End of the Line

The power struggle in Maple Leafland ended quickly today with the firing of Leafs coach Pat Quinn. Not a surprise, considering Quinn and GM John Ferguson Jr. had been at odds since JFJ was hired back in '03. When the Leafs didn't make the playoffs for the first since Quinn took over in 1998, it was only a matter of time to see who would win the favor of Leafs ownership. Apparently, Ferguson won and Quinn, the fourth-winningest coach in NHL history, is gone. Of course, by all rights Fergie should be shown the door after the pitiful display he put on last offseason: instead of taking advantage of the salary cap to sign good, young talent for the new NHL, he went and traded for or signed old, cheap, and often-injured players: Eric Lindros, Jason Allison, Alexander Khavanov, Jeff O'Neill. This was in addition to re-signing aging goon Tie Domi, and re-signing goalie Ed Belfour (in his 40s and with a chronically bad back) before the lockout. One stupid move after another that blew up when each of those players ended up being too slow for the faster-paced game and then each got hurt as the season wore on. By the end of the season, the Leafs had replaced all but Domi with farmhands from their AHL affiliate. The coach of said affiliate, former Hurricanes coach Paul Maurice, is the odds-on favorite to replace Quinn. Hopefully, Ferguson will make some wiser choices this offseason.

Do the humpty dance:

• Alas, poor David Lee Roth, we hardly knew ye...as a radio host, anyway. CBS has apparently kicked the former Van Halen frontman to the proverbial curb from his job as Howard Stern's replacement. DLR's replacements? None other than those Stern wannabes Opie and Anthony, currently toiling at XM Satellite Radio. XM will reportedly syndicate the O&A show to several major stations currently airing Roth's show. This would effectively end the terrestrial radio banishment that CBS gave the duo in 2002 when they aired listeners having sex in St. Patrick's Cathedral in NYC. My recommendation to Diamond Dave: Go to Vegas and start up a permanent lounge review. Dude, you're perfect for it, you'd have fun, and you'd make tons of cash. Might as well jump.
• In these days of managed care, who says doctors don't make house calls anymore? Oh. Nevermind.