Toronto Maple Leafs
The Toronto Maple Leafs (officially the Toronto Maple Leaf Hockey Club and often referred to as the Leafs) are a professional ice hockey team based in Toronto. The Maple Leafs compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference. The club is owned by Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment, a company that owns several professional sports teams in the city. The Maple Leafs' broadcasting rights are split between BCE Inc. and Rogers Communications. For the first 14 seasons, the team played its home games at the Mutual Street Arena, before moving to Maple Leaf Gardens in 1931. The Maple Leafs moved to their present home, Scotiabank Arena (originally named Air Canada Centre), in February 1999.
For other uses, see Toronto Maple Leafs (disambiguation).Toronto Maple Leafs
The club was founded in 1917, operating simply as Toronto and known then as the Toronto Arenas. Under new ownership, the team was renamed the Toronto St. Patricks in 1919. In 1927, the franchise was purchased by Conn Smythe and renamed the Maple Leafs. A member of the "Original Six", the club was one of six NHL teams to have endured the period of League retrenchment during the Great Depression. The club has won 13 Stanley Cup championships, second only to the 24 championships of the Montreal Canadiens. The Maple Leafs history includes two recognized dynasties, from 1947 to 1951; and from 1962 to 1967.[3][4] Winning their last championship in the 1966–67 season, the Maple Leafs' 56-season drought between championships is the longest drought in league history. The Maple Leafs have developed rivalries with five NHL franchises: the Boston Bruins, Buffalo Sabres, Detroit Red Wings, the Montreal Canadiens, and the Ottawa Senators.
The Maple Leafs have retired the use of 13 numbers in honour of 19 players, including the first in professional sports. In addition, several individuals who hold an association with the club have been inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame. The Maple Leafs are presently affiliated with the Toronto Marlies of the American Hockey League (AHL).
Team culture
Fan base
The price of a Maple Leafs home game ticket is the highest amongst any team in the NHL.[180][181][182] Scotiabank Arena holds 18,900 seats for Leafs games, with 15,500 reserved for season ticket holders.[183] Because of the demand for season tickets, their sale is limited to the 10,000 people on the waiting list. As of March 2016, Leafs' season tickets saw a renewal rate of 99.5 percent, a rate that would require more than 250 years to clear the existing waiting list.[183] In a 2014 survey by ESPN The Magazine, the Leafs were ranked last out of the 122 professional teams in the Big Four leagues. Teams were graded by stadium experience, ownership, player quality, ticket affordability, championships won and "bang for the buck"; in particular, the Leafs came last in ticket affordability.[184]
Footnotes
Citations
Bibliography