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Here are the playoff stats accrued by Leaf goalie Jonas Gustavsson as he lead Farjestads to the 2009 Swedish Elite League title; 13 games, Goals Against Average 1.03, Save Percentage .961. I’ve encountered serious puckheads who are salivating at the potential of the 24 year old. They are claiming the 2009-10 Toronto Maple Leaf campaign will quickly turn into the year of the Monster…given the mandate of a bankruptcy judge, to recover in the most officious manner possible value for creditors, it is increasingly looking like Jim Balsillie will be able to claim the Phoenix Coyotes. No other bid offers the cash of the Canadians bid. A bid to ban Balsillie from the club’s auction has beeen dismissed. Effectively, a bankruptcy court is impervious to political machinations and is legally mandated to aquiesce to the most viable cash solution. Balsillie may have followed the most expeditious route to obtaining a professional hockey team, adopting Machiavellian manoeuvres to render the protests of Gary Bettman mute…the Michael Vick story has reached an improbable impasse with NFL franchises showing little or no interest in the QB. The Green Bay Packers have apparently discussed a back-up deal for the league minimum, but certainly the delusions of grandeur Vick cultivated in Leavenworth are being shattered by abject indifference…whispers have Arizona Cardinal QB Kurt Warner looking surprisingly fragile after off season hip surgery. The 38 year old veteran, speculates KTAR Sports Radio, is unlikely to stay healthy through the entire season…forgotten fact from last year; the Cardinals were only 9-7 during the regular season. With their increased profile following a gritty display in the Superbowl, they can expect to meet geared up foes all season long…based on appearances in camp thus far, it appears Carson Palmer could be backed up by his younger brother Jordan Palmer. This could be the first time brothers have ever filled the one-two positions on an NFL teams QB depth chart…veteran boxing commentator Larry Merchant has named the two greatest warriors he has seen in his years behind the HBO mike; Evander Holyfield and Shane Mosley. Strange, as Merchant mentioned Arturo Gatti and Diego Corrales as other heart and guts guys, that Merchant failed to give a shout out to the man that made the network millions, Oscar De La Hoya…in my mind Oscar flat out quit against Bernard Hopkins, surrendered against Felix Trinidad, and behaved like a wuss against Ike Quartey and Floyd Mayweather. But I still love the night he let it all hang out against hated rival Fernando Vargas. That battle proved the Golden Boy could really scrap, if he had the inclination…have to admit I got a chill looking at photos of Miguel Cotto opening his camp yesterday for the Nov 14^th Manny Pacquiao showdown. Cotto clearly has his game face on as he approaches what could be a career defining moment. The Pac Man can safely expect to see the very best Cotto that night. And, hey, has anyone been able to drag Pacquiao out of the Manila pool halls and bars long enough to construct his training schedule? Plot thickens…people love to proclaim the oldest fighter they can think of as a division’s all time great. Not me. Greatest featherweight of all time, Salvador Sanchez, greatest lightweight, Roberto Duran, greatest heavyweight, Muhammad Ali…Budd Schulberg, author of the screenplay for “On the Waterfront”, passed away yesterday. The movie provided one of the great movie scenes of all time when Marlon Brando recited the, “I coulda been somebody, I coulda been a contender” speech. Schulberg also wrote, in 1947, the seminal piece “The Harder They Fall”. He was 95 years old…the best performance by a three year old colt or gelding this year was Quality Roads emphatic dismissal of Dunkirk in the March Florida Derby. After a long convalescence, the colt returned to Saratoga on the weekend and shattered a track record while taking the Amsterdam Stakes. He is one to remember in the march up to the Breeders Cup…just polished off Raymond Chandler’s “Trouble is My Business”. It’s a collection of Chandler’s short stories, largely so-so, with the exception of the final story in the collection, the moving “Red Rain”. Hard boiled detective Philip Marlowe reveals a poignant side when he protects a woman’s memories of her long dead lover. It is heart rending to realize the lover was a bit of a con, but Chandler’s protagonist smoothly endeavours to leave the reminiscences intact. Very touching and a great place to start if you want to try some Chandler…