Joe Sakic Signs, but Is Mats Sundin Moving Any Closer to a Decision?

On Wednesday, Aug. 27 the Colorado Avalanche announced that Joe Sakic had signed a one-year contract with the team.

“Ultimately it came down to the fact that I still enjoy playing and competing,” said Sakic. “I’m comfortable with my conditioning and my overall health. I’m ready to start camp and am looking forward to the upcoming season.”

Now that Sakic has announced his return to NHL for his 20th season the pressure turns to one man: Mats Sundin.

Sundin hasn’t made any decisions lately, except for choosing paper over plastic at a Swedish superstore. Time is running out for the former Leafs captain. Training camps have already started, and soon the preseason games will kick off. I’m willing to bet Sundin still won’t know what the heck he’s going to do even then.

At Leafs camp reporters are not asking questions like, "How do you plan to improve for this season?", "What can we expect from the players this year?", "Do you think you can make the playoffs this year?", What do you expect from the new faces on the ice this year?", etc.

Instead, the main question is, "Have you heard from Mats Sundin?" This question is not put only to Maple Leafs management and coaches—they have been asking the players, too.

Why not just ask random people on the street if they've have heard from Sundin? They have about as much chance of knowing his decision.

I’m not saying that it’s ridiculous to ask players if they've heard from a teammate, but whenever Mats makes his decision (if he makes his decision) the only people who will know before he holds a press conference will be his family and the team that he signs with—that is, if he doesn’t retire.

With the season coming quickly, Mats has only a few days to make up his mind. I am pretty sure the Leafs do not want him as he would only hurt their chances for a high draft pick. So, to all you Leaf fans hoping Mats is coming back, you can forget it. There is a better chance of him ending up in Minnesota.

If he was coming back to Toronto, he would have known by now. He would be in training camp with all the young kids. He would be gasping for air, asking, “I can’t keep up...why did come back? What was...I thinking?"

Other than one report of Sundin seen skating, do we even know if he has been keeping up with offseason workouts, and not just sitting on his Swedish futon eating Frito-Lay? No, there have not been any such reports. By the time he comes back he could be a 300-pounder.

So Mats, just do what you know you should do and retire. End our misery and make a decision. How can the leader of a team take this long to make up his mind? No wonder we haven’t made the playoffs in three years!