On the Topic of Toronto

So while we are still on the subject of Canada’s most criticized hockey organization, another laugher out of Leaf nation comes up in the news.

Yesterday, my fellow TSC writer Cam Tucker wrote about the failures of this franchise so far this season. Today, the president of the team, Richard Peddie, came out and said that hiring GM John Ferguson Jr. was a mistake.

Really? No way! Finally, someone in authority comes out and says what everyone has been thinking.

“To be honest, it was a mistake on my part for not fully understanding at the time what the job of being (the Leafs GM) in this market fully entailed,” Peddie told the Toronto Sun. 

So Peddie’s fault was hiring a rookie general manager, and judging by the Leaf’s rank in the standings right now, it was a big mistake. JFJ was thrown into a pressure cooker we all know as T.O., where the fans, the league, and the media will not hesitate to criticize and rant. Not to mention the common hobby of dissecting every move this team makes.

“Let’s face it. It probably was the wrong place for a rookie general manager to start. I mean, all GMs make mistakes, but they are not under the constant microscope and scrutiny that you have in Toronto, which is, in our opinion, the top hockey market there is,” said Peddie.

He then continues to say that Ferguson and coach Paul Maurice’s job are safe for now and they are not looking for replacements.  

What? How can the president of Maple Leafs Sport and Entertainment come out and say that his employees are not capable of doing their jobs yet continue to allow them the opportunity to fail and embarrass the franchise?

If Peddie is going to come out and call out his G.M., then he better back up his statements. Walk the talk Mr. President, because right now, you’re on the spotlight.

Maybe Peddie should be the one losing his job. He admitted that he made a mistake hiring Ferguson, and he’s not doing anything about it. Toronto is currently sitting in the 14th spot in the Eastern Conference, yet no one has taken the fall for it. If there is a time for ownership to take action, it’s now.

Unless they are purposely wanting to be the joke of the league, someone in T-dot better start scratching the “firing” finger.

But why would I care? I love watching the Leafs fail miserably. The lower Toronto sinks, the happier my life is.  

As far as I know, this Toronto organization is just continuing to add more punch-lines to what we’ve come to know as the never-ending NHL joke.