The Maple Leafs will never win a Stanley Cup because MLSE doesn't need them to
Photo credit: Nick Turchiaro-Imagn Images
It will never matter to MLSE if the Toronto Maple Leafs win the Stanley Cup, because a team that sells out an eight-game home losing streak doesn't need a championship to justify its price tag.
It's been nearly 60 years since the Maple Leafs won a Stanley Cup, and while fans have had glimpses in the past, the team hasn't really come close in recent years.
The fans who are loyal to the team keep showing up, regardless of the increasing ticket prices and this past skid has been no different, and it's a worrying concern going forward.
Scotiabank Arena sold out eight straight losses - the numbers behind MLSE's guaranteed revenue
Toronto hasn't won at home since the middle of January, but yet fans are still finding their way into Scotiabank Arena.
Considering that the cheapest seats for Thursday's game vs. Anaheim on Ticketmaster are either standing room or obstructed standing room seating for $105, that may seem like a deal but you can't sit down, and that's on top of concessions, parking, etc.
If you wanted 100 level seats for the same game it would cost you $411.60 per ticket according to Ticketmaster, so if you were a family of four you are looking at bare minimum $1,650 just for tickets alone.
All that money for a team who looks more like an AHL team than an NHL one. Unless you have comped seats, there's no reason to spend thousands of dollars on a single event and knowing it'll end in a loss makes it even worse.
The capacity at Scotiabank is 19,800 and if we were to split it down the middle and say the average price of a ticket is $258.30 per - that's $5,114,340 in ticket sales alone (numbers based off non-scientific average of ticket prices for 2025-26).
Granted, the numbers will fluctuate based off of business suites, comped tickets and giveaways but even if you were to take that number to 15,000 fans it's still $3,874,000.
That's per game. Now times it by 41 home games and you can start to see why winning doesn't matter when you're bringing home the bacon.
How MLSE's ownership structure removes the financial consequences of losing
Well, when your ownership group includes Rogers Communications, one of Canada's most powerful media organizations; money seems of little importance.
This is a group that spent half a billion dollars on Vladimir Guerrero Jr. to keep him in town, and has spent hundreds of millions investing in the Raptors, Toronto FC, and the Blue Jays.
It feels like the Maple Leafs could lose all 82 games and it wouldn't make a dent in the profitability, and there's no real incentive to win.
It's not a situation where the team is bleeding money and needs community support, or a dwindling city like Phoenix who needs league assistance to keep afloat. Toronto's a multi-billion dollar city with a die-hard fanbase; there's no risk of folding or losing the team.
MLSE would love to put out a competitive product for the Maple Leafs, but haven't really given them the tools to do so.
They have the wrong people leading the way, and if corporate doesn't really care about who is in there as long as it's profitable -- their ignorance is their bliss.
What would have to change for the Leafs to actually be built to win
The most effective way to change the minds of MLSE is to boycott the team. I'm not saying picket them outside the arena, but stop buying tickets and merchandise.
The fans have already started to slowly tune out, and the boo-birds are singing louder and louder as each loss piles up.
Losing money is really the only wakeup call for a billion dollar business, and based on those numbers before:
- If only 8,000 people show up it equates to $2-million per game ($3-million loss)
- 41 home games equates to $84,722,400 compared to $209,687,940 (nearly 60% profit decrease)
- 41 home games equates to $84,722,400 compared to $209,687,940 (nearly 60% profit decrease)
They have never lost money being in Toronto but fans can make them feel like they are.
If you're MLSE, earning only eight figures compared to the usual nine or ten would look really odd on a balance sheet, and maybe some questions would start to be asked about why the most profitable franchise in NHL history is suddenly losing money.
We're also not counting the insane profit margins on concessions, parking, and merchandise and you see that billion-dollar profit start to teeter back into the millions.
As much as MLSE doesn't care about the Toronto Maple Leafs, they certainly will if they feel the pinch and it'll be the duty of the fans to give them the squeeze.
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| POLL | ||
MARS 12|817 ANSWERS The Maple Leafs will never win a Stanley Cup because MLSE doesn't need them to Is MLSE's business model the reason the Maple Leafs haven't won a Stanley Cup? | ||
| Yes, they profit regardless | 452 | 55.3 % |
| No, it's a hockey operations problem | 113 | 13.8 % |
| Both MLSE and hockey ops share equal blame | 224 | 27.4 % |
| The Cup is coming!! I Believe!! | 28 | 3.4 % |
| List of polls | ||