg Smyth. Although Healy's $1.2-million US salary might scare some teams, he is the best bet to be plucked.
If the Leafs lose him, they hope to snag Red Wings backup Kevin
Hodson in exchange for a third-round pick -- rather than take a
chance on promoting an unproven minor-league netminder. No team can lose more than two players in the waiver draft. In the first round, no club can claim a player from a team in its own division. The Leafs choose eighth. Among the available defencemen, the Leafs will consider Matt Martin, Terry Carkner, Chris Joseph, Neil Wilkinson and Mark Wotton, a Vancouver prospect who played for Pat Quinn. Smith, however, didn't seem interested in Wotton when asked about him. Beside Muller and Ferraro, other notable forwards available include Bob Errey (Rangers), Vladimir Vorobiev (Rangers), Dave Reid(Stars) and Brent Gilchrist (Red Wings). If the Leafs pick up a player, they have to drop another player from their protected list. The Leafs protected goalies Curtis Joseph and Felix Potvin, defencemen Sylvain Cote, Dallas Eakins, Mathieu Schneider, Jason
Smith and Dimitri Yushkevich, forwards Sergei Berezin, Lonny
Bohonos, Tie Domi, Darby Hendrickson, Mike Johnson, Derek King,
Kris King, Igor Korolev, Fredrik Modin, Steve Sullivan, Mats Sundin, Steve Thomas and Todd Warriner.
Sunday October 4, 1998 Leafs might find Isle of bargains
Maple Leafs associate general manager Mike Smith better stay close to his phone this week. Word around the league this weekend is that the new ownership of the New York Islanders has told coach/general manager Mike Milbury to substantially cut the club's payroll. The Islanders payroll is $20.343 million US, and that excludes the salaries of unsigned restricted free agents Ziggy Palffy and Trevor Linden. The Isles are expected to dump some of their high-salaried veteran talent, such as Linden, for younger, cheaper players. The Leafs are interested in Linden, who is willing to relax his $3-million-a-season demand if the Leafs pick him up. But does this mean the Isles would be interested in Leafs netminder Felix Potvin, who at $2.7 million makes comparable money to Linden? An NHL source indicated the Isles still want to acquire a top-flight goalie. They could always move incumbent Tommy Salo.
Sunday October 4, 1998 Leafs are in the air
The Toronto Maple Leafs haven't made for much great TV in recent years, but TV could help make the Leafs picture look better in the future. Armed with a new local TV package, which will pay the team a reported $23 million a year in rights fees for at least the next five seasons, the Maple Leafs are one hot property. And if management spends some of that revenue on players, who knows how rosy things might look one day? The good news for Leafs fans is that they won't have to venture far to
watch this season, with all but two of team's 82 games televised
locally. The Leafs appear every Saturday on Hockey Night In
Canada, twice on new network CTV Sportsnet plus 51 games split
between three networks. Of the latter package produced by the team and Molstar Communications, there are 10 each on Global and ONTV and 31 on TSN, which put up the bulk of the money for the new deal in a move seen by industry observers as a desperate bid to remain in Canada's most important game. After losing national cable rights to expansion rival CTV Sportsnet, which signs on this Friday, TSN was looking at an empty net without pucks to fill it. "We had to ask ourselves if we wanted to be a sports network without NHL hockey," TSN senior vice president Keith Pelley said. "The answer was 'no' and a decision was made to do whatever we could to make it happen." By making it happen, everyone is a winner. Although the games will air only in Ontario, TSN keeps a presence in the country's biggest and most important market in terms of advertising. Though it will be difficult for TSN to turn a profit after paying so much, the prestige of retaining hockey has its residual value. "The viewers are the real winners in all this," Hockey Night executive producer John Shannon said. "There are more games and more people
broadcasting." Mark Askin, a former Hockey Night producer, will call the shots for all the Leafs games and, in consultation with team president Ken Dryden, is after a new look. "What you won't see is traditional hockey coverage," Askin said. "We'll take the fans down where the players are, that's the whole idea to bring the viewer down to the game level." And the crew will have all the toys, including plenty of cameras, access to the players and one of the best production crews in the country. "Everyone with the team has been great," Askin said. "Ken Dryden thinks like it is the year 2005. He understands what works in TV and he wants us to push the envelope. Fox and ESPN have done that and we can learn from them." For 22 of the 31 TSN games, southern Ontario viewers will see a special Leafs edition of That's Hockey, with host Dave Hodge. The 30-minute pre-game show will help TSN recoup some of the enormous rights fees because its extra space to show commercials, but also give the team more exposure than it has received before. Joe Bowen will call all the games with analyst Harry Neale. Paul Hendrick has left Hamilton-based ONTV to be the full-time on-site Leafs host. After this season, TSN will inherit the entire local package of all 51 games. The deal creates a situation where the regional sports network (Sportsnet) has national rights and the national network (TSN) has regional rights. Although TSN landed a smaller package of Montreal Canadiens games and negotiated half-heartedly for the Vancouver Canucks, the Leafs were always the big prize. "They are the jewel property for a Canadian network," Pelley said of the Leafs. "We felt it was crucial to have them."
Saturday October 3, 1998 Valk hustles for Leafs job
It appears training camp walk-on Garry Valk has more in common with former Maple Leafs super-pest Bill Berg than sweater No. 10.
Both were relative unknowns in these parts before they surfaced with the Leafs, although coach Pat Quinn actually would know Valk if he ran over him with his truck. Valk, 30, spent three seasons with Quinn's Vancouver Canucks before he was claimed by Anaheim in the 1993 waiver draft. Not that Quinn didn't like the 6-foot-1, 205-pound Alberta native. But this was the same Canucks team that would extend the Rangers to a seventh game in the 1994 Stanley Cup final. Vancouver couldn't protect everyone. Five years later, Valk has been reunited with Quinn and his stay might
not be so temporary. Valk didn't score but he led the Leafs in hustle last night during a 2-0 pre-season loss to the Carolina Hurricanes at Copps Coliseum. "He's one of those all-around guys who are important to have on your club," Quinn said. "I know the kinds of things he brings to the job." Late in the second period, Valk suckered 'Canes defenceman Sean Hill into a double minor that left Carolina two men short. But the Leafs, who didn't dress Mats Sundin, Steve Thomas and Fred Modin, were shut out by a razor-sharp Arturs Irbe. "I was always an underdog in Vancouver. I played 172 games on a two-way contract," said Valk, who was slowed last year in Pittsburgh by a double hernia operation. "Pat knows I can play a physical role and I hope he feels that way now."
Friday October 2, 1998 Edmonton out of Potvin picture
The Maple Leafs yesterday lost a potential trading partner when the Edmonton Oilers acquired goaltender Mikhail Shtalenkov from Nashville. The Oilers also picked up centre Jim Dowd from the Predators in return for goalie Eric Fichaud and defencemen Drake Berehowsky and Greg de Vries. Edmonton had shown passing interest in Leafs goalie Felix Potvin. The Oilers also signed 35-year-old defenceman Marty McSorley, who played in Edmonton from 1985-88, to a one-year contract worth about $1 million US. "The opportunity to acquire Shtalenkov was too good to turn down," Oilers general manager Glen Sather said. "He is an experienced goaltender with both NHL and international experience and was instrumental in Russia winning the silver medal at the Olympics in Japan."
Friday October 2, 1998 Blue line just got thinner
The Maple Leafs are really into this autumn thing. They keep falling.
The latest casualty -- Dimitri Yushkevich -- will be out two to three weeks after a slapshot pinged off his forehead Wednesday during a 4-3 pre-season win over the Montreal Canadiens.
The veteran defenceman suffered a hairline fracture of the frontal bone and is expected to miss Toronto's Oct. 10 season opener against the Detroit Red Wings.
The injury may provide an opening for promising rookie Tomas Kaberle, who captained the Czech national team at last year's world championship in Helsinki.
It also leaves the Leafs with a pretty depleted defence corps with their best player at the position, Mathieu Schneider, unsigned and not likely to play any time soon.
The Schneider negotiations reached an impasse last week when the Leafs yanked their $2.5 million US offer from the table.
Leafs executive Bill Watters denied Yushkevich's injury would affect Schneider's situation.
"We have a figure we're more than happy to pay Mathieu and we will whenever he decides to play for that figure," Watters said.
Schneider, who wants at least $3 million US to sign, is checking his options in Europe and the International Hockey League.
The Leafs could open the season with three defencemen who are more or less rookies -- Kaberle, Daniil Markov and Yannick Tremblay.
Sylvain Cote, Jason Smith and Dallas Eakins are the only available veterans, although the Leafs have the option of activating Glen Featherstone, in camp on a tryout.
Centre is the other trouble spot and, again, the competition has been impeded by a rash of injuries.
Alyn McCauley sat out the first five pre-season games with a strained quadriceps muscle while Steve Sullivan isn't likely to play in any of the weekend's three exhibition games because of a hip flexor. Darby Hendrickson and Igor Korolev, the most experienced of the group battling for the No. 2 centre spot, have had mediocre camps.
Darkhorse candidate Mark Deyell likely will start the season with the St. John's AHL farm team because he's on a two-way contract.
"What keeps coming up are these injuries to our centres," said Leafs coach Pat Quinn, who also lost promising junior Adam Mair on Wednesday with a concussion.
Of course, the instability in the middle could become a moot point if the Leafs trade goalie Felix Potvin for a veteran centre. New York Islanders Bryan Smolinski or Trevor Linden have been mentioned.
"(But) you can't dream in ifs and whats and maybes because (those players) just aren't here," Quinn said.
Toronto cut four players yesterday, sending defencemen Jeff Ware and Marek Posmyk and winger Jason Podollan to St. John's. Winger Scott Pearson was loaned to the Chicago Wolves of the IHL.
The Leafs, 5-0-1 in the pre-season, face Carolina tonight at Copps Coliseum in Hamilton and again tomorrow at the Gardens.
Thursday October 1, 1998 Domi likes Leafs' toughness
Tie Domi knows he's a target for every brash young opponent trying to win a job during the NHL's exhibition schedule, but he doesn't mind at all.
He's been there. He did the same thing 10 years ago.
"It's good to see young kids trying to make it into the league," Domi said after the Toronto Maple Leafs' Thursday practice, his knuckles tender after a fight with Montreal Canadiens hopeful Terry Ryan the previous night.
The dangerous young dudes come looking for him, and he's always obliging. Going toe to toe with Domi and not getting knocked flat impresses their coaches. Once the real season begins, most of Domi's fights will be against more recognizable opponents who manhandle Toronto's better players.
"A guy like Mats Sundin, I take pride in taking care of him," Domi says. "He played every game last season.
"When I played with (Teemu) Selanne, I took pride in taking care of him. I take care of my teammates, especially the elite players. They're the guys other players take runs at."
Still, Domi knows that a true indication of an improvement in his team this season will be if he has to drop the gloves less frequently. Teammates will be into the fray more often. So, he's hoping he won't be called up quite so often to bare his knuckles. It certainly is coach Pat Quinn's desire.
"Pat's really into team toughness," Domi says. "He wants everybody on the team to be team tough -- just like playoff hockey.
"If that's the way he's looking at it, we're going to be a lot better team. And I want to show I can play. I've got more to offer than one thing. I have to take care of my teammates but, other than that, just going out and getting in a fight for the sake of fighting like I have the last few years, that wears on you -- on your hands and on your body.
"Hopefully, we'll have a winning team and I won't have to do it as much."
Domi had four goals and 10 assists for 14 points last season, when he accumulated 365 minutes in penalties. The previous year, he had career bests of 11 goals, 17 assists, and 28 points, with 275 minutes in penalties.
"We want to challenge him to be a better player," says Quinn.
Domi wishes the NHL would eliminate fighting instigation penalties. Troublemakers would be less prone to run stars, he says, because there would be immediate retribution.
"There would be less cheap shots because in the back of their mind they'd be thinking, 'Hey, if I do this, (Domi is) comin'."
As for the new two-referee system, Domi turns thumbs down.
"We have the best officials in the world and I think one guy is good enough. I think they'd all agree, too.
"All these crazy kinds of things the league is doing to try and promote the game and whatnot . . . just let the players decide the game and the fans will be happy. You get two referees out there and you're in the penalty box all night. The referees will be deciding the games."
Meanwhile, the Leafs assigned defencemen Jeff Ware and Marek Posmyk and right-winger Jason Podollan to the St. John's AHL farm club, and left-winger Scott Pearson was loaned to the IHL's Chicago Wolves.
"He needs playing time," Quinn said of Ware, a first-round pick in the 1995 draft who played in St. John's last winter. "If he started here and sat on the bench, we would be doing a disservice to him.
"He doesn't have the offensive side to his game that warrants putting him in."
Thursday October 1, 1998 Latest rumours have Smolinski, Rupp here
Like a tired old cat, the Felix Potvin saga continues to stretch itself out.
A day after word leaked about a possible deal between the Maple Leafs and New York Islanders, there have been further developments.
Although centre/right winger Trevor Linden would love to come to Toronto and play for Pat Quinn, the Islanders appear to be reluctant to give up Linden and top-flight prospect Michael Rupp for Potvin.
It is believed the Islanders want to ship centre Bryan Smolinski and forward Rupp to Toronto for goaltender Potvin, but that doesn't mean the Linden deal is dead.
But complicating matters, the Vancouver Canucks have entered the fray in an attempt to work out a three-way deal.
The Canucks want to acquire Potvin and send training camp holdout Pavel Bure to the Islanders. The Islanders would send Smolinski and Rupp to the Leafs. The Islanders likely would have to send a player or two to Canucks.
Last week, Leafs associate general manager Mike Smith scouted Rupp when his junior team, the Erie Otters, visited the Guelph Storm. Both the Leafs and Islanders were reluctant to discuss a possible trade.
"Everybody wants this thing done," a source said. "But every time it gets close, word of it gets in the newspapers and then, for whatever reason, nothing happens."
Smith wasn't willing to comment on a possible trade.
"All I can say is Felix is in Montreal, nothing else," Smith said, referring to Potvin's whereabouts.
The Leafs players thought Potvin was traded Tuesday when he failed to show for a team golf outing. He was given another day off from camp yesterday.
Potvin used the time to fly to Chicoutimi to visit his wife Sabrina and their two children and then to Montreal to visit his mother and father.
He is expected to return today.
As Potvin said last Saturday in his post-game comments in Montreal, the drawn-out affair has been tough on his wife and kids, who have stayed behind in Chicoutimi waiting for a new destination.
Potvin also hinted he may bolt training camp if he is not moved before the Oct. 10 opener against the Detroit Red Wings.
Smith rolled is eyes when asked if he was optimistic a trade would be worked out by 2 p.m. today, when a roster freeze goes into effect until the NHL waiver draft is completed Monday.
Thursday October 1, 1998 Feb. 13 game a hot ticket
After 68 years, the Maple Leafs intend to send the Gardens out with a bang on its Feb. 13, 1999 closing.
Though plans haven't been released, the club intends to invite hundreds of alumni, VIPs such as Prime Minister Jean Chretien and other special guests to the Saturday night game against Chicago.
"It will be the hottest ticket in town," Karen Petcoff, manager of communications for Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment Ltd., said yesterday. If scalping activity around Carlton St. is any indication, she's right. Scalpers already are offering to pay $1,500 for a single ticket, so their final markup will be even higher. Public sale of individual tickets for the Chicago game have been held back to discourage scalpers and to satisfy a long guest list. The game will start a half-hour earlier than usual, at 6:30 p.m., and be followed by a one-hour Hockey Night In Canada show reflecting on the building's history. In the following week, leading to the Feb. 20 opening match at the new Air Canada Centre, a motorcade of Leafs greats will transport the franchise's 11 Stanley Cup banners to their new home.
"We will treat the event with the type of reverence it deserves," Petcoff said.
Chicago was the Leafs' first opponent at the Gardens, Nov. 12, 1931.