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The blood is in the water and the sharks are circling....


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John Ferguson Jr. is rejecting a report in Monday's edition of the Toronto Sun that claimed the Maple Leafs' general manager tried to have head coach Paul Maurice fired late last week.

Sun columnist Steve Simmons wrote that a source told him Ferguson tried to fire Maurice, but was "prevented" from doing so.

"There isn't a shred of truth to that assertion," Ferguson told TSN. "This is made up, its a complete fabrication."

The Leafs' weekend did not go well, with loses in Dallas and Phoenix, and Simmons indicated that Ferguson might try to pull the trigger again.

All of this comes with other rumours swirling about Ferguson's future with the team. TSN reported Sunday that radical changes at the top might be coming for the Maple Leafs.

The potential changes could even involve some kind of management committee that could include names like Mark Messier, Joe Nieuwendyk and Glenn Healy.

In his Toronto Sun report, Simmons also suggested this could be Ferguson's last week on the job.

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I wish they could get rid of the teachers union ownership.

Just to clarify, the Teacher's Union is NOT involved. The Teacher's PENSION FUND is what owns 58% of MLSE. Pension Funds invest in money making ventures. In this case, their $100Million has increased in value to $700Million in a relatively short period of time. Why would they want to sell, when they keep making money?

Pension holders have received nothing from this profit either, since all profits are rolled back into the investment.

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Then I stand corrected. Teachers pension fund it is, either way I believe that is what is holding back the Leafs.

It would be nice to have a single owner rather than an ownership group. Makes it a lot easier to make the big decisions.

I'm at the point now where I think the Leafs should just compete for the number one pick in the draft. So I guess you could say I want Ferguson to stay for now.

Something's got to change.

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It would be nice to have a single owner rather than an ownership group. Makes it a lot easier to make the big decisions.

You are bang on with this comment. However I don't see that happening anytime soon. The Leafs are a cash cow win or lose.

It could work if Peddie and Tanenbaum could get on the same page. They haven't been for years. I actually think Tanenbaum has wanted to make good changes but Peddie objects. The problem is Peddie has the boards backing because he makes them so much money.

It's going to be interesting to see what happens.

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Just watch ... the decision that they made on how to operate the Raptors, and their hopeful successes in the very near future, will show them what they should be doing with the hockey team. Bring in a president/GM/whatever, and give them FULL CONTROL of the operations of that team. Don't fucking get in the way.

Could you imagine if Peddie was running a hospital? He'd be walking into the operating rooms and stopping the surgeons from using too many supplies, or not give them enough to get the job done!!!!!

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I cant wait for them to hit it.

BDD_panic_button.jpg

LOL ... but Booche, that would be too "hasty" as Peddie would say :P By the time he even looks at that button it'll be next season.

I'm at the point now where I think the Leafs should just compete for the number one pick in the draft. So I guess you could say I want Ferguson to stay for now.

Hmmmmm ... i get wanting to pull the number 1 pick, but then can you coun't on them to pick the right guy? Hell, they'd probably use the pick in a trade for some twilight star who would get injuerd in a failing attempt to make it to 8th spot at the end of the season :P

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Just watch ... the decision that they made on how to operate the Raptors, and their hopeful successes in the very near future, will show them what they should be doing with the hockey team.

But Kev, there is a difference between them and the Raptors in that it looked like Toronto was going to lose their NBA franchise if they kept going the way they were going. It was more of a business decision.

I think it will be a loooooooong time before that sort of 'control' is given up.

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Yea, i didn't think of it that way.

My coworker just said:

When the Habs and Leafs play, all bets are off. I predict a 6-5 shootout win by the Leafs

BTW - his name is Marco, and he is a lifer Habs fan.

What do you say to something like that?

Personally, I laughed.

I'll pass along anything you have to say to your fellow Habs fan.

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What do you say to something like that?

I'ld say that he has watched enough games to know that the Habs (especially Huet) dont always come out to play a complete game when they face the Leafs. These games always leave me feeling ill before, and usually after.

Does the time seem ripe for the picking by Les Habs?

Yes. That is why I am doubly-worried about tonight.

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Just watch ... the decision that they made on how to operate the Raptors, and their hopeful successes in the very near future, will show them what they should be doing with the hockey team. Bring in a president/GM/whatever, and give them FULL CONTROL of the operations of that team. Don't fucking get in the way.

Could you imagine if Peddie was running a hospital? He'd be walking into the operating rooms and stopping the surgeons from using too many supplies, or not give them enough to get the job done!!!!!

Peddie is doing exactly what is asked of him... make money.

[color:blue]"But in the eyes of the owners, Peddie is a hero. In nine years running the parent corporation of the Maple Leafs, Peddie, 60, has created quite a silk purse, tripling the enterprise value of the privately held company to $1.5 billion through clever marketing and shrewd dealmaking. (Enterprise value is the market value of a business' equity, plus its interest-bearing debt, minus its cash equivalents.) Of this sum the hockey team accounts for $413 million of value, according to FORBES' estimate. We figure the next most valuable hockey franchise is the New York Rangers, worth $365 million.

How can one of the National Hockey League's sad sacks be the most valuable franchise in the sport? The answer lies in the fact that sports valuations are founded on more than championships; they are also a function of player costs, stadium real estate and the population of the home market. Peddie, of course, is acutely aware that the fans don't put much stock in economics. "My fear," he says, "is that people will say, 'Sure you increased enterprise value, but you never won anything.'"

Unlike most sports teams, the Maple Leafs are not a plaything of the rich nor an excuse to fill airtime by a media conglomerate; it's controlled by 271,000 teachers, principals and administrators, active and retired. The Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan owns 58% of Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment, and it's thrilled with Peddie's management."

I agree that having one person in charge is what is needed. Peddie and Tanenbaum have been at odds for years. I mentioned in a post how Peddie has the backing of the board for the above reasons. Sure it would be nice to have a winning team in Toronto but as long as Peddie is bringing in the bucks he can do no wrong in the boards mind.

Passing off the entire basketball operation was a brilliant idea but The Leafs are a different matter. The person who could bring the Cup to Toronto again could run for Prime Minister if he / she wanted. Too many people at the top are positioning to be that person. This is all coming at the expense of the on ice product.

Removing Peddie would make sense for the hockey team but maybe not for the bottom line of making money.

It think it would be sensible for the board to keep Peddie but instruct him to hire a serious GM who would have full control of the team. I propose he hire Booche....

Psssst Booche...

trade Sundin to the Habs for Brisboise... Oh and I hear Wellwood wants out, look into hin too.

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He appreciated the comments and is now in the know that Huet Price is starting :)

I'd rather watch Habs v. Leafs any day since they generally are good matchups. I like close games, not blowouts. Mind you, tonight, I could handle the Leafs getting blown out by the Habs.

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