The Canadiens are slated to open the NHL season on Saturday, Jan. 19 at the Bell Centre against the Toronto Maple Leafs, who will have a new general manager after Brian Burke was officially fired during a 1:45 p.m. press conference Wednesday at the Air Canada Centre.
During the press conference, Maple Leafs Sports and Entertainment president Tom Anselmi announced that Dave Nonis will take over as the 14th general manager of the Leafs and that Burke, who had also been team president, will remain with the club as a senior adviser. Nonis had been the Leafs’ senior vice-president of hockey operations.
Burke was GM of the Leafs for just over four years, during which time the team never made the playoffs. The Leafs finished in 13th place in the Eastern Conference last season, when Burke fired Ron Wilson as coach and hired Randy Carlyle to replace him.
Read more by clicking here.
Postmedia News national columnist Cam Cole says that the Leafs’ next move should be getting goalie Roberto Luongo from the Canucks. Read his column by clicking here.
Here are some of the Tweets that were posted by media members when the news first broke about an hour before the press conference:
Pierre LeBrun of TSN/ESPN from New York: “Close GMs friends of Burke’s arriving here for BOG in NYC had no clue. They’re stunned.”
TSN’s Darren Dreger: “Timing of Burke dismissal very odd. He and all brass were at Marlies game last night in Hamilton. Truth will surface. Something fishy.”
Steve Simmons of the Toronto Sun: ”I could be wrong, but I don’t believe the Burke firing has anything to with Luongo. I believe there are other issues at play here.”
Ken Campbell of The Hockey News: “Biggest question. Overall, did Brian Burke leave the Leafs as an organization in worse shape than he got it? From this corner – absolutely.”
(Photo by Chris Young/The Canadian Press)
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Gary apologized personally.A good move!
I agree. He seemed quite sincere. Espescially when he mentioned he had read the blogs and tweets and knew how pissed the fans were.
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Ka is a wheel.
“Bring it back home to me baby”
Bring it on Home
Hi Gary
Huh?
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Ka is a wheel.
“Bring it back home to me baby”
Bring it on Home
in case he’s reading HIO lol
Got it.
I thought you were calling me Gary.
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Ka is a wheel.
“Bring it back home to me baby”
Bring it on Home
@zep – Them’s be fightin words.
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@habfan
Damn straight.
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Ka is a wheel.
“Bring it back home to me baby”
Bring it on Home
Almost quoted word for word what he said in 2005.
Go Habs Go!
Check out Top Shelf Prospects, my Team by Team prospect reports
http://lastwordonsports.com/
Yep. Fake, phony, fraud. Not buying any of it.
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You see I didn’t know that.
Mother******* Lawyer’s, can’t trust them till you need them.
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Ka is a wheel.
“Bring it back home to me baby”
Bring it on Home
Jeremy “Darth” Jacobs is making the announcement for the league. Afterwords he’ll get back to his main project, the construction of the Death Star.
lmao! He just reeks of evil doesn’t he.
LOL!!
Don’t laugh too loud, guys–he can actually afford to build one. =0
DDonais
All the laff kidding aside, if one of the contenious issues was Luongo then it immediately puts Nonis is a tough spot. Any leverage in the deal has now lessened. Before today, Vancouver was desperate to move Luongo. Now Toronto may be just as desperate to obtain him. (I’m still shocked at what GMs get in return for salary dumps when it appears they have little leverage. It blows my mind).
One of Toronto’s main problems was a weakness at centre as well as a lack of good kids up front. Bozak is a decent pivot and Frattin is a solid prospect on the wing. If Toronto loses those two (as rumoured) then they have major problems up front. As well, Vancouver has a good back-up (Eddie Lack) ready to step in behind Schneider. So the Canucks may not be interested in Reimer and his contract. If van Riemsdyk can’t convert to centre, then the laffs just might find themselves out of the playoffs for another year.
Regarding the salary dumping. I think the mentality is that somebody’s gonna get the player and that creates a bigger than expected market for them.
The whole Gomez thing was a mess. Plekanec picked the worst possible time to have a bad year and the team becoming divided over leadership forced Gainey’s hand to let Koivu walk.
Once word got out that Gainey tried to land Lecavalier, Richards and Marleau Sather had him bent over a barrel for Gomez.
That’s just my opinion about the whole thing.
Don’t forget the fact that there was probably pressure to land a “big name” player for the centennial celebrations.
“There’s genius everywhere, but until they turn pro, it’s like popcorn in the pan. Some pop… some don’t.”
- Jerry Maguire
The salary dumping comment was just an afterthought although nobody will ever convince me that it wasn’t a panic move by Gainey.
The main question still remains, would a Luongo deal really be beneficial for Toronto? Obviously Burke didn’t think so and now Nonis is on the hotseat after just four hours on the job. Gillis and Tallon seem to be the true winners in this fiasco. Which indirectly brings us back to the Gomez trade.
Hey Brian, do you still think Toronto is the centre of the hockey universe?
Good riddance.
Its certainly the centre of the hockey media.
Go Habs Go!
Check out Top Shelf Prospects, my Team by Team prospect reports
http://lastwordonsports.com/
Apparently Coors USA with their 20% ownership of Molson, and the loansharking to Geoff Molson of the other 80% of the money to Molson to buy out the Bell Centre and the Habs still exercise control. Too bad Coors USA and it’s Toronto headquaters are the ones who are really pulling Geoff Molson’s strings and forcing Molson to keep Gomez…..
http://www.google.ca/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=molson%20coors%202009%20form%2010k%20report&source=web&cd=3&ved=0CD8QFjAC&url=http%3A%2F%2Fphx.corporate-ir.net%2FExternal.File%3Fitem%3DUGFyZW50SUQ9MTM1MjgxfENoaWxkSUQ9LTF8VHlwZT0z%26t%3D1&ei=debtUMfHDMHcqQHexIHoCA&usg=AFQjCNF0Q8tWIqLHjCpQHf3NR9iMpjkGKw&bvm=bv.1357316858,d.aWM
I’m not trying to be funny here…. I legitimately think that Nuna here might need some sort of mental health professional in his life.
Go Habs Go!
Check out Top Shelf Prospects, my Team by Team prospect reports
http://lastwordonsports.com/
Next it will be the Illuminati who is controling Coors USA
comm, you are right on there. Some of his posts make this guy sound like some sort of nut-case. One thing is for sure, he sure is obcessed with the Hab’s ownship structure.
The “so-called” hockey media.
I prefer our local media.
Especially the english side…. less bias.
Although RDS (who indeed have a few radicals) do have a few very good beat reporters. Renaud Lavoie is very well respected, and not one to sensationalize.
And in other sports news, neither Bonds or Clemens makes Hall of Fame. No one is going in to Cooperstown this coming year.
I thought Biggio might have squeezed through seeing many reporters passed on voting for the drug users. It also was probably Jack Morris’ best chance at making it. He only has one more kick at the can and has Greg Maddox to contend with next year.
Too bad the NHL Hall of Fame doesn’t apply the same high standards (although they appear to be improving in that regard).
The only issue I have with the steroid ea is the fog and mirrors…I wish they could have amnesty so we would know who did what clean…but it really doesn’t matter to me as it was so rampant that the palying field was essentailly leel. After watching the BEn JOhnson documentary and seeing how widespread use was then I am convinced that an absolutely huge percentage of athletes..in all sports at the stime were using.
Guys like Bonds, Clemens and McGwire should get amnesty while guys like Griffey, Ripken and Jeter are all seen in the same light as the juicers?
I strongly disagree with that sentiment.
Same here.
If Pete Rose is to be shunned upon for a lifetime, then so should the other cheaters.
There are classier talents in all sports….the three guys you mentioned never had any real controversy of any nature…steroid or not steroid releated…they were all character guys. Bonds, Mcgwire and Clemens (Mcgwire not in same category at all to me) were all super talents…never really liked by temamaters and never accused of being nice guys at the best of times…but as far as baseball ability goes they were the two guys who dominated their positions. Ripken, Jeter and Griffey epitomize class….but none of them were as dominant as Bonds or Clemens(Griffey could have been if not for his bad luck).
Pete Rose will get into the Hall of Fame the day after Selig’s gone I think………I hope.
Krob…..with as much respect as possible. If you don’t think Ken Griffey Jr. was of superstar talent, get a clue.
630 homeruns and arguably the best defensive centrefielder since Willie Mays.
.
Re your Griffey comment…he was one of my favourite players of all time..but injuries ruined his prime…he should have been the one to hold the all time homer record..and he was the only real rival to Bonds for a while (all round title) but he could not stay healthy. I am in no way knocking Griffey…but Bonds stayed healthy. Griffey still put up astronomical numbers mainly due to the fact he started so young and played so long…..his numbers would have been stupid scary good if he had stayed healthy and for that 4 or 5 years he was healthy in Seattle he was an absolute beast. I am not sure how you got I am arguing against Griffey…I am defending Bonds/Clemens..not knocking one of my favourite players of all time. I also think it is ridiculous Alomar spitting incident has ruined his legacy…it’s not like he could fight an ump….hell coaches kick sand on them…that to me is the same idea…for some reason spitting has this crazy taboo but kicking sand (both were attempts to do something to the ump in haste knowing they could not hit him..one spat while several kick sand..all have the same intent..which is better than the alternative of hitting them…hello Rocket RIchard? )I always wonder how Rocket’s legacy is not tainted but Robbie Alomars is? The Rocket had fire…Alomar lacked class? anyways that is another story
You said Griffey wasn’t a superstar talent.
Anybody who knows baseball is laughing that opinion out of the room.
Griffey Jr. was a character guy? Not sure about that. Not in the same class as Ripken, that´s for sure.
Also, Clemens was a shoe in for the HOF even if he hadn´t prolonged his career the last few years with roids….didn´t need to do it, really, too bad.
That was a sham….Bonds and Clemens should be there…best all round player and best pitcher of my era….and if they don’t vote them in how does Biggio not get in? 3000 hits and 20 years with one team? Both Bonds and Clemens were the best at their craft before steroid implications and even if you choppped off the altter years of their careers they are still first ballot hall of famers.
I’m good with Clemens but not Bonds.
His head grew 5 sizes in his time with the Giants. His feet grew in his mid thirties.
He was allegedly and never successfully refuted on horse steroids. Cue the jokes.
The funny thing is I don’t think of Bonds as some Home Run king…I remember him as the best Centrefielder in the league, a 40/40 guy who could do everything…..he was just a natural talent and has the bloodlines to prove it. He did not need to be the Home Run guy to be a hall of famer…his ego needed it though becasue he never got the respect he deserved because he was a Pittsburgh Pirate. He was the best all round player for many, many years…but all people cared about was the long ball…so he showed them that if he did what the other long bomb hitters were doing he could do that better too…and he did.
I could say the same thing for Ken Griffey Jr.
A guy who volunteered for any kind of drug testing MLB could come up with and didn’t have the benefit of steroids and HGH to improve strength, cardio and hand eye coordination.
I understand what you’re saying. But I disagree with Bonds getting in. He made the choice to use PEDs and even if his reasons were sad it’s a choice he made, he should have to live with the consequences like the majority of us.
It’s unfortunate for Bonds, but I agree. He doesn’t deserve it.
He had it all to begin with. As a freshman player, he was one of the few I truly admired on other teams. Like watching Bobby Orr on a baseball field.
Then he blew it. Pure and simple.
At least MLB had the courage to commission the Mitchell Report. THe NHL ignores its own PED problem. A league that stops testing as soon as the playoffs start has zero integrity.
Blue, blanc et rouge. Red and White for Canada. Blue for Smurfs.
NHLPA dragging their feet on ratification. Reports say it won’t happen till Saturday now. They were able to vote on a useless Disclaimer of Interest in 24 hours but when it comes to opening training camp they decide to take their sweet ass time. I’m shocked.
They should have waited before they made the Burke announcement..just as terror has spread here it must be spreading amongst the NHLPA…..Burkie for Commish possibility is dividing the Union!
This is still a lockout…. Players don’t need to vote on anything for camps to open.
The camps could open now, if the owners wanted them to.
As for this taking longer than a disclaimer of interest…. the memo of understanding is probably a lot longer document, and all players will want their lawyers/agents advice before voting.
Go Habs Go!
Check out Top Shelf Prospects, my Team by Team prospect reports
http://lastwordonsports.com/
Having listened to some former players talk about how they got their brothers or wives to vote for them during past lockout/strikes, I am not so sure players are actually getting advice from lawyers and agents prior to voting. I am sure a couple are, but I bet most are just taking the word of their reps, that this is a good deal.
Sorry for being cynical Ben.
after all the hype of a done deal, losing 1/2 season worth of pay checks, I would wager that 90% of the players will not even read the agreement, nor will their lawyers be involved.
its not cynical. its realistic and very accurate.
Totally agree, Ed.
Tx for setting me straight. Why are they waiting till Sunday to open training camps then? Get it going for f’n sake. An extra couple of days of training camp when it is only going to be 6 days long would go a long way in getting Teams prepared for a short season.
I guess they are scared the players might reject the deal at this stage. I don’t know why, given everything we know it seems highly unlikely.
The NFL didn’t wait for ratification to open camps last year, but the NBA did. So there is an example of how two other leagues handled it.
Go Habs Go!
Check out Top Shelf Prospects, my Team by Team prospect reports
http://lastwordonsports.com/
There is also the team being responsible for the saftey aspects etc involved with training camps. Our man Gomez
might pull a groin and be out. The team would be liable for his or anybody elses injuries even though they are not realily under a CBA. Not a good thing for the teams to do.
There are 30 owners, most of whom have MBAs and they (or their proxies) were all in the same room today. There are 750 players who are scattered across the globe right now and none of them are experts at reading contracts. Cut them a little slack.
Another knock on Burke(not that it’s necessary).
If Biggs, Kadri and Reilly don’t develop to their expected potential(signs aren’t good for Kadri).
Carl Gunarsson will probably go down as his best draft pick with the Leafs……ouch.
It is often said in different sports leagues, that a league is better off when the teams of historical significance are doing well.
Is this true in hockey? Is hockey as a whole better off when the Habs or Leafs are doing well?
Obviously as Habs fans we believe it to be better when we are doing well, but how different would hockey be overall if the Leafs were Kings of the Hill.
Has been so long since either team was truly on the cusp of greatness. (Obviously much longer for the Leafs)
There’s probably a bit of truth to both sides of the argument in my opinion.
Tampa Bay won a Cup, but their market is god awful.
Dallas won a Cup, ditto.
When the Canadian teams do well they can jack ticket and merchandise prices through the roof and people don’t seem to care.
Without any data to back it up I would guess that the NHL is better off when the big markets, not necessarily hockey markets are doing well.
The conspiracy theorist in me wonders about the absence of Canadian Cups in the last 20 years….and the fact that the Red Wings, Hawks, Bruins and Rangers (all the US teams of hisotrical significance have won)…then you have the struggling franchises. like the Pens who get superstars whenever times are tough, then you have the perfect geographical spreading of the cup with Carolina, Florida on the East matched nicely with Dallas and California teams….sure looks like one heck of a genius marketing plan….foiled only that damn New Jersey trap…maybe it wasn’t invented to beat speed…maybe it was a necessity to compete against the powers that be…..enter Twilight Zone music….
The conspiracy theory regarding struggling teams has some merit or fire to go with the smoke if you prefer.
Penguins on the verge of bankruptcy and get Crosby.
Islanders in ridiculous trouble and get Tavares.
Devils in dire straights and win the lottery.
The counterpoint would be that the Coyotes haven’t been gifted a draft coup.
Yah but if they ever did that for Phoenix, it would be the equivalent of releasing the tapes showing the making of the lunar landing.
No they got the Gretzky solution years back…as did the BLues temporarily…and then New York…he too has been spread across the US rather conveniently….his lustre is not the same but while he was still able to help a struggling market he appeared to be sent off on mission upon mission.
Hey I’m kinda on your side here. And Bettman did study under David Stern, he of the frozen envelope draft lottery and vetoing trades to help struggling teams.
Yes the envelopes for NBA draft, could not be more obvious of the fix being in. Especially when the year there was no clear cut franchise player and Toronto wins it.
The Draft “lottery”…the lottery that noone can witness that is. We’llsee what happens with MCdavid…to me he is the next palyer that will have a Crosby like effect and it will be intersting to see where he ends up…shuld be rigt around when the Red Wings are about to need some new blood..a new Stevie Y is due….that would be mny guess right now …that in 2 years time the Wings have a horrific season and win the lottery and McDavid. I can only hope it is the Habs…..there is an outside shot they go LEafs or HAbs…but both of those teams may be playoff teams by then.
Look no further than this season. If a southern or American market gets their shot at Seth Jones at the expense of a Canadian team it will be another stoking of the fire.
It certainly would appear that those teams are doing well, at least in the NHL.
I would say the exception (surprisingly) of the original six, is Detroit.
They had a dominant market for a long time, but the last couple of years, even with all their talent, showed a lot of empty seats.
As long as these teams keep doing well, and Bettman is at the helm, look to have those $ surpluses re-distributed to markets that don’t deserve it.
On the Detroit point. Mike Illitch has been down the league’s throat for years to move them to the Eastern Conference.
The Red Wings aren’t exactly in the good graces of the league offices.
Very true.
Darren Millard just said the Leafs discovered Reimer in the minors.
Guess he didn’t know that JFJ drafted him.
That SPortsnet Lunch Panel is hard to listen to. As much as i can’t stand listening to Kypreos and MacLean, I find Millard even worse as the host.
No surprise he would say that.
They are hard to listen to. Out of the three I find Kypreos the most knowledgeable and actually gets insider information.
“Keep your stick on the Ice”
i really can’t stand maclean
I can’t listen to anybody when they’re having lunch.
That smacking noise gets on my nerves.
As a lifelong Habs fan, I thought Burke was doing a GREAT job as GM of the Laffs. Sad day.
“They don’t hang Conference Championship Banners from the rafters here”
Carey Price
Gee Dale, have you been going over West and breathing in the pulp mill air again. Hope you jest bud.
The Bruins think even higher of him.
According to Wikipedia, Burke is now listed as a “Senior advisor with MLSE.”
Now I know it’s Wikipedia, but I’m wondering… The Maple Leafs are a part of MLSE. So does his “advisor” role stretch beyond hockey?
“There’s genius everywhere, but until they turn pro, it’s like popcorn in the pan. Some pop… some don’t.”
- Jerry Maguire
Perhaps he’ll help out in baseball, he doesn’t know anything about that either.
He can try, but seeing as how the Jays are owned by Rogers and not by MLSE, I doubt he will help much with respect to baseball….
Thank (insert Diety). In AA I trust
Didn’t Rogers and Bell just buy MLSE?
Yes they did, but MLSE does not own the Jays. They are a seperate Rogers Entity.
Whew!
True, but they are still all one big happy family. I’m sure executives can move about.
Indeed, he’ll now be able to bring truculence to several teams concurrently.
The new commish is going to be a toss up between Burke and Cherry!
NHL Hockey will be over in N.America!
Word on the street around the Financial District in Toronto has Burkie running againist Ford for Mayor in next election
From the previous page’s comments.
Absolutely hilarious!
That would be something to see; and given some of the recent mayors, not entirely unrealistic.
The timing has to be related to Luongo (or something similar). It doesn’t make sense that he got to do the draft and the whole summer and then just gets canned on the eve of camp unless there is something we’re missing.
Go Habs Go!
Check out Top Shelf Prospects, my Team by Team prospect reports
http://lastwordonsports.com/
I agree Ben. It also doesn’t make sense when you consider that Burke apparently had a lot to do with helping the league and players come up with ideas on how to bridge the gap on things like contract year variance and overall length.
Nonis looked sick at the press conference. I would imagine that Burke gave him the okay to go ahead and take the job with his blessing shortly after getting the axe.
I think it’s fair to say that their mandate is probably to make the playoffs without heavy regard for the long term consequences of trading prospects or picks
Edit: If the Luongo circumstance is valid the loose ends tie in nicely. Giving the job to Nonis knowing he once acquired Luongo.
Agree. And inquiring minds want to know what exactly it was!
I said the same thing below as soon as I heard it.
“Keep your stick on the Ice”
NHL BOG have ratified the new CBA ( witout Burkes ok )
Maybe they were inspired by all the staff changes in Montreal and got a little scared.
@RAFord77
http://bleublancetrouge.ca/
Word on the street is Burke with become president of Coors USA which effectively puts him in charge of the Montreal Canadiens.
He will then proceed to run the team into the ground, because Geoff Molson’s master plan is to lose money with this team.
You heard this here first! Ok maybe not first.
I can’t put my finger on it, but I think I know where I heard it…..
HabinB…I think you’re onto something.. but I’m having nuna-v-it.
IF it wasn’t for the coherentness in the text (not the actual message) I would have swore it was Nuna posting as someone else.
@ nuna, ha, jokes on you, I don’t drink Molson.
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“Access Forbidden” gettin’ ya down?
Hold down Shift while clicking refresh.
You don’t need saltpeter to be lame….all these lame postings backing Molson, honestly. What GM would keep Gomez in spite of the whole world saying “geeze maybe Montreal should buy out Gomez…” and this media spin about Molson being a life long habs fan, what a pile of crap. Molson grew up in Toronto and has a lot of ties to Toronto. You’d think he would care but he’s just another suit trying to generate a profit at the expense of you lame fans…..including putting saltpeter in your beer to keep you lame fans…..
Q: What does buying out Gomez get us right now? Or last year?
A: Nothing, really. Maybe find 2 more 2/3 line guys for 3 million to go with the billion 2/3 line guys we already have. OR magically, we get that first line center… who was????? riiiiight, that is what I thought. Then, instead of finishing last, we finish 13th and lose Galy.
Next year, this is a whole different story when we have to squeek under the cap.
No matter!!
The seats are always full in Toronto! They change the product every few years to keep the bucks coming in and hope of the promised land for the T.O. nations hope chest.
But the truth is, no one in Toronto knows how to play winning hockey, since Punch was behind the bench.
Too bad for Dudley. He could have landed the job. But maybe he doesn’t want it. That’s a major rebuild if there ever was one…
Dudley is not a loser Marc!!! He would never go there.
Ian in all fairness, he did go there only a few seasons ago.
Is he going to make it and pull through Gerald.?
Nonis looks like someone pulled the head off his Barbie.
For those worried about any replacement for Burkie making the Loafs better I present you with their GM history:
General Manager Appointment Departure
Dave Nonis 2013
Brian Burke 2008 2013
Cliff Fletcher (interim) 2008 2008
John Ferguson, Jr. 2003 2008
Pat Quinn 1999 2003
Ken Dryden 1997 1999
Cliff Fletcher 1991 1997
Floyd Smith 1989 1991
Gord Stellick 1988 1989
Gerry McNamara 1982 1988
Punch Imlach & Gerry McNamara 1981 1982
Punch Imlach 1979 1981
Jim Gregory 1969 1979
Punch Imlach 1958 1969
***Subbang Baby!!!***
Burke will leave Leafs at 1st opportunity whether with NHL as new commish or GM of another team. He was NHL vp at 1 point.
I was only half joking when I made the comment below about League Commish. That is the scariest part.
his name was rumored during the lockout, when Bettman finally gives it up(2033 maybe and 2 more lockouts) then Burke may be on shortlist with Daly…
TSN officially announces they’re keeping a panel seat warm for him. Looking forward to the “how dare you” looks from Burke after each question from James Duthie.
Maybe he’ll become the next Don Cherry.
Nah… HNIC should get him. Milbury, PJ Stock, Healy and Burke. It could actually be worth watching.
Wrestling night in Canada!
If the Leafs canned Burke because he wouldn’t trade for Luongo, then Burkie got a raw deal.
I hear what your saying, but you have to remember, Burke has stood on his soap box here in T.O. for years now bragging about his principals as it relates to certain contracts. He also publicly spoke about how he could have had 3-5 first round picks last year, but he chose not to. He bragged he could have made trades that put the Leafs in the playoffs last year, but he chose not to…..All these wild announcements supposedly in the best interests of the Leafs.
Perhaps, as someone quoted here last night, the Board listened to him as he explained in Hamilton last night how Gardiner is only suffering from Concussion like symptoms but doesn’t have a concussion. Just like Reimer last year.
I don’t know, something strange happened, he got in a pissing contest with someone, and he finally got called on the carpet for it.
I don’t believe for a minute he is Sr. Advisor, this is just some stupid Maple Leaf manouvre trying to convince the fans that Burke has been good until now.
It was a suggestion on Twitter somewhere, that he was reluctant to trade for Luongo. So no credibility on that rumour, but if it’s the truth, and the final straw before sacking, then I feel bad for him.
Marc Spector reported and now Bob McCown is saying his reluctance last season to add Luongo pissed the board off.
McCown saying that Gillis wanted Gardiner and Kadri. If that’s the case I don’t blame Burke for not doing it. Some people have said it was going to cost him Bozak, Frattin and a 2nd round pick, something I would personally do for Luongo.
Gardiner is and will be a stud for Leafs, but the second option seems fair. I think this has more to do with years of Huffing and Puffing with nothing to show. But something must have set someone off. The timing is too bizarre.
Yeah there had to be some kind of final straw.
Welcome to Hockey Inside Out.
Absolutely everything you wanted to know about the Toronto Maple Leafs.
Yeah, if we keep this up, the Laffs might think we still consider them a worthy rival…
Bri, many of us live in LeafLand, sorry but I am pre-occupied by this story i admit.
As a Hab fan stuck in the center of the Hockey Universe, I have to enjoy this.
I understand that Gerry. No offence to anyone here was intended.
And it is an important story that will undoubtedly affect the entire division.
That is, assuming Noni (typo) is competent in the least.
I’m just looking to spice it up with something else to talk about, like our Habs!
The boys are back in town, and I’m psyched.
How does this move not affect the Habs? They are the teams oldest rival, a divisional rival in a division heavy schedule, HNIC rival that forces many of us to purchase HAbs games separate from our regular cable, etc…..this is definitely Hab news.
This is just a weird story.
That it is twilight and it’s not a Hickey planted fantasy.
Okay, how quick would our laughing stop and become sheer horror if after the Board of Governor’s meeting it is announced that Brian Burke is the new Commissioner of NHL?
Touché!
Ali B.
Eek! Don’t even think it.
I’d be OK with it. You like Bettman over Burke?
I was kind of hoping for an improvement over Bettman. I’m not sure Burkie would be one. They’re equally despicable.
If Burke ran the show it would be Old Time hockey..which would be hell on ice at the pace the game is played now. I like Burke as a person as he is brutally honest and speaks his mind…may not agree but I respect him for the way he is…BUT…..he would be absolutely terrible for the game of hockey if he took over.
Wow…what a terrible thing to say…because it could actually happen….you just scared the hell out of me. Mr Bettman thank you for the job you have done and please stay on if this is at all a possibility.
He’s still involved with the leafs, so, yeah. -_- Won’t happen.
sorry but that wouldnt stop him from accepting the job. senior advisor is basically a placeholder job for these executive types until they find a new job. not that it’s gonna happen, but that wouldnt stop it from happening.
how hilarious is this? the leafs are a disgrace, blocking ontario from a second club, going on a decade of playoffless hockey and now this? I am so happy as to how the habs handled their GM situation this off season as opposed to how the leafs just did it…. lolol
Argh, so many Leafs fans out there saying that Burke has done a good job building up for the future because the Marlies are doing well in the AHL. Sure, they have a decent pool of prospects, but they don’t realize that the Marlies are being led by AHL All-Stars and veterans like Zigomanis, Aucoin, Kostka, Acton, Hamilton, etc. and an ex-NHL player in Ranger that will likely never put up points in the NHL.
The timing of this makes no sense whatsoever. This is what happens when a board runs a hockey team instead of one person or a family. It takes weeks to make decisions that would otherwise take minutes.
Good to see that the Maple Laughs are getting started on their embarassments early this year.
Dave Nonis gets Burkes leftovers a second time. Luongo must be on his way now certainly.
The timing of this wreaks of huge panic, clearly a disagreement took place. The whole thing about Sr. Advisor has to be a sham way of saying we still owe Burke a PantLoad of money.
If only Pierre MacGuire had gotten the nod, he deserves to be a GM of an Original Six team like Toronto.
So I watched the press conference with a couple Leaf fans. My buddy (a huge leaf fan) says, wow, no surprise even our press conferences look completely dis-shevelled and the guy we announce as our new GM doesn’t even look like he wants the job.
A co-worker of a co-worker just got a text from friend Gaglardi, saying he wants to hire Burke. Grain of salt.
What i found weird is they were planning on getting rid of Burke as early as august last year? Then they let him go through the draft. They probably had a say in some players but Burke made some calls
Enough Leaf talk!!!!
Any news on the actual schedule? And playing the Leafs???
Na Na Na Les Canadiens Les Canadiens
start on the 19th at the Bell against the Laffs.
Shhhhh! We’re basking….
I’m confused… Leafs fire Burke? I thought he was the GM of the Bruins. He certainly built a good team there.
Apparently Geoff Molson is cementing the Maple Leaf ties to the habs, under or in the middle of the C, the habs will now show a small Toronto Maple Leafs logo to show the Toronto connection. And Berkie will join Molson to finish Molson’s sabotaging of the habs….as Gainey couldn’t screw up the habs enough…..
Get back under the bridge, troll…
Is the glue fresh?
I think he is a stand in for the show Mountain Men. He’s going to play the severely challenged cousin.
And instead of buying out Gomez, Bergevin and Molson will announce that Gomez will be Berkie’s unofficial assistant on screwing up the habs even more. In the Amnesty Buyout, Molson plans to buyout Price, get rid of Subban and to sign Desharnais to a horrible contract and then to buy him out too. Man how much more can Molson screw up this already screwed up team?
Your on a roll troll, king of the trolls so far this season ( to be ). Thank the heavens its only a 48 game one so your presence won’t last.
Meth… not even once!
Not all oysters produce pearls, thankfully, Price is a pearl producing oyster.
Four whole marijuanas
_____________________________
“Access Forbidden” gettin’ ya down?
Hold down Shift while clicking refresh.
Apparently Geoff Molson has been putting saltpeter in the molson beer as well and you retards are all lame…..lol.
Seriously, dude. Keep this up and you’re going to get an appearance on Piers Morgan tonight.
It is Piers, Gerry
So, Anselmi says the change is about leadership ” style “, that it is not the result of a single incident, and that it has been contemplated since the change of ownership.
Nonis thanks Burke for everything he has done for him and states that, while their approaches are different, their expectations are the same. BTW, this would be the same Dave Nonis who tearfully accepted the GM’s job in Vancouver after it was vacated by the same Brian Burke.
Signs of a ” power struggle ” between the two leading up to today’s change in the Leafs front office ? I think not. The nickle is worth less than 2¢ today LMAO … What say you now mr all-knowing ?
ALWAYS Habs -
D Mex
Jeeze,Burkie was fun to watch up there in Hogtown. A real loose wire. Going to miss that.
An advisory role for Burkie? Good for him. Reunited with his Untied Tie (who, earlier in the day, had accepted a similar role). Those two are like peas and carrots.
Advisory role ? Burkie will be lucky to be allowed to pick the color of the toilet paper in the washrooms..
No, apparently Coors USA which owns the Molson brothers, wants Berkie to move to their Dallas headquarters and to finish the Americanization of the habs….under the Laffs template. Honestly these Americans and payback’s a bitch isn’t it? All these years the habs won and now the laffs get even after all this time.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coors_Brewing_Company
I missed the beginning of the press conference. Is Nonis the interim GM or the new permanent GM?
No interim tag assigned…
Permanent
until he is fired or dies.
Which in essence makes him interim.
Interesting. They are not cleaning house to bring in their own guy, which means they can’t be too unhappy with the status quo. There is definitely more to this story if it ever comes out.
The leafs have been valued at $1 BILLION.
What’s not to like about the status quo from a BUSINESS perspective?
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“It’s just an opinion – I could be wrong”
Whoa, Nonis looks absolutely shell-shocked.
I love the tweets from the Tronna media. They’re all shocked by this.
–
Ever tried. Ever failed. No matter. Try again. Fail again. Fail better.
If the whole Leafs GM thing doesn’t work out for him, Nonis is a shoe-in to play a young Ken Hitchcock in any “Life of…” production.
Allow me to start a completely baseless internet rumour. I don’t buy this news conference at all. I wonder if MLSE is trying to avoid a huge league penalty for tampering. Did Burke try to jump the gun on Luongo? He’s done it before, no?
Wild guess, but it would make sense of this clutterbuck.
Mike Boone tweet : Noris looks about as happy as Mitt Romney
Our Mikie will never lose the humour, what a guy
lol
NoN****is
Nonis doing his best caught-with-hand-in-the-cookie-jar act.
boy this presser is a little tense, Nonis looking nervous lol.
They have to be sh*tting us. Routine business decision? Really?
Yeah really. We relieved him of his duties, gave him a senior advisory role, it was amicable but Brian isn’t here to speak with you today.
Oh by the way I don’t want to get into the specifics of why this was done.
Senior advisory role: Don’t call us, we’ll call you.
Sure – just like ordering more paper clips.
McKenzie just tweeted that Nonis is not an interim GM
Molson and Coors announced that they have finished their sabotaging of the original six Canadian teams, or at least the Laffs and the habs. Mission Accomplished was on a banner behind Geoff Molson and Mr. Thomson, who’s sole mission was to get even with their hockey dads for forcing them to watch the habs win again and again…..”there is no need for a gm when we want to destroy the team, we can just have Marc in Montreal do that for us, he’s got the midas touch along with his advisor Therrien…our first task has always been to get rid of Subban….he was always our priority as we have always stated….” said Molson flanked by Thomson.
“There’s no good time to do this”
Then why are you doing it smart guy?
Well the GM represents the team at the BOG. The team disagrees with Burke about something obviously. This is sudden, obviously. What is the BOG doing today, obviously. But that doesn’t mean that is what the disagreement was about, obviously.
Nonis, complete with loosened tie, looks like he is the one who just got fired.
He’s got the Rodney Dangerfield look going…..no respect, I tell ya, I get no respect.
In discussions via text and email following Burke’s firing, I have been shamelessly passing off all of your witty comments and jabs as being my own.
Keep the comedy coming! My friends think I’m hilarious as a result. Well done HIO commentariat!
Well done, I like that! LOL
Nonis looks like he’s facing a, ahem, firing squad.
Haha. Was just about to say something similar.
Looks like he’s a broken man less than 5 minutes on the job.
One major negative about Burke leaving is no more of these:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Zh1szSHbyM
These parody’s are awesome
“Keep your stick on the Ice”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JXkdU_Kd7pA
“Keep your stick on the Ice”
LOL
Best line is the wookie on skates
“Keep your stick on the Ice”
Next order of business in Toronto…..the buyout of Mike Komisarek!
Leafs are truly the dumbest team around. Why wait for the lockout to end and fire your GM a week before a shortened hockey season?!
It was likely the tip of the iceberg with this Luongo stuff.
It wouldn’t make much sense to fire him during the lockout when his replacement wouldn’t be able to do much of anything in the meantime.
As I said previously:
“I will NOT do up my tie! I am going to wear it either a) Undone slightly with top button open; b) Undone a lot with top two buttons open (aka: Sexy Option); c) Draped around my neck, with button arrangement optional; d) Tied around my head like a bandana. I will NEVER, as long as I am GM of this club, wear my tie done up in a proper manner. So there. What? Oh.”
—Hope Springs Eternal—
Im looking for a funny/creative/awesome trophy name for our Fantasy Hockey League, our trophy is a bowl.
I know some of you are way damn more creative than me so if anyone has any suggestions, id really appreciate it!!
Thanks!
Pat Hickey Trophy
The Maple Leaf Trophy
The non-battery-operated Fantasy Bowl.
Funny that Mike Gillis and Burke have a well known dislike for each other.
Ultimately it could be Gillis who got Burke fired.
Heard a rumor long ago in the summer that he had been caught having an affair with some woman inside MLSE…
Why are people happy Burke is gone? It only opens a door for the leafs to get a more competent GM who will actually improve the team.
I’m not happy.
I just think it’s hilarious he got his truculent ass canned.
—Hope Springs Eternal—
This. Though I believe that Burke may have been catching onto some things… like don’t trade away 1st rounders lightly. Oh well, too late.
“I don’t believe in building this team through the draft.”
-Brian Burke
I always thought that was a very very strange thing to say on Draft Lottery day.
—Hope Springs Eternal—
just speculating but I think this is over Luongo. I bet he becomes a leaf now. Burke didn’t like long term contracts and probably didn’t want Luongo but now that the Leafs are owned by media giants they want ratings and playoffs.
“Keep your stick on the Ice”
The Boston Bruins have announced that a ceremony honoring Brian Burke will be held sometime in January at the TD Garden.
“He built our team into Starley Cup Champians”, said Brad Marchand
+2011
HAHAHA!!
—Hope Springs Eternal—
———————————————————————-
Ka is a wheel.
“Bring it back home to me baby”
Bring it on Home
Thank you, MLSE, for so decisively taking away the Club de hockey Canadiens’ title as most dysfunctional organization in hockey.
Wow.
I vote Gainey for Leafs GM…
He went back to Dallas where he won the cup as GM.
PG would be a better fit
“Keep your stick on the Ice”
And just last night, he was blabbing on TSN 690 during the Bulldogs/Marlies game. I guess the Marlies losing was the last straw…
_____________________________
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Hold down Shift while clicking refresh.
Hopefully this decision trickles down to the dressing room and puts the team into chaos, causing them to get off to a bad start. Not that they’d need that much help in that regard.
Only chance to hire a bigger loudmouth than Burke is Pierre McGuire.
Go Habs Go!
Check out Top Shelf Prospects, my Team by Team prospect reports
http://lastwordonsports.com/
Wonder if that smarmy little arse kisser Doug Mclean has his snoot in there yet?
oh that would be great. I would love to see McGuire there LOL
“Keep your stick on the Ice”
MacGuire is much sharper than given credit for.
Be careful what you wish for… it might come back to haunt the rest of us.
Why oh why?
I think he did a great job, well not for Maple Leafs, but to other teams.
Bazinga!
He built a good team in Toronto, the Marlies.
–Go Habs Go!–
Good riddance fatso.
Who will buy Gomez if Burke is out of job?
Bazinga!
Gainey …
Rough crowd today…
Sather?
Rumor has it. he refused to wear his tie properly
Am I the only one who really didn’t expect this!?
Burke gone? Woohoo!
I think I’ll go with giving up Tyler Seguin and Dougie Hamilton for Phil Kessel at a time when the Bruins were up against the cap and probably couldn’t have given him an extension.
So much for competence. Muahahahahaha! (Evil laugh)
I’d say the Kessel deal is Burke’s worst blunder. The Leafs, despite what he thought at the time, were not in any position to contend and he ended up giving a divisional opponent who ended up winning the Starley Cup the next season rebuild-worthy picks.
That kind of gaffe sets your team back years and, even though Leafs fans like to act like their prospect cupboard is refilled, losing a 2nd overall and 10th overall pick was a major mistake.
Well… good for him. Is she truculent?
Oh yeah, leather and whips.