Hilfe!! » several months the Leafs seem to be moving quickly away

MALMO, SWEDEN – Santa Claus paid a visit to Team Canadas Christmas Eve dinner on Tuesday evening at Örenäs Castle, about a 40-minute drive outside Malmo where this years World Junior Hockey Championship is being held. And the big guy in red came armed with gifts and scouting reports. He called up the players one at a time and offered a quick hockey-related message. "That was quite the shot you had last game," Santa bellowed when Connor McDavid was on his lap, "Shoot, shoot, shoot." WATCH: Behind the scenes at Team Canadas Christmas Eve dinner And the 16-year-old listened, putting the puck on net four times against Germany on Monday, matching Anthony Mantha and Bo Horvat for the team lead in the tournament opener, but came away empty-handed. McDavid did notch two assists in his world junior debut, but that first goal is proving elusive. "I missed a whole bunch of chances that Im pretty embarrassed about, but I thought I played an alright game," he said. WATCH: Bob McKenzie breaks down McDavids performance against Germany If theres one criticism McDavid has faced recently its that he sometimes passes up his own scoring chance to set up an even better one with a higher degree of difficulty for a teammate. Its something hes well aware of. "I know one of the big criticisms from other people is that I dont shoot the puck enough and Im always looking for the fancy play and the pass so I try and listen to that and I do try and shoot the puck as much as I can," McDavid said. "I just try and make the right play." McDavid, more often than not, makes the right play. For example, he found his way behind the Swiss defence on Monday and scored on a breakaway in Canadas final pre-tournament game. That was the goal Santa was talking about. "He sees the ice so well," said head coach Brent Sutter. "You look at that goal he got. After he scored, the guys were all looking at each other on the bench and asking, Where did he come from? He just knows how to play the game. Hes smart, intelligent and hes got great sense for the game, tremendous hockey sense and hes got the skill-set to go with it." "There was just a quick turnover," McDavid recalled, "and I saw Mantha had the puck there and everyone kind of jumped forward on their team so I just kind of took a step to the offensive side, which I shouldnt be doing too much, but it worked out, I guess." That hockey sense, that ability to know what moment to strike, thats a key reason why McDavid is seen as the slam-dunk choice to go first overall in the 2015 NHL draft. And thats why any critique of his game at this moment in time – when hes just become the sixth 16-year-old to ever make the Canadian world junior team – seems ridiculously nitpicky. "Its probably nitpicky for sure," agreed Sam Reinhart, when asked if his linemate needs to shoot more. "Hes a great player. How does he have so many goals if he doesnt shoot? Thats my question." When he left for Canadas selection camp, McDavid was eighth in Ontario Hockey League scoring and third on the Erie Otters with 12 goals and 50 points in 31 games. He helped Canada win gold at the 2013 World Under-18 Championship, leading all scorers with eight goals and 14 points in just seven games. Reinhart and McDavid also played together at the under-18 level and formed instant chemistry. That chemistry has carried over to the under-20 level, even though McDavid has been shifted to left wing. Horvat has played between the two "youngsters" and its the one trio Sutter refused to tinker with when he juggled every other line coming off a disappointing loss to the Swedes in pre-tournament play Sunday. "Theyve probably been our most consistent line since Day 1 so thats why I wanted to keep them together," the coach explained. "Its nice," said Reinhart. "We felt like we were playing well together. Its nice when he has that confidence to keep putting us out there together." It was also a sign of just how important that line and McDavid in particular will be to the teams success. Goals may be hard to come by later in the tournament and McDavid, who also gets time on the power play, will be expected to shoulder a big part of the load. Although he doesnt see it that way. "No, I dont feel that pressure," he argued. "We have 13 unbelievably gifted forwards here that can score at any time. If its my line or any other line, it really doesnt matter to me. I dont think offence is something that we need to worry about." Sometimes its easy to forget the phenom is just 16 years-old. He was taking his driving test on the day the Canadian selection camp roster was announced. And yet his maturity suggests his mental game is just as advanced as his physical gifts. The Newmarket, Ontario native is grateful for the opportunity, but not overcome by the moment. On Thursday, he officially joined Wayne Gretzky, Eric Lindros, Jason Spezza, Jay Boumeester and Sidney Crosby as 16-year-olds to wear the Maple Leaf at the world juniors. "Its pretty special. Just to be named in the same breath as those guys is something to be pretty proud of," he said. "It was a dream come true. Its pretty special to be here, but now that were here, we know what we want to do and well take it day by day." WATCH: McDavid talks to Nabil Karim about his first ever world junior game So what will McDavid remember about his first world junior game? "Probably just the Canadian fans who made the trip. I was not expecting that at all. It was unbelievable to see. "I noticed them right away, I got chills skating out for the first little bit." Any nerves considering the stage? "Yeah, I was a little nervous," McDavid admits. "Any time you wear the Canadian jersey, there are nerves that come along with that." Karl Mecklenburg Jersey . 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The rookie manager has made a habit of heaping praise on others when things are going well, and accepting criticism when they arent. But in the case of Hurtado, its what the coach is NOT saying that may be the secret to a superb run of form.So roughly ten per cent of the way through this National Hockey League season, the biggest question about the Toronto Maple Leafs remains the same as it was before the season began: what are they? Well, the best answer might be, as Dennis Green might say the Leafs are who we thought they were ... a mixed bag of talented but deeply flawed players who can look tremendous for stretches and just wretched for others. But out of the gate, they sure dont look right now like a team thats headed anywhere fast. As Michael Farber so appropriately pointed out on this past Sundays edition of TSN The Reporters with Dave Hodge, the Leafs have a parent company whose president and CEO is on his way out, which means that within a matter of days Leafs president Brendan Shanahan will be working for someone who didnt hire him. Which kind fits the theme of this organization since Shanahan didnt hire general manager Dave Nonis, who didnt hire head coach Randy Carlyle, who didnt hire either of his assistant coaches, Steve Spott or Peter Horachek. The front office also includes two apparent Shanahan hires in two former junior hockey general mangers in Kyle Dubas and Mark Hunter, the latter of which is already been viewed by outsiders as the GM in waiting. So perhaps the question should be this: with an organization thats been constructed to look like some mad scientists flying machine experiment, should it be any wonder the Leafs dont play like a well-oiled machine on the ice? Building a winning hockey team is a little like constructing a skyscraper. You need an architect, some engineers who share the architects vision and the foot soldiers to construct things in line with those who conceived the blueprint. If everyone isnt on the same page, if the vission isnt shared from top to bottom, the structure is going to fall over sooner or later.dddddddddddd Changing the architect halfway through the building makes things more difficult, since anyone in charge has to be allowed to execute their own vision of what needs to be done. The key elements of this Maple Leafs team right now are pieces laid in place by Brian Burke, including head coach Randy Carlyle, captain Dion Phaneuf and star winger Phil Kessel, both of whom happen to be in the first year of long-term contracts that wont expire until each is 36 years old. That in itself would seem problematic since over the past several months the Leafs seem to be moving quickly away from what remained of Burkes vision for who to build a winner. During his two years in full charge, Dave Nonis didnt so much execute his own vision as he tinkered with the one left to him by Burke, which is understandable for two reasons. One, as someone who worked alongside Burke with two organizations, it makes sense that he shared many of the same ideas for building a team. And given the nature of Burkes hasty exit, Nonis needed to allow things to play out before contemplating a new direction. But the vision of the Leafs future right now belongs to Shanahan – the third chief architect in less than three years, whose actions, if not words, suggest he subscribes to a significantly different approach to building a winner than those who were in charge before him. Theres no guarantee that Shanahan will have the answers, but before we find out, were going to have to allow him the time to fill the organization and the roster with the kinds of people who share his vision, from top right down to the ice. And guess what Leaf fans? That may take a while. 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