[highfive]

I can't wait till the draft / July 1st. The lack of Canucks news is killing me. To be honest, I got excited when the MacT news release came out, I thought it was something was coming up.

We should do a poll to see who thinks Luongo will be wearing a Canucks jersey by next season?


http://www.sportsnet.ca/hockey/2012/...gs_comparison/

Spoiler!

So, with the Los Angeles Kings putting to rest its 45-year wait for a title, how close are the Toronto Maple Leafs to ending its own four-decade drought?

The Kings, who entered the NHL the year after the Maple Leafs won its last Cup, claimed their first championship Tuesday night. Since then, the Leafs have finished out of the playoffs 18 times -- including the past seven seasons. The Kings, meanwhile, also missed the playoffs 18 times, but made an appearance in the Stanley Cup final in 1992-93 when they beat the Leafs in the conference finals.

This season, the Maple Leafs finished 26th overall and 13th in the Eastern Conference. After a promising start to the year, the team faded fast and now general manager Brian Burke has promised yet another rebuild with goaltending and size being two of his biggest concerns.

The Kings snuck in as the No. 8 seed in the Western Conference, but they weren't a typical eighth seed. Their season was the opposite of what transpired in Toronto, as Los Angeles started poorly and finished strong. It is interesting to note that both Toronto and Los Angeles made coaching changes during the regular season.

So, that said; how do the current Maple Leafs compare to the champion Kings?

Let's see:

General manager: Both Dean Lombardi of the Kings and Brian Burke of the Maple Leafs are Americans and subscribe to tough, hard-nosed hockey. Lombardi, however, has always placed priority on building his teams with Canadian-born players while Burke seems to favour the American-born players. Lombardi doesn't exactly shun the spotlight, but he doesn't go looking for attention. Burke likes to be heard.

Coach: Again, there are similarities between Darryl Sutter of the Kings and Randy Carlyle of the Leafs. Both men played in the NHL, are demanding of their players and, if you scratch below their gruff exterior, have a very good sense of humour. Sutter, it has been said, never eases up on his players. Carlyle has a similar reputation, although when he replaced Ron Wilson in March, he seemed a little more forgiving of his players' boo-boos. I suspect that will change next season.

Goaltending: The Kings have a Conn Smythe Trophy winner between the pipes while the Maple Leafs don't even have a consensus No. 1. The separation between the two clubs in this category could not be more dramatic. Jonathan Quick was lights out for most of this season, keeping his team in the playoff hunt when it struggled to find offence, and then dominating the playoffs by leading all stoppers in goals-against average (1.41) and save percentage (.946). If that's not enough, his backup Jonathan Bernier was the Kings' top draft choice in 2006 (11th overall) and many believe he would be the starter on most NHL teams.

The Leafs had high hopes for James Reimer this season and he shot out of the gate with a 4-0-1 record before being injured six games in. It was all downhill from there. Backup Jonas Gustavsson played well at times, but the organization never really seemed to show total confidence in his ability and the unrestricted free agent likely will not return. There is some good news in Toronto. Ben Scrivens was the top goalie in the American Hockey League this season and played superbly in the playoffs, helping the Marlies make it to the Calder Cup final. Chances are he's not ready for the No. 1 job with the Leafs and Burke has flat out said he will look for a veteran to take over the crease next season.

Defence: It has been suggested Drew Doughty of the Kings has emerged as the best defenceman in the NHL. Funny thing: he's not even nominated for the Norris Trophy (goes to show how a wonderful playoff run can drive up an individual's worth). Beyond Doughty, who is only 22-years old and led all defencemen in playoff scoring with four goals and 16 points in 20 games, the Kings leaned heavily on three veterans in Willie Mitchell, Matt Greene and Rob Scuderi. All three play the game with physicality and make it tough on opposing skill players to do their thing. Also, Slava Voynov, 22, emerged as a competent two-way performer who averaged more than 18 quality minutes of ice time per game in the regular season while Alec Martinez, 24, took his game to the next level.

The Maple Leafs thought its blue line was the team's biggest strength, but it didn't quite work out that way. Captain Dion Phaneuf is the leader of the gang and the offensive side of his game was decent -- 12 goals and 44 points in 82 games--- but he lacked consistency in his own end and was minus-10. Veteran Mike Komisarek was acquired to do for the Leafs what Scuderi does for the Kings which is to provide leadership and authority in the defensive zone. Thus far, Komisarek has not panned out and he was often a healthy scratch. John-Michael Liles had a solid start to the year and was rewarded with a contract extension, but a concussion threw his season off the rails. If there is good news it is that Jake Gardiner, 21, took the fast path to the NHL and gave indication he'll be a creative, point-producing defender for years to come while Carl Gunnarsson, 25, is a reliable stay-at-home defender who only needs to get stronger. Luke Schenn, meanwhile, is just 22 and has played four years in the NHL. His name often comes up in trade talks. Cody Franson has an upside, but has yet to make his mark in Toronto.

Forwards: When a team can play established stars such as Mike Richards and Jeff Carter on its second line, you know it has plenty of depth. The Kings have it all up front -- size, toughness, speed, a fine blend of youth and experience, offence and defence. Centre Anze Kopitar, 24, emerged as the team's genuine go-to guy while captain Dustin Brown provided points and power leading the playoffs in body checks with 93. Kopitar and Brown tied for the playoff scoring lead with 20 points apiece. Dustin Penner, Jarret Stoll, Justin Williams, Brad Richardson, Simon Gagne and Colin Fraser gave the Kings a nice veteran presence while youngsters Jordan Nolan, Trevor Lewis and Dwight King provided energy and muscle.

Phil Kessel, 24, is the Leafs offensive leader, but he is decidedly a one-way player whose defensive play often puts his team in peril. He scored 37 goals which was sixth best in the NHL, but Kessel does not like to play in traffic which makes you wonder, how would he perform during the two-month grind of the Stanley Cup playoffs when the physical play gets ratcheted up? Joffrey Lupul emerged as the Leafs' best two-way forward after a number of years of injury and inconsistency. After those two players, the Leafs have some skill in Mikhail Grabovski, Tyler Bozak and Clarke MacArthur and one would suspect Nikolai Kulemin will bounce back from a disastrous year, but they need to get bigger if they are to play the kind of puck-control game Carlyle envisions.

So now, one day after winning the Stanley Cup, Lombardi and his staff will begin the process of figuring out a plan to repeat as champions. Burke, on the other hand, is still trying to figure out a plan to get his team into the playoffs. I like Lombardi's chances better.

Veteran hockey columnist Mike Brophy will cover the Toronto Maple Leafs for sportsnet.ca for the 2011/12 season.

Funniest part is the first comment on the website says..."I'm not sure if this article is a compliment to the Leafs or a major insult to the Kings". LMAO