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Andrew Raycroft is not among the group of players protected by no-trade clauses or no-movement clauses. There is nothing written on paper saying the Toronto Maple Leafs are legally obligated to keep Andrew Raycroft on the team. So the question that begs an answer is why the hell is he still here?

You might have thought they were keeping Raycroft to use him down the stretch for the tank that would bring us a high draft pick. I think we’ve all come to the realization that this isn’t going to happen. After seeing Vesa Toskala play what seems like the 300th game in a row on Saturday it’s pretty clear that the Leafs don’t plan to use Raycroft in any significant way.  So why keep him?

It certainly isn’t because of his stellar play. The guy is easily the biggest flop on the team and maybe one of the biggest currently playing in the league. If the Leafs are in fact going on a “playoff drive”, as it appears they are attempting to, then Raycroft’s seive-like nature almost ensures he’ll be riding the pine almost the entire time.

So if the Leafs simply aren’t going to play him, then why keep him? The team has pretty clearly given up on Razor. It is probably safe to say he is no longer part of the team’s view of the future. So why is he still taking up space on the team?

What the team should do, and should have already done, is admit Raycroft is an expensive mistake and (more…)

You seem to hear it fairly often around Leafs nation. Fans who think that Vesa Toskala is the future of the Leafs in goal, and a quality starting goaltender. Often times, if you question this, it results in a backlash from offended fans who can’t fathom anyone disparaging their number one. Unfortunately though, the sad truth is, Vesa Toskala is not a high end goaltender. He’s an average starting goalie. That’s it. In this article we’ll examine the goaltending of the bottom 10 teams in the NHL and I think you might be surprised at what you see.

Worst 10 Teams as of Feb 06 - Starting Goaltenders:

For the purposes of this comparison, the primary stat will be save percentage, as it is a better indicator of a goalie’s play than GAA.

20) Atlanta Thrashers - Kari Lehtonen - .914
21) Buffalo Sabres - Ryan Miller - .914
22) St. Louis Blues - Manny Legace - .910
23) Washington Capitals - Olaf Kolzig - .883
24) Florida Panthers - Tomas Vokoun - .919
25) NY Islanders - Rick Dipietro - .909
26) Edmonton Oilers - Mathieu Garon - .918
27) Chicago Blackhawks - Nikolai Khabibulin - .899
28) Toronto Maple Leafs - Vesa Toskala - .904
29) Tampa Bay Lightning - Johan Holmqvist - .888
30) Los Angeles Kings - Jason LaBarbera - .912

Only three goaltenders on this list have save percentages lower than (more…)

Andrew Raycroft has been unofficially diagnosed* with narcolepsy, there by explaining the problems the Leafs’ tender has been facing throughout his stint with the team. Raycroft, initially thought to be just a piece of crap goalie, now has some redemption after the discovery that he is suffering from the neurological disorder causing uncontrollable sleepiness.

Imagine yourself as an NHL goalie, staring down an odd man rush, or a player winding up at the blue line for a slapper. The shot is released, the puck is coming and then without notice (more…)

After Vesa Toskala’s weak performance againt the Ducks last night, Andrew Raycroft must have been worried that he was in danger of losing his backup job! He responded admirably by letting in 4 goals on 11 shots, further confirming his status as an absolute piece of trash. I could swear I saw him breathe a sigh of relief as he settled into his spot on the bench, happy to be back where he knows he belongs. Toskala went out and, compared to Raycroft, played like an all-star, but the damage was done.

On the offensive side of it, the Leafs managed to score two goals and it only took them 50 shots to get them. Credit the team for getting 50 shots on goal, but at the same time, they made Jason LaBarbera look like Patrick Roy. I’ll make the prediction now (remember you heard it here first). If management was watching this game, by the start of next season the Leafs will announce (more…)

“Just wait until Toskala comes back!”

How many times did we all hear that? It seems like the unenlightened were certain that the Leafs current troubles would turn around when Leafs goalie Jesus Chr…I mean Vesa Toskala returned from injury. Afterall, Toskala is the greatest thing since sliced bread and is without question a high calibre starting goalie! Right? Right? So what was the result of Vesa Christ’s triumphant return to the ice?

5-0 Ducks. What a bum.

But wait! I can hear it now. “Some of those goals weren’t his fault! You can’t just blame him!” Well for the record, blame is to be shared with the entire team. However, it’s delicious to revel in the disappointment of the Leafs faithful at the utter failure of their Messianic ‘tender. The guy let in 5 goals on 24 freaking shots. THAT is the big off season solution to last year goaltending woes? This bum?

It’s amazing that after acquiring one completely unproven goaltender and watching him fail, the Leafs management decided the best way to remedy the situation was (more…)