Leafs due

Can we agree, the Leafs' worst days are behind them?

No?

OK. Well, they are.

I'm not saying they'll make the playoffs now, but this team was never as bad as that horrific stretch made it look.

Over the final 17 or however many games remain on the schedule, the Leafs will turn out one of the league's better squads. The presence, performance and persistence of people and factors will be the difference.


Carlyle

No doubt Randy will be dandy for the Buds. Under other circumstances Carlyle's tighter systems and tougher training sessions might intimidate more than invigorate. But with a slate wiped clean and only a mini-season in which to make make an impression, the guys who get the chance will do so at a serious and consistent level. Serious, because the stakes are high. Consistent, because there's little time to suffer another low. And don't forget. The Leafs have automatically become a more physical squad, meaning they'll be rubbing opponents the wrong way instead of their supporters.

Grabovski

You've gotta think "Big Money" Mikhail is going to play balls out now. What? He gets paid, then goes to sleep? Remember! He just woke from a 14 game slumber to score twice against his beloved Habs THEN put pen to paper on a 5 year whopper! Despite his faults and inconsistencies you can't say "Big Money" isn't a proud and loyal guy. Add to that talented, and perhaps the Leafs newest signing rises to a new level. Fans are waiting for it. Management is expecting it.


Monster

Unlike his teammate, Jonas Gustavsson hasn't been rewarded with a fresh, healthy contract. So while some play to live up to their numbers, someone like the Monster must perform to earn them. Game wise he started pretty shaky in Montreal, but there were a lot of moments that night where he looked really confident and more than capable. You know, there have actually been many moments this season where the sensitive Swede has demonstrated the toughness needed to become a legit front-man between the pipes. Unfortunately a setback would often follow. Like Grabovski, Gustavsson takes the ice every night in search of consistency. Expect both to be in full boar 'discovery mode' over the final stretch, benefiting themselves and the club. And if Gustavsson does connect with his 'true' game, the reward could include a couple of spots; one in the playoffs, the other a place to put his signature. His play as defacto starter this month will dedicate whether he gets that new contract, from where, and for how much.

It's time

With a win in the bag under Randy Carlyle the Leafs should be in position for a few more before any swoon. In Boston they'll be getting a team that's no longer playing at a dominant clip not to mention long overdue to drop one to the beleaguered Buds. Losing a season series to an opponent isn't rare. Losing every game in a series is. The Leafs have lost the first 4 of their 6 meetings with the Bruins, so based on the inevitability of at least a victory happening, it seems the time to stop the bleeding has arrived. And hey with Ron Wilson gone, the home crowd might actually spur team success rather than compound it's failure.


The Leafs. Under construction. Under new management. Under pressure. Always a bad play from being overwhelmed. It's a lot to undertake. But rest assured, the worst of it IS over. The best? Well, it has to come at some point. With changes and chances re-organizing what's been a frustratingly scrambled group, that point appears somewhere ahead. It has to.