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FOND DU LAC…. For the better part of this NHL season I have been listening to a lot of talk about the upcoming 2015 NHL Entry Draft. The bulk of that chatter has been about two players and both are forwards, Canadian Junior player Connor McDavid and American college player Jack Eichel. Prior to this past World Junior tourney, while they were both considered the top two prospects for this year, not everyone agreed on the draft order. Then after the WJC took place most scouts elevated McDavid into the clear cut number one position. And honestly that might be the correct order in the scheme of things. Or is it? There are factors that might indicate that order now, and in a few seasons, based on career achievements, that could change.

I have heard many scouting types and hockey analysts gush over McDavid calling him “The Next One” in an obvious Wayne Gretzky reference. Those comparisons make me cringe. I have heard the phrase “generational player” used as well. This gives me pause to shake my head too. So, here are some random thoughts; applying those lofty titles and expectations upon an 18 year old player is dangerous and irresponsible in my opinion. The reasons are several fold. For instance, who are the greatest players of all time and why are they considered in that vein? Most people use goals and assists for a career as a barometer for forwards.

I tend to use points per game as one of my standards, but on a side note, I believe there is more to the game then scoring alone. So how could you ever determine who the best all
around player might be? What would your criteria be? I haven’t come across a formula or ranking yet that gives that question any clarity. (it might exist) Wayne Gretzky holds all of the scoring records you could want, but was he the best all around player ever? Maybe, maybe not.

And then, most of the guys sitting on the upper levels of any NHL career scoring records have been out of the game for awhile save for Jaromir Jagr. I swear that he won’t retire until he gets his first social security check. The top 5 PPG players of all time are Gretzky, Lemieux, Bossy, Crosby and Orr in a range of  1.92 to 1.39. That’s some lofty company and that Sid Crosby is already on that list speaks volumes to me about his skill set. But his recent scoring is off of his career pace and that might eventually cost him his position on this list.

You should seek out the overall Number one NHL draft selections of the last 20 years. The last twenty Number one’s are a mixed bag. I count 11 from that list who are legit big time stars. Perhaps 3 or 4 will be considered all time greats when they are done. I count 3 who were incorrectly chosen as overall number one’s, two who battled serious injuries that chased them from the game, and 4 who are good, but will probably go down as journeymen at the end of the day. So, is scouting and drafting an exact science? No, it’s not.

I guess that all of the talk about the upcoming draft builds excitement and that’s not bad, but it also makes me wonder if there is some kind of prestige of getting and then landing a number one pick. Yes, prestigious as in you must have had a really lousy team that year to be in this spot. The real question though should be; how many overall number one’s totally changed the direction of the franchise they went to? I count 6 out of 20. Is McDavid that good? We are about to find out…..

IS THE TORONTO MAPLE LEAF media nuts? It’s a fair question. Then again, is the Leafs organization dysfunctional to say the least? Just within the last couple of seasons they have fired an experienced GM in Edina native Brian Burke. They dumped a fairly good coach in Ron Wilson, then did the same to Randy Carlyle. The Leafs brain trust brought in an executive neophyte in Brendan Shanahan, they have given out some wildly unexplainable contracts to players, thus tying their own hands and ruining any roster flexibility they might have wanted or needed in the future. The goaltending has been up and mostly down, team scoring was strong earlier this year under Carlyle, then disappeared after he was fired. The list of problems is lengthy, the list of positive assets is short.

Most of all, it is a poorly constructed roster that does not mesh and has poor chemistry. And to top it all off in the proclaimed “center of the hockey universe” in Canada, every single facet of every player, coach and for cryin’ out loud, for all I know the mascots too, is under hyper analysis by a rabid press corps every moment of every day. It has got to get old. A handful of players have been the frequent targets of  media criticism. Finally, the normally silent Phil Kessel told the assembled throng that he had had it. “The media should be embarrassed” he stated about their treatment of one of his teammates. I kind of agree with him.

If anyone who wishes to be successful in any endeavor, sporting or otherwise, relies on positive mental attitude as one of the builders of that success, how could you play in an atmosphere as toxic as Toronto right now? Yes they have struggled since Carlyle was let go. I don’t believe you can put it all upon the players here. And sure, it is media responsibility to report about the going’s on of the club. At what point though is objectivity blurred and gone by sensationalist reporting and piling on?

Make no mistake about it here, the Leafs are a mess, and for an iconic franchise such as the Leafs, it has got to hurt. But day after day of bitter negativity isn’t helping to right the ship. Everyone who knows the game can tell you what the problems are and writing about it is a whole heck of a lot easier then repairing it. The Leafs off-season promises to be quite interesting…. PEACE

Marc Elliott is a sports opinion writer who splits his time between his hometown in Illinois and Minnesota