The potential is finally there

As you probably know from the title of this blog, I'm a hockey fan, but not just a hockey a fan, a die-hard one at that. I love, and i really do mean love, the Toronto Maple Leafs.We haven't won the cup in 43 years and on top of that, we haven't even made it to the playoffs in 5. It's been a long time, but I finally do see the light at the end of the tunnel. Personally, i believe that the Leafs will end their playoff drought this year and their cup drought a few years from now. Disagree? Here are 5 reasons why I believe this will happen.
1. Nazem Kadri: drafted 7th overall, has the soft hands, speed, and the eyes of a passer. He shall resurrect the Leafs with scoring for years.
2. Luke Schenn: drafted 5th overall, has the size, the teammates, and the pressure was recently taken off him. He will be one of our premier shutdown defencemen for years to come.
3. Dion Phaneuf: traded for him last year, named him captain, has the skill, the size, the leadership quality. Also, Doug Gilmour, one of the most famous Leafs of all time, was ushered out of Calgary and named Leafs Captain. Sign for good things to come? I believe so. He will lead this team all the way baby.
4. Jonas Gustavvsson: he had an up and down season last year but when Giggy came from Anaheim, he felt at home between the pipes and showed us what he was made of. He is the future of goal tending for this franchise.
5. 2011 Free Agency: the summer of 2011 will be a big one, the Leafs may have around 13 million dollars to spend on free agents, and there will be a ton of skilled players looking for new homes next summer. We won't get all of them, but there is a player that keeps popping up in rumors, one of the best players in the leagues, in terms of scoring, passing, leading a team. Big Joe. Joe Thortnon. His family lives near Toronto, not in Toronto, but Toronto is a hell of a lot closer than San Jose, which is where he plays now. I think if Brian Burke can land Big Joe then the Leafs will win a cup much faster, with your top two line centres being Joe Thortnon and hopefully if Kadri lives up to his potential. In my book, thats a pretty good top two.
Now, there are many things that can go wrong here, Kadri may not live up to his potential, Schenn may get injured or traded or have a bad season or a number of things, Dion Phaneuf may just suck, and Gustavvsson may be soft. We may not get Joe. Even if all these things go wrong, I think this team is heading in the right direction. The sun is coming out from behind the clouds.