The Cries of a 'Leafs' Nation

In the Big Smoke, sports media can ruin a winning team

At some point over the past 20 years, hockey journalist and pundits started to refer to Maple Leafs fans as Leafs Nation. In the hockey crazed southern Ontario market, where one team is three teams too few, the pent up frustrations of 60 years amounts to a Superman-style laser beam death stare.

Let’s really piss off Leafs fans off by comparing the Toronto fans and media to Montreal Canadiens fans and media, and see where it leads us.

Montreal vs. Toronto

In Montreal, the fans cheer louder for a rush up the ice than Leafs fans do for a goal. In Montreal, the end of a players goal scoring slump is a post game standing ovation. In Toronto, an up and coming rookie with potential sits in the minors so a goon can ride the pine with the big club.

In Montreal, if a goalie has a bad game the press leave them be, as if it were confession. In Toronto, the press ask the goalie if he thinks he will ever play again.

Maple Leafs Media Can Be a Menace