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Outdoor game iced
But Leafs practise in the elements to cheers of `true Leafs fans'
Mar 06, 2007 04:30 AM
Paul Hunter
Sports Reporter
The Maple Leafs practised al fresco yesterday but it wasn't a warm-up to an eventual outdoor game.
That idea has been iced by Maple Leafs Sports and Entertainment.
In the wake of the Oilers and Canadiens playing an NHL game under the stars at Commonwealth Stadium in November of 2003, the Leafs examined doing the same thing here in Toronto. They even got approval from the league and then, with MLSE building a soccer stadium on the Exhibition grounds, it seemed they had the perfect location.
But a feasibility study by the club showed that such a venture makes no sense either financially or logistically and the Leafs will stay indoors.
"It was quite an analysis but it just didn't work," said Richard Peddie, the president and CEO of MLSE. "I really, personally, wanted to do it. I think if anyone does those things, it should be the Maple Leafs in Toronto. But we could not get the costs (within reason). They were approaching a net loss of $1 million. When you do a ton of work and lose money, it just doesn't make sense."
Peddie said that, beyond the costs, there would also be revenue lost by Air Canada Centre restaurants and the sales of food and beverages within the building and then the price of insurance. He also said the team didn't want to inconvenience their 154 suite holders who have to sit in the stands.
The new BMO Field seats 20,000 and could have bumped up to 23,000 for a hockey game so Peddie said the team also considered the SkyDome but there were too many questions regarding snow removal from its roof in the winter.
That's just as well to Leafs winger Jeff O'Neill.
"I just think, if you don't get the weather, it can be a brutal outing out there," he said as he thawed out after yesterday's 40-minute scrimmage/workout, squeezed in between the snow squalls. "I'm actually not a big fan of the outdoor game."
It was, however, a delightful scene at the West Mall Outdoor Rink as some 250 squealing schoolchildren braved the gusting winds that plunged the temperature down to about minus 20 degrees. The adoration was unreserved as they cheered every move at the rink that the Maple Leafs refurbished with a $100,000 donation.
"It's a special feeling being in an atmosphere like that," said Darcy Tucker, who grew up practising outdoors on an Alberta farm.
"Those are true Leafs fans who don't get the opportunity to be in the Air Canada Centre for our games. All they care about are the Toronto Maple Leafs, not how many goals you've scored."
Rather than a distraction, coach Paul Maurice thought the change of pace, and getting out in the cold, was good for his players who are in the heat of a playoff race.
"They had fun out there. Sometimes, a change is better than a rest," said the coach.
"...We come out here today and we have fun again as a team and we laugh and the coaches were joking around with the players. That's nice because you don't get a chance to do that often in this kind of pressure."
Outdoor game iced
But Leafs practise in the elements to cheers of `true Leafs fans'
Mar 06, 2007 04:30 AM
Paul Hunter
Sports Reporter
The Maple Leafs practised al fresco yesterday but it wasn't a warm-up to an eventual outdoor game.
That idea has been iced by Maple Leafs Sports and Entertainment.
In the wake of the Oilers and Canadiens playing an NHL game under the stars at Commonwealth Stadium in November of 2003, the Leafs examined doing the same thing here in Toronto. They even got approval from the league and then, with MLSE building a soccer stadium on the Exhibition grounds, it seemed they had the perfect location.
But a feasibility study by the club showed that such a venture makes no sense either financially or logistically and the Leafs will stay indoors.
"It was quite an analysis but it just didn't work," said Richard Peddie, the president and CEO of MLSE. "I really, personally, wanted to do it. I think if anyone does those things, it should be the Maple Leafs in Toronto. But we could not get the costs (within reason). They were approaching a net loss of $1 million. When you do a ton of work and lose money, it just doesn't make sense."
Peddie said that, beyond the costs, there would also be revenue lost by Air Canada Centre restaurants and the sales of food and beverages within the building and then the price of insurance. He also said the team didn't want to inconvenience their 154 suite holders who have to sit in the stands.
The new BMO Field seats 20,000 and could have bumped up to 23,000 for a hockey game so Peddie said the team also considered the SkyDome but there were too many questions regarding snow removal from its roof in the winter.
That's just as well to Leafs winger Jeff O'Neill.
"I just think, if you don't get the weather, it can be a brutal outing out there," he said as he thawed out after yesterday's 40-minute scrimmage/workout, squeezed in between the snow squalls. "I'm actually not a big fan of the outdoor game."
It was, however, a delightful scene at the West Mall Outdoor Rink as some 250 squealing schoolchildren braved the gusting winds that plunged the temperature down to about minus 20 degrees. The adoration was unreserved as they cheered every move at the rink that the Maple Leafs refurbished with a $100,000 donation.
"It's a special feeling being in an atmosphere like that," said Darcy Tucker, who grew up practising outdoors on an Alberta farm.
"Those are true Leafs fans who don't get the opportunity to be in the Air Canada Centre for our games. All they care about are the Toronto Maple Leafs, not how many goals you've scored."
Rather than a distraction, coach Paul Maurice thought the change of pace, and getting out in the cold, was good for his players who are in the heat of a playoff race.
"They had fun out there. Sometimes, a change is better than a rest," said the coach.
"...We come out here today and we have fun again as a team and we laugh and the coaches were joking around with the players. That's nice because you don't get a chance to do that often in this kind of pressure."