Weekly Takes - Monday, May 13 Edition

Weekly Takes - Monday, May 13 Edition

1. As written about at length, the Maple Leafs had to fire Sheldon Keefe.

An outstanding regular season coach, who due to his time with the core, knew all the right buttons to push with each individual. Every time in the regular season, when things looked as though they were about to go off the rails, he coached the team out of it and they came out looking better each time.

He was also the loudest cheerleader in regards to the problems that ailed the Leafs in the playoffs. But he was not able to coach his team out of those troubles, which makes his tenure a failure and his firing a no-brainer.

I expect he will have a long, successful coaching career. It is not easy starting your coaching career out in Toronto. But this is one of many moves the Leafs had to -- and have to -- make this offseason.

2. My takeaways from the Leafs season-ending press conference on Friday...

• Brad Treliving nailed every answer out of the park. He would not commit to the "Core Four" and he spoke at volumes about the issues the Leafs have inflicted on themselves over the years come playoff time, from lack of scoring, to special teams, to goaltending. Now it is on him to bring the change that he spoke of.

• I am more convinced than ever that MLSE should have simply fired Brendan Shanahan and gone with a Keith Pelley-Treliving duo. With a hands-on CEO, I do not see the need to have a buffer between the general manager and Pelley. It also would have ended the "Shanaplan" era, which would have been a nice reset to start the offseason.

3. With that being said, if Shanahan does pull the trigger on, say, a Mitch Marner trade, then the "Shanaplan" era would have a new era ushered in regardless of whether or not Shanahan stays.

And a Marner trade has to be the move. Becoming a Leaf -- and one of the all-time great Leafs -- was a childhood dream come true for Marner. But whether it is on the ice or in the media, it is clear that his struggles in the playoffs have eaten away at him and his family. It is better for everyone involved if a Marner trade is the big move made in the summer.

4. Watching the Bruins get outclassed by the Panthers only hammers home the fact that the Leafs are so far away from competing as currently constructed.

They were in a 50-50 series against a team that has not stood a chance against Florida.

5. The only winner of the Maple Leafs being in the news as of late is the Blue Jays, who are past the point of return with their core

Their manager is not a big-league manager, George Springer is officially a shell of his former self, and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. is unlikely to ever return to form.

Those three major issues, combined with the play of the bullpen and Bo Bichette (I do not think these are long-term issues, unlike the first three items) makes 2024 a near-forgotten season at this point.

It is time for a scorched earth rebuild, with Guerrero Jr., Bichette, and Jordan Romano nearing free agency and Danny Jansen being a free agent after 2024.

It is time to get a jump start on the rebuild. Why wait until the deadline in 2025 when you can maximize the returns of your "star" players at the 2024 deadline? The hauls the Blue Jays would get would set them up better than 99% of rebuilds.

The only caveat? Mark Shapiro and Ross Atkins should not be allowed to run the rebuild after failing to build a winner with their current core.

I think both are smart baseball men, especially Shapiro, but it is time for a fresh era in Toronto, starting at the very top. Failure cannot be rewarded.

6. The Argos have been the model MLSE franchise since Pinball Clemons took over the operation in late 2019.

East Finals, Grey Cup, and East Finals speak for themselves.

But for the first time since he completed the rebuild, Clemons has a big move to make and that is finding a replacement for Chad Kelly, who can never play for the Argos again.

The face of a team who cannot afford any negative attention due to their status in the city cannot be a man who has done what the CFL believes has done.

The Argos core is the best in the East and, at worst, the second best in the CFL behind the Blue Bombers. Go out and find a quarterback that the city can be proud of. Releasing Kelly does not mean the Argos cannot compete for a championship.

7. Sooner rather than later, TFC may be right there with the Argos as a franchise that MLSE can be proud of.

There is work to be done, but John Herdman will stir the ship in the right direction.

It is only a matter of time at this point.