When it comes to building a winning team, Brian Burke will tell you that it starts from the net out. James Reimer being signed gives a little extra stability to the goaltending situation in Toronto. It is no secret that the defensive strength of the Leafs is nothing to laugh about. Sure, some players had off years but "on paper", the Leafs should have one of the best defensive cores in the league; Especially with the recent addition of John Michael Liles, last week.
At this point I think it would be safe to say that Burke is at the "Forward stage" of his master plan in Toronto. The Maple Leafs have not had a number one centre since the departure of Mats Sundin, as I'm sure most of you already know this, there is an important point to made here though. Without a bonafide number one centre, there cannot really be any measure of success going forward. Brian Burke has many options going into FA this Friday, and will have to put the teams needs ahead of his own philosophical view of the League. No surprise there either I guess, we all know what needs to be done up front, but is there anything left to be done about the bottom end of the lineup?
It takes a certain type of player to reach from within and give all of himself to the possibility of winning. It is these players that can contribute, not just in the regular season, but in the playoffs as well. Up until this point, I'd have to say I haven't seen enough moves by Burke for me to justify the playoffs are actually an attainable goal. A Centre is at the top of the list as always, but I do think Burke will be addressing an equally important matter this off-season; acquiring (ROLE) players.
The following players are either who I believe Brian Burke will be targeting or SHOULD target this off-season:
LW
Raffi Torres
6' 218 Pounds
Shoots Left
14G 15A 80GP
C
Maxime Talbot
5'11 185 Pounds
Shoots Left
8G 13A 82GP
RW
Joel Ward
6'1 218 Pounds
Shoots Right
10G 19A 80GP
RW/LW
Scottie Upshall
Shoots Left
6' 200 Pounds
22G 12A 81GP
LW
Michael Rupp
Shoots Left
6'5 230 Pounds
9G 8A 81GP
So those are my (ROLE) players I'd like to see wearing blue and white next October. These players all have what it takes to push themselves to raise their game to a winning level, something that some would say has been lacking from the Maple Leafs for half a decade now.
Thank You For Reading.
...And Remember My Fellow Leafers...
GO LEAFS GO!!!!
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