A streak?

Toronto Maple Leafs at Boston Bruins
Toronto wins 3 - 2 (S.O.)

Chris says:

Toskala's first shootout win, and a great shootout victory for Steen. There was some sweet hockey being played in Beantown last night.

That sound you heard last night was the collective snapping of all the ankles in Toronto as people hurried to make space for themselves on the Leafs bandwagon.

If you listen real hard you might even the same sound from Ottawa as Steve processes the ramifications of a two game 'streak'.

Suddenly winning two games balances out that five game free fall and all is forgiven, if not forgotten.

But it's not that easy. The Leafs aren't a bad team, they just aren't good enough to crack the playoff threshold. That means that they're going to put together some winning streaks, just like any other team, but it also means that there losing streaks will be longer and more painful.

There are two trains of thought circulating about what the remainder of the Leafs season is going to shape up as.

1. Playoff bound. This season is far from over and given the right wins under the right circumstances we can back in the hunt for a playoff position before the end of next week. I'm going to file this under 'P' for Possible, but highly unlikely.

2. Then there are the people who think the Leafs should start tanking games, on purpose. (Instead of, y'know, losing them accidentally like they are right now) The logic being that the worse the Leafs do in the standing the better our draft pick. Here's my official response.

Do you really want to cheer and support a team that intentionally loses games? Is a solitary high level draft pick really worth the knowledge that your team went out there to screw the pooch? That kind of thinking smacks of everything that's wrong with professional sports these days. It says that players are only in the game for a paycheque and that pride, honour and competitiveness aren't a factor at all.

If the Leafs finish up in the bottom of the standings, let it be a testament to their (in)ability, not their willingness to take a dive.

Steve says:

Not that I want them to lose...but I am looking at a bigger picture here..even if we somehow manage to get into the playoffs, I just don't think this team has either the talent or mental ability to maintain a deep run or the Cup run. I would love to be proven wrong. And I will be cheering them on with every breath if they manage to sneak in there...
BUT
looking ahead to next year, it would be a lot sweeter if we could be picking first at the draft.
Not only that, but with Sundin as a rental player we could also have from Vancouver a package deal involving a top prospect (one of goalie Cory Schneider or defenseman Luc Bourdon), plus first- and second-round draft picks...and possibly even Ryan Kesler in a deal to sweeten the pot!
All of this is because Canuck center Brendan Morrison is out of action due to wrist surgery.

Can you imagine what next year would look like if we had the 1st pick at the draft, Luc Bourdon, Ryan Kesler, re-sign Sundin, plus Vancouvers and our own 2nd round picks!!!!

Holy crap we would be good!

Look...I think the Leafs are a team with huge heart, but with players like Wozniewski and White getting regular shift, Tucker falling off in both skills and health, Sundin with not a lot of help (love ya Blake, but dude ya gotta start putting them in the back of the net more!) I just think this franchise would benefit hugely from some good fortune in the not to distant future in lieu of another average season...just like we have seen since the 90's...

Go Leafs Go!