Toronto Maple Leafs Folklore - by Moses

  In 1893 the NHA was formed. At that time Toronto began their quest for the vaunted Stanley Cup. Most aren't aware, but we weren't the Toronto Maple Leafs. Between 1899 and 1902 we were known as the Toronto Wellingtons. The team was re-named the Toronto Marlboros, licenced by name from a Duke of the British Isles, Sir Winston Churchill's Grandfather. They remained until 1910, when a Lacrosse organization within the city bought the team becoming the Toronto Tecumsehs (a.k.a the Toronto Indians) for the 1911 season. The very next year they were re-named the Toronto Ontarios, as the Tecumsehs went bankrupt. The next year they were known as the Blueshirts and we took home our first Stanley Cup. From 1915-1919 our Hockey Team was called the Toronto Arenas and the Cup was brought home again in 1918. In 1920 the organization was known as the Toronto St. Pats, until 1927, when Conn Smythe bought the club and re-named the team the Toronto Maple Leafs.

  Throughout the proud history of the Toronto teams, we have won the second most Stanley Cups of all Franchises in NHA/NHL history (14 in total to date).

  It was in 1931 that Connie Smythe built Maple Leaf Gardens, and Charlie Conacher scored the first Maple Leaf goal in our new Arena. Maple Leaf Gardens was considered a remarkable achievement as the Arena was lavish and extraordinary, built during the 'Great Depression'.

During the 1930's there were many Maple Leaf greats. There was top notch coaching provided by Dick Irvin, there was the 'Kid' line of Busher Jackson, Joe Primeau, and Charlie Conacher. Ace Bailey was likewise a star player with the 'Buds' at this time. The blue-line was anchored by King Clancy and Hap Day, with Frank McCool as our Goaltender throughout the decade. All told Toronto took home the Stanley Cup as the Maple Leafs for the first time in 1932. Ace Bailey lost his ability to play the game in 1934, due to a bodycheck thrown by the great Boston Bruin defenceman Eddie Shore. They shook hands publically, as Bailey forgave Shore (even though he couldn't play Ice Hockey anymore). That year they held the All-Star Game in Ace Bailey's honour, with the Maple Leafs hosting the best of the League.

At the start of the 1936 campaign Syl Apps came aboard, and he became perhaps the most iconic Leaf Captain of all-time (being named such in 1940).

  In the forties, the Maple Leafs were led by Captain Syl Apps and new Head Coach Hap Day, alongside Defense-man Babe Pratt, Goalie Turk Broda, Harry Watson, Ted Kennedy, Cal Gardner, Howie Meeker, Gordie Drillon, Sid Smith, and Bill Barilko among others, and won the prized Stanley Cup 5 times over the course of the decade.

  

   Former player Joe Primeau joined the Leafs brass during the 50's as Coach and he brought in Dicky Duff, Bobby Baun, Harry Lumley, Tim Horton,  and Frank Mahovlich.  Although the Leafs only won one Stanley Cup during the 50's, Toronto was still considered a powerhouse team. This of course was in the time of Gordie Howe's' Detroit Red Wings, Maurice Richard's' Montreal Canadiens, Bobby Hull's' Chicago Black Hawks, and Andy Bathgate's' New York Rangers (the Bruins were a little soft in the 50's).

  In the sixties the Leafs caught fire, and were a dynasty with superstar #27 Frank Mahovlich, winning the Cup three years in a row, 1962-1964, and in 1967 for good measure. Led by Hockey Guru Punch Imlach the team featured George Armstrong as Captain, Johnny Bower and Terry Sawchuck as netminders, and Davey Keon. They teamed alongside mainstays Tim Horton, Bobby Baun, and Dicky Duff.

  The Seventies saw Jacques Plante come to Toronto in 1970, a year in which we saw the emergence of future Captain Darryl Sittler.  It is still a sour taste in this writers' mouth that the Leafs traded Bernie Parent to the Philadelphia Flyers for Doug Favell (a swap of Goalies) the next year.  Norm Ullman was perhaps the best Leaf during this time, and led alongside Captain Davey Keon until Sittler took over the reign. During the 1973/74 season, Toronto saw future Hall of Famers Lanny McDonald and Borje Salming join the big club.  Going into the 75/76 season Randy Carlyle joined the big club.  At the start of the 76/77 year we saw the emergence of rookies Dave 'Tiger' Williams and goalie Mike Palmateer.  Our Leafs peaked in 77/78 and beat the future dynasty New York Islanders in the Quarter-Finals, with the winning goal scored by Lanny McDonald on a wrist shot on Chico Resch that went five-hole.  Although the Leafs looked primed to make a run for the Cup, the team was dismantled by Harold Ballard and we went on a downside into the eighties. 

  

  It was in the early 80's that the Leafs provided the fans of Toronto with our first Maple Leaf to score 50 Goals.  Rick Vaive did so three times in fact and duly became the next Leaf Captain. The 1985/86 campaign saw Toronto with the first overall pick - Wendel Clark. Robbed at winning the Calder Trophy, Clark became an early fan favorite as he scrapped and scored goals at an alarming rate.  His body-checks were revered by most Hockey fans Worldwide, and spoken highly by Don Cherry on the CBC.  This of course were the Brophy days where we saw three fights a game, yet rarely made the playoffs. The city loved to talk about Head Coaches Brophy and Demers, with the inference of our mortal enemy, the Toronto/Detroit rivalry.  Late in the decade Wendel Clark was named our next Captain, and many would say he was a true great of the game.

  It was in 1991 that Cliff Fletcher, our General Manager, traded away 50 Goal scorer Gary Leeman among others to the Calgary Flames for Dougie 'Killer' Gilmour, Jamie Macoun, Rick Natress, and Rick Wamsley.  This was perhaps, the greatest Leaf trade to this point of Leafs history.  We saw a resurgence of Leaf dominance (although our Leafs couldn't bring home the Cup).  We made the Semi-Finals three times in the nineties, with Doug Gilmour as Captain in 1992/93 and 93/94.  A true leader, Gilmour took a slash in the face from Wayne Gretzky in the Semi's of 1993, and everyone knows the rest.  That team was stacked with solid players in the likes of Goalie Felix Potvin, Dave Andreychuk, Glenn Anderson, Mike Gartner, Wendel Clark, and Sylvain Lefebvre among others.  The 1992-1994 Leafs was run by coaching great Pat Burns and he almost took us to ‘the promised land’.

  

  As the nineties wore on we saw Curtis (Cujo) Joseph lead us to another Semi-Final appearance, on a team Captained by Mats Sundin. The Leafs of the late nineties and early 00’s showcased Gary Roberts, Larry Murphy, and a young Tomas Kaberle, this being the Pat Quinn era.

  To start the 2002/03 campaign Eddie Belfour took over for Curtis Joseph in net (as Cujo signed with the Detroit Red Wings) and Sundin remained our Captain until 2007/08 - the longest reign of all Maple Leaf Captains of twelve years from 1995/96-2007/08. 

   

  After Pat Quinn, came John Ferguson, and we put too much trust in Darcy Tucker, Pavel Kubina, Bryan McCabe, and signed them long contracts each with a no-trade clause.  Since Ferguson we’ve had to endure through Brian Burke shannannagan’s.  Seeing the likes of Vesa Toskala, Matt Stajan, Jonathan Bernier, Phil Kessel, Joffrey Lupul, Dion Phaneuf, we haven’t really succeeded in making the playoffs since 2002/03.

   

  In the 2016 off-season General Managers Brendan Shanahan and Sweet Lou Lamorillo were able to land the 1^st overall pick in the draft and chose big American Forward Auston Matthews.  Then we proceeded to select Mitch Marner as the fourth overall pick.  The prior year we were able to obtain William Nylander as the fifteenth overall pick.  In the 2016/2017 and the 2017/2018 Stanley Cup Playoffs we bowed out early (once against the Capitals and last year in Seven against the Bruins).  With the acquisition of John Tavares in the past off-season we look poised to contend for the prized Cup, and although Sweet Lou flew the coup we still have one the greatest hockey minds in Coach Mike Babcock (who won the coveted Stanley Cup with Detroit).
 Alongside Morgan Rielly, Nazem Kadri, Patrick Marleau, Zach Hyman, Kasperi Kapanen, Calle Rosen, Andreas Johnsson, Garret Sparks, and Frederik Andersen, the Leafs look poised to emerge to at least a serious playoff threat out of the Eastern Conference.
  The reality is that many of our current Leafs were farmhands at one point with the Toronto Marlies (who have played great Hockey over the last few years) and had enormous success in the American Hockey League culminated by a Calder Cup Win in 2017/2018.  Time will tell if we can look as imposing as the rival Franchise 2017/18 Stanley Cup winning Washington Capitals of last year or as dominating as our modern day Pittsburgh Penguins, Chicago Black Hawks and Los Angeles Kings dynasties. 

Gordie Howe - Tribute by Moses

  Gordie Howe was born and raised in Saskatchewan, Canada. Gordie was, and is, the greatest right-winger of all-time.  As a strapping youngster with the Detroit Red Wings in 1946-47 (at the young age of 18), Howe was a giant to his peers.  At 6 Foot 2 205 lbs, Howe could manhandle pretty much anyone in the game when he played.  A Gordie Howe shoulder usually meant that the opposing player took an elbow to the head (based on height differential).  

  Playing alongside Sid Abel, Ted Lindsey, and legendary goalie Terry Sawchuk, Mr. Hockey won the coveted Stanley Cup four times with the Red Wings of the late 40's - mid-fifties.

  When Lindsey and Doug Harvey (among others) started the National Hockey League Players Association Union, some of the initiators of the Players Association were 'blacklisted' by the NHL Owners.  Ted Lindsey ended up being shipped to the Chicago Black Hawks (as the Norris brothers owned each the Detroit Red Wings AND the Chicago Black Hawks, and punished Lindsey for his role in the procreation of the NHLPA shipping him to the weaker team).  This ended up costing the Red Wings their chemistry.   

  The reality in 1955 to an NHL'er was that you had a good paying job, one in which you could earn what an Accountant earned.  Certainly not as much as a Doctor or a Lawyer could.  The NHLPA paved the way for the salaries and collective bargaining we see today between the NHLPA and the Owners (represented by the Commissioner).

  Mr. Hockey was then paired with Alex Delvecchio, after Sid Abel's retirement from the NHL.  Delvecchio was a fine center in his own right for the end of the fifties to the end of the sixties.  Although Howe never won the Stanley Cup with Alex he still revered him as one of the greatest center-men of his day.  When the dust settled (up until Gordie's WHA days), Howe managed to tally 786 goals (at the end of the 70-71 season).  Gordie Howe was respected during this time, as a player who would be held in awe (even though no-one realized at the time that his retirement from the game was short lived).

  The fact was that this wasn't even close to being the end of Howe's playing days, he in fact was a starter for the next 7 years (retiring from the game after the 1979-80 campaign with the Hartford Whalers).

  Gordie resurfaced with the rival World Hockey Association Houston Aeros and became one the their first superstar signings.  This led to Howe having an MVP year in 1973-74.  In his six years in the WHA Howe was productive each year, capping 100 points in a year twice.  When Mr. Hockey started out with the Houston Aeros he teamed with his sons' Mark and Marty, and they became the first Father/Son(s) combo in WHA history - or any professional hockey league for that matter.  When all three surfaced in the NHL with the Hartford Whalers in 1979-80 they became the first Father/Son(s) in NHL History.  In fact Gordie Howe is the only Professional Hockey Players in the NHL or any League Worldwide to have played in 5 different decades.

  I met Mr. Hockey in 1999 with my Cousin Dr. Brian Kaufman at the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto, Ontario.  He was giving away his autobiography (also signing the book and taking photos and signing an autographed photo with himself).  When it was our turn to take a picture with Mr. Howe the lens broke and I had a couple of minutes' alongside my Cousin and Mr. Hockey.  I asked Mr. Howe 'Who is the most tenacious hockey player you ever played with or against ? '.  He replied 'Dicky Duff.'  I looked it up a few days later, sure enough Dicky Duff was a team-mate of Howe's with the Red Wings in the 50's and was likewise a rival playing with the Toronto Maple Leafs and the Montreal Canadiens.  A few years later the veterans committee of the Hockey Hall of Fame voted Dicky Duff into the Hall.  I always thought that it was Howe's voice' that was heard the loudest regarding Duff's exploits on the ice.    

  Mr. Hockey is recognized with awe and Legend that is truly deserved.  He could out muscle anyone on the puck, he could pass the puck from tape to tape, shoot it with authority, and out-skate the opponent to boot.
  The game was shaped due to his accomplishments, leading an announcer to become enthralled when a players scores a goal, has an assist, and gets into a fight in the same game- who then gives the 'Gordie Howe Hat-trick' announcement to praise the player for his accomplishment.

  When all was said and done, Howe amassed 801 NHL Goals, 1049 NHL Assists, 1850 NHL Points, 975 Career Goals, 1383 Career Assists, and 2358 Career Points (including his days in the WHA).  He led all playoff scorers in individual years six times, had 68 NHL Playoff Goals (96 inc. WHA) 92 NHL Playoff Assists (135 inc. WHA), and had 160 NHL Playoff Points (231 inc. WHA).  Howe was 1st Line RW in the NHL twelve times (and was named 1st Line RW twice in the WHA).  He won 6 Hart Trophies, 6 Art Ross Trophies, and led the NHL in Goals (now called the 'Rocket' Richard Trophy) 4 times.

  One of the proudest Hockey Families of all-time, the Howe brothers Gordie and Vic, and Gordie's sons Mark and Marty, have been immortalized as icons of a game that is hard to master, doing so with grace and grit.

  R.I.P Gordie Howe #9