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Lingerie Football League Still Seen as a Joke in TO

April 18, 2011 By admin Leave a Comment

They may punt and tackle and even get some touchdowns, but in Toronto the Lingerie Football League (LFL) is still seen as somewhat of a joke.

The LFL was started in 2009 and it’s a football league just like any other. With the exception of course, that the players are women and they’re all wearing nothing but their skivvies. Other than that, it’s seven players on every team and yes, full contact is not only allowed but encouraged. Nearly all of the women playing have played college-level sports and consider themselves to be true athletes. But, not everyone agrees. Two teams in the United States folded last year, and although one was proposed in Oklahoma the mayor of the city turned down the proposal stating “too many problems to list.” And it seems the OK mayor isn’t the only one that thinks it’s a bad idea.

The league currently has two games scheduled to be played in Ricoh Coliseum, despite the fact that they don’t yet have a team since tryouts aren’t being held until the end of April in Toronto, and the team doesn’t even have a name. These might just be two reasons to wonder how those games at Ricoh Coliseum will work out. It also seems that the team is having a hard time finding an owner that will take them seriously.

The league commissioner, Mitchell Mortaza, has stated that he is already in talks with two potential owners in Toronto, one being affiliated with professional sports and one being a prominent real estate group in the city, although he declined to give actual names of the two groups. And, no one else seems to want to take responsibility for possible future ownership either. Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment Ltd., the group that owns the Toronto Maple Leafs, the Raptors, and the Ricoh Coliseum, stated that they have no affiliation with the group, although they do rent the Coliseum out for various events. And both the owners of the Toronto Argonauts and the Hamilton Tiger-Cats have also said they have nothing to do with the LFL. Rogers Communication, which also owns the Toronto Blue Jays, also stated that they are not affiliated with the LFL in any way.

So just who is going to be the new owner of the Toronto franchise of the LFL?

It’s not known at the moment. And, whether or not the LFL will ever really get off the ground in Canada is questionable. Without any owners and the sport receiving much criticism and scepticism before it’s even begun, it’s hard to say whether or not Torontonians will ever be able to see women play football in their panties. But, the LFL remains hopeful. By 2012, the LFL hopes to have a six-team division in Canada, with teams dispersed throughout the country.

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Leafs Get Ready to Say Good-Bye to a Bad Year, and Hello to a Good One

April 6, 2011 By admin Leave a Comment

It’s not too late yet, but the chances that the Toronto Maple Leafs will be contenders in the Stanley Cup Playoffs this year is looking very dim indeed. No one really wants to start talking about next year just yet, but with only three games left and quite a few points still to gain, it’s really starting to look like next year will be the next time the Leafs have a chance to make the playoffs. But if they keep playing like they are right now, the 2012 playoffs could very well be a reality for the Leafs, who have not made the playoffs since the 2003-2004 season.

While the Leafs aren’t out of it just yet for this year, they are pretty close and their odds of making it are growing slimmer by the game. If it’s not bad enough that they must win all three of their remaining games, add to it that the Buffalo Sabres have to lose each of their three games, and the outlook isn’t good. The good news is that the Leafs can win their games in either regulation or overtime, but if any of their games comes to a shootout, their playoff chances are done for this year. So will the Toronto Maple Leafs make the playoffs in the 2010-2011 season? Probably not. But it’s not all bad news.

The Leafs have been looking fantastic for the past month or so, and this bodes well for a team that hasn’t seemed to be able to find their footing in several of the past years. And that could mean that come next year at this time, talk could be starting about who the Leafs will be facing in the playoffs, rather than whether or not they will even make it. And that’s the best news that Leafs fans have had to cheer for in recent seasons.

So while no one is eager about starting to talk about next year before this year’s season is officially out, the players and the fans are hopeful as ever for what next year will bring, and are still revelling in the excitement from the past few weeks. There’s no doubt that it’s been playoff-like atmosphere just trying to get that coveted spot; and while it may not have happened this time, fans and players alike have more reason to believe than ever that next year will be their year.

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Is that it for the Leafs?

March 15, 2011 By admin Leave a Comment

It was certainly no surprise to many Toronto Maple Leaf fans when the team lost against the Tampa Bay Lightning last night, Monday, March 14, 2011; the two clubs have met four times this season with the boys from Florida walking away the victors each time. But last night’s game was one that the Leafs needed to win desperately, and they didn’t. Now there’s lots of talk about what went wrong during the game but one thing is clear: no matter what it was, that game most likely sealed the playoff fate for the Leafs.

The Leafs went into the game last night looking to get a couple of more points that would inch them that much closer. At just six points out, that playoff spot seemed just within reach. But with just a handful of games remaining, and no more points being gained, that spot seems to be slipping quickly out of reach. They are still six points behind the New York Rangers and the Buffalo Sabres – two teams that are tied for that last playoff spot.

There didn’t seem to be a lot of excuses going around the Leaf’s locker room after last night’s game, but everyone did seem to be blaming themselves. Coach Ron Wilson mentioned in a post-game interview that James Reimer, the goalie that’s been so on-point for the Leafs in the last 12 consecutive games he’s started, looked tired and that perhaps Wilson should have started another goalie or pulled Reimer after he gave up some sloppy rebounds. Reimer however, had a lot of blame to lay on himself as he said that as a professional athlete, fatigue is never an excuse. He did admit to just not being on his game and not “getting the job done.”

Tyler Bozak, who was on the ice for three of the Lightning’s goals, said that he along with the rest of his team just didn’t fight hard enough and that they got outplayed. And captain Dion Phaneuf said that everyone on the team was disappointed with themselves, because they expect better out of their own play.

But the team doesn’t have time to dwell on last night’s game. A playoff spot is still within their reach, no matter how much further and further away it’s getting, and the Leafs have the rest of the week to try and claim it. Later in the week the Leafs will be in both Carolina and Florida in order to try and gain some more points for that playoff spot. So while this may not be entirely it for the Toronto Maple Leafs, the time for winning that playoff spot is coming to a close; and if the Toronto Maple Leafs weren’t pressed for time before last night’s game, they certainly are even more so now.

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Want a Playoff Spot? You’ll have to improve Your Power Play!

March 7, 2011 By admin Leave a Comment

This is the message that the Toronto Maple Leafs are hearing from their coach, Ron Wilson, and what the players are seeing when they get their chances on the ice. When the Leafs played Chicago on Saturday, they had five different chances to get a power play goal, but none of those chances came to fruition. It’s not that the team’s power play isn’t getting better. They have moved from the 30th place in the league for power plays to the 25th spot. But, if they are going to really start focusing on making the playoffs, it has to get even better still.

It’s in this area that the team seems to be missing Tomas Kaberle the most, as power plays were his specialty. And that’s not only within the Leafs’ organization, but within the league. Kaberle is currently in 5th place with 22 assists when he’s on the ice during a power play opportunity. But Kaberle, or rather his absence, can’t be completely to blame either. Even when Kaberle still had a blue jersey on his back, the team was still only 22nd in the league when it came to having the extra man. And, Boston’s power play stats have also gone down since having Kaberle on the ice. The good news that comes from that? It may help the Leafs’ confidence, something that is continuing to build these days, as they see that one man does not a power play goal make; and that they may actually be able to do it even without the help of their former power play star.

The news isn’t all bleak though. As of Sunday, Toronto was tied with Tampa Bay for power play goals, and there are still all the other achievements and successes the Toronto Maple Leafs have made recently to keep fan’s hopes alive. But, if a playoff spot is going to become a reality for the team that seemed to be out of the running just a month ago, there’s no doubt that their power play will have to be improved.

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Do ‘Ford Nation’ and ‘Leafs Nation’ Really Match Up?

March 6, 2011 By admin Leave a Comment

And if so, why then does Mayor Rob Ford insist on naming his group of followers that? While it’s true that the term ‘Leafs Nation’ may point towards the extremely loyal and regular following the Toronto Maple Leafs, it also points to the biggest fan base around the world that hasn’t followed a winning team for decades. Does Mayor Rob Ford really want to give his own followers a name that depicts the leader of the group as being a loser? It’s something he may want to consider. But for now, it seems the Mayor of Toronto is too busy threatening Dalton McGuinty with an upcoming election to consider the possible similarities between Leafs Nation and Ford Nation. And right now, Toronto residents are wondering if they are again cheering someone on who will only disappoint them in the final seconds of the game.

Ford Nation is said by Mayor Rob Ford to be a group of loyal followers of his that support his action to increase revenue for the city. Ford was refused when he asked the provincial and federal government for $153 million in order to make up for the city’s shortcomings in road funding, public transit, child-care subsidies and a Fort York visitor centre. What Rob Ford doesn’t seem to want to tell people is that part of the shortfall is his own doing, as he cost his own city $64 million in revenue when he cut the city’s car tax. Now, if Ford doesn’t get this extra funding, he’s threatening to bring together his followers and rise up against Dalton McGuinty in the next election, hoping to take him over. So, is McGuinty worried?

It doesn’t seem so. Vaughan’s MPP Greg Sorbara spoke about Ford Nation and the notion of it, said that he doesn’t believe there’s any reason for concern. Sorbara spoke about how uprisings occur every once and again in a democratic society, and that the people of Ontario and Canada will most likely see nothing come from it. The office of Dalton McGuinty officially said that they have no comment on Ford Nation at this time. So, what about Mayor Rob Ford’s followers that make up Ford Nation?

Well, it depends on who you talk to. Mayor Rob Ford seems to think that he’s built himself some sort of army that could easily overthrow McGuinty in an election. However, other political experts and analysts, such as Andrea Horwath, Ontario NDP leader, said that she didn’t put too much stock in the idea of Ford Nation. She thinks that while people may be leery of following Dalton McGuinty, it won’t have anything to do with Rob Ford, and they may not be who the people choose as their leader either.

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Leafs Shooting for Playoff Spot with OT Win over Penguins

March 3, 2011 By admin Leave a Comment

The Toronto Maple Leafs seemed down and out on Wednesday when they played the Pittsburgh Penguins at the Air Canada Centre. After two periods, the Leafs were down 2-1 and it seemed that it may be Pittsburgh’s game after all. But in the third period, the boys in blue came back looking like the team the fans love to cheer for, and they took the game in OT, placing them just four points away from a playoff spot.

There’s lots of credit to go around, starting with Nikolai Kulemin, who scored the first goal for the Leafs within the first forty minutes. After Matt Niskanen and Chris Conner scored two goals for Pittsburgh, the Leafs needed their big players to start playing in a big way. When they came on the ice for the third period, all the determination was there and you could see it in their play. Phil Kessel made the tying goal in the third period, but that wasn’t the only way that Kessel stepped up last night. It was shortly after that, just 42 seconds into OT, that Kessel set up Mikhail Grabovski, who nicely swept the puck into Pittsburgh’s net.

The win gives the Toronto Maple Leafs much more than just two points to help them in their race to the Cup. It also gives them the confidence Coach Ron Wilson felt was critical at this delicate point in their season. Having this confidence is critical as the Leafs had little time after the game before they boarded a plane headed for Philadelphia, where they will play the Flyers tonight, Thursday, March 3, 2011. It will be the first time that the Leafs will face former team mate, Kris Versteeg, who was traded to Philadelphia about a week before the trade deadline.

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GM Farrell Ready for Business at Jays Spring Training

February 27, 2011 By Jordan Leave a Comment

The former pitcher, pitching coach and front-office executive was happy to have it behind him. For John Farrell, his first spring opener is in the books and he’s managed his first professional game. The Toronto Blue Jays GM knew that the occasion was special, but his team’s 4-0 loss to the Detroit Tigers didn’t exactly put him in a celebratory mood.

“It was the first, but our day was full and there was a lot that we were trying to get a look at,” Farrell said. “Our thoughts were more dominated on what was in front of us, beginning those evaluations that are going to take place over the course of spring training.”

In his playing career, Farrell was drafted out of Oklahoma State University by the Cleveland Indians in the second round of the 1984 draft. He debuted in August of 1987 and was a starter for the Indians before injuries to his right elbow took him out of action. After missing two seasons, Farrell returned to play with the Angels, Indians and Tigers.

From November of 2001 to the end of the 2006 season, Farrell was the Director of Player Development  for the Indians.

On October 25, 2010, the Toronto Blue Jays introduced him as their new general manager for the 2011 season.

Farrell’s history bodes well for the ball club and the spring opener was a good indication as to how he plans on getting out of  the way of his players.

“There’s certain guys that we’ve already discussed that have the green light,” Farrell said. “We don’t want to get in their way, particularly with Anthony (Gose). One of his real strengths is his ability to steal bases. We had a chance to watch his talents play out and he does things so gracefully that it was a chance to set the tone. Part of his development as he spends time in the minor leagues is going to be how efficient is his development in becoming a base stealer. He’s got a long history of it already.”

For the Jays, winning games during spring training has often been used as a key selling feature. The squad has often had trouble drumming up interest early on, but Farrell isn’t concerned. The team currently has bigger fish to fry.

“I would agree to a certain extent that wins are important,” Farrell said. “It does begin to develop a little bit of an internal belief in the group that will be there when we break camp. I might place a little bit more value on (wins) in the last 10 days. Right now we’re getting a chance to look at a lot of people and build up some stamina in getting guys’ legs underneath them, getting them in shape.”

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Holy Cow, the Leafs Could Make the Playoffs

February 25, 2011 By Jordan Leave a Comment

It’s seems hard to believe considering the sorts of seasons the Toronto Maple Leafs have “enjoyed” as of late, but the team actually finds itself in the playoff race currently.

The Leafs are currently just four little points out of a spot with 21 games left to go. They’ve gone 8-2-2 in their last dozen games and, with Tomas Kaberle and others out of the fold, they seem to be improving.

Imagine that.

Part of the secret to the success of the Leafs these days is the steady play of James Reimer in goal. His presence has given the Leafs some stability between the pipes and a reason to take some extra chances up ice. That’s something they lacked in the first half of the season, that’s for sure.

And then there’s Phil Kessel. He appears to have turned a corner and has some confidence in his stride, showing up on the scoreboard more often than not.

With players like Francois Beauchemin, Kris Versteeg and the aforementioned Kaberle traded away, one might expect the Leafs to do worse. But such is not the case, as the team has rallied around its core group – whoever that is – and has used the adversity as an opportunity. With Joffrey Lupul and Brett Lebda getting more ice time and Dion Phaneuf captaining the ship, the possibilities appear to be literally endless.

The team has also benefited greatly from the schedule. They meet a broken-down Penguins crew on Saturday and take on the Atlanta Thrashers after that on Sunday.

This puts GM Brian Burke in an interesting position as well, as he can make any number of moves or sit tight with the team he has. It’s tempting to try to add a player or two to the mix, as an addition could put the Leafs over the edge and into a playoff spot. On the other hand, does tinkering with the valuable team chemistry upset the apple cart too much?

Obviously the Leafs are in the hunt, that much is clear. What the next move is, however, is a little muddy.

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Leafs Trade Kaberle to Bruins

February 19, 2011 By Jordan Leave a Comment

So it turns out that Tomas Kaberle’s days as a Toronto Maple Leaf have come to an end. As we reported a few days ago, Kaberle was set to permit a trade to the Boston Bruins. It turns out that’s exactly where the 12 season veteran of the Leafs has gone.

Kaberle was traded to the Bruins yesterday after waiving his no trade clause. In exchange, the Leafs got prospect centre Joe Colborne, the Bruins’ first round pick in 2011 and a conditional second round draft pick in 2012.

“On behalf of our entire organization I would like to thank Tomas for all of his many outstanding contributions to the Toronto Maple Leafs on the ice, and in the community,” said Leafs president and GM Brian Burke. “He has been a model citizen and it’s never easy to trade a player that has conducted himself as professionally as Tomas has for the past 13 years.”

“He’s consistent every night at what he does,” said Leafs defenceman Luke Schenn. “He establishes the set-up on the power play, makes that great breakout pass, logs big minutes for our team every night. There’s no question that he is one of the top defencemen in the league and has been for the last 10 years or so.”

Kaberle managed 83 goals and 437 assists in 878 games as a Leaf. The 32-year-old leaves behind a legacy and has impressed fans, winning over the famously fickle fan base with his consistency. But now life begins as a Bruin and Kaberle will head to a team that will be on the hook for the rest of his $4.25 million contract.

Along with his regular season accolades, Kaberle leaves the Leafs with 77 career post-season games. He represented Toronto four times at All-Star contests and played for his native Czech Republic for the past three Winter Olympics.

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Jays Sign Jose Bautista

February 18, 2011 By Jordan Leave a Comment

Yesterday we reported on rumours that the Toronto Blue Jays were looking to offer slugger Jose Bautista a lucrative contract and it looks like those rumours came to fruition.

On Thursday, the ball club announced the signing of Bautista to a five year guaranteed contract worth $64 million. That’s a million off the predicted $65 million contract for those scoring at home. There’s a $14 million club option for 2016 packed into the deal. The home run  leader will get $8 million in 2011 and scoop a salary of $14 million per year between 2012 and 2015.

According to Jays GM Alex Anthopoulos, the deal was patterned somewhat after Atlanta Braves second baseman Dan Uggla’s recent deal. That deal was for five years and was worth $62 million.

“It came down to how far above Uggla we’d be,” Anthopoulos said. “We felt Dan Uggla was a focal point, but it took time to work things out. The consistency of Uggla speaks for itself. The upside of Jose’s season is that Uggla never had a season like that.”

The deal is affordable to the Jays largely because Vernon Wells was sent to Anaheim.

It looks like Bautista will be called upon to take up Wells’ mantle in the clubhouse, as he’s being pegged as a team leader by nearly every media outlet in the city.

“That’s a tough question,” Bautista said. “Everyone talks about leadership and I try to lead by example and just work ethic. I try not to turn myself into a leader. But when you sign a deal like this it kind of falls into your lap. Hopefully they see with hard work and dedication you can get results and then hopefully (for them) a day like this will come.”

Bautista gets the role he’s been given, without question, and he knows how to handle the Toronto press. With this sort of relish, the Jays could be gearing up for a very impressive era indeed.

Photo c/o The Canadian Press

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