NHL: Toronto Maple Leafs Nation Is Screaming, "Fire Ron Wilson!"

The slumping Toronto Maple Leafs fell 4-2 to the visiting Washington Capitals on Saturday night—a game in which questionable goaltending led to a fire storm of postgame controversy.

The loss marked Toronto’s eighth defeat in nine games, but to make matters worse, coach Ron Wilson took it upon himself to criticize goaltender James Reimer for the loss.

"The two goals early in the game were stoppable chances," Wilson said in his postgame remarks to the media. "They got saves at one end. We didn’t. And we dug a hole because of that."

"We’ve got to figure out a way to get a save here and there," Wilson continued. "When not even really scoring chances are in the net, boom, you’re down 2-0, you’re seeing an uphill battle the rest of the night."

"It’s tough when everyone gets down to keep them propped up. You try your best." With those words, Toronto's coach wrapped up his comments on Reimer, and in doing so, unleashed the beast that is Leafs Nation.

Nobody is arguing that Reimer did not have his best effort last night. Fans who follow the Leafs know full well that the goaltending tandem of Reimer and Jonas Gustavsson has been anything but good lately.

But, it would be a severe understatement to say that Wilson threw Reimer under the bus with his comments, and Toronto fans know it.

Immediately after Wilson addressed the media, the Twitterverse came alive with comments from inflamed fans, all of whom were calling for the guillotine to fall on their head coach.

Apparently, and I personally agree, Wilson needs a reality check.

Unlike their coach, Reimer's teammates defended him following the game.

Colby Armstrong said, "James has been a goalie that’s battled for us. He got injured at the start of the year and came back. We stand behind him."

Given the current circumstances, should Reimer not have expected similar support from his coach?

Granted, as has already been stated, goaltending needs to improve in Toronto.

However, team defence and overall effort are aspects that have eluded the Leafs during their current skid, and those are problems for which the coaching deserves much of the blame.

Ask yourself one question: When was the last time you saw even the slightest display of emotion from coach Ron during a game?

If you are struggling for an answer, don't worry, you are not alone.

Toronto fans long for the bottle-throwing days of Pat Burns, or even the gum-throwing days of Pat Quinn. At least then, when the Leafs were the struggling, they could rely on a coach that supported them throughout.

Wilson has the audacity to publicly ridicule his players at the worst possible times, and has the confidence to do so because he is in bed with GM Brian Burke, who, refuses to fire his coach against all common sense in the hockey world.

On TSN Radio 1050, Burke recently said, "we're losing games because we're not stopping the puck enough, it's that simple."

Someone please pass the Aspirin.

Does management really think that their fan base is completely senseless?

Admittedly, for much of the season, Toronto has played decent hockey, but keep in mind that their record against playoff teams has been atrocious. The Leafs allow nearly four goals against per game on average against teams in the top 16 of the league. That simply isn't good enough, and is most certainly not the fault of goaltending alone.

The Leafs are in free-fall, spiraling out of control, and are on the verge of missing the playoffs for yet another year.

If Wilson is looking for someone to blame, he need only to look in a mirror.

In the very least, Toronto players need a mature coach, rather than a whiny spokesperson.

Burke, wake up and give your head a shake. Take the advice of Leafs Nation and fire Ron Wilson!

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