Toronto Maple Leafs: Leafs Nation Is Desperate for Hope

On the heels of a 3-2 loss to the Columbus Blue Jackets, fans of the Toronto Maple Leafs are desperate to get any indication that their beloved team can improve.

In arguably the biggest hockey market on the planet, the mandate should always be to win.

From the ownership to the general manager to the coach to the players, the most important thing in your life should be to win.

The fans of the blue & white, the true fans of the Maple Leafs bleed for this team. They sweat, swear, grind their teeth, pull out their hair, eat, breath, sleep and live for this team.

The team though, just doesn't seem to want to reward the loyalty that the fans show them.

Many people, fans, media and so-called hockey experts would have us believe that the Toronto Maple Leafs simply don't have the talent to win. That the coach is a bad coach and hasn't the right mentality to coach a young team.

To all of these people I say, "Bulls___!"

This team lacks heart, it lacks character and it lacks respect!

It lacks respect for each other, their coaches, their fans and their opposition.

It has been said that fans have to be patient—this is a young team, that the Leafs are rebuilding and there are better days to come.

Again...BS!

Look for hope in the eyes of Phil Kessel, Dion Phanuef and Nazem Kadri? Bah!

The proverbial light at the end of the tunnel is starting resemble a match held by the shaky hand of an overrated GM whose fingers are soon going to get burnt.

The lone bright spot this season has been the possibly overachieving Mikhail Grabovski, though one could suppose that Luke Schenn, and a handful of others are having decent seasons simply because they haven't screwed up quite as much as others.

Speaking of captain Phaneuf. What ever happened to him? Where is that guy that first arrived on the scene last season and was described as being an adrenaline grenade?

Perhaps he should take up knitting.