The winds of change are blowing in Toronto and the scent of Brian Burke is getting stronger by the day. Burke is starting to re-shape this 2009-10 Leaf team into a hard nosed, defence first squad that will be a far cry from the soft, offence first team the Leafs have iced for years.
While most fans in Toronto were looking for big name free agents like the Sedin brothers or Marian Gaborik, that really isn’t what the team needs at this point in the re-building phase.
To build a house you need a solid foundation first and hockey is much the same. With the addition of solid, proven defencemen like Francois Beauchemin and Mike Komisarek (and to a lesser extent Garnet Exelby), Burke paved the way to landing Swedish goaltender Jonas Gustavsson. It’s an easier sales pitch for Burke to tell the potential star goaltender that the Leafs are already making changes to the blueline, adding players who will protect the net and make life miserable for the guys in front of Gustavsson. What goalie wouldn’t find that appealing?
The pieces are starting to fit in leafland, but it’s my opinion that Burke is just getting started.
