Toronto Maple Leafs forward Matt Stajan (L) and forward Lee Stempniak (R) console goalie Jonas Gustavsson after their loss to the Calgary Flames in their NHL hockey game in Calgary, January 2, 2010. REUTERS/Todd KorolTODD KOROL/Reuters
More than 30 years ago at Providence College, coach Lou Lamoriello spent four years as mentor to two fresh-faced teenagers named Brian Burke and Ron Wilson, players of differing talents on the school's hockey team.
One was a plugger, plain and simple, a big forward who gave a good effort but was never ultimately bound for much of a pro career.
The other was a superstar, racking up nearly two points a game as a defenceman before eventually debuting in the NHL with the Toronto Maple Leafs at age 22.
Today, Burke and Wilson are together again and at the helm of those very Leafs during what are increasingly dark times for the franchise. And while Toronto sits in 28th place in the NHL, Lamoriello's New Jersey Devils are fourth overall, vying for top spot in the Eastern Conference despite missing top defenceman Paul Martin for much of the year.
Now 67 and widely regarded as one of the top GMs in the league, Lamoriello said that while he remains close with his former pupils, he isn't about to offer any advice to the Leafs brass.
"I have enough problems worrying about my own house," Lamoriello said on Friday, as the Devils prepared to face the Leafs for the first of three meetings in the next four games for both teams. "To look into what's going on somewhere else and having an opinion, I don't have that.
"They're very close to me, very dear to me. I had both of them as my co-captains in their senior year. I have a tremendous amount of respect for their talents and their abilities and I believe they'll get done what has to get done [in Toronto]"
Lamoriello also wouldn't tip his hand as to if he had any deals in the works with Burke, who is sure to be a seller come the March 3 trade deadline.
"We talk often, but I can assure you we don't cross the lines," Lamoriello said.
Toronto has played two more games than the Devils this season but is 26 points back in the Eastern Conference standings. The Leafs now face a tall task in trying to earn some points away from New Jersey during a stretch where the teams will face each other often leading up to the Olympic break.
Much of the focus on Friday was on what Toronto can do to beat Devils netminder Martin Brodeur, who is having another stellar campaign with a 31-16-2 record and a .921 save percentage - seventh best among starters with at least 40 games played.
"When you do get chances, the few you get, they've got probably the best goalie of all time guarding the net," Wilson said of the traditionally stingy Devils, who are led by coach Jacques Lemaire. "We've had success against them in the past. We've got to play smart, focus every single shift.
"Everybody knows how to beat a trapping team; you just have to have the discipline to do it."
Brodeur will get the start tonight with rookie Jonas Gustavsson in goal for the Leafs. Toronto has won only four times since Christmas and is 5-13-3 over its past 21 games.
Wilson has scratched Jeff Finger, Wayne Primeau and John Mitchell in a bid to shake up his lineup, inserting the little-used trio of Rickard Wallin, Jay Rosehill and Garnet Exelby.
New Jersey, meanwhile, has struggled the past two weeks, losing six of its past eight games and will likely be motivated to turn things around.