The Toronto Maple Leafs’ line-up had seen some significant changes; of the 20 players in Toronto’s line-up, 11 were holdovers from 87-88 and 9 were new. However, the changes were mostly concentrated on the bottom half of the roster.
- Of their top half (Lines 1-2, D-pairs 1-2, starting goalie), only 3 of 11 players were new
- Of their bottom half (Lines 3-4, D-pair 3, backup goalie), 6 of 9 were new
GM Jason Taylor had largely respected the team’s core, and focused as much as possible on complimentary pieces.
The Leafs kicked off their Exhibition games, with fans eager to see what the new-look Leafs could do:
Game 1: 5-2 Loss @ PIT
Allan Bester stopped 18 out of 20 against his former team; Vincent Damphousse and Russ Courtnall both suffered minor injuries that could result in some time missed
Game 2: 4-1 Win v WSH
Ed Belfour stopped 19 of 20, and the Leafs’ top two lines turned in extremely strong performances
Taylor held a meeting with the Leafs players. He wanted the team to decide who their captain would be. Wendel Clark was A1 (but likely out for the year) and Brad Mash was A2. Taylor made it clear that both of them embodied the qualities he wanted in leaders, so this vote was on Captaincy only. The 23 players in the room each wrote a name on a piece of paper and put it into a hat. Taylor counted the votes, and was surprised when it was a nearly-unanimous vote for Wendel Clark. He smiled, looked at the team and asked if they were sure. Marsh stood up and said “He may not be here, but he’s our Captain.”
Taylor then said “do we need to do a vote for our Assistant?”, but Marsh shook his head. He pointed at Ed Olczyk and said “Eddie was our best player last year, and there isn’t a guy in this locker room that wouldn’t run through a wall for him. He more than deserves an A on his chest.” Olczyk looked taken aback, but Leafs holdovers in the room cheered, and the newcomers joined in on the applause. With that, Taylor advised the equipment manager to stitch an A on Eddie’s jersey before the next Exhibition game.
Game 3: 5-3 W @ CHI
1G and 2A by Gary Leeman, and the Leafs outshot CHI 39-26. Ron Wilson pulled an abdominal muscle, and would miss a week; John McIntyre was called up to replace him
Taylor again put out feelers for Rick Lanz, and his pal Tony Esposito called him. Esposito offered 21y/o D Paul Stanton in return. Sam Pollock confirmed that Stanton was already somewhat close to Lanz’s skill level, and had modest upside potential; Taylor pulled the trigger and told Stanton to report to Newmarket.
Game 4: 4-3 W @ STL
The Leafs outshot STL 42-30, Todd Gill had 2A and Belfour stopped 27 of 30.
Game 5: 6-3 L v NJD
Kirk Muller’s 2G and 1A performance combined with a very poor defensive showing by the Leafs sealed this game. Olczyk was the lone bright spot with 1G 1A.
Game 6: 4-4 T @ EDM
The Oilers outshot the Leafs 35-23, while Jimmy Carson and Glenn Anderson combined for 6 points. On the positive side, Belfour stopped 31 shots and Eddie O scored twice (while Courtnall and Leeman each had 2A). The game was also chippy, with a pair of fights resulting in Steve Smith and ex-Leaf Al Secord each getting 5 and 10.
The Leafs sold 12,558 season tickets, ranking 5th in the league. They also sold 72 of 85 luxury boxes, making Harold Ballard very happy.
Game 7: 4-1 L v MTL
Brian Hayward stopped 22 of 23, and the Habs had strong performances across the board. Phil Bourque goaded Chris Chelios into a fight, resulting in both of them getting 5 and 10.
So the preseason ends with Toronto posting a 3-3-1 record. Olczyk and Leeman led the way with 9 points apiece, while Phil Bourque put up an impressive 3 A and 31 PIM in 6 games. Taylor would have to keep an eye on him for future ice time opportunities. Belfour also played well enough to indicate he may push Ken Wregget during the season, always a good thing.
In the Waiver Draft at the end of the preseason, Toronto considered grabbing Wendell Young from PIT; but Belfour’s strong performance in the preseason convinced Taylor to give Belfour a chance to prove he belongs in the NHL. The biggest shocker was Minnesota leaving G Jon Casey exposed, choosing to instead protect Kari Takko; Casey was grabbed by the NY Islanders with the 6th pick. The Leafs were intrigued by Winnipeg leaving 23y/o D Brad Berry exposed, but that would mean demoting Borje Salming; Taylor was not willing to disrespect the Leafs legend that way. There was one player who did catch Taylor’s eye: 28y/o LW Ken Berry from VAN. He had a solid locker room reputation, was strong defensively and may be equal to Peter Ihnacak offensively. So Toronto grabbed Berry, and demoted Peter Ihnacak. After the draft, Dave Reid asked Taylor if he could have #14; Taylor happily obliged.
Edmonton and Montreal were seen as strong contenders, but Calgary was the runaway favourite to win the Stanley Cup, fuelled by their new star C Doug Gilmour. Unsurprisingly, Wayne Gretzky and Mario Lemieux were the two favourites to win the scoring race. And with October arriving, the new-look Maple Leafs are ready to begin their first season of this exciting new era!
