Tyler Brenner likes Bakersfield. More wins would be nice.

Flung far across the continent, four Southern Ontario-born Leaf prospects are finding themselves playing in the East Coast Hockey League over the holidays.

The NHL lockout has pushed NHL-worthy talents such as Nazem Kadri and Ben Scrivens back down to the American League. Korbinian Holzer was set to contest the spot on the Leafs roster vacated by the trade of Luke Schenn. Two more Marlies, Jake Gardiner and Matt Frattin would be enjoying prominent positions with the Leafs but for the work ...

Leaf prospect Tyler Biggs is accruing a solid record of international experience.

Leafs prospect Tyler Biggs is poised to go to the Big Show.

The six-foot-two, 223-pound right winger will represent the USA at the 2013 World Junior Hockey Championships which run from Boxing Day to Jan 5 in Ufa, Russia.

Coached by one-time Leaf Phil Housley, the American team is coming off a disastrous seventh-place showing after winning a bronze in 2011 and gold in 2010.

The roster is set but for some late-minute tweaking that could involve one of the team’s ...

The 2013 World Junior Championships are set to begin on Boxing Day and on Thursday it was a chance for four of the teams to play in precompetition games in Finland.

With less than a week to go before the start of the tournament, it appears that the Leafs could have four prospects taking part in the tournament. Morgan Rielly (Canada), Tyler Biggs (USA), Garret Sparks (USA) and Tom Nilsson (Sweden).

Canada fell 3-2 to Finland with Rielly being held pointless in the game with an even rating in 17:34 of action. ...

Sam Carrick is part of a winning environment shaped by former Marlies captain Ben Ondrus.

GP       G     A      PTS      PIM       +/-
21        6     5       11          20          4

Flung far across the continent, four Southern Ontario-born Leaf prospects are finding themselves playing in the East Coast Hockey League over the holidays.

About a half a dozen players who would ordinarily be in the NHL or shuttling between the Show and the American Hockey League are now full-time AHLers.  That forced young players and those outside the core of the Marlies roster to winter instead ...

Today is a special day in the history of hockey in Toronto. It was on this date, December 19th, 1917 that the Toronto Arenas played their first ever game against the Montreal Wanderers.

While the Arenas would lose the game 10-9, they would go on to win the O’Brien Cup which was the NHL Final over the Montreal Canadiens winning the two-game total-goals series 10-7.

Toronto would go on to win the Stanely Cup as they defeated the Vancouver Millionaires (PCHA Champions) winning the best of five series, 3-2.

Alf Skinner led Toronto ...

Many students in the GTA were off school Tuesday but thanks to the Leafs and Marlies quite a few of them found themselves at MasterCard Centre for free on ice Leafs and Marlies clinics.

They opened the sessions with a meeting at centre as you can see below.

After a short warmup, it was a visit to the Marlies dressing room.

One lucky participant was interviewed by CityTV.

In the short video below, you will see one of the drills that young players did.

A much better video with a wrap up of the events ...

It took an agonizing wait but Moose Jaw Warriors defenceman Morgan Rielly was named to Canada’s World Junior Championships roster.

They used to call it the Turk: the author of the call that comes when you want it least.

“Coach wants to see you.”

Just 18, Leafs prospect Morgan Rielly knows what that means. Or, as the 18-year-old fifth overall pick from last year’s draft will tell you, what not getting a phone call means.

A year after a knee surgery scuttled his season, Rielly is heading to Ufa, Russia for the World ...

Irritating Little Brother Is Watching You.

Dear Ottawa Senators Fans:

What is it with you people?

Even without hockey, you manage to feel aggrieved.

A Sens fan named Spencer Callaghan (above)  noticed a whole lot of Leafs’ gear at a Roots Store at Bayshore Mall in Ottawa. Spencer took a picture, forwarded it to a Senators fan group and notified the company via their Twitter account.

Not being fools, Roots acquiesced and removed all the offending Leafs material.

People. Where will your paranoia end?

Someone decided Leafs material sells. It’s not an indictment of your city ...

That Borje Salming is the best-ever Leafs defenceman is above debate.

The real question is whether Salming is the best player in franchise history.

To cast Salming as the greatest star in the Leafs firmament is to push him past Syl Apps, Johnny Bower, Turk Broda, Wendel Clark, Charlie Conacher, Doug Gilmour, Tim Horton, Ted Kennedy, Frank Mahovlich, Darryl Sittler and Mats Sundin.

Salming’s number 21 is one of 18 banners hanging from the rafters at Air Canada Centre. Those banners account for 46 Stanley Cups. Not one of them belongs to Salming.

Thanks ...

Winger Matt Frattin owns a share of the Marlies goal-scoring lead with seven goals in eight games.

Matt Frattin’s numbers will leave you gobsmacked.

Despite playing just eight of the Marlies 21 games, the right-hand shooting right winger owns a share of the team’s goalscoring lead with seven.

Last spring Frattin scored 10 times in 13 playoff games before he was knocked out of the final contest of the third round. In 23 regular season AHL games Frattin scored 14 times.

That’s 31 goals in 44 AHL regular and post-season contests. Extrapolate that ...