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This is a hard one for me. (that’s what she said)
It’s difficult to narrow it down to just one person, so I’ll start with a short list.
1) Wendel Clark. This guy is the stereotype of the kind of player you want on your team. Tough as nails. Can start lawnmowers. Could light the red lamp. Leadership. Also played for my Lightning for part of one glorious season.
2) Dougie Gilmour. Everything I said about Clark mostly applies to Gilmour as well. Ok, he wasn’t a beast like Clark, but nobody ever questions his toughness or compete level. One of the greatest Leafs centers of the modern era.
3) Darcy Tucker. Love this guy (no homo). Shit-talking, lawnmower starting, agitator and could score goals. 1000% compete level. Also played for the Lightning.
4) Phil The Thrill Kessel. Goals. Hotdogs. You can’t not like this guy. In fact, hire him and put him in charge of the power play.
There are more, but these four top my list.
If I had to narrow that down further, I’d pick Clark.
PDO Speedwagon
Participant
This is a hard one for me. (that’s what she said)It’s difficult to narrow it down to just one person, so I’ll start with a short list.
1) Wendel Clark. This guy is the stereotype of the kind of player you want on your team. Tough as nails. Can start lawnmowers. Could light the red lamp. Leadership. Also played for my Lightning for part of one glorious season.
2) Dougie Gilmour. Everything I said about Clark mostly applies to Gilmour as well. Ok, he wasn’t a beast like Clark, but nobody ever questions his toughness or compete level. One of the greatest Leafs centers of the modern era.
3) Darcy Tucker. Love this guy (no homo). Shit-talking, lawnmower starting, agitator and could score goals. 1000% compete level. Also played for the Lightning.
4) Phil The Thrill Kessel. Goals. Hotdogs. You can’t not like this guy. In fact, hire him and put him in charge of the power play.
There are more, but these four top my list.
If I had to narrow that down further, I’d pick Clark.
I liked Tucker for the first several years but then turned into a drama queen, embellishing everything that happened to him. Got annoying
Mogilny is my fave player of all time.
Besides that, My favourite Leaf would have to be Sundin, although Tucker was a crazy SOB that I wish we had now.
Oiler fan saying Matthews
It’s been a rare occurrence that I ever liked a Leaf player and followed them. Respected them as players yes, but Matthews might be the first I liked.
That’s a tough one. You’d almost need like a playoff bracket type poll because age, interest, investment – they all play a part in who you glommed onto. I just sort of figure, from a sort of personal perspective, that you look at it by era as
70s Leafs (340-330-122; 7th in total points over the decade)
Sittler
McDonald
Salming
Palmateer
Williams80s Leafs (266-441-93; 20th in total points (out of 21) over the decade)
Vaive
Leeman
Olczyk
Paiement
Bester
Wregget90s Leafs (345-346-92; 15th in total points (out of 28) over the decade)
Gilmour
Clark
Andreychuk
Thomas
Yushkevich
Joseph
Potvin00s Leafs (350-278-110; 11th in total points (out of 30) over the decade)
Sundin
Roberts
Mogilny
Kaberle
McCabe
Belfour
Tucker
Domi2010 – present Leafs (603-424-131; 10th in total points (out of 32) over the decade)
Matthews
Marner
Tavares
Nylander
Kessell
van Riemsdyk
Kadri
Rielly
Andersen
Stolarz
Reimer
BernierAnd for me, there was Palmateer, Sittler, Vaive, Gilmour, Sundin and Matthews.
I think Gilmour may have been the most passionate and skilled player I’ve seen wear the Leaf, but Matthews is probably the most skilled.
As a fan, Gilmour gave me the best moments.
Gilmour was my favourite. I think of his compete level in the playoffs, and compare it to the horsepoop I saw Wednesday night – really hammers home how much he wanted to win, and how much of himself he was willing to give to try to get us there. When I got my first career-path job, I went down to Doug Laurie Sports in Maple Leaf Gardens, and bought myself a Dougie jersey with my first pay cheque. It was $60. I wore it Wednesday night to the game.
Vaive will always hold a special place in my heart, because he was a neighbour, and I was his paperboy.
Palmateer would also be on the list. He grew up in my neighbourhood, and his acrobatic style was something every kid my age mimicked when playing goalie in road hockey.
Bonus favourite: Bryan McCabe. He truly loved playing in Toronto – and had a great, fun attitude. FFS, he had a blue mohawk!!! It wasn’t his fault the Leafs gave him a contract he couldn’t live up to (he told them he wouldn’t sign a new contract until his wife’s health problems were cleared up, and the idiots at MLSE just kept giving him bigger offers).
lahey
Participant
Oiler fan saying MatthewsIt’s been a rare occurrence that I ever liked a Leaf player and followed them. Respected them as players yes, but Matthews might be the first I liked.
Im assuming you havent watched his playoff performances.
One of my earliest memories as a new hockey fan was sitting at my Toronto ex-pat friend’s house watching the playoffs over a satellite feed. Remember those bigass dishes that were like 2m in diameter? Long before my Lightning tasted any playoff success, I was cheering on this guy.
Wow, I didn’t think I would see Leeman on anyone’s list!
~Wedgie
If you’re referring to my reference to him above – I wouldn’t say he was a favourite by any stretch of the imagination but when you list the best players for the Leafs by decade, he does fit in a category.
How had nobody mentioned Aki Berg?!?
~Whipper
In our vast history of un-great 8’s, Aki Berg is actually near the top. I mean we had better guys like Ellis, Tanev, Muzzin, Sid Smith . . . but there’s a lot of guys who played like 2-3 games for the Leafs wearing #8. I haven’t heard of most them. Jim Dorey? I think his brother John is a fish. Richard Mulhern? Wasn’t he the Nightstalker? Rich Costello – the guy we traded Sittler for? Screw that guy. Les Kozak? Maybe HE was the Nightstalker. I’m sure one of these guys was.
But if we’re seeking criteria by which we can name Aki Berg good at anything, I think that’s the range we’ll need to get to. “Who was the best at wearing #8 in 2002?”
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