Toronto Maple Leafs
Encyclopedia
The Toronto Maple Leafs are a professional ice hockey
team based in Toronto
, Ontario
, Canada
. They are members of the Northeast Division
of the Eastern Conference
of the National Hockey League
(NHL). The organization, one of the "Original Six
" members of the NHL, is officially known as the Toronto Maple Leaf Hockey Club and is the leading subsidiary of Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment, (MLSE). They have played at the Air Canada Centre
(ACC) since 1999, after 68 years at Maple Leaf Gardens
.
The Leafs are well known for their long and bitter rivalry
with the Montreal Canadiens
, and more recently the Ottawa Senators
. The franchise's 13 championships are second only to the Canadiens, who have 24. Toronto has won eleven Stanley Cup
s as the Maple Leafs since the cup became solely competed for within the NHL in 1927, and two cups prior to this: one as the St. Patricks
, and one as the Arenas
. However, the Leafs have not won the Cup since 1967
, giving them the longest-active Cup drought in the NHL, and thus are the only Original Six
team that has not won the Cup since the 1967 NHL expansion
.
At $505 million US (in 2010), the Leafs are the most valuable team in the NHL, followed by the New York Rangers
and the Montreal Canadiens
.
by teams formerly belonging to the National Hockey Association
(NHA) that had a dispute with Eddie Livingstone, owner of the Toronto Blueshirts
. The owners of the other four clubs – the Montreal Canadiens
, Montreal Wanderers
, Quebec Bulldogs
, and Ottawa Senators
– wanted to get rid of Livingstone, but discovered that the NHA constitution did not allow them to simply vote him out of the league. Instead, they opted to create a new league, the NHL, and did not invite Livingstone to join them. They also remained voting members of the NHA, and thus had enough votes to suspend the other league's operations, effectively leaving Livingstone's squad in a one-team league.
However, the other clubs felt it would be unthinkable not to have a team from Toronto (Canada's second largest city at the time) in the new league. They also needed another team to balance the schedule after the Bulldogs suspended operations (and as it turned out, would not ice a team until 1920). Accordingly, the NHL granted a "temporary" Toronto franchise to the Arena Company, owners of the Arena Gardens
. The Arena Company was allowed to lease the Blueshirts' players, but was given until the end of the season to resolve the dispute with Livingstone. This temporary franchise did not have an official name, but was informally called "the Blueshirts" or "the Torontos" by the fans and press. Under manager Charlie Querrie
and coach Dick Carroll
, the Toronto team won the Stanley Cup
in the NHL's inaugural season. Although the roster was composed almost entirely of former Blueshirts, the Maple Leafs do not claim the Blueshirts' history as their own.
For the next season, rather than return the Blueshirts' players to Livingstone as originally promised, the Arena Company formed its own team, the Toronto Arena Hockey Club, which was readily granted full-fledged membership in the NHL. Also that year, the Arena Company board decided that only NHL teams would be allowed to play at the Arena Gardens—a move which effectively killed the NHA. Livingstone sued to get his players back. Mounting legal bills from the dispute forced the Arenas to sell most of their stars, resulting in a horrendous five-win season in 1918–19. When it was obvious that the Arenas would not be able to finish out the season, the NHL agreed to let the Arenas halt operations on February 20, 1919 and proceed directly to the playoffs. The Arenas' .278 winning percentage that season is still the worst in franchise history. However, since the 1919 Stanley Cup Finals
ended without a winner due to the worldwide flu epidemic, the Arenas proclaimed themselves champions by default.
The legal dispute forced the Arena Company into bankruptcy, and it was forced to put the Arenas up for sale. Querrie put together a group that mainly consisted of the people who had run the senior amateur St. Patricks team in the Ontario Hockey Association. The new owners renamed the team the Toronto St. Patricks (or St. Pats for short) and would operate it until 1927. This period saw the team's jersey colours change from blue to green, as well as a second Stanley Cup championship in 1922.
During this time, the St. Patricks also allowed other teams to play in the Arena whenever their home rinks lacked proper ice in the warmer months. At the time, the Arena was the only facility east of Manitoba
with artificial ice.
put together an ownership group of his own and made a $160,000 offer for the franchise. With the support of St. Pats shareholder J. P. Bickell
, Smythe persuaded Querrie to reject the Philadelphia bid, arguing that civic pride was more important than money.
After taking control on Valentine's Day 1927, Smythe immediately renamed the team the Maple Leafs (the Toronto Maple Leafs baseball team had won the International League
championship a few months earlier and had been using that name for 30 years). The Maple Leafs say that the name was chosen in honour of the Maple Leaf Regiment from World War I
. As the regiment is a proper noun, its plural is formed by adding a simple 's' creating Maple Leafs (not *Maple Leaves). Another story says that Smythe named the team after a team he had once scouted, called the East Toronto Maple Leafs, while Smythe's grandson states that Conn named the team after the Maple Leaf insignia he had worn during the First World War. Initial reports were that the team's colours would be changed to red and white, but the Leafs were wearing white sweaters with a green maple leaf for their first game on February 17, 1927. The next season, the Leafs appeared for the first time in the blue and white sweaters they have worn ever since. The Maple Leafs say that blue represents the Canadian skies and white represents snow, but it also follows the tradition of blue being Toronto's principal sporting colour starting with the Toronto Argonauts
in 1873 and the University of Toronto
Varsity Blues
in 1877 (and later the Toronto Blue Jays
in 1977).
After four more lacklustre seasons (including three with Smythe as coach), Smythe and the Leafs debuted at their new arena, Maple Leaf Gardens
, with a 2-1 loss to the Chicago Black Hawks
on November 12, 1931.
Led by the "Kid Line" (Busher Jackson
, Joe Primeau
and Charlie Conacher
) and coach Dick Irvin
, the Leafs would capture their third Stanley Cup during the first season in their stadium, vanquishing the Montreal Maroons
in the first round, the Boston Bruins
in the semifinals, and the New York Rangers
in the Stanley Cup Finals. Smythe took particular pleasure in defeating the Rangers that year; he had been tapped as the Rangers' first general manager and coach in the Rangers' inaugural season (1926–27), but had been fired in a dispute with Madison Square Garden
management before the season.
The Leafs' star forward, Ace Bailey
, was nearly killed in 1933 when Boston Bruins
defenceman Eddie Shore
checked him from behind into the boards at full speed. Maple Leafs defenceman Red Horner
was able to knock Shore out with a punch, but it was too late as Bailey, who was by now writhing on the ice, had his career ended. The Leafs would hold the NHL's first All-Star Game to benefit Bailey.
The Leafs would reach the Finals five more times in the next seven years, but would not win, bowing out to the now-defunct Maroons in 1935, the Detroit Red Wings
in 1936, the Chicago Black Hawks
in 1938, Boston in 1939, and the hated Rangers in 1940. At this time, Smythe allowed Irvin to go to Montreal to help revive the then-moribund Canadiens, replacing him as coach with former Leafs captain Hap Day
.
in the playoffs against Detroit. However, fourth-line forward Don Metz would galvanize the team, coming from nowhere to score a hat-trick
in game four and the game-winning goal in game five, with the Leafs winning both times. Captain
Syl Apps
had won the Lady Byng Memorial Trophy
that season, not taking one penalty and finishing his ten-season career with an average of 5 minutes, 36 seconds in penalties a season. Goalie Turk Broda
would shut out the Wings in game six, and Sweeney Schriner
would score two goals in the third period to win the seventh game 3-1.
Apps told writer Trent Frayne in 1949, "If you want me to be pinned down to my [biggest night in hockey but also my] biggest second, I'd say it was the last tick of the clock that sounded the final bell. It's something I shall never forget at all." It was the first time a major pro sports team came back from behind 3-0 to win a best-of-seven championship series.
Three years later, with their heroes from 1942 dwindling (due to either age, health, or the war), the Leafs turned to lesser-known players like rookie
goalie Frank McCool
and defenceman
Babe Pratt
. They would upset the Red Wings in the 1945 finals
.
The powerful defending champion Montreal Canadiens
and their "Punch Line" (Maurice "Rocket" Richard
, Toe Blake
and Elmer Lach
), would be the Leafs' nemesis two years later when the two teams clashed in the 1947 finals
. Ted "Teeder" Kennedy would score the game-winning goal late in game six to win the Leafs their first of three straight Cups—the first time any NHL team had accomplished that feat. With their Cup victory in 1948, the Leafs moved ahead of Montreal for the most Stanley Cups in league history. It would take the Canadiens 10 years to reclaim the record.
scored with 42 seconds left in the third period of game five to send it to an extra period, and defenceman Bill Barilko
, who had scored only six goals in the regular season, scored the game-winner to win Toronto their fourth Cup in five years. Barilko's glory, however, was short-lived: he disappeared in a plane crash near Timmins
, Ontario
, barely four months after that moment. The Leafs would not win the Cup again that decade.
to a partnership composed of his son Stafford Smythe
, newspaper baron John Bassett
, and Toronto Marlboros
president Harold Ballard
. The sale price was $2.3 million, a handsome return on Smythe's original investment 34 years earlier. Conn Smythe later claimed that he knew nothing about his son's partners, but it is very unlikely that he could have believed Stafford could have raised the money on his own.
Under the new ownership trio, Toronto won another three straight Stanley Cup
s from 1962 to 1964. The team featured Hall of Famers Frank Mahovlich
, Red Kelly
, Johnny Bower
, Dave Keon
, Andy Bathgate
, and Tim Horton
, and was helmed by coach and general manager Punch Imlach
.
In 1967, the Leafs and Canadiens met in the Cup finals for the last time to date, where Montreal was considered to be a heavy favourite. But Bob Pulford
scored the double-overtime winner in Game 3, Jim Pappin
got the series winner in Game 6, and Keon won the Conn Smythe Trophy
as Most Valuable Player
of the playoffs as the Maple Leafs won the Stanley Cup in six games. The Leafs have not won the Stanley Cup (nor even made the Stanley Cup Finals) since.
In 1968, Mahovlich was traded to Detroit in a blockbuster deal, and in 1969, following a first-round playoff loss to the Bruins, Smythe fired Imlach. Horton declared, "If this team doesn't want Imlach, I guess it doesn't want me." He was traded to the New York Rangers
the next year.
, and Darryl Sittler
, poor win/loss records, and not a single Stanley Cup championship.
During the 1970s, with the overall talent level in the league diluted by the addition of 12 new franchises and the birth of the rival World Hockey Association
(WHA), the Leafs were able to ice competitive teams for several seasons. But despite the presence of stars such as Sittler, McDonald, Dave "Tiger" Williams
, Ian Turnbull, and Borje Salming
, they only once made it past the second round of the playoffs, besting the New York Islanders
(a soon-to-be dynasty) in the 1978 quarter-finals only to be swept by arch-rival Montreal in the semi-finals. One of the few highlights from this era occurred on February 7, 1976, when Sittler scored six goals and four assists against the Bruins
to establish a NHL single-game points record that still stands more than 30 years later.
The serious decline started in July 1979, when Ballard brought back Imlach, a long-time friend, as general manager. Imlach traded McDonald to undermine his friend Sittler's influence on the team. Sittler himself was gone two years later, when the Leafs traded him to the Philadelphia Flyers
. He was the franchise's all-time leading scorer until Mats Sundin
passed Sittler's total in 2007.
The McDonald trade sent the Leafs into a downward spiral. They finished five games under .500 and barely made the playoffs. For the next 12 years, the Leafs (who had shifted to the Norris Division
for the 1981–82 season) were barely competitive, not posting another winning record until 1992–93. They missed the playoffs six times and finished above fourth in their division only once (in 1990, the only season where they even posted a .500 record). They made it beyond the first round of the playoffs twice (in 1986 and 1987, advancing to the division finals). The low point came in 1984–85, when they finished 32 games under .500, the second-worst record in franchise history (their .300 winning percentage was only 22 percentage points higher than the 1918–19 Arenas).
The Leafs' poor records during the 1980s, however, did result in several high draft picks. Wendel Clark
, the first overall pick in the 1985 draft, was the lone success from the entry drafts of this period and went on to captain the team.
, Don Crump and Don Giffin were executors of his will. Calgary Flames
GM Cliff Fletcher
, who had crafted the Flames' 1989 Stanley Cup championship team, was hired by Don Giffin to run the team against the objections of Stavro who told Fletcher directly that he wanted to install his own man.
Fletcher immediately set about building a club that would be competitive once again, making a series of trades and free agent acquisitions which turned the Leafs from an also-ran to a contender almost overnight, starting in 1992–93. Outstanding play from forwards Doug Gilmour
(an acquaintance of Fletcher's from Calgary) and Dave Andreychuk
(acquired from the Buffalo Sabres
in exchange for Grant Fuhr
), as well as stellar goaltending from minor league call-up Felix Potvin
, led the team to a then-franchise-record 99 points, third place in the Norris Division
, and the eighth-best overall record in the league. Toronto dispatched the Detroit Red Wings
in seven games in the first round, then defeated the St. Louis Blues
in another seven games in the Division Finals.
Hoping to meet long-time rival Montreal (who was playing in the Wales Conference
Finals against the New York Islanders
) in the Cup Finals, the Leafs faced the Los Angeles Kings
in the Campbell Conference Finals. The Leafs led the series 3-2, but dropped Game 6 in Los Angeles. The game was not without controversy, as Wayne Gretzky
clipped Gilmour in the face with his stick, but referee Kerry Fraser
did not call a penalty and Gretzky scored the winning goal moments later. Gretzky's hat-trick
in Game 7 finished the Leafs' run, and it was the Kings that moved on to the Cup Finals against the Canadiens.
The Leafs had another strong season in 1993–94, finishing with 98 points, good enough for fifth overall in the league – their highest finish in 16 years. However, despite finishing one point above Calgary, Toronto was seeded third in the Western Conference
(formerly the Campbell Conference) by virtue of the Flames' Pacific Division
title. The Leafs eliminated the division rival Chicago Blackhawks
in six games and the surprising San Jose Sharks
in seven before falling to the Vancouver Canucks
in five games in the Western Conference Finals. At that year's draft
, the Leafs would package Clark in a trade with the Quebec Nordiques
that netted them Mats Sundin
.
, the co-founder of Toronto's new National Basketball Association
(NBA) team, the Toronto Raptors
, as a partner. Maple Leaf Gardens Ltd. was accordingly renamed Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment (MLSE), to be the parent company of the Leafs and the Raptors. MLSE has expanded since then, adding the Toronto Marlies
(the Leafs' farm team) of the American Hockey League
(AHL) and the Toronto FC
of Major League Soccer
(MLS) to its stable of franchises.
After two years out of the playoffs in the late 1990s, the Leafs acquired goaltender Curtis Joseph
as a free agent from the Edmonton Oilers
and signed Pat Quinn
, who had been fired by Vancouver in 1997, to serve as head coach. This resulted in the Leafs making another charge during the 1999 playoffs after moving from Maple Leaf Gardens
to the new Air Canada Centre
, shared with the Toronto Raptors. The team eliminated the Philadelphia Flyers
and Pittsburgh Penguins
in the first two rounds of the playoffs, but lost in five games to the Buffalo Sabres
in the Eastern Conference Finals.
Toronto reached the second round of the playoffs in both 2000 and 2001, only to lose both times to the New Jersey Devils
, who made the Stanley Cup Finals both seasons and won in 2000. The 2000 season was particularly notable because it marked the Leafs' first division title in 37 years, as well as the franchise's first-ever 100-point season. The season ended on a particular low, however, with the Leafs being held to just 6 shots in game six of the second round against the Devils.
In 2002, the Leafs dispatched the Islanders and their Ontario
rivals, the Ottawa Senators
, in the first two rounds, only to lose to the Cinderella-story
Carolina Hurricanes
in the Conference Finals. The 2002 season was particularly impressive in that the Leafs had many of their better players sidelined by injuries, but managed to make it to the conference finals due to the efforts of lesser-known players who were led mainly by Gary Roberts and Alyn McCauley
.
Joseph left to go to the defending champion Red Wings in the 2002 off-season; the team found a replacement in veteran Ed Belfour
, who came over from the Dallas Stars
and had been a crucial part of their 1999 Stanley Cup run. Belfour could not help their playoff woes in the 2003 playoffs, however, as the team lost to Philadelphia in seven games in the first round. 2003 also witnessed a change in the ownership ranks, as Stavro sold his controlling interest in MLSE to the Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan
and resigned his position as Chairman of the Board in favour of Tanenbaum. Stavro died in 2006.
The 2003–04 season started in an uncommon way for the team, as they held their training camp in Sweden
and played in the NHL Challenge
against teams from Sweden and Finland
. That year, the Leafs had a very successful regular season, posting a franchise-record 103 points. They finished with the fourth-best record in the league (their best overall finish in 41 years) and also managed a .628 win percentage, their best in 43 years and the third-best in franchise history. Toronto defeated the Senators in the first round of the playoffs for the fourth time in five years, but lost to the Flyers in the second round in six games.
, the Leafs were eliminated from playoff contention for the first time since 1998. This marked the first time that the team missed the playoffs under coach Pat Quinn
, and he was fired shortly after the season. Paul Maurice
, an experienced NHL coach who had just coached the Leafs' American Hockey League
affiliate, the Toronto Marlies
, in their inaugural season, was announced as Pat Quinn's replacement. On June 30, 2006, the Maple Leafs bought out the contract of long-time fan favourite, Tie Domi
. In addition to Domi, the Maple Leafs also decided against picking up the option year on the contract of goaltender Ed Belfour
. Both players became free agents on July 1, 2006, effectively ending their tenures with the Toronto Maple Leafs. However, despite the coaching change and addition of new players such as Pavel Kubina
and Michael Peca
, the Leafs again did not make the playoffs in 2006–07
.
For 2007–08
, the Leafs brought in players such as Jason Blake and Vesa Toskala while Jeff O'Neill and J.S. Aubin left. On January 22, 2008, general manager John Ferguson, Jr. was fired and was replaced by Cliff Fletcher
on an interim basis. Though it was expected by some that the Leafs could make the playoffs, they ended up missing again. It was the first time that the Leafs had missed the playoffs three years in a row since before even the days of the Maple Leaf Gardens. 2007-08 was also Mats Sundin's last year with the Leafs.
On May 7, the Leafs fired head coach Paul Maurice and assistant coach Randy Ladouceur
, and replaced them with former San Jose Sharks
coach, Ron Wilson, and assistants Tim Hunter and Rob Zettler
.
On June 26, 2009, Burke made his first draft appearance as the Leafs GM at the 2009 NHL Entry Draft
and selected Nazem Kadri
with the 7th overall pick. On September 18, 2009, Burke made a trade with the Boston Bruins
for forward Phil Kessel
for their first and second round Entry Draft selections in 2010, as well as a first round Entry Draft pick in 2011. On January 31, 2010 the Leafs made a trade with the Calgary Flames
which involved seven players and brought Dion Phaneuf
to the Leafs. On June 14, 2010, the Leafs named Dion Phaneuf as captain after two seasons without a captain following Sundin's departure. On February 18, 2011, the Leafs sent long time Leaf Tomáš Kaberle
to the Boston Bruins
in exchange for prospect Joe Colborne
, Boston's 1st round choice in the 2011 NHL Entry Draft
and a conditional 2nd round draft choice.
The first was the original 1917 blue uniforms of the Torontos, later the Arenas. The logo was the letter “T” sometimes on a blue shield. The second was in 1919 when they were renamed the St. Pats and wore green uniforms with “Toronto St. Pats” on the logo, lettered in green either on a white “pill” shape or stripes.
The third major change was for the 1927—28 season when the team’s name was changed to the Maple Leafs, gaining in new logo and returning to the blue uniform. The logo was 47-point maple leaf with “Toronto Maple Leafs” lettered in white. The home jersey was blue with alternating thin-thick stripes on the arms, legs and shoulders. The road uniform was white with three stripes on the chest and back, waist and legs. For 1933–34, the alternating thin-thick stripes were replaced with stripes of equal thickness. This would remain as the basic design for the next forty years.
Before the next major change there were several minor changes. In 1937, veins were added to the leaf of the logo and “Toronto” is curved downwards at the ends instead of upwards. In 1942, the 35-point leaf was introduced. In 1946, the logo added trimming to the Leaf with a white or blue border and “C” for captain and “A” for alternate captain appeared on the sweaters for the first time. In 1947, the logo’s “Toronto Maple Leafs” was lettered in red for a short time. In 1958, a six-eyelet lace and tie was added to the neck and a blue shoulder yoke was added. In 1961, player numbers added to the sleeves.
For the 1966–67 season, came the fourth major change. The leaf of the logo was changed to a blue 11-point leaf, similar to the leaf on the Canadian flag to commemorate the Canadian centennial. Again, this was followed by many minor changes. In 1970, the League introduced rules requiring teams to were white jerseys for home games. Other changes to the sweater were arm stripes removed and yoke extended to the end of the sleeves, solid stripe on the waist and three stripes on the stockings and a miniature Leaf crest added to shoulders. On the logo the lettering “Toronto” was no longer curved, but parallel to the “Maple Leafs” lettering. Thin blue 11-point maple leaf with rounded corners. In 1973, the jersey’s neck was a lace tie-down design. In 1976, the V-neck returned. In 1977, player names were added to the away jerseys and in 1979 to the home jerseys, but not after the Leafs were fined by the NHL for refusing to bide to a new rule requiring player names on the jerseys.
In more recent years there has been fan interest in the jersey designs of the past. For the 1991–92 season, the Leafs wore uniforms that were styled after the “original six” era for some games and these were received positively by the fans. Thus for the 1992–93 season, due to enthusiastic fan reaction for the previous season's classic uniforms the first changes to the Leaf uniform in over 20 years were made for the season. Two stripes on the arms and waist were added. A “TML” logo added to the shoulder. For the 2010—11 season, there were more changes to reflect a more “old-school” appearance. The sweater returned the horizontal stripes and veined Leaf shoulder patches were added.
era, teams played each other 14 times during the regular season, and with only four teams continuing into the playoffs, rivalries between teams were intense. As one of the most successful teams of this era, the Leafs established historical rivalries with the two other winningest teams of the time, the Montreal Canadiens
and Detroit Red Wings
.
has been called the greatest in hockey. The Canadiens have won 24 Stanley Cups, while the Leafs have won 13, putting them at first and second place in NHL history, respectively. While the rivalry began with the NHL's first season, it has been said that it began in earnest when Toronto general manager Frank J. Selke
left his position in 1946 due to a dispute with team owner Conn Smythe
to become the GM in Montreal, eventually leading the Canadiens to six Stanley Cups. As of 2009, the two teams have faced each other fifteen times in the playoffs, with six of those matches being in the Stanley Cup Final. Toronto has won four of those six meetings. Although the rivalry has been less relevant since Toronto defeated Montreal in the 1967 Cup Final, it has been kept alive as recently as 2007. With one game left in the season, Toronto trailed Montreal for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference
by only two points. Down 5–3 in the second period, the Leafs were able to win the game 6–5 and swipe the final playoff spot from Montreal.
The rivalry from the perspective of the Canadiens fan is perhaps most famously captured in the popular Canadian short story "The Hockey Sweater
" by Roch Carrier
, originally published in French
as "Une abominable feuille d'érable sur la glace" ("An abominable maple leaf on the ice") in reference to the Maple Leafs sweater his mother forces him to wear. This rivalry is also evident in Toronto's College
subway station
, in which the northbound side of the station has the mural depicting the Canadiens and the southbound side has the Leafs mural.
was no less intense. The rivalry between the two teams dates back to the 1920s. In the playoffs, as of 1997, they had met twenty-three times, with five being in the Stanley Cup Final. So fierce was the rivalry between Detroit and Toronto that when the New York Rangers
reached the Stanley Cup Final against Detroit in 1950, but could not play in their home rink, Madison Square Garden
, due to the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus
being in town, they arranged to play their home games in Toronto, whose fans hated the Wings. In the 1950s, the rivalry was heightened to a fever pitch, due to an incident in the 1950 playoffs when Detroit's young star, Gordie Howe
, mistimed a check on Toronto's Ted Kennedy and fell head-first into the boards, suffering severe injuries and needing emergency surgery to save his life. While Kennedy was exonerated by the NHL, Detroit management and fans accused him of deliberately injuring Howe. The result was a violent playoff series and an increased animosity between the two teams. The two teams' proximity to each other — Toronto and Detroit are approximately 380 kilometres (236.1 mi) apart — and a number of shared fans (particularly in markets such as Windsor, Ontario
) added to the rivalry. Since the Maple Leafs moved to the Eastern Conference
in 1998, however, the two teams have faced each other less often each season, and the rivalry is more often found in the stands than on the ice.
, known as the Battle of Ontario
, has heated up since the late 1990s, owing in no small part to the Canadiens' struggles during that period. As of 2011, while Ottawa has dominated during most of the teams' regular season match-ups in recent years, the Leafs have won all four postseason series between the two teams, including in one case a four-game sweep. However, the rivalry has somewhat diminished since the lockout, owing largely to the Leafs' failure to make the postseason since that time.
was also held at Maple Leaf Gardens in 1947.
Besides the Air Canada Centre
, the Leafs have a practice facility at the MasterCard Centre for Hockey Excellence
. Opened in 2009, it was built on the site of the former Lakeshore Lions Arena
(c. 1951). The practice facility has two rinks and is operated by the local Lions Club.
In 1946, the comedy team of Wayne and Shuster
performed a sketch on their CBC radio program in which the imaginary hockey team, the Mimico Mice, competed against the Toronto Maple Leafs. Foster Hewitt did the play-by-play of the game, real Maple Leaf player names were used for the Leafs and Wayne and Shuster played the entire Mimico team. In 1949, Foster Hewitt wrote a juvenile hockey novel, He Shoots, he scores!, which featured the Toronto Maple Leafs, including actual managers and players on the team.
In 1963, Scott Young wrote A Boy at the Leafs' Camp, a children's book giving a behind-the-scenes insight into the world of hockey. In 1971, Scott Young with George Robertson wrote an adult hockey-romance novel, Face-off, about the experiences of a star rookie player, Billy Duke, with the Toronto Maple Leafs. The novel was also a movie in 1971 with Art Hindle
as Billy Duke. The film featured many of the actual players for the Toronto Maple Leafs. Jim McKenny
, body-doubled for Hindle for the on-ice hockey action scenes due to a resemblance to Hindle and Harold Ballard, owner of the Leafs, had a part as the team's doctor.
In 1979, Roch Carrier wrote the short story The Hockey Sweater about an experience as a young boy of being forced to wear the sweater of the hated Toronto Maple Leafs instead of his beloved Canadiens by his mother who had given him the sweater as a present. In 1980, the story was turned into an animated short by the National Film Board.
More recently, in 1992, the rock band The Tragically Hip
released the song Fifty Mission Cap
which memorialized Bill Barilko. In 1993, the film Gross Misconduct was about the life of former Maple Leaf Brian Spencer
. Comedian Mike Myers, a Toronto native and Maple Leaf fan, has often included references and even an entire plot line in his films. In Goldmember
the ticker below the news item on a television reads, "Maple Leafs win Stanley Cup". In another scene, the character Mini Me is wearing a Maple Leaf sweater. In 2008, Mike Myers played a guru hired by the Toronto Maple Leafs to help their star player in the movie The Love Guru
. In 2010, at the beginning of the spy film Fair Game
CIA agent Valerie Plame
is being questioned by a suspicious weapons trafficker. He asks her if she's an American and after responding that she's a Canadian he asks her about the Toronto Maple Leafs. She replies that she's not a fan.
, several cities in the Sun Belt
have sizable numbers of Leaf fans, since many Snowbirds
tend to flock to locales such as Atlanta (before the Thrashers
moved to Winnipeg
as the Jets
), Phoenix
, Tampa Bay
, and Miami during the winter, resulting in a boost in turnout and ticket sales when these franchises play the Maple Leafs.
Toronto Maple Leaf fans are also known for being loyal despite being poorly rewarded—in a 2008 survey by ESPN The Magazine
the Leafs were ranked 121st out of the 122 professional teams in the Big Four leagues. Teams were graded by stadium experience, ownership, player quality, ticket affordability, championships won and "bang for the buck"; in particular, the Leafs came last in ticket affordability.
Conversely, there is an equally passionate dislike of the team by fans of several other NHL teams. In November 2002, the Leafs were named by Sports Illustrated
hockey writer Michael Farber as the "Most Hated Team in Hockey".
The mascot of the Toronto Maple Leafs is Carlton the Bear, an anthropomorphic
polar bear
whose name and number (#60) comes from the location of Maple Leaf Gardens
, at 60 Carlton Street in that city, where they played throughout much of their history.
. The list includes anyone who played for the Leafs who was later inducted as a player. The list of builders includes anyone inducted as a builder who spent any part of their career in a coaching, management, or ownership role with the Leafs.
Legend: Pos = Position; GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; P/G = Points per game; * = current Maple Leafs player
Source: Toronto Maple Leafs Media Guide.
Ice hockey
Ice hockey, often referred to as hockey, is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use wooden or composite sticks to shoot a hard rubber puck into their opponent's net. The game is played between two teams of six players each. Five members of each team skate up and down the ice trying to take...
team based in Toronto
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
, Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. They are members of the Northeast Division
Northeast Division (NHL)
The NHL's Northeast Division was formed in 1993 as part of the Eastern Conference in a league realignment, the predecessor of which was the Adams Division...
of the Eastern Conference
Eastern Conference (NHL)
The Eastern Conference is one of two conferences in the National Hockey League used to divide teams. Its counterpart is the Western Conference....
of the National Hockey League
National Hockey League
The National Hockey League is an unincorporated not-for-profit association which operates a major professional ice hockey league of 30 franchised member clubs, of which 7 are currently located in Canada and 23 in the United States...
(NHL). The organization, one of the "Original Six
Original Six
The Original Six is a term for the group of six teams that composed the National Hockey League for the 25 seasons between the 1942–43 season and the 1967 NHL Expansion. These six teams are the Boston Bruins, Chicago Black Hawks, Detroit Red Wings, Montreal Canadiens, New York Rangers, and the...
" members of the NHL, is officially known as the Toronto Maple Leaf Hockey Club and is the leading subsidiary of Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment, (MLSE). They have played at the Air Canada Centre
Air Canada Centre
The Air Canada Centre is a multi-purpose indoor sporting arena located on Bay Street in Downtown Toronto, Ontario, Canada.The arena is popularly known as the ACC or the Hangar ....
(ACC) since 1999, after 68 years at Maple Leaf Gardens
Maple Leaf Gardens
Maple Leaf Gardens is an indoor arena that was converted into a Loblawssupermarket and Ryerson University athletic centre in Toronto, on the northwest corner of Carlton Street and Church Street in Toronto's Garden District.One of the temples of hockey, it was home to the Toronto Maple Leafs of the...
.
The Leafs are well known for their long and bitter rivalry
National Hockey League rivalries
Rivalries in the National Hockey League have occurred between many teams and cities. Rivalries have arisen for many different reasons, the primary ones including geographic proximity, familiarity with opponents, on-ice incidents , and cultural, linguistic, or national pride.The importance of...
with the Montreal Canadiens
Montreal Canadiens
The Montreal Canadiens are a professional ice hockey team based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . The club is officially known as ...
, and more recently the Ottawa Senators
Ottawa Senators
The Ottawa Senators are a professional ice hockey team based in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League...
. The franchise's 13 championships are second only to the Canadiens, who have 24. Toronto has won eleven Stanley Cup
Stanley Cup
The Stanley Cup is an ice hockey club trophy, awarded annually to the National Hockey League playoffs champion after the conclusion of the Stanley Cup Finals. It has been referred to as The Cup, Lord Stanley's Cup, The Holy Grail, or facetiously as Lord Stanley's Mug...
s as the Maple Leafs since the cup became solely competed for within the NHL in 1927, and two cups prior to this: one as the St. Patricks
Toronto St. Patricks
The Toronto St. Patricks professional men's ice hockey team started as an amateur ice hockey organization. In 1919, the club purchased the Toronto National Hockey League franchise from the NHL. The club renamed the franchise the Toronto St. Patricks club and operated the franchise until 1927, when...
, and one as the Arenas
Toronto Arenas
The Toronto Arenas, Toronto Blueshirts or Torontos was a professional men's ice hockey team that played in the first two seasons of the National Hockey League . It was operated by the owner of the Arena Gardens, the Toronto Arena Company...
. However, the Leafs have not won the Cup since 1967
1967 Stanley Cup Finals
The 1967 Stanley Cup Final was a best-of-seven series played between the Montreal Canadiens and the Toronto Maple Leafs. The Maple Leafs would win the series four games to two to win their thirteenth Stanley Cup...
, giving them the longest-active Cup drought in the NHL, and thus are the only Original Six
Original Six
The Original Six is a term for the group of six teams that composed the National Hockey League for the 25 seasons between the 1942–43 season and the 1967 NHL Expansion. These six teams are the Boston Bruins, Chicago Black Hawks, Detroit Red Wings, Montreal Canadiens, New York Rangers, and the...
team that has not won the Cup since the 1967 NHL expansion
1967 NHL expansion
The National Hockey League undertook a major expansion for the 1967–68 season, adding six new franchises to double the size of the league. This marked the first change in the composition of the league since 1942, when the Brooklyn Americans folded. Thus, the expansion ended the era of the Original...
.
At $505 million US (in 2010), the Leafs are the most valuable team in the NHL, followed by the New York Rangers
New York Rangers
The New York Rangers are a professional ice hockey team based in the borough of Manhattan in New York, New York, USA. They are members of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . Playing their home games at Madison Square Garden, the Rangers are one of the...
and the Montreal Canadiens
Montreal Canadiens
The Montreal Canadiens are a professional ice hockey team based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . The club is officially known as ...
.
Early years
The National Hockey League was formed in 1917 in MontrealMontreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
by teams formerly belonging to the National Hockey Association
National Hockey Association
The National Hockey Association was a professional ice hockey organization with teams in Ontario and Quebec, Canada. It is the direct predecessor organization to today's National Hockey League...
(NHA) that had a dispute with Eddie Livingstone, owner of the Toronto Blueshirts
Toronto Blueshirts
The Toronto Hockey Club, known as the Torontos and the Toronto Blue Shirts were a professional National Hockey Association team that played in Toronto, Ontario, Canada...
. The owners of the other four clubs – the Montreal Canadiens
Montreal Canadiens
The Montreal Canadiens are a professional ice hockey team based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . The club is officially known as ...
, Montreal Wanderers
Montreal Wanderers
The Montreal Wanderers were a Canadian amateur, and later becoming a professional men's ice hockey team. The team played in the Federal Amateur Hockey League , the Eastern Canada Amateur Hockey Association , the National Hockey Association and briefly the National Hockey League . The Wanderers are...
, Quebec Bulldogs
Quebec Bulldogs
The Quebec Bulldogs were a men's senior-level ice hockey team officially known as the Quebec Hockey Club, later as the Quebec Athletic Club. Their recorded play goes back as far as the Amateur Hockey Association of Canada in 1889, although the Quebec Hockey Club is known to have played since 1880...
, and Ottawa Senators
Ottawa Senators (original)
The Ottawa Senators were an amateur, and later, professional, ice hockey team based in Ottawa, Canada which existed from 1883 to 1954. The club was the first hockey club in Ontario, a founding member of the National Hockey League and played in the NHL from 1917 until 1934...
– wanted to get rid of Livingstone, but discovered that the NHA constitution did not allow them to simply vote him out of the league. Instead, they opted to create a new league, the NHL, and did not invite Livingstone to join them. They also remained voting members of the NHA, and thus had enough votes to suspend the other league's operations, effectively leaving Livingstone's squad in a one-team league.
However, the other clubs felt it would be unthinkable not to have a team from Toronto (Canada's second largest city at the time) in the new league. They also needed another team to balance the schedule after the Bulldogs suspended operations (and as it turned out, would not ice a team until 1920). Accordingly, the NHL granted a "temporary" Toronto franchise to the Arena Company, owners of the Arena Gardens
Mutual Street Arena
Mutual Street Arena, initially called Arena Gardens or just the Arena, was an ice hockey arena and sports and entertainment venue in Toronto, Ontario...
. The Arena Company was allowed to lease the Blueshirts' players, but was given until the end of the season to resolve the dispute with Livingstone. This temporary franchise did not have an official name, but was informally called "the Blueshirts" or "the Torontos" by the fans and press. Under manager Charlie Querrie
Charles Querrie
Charles Laurens Querrie was the first General Manager of the Toronto Maple Leafs, at the time called the Toronto Arenas and the Toronto St. Patricks . Querrie won two Stanley Cups with the team, in 1917–18 and again in 1921–22....
and coach Dick Carroll
Dick Carroll
Richard Leo "Dick" Carroll was a Canadian ice hockey coach, leading the Toronto team in the National Hockey League to the Stanley Cup championship in 1918 and the Toronto Canoe Club junior hockey team to the Memorial Cup in 1920....
, the Toronto team won the Stanley Cup
Stanley Cup
The Stanley Cup is an ice hockey club trophy, awarded annually to the National Hockey League playoffs champion after the conclusion of the Stanley Cup Finals. It has been referred to as The Cup, Lord Stanley's Cup, The Holy Grail, or facetiously as Lord Stanley's Mug...
in the NHL's inaugural season. Although the roster was composed almost entirely of former Blueshirts, the Maple Leafs do not claim the Blueshirts' history as their own.
For the next season, rather than return the Blueshirts' players to Livingstone as originally promised, the Arena Company formed its own team, the Toronto Arena Hockey Club, which was readily granted full-fledged membership in the NHL. Also that year, the Arena Company board decided that only NHL teams would be allowed to play at the Arena Gardens—a move which effectively killed the NHA. Livingstone sued to get his players back. Mounting legal bills from the dispute forced the Arenas to sell most of their stars, resulting in a horrendous five-win season in 1918–19. When it was obvious that the Arenas would not be able to finish out the season, the NHL agreed to let the Arenas halt operations on February 20, 1919 and proceed directly to the playoffs. The Arenas' .278 winning percentage that season is still the worst in franchise history. However, since the 1919 Stanley Cup Finals
1919 Stanley Cup Finals
Seattle dominated Montreal under PCHA rules, scoring two in the first, three in the second and a further two in the third. Corbeau of Montreal was injured but finished the game and continued to play in the series as a substitute.-Game two:...
ended without a winner due to the worldwide flu epidemic, the Arenas proclaimed themselves champions by default.
The legal dispute forced the Arena Company into bankruptcy, and it was forced to put the Arenas up for sale. Querrie put together a group that mainly consisted of the people who had run the senior amateur St. Patricks team in the Ontario Hockey Association. The new owners renamed the team the Toronto St. Patricks (or St. Pats for short) and would operate it until 1927. This period saw the team's jersey colours change from blue to green, as well as a second Stanley Cup championship in 1922.
During this time, the St. Patricks also allowed other teams to play in the Arena whenever their home rinks lacked proper ice in the warmer months. At the time, the Arena was the only facility east of Manitoba
Manitoba
Manitoba is a Canadian prairie province with an area of . The province has over 110,000 lakes and has a largely continental climate because of its flat topography. Agriculture, mostly concentrated in the fertile southern and western parts of the province, is vital to the province's economy; other...
with artificial ice.
Conn Smythe era
Querrie lost a lawsuit to Livingstone and decided to put the St. Pats up for sale. He gave serious consideration to a $200,000 bid from a Philadelphia group. However, Toronto Varsity Graduates coach Conn SmytheConn Smythe
Constantine Falkland Cary Smythe MC was a Canadian businessman, soldier and sportsman in ice hockey and horse racing. He is best known as the principal owner of the Toronto Maple Leafs of the National Hockey League from 1927 to 1961 and as the builder of Maple Leaf Gardens...
put together an ownership group of his own and made a $160,000 offer for the franchise. With the support of St. Pats shareholder J. P. Bickell
Jack Bickell
John Paris "Jack" Bickell was a Canadian businessman, philanthropist, and sports team owner.-Early life and mining:...
, Smythe persuaded Querrie to reject the Philadelphia bid, arguing that civic pride was more important than money.
After taking control on Valentine's Day 1927, Smythe immediately renamed the team the Maple Leafs (the Toronto Maple Leafs baseball team had won the International League
International League
The International League is a minor league baseball league that operates in the eastern United States. Like the Pacific Coast League and the Mexican League, it plays at the Triple-A level, which is one step below Major League Baseball. It was so named because it had teams in both the United States...
championship a few months earlier and had been using that name for 30 years). The Maple Leafs say that the name was chosen in honour of the Maple Leaf Regiment from World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
. As the regiment is a proper noun, its plural is formed by adding a simple 's' creating Maple Leafs (not *Maple Leaves). Another story says that Smythe named the team after a team he had once scouted, called the East Toronto Maple Leafs, while Smythe's grandson states that Conn named the team after the Maple Leaf insignia he had worn during the First World War. Initial reports were that the team's colours would be changed to red and white, but the Leafs were wearing white sweaters with a green maple leaf for their first game on February 17, 1927. The next season, the Leafs appeared for the first time in the blue and white sweaters they have worn ever since. The Maple Leafs say that blue represents the Canadian skies and white represents snow, but it also follows the tradition of blue being Toronto's principal sporting colour starting with the Toronto Argonauts
Toronto Argonauts
The Toronto Argonauts are a professional Canadian football team competing in the East Division of the Canadian Football League. The Toronto, Ontario based team was founded in 1873 and is one of the oldest existing professional sports teams in North America, after the Chicago Cubs and the Atlanta...
in 1873 and the University of Toronto
University of Toronto
The University of Toronto is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, situated on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution of higher learning in Upper Canada...
Varsity Blues
Varsity Blues
The Varsity Blues is the name for the intercollegiate sports program at the University of Toronto. Its 26 athletic teams regularly participate in competitions held by Ontario University Athletics and Canadian Interuniversity Sport. The Varsity Blues traces its founding to 1877, with the formation...
in 1877 (and later the Toronto Blue Jays
Toronto Blue Jays
The Toronto Blue Jays are a professional baseball team located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The Blue Jays are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball 's American League ....
in 1977).
1930s: Opening of Maple Leaf Gardens
Maple Leaf Gardens
Maple Leaf Gardens is an indoor arena that was converted into a Loblawssupermarket and Ryerson University athletic centre in Toronto, on the northwest corner of Carlton Street and Church Street in Toronto's Garden District.One of the temples of hockey, it was home to the Toronto Maple Leafs of the...
, with a 2-1 loss to the Chicago Black Hawks
Chicago Blackhawks
The Chicago Blackhawks are a professional ice hockey team based in Chicago, Illinois. They are members of the Central Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League . They have won four Stanley Cup championships since their founding in 1926, most recently coming in 2009-10...
on November 12, 1931.
Led by the "Kid Line" (Busher Jackson
Busher Jackson
Harvey "Busher" Jackson was a Canadian professional ice hockey left winger and defenceman who played for the Toronto Maple Leafs, Boston Bruins, and New York Americans in the National Hockey League....
, Joe Primeau
Joe Primeau
Alfred Joseph Francis "Gentleman Joe" Primeau , was a Canadian professional ice hockey player.-Playing career:...
and Charlie Conacher
Charlie Conacher
Charles William "The Big Bomber" Conacher, Sr. was a Canadian professional ice hockey forward who played for the Toronto Maple Leafs, Detroit Red Wings and New York Americans in the National Hockey League. An early power forward, Conacher was nicknamed "The Big Bomber," for his size, powerful...
) and coach Dick Irvin
Dick Irvin
James Dickinson Irvin, Sr. was a Canadian ice hockey player and coach in the National Hockey League.Born in Hamilton, Ontario, Irvin was one of the greatest players of his day, balancing a torrid slapshot and tough style with gentlemanly play...
, the Leafs would capture their third Stanley Cup during the first season in their stadium, vanquishing the Montreal Maroons
Montreal Maroons
The Montreal Maroons was a professional men's ice hockey team in the National Hockey League . They played in the NHL from 1924 to 1938, winning the Stanley Cup in 1926 and 1935...
in the first round, the Boston Bruins
Boston Bruins
The Boston Bruins are a professional ice hockey team based in Boston, Massachusetts, USA. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . The team has been in existence since 1924, and is the league's third-oldest team and its oldest in the...
in the semifinals, and the New York Rangers
New York Rangers
The New York Rangers are a professional ice hockey team based in the borough of Manhattan in New York, New York, USA. They are members of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . Playing their home games at Madison Square Garden, the Rangers are one of the...
in the Stanley Cup Finals. Smythe took particular pleasure in defeating the Rangers that year; he had been tapped as the Rangers' first general manager and coach in the Rangers' inaugural season (1926–27), but had been fired in a dispute with Madison Square Garden
Madison Square Garden
Madison Square Garden, often abbreviated as MSG and known colloquially as The Garden, is a multi-purpose indoor arena in the New York City borough of Manhattan and located at 8th Avenue, between 31st and 33rd Streets, situated on top of Pennsylvania Station.Opened on February 11, 1968, it is the...
management before the season.
The Leafs' star forward, Ace Bailey
Ace Bailey
Irvine Wallace "Ace" Bailey was an ice hockey player who competed for the Toronto Maple Leafs during eight seasons, from 1926–1933.-Playing career:...
, was nearly killed in 1933 when Boston Bruins
Boston Bruins
The Boston Bruins are a professional ice hockey team based in Boston, Massachusetts, USA. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . The team has been in existence since 1924, and is the league's third-oldest team and its oldest in the...
defenceman Eddie Shore
Eddie Shore
Edward William Shore was a Canadian professional ice hockey defenceman, principally for the Boston Bruins of the National Hockey League, and the longtime owner of the Springfield Indians of the American Hockey League, iconic for his toughness and defensive skill.Shore won the Hart Trophy as the...
checked him from behind into the boards at full speed. Maple Leafs defenceman Red Horner
Red Horner
George Reginald "Red" Horner was an ice hockey defenceman for the Toronto Maple Leafs of the National Hockey League from 1928 to 1940. He was the Leafs captain from 1938 until his retirement. He helped the Leafs win their first Stanley Cup in 1932...
was able to knock Shore out with a punch, but it was too late as Bailey, who was by now writhing on the ice, had his career ended. The Leafs would hold the NHL's first All-Star Game to benefit Bailey.
The Leafs would reach the Finals five more times in the next seven years, but would not win, bowing out to the now-defunct Maroons in 1935, the Detroit Red Wings
Detroit Red Wings
The Detroit Red Wings are a professional ice hockey team based in Detroit, Michigan. They are members of the Central Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League , and are one of the Original Six teams of the NHL, along with the Toronto Maple Leafs, Montreal Canadiens, New York...
in 1936, the Chicago Black Hawks
Chicago Blackhawks
The Chicago Blackhawks are a professional ice hockey team based in Chicago, Illinois. They are members of the Central Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League . They have won four Stanley Cup championships since their founding in 1926, most recently coming in 2009-10...
in 1938, Boston in 1939, and the hated Rangers in 1940. At this time, Smythe allowed Irvin to go to Montreal to help revive the then-moribund Canadiens, replacing him as coach with former Leafs captain Hap Day
Hap Day
Clarence Henry "Happy" Day , later known as Hap Day, was a Canadian professional hockey player who played 14 seasons in the National Hockey League for the Toronto Maple Leafs and New York Americans...
.
1940s: A second decade of success
In the 1942 season, the Maple Leafs were down three games to none in a best-of-seven final1942 Stanley Cup Finals
-References & notes:...
in the playoffs against Detroit. However, fourth-line forward Don Metz would galvanize the team, coming from nowhere to score a hat-trick
Hat-trick
A hat-trick or hat trick in sport is the achievement of a positive feat three times during a game, or other achievements based on threes. The term was first used in 1858 in cricket to describe HH Stephenson's feat of taking three wickets in three balls. A collection was held for Stephenson, and he...
in game four and the game-winning goal in game five, with the Leafs winning both times. Captain
Captain (ice hockey)
In ice hockey, each team can designate an official captain for each game. The player serving as captain during the game wears a "C" on his or her jersey...
Syl Apps
Syl Apps
Charles Joseph Sylvanus Apps, CM of Paris, Ontario, was a Canadian pole vaulter and professional hockey player for the Toronto Maple Leafs from 1936 to 1948 and a Conservative Member of Provincial Parliament in Ontario.-Athletic career:Apps was a strong athlete, 6 feet tall, weighing 185 pounds,...
had won the Lady Byng Memorial Trophy
Lady Byng Memorial Trophy
The Lady Byng Memorial Trophy, formerly known as the Lady Byng Trophy, is presented each year to the National Hockey League "player adjudged to have exhibited the best type of sportsmanship and gentlemanly conduct combined with a high standard of playing ability"...
that season, not taking one penalty and finishing his ten-season career with an average of 5 minutes, 36 seconds in penalties a season. Goalie Turk Broda
Turk Broda
Walter "Turk" Broda was an ice hockey goaltender, playing his entire career for the Toronto Maple Leafs of the National Hockey League . Broda was born in Brandon, Manitoba to a Ukrainian family; joining the Maple Leafs in 1936.-Personal:...
would shut out the Wings in game six, and Sweeney Schriner
Sweeney Schriner
David "Sweeney" Schriner was a Russian-born Canadian professional ice hockey forward who played 11 seasons in the National Hockey League for the New York Americans and Toronto Maple Leafs. He was named Rookie of the Year in 1935 and was the NHL scoring leader in 1935–36 and 1936–37...
would score two goals in the third period to win the seventh game 3-1.
Apps told writer Trent Frayne in 1949, "If you want me to be pinned down to my [biggest night in hockey but also my] biggest second, I'd say it was the last tick of the clock that sounded the final bell. It's something I shall never forget at all." It was the first time a major pro sports team came back from behind 3-0 to win a best-of-seven championship series.
Three years later, with their heroes from 1942 dwindling (due to either age, health, or the war), the Leafs turned to lesser-known players like rookie
Rookie
Rookie is a term for a person who is in his or her first year of play of their sport or has little or no professional experience. The term also has the more general meaning of anyone new to a profession, training or activity Rookie is a term for a person who is in his or her first year of play of...
goalie Frank McCool
Frank McCool
Francis McCool was a Canadian professional ice hockey goaltender who played for the Toronto Maple Leafs in the National Hockey League. He was born in Calgary, Alberta.-Playing career:...
and defenceman
Defenceman (ice hockey)
Defence in ice hockey is a player position whose primary responsibility is to prevent the opposing team from scoring...
Babe Pratt
Babe Pratt
Walter "Babe" Pratt was a Canadian professional ice hockey defenceman/left winger who played for the New York Rangers, Toronto Maple Leafs and the Boston Bruins in the National Hockey League.Babe was an important member of two Stanley Cup winning teams, the 1940 Rangers and 1945 Maple Leafs...
. They would upset the Red Wings in the 1945 finals
1945 Stanley Cup Finals
-References and notes:* Podnieks, Andrew; Hockey Hall of Fame . Lord Stanley's Cup. Bolton, Ont.: Fenn Pub. pp 12, 50. ISBN 978-1-55168-261-7...
.
The powerful defending champion Montreal Canadiens
Montreal Canadiens
The Montreal Canadiens are a professional ice hockey team based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . The club is officially known as ...
and their "Punch Line" (Maurice "Rocket" Richard
Maurice Richard
Joseph Henri Maurice "the Rocket" Richard, Sr., was a French-Canadian professional ice hockey player who played for the Montreal Canadiens of the National Hockey League from 1942 to 1960. The "Rocket" was the most prolific goal-scorer of his era, the first to achieve the feat of 50 goals in 50...
, Toe Blake
Toe Blake
Hector "Toe" Blake, CM was a Canadian ice hockey player and coach in the National Hockey League .-Nickname:His nickname came out of his childhood for his younger sister was unable to pronounce his name...
and Elmer Lach
Elmer Lach
Elmer James Lach is a retired Canadian professional ice hockey centre who played 14 seasons for the Montreal Canadiens in the National Hockey League. He was part of the Punch line, along with Maurice Richard and Toe Blake. He led the league in scoring twice, and was awarded the Hart Memorial...
), would be the Leafs' nemesis two years later when the two teams clashed in the 1947 finals
1947 Stanley Cup Finals
The 1947 Stanley Cup Final was a best-of-seven series between the Toronto Maple Leafs and the defending champion Montreal Canadiens. The Maple Leafs would win the series four games to two. This was the first all-Canadian finals in 12 years.-Paths to the final:...
. Ted "Teeder" Kennedy would score the game-winning goal late in game six to win the Leafs their first of three straight Cups—the first time any NHL team had accomplished that feat. With their Cup victory in 1948, the Leafs moved ahead of Montreal for the most Stanley Cups in league history. It would take the Canadiens 10 years to reclaim the record.
1950s: The Barilko Curse
The Maple Leafs and Montreal Canadiens would meet once again in the finals in 1951, with all five games going to overtime. Tod SloanTod Sloan (ice hockey)
Aloysius Martin "Tod" Sloan is a retired Canadian ice hockey forward.Sloan started his National Hockey League career with the Toronto Maple Leafs in 1948. He would also play for the Chicago Black Hawks. He would retire after the 1961 season...
scored with 42 seconds left in the third period of game five to send it to an extra period, and defenceman Bill Barilko
Bill Barilko
William "Bashin' Bill" Barilko was a Canadian ice hockey player who played his entire National Hockey League career for the Toronto Maple Leafs.- Personal life :Barilko was of Ukrainian descent and had a brother, Alex, and sister, Anne....
, who had scored only six goals in the regular season, scored the game-winner to win Toronto their fourth Cup in five years. Barilko's glory, however, was short-lived: he disappeared in a plane crash near Timmins
Timmins
Timmins is a city in northeastern Ontario, Canada on the Mattagami River. At the time of the Canada 2006 Census, Timmins' population was 42,997...
, Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
, barely four months after that moment. The Leafs would not win the Cup again that decade.
1960s: New owners and a new dynasty
Before the 1961–62 season, Smythe sold nearly all of his shares in Maple Leaf GardensMaple Leaf Gardens
Maple Leaf Gardens is an indoor arena that was converted into a Loblawssupermarket and Ryerson University athletic centre in Toronto, on the northwest corner of Carlton Street and Church Street in Toronto's Garden District.One of the temples of hockey, it was home to the Toronto Maple Leafs of the...
to a partnership composed of his son Stafford Smythe
Stafford Smythe
Conn Stafford Smythe was the son of Conn Smythe and president of Maple Leaf Gardens Ltd. and the Toronto Maple Leafs hockey team from 1961–1969 and from 1970 until his death.-Early years:...
, newspaper baron John Bassett
John Bassett
John White Hughes Bassett, was a Canadian publisher and media baron.Born in Ottawa, Ontario, he was the son of John Bassett , publisher of the Montreal Gazette, and Margaret Avery. Bassett attended Ashbury College and graduated from Bishop's University with a BA in 1936...
, and Toronto Marlboros
Toronto Marlboros
The Toronto Marlborough Athletic Club, commonly known as the Toronto Marlboros, was founded in 1903. It operated a junior ice hockey team in the Ontario Hockey Association and Ontario Hockey League from 1904 to 1989...
president Harold Ballard
Harold Ballard
Harold E. Ballard was an owner of the Toronto Maple Leafs of the National Hockey League as well as their home arena, Maple Leaf Gardens. A member of the Leafs organization from 1940 and a senior executive from 1957, he became part-owner of the team in 1961 and was majority owner from February...
. The sale price was $2.3 million, a handsome return on Smythe's original investment 34 years earlier. Conn Smythe later claimed that he knew nothing about his son's partners, but it is very unlikely that he could have believed Stafford could have raised the money on his own.
Under the new ownership trio, Toronto won another three straight Stanley Cup
Stanley Cup
The Stanley Cup is an ice hockey club trophy, awarded annually to the National Hockey League playoffs champion after the conclusion of the Stanley Cup Finals. It has been referred to as The Cup, Lord Stanley's Cup, The Holy Grail, or facetiously as Lord Stanley's Mug...
s from 1962 to 1964. The team featured Hall of Famers Frank Mahovlich
Frank Mahovlich
Francis William "The Big M" Mahovlich, CM is a Canadian Senator, and a retired NHL ice hockey player, nicknamed the "Big M." He played on six Stanley Cup-winning teams and is an inductee of the Hockey Hall of Fame.-Playing career:...
, Red Kelly
Red Kelly
Leonard Patrick "Red" Kelly, CM is a retired Canadian ice hockey player in the NHL. He played on more Stanley Cup winning teams than any player who never played for the Montreal Canadiens, and is the only player to be part of two of the nine dynasties recognized by the NHL in its history...
, Johnny Bower
Johnny Bower
John William Bower , nicknamed "The China Wall", is a Hockey Hall of Fame goalie.-Playing career:...
, Dave Keon
Dave Keon
David Michael Keon is a retired Canadian professional ice hockey centre. He played professionally from 1960–61 to 1981–82, including 15 seasons with the Toronto Maple Leafs, and was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1986....
, Andy Bathgate
Andy Bathgate
Andrew James Bathgate is a retired Canadian professional ice hockey centre who played 17 seasons in the National Hockey League for the New York Rangers, Toronto Maple Leafs, Detroit Red Wings and Pittsburgh Penguins.-Playing career:...
, and Tim Horton
Tim Horton
Myles Gilbert "Tim" Horton was a Canadian professional ice hockey defenceman. He played in 24 seasons in the National Hockey League for the Toronto Maple Leafs, New York Rangers, Pittsburgh Penguins, and Buffalo Sabres. He was also a businessman and a co-founder of Tim Hortons. He died in an...
, and was helmed by coach and general manager Punch Imlach
Punch Imlach
George "Punch" Imlach , was an NHL coach and general manager. He is a member of the Hockey Hall of Fame.-Early career:...
.
In 1967, the Leafs and Canadiens met in the Cup finals for the last time to date, where Montreal was considered to be a heavy favourite. But Bob Pulford
Bob Pulford
Robert Jesse Pulford is a retired Canadian professional ice hockey forward who played for the Toronto Maple Leafs and Los Angeles Kings in the National Hockey League...
scored the double-overtime winner in Game 3, Jim Pappin
Jim Pappin
James Joseph Pappin is a retired professional ice hockey right winger. He won his first Stanley Cup in 1964 with the Toronto Maple Leafs. In 1967, Pappin led the NHL in playoff goals and points and won a second Stanley Cup with the Toronto Maple Leafs...
got the series winner in Game 6, and Keon won the Conn Smythe Trophy
Conn Smythe Trophy
The Conn Smythe Trophy is awarded annually to the player judged most valuable to his team during the National Hockey League's Stanley Cup playoffs. The Conn Smythe Trophy has been awarded 46 times to 40 players since the 1964–65 NHL season...
as Most Valuable Player
Most Valuable Player
In sports, a Most Valuable Player award is an honor typically bestowed upon the best performing player or players on a specific team, in an entire league, or for a particular contest or series of contests...
of the playoffs as the Maple Leafs won the Stanley Cup in six games. The Leafs have not won the Stanley Cup (nor even made the Stanley Cup Finals) since.
In 1968, Mahovlich was traded to Detroit in a blockbuster deal, and in 1969, following a first-round playoff loss to the Bruins, Smythe fired Imlach. Horton declared, "If this team doesn't want Imlach, I guess it doesn't want me." He was traded to the New York Rangers
New York Rangers
The New York Rangers are a professional ice hockey team based in the borough of Manhattan in New York, New York, USA. They are members of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . Playing their home games at Madison Square Garden, the Rangers are one of the...
the next year.
1970s and 1980s: The Ballard years
Following Stafford Smythe's death, Harold Ballard bought his shares to take majority control of the team. Ballard's controversial term as the Leafs' owner was marked by several disputes with prominent players, including Keon, Lanny McDonaldLanny McDonald
Lanny King McDonald is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player for the Toronto Maple Leafs, Colorado Rockies and Calgary Flames of the National Hockey League . He played over 1,100 games during a 16-year NHL career in which he scored 500 goals and over 1,000 points...
, and Darryl Sittler
Darryl Sittler
Darryl Glen Sittler is a retired professional ice hockey player who played in the National Hockey League from 1970 until 1985 for the Toronto Maple Leafs, the Philadelphia Flyers and the Detroit Red Wings. He was elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1989.On February 7, 1976, Sittler set an NHL...
, poor win/loss records, and not a single Stanley Cup championship.
During the 1970s, with the overall talent level in the league diluted by the addition of 12 new franchises and the birth of the rival World Hockey Association
World Hockey Association
The World Hockey Association was a professional ice hockey league that operated in North America from 1972 to 1979. It was the first major competition for the National Hockey League since the collapse of the Western Hockey League in 1926...
(WHA), the Leafs were able to ice competitive teams for several seasons. But despite the presence of stars such as Sittler, McDonald, Dave "Tiger" Williams
Tiger Williams
David James "Tiger" Williams is a former professional ice hockey player who played in the National Hockey League from 1974–75 to 1987–88. He is the NHL's career leader in penalty minutes.-NHL career:...
, Ian Turnbull, and Borje Salming
Börje Salming
Anders Börje Salming , nicknamed "The King", is a retired Swedish professional ice hockey defenceman. He played for Kiruna AIF, Brynäs IF, the Toronto Maple Leafs, the Detroit Red Wings, and AIK. Salming was one of the first European players to make an impact in the National Hockey League , paving...
, they only once made it past the second round of the playoffs, besting the New York Islanders
New York Islanders
The New York Islanders are a professional ice hockey team based in Uniondale, New York. They are members of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League...
(a soon-to-be dynasty) in the 1978 quarter-finals only to be swept by arch-rival Montreal in the semi-finals. One of the few highlights from this era occurred on February 7, 1976, when Sittler scored six goals and four assists against the Bruins
Boston Bruins
The Boston Bruins are a professional ice hockey team based in Boston, Massachusetts, USA. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . The team has been in existence since 1924, and is the league's third-oldest team and its oldest in the...
to establish a NHL single-game points record that still stands more than 30 years later.
The serious decline started in July 1979, when Ballard brought back Imlach, a long-time friend, as general manager. Imlach traded McDonald to undermine his friend Sittler's influence on the team. Sittler himself was gone two years later, when the Leafs traded him to the Philadelphia Flyers
Philadelphia Flyers
The Philadelphia Flyers are a professional ice hockey team based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They are members of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League...
. He was the franchise's all-time leading scorer until Mats Sundin
Mats Sundin
Mats Johan Sundin is a retired Swedish professional ice hockey player. Originally drafted first overall in 1989, Sundin played his first four seasons in the NHL with the Quebec Nordiques. He was traded to the Toronto Maple Leafs in 1994, where he played the majority of his career, serving 11...
passed Sittler's total in 2007.
The McDonald trade sent the Leafs into a downward spiral. They finished five games under .500 and barely made the playoffs. For the next 12 years, the Leafs (who had shifted to the Norris Division
Norris Division
The NHL's Norris Division was formed in 1974 as part of the Prince of Wales Conference. The division moved to the Clarence Campbell Conference in 1981, with the Detroit Red Wings being the only member to remain from the previous season. The division existed for 19 seasons until 1993. The...
for the 1981–82 season) were barely competitive, not posting another winning record until 1992–93. They missed the playoffs six times and finished above fourth in their division only once (in 1990, the only season where they even posted a .500 record). They made it beyond the first round of the playoffs twice (in 1986 and 1987, advancing to the division finals). The low point came in 1984–85, when they finished 32 games under .500, the second-worst record in franchise history (their .300 winning percentage was only 22 percentage points higher than the 1918–19 Arenas).
The Leafs' poor records during the 1980s, however, did result in several high draft picks. Wendel Clark
Wendel Clark
Wendel L. Clark is a retired Canadian professional ice hockey player. He is perhaps best known for being a member of the Toronto Maple Leafs of the National Hockey League , captaining the team from 1991 to 1994...
, the first overall pick in the 1985 draft, was the lone success from the entry drafts of this period and went on to captain the team.
Early 1990s: Resurgence
Ballard died in 1990, and Steve StavroSteve Stavro
Steve Atanas Stavro, CM , born Manoli Stavroff Sholdas, was a Macedonian Canadian businessman, grocery store magnate, Thoroughbred racehorse owner/breeder, sports team owner, and a noted philanthropist....
, Don Crump and Don Giffin were executors of his will. Calgary Flames
Calgary Flames
The Calgary Flames are a professional ice hockey team based in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. They are members of the Northwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League . The club is the third major-professional ice hockey team to represent the city of Calgary, following the...
GM Cliff Fletcher
Cliff Fletcher
George Clifford Fletcher is a National Hockey League executive and is a former general manager of the Atlanta Flames/Calgary Flames, Toronto Maple Leafs, and Phoenix Coyotes . He is currently a Senior Advisor to the Toronto Maple Leafs...
, who had crafted the Flames' 1989 Stanley Cup championship team, was hired by Don Giffin to run the team against the objections of Stavro who told Fletcher directly that he wanted to install his own man.
Fletcher immediately set about building a club that would be competitive once again, making a series of trades and free agent acquisitions which turned the Leafs from an also-ran to a contender almost overnight, starting in 1992–93. Outstanding play from forwards Doug Gilmour
Doug Gilmour
Douglas Robert Gilmour is a retired Canadian professional ice hockey player who is the current general manager of the Kingston Frontenacs of the Ontario Hockey League . During his National Hockey League career, Gilmour played for 7 NHL clubs: the St...
(an acquaintance of Fletcher's from Calgary) and Dave Andreychuk
Dave Andreychuk
David John Andreychuk is a former professional ice hockey left winger who played in the NHL with the Buffalo Sabres, Toronto Maple Leafs, New Jersey Devils, Boston Bruins, Colorado Avalanche and Tampa Bay Lightning...
(acquired from the Buffalo Sabres
Buffalo Sabres
The Buffalo Sabres are a professional ice hockey team based in Buffalo, New York. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League .-Founding and early success: 1970-71—1980-81:...
in exchange for Grant Fuhr
Grant Fuhr
Grant Scott Fuhr is a Canadian former ice hockey goaltender in the National Hockey League and currently the goaltending coach for the Phoenix Coyotes. In 2003, he was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame...
), as well as stellar goaltending from minor league call-up Felix Potvin
Felix Potvin
Félix "The Cat" Potvin is a former National Hockey League goaltender.-QMJHL career:From 1988 through to 1991 Potvin played with the Chicoutimi Saguenéens, a Quebec Major Junior Hockey League team...
, led the team to a then-franchise-record 99 points, third place in the Norris Division
Norris Division
The NHL's Norris Division was formed in 1974 as part of the Prince of Wales Conference. The division moved to the Clarence Campbell Conference in 1981, with the Detroit Red Wings being the only member to remain from the previous season. The division existed for 19 seasons until 1993. The...
, and the eighth-best overall record in the league. Toronto dispatched the Detroit Red Wings
Detroit Red Wings
The Detroit Red Wings are a professional ice hockey team based in Detroit, Michigan. They are members of the Central Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League , and are one of the Original Six teams of the NHL, along with the Toronto Maple Leafs, Montreal Canadiens, New York...
in seven games in the first round, then defeated the St. Louis Blues
St. Louis Blues
The St. Louis Blues are a professional ice hockey team based in St. Louis, Missouri. They are members of the Central Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League . The team is named after the famous W. C. Handy song "St. Louis Blues", and plays in the 19,150-seat Scottrade...
in another seven games in the Division Finals.
Hoping to meet long-time rival Montreal (who was playing in the Wales Conference
Eastern Conference (NHL)
The Eastern Conference is one of two conferences in the National Hockey League used to divide teams. Its counterpart is the Western Conference....
Finals against the New York Islanders
New York Islanders
The New York Islanders are a professional ice hockey team based in Uniondale, New York. They are members of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League...
) in the Cup Finals, the Leafs faced the Los Angeles Kings
Los Angeles Kings
The Los Angeles Kings are a professional ice hockey team based in Los Angeles, California. They are members of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League...
in the Campbell Conference Finals. The Leafs led the series 3-2, but dropped Game 6 in Los Angeles. The game was not without controversy, as Wayne Gretzky
Wayne Gretzky
Wayne Douglas Gretzky, CC is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player and former head coach. Nicknamed "The Great One", he is generally regarded as the best player in the history of the National Hockey League , and has been called "the greatest hockey player ever" by many sportswriters,...
clipped Gilmour in the face with his stick, but referee Kerry Fraser
Kerry Fraser
Kerry Fraser is a hockey analyst and former senior referee in the National Hockey League, having joined the National Hockey League Officials Association on September 1, 1973, and officiating his first game in the 1980–81 season. Fraser's father, Hilton "Hilt" Fraser, had him skating at 15 months...
did not call a penalty and Gretzky scored the winning goal moments later. Gretzky's hat-trick
Hat-trick
A hat-trick or hat trick in sport is the achievement of a positive feat three times during a game, or other achievements based on threes. The term was first used in 1858 in cricket to describe HH Stephenson's feat of taking three wickets in three balls. A collection was held for Stephenson, and he...
in Game 7 finished the Leafs' run, and it was the Kings that moved on to the Cup Finals against the Canadiens.
The Leafs had another strong season in 1993–94, finishing with 98 points, good enough for fifth overall in the league – their highest finish in 16 years. However, despite finishing one point above Calgary, Toronto was seeded third in the Western Conference
Western Conference (NHL)
The Western Conference is one of two conferences in the National Hockey League used to divide teams. Its counterpart is the Eastern Conference....
(formerly the Campbell Conference) by virtue of the Flames' Pacific Division
Pacific Division (NHL)
The National Hockey League's Pacific Division is one of three divisions that make up the Western Conference. It was formed in 1993 as part of a league realignment...
title. The Leafs eliminated the division rival Chicago Blackhawks
Chicago Blackhawks
The Chicago Blackhawks are a professional ice hockey team based in Chicago, Illinois. They are members of the Central Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League . They have won four Stanley Cup championships since their founding in 1926, most recently coming in 2009-10...
in six games and the surprising San Jose Sharks
San Jose Sharks
The San Jose Sharks are a professional ice hockey team based in San Jose, California, United States. They are members of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League...
in seven before falling to the Vancouver Canucks
Vancouver Canucks
The Vancouver Canucks are a professional ice hockey team based in Vancouver, :British Columbia, Canada. They are members of the Northwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League . The Canucks play their home games at Rogers Arena, formerly known as General Motors Place,...
in five games in the Western Conference Finals. At that year's draft
1994 NHL Entry Draft
The 1994 NHL Entry Draft was held at the Hartford Civic Center on June 28–29, 1994.-Selections by round:Club teams are located in North America unless otherwise noted.-Round one:-Round two:-Round three:-Round four:...
, the Leafs would package Clark in a trade with the Quebec Nordiques
Quebec Nordiques
The Quebec Nordiques were a professional ice hockey team based in Quebec City, Quebec, Canada. The Nordiques played in the World Hockey Association and the National Hockey League...
that netted them Mats Sundin
Mats Sundin
Mats Johan Sundin is a retired Swedish professional ice hockey player. Originally drafted first overall in 1989, Sundin played his first four seasons in the NHL with the Quebec Nordiques. He was traded to the Toronto Maple Leafs in 1994, where he played the majority of his career, serving 11...
.
A new home and a new millennium
In 1996, Stavro took on Larry TanenbaumLarry Tanenbaum
Lawrence "Larry" Tanenbaum is a Canadian businessman who is chairman of Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment...
, the co-founder of Toronto's new National Basketball Association
National Basketball Association
The National Basketball Association is the pre-eminent men's professional basketball league in North America. It consists of thirty franchised member clubs, of which twenty-nine are located in the United States and one in Canada...
(NBA) team, the Toronto Raptors
Toronto Raptors
The Toronto Raptors are a professional basketball team based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. They are part of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference in the National Basketball Association . The team was established in 1995, along with the Vancouver Grizzlies, as part of the NBA's re-expansion...
, as a partner. Maple Leaf Gardens Ltd. was accordingly renamed Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment (MLSE), to be the parent company of the Leafs and the Raptors. MLSE has expanded since then, adding the Toronto Marlies
Toronto Marlies
The Toronto Marlies is a Canadian professional ice hockey team currently playing in the American Hockey League . The top affiliate of the National Hockey League 's Toronto Maple Leafs, the Marlies play at the Ricoh Coliseum in Toronto, Ontario...
(the Leafs' farm team) of the American Hockey League
American Hockey League
The American Hockey League is a 30-team professional ice hockey league based in the United States and Canada that serves as the primary developmental circuit for the National Hockey League...
(AHL) and the Toronto FC
Toronto FC
Toronto FC is a Canadian professional soccer club based in Toronto, Ontario which competes in Major League Soccer , the top professional soccer league in the United States and Canada....
of Major League Soccer
Major League Soccer
Major League Soccer is a professional soccer league based in the United States and sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation . The league is composed of 19 teams — 16 in the U.S. and 3 in Canada...
(MLS) to its stable of franchises.
After two years out of the playoffs in the late 1990s, the Leafs acquired goaltender Curtis Joseph
Curtis Joseph
Curtis Shayne Joseph is a retired Canadian professional ice hockey goaltender. He last played for the Toronto Maple Leafs of the National Hockey League....
as a free agent from the Edmonton Oilers
Edmonton Oilers
The Edmonton Oilers are a professional ice hockey team based in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. They are members of the Northwest Division in the Western Conference of the National Hockey League ....
and signed Pat Quinn
Pat Quinn (ice hockey)
John Brian Patrick Quinn , is a former head coach in the National Hockey League , most recently with the Edmonton Oilers. Known by the nickname "The Big Irishman",...
, who had been fired by Vancouver in 1997, to serve as head coach. This resulted in the Leafs making another charge during the 1999 playoffs after moving from Maple Leaf Gardens
Maple Leaf Gardens
Maple Leaf Gardens is an indoor arena that was converted into a Loblawssupermarket and Ryerson University athletic centre in Toronto, on the northwest corner of Carlton Street and Church Street in Toronto's Garden District.One of the temples of hockey, it was home to the Toronto Maple Leafs of the...
to the new Air Canada Centre
Air Canada Centre
The Air Canada Centre is a multi-purpose indoor sporting arena located on Bay Street in Downtown Toronto, Ontario, Canada.The arena is popularly known as the ACC or the Hangar ....
, shared with the Toronto Raptors. The team eliminated the Philadelphia Flyers
Philadelphia Flyers
The Philadelphia Flyers are a professional ice hockey team based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They are members of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League...
and Pittsburgh Penguins
Pittsburgh Penguins
The Pittsburgh Penguins are a professional ice hockey team based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. They are members of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . The franchise was founded in 1967 as one of the first expansion teams during the league's original...
in the first two rounds of the playoffs, but lost in five games to the Buffalo Sabres
Buffalo Sabres
The Buffalo Sabres are a professional ice hockey team based in Buffalo, New York. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League .-Founding and early success: 1970-71—1980-81:...
in the Eastern Conference Finals.
Toronto reached the second round of the playoffs in both 2000 and 2001, only to lose both times to the New Jersey Devils
New Jersey Devils
The New Jersey Devils are a professional ice hockey team based in Newark, New Jersey, United States. They are members of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League...
, who made the Stanley Cup Finals both seasons and won in 2000. The 2000 season was particularly notable because it marked the Leafs' first division title in 37 years, as well as the franchise's first-ever 100-point season. The season ended on a particular low, however, with the Leafs being held to just 6 shots in game six of the second round against the Devils.
In 2002, the Leafs dispatched the Islanders and their Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
rivals, the Ottawa Senators
Ottawa Senators
The Ottawa Senators are a professional ice hockey team based in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League...
, in the first two rounds, only to lose to the Cinderella-story
Cinderella (sports)
In American and Canadian sports, a Cinderella or "Cinderella Story" refers to a team or player who advances much further in a tournament or career than originally anticipated. Cinderellas tend to gain much media and fan attention as they move closer to the championship game at the end of the...
Carolina Hurricanes
Carolina Hurricanes
The Carolina Hurricanes are a professional ice hockey team based in Raleigh, North Carolina, USA. They are members of the Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League , and play their home games at the 18,680-seat RBC Center...
in the Conference Finals. The 2002 season was particularly impressive in that the Leafs had many of their better players sidelined by injuries, but managed to make it to the conference finals due to the efforts of lesser-known players who were led mainly by Gary Roberts and Alyn McCauley
Alyn McCauley
Alyn Daniel McCauley is a retired Canadian professional ice hockey player who played in the National Hockey League for ten years with the Toronto Maple Leafs, San Jose Sharks, and the Los Angeles Kings...
.
Joseph left to go to the defending champion Red Wings in the 2002 off-season; the team found a replacement in veteran Ed Belfour
Ed Belfour
Edward John Belfour is a former Canadian professional ice hockey goaltender.Belfour was born in Carman, Manitoba and grew up playing hockey. He played junior hockey for the Winkler Flyers before going to the University of North Dakota where he helped the school win the NCAA championship in the...
, who came over from the Dallas Stars
Dallas Stars
The Dallas Stars are a professional ice hockey team based in Dallas, Texas. They are members of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League . The team was founded during the 1967 NHL expansion as the Minnesota North Stars, based in Bloomington, Minnesota. The...
and had been a crucial part of their 1999 Stanley Cup run. Belfour could not help their playoff woes in the 2003 playoffs, however, as the team lost to Philadelphia in seven games in the first round. 2003 also witnessed a change in the ownership ranks, as Stavro sold his controlling interest in MLSE to the Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan
Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan
The Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan , commonly referred to as Teachers, is the organization responsible for administering pensions for public school teachers of the Canadian province of Ontario. The OTPP also invests the plan's pension fund, making it one of the largest and most powerful investment...
and resigned his position as Chairman of the Board in favour of Tanenbaum. Stavro died in 2006.
The 2003–04 season started in an uncommon way for the team, as they held their training camp in Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
and played in the NHL Challenge
NHL Challenge
The NHL Challenge series allows select NHL teams to travel outside of North America to conduct training camp and participate in exhibition games...
against teams from Sweden and Finland
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
. That year, the Leafs had a very successful regular season, posting a franchise-record 103 points. They finished with the fourth-best record in the league (their best overall finish in 41 years) and also managed a .628 win percentage, their best in 43 years and the third-best in franchise history. Toronto defeated the Senators in the first round of the playoffs for the fourth time in five years, but lost to the Flyers in the second round in six games.
Post-lockout era
Following the 2004–05 NHL lockout, the Leafs have experienced very rough times. They struggled in 2005–06, and despite a late-season surge (9-1-2 in their final 12), led by third-string goaltender Jean-Sebastien AubinJean-Sébastien Aubin
Jean-Sébastien "J. S." Aubin is a Canadian professional ice hockey goaltender who plays for the DEG Metro Stars of the Deutsche Eishockey Liga .-Playing career:...
, the Leafs were eliminated from playoff contention for the first time since 1998. This marked the first time that the team missed the playoffs under coach Pat Quinn
Pat Quinn (ice hockey)
John Brian Patrick Quinn , is a former head coach in the National Hockey League , most recently with the Edmonton Oilers. Known by the nickname "The Big Irishman",...
, and he was fired shortly after the season. Paul Maurice
Paul Maurice
Paul Maurice is a former Canadian professional ice hockey player and twice head coach of the National Hockey League's Carolina Hurricanes. At age 43, Maurice became the youngest coach in NHL history to coach 1,000 games. Maurice reached this milestone on November 28, 2010...
, an experienced NHL coach who had just coached the Leafs' American Hockey League
American Hockey League
The American Hockey League is a 30-team professional ice hockey league based in the United States and Canada that serves as the primary developmental circuit for the National Hockey League...
affiliate, the Toronto Marlies
Toronto Marlies
The Toronto Marlies is a Canadian professional ice hockey team currently playing in the American Hockey League . The top affiliate of the National Hockey League 's Toronto Maple Leafs, the Marlies play at the Ricoh Coliseum in Toronto, Ontario...
, in their inaugural season, was announced as Pat Quinn's replacement. On June 30, 2006, the Maple Leafs bought out the contract of long-time fan favourite, Tie Domi
Tie Domi
Tahir "Tie" Domi is a retired Canadian professional ice hockey player. During a sixteen-year NHL career when he was known for his role as an enforcer, he played for the Toronto Maple Leafs, New York Rangers and Winnipeg Jets....
. In addition to Domi, the Maple Leafs also decided against picking up the option year on the contract of goaltender Ed Belfour
Ed Belfour
Edward John Belfour is a former Canadian professional ice hockey goaltender.Belfour was born in Carman, Manitoba and grew up playing hockey. He played junior hockey for the Winkler Flyers before going to the University of North Dakota where he helped the school win the NCAA championship in the...
. Both players became free agents on July 1, 2006, effectively ending their tenures with the Toronto Maple Leafs. However, despite the coaching change and addition of new players such as Pavel Kubina
Pavel Kubina
Pavel Kubina is a Czech professional ice hockey defenceman, and is currently playing for the Tampa Bay Lightning.-Playing career:Kubina started his professional career with HC Vítkovice of the Czech Extraliga...
and Michael Peca
Michael Peca
Michael Anthony "Mike" Peca is a retired Canadian professional ice hockey forward in the National Hockey League . He most recently played for the Columbus Blue Jackets of the NHL. He has also played for the Vancouver Canucks, Buffalo Sabres, New York Islanders, Edmonton Oilers and Toronto Maple...
, the Leafs again did not make the playoffs in 2006–07
2006–07 Toronto Maple Leafs season
The 2006–07 NHL season saw the Toronto Maple Leafs attempting to recover from a 2005–06 season in which it finished two points out of the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.-Offseason:...
.
For 2007–08
2007–08 Toronto Maple Leafs season
The 2007–08 Toronto Maple Leafs season began October 4, 2007. It is the 91st season of the franchise, 81st season as the Maple Leafs.In an effort to return to the playoffs in 2007–08, the Leafs made two significant moves during the off-season. The first, was to acquire goaltender Vesa Toskala,...
, the Leafs brought in players such as Jason Blake and Vesa Toskala while Jeff O'Neill and J.S. Aubin left. On January 22, 2008, general manager John Ferguson, Jr. was fired and was replaced by Cliff Fletcher
Cliff Fletcher
George Clifford Fletcher is a National Hockey League executive and is a former general manager of the Atlanta Flames/Calgary Flames, Toronto Maple Leafs, and Phoenix Coyotes . He is currently a Senior Advisor to the Toronto Maple Leafs...
on an interim basis. Though it was expected by some that the Leafs could make the playoffs, they ended up missing again. It was the first time that the Leafs had missed the playoffs three years in a row since before even the days of the Maple Leaf Gardens. 2007-08 was also Mats Sundin's last year with the Leafs.
On May 7, the Leafs fired head coach Paul Maurice and assistant coach Randy Ladouceur
Randy Ladouceur
Randall Ladouceur . Ladouceur is a current assistant coach of the Montreal Canadiens. He is a former assistant coach of the Hamilton Bulldogs and former assistant coach of the Toronto Maple Leafs...
, and replaced them with former San Jose Sharks
San Jose Sharks
The San Jose Sharks are a professional ice hockey team based in San Jose, California, United States. They are members of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League...
coach, Ron Wilson, and assistants Tim Hunter and Rob Zettler
Rob Zettler
Rob Zettler is a former Canadian professional ice hockey defenceman who played in the National Hockey League for 14 seasons with the Minnesota North Stars, San Jose Sharks, Philadelphia Flyers, Toronto Maple Leafs, Nashville Predators and Washington Capitals...
.
Brian Burke era
On November 29, 2008, the Maple Leafs hired Brian Burke as their 13th non-interim General Manager (first American) in team history. The acquisition of Burke had ended the second Cliff Fletcher era and settled rumours that Brian was coming to Toronto within the next year.On June 26, 2009, Burke made his first draft appearance as the Leafs GM at the 2009 NHL Entry Draft
2009 NHL Entry Draft
The 2009 NHL Entry Draft was the 47th Entry Draft. It was held on June 26–27, 2009 at the Bell Centre in Montreal, Quebec. The Draft was part of the Montreal Canadiens centennial celebrations. National Hockey League teams took turns selecting amateur ice hockey players from junior, collegiate, or...
and selected Nazem Kadri
Nazem Kadri
Nazem Kadri is a Canadian ice hockey player currently playing for the Toronto Marlies of the American Hockey League. He has also played with the Kitchener Rangers. He was drafted by the Toronto Maple Leafs seventh overall in the 2009 NHL Entry Draft. He won the J...
with the 7th overall pick. On September 18, 2009, Burke made a trade with the Boston Bruins
Boston Bruins
The Boston Bruins are a professional ice hockey team based in Boston, Massachusetts, USA. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . The team has been in existence since 1924, and is the league's third-oldest team and its oldest in the...
for forward Phil Kessel
Phil Kessel
Philip Joseph Kessel, Jr. is an American professional ice hockey forward, and an alternate captain for the Toronto Maple Leafs of the National Hockey League . Kessel is a product of USA Hockey's National Development Team and became that program's all-time leader for goals and points in his final...
for their first and second round Entry Draft selections in 2010, as well as a first round Entry Draft pick in 2011. On January 31, 2010 the Leafs made a trade with the Calgary Flames
Calgary Flames
The Calgary Flames are a professional ice hockey team based in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. They are members of the Northwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League . The club is the third major-professional ice hockey team to represent the city of Calgary, following the...
which involved seven players and brought Dion Phaneuf
Dion Phaneuf
Dion Phaneuf is a Canadian professional ice hockey defenceman and captain of the Toronto Maple Leafs of the National Hockey League...
to the Leafs. On June 14, 2010, the Leafs named Dion Phaneuf as captain after two seasons without a captain following Sundin's departure. On February 18, 2011, the Leafs sent long time Leaf Tomáš Kaberle
Tomas Kaberle
Tomáš Kaberle is a Czech professional ice hockey defenceman, currently playing for the Carolina Hurricanes of the National Hockey League. He previously played for the Toronto Maple Leafs and the Boston Bruins....
to the Boston Bruins
Boston Bruins
The Boston Bruins are a professional ice hockey team based in Boston, Massachusetts, USA. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . The team has been in existence since 1924, and is the league's third-oldest team and its oldest in the...
in exchange for prospect Joe Colborne
Joe Colborne
Joe Colborne is a Canadian professional ice hockey forward with the Toronto Maple Leafs. He was drafted by the Boston Bruins in the first round, 16th overall, in the 2008 NHL Entry Draft.-Playing career:...
, Boston's 1st round choice in the 2011 NHL Entry Draft
2011 NHL Entry Draft
The 2011 NHL Entry Draft was the 49th NHL Entry Draft. It was held on June 24–25, 2011, at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minnesota. It was the first time the Draft was held in the state of Minnesota since the Minnesota North Stars hosted the 1989 NHL Entry Draft.The top three picks consisted...
and a conditional 2nd round draft choice.
History of the logo and uniform
The jersey of the Toronto Maple Leafs has a long history and is one of the best-selling NHL jerseys among fans. Over the years the Leaf uniform has had four major incarnations and numerous minor alterations.The first was the original 1917 blue uniforms of the Torontos, later the Arenas. The logo was the letter “T” sometimes on a blue shield. The second was in 1919 when they were renamed the St. Pats and wore green uniforms with “Toronto St. Pats” on the logo, lettered in green either on a white “pill” shape or stripes.
The third major change was for the 1927—28 season when the team’s name was changed to the Maple Leafs, gaining in new logo and returning to the blue uniform. The logo was 47-point maple leaf with “Toronto Maple Leafs” lettered in white. The home jersey was blue with alternating thin-thick stripes on the arms, legs and shoulders. The road uniform was white with three stripes on the chest and back, waist and legs. For 1933–34, the alternating thin-thick stripes were replaced with stripes of equal thickness. This would remain as the basic design for the next forty years.
Before the next major change there were several minor changes. In 1937, veins were added to the leaf of the logo and “Toronto” is curved downwards at the ends instead of upwards. In 1942, the 35-point leaf was introduced. In 1946, the logo added trimming to the Leaf with a white or blue border and “C” for captain and “A” for alternate captain appeared on the sweaters for the first time. In 1947, the logo’s “Toronto Maple Leafs” was lettered in red for a short time. In 1958, a six-eyelet lace and tie was added to the neck and a blue shoulder yoke was added. In 1961, player numbers added to the sleeves.
For the 1966–67 season, came the fourth major change. The leaf of the logo was changed to a blue 11-point leaf, similar to the leaf on the Canadian flag to commemorate the Canadian centennial. Again, this was followed by many minor changes. In 1970, the League introduced rules requiring teams to were white jerseys for home games. Other changes to the sweater were arm stripes removed and yoke extended to the end of the sleeves, solid stripe on the waist and three stripes on the stockings and a miniature Leaf crest added to shoulders. On the logo the lettering “Toronto” was no longer curved, but parallel to the “Maple Leafs” lettering. Thin blue 11-point maple leaf with rounded corners. In 1973, the jersey’s neck was a lace tie-down design. In 1976, the V-neck returned. In 1977, player names were added to the away jerseys and in 1979 to the home jerseys, but not after the Leafs were fined by the NHL for refusing to bide to a new rule requiring player names on the jerseys.
In more recent years there has been fan interest in the jersey designs of the past. For the 1991–92 season, the Leafs wore uniforms that were styled after the “original six” era for some games and these were received positively by the fans. Thus for the 1992–93 season, due to enthusiastic fan reaction for the previous season's classic uniforms the first changes to the Leaf uniform in over 20 years were made for the season. Two stripes on the arms and waist were added. A “TML” logo added to the shoulder. For the 2010—11 season, there were more changes to reflect a more “old-school” appearance. The sweater returned the horizontal stripes and veined Leaf shoulder patches were added.
Rivalries
During the 25 years of the Original SixOriginal Six
The Original Six is a term for the group of six teams that composed the National Hockey League for the 25 seasons between the 1942–43 season and the 1967 NHL Expansion. These six teams are the Boston Bruins, Chicago Black Hawks, Detroit Red Wings, Montreal Canadiens, New York Rangers, and the...
era, teams played each other 14 times during the regular season, and with only four teams continuing into the playoffs, rivalries between teams were intense. As one of the most successful teams of this era, the Leafs established historical rivalries with the two other winningest teams of the time, the Montreal Canadiens
Montreal Canadiens
The Montreal Canadiens are a professional ice hockey team based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . The club is officially known as ...
and Detroit Red Wings
Detroit Red Wings
The Detroit Red Wings are a professional ice hockey team based in Detroit, Michigan. They are members of the Central Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League , and are one of the Original Six teams of the NHL, along with the Toronto Maple Leafs, Montreal Canadiens, New York...
.
Montreal Canadiens
Toronto's rivalry with the Montreal CanadiensMontreal Canadiens
The Montreal Canadiens are a professional ice hockey team based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . The club is officially known as ...
has been called the greatest in hockey. The Canadiens have won 24 Stanley Cups, while the Leafs have won 13, putting them at first and second place in NHL history, respectively. While the rivalry began with the NHL's first season, it has been said that it began in earnest when Toronto general manager Frank J. Selke
Frank J. Selke
Francis Joseph Aloysius Selke was a Canadian hockey manager in the National Hockey League. He was a nine-time Stanley Cup champion with the Toronto Maple Leafs and Montreal Canadiens and a Hockey Hall of Fame inductee....
left his position in 1946 due to a dispute with team owner Conn Smythe
Conn Smythe
Constantine Falkland Cary Smythe MC was a Canadian businessman, soldier and sportsman in ice hockey and horse racing. He is best known as the principal owner of the Toronto Maple Leafs of the National Hockey League from 1927 to 1961 and as the builder of Maple Leaf Gardens...
to become the GM in Montreal, eventually leading the Canadiens to six Stanley Cups. As of 2009, the two teams have faced each other fifteen times in the playoffs, with six of those matches being in the Stanley Cup Final. Toronto has won four of those six meetings. Although the rivalry has been less relevant since Toronto defeated Montreal in the 1967 Cup Final, it has been kept alive as recently as 2007. With one game left in the season, Toronto trailed Montreal for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference
Eastern Conference (NHL)
The Eastern Conference is one of two conferences in the National Hockey League used to divide teams. Its counterpart is the Western Conference....
by only two points. Down 5–3 in the second period, the Leafs were able to win the game 6–5 and swipe the final playoff spot from Montreal.
The Hockey Sweater
"The Hockey Sweater" is a short story published in 1979 by Canadian author Roch Carrier....
" by Roch Carrier
Roch Carrier
Roch Carrier, OC is a Canadian novelist and author of "contes" . He is among the best known Quebec writers in English Canada....
, originally published in French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
as "Une abominable feuille d'érable sur la glace" ("An abominable maple leaf on the ice") in reference to the Maple Leafs sweater his mother forces him to wear. This rivalry is also evident in Toronto's College
College (TTC)
College is a subway station on the Yonge–University–Spadina line of the Toronto, Ontario, Canada subway that opened in 1954. It is located at 448 Yonge Street at College Street/Carlton Street.-Entrances:...
subway station
Toronto subway and RT
The Toronto subway and RT is a rapid transit system in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, consisting of both underground and elevated railway lines, operated by the Toronto Transit Commission . It was Canada's first completed subway system, with the first line being built under Yonge Street, which opened in...
, in which the northbound side of the station has the mural depicting the Canadiens and the southbound side has the Leafs mural.
Detroit Red Wings
While the Toronto-Montreal rivalry is one of the most famous in sport, the rivalry Toronto had against the Detroit Red WingsDetroit Red Wings
The Detroit Red Wings are a professional ice hockey team based in Detroit, Michigan. They are members of the Central Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League , and are one of the Original Six teams of the NHL, along with the Toronto Maple Leafs, Montreal Canadiens, New York...
was no less intense. The rivalry between the two teams dates back to the 1920s. In the playoffs, as of 1997, they had met twenty-three times, with five being in the Stanley Cup Final. So fierce was the rivalry between Detroit and Toronto that when the New York Rangers
New York Rangers
The New York Rangers are a professional ice hockey team based in the borough of Manhattan in New York, New York, USA. They are members of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . Playing their home games at Madison Square Garden, the Rangers are one of the...
reached the Stanley Cup Final against Detroit in 1950, but could not play in their home rink, Madison Square Garden
Madison Square Garden (1925)
Madison Square Garden was an indoor arena in New York City, the third of that name. It was built in 1925 and closed in 1968, and was located on Eighth Avenue between 49th and 50th Streets in Manhattan on the site of the city's trolley car barns. It was the first Garden that was not located near...
, due to the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus
Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus
Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus is an American circus company. The company was started when the circus created by James Anthony Bailey and P. T. Barnum was merged with the Ringling Brothers Circus. The Ringling brothers purchased the Barnum & Bailey Circus in 1907, but ran the circuses...
being in town, they arranged to play their home games in Toronto, whose fans hated the Wings. In the 1950s, the rivalry was heightened to a fever pitch, due to an incident in the 1950 playoffs when Detroit's young star, Gordie Howe
Gordie Howe
Gordon "Gordie" Howe, OC is a Canadian retired professional ice hockey player who played for the Detroit Red Wings and Hartford Whalers of the National Hockey League , and the Houston Aeros and New England Whalers in the World Hockey Association . Howe is often referred to as Mr...
, mistimed a check on Toronto's Ted Kennedy and fell head-first into the boards, suffering severe injuries and needing emergency surgery to save his life. While Kennedy was exonerated by the NHL, Detroit management and fans accused him of deliberately injuring Howe. The result was a violent playoff series and an increased animosity between the two teams. The two teams' proximity to each other — Toronto and Detroit are approximately 380 kilometres (236.1 mi) apart — and a number of shared fans (particularly in markets such as Windsor, Ontario
Windsor, Ontario
Windsor is the southernmost city in Canada and is located in Southwestern Ontario at the western end of the heavily populated Quebec City – Windsor Corridor. It is within Essex County, Ontario, although administratively separated from the county government. Separated by the Detroit River, Windsor...
) added to the rivalry. Since the Maple Leafs moved to the Eastern Conference
Eastern Conference (NHL)
The Eastern Conference is one of two conferences in the National Hockey League used to divide teams. Its counterpart is the Western Conference....
in 1998, however, the two teams have faced each other less often each season, and the rivalry is more often found in the stands than on the ice.
Ottawa Senators
The rivalry between the Leafs and the Ottawa SenatorsOttawa Senators
The Ottawa Senators are a professional ice hockey team based in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League...
, known as the Battle of Ontario
Battle of Ontario
The Battle of Ontario is a rivalry between the Ottawa Senators and the Toronto Maple Leafs of the National Hockey League, often described as one of the top NHL rivalries. The teams both compete in the Northeast Division and with current NHL scheduling meet 6 times per season...
, has heated up since the late 1990s, owing in no small part to the Canadiens' struggles during that period. As of 2011, while Ottawa has dominated during most of the teams' regular season match-ups in recent years, the Leafs have won all four postseason series between the two teams, including in one case a four-game sweep. However, the rivalry has somewhat diminished since the lockout, owing largely to the Leafs' failure to make the postseason since that time.
Mutual Street Arena
The first home of the Toronto Maple Leafs was the Mutual Street Arena, located at Dundas and Shuter Streets, where they played under various names for their first 13.5 seasons. From the time period of 1912 until 1931 the Mutual Street Arena, also called Arena Gardens, The Terrace or just the Arena, was the premier site of ice hockey in Toronto. Originally built as an Opera house, converted to a rink for hockey because of the game's popularity, the Arena Gardens was the third rink in Canada to feature a mechanically-frozen or 'artificial' ice surface, and for eleven years was the only such facility in eastern Canada.Maple Leaf Gardens
In 1931, over a six-month period Maple Leaf Gardens was built by managing director Conn Smythe at a cost of C$1.5 million ($22 million in 2011 dollars). One of the temples of hockey, it was home to the Leafs until 1999. Located on the northwest corner of Carlton Street and Church Street and acquired the nickname the "Carlton Street Cashbox", by virtue of the fact that Leaf games were constantly sold out. The Leafs won 11 Stanley Cups from 1932–1967 while playing at the Gardens. Other significant hockey events at the Gardens was an Ace Bailey All-Star Game in 1934 as a benefit for Leafs forward Ace Bailey, who had suffered a career-ending head injury. The first annual National Hockey League All-Star GameNational Hockey League All-Star Game
The National Hockey League All-Star Game is an exhibition ice hockey game that is traditionally held at the midway point of the regular season of the National Hockey League , with many of the league's star players playing against each other...
was also held at Maple Leaf Gardens in 1947.
Air Canada Centre
On February 20, 1999, the first Maple Leafs game took place at their current home rink, The Air Canada Centre (ACC), versus the Montreal Canadiens which won by the Leafs 3-2 on an overtime goal by Steve Thomas. The Air Canada Centre is a multi-purpose indoor sporting arena located on Bay Street in Downtown Toronto.Besides the Air Canada Centre
Air Canada Centre
The Air Canada Centre is a multi-purpose indoor sporting arena located on Bay Street in Downtown Toronto, Ontario, Canada.The arena is popularly known as the ACC or the Hangar ....
, the Leafs have a practice facility at the MasterCard Centre for Hockey Excellence
MasterCard Centre
The MasterCard Centre for Hockey Excellence or commonly the MasterCard Centre is a hockey facility located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It has four ice sheets and is the official practice facility for the Toronto Maple Leafs NHL hockey team, and their AHL affiliate the Toronto Marlies...
. Opened in 2009, it was built on the site of the former Lakeshore Lions Arena
Lakeshore Lions Arena
The Lakeshore Lions Arena is a hockey facility run in Toronto's New Toronto neighbourhood in Etobicoke by the Lakeshore Lions Club. It is the former practice facility for the Toronto Maple Leafs NHL hockey team, and the Toronto Marlies AHL "farm" team....
(c. 1951). The practice facility has two rinks and is operated by the local Lions Club.
In popular culture
References to the Toronto Maple Leafs have been very common in Canadian movies and television shows.In 1946, the comedy team of Wayne and Shuster
Wayne and Shuster
Wayne and Shuster were a Canadian comedy duo formed by Johnny Wayne and Frank Shuster. They were active professionally from the early 1940s until the late 1980s....
performed a sketch on their CBC radio program in which the imaginary hockey team, the Mimico Mice, competed against the Toronto Maple Leafs. Foster Hewitt did the play-by-play of the game, real Maple Leaf player names were used for the Leafs and Wayne and Shuster played the entire Mimico team. In 1949, Foster Hewitt wrote a juvenile hockey novel, He Shoots, he scores!, which featured the Toronto Maple Leafs, including actual managers and players on the team.
In 1963, Scott Young wrote A Boy at the Leafs' Camp, a children's book giving a behind-the-scenes insight into the world of hockey. In 1971, Scott Young with George Robertson wrote an adult hockey-romance novel, Face-off, about the experiences of a star rookie player, Billy Duke, with the Toronto Maple Leafs. The novel was also a movie in 1971 with Art Hindle
Art Hindle
Arthur Hindle is a Canadian actor and director.Hindle was born in Halifax. His family moved to Toronto while he was a child. Although shy as a youngster, he grew to be a rebellious and independent teenager...
as Billy Duke. The film featured many of the actual players for the Toronto Maple Leafs. Jim McKenny
Jim McKenny
James Claude "Howie" McKenny is a retired NHL defenceman and a sports reporter for the Citytv television station in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. He played 604 games between the Toronto Maple Leafs and Minnesota North Stars. His nickname 'Howie' came from his resemblance to Howie Young...
, body-doubled for Hindle for the on-ice hockey action scenes due to a resemblance to Hindle and Harold Ballard, owner of the Leafs, had a part as the team's doctor.
In 1979, Roch Carrier wrote the short story The Hockey Sweater about an experience as a young boy of being forced to wear the sweater of the hated Toronto Maple Leafs instead of his beloved Canadiens by his mother who had given him the sweater as a present. In 1980, the story was turned into an animated short by the National Film Board.
More recently, in 1992, the rock band The Tragically Hip
The Tragically Hip
The Tragically Hip, often referred to simply as The Hip, is a Canadian rock band from Kingston, Ontario, consisting of Gordon Downie , Paul Langlois , Rob Baker , Gord Sinclair and Johnny Fay . Since their formation in 1983 they have released 12 studio albums, two live albums, and 46 singles...
released the song Fifty Mission Cap
Fifty Mission Cap
"Fifty Mission Cap" is a song by Canadian rock group The Tragically Hip from the band's third full-length album, Fully Completely. The song was released as a single in 1992....
which memorialized Bill Barilko. In 1993, the film Gross Misconduct was about the life of former Maple Leaf Brian Spencer
Brian Spencer
Brian Roy "Spinner" Spencer was a Canadian Professional ice hockey player who played 10 seasons in the National Hockey League for the Buffalo Sabres, Toronto Maple Leafs, New York Islanders and the Pittsburgh Penguins.-Career:Brian Spencer was drafted in the 5th Round, 55th overall by the...
. Comedian Mike Myers, a Toronto native and Maple Leaf fan, has often included references and even an entire plot line in his films. In Goldmember
Goldmember
Johan van der Smut, better known as Goldmember, is a fictional agent in the third film of the Austin Powers trilogy, Austin Powers in Goldmember. He is played by Mike Myers. The character was partially inspired by the James Bond's Auric Goldfinger...
the ticker below the news item on a television reads, "Maple Leafs win Stanley Cup". In another scene, the character Mini Me is wearing a Maple Leaf sweater. In 2008, Mike Myers played a guru hired by the Toronto Maple Leafs to help their star player in the movie The Love Guru
The Love Guru
The Love Guru is a 2008 comedy film, directed by Marco Schnabel and starring Mike Myers and Jessica Alba along with Romany Malco and Justin Timberlake. In addition to starring in the film, Myers wrote The Love Guru with Graham Gordy and produced it with Gary Barber. The film was released by...
. In 2010, at the beginning of the spy film Fair Game
Fair Game (2010 film)
Fair Game is a 2010 biographical film drama directed by Doug Liman and starring Naomi Watts and Sean Penn. It is based on Valerie Plame's memoir, Fair Game: My Life as a Spy, My Betrayal by the White House which details the scandalous events that took place in mid 2003, implicating senior White...
CIA agent Valerie Plame
Valerie Plame
Valerie Elise Plame Wilson , known as Valerie Plame, Valerie E. Wilson, and Valerie Plame Wilson, is a former United States CIA Operations Officer and the author of a memoir detailing her career and the events leading up to her resignation from the CIA.-Early life :Valerie Elise Plame was born on...
is being questioned by a suspicious weapons trafficker. He asks her if she's an American and after responding that she's a Canadian he asks her about the Toronto Maple Leafs. She replies that she's not a fan.
Fan base
Maple Leafs home games have long been one of the toughest tickets to acquire even during lean periods without winning seasons. Toronto's original home rink, Maple Leaf Gardens, sold out every game from 1946 until the building closed in 1999. At the Air Canada Centre (ACC), the new home rink, the Leafs have also sold out every game since October 2002. As of 2008, there is a waiting list of about 2,500 names for season tickets. With an average of US$1.9 million per game, the Leafs had the highest average ticket revenue per game in the 2007–08 season; the previous season they earned about $1.5 million per game. Support for the Maple Leafs even extends outside Canada. In the United StatesUnited States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, several cities in the Sun Belt
Sun Belt
The Sun Belt or Spanish Belt is a region of the United States generally considered to stretch across the South and Southwest . Another rough boundary of the region is the area south of the 36th parallel, north latitude. It is the largest region which the U.S government does not recognize officially...
have sizable numbers of Leaf fans, since many Snowbirds
Snowbird (people)
The term snowbird is used to describe people from the U.S. Northeast, U.S. Midwest, or Canada who spend a large portion of winter in warmer locales such as California, Arizona, Florida, Texas, the Carolinas, or elsewhere along the Sun Belt region of the southern and southwest United States,...
tend to flock to locales such as Atlanta (before the Thrashers
Atlanta Thrashers
The Atlanta Thrashers were a professional ice hockey team based in Atlanta, Georgia, United States. Atlanta was granted a franchise in the National Hockey League on June 25, 1997, and became the league's 28th franchise when it began play in the 1999–2000 NHL season...
moved to Winnipeg
Winnipeg
Winnipeg is the capital and largest city of Manitoba, Canada, and is the primary municipality of the Winnipeg Capital Region, with more than half of Manitoba's population. It is located near the longitudinal centre of North America, at the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine Rivers .The name...
as the Jets
Winnipeg Jets
The Winnipeg Jets were a professional ice hockey team based in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. They began play in the World Hockey Association in 1972, moving to the National Hockey League in 1979 following the collapse of the WHA...
), Phoenix
Phoenix, Arizona
Phoenix is the capital, and largest city, of the U.S. state of Arizona, as well as the sixth most populated city in the United States. Phoenix is home to 1,445,632 people according to the official 2010 U.S. Census Bureau data...
, Tampa Bay
Tampa Bay
Tampa Bay is a large natural harbor and estuary along the Gulf of Mexico on the west central coast of Florida, comprising Hillsborough Bay, Old Tampa Bay, Middle Tampa Bay, and Lower Tampa Bay."Tampa Bay" is not the name of any municipality...
, and Miami during the winter, resulting in a boost in turnout and ticket sales when these franchises play the Maple Leafs.
Toronto Maple Leaf fans are also known for being loyal despite being poorly rewarded—in a 2008 survey by ESPN The Magazine
ESPN The Magazine
ESPN The Magazine is a bi-weekly sports magazine published by the ESPN sports network in Bristol, Connecticut in the United States. The first issue was published on March 11, 1998....
the Leafs were ranked 121st out of the 122 professional teams in the Big Four leagues. Teams were graded by stadium experience, ownership, player quality, ticket affordability, championships won and "bang for the buck"; in particular, the Leafs came last in ticket affordability.
Conversely, there is an equally passionate dislike of the team by fans of several other NHL teams. In November 2002, the Leafs were named by Sports Illustrated
Sports Illustrated
Sports Illustrated is an American sports media company owned by media conglomerate Time Warner. Its self titled magazine has over 3.5 million subscribers and is read by 23 million adults each week, including over 18 million men. It was the first magazine with circulation over one million to win the...
hockey writer Michael Farber as the "Most Hated Team in Hockey".
The mascot of the Toronto Maple Leafs is Carlton the Bear, an anthropomorphic
Anthropomorphism
Anthropomorphism is any attribution of human characteristics to animals, non-living things, phenomena, material states, objects or abstract concepts, such as organizations, governments, spirits or deities. The term was coined in the mid 1700s...
polar bear
Polar Bear
The polar bear is a bear native largely within the Arctic Circle encompassing the Arctic Ocean, its surrounding seas and surrounding land masses. It is the world's largest land carnivore and also the largest bear, together with the omnivorous Kodiak Bear, which is approximately the same size...
whose name and number (#60) comes from the location of Maple Leaf Gardens
Maple Leaf Gardens
Maple Leaf Gardens is an indoor arena that was converted into a Loblawssupermarket and Ryerson University athletic centre in Toronto, on the northwest corner of Carlton Street and Church Street in Toronto's Garden District.One of the temples of hockey, it was home to the Toronto Maple Leafs of the...
, at 60 Carlton Street in that city, where they played throughout much of their history.
Season-by-season record
Note: GP = Games played, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, OTL = Overtime losses, Pts = Points, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against| Season | GP | W | L | OTL | Pts | GF | GA | Finish | Playoffs |
| 2006–07 2006–07 Toronto Maple Leafs season The 2006–07 NHL season saw the Toronto Maple Leafs attempting to recover from a 2005–06 season in which it finished two points out of the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.-Offseason:... |
82 | 40 | 31 | 11 | 91 | 258 | 269 | 3rd, Northeast | Did not qualify |
| 2007–08 2007–08 Toronto Maple Leafs season The 2007–08 Toronto Maple Leafs season began October 4, 2007. It is the 91st season of the franchise, 81st season as the Maple Leafs.In an effort to return to the playoffs in 2007–08, the Leafs made two significant moves during the off-season. The first, was to acquire goaltender Vesa Toskala,... |
82 | 36 | 35 | 11 | 83 | 231 | 260 | 5th, Northeast | Did not qualify |
| 2008–09 2008–09 Toronto Maple Leafs season The 2008–09 Toronto Maple Leafs season was the franchise's 92nd, and their 82nd as the Maple Leafs. The Leafs did not qualify for the playoffs for the fourth consecutive season, and have not qualified for the postseason since the 2003–04 season.-Offseason:... |
82 | 34 | 35 | 13 | 81 | 250 | 293 | 5th, Northeast | Did not qualify |
| 2009–10 2009–10 Toronto Maple Leafs season The 2009–10 Toronto Maple Leafs season is the franchise's 93rd, and their 83rd as the Maple Leafs. The Leafs have not qualified for the postseason since the 2003–04 season... |
82 | 30 | 38 | 14 | 74 | 214 | 267 | 5th, Northeast | Did not qualify |
| 2010–11 2010–11 Toronto Maple Leafs season The 2010–11 Toronto Maple Leafs season was the 94th season for the National Hockey League franchise that was established on November 22, 1917, and 84th season since adopting the Maple Leafs name in February 1927.... |
82 | 37 | 34 | 11 | 85 | 218 | 251 | 4th, Northeast | Did not qualify |
Honoured members
The following members of the Toronto Maple Leafs have been inducted into the Hockey Hall of FameHockey Hall of Fame
The Hockey Hall of Fame is located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Dedicated to the history of ice hockey, it is both a museum and a hall of fame. It holds exhibits about players, teams, National Hockey League records, memorabilia and NHL trophies, including the Stanley Cup...
. The list includes anyone who played for the Leafs who was later inducted as a player. The list of builders includes anyone inducted as a builder who spent any part of their career in a coaching, management, or ownership role with the Leafs.
Builders
- Al ArbourAl ArbourAlger Joseph "Radar" Arbour is a retired Canadian ice hockey player and a coach and executive in the National Hockey League .-Playing career:...
, played for Toronto 1961-66, inducted as a builder 1996 - Harold BallardHarold BallardHarold E. Ballard was an owner of the Toronto Maple Leafs of the National Hockey League as well as their home arena, Maple Leaf Gardens. A member of the Leafs organization from 1940 and a senior executive from 1957, he became part-owner of the team in 1961 and was majority owner from February...
, owner/executive/director, 1957–89, inducted 1977 - J. P. BickellJack BickellJohn Paris "Jack" Bickell was a Canadian businessman, philanthropist, and sports team owner.-Early life and mining:...
, shareholder/director, 1919–51, inducted 1978 - Cliff FletcherCliff FletcherGeorge Clifford Fletcher is a National Hockey League executive and is a former general manager of the Atlanta Flames/Calgary Flames, Toronto Maple Leafs, and Phoenix Coyotes . He is currently a Senior Advisor to the Toronto Maple Leafs...
, president/general manager/executive, 1991–97 and 2008–2009, inducted 2004 - Jim GregoryJim Gregory (ice hockey)Jim Gregory is a former general manager and league executive in the National Hockey League. Before his NHL career, Gregory also led the Toronto Marlboros to the 1964 Memorial Cup, and coached the Toronto St...
, general manager, 1969–79, inducted 2007 - Foster HewittFoster HewittFoster William Hewitt, OC was a Canadian radio broadcaster most famous for his play-by-play calls for Hockey Night in Canada. He was the son of W. A. Hewitt, and the father of Bill Hewitt.-Early life and career:...
, announcer, 1927–63, inducted 1965 - Punch ImlachPunch ImlachGeorge "Punch" Imlach , was an NHL coach and general manager. He is a member of the Hockey Hall of Fame.-Early career:...
, coach/general manager, 1958–69 and 1979–80, inducted 1984 - Dick IrvinDick IrvinJames Dickinson Irvin, Sr. was a Canadian ice hockey player and coach in the National Hockey League.Born in Hamilton, Ontario, Irvin was one of the greatest players of his day, balancing a torrid slapshot and tough style with gentlemanly play...
, coach, 1931–40, inducted 1958 - Frank MathersFrank MathersFrank Sydney Mathers was a professional ice hockey player during the 1940s and 1950s with the NHL Toronto Maple Leafs, and the AHL Pittsburgh Hornets and Hershey Bears, and is best known for his 35-year association with the Bears...
, player/executive, 1948–52, inducted 1992 - Howie MeekerHowie MeekerHoward William Meeker, C.M. is a former right winger in the National Hockey League, youth coach and educator in ice hockey and television sports announcer as well as a former Progressive Conservative Member of Parliament...
, player/coach/general manager/broadcaster, 1946–57, inducted 1998 - Roger NeilsonRoger NeilsonRoger Paul Neilson, CM was a National Hockey League coach, and was responsible for many innovations in the game...
, coach, 1977–79, inducted 2002 - Bud PoileBud PoileNorman Robert "Bud" Poile was a professional ice hockey player, coach, general manager, and league executive.-Overview:Poile was born in Fort William, Ontario and played junior hockey for the Fort William Rangers...
, player/executive, 1942–48, inducted 1990 - Frank J. SelkeFrank J. SelkeFrancis Joseph Aloysius Selke was a Canadian hockey manager in the National Hockey League. He was a nine-time Stanley Cup champion with the Toronto Maple Leafs and Montreal Canadiens and a Hockey Hall of Fame inductee....
, executive, 1929–46, inducted 1960 - Conn SmytheConn SmytheConstantine Falkland Cary Smythe MC was a Canadian businessman, soldier and sportsman in ice hockey and horse racing. He is best known as the principal owner of the Toronto Maple Leafs of the National Hockey League from 1927 to 1961 and as the builder of Maple Leaf Gardens...
, owner/executive/director, 1927–66, inducted 1958 - Carl VossCarl VossCarl Potter Voss was an American ice hockey forward in the National Hockey League.-Playing career:...
, player/executive, 1926–29, inducted 1974
Franchise scoring leaders
These are the top-ten point-scorers in franchise history, as of the end of the 2009–10 season. Figures are updated after each completed NHL regular season.Legend: Pos = Position; GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; P/G = Points per game; * = current Maple Leafs player
| Player | Pos | GP | G | A | Pts | P/G |
| Mats Sundin Mats Sundin Mats Johan Sundin is a retired Swedish professional ice hockey player. Originally drafted first overall in 1989, Sundin played his first four seasons in the NHL with the Quebec Nordiques. He was traded to the Toronto Maple Leafs in 1994, where he played the majority of his career, serving 11... |
C | 981 | 420 | 567 | 987 | 1.01 |
| Darryl Sittler Darryl Sittler Darryl Glen Sittler is a retired professional ice hockey player who played in the National Hockey League from 1970 until 1985 for the Toronto Maple Leafs, the Philadelphia Flyers and the Detroit Red Wings. He was elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1989.On February 7, 1976, Sittler set an NHL... |
C | 844 | 389 | 527 | 916 | 1.09 |
| Dave Keon Dave Keon David Michael Keon is a retired Canadian professional ice hockey centre. He played professionally from 1960–61 to 1981–82, including 15 seasons with the Toronto Maple Leafs, and was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1986.... |
C | 1062 | 365 | 493 | 858 | .81 |
| Borje Salming Börje Salming Anders Börje Salming , nicknamed "The King", is a retired Swedish professional ice hockey defenceman. He played for Kiruna AIF, Brynäs IF, the Toronto Maple Leafs, the Detroit Red Wings, and AIK. Salming was one of the first European players to make an impact in the National Hockey League , paving... |
D | 1099 | 148 | 620 | 768 | .70 |
| George Armstrong | RW | 1187 | 296 | 417 | 713 | .60 |
| Ron Ellis Ron Ellis Ronald John Edward Ellis is a retired Canadian professional ice hockey right winger who played 16 seasons in the National Hockey League for the Toronto Maple Leafs.-Playing career:... |
RW | 1034 | 332 | 308 | 640 | .62 |
| Frank Mahovlich Frank Mahovlich Francis William "The Big M" Mahovlich, CM is a Canadian Senator, and a retired NHL ice hockey player, nicknamed the "Big M." He played on six Stanley Cup-winning teams and is an inductee of the Hockey Hall of Fame.-Playing career:... |
LW | 720 | 296 | 303 | 599 | .83 |
| Bob Pulford Bob Pulford Robert Jesse Pulford is a retired Canadian professional ice hockey forward who played for the Toronto Maple Leafs and Los Angeles Kings in the National Hockey League... |
LW | 947 | 251 | 312 | 563 | .59 |
| Ted Kennedy | C | 696 | 231 | 329 | 560 | .80 |
| Rick Vaive Rick Vaive Richard Claude Vaive is a retired Canadian professional ice hockey player. He played in the National Hockey League from 1979 to 1992, and is best remembered as the first 50 goal scorer in Toronto Maple Leafs franchise history.-Bio:... |
RW | 534 | 299 | 238 | 537 | 1.01 |
Source: Toronto Maple Leafs Media Guide.
Historical
- Syracuse StarsSyracuse StarsThe Syracuse Stars were a minor professional ice hockey team from Syracuse, New York, existing for 10 season from 1930 to 1940. The Stars name had previously been used by sports teams, including several Syracuse Stars baseball teams from the 19th century....
minor league farm team 1936–1940 - Pittsburgh Hornets minor league farm team 1940–1956
- Rochester AmericansRochester AmericansThe Rochester Americans are a professional ice hockey team in the American Hockey League, and a top affiliate of the Buffalo Sabres. The team plays its home games in Rochester, New York, at the Blue Cross Arena at the War Memorial...
minor league farm team 1956–1968 - Toronto MarlborosToronto MarlborosThe Toronto Marlborough Athletic Club, commonly known as the Toronto Marlboros, was founded in 1903. It operated a junior ice hockey team in the Ontario Hockey Association and Ontario Hockey League from 1904 to 1989...
farm team 1927–1989 - Markham WaxersMarkham WaxersThe Markham Waxers are an Ontario Junior Hockey League Junior "A" ice hockey team. The Waxer organizations are from Markham, Ontario, Canada.-History:...
former farm team - Cincinnati TigersCincinnati TigersThe Cincinnati Tigers were a professional baseball team based in Cincinnati, Ohio, which played in the Negro Leagues. The Tigers were founded in 1934 by DeHart Hubbard, the first black to win an individual Olympic gold medal when he won the long jump during the 1924 Summer Olympics. In 1937, the...
minor league farm team 1981–1982 - St. Catharines SaintsSt. Catharines SaintsThe St. Catharines Saints was a minor league ice hockey team in St. Catharines, Ontario. It played in the American Hockey League from 1982–1986 as the farm team of the Toronto Maple Leafs....
1982–1986 - Newmarket SaintsNewmarket SaintsThe Newmarket Saints were a minor league hockey team in Newmarket, Ontario. It played in the American Hockey League from 1986–91 as the farm team of the Toronto Maple Leafs at the Ray Twinney Complex....
farm team 1986–1991 - St. John's Maple LeafsSt. John's Maple LeafsThe St. John's Maple Leafs were an ice hockey team in the American Hockey League. They played in St. John's, Newfoundland, Canada at Memorial Stadium from 1991–2001, and at Mile One Stadium from 2001–2005.-History:...
farm team 1991–2005 - Victoria Maple LeafsVictoria Maple LeafsThe Victoria Maple Leafs were a minor pro ice hockey team in the Western Hockey League that played three seasons in Victoria, British Columbia, beginning in 1964. The previous season they had played as the Invaders in Denver, Colorado, winning the regular season with the best record in the Western...
farm team 1964–1966 - Columbia InfernoColumbia InfernoThe Columbia Inferno are an ECHL team based in Columbia, South Carolina. The team is currently on voluntary suspension awaiting construction of a new arena in suburban Lexington County. They played their home games at the Carolina Coliseum. They planned on playing in a new arena during the...
minor league farm team 2006–2008
Current
- Toronto MarliesToronto MarliesThe Toronto Marlies is a Canadian professional ice hockey team currently playing in the American Hockey League . The top affiliate of the National Hockey League 's Toronto Maple Leafs, the Marlies play at the Ricoh Coliseum in Toronto, Ontario...
farm team 2005–present - Reading RoyalsReading RoyalsThe Reading Royals are a professional ice hockey team that currently plays in the ECHL. The team participates in the Atlantic Division of the ECHL's Eastern Conference. The Royals play their home games at the Sovereign Center located in downtown Reading, Pennsylvania...
minor league farm team 2008–present
See also
- Toronto BlueshirtsToronto BlueshirtsThe Toronto Hockey Club, known as the Torontos and the Toronto Blue Shirts were a professional National Hockey Association team that played in Toronto, Ontario, Canada...
(1912–1917) - List of Toronto Maple Leafs players