Toronto Maple Leafs: Phaneuf, Giguere, and Sjostrom Take to the Ice Tonight

That intense face will be what opponents of the Leafs will see as they make their way down the ice while playing the Toronto Maple Leafs, hopefully for years to come.

I keep looking over at the tickets I have for tonight’s tilt between the Toronto Maple Leafs and the New Jersey Devils at 7 PM at the Air Canada Centre here in Toronto.

They have turned a slightly golden colour in lieu of the new acquisitions though they are up in the 300 level.

Tonight’s game should have seen two Stanley Cup winning goal tenders in it, J.S. Giguere and Martin Brodeur, one for the Leafs, which probably hasn’t happened since Toronto had Ed Belfour but it looks like Yan Denis will start for New Jersey, but it will happen in the near future.

Dion Phaneuf will suit up for the first time in the blue and white. Speculation has it he will end up with the vacant captaincy in all likelihood next year and is a ferocious force on the back-end. Every time he is on the ice, the fans will be on the edge of their seats and he brings that big shot from the point that has been missing on the power play.

One of the least additions in many people’s mind is Fredrik Sjostrom, but he will address one of the nagging problems Toronto has faced this year, which has been their penalty killing, and this just happens to be Sjostrom’s specialty.

Sjostrom, who may be pared up with Rickard Wallin, who was supposed to have the same qualities but has yet to do anything significant in any way, shape, or form, may improve the inept penalty killing.

In one fell swoop, albeit two deals, Burke has addressed three issues that have been plaguing this team all year: goaltending, the power play, and penalty killing.

Brian Burke has said Toronto is still open for business, and I hope that’s the truth, because the excitement through the city is at an all time high, at least for this season.

Tonight’s game hopefully marks the true beginning of the Brian Burke era. Though the Phil Kessel deal was nothing to sneeze at, and Burke has taken a lot of flak for it, if the Leafs can slowly pull themselves out of the bottom of the league and finish out of the bottom five, Burke will look like a genius.

The chance of this happening is very slim, but if their first overall draft pick going to Boston doesn’t end up being a top two, I think Leafs Nation may have some form of forgiveness.

All in all you have to give something to get something and Kessel is definitely a something and will be a damn good something for years to come.

Now that the backend seems shored up, it’s up to Burke to surround Kessel with players that can help him succeed.

Who those players will be, whether Nazem Kadri, Jerry D’Amigo, or players picked up in offseason trades or via free agency is yet to be seen, but Burke has made it clear he is on the move and he isn’t done!

The new look Leafs take on the Devils tonight, and hopefully the Leafs have some new jump in their step!

In case you didn’t know, Gabe Morency (formally of The Score ) has launched his new web site. Mark “The Hard Hitter” Ritter, my B/R counterpart, and I will be throwing down our Podcast “Get The Puck Out ” every Saturday from 6:00 PM to 7:00 PM.

Next show will be Feb. 6 where we should be joined by Brian Bellows.

We’ll be giving you our opinion and taking your calls on the hottest topics in the hockey world.

The Live Podcast will be broadcast in studio from down town Toronto featuring some betting analysis, fantasy advice, trivia, team/player updates, and more puck talk than you can imagine.

Be sure to call in and let your opinion be known. Don’t miss it, puckheads!
You can catch Morency and “Get The Puck Out” at www.morencysports.com

You can see archived shows with past guests such as Wendal Clark and Johnny Bower at www.ustream.com just search “Get The Puck Out”