Toronto Maple Leafs GM, Brian Burke wore a TSN microphone during the televised 2009 NHL Entry Draft. For the network, it was a calculated attempt to capture the dealings of the most active manager, as he had proclaimed many times in the days before that he intended to move up and hopefully draft John Tavares. In one televised exchange discussing the Tampa Bay Lightning's Vincent Lecavalier, Burke said to Montreal Canadiens’ GM, Bob Gainey, "I hear he's coming to you."

To which Gainey simply replied, "Yeah?" "Yeah..." stated Burke, and as Gainey walked away, "good luck." This was not the only conversation where the other party seemed to have no time for him, and one begins to wonder if Burke's brash tactics and bold predictions have finally caught up to him. Obviously the other General Managers were aware of his direct link to TSN, and likely did not want to give away their personal thoughts on live television.

In March 2007, Burke provided the USA Today with a full personal account of all of his dealings leading up to the 2006 trading deadline and allowed them to publish it. Having all of their conversations exposed didn’t sit well with the other general managers, and they probably keep it in mind every time they negotiate with him. A combination of animosity and fear of exposure from his negotiating parties can hardly serve him well as he tries to steer the Maple Leafs out of the NHL’s doldrums, and with the way he’s acting, he’s making the uphill climb even steeper.

Note: To see the article from the USA Today, click here

According to TSN’s hockey insider, Darren Dreger, the Pittsburgh Penguins were a happy group after Tuesday night’s game six win, because they stuck to their game plan and then “they weathered the storm in the third.”

Let’s say for arguments sake that Detroit had scored during their phase of prolonged pressure, which basically lasted the entire third period. Dreger, in his analyses, would definitely not be talking about how successful the Penguins were at their game plan, he would probably be lauding the Red Wings’ ability to absorb the blows and land a knock-out punch at the crucial moment.

In all fairness to the Penguins, Detroit deserved to lose the game. They slept for the first two periods and only awoke for the third, which they dominated. But for the Penguins, the final 20 minutes were a failure. Entering the last period with a lead of 1-0 and subsequently being outshot 14-7 was a failure on their part. They played with fire and were lucky to escape with a tie from that timeframe.

But that’s not what the analysts say. They give us a results based breakdown, stating that Pittsburgh bounced back well from their loss, played a great game, and deserve their win. We deserve better! We demand a real analysis!