Ron Wilson likes to get his digs in at reporters, often for reasons that are clear only to him, but the Maple Leafs coach couldn’t have been more off-base during his post-game scrum on Wednesday night.
When asked after the Leafs’ hard-fought 1-0 win against the Pittsburgh Penguins if the officiating is becoming more playoff-like, in that not as much is being called, Wilson got around to saying: “We have been really disciplined and we have gone more than a month without giving up a PK goal. I know the negative ninnies don’t even want to mention that because we are doing something well, but it is something that is a big shot of confidence in everybody’s arm. We feel pretty good going out and killing penalties now.”
It’s hard to say who the “negative ninnies” are. The Sun, as well as other media outlets, regularly has been reporting the good things the Leafs have been doing on the penalty kill.
The Leafs have been perfect when shorthanded, wiping out all 19 short-handed situations against them in 2012.
This is what Wilson said on Jan. 22: “For all the emphasis about how good we would be if we could kill penalties, now we can kill penalties and we’re struggling to win games. It shows how irrelevant some of the things that are said. It’s a 60-minute game. It doesn’t come down to four or six minutes of killing penalties. There is still 56 minutes you have to fill. You can focus on specific areas for all the wrong reasons. At the end of the day, it is about winning games, period.”
So does killing a lot of penalties matter a whole heck of a lot? Depends on what kind of mood Wilson is in, apparently.
Turning questions around to take shots at reporters has popped up fairly regularly in Wilson’s tenure in Toronto. The point of it has never been explained.
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“Ron Wilson likes to get his digs in at reporters, often for reasons that are clear only to him”
“Turning questions around to take shots at reporters has popped up fairly regularly in Wilson’s tenure in Toronto.”
Seriously?? I guess you’ve never heard of Steve Simmons or Steve Buffery. Now we have another name to add to the list of Sun “journalists” who feel they need to air their negativity towards the Leafs, their coach and their G.M.
Who is taking shots at who? Youre both to blame and neither will be the bigger man and give it up already. Both sides are fighting like school girls. Wilson does it to protect his players, the media does it to sell papers..,..i think Wilson’s reason more justified…even if he is a weasel.
feeling alittle bit under appreciated Terry??
At times I think the press are a tad thin skinned when it comes to Wilson’s sardonic remarks. He may very well have been taking a shot at the media with his negative ninnies remark. Or, he may have meant the fan base, most of whom blow hot and cold , depending on how the team are doing. I think far too much is written about the coach and GM of this team, but in fairness to the newspaper guys, I also think that some of the time , both Burke and Wilson purposely stir the pot, just to divert the limelight away from the players. Sometimes its a game, and not just on the ice. Rick Akin