The Toronto Maple Leafs put a thumping on the Anaheim Ducks Tuesday night, generating seven goals and not allowing a single goal to Anaheim. It was the type of dominance against a clearly-lesser opponent that we haven’t always seen from modern-day Leafs teams, but at the moment, Toronto is playing some of their best hockey in years, and they’ve made all the years of losing that preceded their current core of talent very much worth it.
But make no mistake – the Buds would not be in their current position if they didn’t suffer through many brutal seasons. There is no one given road to a Stanley Cup championship, and the Leafs still have a long way to go before they establish themselves as a group worth the hype. But the proven path to their present-day level is to take a slew of shots in the goolies, and, eventually, develop an elite collection of players through the entry draft. That’s what Ducks fans, and fans of all current NHL sad-sack teams, should learn from Toronto.
If the Leafs hadn’t stunk out the joint time and again for three consecutive seasons from 2013-16, there’s no chance they put themselves in the position to draft star winger William Nylander eighth overall in 2014, star winger Mitch Marner fourth overall in 2015, and star center Auston Matthews first overall in 2016. You cannot trade for players of this caliber. In just about every case, teams will always hold onto young talent – and if they don’t, there’s usually a good reason why.
If you do suffer through the agony of a true rebuild, there’s no assurance you’ll be able to construct a Cup frontrunner. The Edmonton Oilers hit a home run with superstar Connor McDavid, but they also blew it when picking forward Jesse Puljujarvi fourth-overall. That’s on their scouting and development infrastructure. Some players you can’t go wrong on, while others make you rue the day you picked them for your side.
Around Full Press Hockey
NHL: Paul Maurice: “It’s A Special Place And You Could Feel It”
-
Ep 76: Oilers, Flames, Winter Classic Jersey, Avs, and More
by Full Press Coverage on November 23, 2023 at 6:42 am
Jim and Chris are back for another edition of Full Press Hockey Weekly to […]
NHL Rumors: NHL Rumors: Edmonton Oilers, Vancouver Canucks, Colorado Avalanche
NHL: NHL Power Rankings: Devils Holding Onto The Top Spot
NFL: Remembering John Hadl: “A Great Player, A Great Athlete
Full Press Bets: Early 2022 NFL MVP Odds: Bills’ Josh Allen Favored
PODCAST: Full Press Hockey Weekly Ep 38: NHL Season Preview: Golden Knights, Maple Leafs, Johnny Gaudreau
But again, there’s no chance McDavid could be acquired in a trade. Most NHLers are loyal to a fault, and it takes a long stretch of losing before they even consider moving to a new city. Leafs star center John Tavares is the perfect example of such a predicament; he stayed on Long Island for nine seasons before he left the Islanders to sign as an unrestricted free agent with the Leafs. But do you really believe Tavares would’ve chosen to come to Toronto if Marner, Matthews and Nylander weren’t part of the organization? If you do, you shouldn’t. Players aren’t going to make an island (no pun intended) out of themselves, even if it is playing for their hometown team. Tavares’ signing is important for the Buds, but the foundation had to be set down before he seriously considered coming to Toronto.
Of course, any top NHL team has to have depth, and the Leafs have accumulated a slew of auxiliary talent who have rotated through the lineup over the years. But they would be going nowhere fast if they didn’t have Marner, Matthews and Nylander to hang their hat on. You have to suffer for talent like theirs. You have to go through bleakness and blowouts and abject misery before you can find joy again at this level.
The Ducks do have the makings of a team that will be much-improved in the near-future, but anyone who watched Tuesday’s steamrolling will tell you they’ve got to stumble through the rest of this season and pick up another top young player before they’re ready to contend for a Cup. The Chicago Blackhawks and Arizona Coyotes know that this road to rejuvenation is long, which is why they both tore down (and continue to tear down) their rosters last summer. They’re praying for the hockey gods to give them a top pick in the 2023 draft – and even if they get a franchise-type-player, it likely will be another year at least before they’re able to make the jump from pretender to contender.
Most Leafs fans have a full remembrance of the agony they had to suffer through to land Marner/Matthews/Nylander. But most would all tell you it was completely worth it. The birthing pangs of greatness are painful as hell, but they’re completely necessary to the delivery of true hope for a championship.
-
Ep 76: Oilers, Flames, Winter Classic Jersey, Avs, and More
by Full Press Coverage on November 23, 2023 at 6:42 am
Jim and Chris are back for another edition of Full Press Hockey Weekly to […]
-
Ep 75: Hockey After Dark
by Full Press Coverage on November 15, 2023 at 3:12 am
Jim and Chris are back for the first edition of Full Press Hockey After […]
-
Ep 74: Drama In Ottawa, McAvoy Suspended, NHL Rumors, and More!
by Full Press Coverage on November 2, 2023 at 1:27 pm
In a jam-packed episode, Jim and Chris discuss the drama in Ottawa with […]
-
Off to Motown: Patrick Kane Signs with Detroit Red Wings
by Full Press Coverage on November 28, 2023 at 7:07 pm
Jim Biringer is back once again joined by Kevin Allen of Detroit Hockey […]
-
What's on Russ's Mind: The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly
by Full Press Coverage on November 23, 2023 at 1:00 pm
Jim Biringer is back once again joined by Russ Cohen of Full Press Hockey, […]
-
Off To Alberta To Check On The Edmonton Oilers
by Full Press Coverage on November 19, 2023 at 1:00 pm
Jim Biringer is back once again joined by Avry Lewis-McDougall of the […]
-
Ep 87: Captain Brad Marchand, New Season Expectations, Bruins Hockey Is Back
by Full Press Coverage on October 11, 2023 at 11:10 pm
Ian and Chris return for the start of the Bruins season as they talk Brad […]
-
Ep 86: David Krejci Announces Retirement
by Full Press Coverage on August 14, 2023 at 10:28 pm
Ian and Chris react to David Krejci's retirement. Learn more about your ad […]
-
S5Ep13 - Patrick Kane Signs with Detroit Red Wings
by Jim Biringer on November 28, 2023 at 5:21 pm
Jim Biringer is back for the fifth season of the Final Word on Hockey in a […]
-
S5Ep12 - Time For William Nylander To Get Paid
by Jim Biringer on November 19, 2023 at 1:00 pm
Jim Biringer is back for the fifth season of the Final Word on Hockey […]
-
Avalanche at Ducks - Canucks at Flames - Capitals at Golden Knights
by Broken Controller Media on December 2, 2023 at 5:00 pm
Hunter Logan Previews Avalanche at Ducks, Canucks at Flames, Capitals at […]
-
Sabres at Hurricanes - Red Wings at Canadiens - Kraken at Senators
by Broken Controller Media on December 2, 2023 at 4:10 pm
Hunter Logan Previews Sabres at Hurricanes, Red Wings at Canadiens, Kraken […]
-
Lightning at Stars - Blackhawks at Jets - Rangers at Predators - Islanders at Panthers
by Broken Controller Media on December 2, 2023 at 4:05 pm
Hunter Logan Previews Lightning at Stars, Blackhawks at Jets, Rangers at […]
-
Episode #147: Sloppy October Is Over?
by Full Press Coverage on November 2, 2023 at 8:37 pm
On this edition of The Calder Farmstead, Sean and Sarah finish out the […]
-
Episode #146: Spooky Luck
by Full Press Coverage on October 27, 2023 at 4:09 pm
On this episode of The Calder Farmstead, Mr. Anderson (Sean) and Tina […]
-
Renegades Of Puck Ep 828
by Charlie Saunier on December 1, 2023 at 6:59 pm
Ep 828 The Renegades Of Puck Recap 6-1 L Vs Wild Preview Rangers & […]
-
Full Press Islanders - 12-1 - Take the 2 points and run
by Full Press Coverage on December 1, 2023 at 4:55 pm
Last night wasn't pretty but they found a way to win and that's what […]
-
Full Press Hurricanes - 12-1 - Carolina Falls 5-4 in Overtime Against the Islanders.
by Full Press Coverage on December 1, 2023 at 4:30 pm
The Hurricanes thoroughly outshot the New York Islanders 43-16, but the […]
-
Leafs Digest - 12-1 - MASSIVE Trade Incoming? - Trade Reports INTENSIFYING
by BCM on December 1, 2023 at 4:00 pm
Nick Gosse and Darius Domingues break down recent reports highlighting […]
-
Full Press Kraken - 12-1 - Shootout loss, Maple Leafs, Marner
by Full Press Coverage on December 1, 2023 at 2:40 pm
Recapping the shootout loss to Toronto. Learn more about your ad choices. […]
-
Full Press Wild - 12-1 - Recapping a dominating Wild win over the predators.
by Full Press Coverage on December 1, 2023 at 2:30 pm
Win, Nashville, domination, Connor Dewar. Learn more about your ad […]
-
11/28 - MNF Reaction, State Of The NFL
by Full Press Coverage on November 30, 2023 at 3:49 am
Ian and John react to Monday Night Football and discuss more of the state […]
-
11/27 - Thanksgiving Recap; Jalen Hurts, NFL News and Notes
by Full Press Coverage on November 27, 2023 at 10:43 pm
Ian and John recap Thanksgiving weekend, discuss Jalen Hurts' moment, and […]
-
11/24 - Thanksgiving Recap, Jets/Dolphins, Week 12 Picks
by Full Press Coverage on November 24, 2023 at 3:47 pm
Ian and John react to all of the action on Thanksgiving Day and look ahead […]
-
11/23 - Thanksgiving Day Preview, Tom Brady, Top 5 NFL Teams
by Full Press Coverage on November 23, 2023 at 3:11 pm
Ian and John discuss the Thanksgiving Day slate of games in the NFL, Tom […]
-
Ep 193: Ayako Hamada
by Full Press Coverage on December 2, 2023 at 3:00 pm
Ayako Hamada has had a wide and varied career through AAA, SHIMMER, TNA, […]
-
Ep. 262 - The In Season Tournament is Going Better Than Anyone Expected
by Full Press Coverage on December 1, 2023 at 12:56 am
Jet and Sap share their thoughts now that group play is over with in the […]
-
Ep 198: Week 13 vs Chiefs
by Full Press Coverage on November 30, 2023 at 8:20 pm
In this episode, co-hosts Kyle Senra and Jesse Hall are joined by Braden […]
-
Ep 316: Week 13 Fantasy Football Preview
by Full Press Coverage on November 30, 2023 at 4:08 am
In this episode, Kyle Serna and Brad Harvin provide a survival guide for […]
-
11/28 - MNF Reaction, State Of The NFL
by Full Press Coverage on November 30, 2023 at 3:49 am
Ian and John react to Monday Night Football and discuss more of the state […]
-
Ep 180: Hall of Fame Class Of 2024 Semifinalists Discussion
by Full Press Coverage on November 28, 2023 at 7:02 pm
Ira and Clark dissect the 2024 Hall of Fame class semifinalists. Learn […]
-
Ep 197: Recapping Weeks 11 & 12
by Full Press Coverage on November 27, 2023 at 11:26 pm
This episode is a double-dip in a good way. Kyle Senra and Jesse Hall […]
-
11/27 - Thanksgiving Recap; Jalen Hurts, NFL News and Notes
by Full Press Coverage on November 27, 2023 at 10:43 pm
Ian and John recap Thanksgiving weekend, discuss Jalen Hurts' moment, and […]