A Foot In The Crease

Ahead this week on AFITC, have the Toronto Maple Leafs reached a new low. Three more losses this week stretched their losing streak to eight games. We’ll take you through a zero for Florida stretch and a disheartening loss to the Vancouver Canucks. Later in the Redline Report, we address comments from JS Giguere where he called out the compete level of his teammates, the possible departure of Richard Peddie from MLSE, and the new format for the 2011 NHL All Star Game. Back Checking gets the listeners involved when we feature some great contributions received this week through Twitter and Email, one of which, dare we say, is an “Email of the Year Candidate.” The Junior Hockey Report follows with news on the St. Michael’s Buzzers and Team Canada East at the World Junior A Challenge. To wrap the segment, the Gong Banger is back for another Troubling Fact of the Week. Wrapping the show, we turn to rigamarole and discuss whether or not Nazem Kadri’s call up was the most intelligent course of action for Brian Burke to take in order to get the Leafs out of their protracted slide. All that and more coming up on Episode 6.8 of AFITC.

Ahead this week on AFITC, the Toronto Maple Leafs continue their troubling downward spiral after such a promising start. We get you caught up on all the details from three more games – all of them losses – from the past week to begin the Redline Report with Leaf Notes. The Revolving Door features news on injured Leafs Colby Armstrong and Dion Phaneuf. Wrapping the Redline Report is Quick Hits where we discuss Patrick Roy’s feud with Lightning Head Coach Guy Boucher, a suspension to Joe Thornton and whether players should be allowed to be on Twitter. Back Checking brings some fine Listener Contributions to the program from Twitter and Email. The Junior Hockey Report brings you up to date on a pair of St. Michael’s Buzzers games from the past week. Later the Gong Banger stops by to ring in another Troubling Fact of the Week, this week focusing on the success of a former Maple Leaf. Finally, rigamarole examines two things that have become very clear about the Toronto Maple Leafs through the first thirteen games of the regular season. We just turned the clocks back an hour here in Ontario as daylight savings time came to an end, think the Leafs might want to turn them back a month? This is Episode 6.7 of AFITC.

Ahead this week on AFITC, where have all the goals gone? After scoring sixteen goals through their first four games, the Toronto Maple Leafs offense has dried up producing only seven goals in the last six games. Not surprising, their early season success has dried up too. We’ll take you through three games this past week against the Panthers, Bruins and Rangers to kick start the Redline Report. Later, the Revolving Door follows with an update on the first injured Leaf of the season and how it will impact the team. Quick Hits wraps the Redline Report with a discussion on cheerleaders. Should Canadian NHL teams have them and would their presence be enough to get you out to a game if you otherwise wouldn’t be going. Back Checking gets the voice of the listeners onto the program with some good contributions via twitter and two solid emails from Nathan and Alan. The Junior Hockey Report follows with news on two St. Michael’s Buzzers games and tells you who from the Buzzers will represent Team Canada East at the World Junior A Challenge. The Gong Banger is along to ring in another Troubling Fact of the Week at the end of Back Checking. Rigamarole wraps the show as always and takes a shot at boring hockey, something I think we’ve been seeing way too much of lately. Where have all the personalities and characters gone? By the way for those scoring at home, if the playoffs started today, the Leafs would be golfing. Episode 6.6 of AFITC starts now.

Ahead this week on AFITC, is the sky falling? Four straight Maple Leafs wins give way to three straight losses. So which version of the Leafs is the real one? We’ll tell you coming up in the Redline Report while we look back at games against the New York Islanders, New York Rangers and Philadelphia Flyers. Later in Quick Hits, Rick Rypien gets six games for an altercation with a fan. We’ll examine that situation as well as a staggeringly curious decision regarding Ilya Kovalchuk. Back Checking gets your voice on the show with numerous contributions via Twitter and three great emails from Stuart, Alan and Aaron. The Junior Hockey Report follows with a look back at three St. Michael’s Buzzers games from the past week. To wrap the segment the Gong Banger returns with another edition of the Troubling Fact of the Week. Rigamarole wraps the program with a look at why all is not lost for the Maple Leafs despite three straight losses and what needs to happen in order to get back on track. All that and more coming your way when Episode 6.5 of AFITC begins now.

Four games into the season and so far the Toronto Maple Leafs remain unbeaten. Who would have thought that? Honestly not us. So how’ve they done it? We’ll give you our thoughts when we recap the two games this week against the Pittsburgh Penguins and New York Rangers to begin the Redline Report. Later in Quick Hits, inappropriate gestures equal hits from behind, at least in the amount of games the two crimes earn for punishment. Is that right? We opine on that before getting to news on Kirk Maltby and Joe Thornton. In Back Checking, we bring your voice onto the program by sharing some contributions from the Twitter account and email. The Junior Hockey Report follows with news on the one St. Michael’s Buzzers game from the past week. To wrap the segment, we welcome back to the program Detroit Red Wings prospect Brendan Smith. Rigamarole wraps the proceedings with a look at some of the key reasons for the success of the Toronto Maple Leafs in the early going this regular season. For context on how long it’s been since the Maple Leafs started a season 4-0, the last time it happened, Jeff and I were seven years old. This is Episode 6.4 of AFITC.

Ahead this week on AFITC, the regulars season is finally underway and what a start it was for the Toronto Maple Leafs. Two straight wins at home over the Montreal Canadiens and Ottawa Senators have the Leafs in first place overall. But will it last? We'll take you through both games and examine in detail why the Leafs had success to kick start the Redline Report. To wrap the segment in Quick Hits, we look at the confusing situation of Panthers’ prospect Erik Gudbranson. Good enough to make the team out of camp but so why is he back in the OHL? News on a contract extension for Zdeno Chara and the newly appointed captain of the Vancouver Canucks follows as well in Quick Hits. Back Checking features a healthy dose of listener contributions via twitter and emails from Cathy, Andre, Alan and Aaron. In the Junior Hockey Report, we hear from St. Michael’s Buzzers George Grammenopoulos, Mark Cooper, Dan Ciampini and Coach Rich Ricci as we update the results of three Buzzers games from the past week. The Gong Banger punches in at the end of the segment with another Troubling Fact of the Week. To wrap the show, rigamarole turns the NHL’s standings from a year ago upside down. It’s early in the season, the Leafs are rolling and now so too are we on Episode 6.3 of AFITC!

Ahead this week on AFITC, we kick start the show with a look back at the Leafs last four preseason games. A 5-3-1 record after nine games, what did you make of the preseason? We’ll tell you our take in the Redline Report. Later, Quick Hits looks at the retirement of Darcy Tucker and whether teams should be on the hook for buyout money if bought out players sign with another team; the Montreal Canadiens Captaincy situation and what makes a former player a good television analyst. Back Checking checks in with some feedback from the Twitter account. Following that, the Junior Hockey Report brings you up to date on two more St. Michael’s Buzzers games and announces two Buzzers that will attend the Team Canada East World Junior A Challenge Evaluation Camp. Of course, the Gong Banger stops by at the end of the segment with another Troubling Fact of the Week. Finally, rigamarole takes a look back at three pleasant surprises from the Maple Leafs preseason. Three pleasant surprises were nice to see, let’s hope there’s more where that came from once the regular season begins. This is Episode 6.2 of AFITC.

The long awaited return of AFITC is finally here as we kick start Season Six of the program today. Ahead on the show, we take a look back at a busy stretch of five games in five nights for the Toronto Maple Leafs in the Redline Report and touch on the strengths and weaknesses that we’ve noticed to this point. Later in the segment, a spin through the Revolving Door updates the statuses on a pair of injured Leafs before Quick Hits winds down the Redline Report with a look at whether goaltending salaries in the NHL are completely out of whack, whether Carey Price got whacked in the head one too many times during the off season and whether Lou Lamoriello will want to give himself a whack down the road for the absurdly high price paid for Ilya Kovalchuk. New segment Back Checking continues the show by bringing the word of our listeners to the forefront with some great Listener Email and contributions from the Twitter account. Should Nazem Kadri make the Leafs out of training camp? We’ll share our opinion and via Twitter, you certainly shared yours! The Junior Hockey Report follows as we bring you up to date on the St. Michael’s Buzzers regular season campaign thus far before the Gong Banger makes his triumphant return with the season’s first Troubling Fact of the Week. Rigamarole will wrap the proceedings with a look at Nazem Kadri’s performance in training camp and when carrying yourself with a swagger turns from confidence to entitlement. For those unsure, that’s not a good thing. We never do that on the show, we’re just kind of unreal. No big deal or anything. This is the Season Six premiere of AFITC!

This year, the annual AFITC Year End Awards Gala is back and better than ever as we hand out a record twelve awards for some of the best that was during Season Five of the program. The categories include Phrase of the Year, Word of the Year, Email of the Year, Emailer of the Year, Moonlighter of the Year, Irreverent Moment of the Year, Rant of the Year, Debate of the Year, Whipping Boy of the Year, AFITC Leaf Player of the Year, Rigamarole of the Year and Guest of the Year. We mix in four outstanding songs from Season Five throughout the Gala as well as a bonus “Lifetime Achievement Award” to complete this year’s proceedings. So sit back, enjoy, and pour yourself a martini; the red carpet has been rolled out for the best of Season Five of AFITC! Season Six of the program will begin on September 26th, 2010. Be sure to continue sending us emails throughout the summer time at afootinthecrease@gmail.com and following us on Twitter @AFITC. Become an AFITC Insider as well at A Foot In The Crease Fans on Facebook.

Well here it is, we’ve reached the end of Season Five but don’t expect us to go out without a bang. Coming up on the show, the Maple Leafs continued to augment their roster through trades and free agency over the past week. We’ll tell you who’s out, who’s in and what you can expect from the newcomers. Later in the Redline Report, we take a spin through the Revolving Door and finish the segment with Quick Hits featuring a prominent retirement, news on notable signings from around the league and a head scratching case from the world of minor hockey. On The Bubble is dripping with quality on this episode. Firstly, we welcome back Pittsburgh Penguins prospect and current Cornell University Big Red defenseman Nick D’Agostino to the program. Listener Contributions follow with a great group of Tweets and Emails received in the last week. To wrap the segment, we turn to our closer for the third year in a row, the host of “Off The Record” on TSN, Michael Landsberg who gives his thoughts on free agency, Darryl Sutter, the Toronto Maple Leafs and much more. To wind down the final episode of Season Five, rigamarole takes a further look at how two of the Maple Leafs new additions will fit into their line up next season. If there was ever a sign that enough was enough with the hockey talk for the summer, the five straight days over 38 degree Celsius weather in Toronto might just have been it. This is the Season Finale of AFITC! Having reached the conclusion of Season Five, we must thank the many people who have helped us out this season and been so generous with their time in helping to make our show better. To Fred Cassiani, Jeff Brown, Bob McKenzie, Paul Hendrick, Jesse Beamish, Dan Ciampini, Alex Guptill, Julian Melchiori, Steve Beyers, Andy Frost, Nick D’Agostino and Michael Landsberg, thank you all so much! Thanks to everyone who took time to send us an email, post in the AFITC Insiders Group or tweet with us on Twitter throughout the season. Hearing perspectives on stories from a variety of listeners every week gives our show so many more interesting dynamics that simply hearing Dave and Jeff. Your contributions add interest to the show and inspire further discussion on topics we have covered which certainly improves the program. Thank you all so much. To all those who were content to just download the show each week and listen; thank you to all of you. Knowing so many people rely on, expect and look forward to each week’s episode makes it very easy to put in the work to make it happen. Thanks to all of you for the incredible support you give to our program! Become an AFITC Insider by joining on Facebook. Send along listener email to afootinthecrease@gmail.com. A Foot In The Crease is now on Twitter as @AFITC. Follow our show for hockey news and updates on the show itself.

Taylor, Tyler, Taylor, Tyler…Taylor. At long last, finally we have a decision from the Edmonton Oilers as to who would become the first overall selection in the 2010 NHL Entry Draft and it was Taylor Hall. We’re all over the draft this week in the Redline Report including what the Leafs did on the draft floor in Los Angeles. As well, we cover a variety of coaching appointments, key signings and trades from around the league and the Hockey Hall of Fame Class of 2010 later in Quick Hits. On The Bubble features an array of Listener Contributions from Twitter, the Insiders Group and Emails from Steve and Aaron. Alex Guptill, who appeared on Episode 5.38 of the program, was drafted 77th overall by the Dallas Stars. We’ll hear a conversation he had with Dave moments after getting the news to kick start the segment. To wrap On The Bubble, the Gong Banger returns after a five week vacation with the Troubling Fact of the Week. Rigamarole concludes the show with a look at why it might be a good thing that Tomas Kaberle remains a Toronto Maple Leaf, at least for the time being. What a week it was here in Toronto and no, for once, it had nothing to do with hockey. This is Episode 5.41 of AFITC. Become an AFITC Insider by joining on Facebook. Send along listener email to afootinthecrease@gmail.com. A Foot In The Crease is now on Twitter as @AFITC. Follow our show for hockey news and updates on the show itself.

Ahead this week on AFITC, the action on the ice is over which means the action in the general managers’ offices is heating up. Some significant trades went down over the past week including the Canadiens shipping out one of their netminders. We`ll talk about all the trades, signings, buyouts, and coaching appointments coming up in the Redline Report. As well, to kick off the segment, we`ll discuss the appointment of Dion Phaneuf as captain of the Toronto Maple Leafs in a splashy ceremony last Monday. In On The Bubble, we feature Listener Contributions from the twitter account on a variety topics at the beginning of the segment. To wrap, we play you back part two of Maple Leafs’ public address announcer Andy Frost’s interview. Rigamarole concludes the show as always with a look at the problems facing the Stanley Cup Champion Chicago Blackhawks and why it might not take much for another team to pry some key ingredients away. Sit back and enjoy, it’s the Father’s Day edition; Episode 5.40 of AFITC starts now. Become an AFITC Insider by joining on Facebook. Send along listener email to afootinthecrease@gmail.com. A Foot In The Crease is now on Twitter as @AFITC. Follow our show for hockey news and updates on the show itself.

Forty nine years up, forty nine years down. The Chicago Blackhawks finally ended the longest Stanley Cup drought in the NHL defeating the Philadelphia Flyers in six games earlier this week. We’ll take you through the Cup Finals and touch on just how successful a series it was not only for the Blackhawks, but the NHL as a whole in the Redline Report. Before that though, we kick start the show as always with Leaf Notes with some news on Nik Kulemin. Quick Hits this week features news on new coaches in Columbus and Tampa Bay and a retirement in San Jose. To wrap the Redline Report, we welcome long time friend of the podcast Andy Frost back to the show to share his thoughts on the top stories going on right now in the world of the Toronto Maple Leafs. On The Bubble brings Listener Contributions from Twitter and Email along with our final interview in our series of prospect appearances as Steven Beyers, the one hundred and ninety ninth ranked skater among North American skaters for the 2010 NHL Entry Draft joins us on the show. And finally, rigamarole concludes the show with a look at the positively stupid comments of Adam Burish in a post game interview soon after winning the Stanley Cup. Special thanks to Andy Frost and Steven Beyers for joining us this week on the program. Don’t miss “Quick Hits” with Andy Frost on next week’s show! Become an AFITC Insider by joining on Facebook. Send along listener email to afootinthecrease@gmail.com. A Foot In The Crease is now on Twitter as @AFITC. Follow our show for hockey news and updates on the show itself.

Ahead this week on AFITC, the Stanley Cup Finals appear to be on the verge of becoming an epic series. Tied at two games apiece, we’ll take you through the first four games and tell you what to expect going forward to start the Redline Report. Before that though, Leaf Notes touches on the potential imminent departure of Tomas Kaberle. Quick Hits wraps the segment with three noteworthy signings and the inaugural winner of the GM of the Year Award. In On The Bubble, Listener Contributions from Twitter and the Insiders Group are at hand. The Gong Banger is on hiatus once again this week to make room for this week’s guest, Alex Guptill, the 99th ranked skater among North American skaters by NHL Central Scouting for the 2010 NHL Entry Draft. And finally, rigamarole wraps the show with a look at what needs to happen for the Chicago Blackhawks to regain control of the Stanley Cup Finals. This is Episode 5.38 of AFITC. Big thanks to Alex Guptill for joining us this week on the program! Become an AFITC Insider by joining on Facebook. Send along listener email to afootinthecrease@gmail.com. A Foot In The Crease is now on Twitter as @AFITC. Follow our show for hockey news and updates on the show itself.

This week on AFITC, we kick off our coverage of the Stanley Cup Finals between the Chicago Blackhawks and the Philadelphia Flyers with a look back at a wild and crazy game one. Before that though, the Redline Report kicks off with Leaf Notes with news on the signing of a defenseman, the progress of contract talks with Nik Kulemin and the potential of a new member to the front office. Later Quick Hits wraps the segment with news on Steve Yzerman, Jiri Hudler, Adam Foote, Jiri Tlusty and the sites for two outdoor games in 2011. Brendan Smith, one of our first player guests on the program back in season two, signed a three year deal with the Detroit Red Wings this past week. In On The Bubble, we’ll play back part of a conversation he had with Dave shortly after signing the deal. Of course Listener Contributions follow from Email and Twitter. To conclude, in our continuing series of prospect interviews, we welcome Newmarket Hurricanes defenseman Julian Melchiori to the program. And finally, rigamarole wraps the show with a look at the potential ratings boondoggle the Stanley Cup Finals could be for the NHL. Finally, after a five day layoff, the Finals are underway and now, so too are we right here on Episode 5.37 of AFITC. Big thanks to Julian Melchiori for joining us on the program this week! Become an AFITC Insider by joining on Facebook. Send along listener email to afootinthecrease@gmail.com. A Foot In The Crease is now on Twitter as @AFITC. Follow our show for hockey news and updates on the show itself.