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Toronto Maple Leafs
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=== The Ballard years (1971β1990) === [[File:Punch Imlach Maple Leafs Chex card.jpg|thumb|alt=A Chex Card with a portrait photo of Punch Imlach on its front.|[[Punch Imlach]] won four Cups as the Leafs' coach in the 1960s. However, his second stint as general manager in the 1979β80 season was controversial, as he traded [[Lanny McDonald]], and engaged in a public dispute with team captain Darryl Sittler.]] A series of events in 1971 made Harold Ballard the primary owner of the Maple Leafs. After a series of disputes between Bassett, Ballard and Stafford Smythe, Bassett sold his stake in the company to them.{{sfn|Shea|Wilson|2016|p=212}} Shortly afterwards, Smythe died in October 1971. Under the terms of Stafford's will, of which Ballard was an [[executor]], each partner was allowed to buy the other's shares upon their death.{{sfn|Shea|Wilson|2016|p=212}} Stafford's brother and son tried to keep the shares in the family,<ref>{{cite news|title=MLG control at stake: Smythe bid for Ballard stock rejected|first=Dick|last=Beddoes|author-link=Dick Beddoes|date=January 5, 1972|newspaper=[[The Globe and Mail]]}}</ref> but in February 1972 Ballard bought all of Stafford's shares for $7.5 million, valuing the company at $22 million ({{Inflation|CA|22000000|1972|fmt=eq|r=-3}}).<ref>{{cite news|title=Harrold Ballard: From rink rat to Gardens' boss|date=February 5, 1972|newspaper=[[Toronto Star]]|last=Orr|first=Frank}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|title=Ballard buys Gardens control for $7,546,350|newspaper=[[Toronto Star]]|date=February 4, 1972|first=Milt|last=Dunnell|author-link=Milt Dunnell}}</ref><ref name=Balsale>{{cite news|title=Gardens' president Harold Ballard to buy Smythe shares|newspaper=[[The Globe and Mail]]|date=February 5, 1972|last=Lutsky|first=Irvin}}</ref> Six months later, Ballard was convicted of charges including fraud, and theft of money and goods, and spent a year at [[Millhaven Institution|Milhaven Penitentiary]].<ref name=MLH70 />{{sfn|Shea|Wilson|2016|p=212}} By the end of 1971, the [[World Hockey Association]] (WHA) began operations as a direct competitor to the NHL. Believing the WHA would not be able to compete against the NHL, Ballard's attitude caused the Maple Leafs to lose key players, including Parent to the upstart league.<ref name=MLH70 /> Undermanned and demoralized, the Leafs finished with the fourth-worst record for the [[1972β73 NHL season|1972β73 season]]. They got the fourth overall pick in the [[1973 NHL amateur draft]],<ref name=MLH70 /> and drafted [[Lanny McDonald]]. General Manager [[Jim Gregory (ice hockey)|Jim Gregory]] also acquired the 10th overall pick from the [[Philadelphia Flyers]], and the 15th overall pick from the Bruins, using them to acquire [[Bob Neely]] and [[Ian Turnbull (ice hockey)|Ian Turnbull]].<ref name=MLH70 /> In addition to these first-round picks, the Leafs also acquired [[Borje Salming]]<!--Don't add diacritic per [[WP:NCIH]] and [[WP:NOTBROKEN]]--> during the 1973 off-season.{{sfn|Shea|Wilson|2016|p=217}} Despite acquiring [[Tiger Williams]] in the [[1974 NHL amateur draft|1974 draft]], and [[Roger Neilson]] as head coach in the [[1977β78 NHL season|1977β78 season]], the Maple Leafs found themselves eliminated in the playoffs by stronger Flyers or Canadiens teams from 1975 to 1979.<ref name=MLH70 /> Although Neilson was a popular coach with fans and his players, he found himself at odds with Ballard, who fired him late in the 1977β78 season. Neilson was later reinstated after appeals from the players and the public.{{sfn|Shea|Wilson|2016|p=233}} He continued as Leafs' head coach until after the 1979 playoffs, when he was fired again, alongside Gregory.<ref name=MLH70 /> Gregory was replaced by Imlach as general manager.<ref name=MLH70 /> In the first year of his second stint as general manager, Imlach became embroiled in a dispute with Leafs' captain Darryl Sittler over his attempt to take part in the Showdown series for ''Hockey Night in Canada''.<ref name=MLH70 />{{sfn|Shea|Wilson|2016|p=238}} In a move to undermine Sittler's influence on the team, Imlach traded McDonald, who was Sittler's friend.<ref>{{Cite news|title=Lanny McDonald trade has Sittler in tears|first=Jim|last=Kernaghan|newspaper=[[Toronto Star]]|date=December 29, 1979|page=1}}</ref> By the end of the [[1979β80 NHL season|1979β80 season]], Imlach had traded away nearly half of the roster he had at the beginning of his tenure as general manager.<ref name=MLH80>{{cite web|url=http://mapleleafs.ice.nhl.com/club/page.htm?id=42188|title=Maple Leafs History β 1980s|publisher=Maple Leafs Sports & Entertainment|access-date=June 27, 2017}}</ref> With the situation between Ballard and Sittler worsening, Sittler asked to be traded.{{sfn|Shea|Wilson|2016|p=247}} Forcing the Leafs' hand, the club's new general manager, [[Gerry McNamara (ice hockey)|Gerry McNamara]], traded Sittler to the Flyers on January 20, 1982.{{sfn|Shea|Wilson|2016|p=248}} [[Rick Vaive]] was named the team's captain shortly after Sittler's departure.<ref name=MLH80 /> The Maple Leafs' management continued in disarray throughout most of the decade, with an inexperienced McNamara named as Imlach's replacement in September 1981.<ref name=MLH80 /> He was followed by [[Gord Stellick]] on April 28, 1988, who was replaced by [[Floyd Smith (ice hockey)|Floyd Smith]] on August 15, 1989.<ref name=MLH80 /> Coaching was similarly shuffled often after Nielson's departure. Imlach's first choice for coach was his former player Smith, although he did not finish the 1979β80 season after being hospitalized by a car accident on March 14, 1980.{{sfn|Shea|Wilson|2016|p=239}} [[Joe Crozier]] was named the new head coach until January 10, 1981, when he was succeeded by [[Mike Nykoluk]]. Nykoluk was head coach until April 2, 1984.<ref name=MLH80 /> [[Dan Maloney]] returned as head coach from 1984 to 1986, with [[John Brophy (ice hockey)|John Brophy]] named head coach from 1986 to 1988. Both coaches had little success during their tenure.<ref name=MLH80 />{{sfn|Shea|Wilson|2016|p=253β254}} [[Doug Carpenter]] was named the new head coach to begin the [[1989β90 NHL season|1989β90 season]] when the Leafs posted their first season above .500 in the decade.<ref name=MLH80 /> The team did not have much success during the decade, missing the playoffs entirely in 1982, 1984 and 1985.<ref name=MLH80 /> On at least two occasions, they made the playoffs with the worst winning percentages on record for a playoff team. However, in those days, the top four teams in each division made the playoffs, regardless of record. Since the Norris only had five teams in total, this meant only the last-place team in the division missed the postseason. In 1985β86, for instance, they finished with a .356 winning percentage, the fourth worst in the league.<ref>{{Cite web |title=From out of the lineup to the star of... |url=https://www.upi.com/Archives/1986/04/28/From-out-of-the-lineup-to-the-star-of/6347515044800/ |access-date=January 27, 2024 |website=UPI}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Stanley Cup Playoff Notebook - UPI Archives |url=https://www.upi.com/Archives/1986/04/27/Stanley-Cup-Playoff-Notebook/4444514962000/ |access-date=January 27, 2024 |website=UPI}}</ref> However, due to playing in a [[Norris Division]] where no team cracked the 90-point mark, the Leafs still made the playoffs because Detroit had the worst record in the league. In 1987β88, they entered the final day of the season with the worst record in the league, but were only one point behind the [[Minnesota North Stars]] and thus were still in playoff contention. The Red Wings was the only team in the division with a winning record. However, the Leafs upset the Red Wings in their final game while the North Stars lost to the Flames hours later to hand the Leafs the final spot from the Norris.<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Calgary Flames regained the lead in the NHL... - UPI Archives |url=https://www.upi.com/Archives/1988/03/25/The-Calgary-Flames-regained-the-lead-in-the-NHL/1410575269200/ |access-date=January 27, 2024 |website=UPI}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Archives |first=T. H. W. |date=December 6, 2023 |title=The Worst Teams in Stanley Cup Playoff History |url=https://thehockeywriters.com/the-worst-teams-in-stanley-cup-playoff-history/ |access-date=January 27, 2024 |website=The Hockey Writers}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Hafner |first=Dan |date=April 4, 1988 |title=NHL Roundup : Devils Need Overtime to Make the Playoffs |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1988-04-04-sp-287-story.html |access-date=January 27, 2024 |website=Los Angeles Times}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=McIndoe |first=Sean |date=April 18, 2017 |title=Down Goes Brown: 10 worst Maple Leafs playoff games of the past 30 years |url=https://www.sportsnet.ca/hockey/nhl/goes-brown-10-worst-maple-leafs-playoff-games-past-30-years/ |access-date=January 27, 2024 |website=www.sportsnet.ca}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=After being pummeled by the Detroit Red Wings Sunday... - UPI Archives |url=https://www.upi.com/Archives/1988/04/11/After-being-pummeled-by-the-Detroit-Red-Wings-Sunday/8096576734400/ |access-date=January 27, 2024 |website=UPI}}</ref> The low finishes allowed the team to draft [[Wendel Clark]] first overall at the [[1985 NHL entry draft]].<ref name=MLH80 /> Clark managed to lead the Leafs to the playoffs from 1986 to 1988, as well as the [[1990 Stanley Cup playoffs|1990 playoffs]].<ref name=MLH80 /> Ballard died on April 11, 1990.{{sfn|Shea|Wilson|2016|p=275}}
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