does anyone else think John Davidson is headed for the Leafs?

According to many sources, and one inside source that I know of, not to sound like im trying to be pro or anything, Burke is on his way out after this season unless they make the playoffs. So it's interesting to think about Davidson, and i can assure if Burke leaves and Davidson still has no job, there will be phone calls going to him. I've always loved how they made moves in St. Louis, this would be wonderful if they got him.

When I saw this...it certainly made me wonder.

By every account I've read, the new owners have said "playoffs or you're out" to Brian Burke (the Leafs have made marginal improvement- they have a better prospect pool and their AHL team has legit NHL prospects but that doesn't help the big club); if the entire season gets whacked...do they fire him?

So with that (alleged) ultimatium...do they let Burke go all in (blowing out the cupboard for some rentals) or do they say "you have to do it with this roster"? I don't know the answer.

With that being said...does Davidson want the job? Does he want the 24/7/365 spotlight that comes with the job (hockey is behind the NFL Rams and MLB Cardinals in St. Louis- they have a solid fanbase but hockey is #3- in Toronto the Leafs are the #1 story every day).

If he doesn't...CBC should sign him NOW and fire Glenn Healy and Craig Simpson into the sun. Literally.

I think everyone is being a bit too hard on Burke, when he arrived in 2008 he literally walked into a pile of rotten horse **** of a team. Fast forward 4 years to now, the Leafs now have a decent farm team that just made it to the calder cup finals, last time that happened? 1992. Right before the Leafs started to get better again. I think everybody needs to understand that once Burke arrived in Toronto it was going to be a 5-10 year rebuild. Has it been 5 years yet? no it hasn`t, so lets see what happens whenever the seasons starts up again. Also just my personal opinion I think it was a massive mistake for Burke not to draft Malcolm Subban with his 5th overall pick, Malcolm is a Toronto boy and is a projected elite goalie, why did they pass on a guy like that when Toronto has had years of goaltending woes? Selecting Subban would have given Toronto a solid goalie prospect for the future, what solid goalie prospect do they have now? big fail there. Especially when Burke is on record for saying he builds his teams from the NET out.

He was bought out because the Blues are under new ownership and it is reasonable to assume that his contract was too costly and there were likely differing ideas on how to run the club. Ultimately the owners have to have a level of comfort with whoever they have as club president and they probably didnt find that common ground with John or he didnt find it with them. Is it far fetched to think he is going to the Leafs with a private agreement already in place....yes. The last thing owners need is this to become a point of contention with the issues already at hand and Brian Burke still seems like he has the respect of Leafs owners (we can wonder why all we want but there seems to be mutual respect). Somebody will land Davidson and it may be the Coyotes, Isles or Bluejackets who need his skill the most....time will tell but leaving the Blues was a mutual business agreement and not the product of some scheme to land elsewhere. When strong minded businessmen get together they dont always see eye to eye and change is inevitable. Davidson says there was a negotiated buyout of the remainder of his deal so they did talk and likely agreed they couldnt agree on the business model going forward....typical of most large entities when new owners take over. They want "their" guy.

Going from last to second isnt what many owners are about unfortunately. They are about massive ego's and profits.....if you have a strong minded manager who maybe doesnt see things your way and you just invest a couple hundred million to buy a business you send him on his way. It probably doesnt make sense to us when we see the body of work Davidson has put in but remember this ownership group thinks they know a thing or two about business management. John wants to do things his way and rightly so since he can argue it works but he doesnt pay the bills and the Checketts group lost money while the Blues were winning (the Blues traditionally have lost money). Winning costs money and skilled guys like Davidson also cost money. Too many owners arent really interested in winning but rather staying reasonably competitive while keeping costs down. Notice the difference between some teams in terms of legit prospects and quality development programs as opposed to the owners who try to avoid spending on scouting and player development instead waiting on other teams to develop talent while they poach it? In 3 or 4 years you wont see young talent getting developed by the Blues....costs too much and John D. insisted on it under his watch probably at least in part why he is gone.

Edit....hearing that Davidson met with the Columbus ownership back in May. he had a window built into his deal that he could "escape" if ownership changed. Also there was a buyout built in so a new owner could move on without the messy contract sqaubbles you usually get. The Blues have the 2nd highest paid front office in hockey (the Leafs have the most expensive) so shedding salary seemed like a smart ownership move given the finances. Sounds like the Blue Jackets are the frontrunners but I also hear the Flames have an interest and it may be mutual. Apparently the Leafs arent a possibility given the control he could command in Columbus or Calgary.

burke has not worn out his welcome yet. and when he does the leafs will go get someone else who has their best days a a gm behind them and all will remain right in leaf nation, with little hope for a strong cup run.