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Jonas Gustavsson has got to go. Waive him, trade him, sit him on the bench if you think Scrivens is the answer (though I doubt it) - whatever. It's not working out for the Monster.

Two years ago, Brian Burke left Vesa Toskala for far too long in the Leafs' goal, and then was forced to give too many starts to both J.S. Giguere and Jonas Gustavsson. A replacement-level goaltender isn't that difficult or expensive to acquire.

It's true that the Leafs aren't real contenders this year, and there's no sense selling the farm for a rental goalie that helps the Leafs into the playoffs for one year, but there's no reason to demoralize young players year after year by means of terrible goaltending. Moreover, tanking doesn't help anything. The odds that we select a great player drafting, say, 10th overall aren't wildly higher than if we're selecting 16th overall.

No team goes from completely missing the playoffs to winning the Stanley Cup, so there have to be some seasons where the team makes it, and learns from the experience of playing in meaningful games in April and May.

James Mirtle agrees:

This season, Toronto’s three netminders have a combined .888 save percentage, which is third worst in the league and well off the league average of .910.

In fact, since coach Ron Wilson arrived in 2008, the nine goaltenders that have played under him have stopped the lowest percentage of shots in the league (.893), which is miles behind the likes of Boston (.925) and Florida (.918).

Hrm. Well, jump for more links.

Leafs Links:

Ron Wilson Sent a Message To His Goalies in His Press Conference
Shape up, or ship out. I can somewhat relate to this post, since I know that teachers have a similar code they speak in when they address parents. From Justin Bourne.

And how would you like to regress today, Mr. Bond?
Even with average luck from here on in, the Leafs have a shot at making the playoffs. From Cam Charron at The Leafs Nation.

Injury Worries Reimer's Mom
Dave Feschuk of the Star has a piece with Dr. Mom's opinion. She's clearly no more able to determine if her son has a concussion than you or I, but she does list some of the symptoms that James has been experiencing.

I lose a bet. You all win.
Ahahahah. From Loser Domi.

Is today a good day to ask for a raise? The Wilson extension: a matter of time—and timing?
To me, this question is straightforward. If it looks like Ron Wilson is going to drag this team into the playoffs, he stays, if not, he's out. I'd bet Burke waits a while before a contract is handed out. Article from Michael Langlois at VLM.

Inside The Blue And White Bubble
Wow. It was a little long, so I didn't read the whole thing, but who cares, 'cause I gave you an 'A'?

The Curious Case of James Reimer
Darren K at Blue Chip Prospects is annoyed that the Leafs' front office won't say that Reimer has a cuncussion.

Monster Disappointment
The title pretty much says it all for this piece from The 5th Line Center.

Gustavsson Sucks
Jon Steitzer's title at Puckin' Eh sums up his feelings rather succinctly.

Other Hockey Links:

Bag Skates: Effective or Not, They’re Here To Stay
Justin Bourne at Backhand Shelf gets a little bit psychological today.

Can Teams Win By Taking Higher-Quality Shots?
Jonathan Willis doesn't think it's reliably possible.

Who’s Got the Worst Shot in the NHL?
According to Justin Bourne, that is.

Braydon Coburn signs four-year, $18 million contract extension
Travis Hughes and the fan reaction to the contract over at BSH.

Meaningless stupidity takes centre stage in Ottawa
Too many jokes to choose from on this title. Article from Roy MacGregor at the Globe.

The Different Types of Fantasy Hockey GMs
The latest from Dirty Dangle.

Judge finds former NHLer used steroids
Tyler Dellow thinks the NHL is ignoring the problem of steroids.

From The Branches