My thoughts on Thornton

These are just my thoughts on Thornton and this seasons moves so far

The Leafs have talked about picking up Jumbo Joe for years but I have always been kind of on the fence...

Picking him up for a league minimum for 1 year is a no brainer in my opinion...

He is without a doubt a solid 3rd or 4th liner that can add a few power play minutes but more importantly he adds 2 of the things I think the Leafs needed most... Grit and a big voice in the locker room...

Spezza is a voice in the locker room and Marleau was but they aren't loud voices like Joe...

Almost everyone who has commented from the Sharks has said they will miss him in the locker room more than anything...

In my opinion the Leafs young guys really need that...

I think a big part in them retaining Spezza was his locker room experience... I mean he is reliable on the ice don't get me wrong but the locker room is what I think made him more valuable...

I felt a bit of a difference from what Spezza and Marleau brought to the room but I think we'll see a lot more from Joe... 13 years of playoff experience with the Sharks is also a huge addition... We know he won't take any shit on the ice and will stand up for his team mates...

Hopefully that will rub off on the rest of them to an extent...

I think is one of the best off seasons I have seen for the Leafs in quite a long while..

They have Grit that was badly missing... They have added a lot of experience and locker room presence... They have added a handful of good players who WANT to play here and who have ties here... They have strengthened the defence... And they did this while pressed against the cap... And they also did it while keeping the core intact...

Losing Kappy and Johnson didn't hurt us much and gaining Thornton, Bodie, Simmons and Bogosian I believe helps a lot... If necessary we can still move Kerfoot and Nylander without doing a lot of damage...

Over all I like it... What's your opinion on these moves???