1979–80 Toronto Maple Leafs season



The 1979–80 Toronto Maple Leafs season was the Toronto Maple Leafs' 62nd season of the franchise, 52nd season as the Maple Leafs. The Leafs finished 4th in the Adams Division and lost in the Preliminary round to the Minnesota North Stars 3 games to 0.

Off-season
In July 1979, Leafs owner Harold Ballard brought back Punch Imlach, a longtime friend, as general manager. Imlach traded Lanny McDonald to undermine team captain Darryl Sittler's influence on the team.

Regular Season
The 1979-80 season marked the dismantling of a promising hockey team. The Maple Leafs had stars such as Darryl Sittler, Mike Palmateer, Lanny MacDonald, Tiger Williams, Borje Salming and Ian Turnbull. In previous years, the Leafs were always one of the top teams in the league but could not beat the Montreal Canadiens in the playoffs. Leafs' owner Harold Ballard fired General Manager Jim Gregory and Head Coach Roger Neilson.

In November 1979, tensions between Punch Imlach and Darryl Sittler mounted as Sittler publicly aired his grievances. An article was featured in the Globe and Mail by James Christie, titled "Darryl Sittler Drops the Gloves." Sittler was unhappy that Imlach publicly criticized him and Mike Palmateer. Another point of tension for Sittler was the fact that Imlach placed Lanny McDonald and Ian Turnbull on waivers.

On December 13, 1979, Imlach announced that Carl Brewer was making another comeback in the NHL. Brewer would play for the New Brunswick Hawks, the Maple Leafs' American Hockey League affiliate. In Brewer's first game in Moncton, New Brunswick, King Clancy and Johnny Bower showed up to watch him play.

Brewer returned to the Maple Leafs on December 26, 1979, for the Maple Leafs game against the Washington Capitals. Many players on the Leafs felt that Brewer was a spy for Imlach. In Brewer's first game, many of his teammates were openly hostile to him. Brewer's defense partner was Borje Salming, and Salming refused to pass Brewer the puck. During the season, Brewer would only play in twenty contests.

Regular Season

 * Scoring
 * Goaltending

Playoffs

 * Scoring
 * Goaltending

Note: GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; +/- = Plus/Minus; PIM = Penalty Minutes; PPG=Power-play goals; SHG=Short-handed goals; GWG=Game-winning goals

MIN=Minutes played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; GA = Goals Against; GAA = Goals Against Average; SO = Shutouts

Transactions
The Maple Leafs were involved in the following transactions during the 1979-80 season.


 * On December 29, 1979: The Maple Leafs traded Lanny McDonald and Joel Quenneville to the Colorado Rockies for Wilf Paiement and Pat Hickey.
 * February 18, 1980: Tiger Williams was traded to the Vancouver Canucks for Rick Vaive and Bill Derlago.

Awards and Records

 * Norris Trophy: Borje Salming, Runner-up
 * Borje Salming, Defense, NHL Second Team All Star

Farm Teams
The Maple Leafs were affiliated with the New Brunswick Hawks of the American Hockey League.