Did Brian Burke Drug the Toronto Media?

The following is from Jeff Blair of the Globe and Mail. It is his closing paragraph from his April 14th article. His thoughts are italicized.

So good on Burke. It’s about time this franchise started tossing its weight around. Nobody has much liked the Maple Leafs around the NHL for years because they were viewed as underachieving, smug whiners and yappers.

Are they underachiving? Five playoff-less years in a row. Check.

Are they smug whiners and yappers? Brian Burke is proving that by boldly declaring to anyone within earshot that he’s going to try and trade for the right to draft John Tavares.

They were the rich kids on the block who kept cracking up daddy’s Bimmer.

They still are the rich kids on the block and likely always will be given the fervor of hockey fans in TO. And I certainly don’t see anyone crying poor for the Leafs like what’s going on in Phoenix right now. 

If Burke has his way, there will be a whole new reason to hate this team in the next few years. The right phone call here. The proper whisper there …

So, John Tavares. How badly do you want to be a Maple Leaf?

Yes, call John Tavares and tell him to whine and hold out until he is Leaf. That’s the Maple Leaf way after all, isn’t it? If you can’t beat em, assume that those glory days of the 1960s mean enough to an 18-year old kid in 2009 that he’ll put his reputation on the line to be a part of your Underachieving, Smug Whiners and Yappers Brigade. Sprinkle in a dash of tampering and voila! Tavares Maple Leaf Souffle!

(And my apologies to Domi, since this is directed more at the Leafs organization and the media and not their fans.)

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