Even the most ardent Leafs fans have accepted it: a playoff appearance this year is pretty much out of the picture.
While Dion Phaneuf will add some muscle to the blue-line and goalie J.S. Giguere will bolster the team's patchy goal tending, nothing short of a miracle will deliver the Leafs into the post-season.
So why the big trades?
With the team sitting at the bottom of their conference -- tied with the surging Carolina Hurricanes at 45 points -- Sunday's trades could be interpreted as a way for Leafs General Manager Brian Burke to save face.
After all, Burke has had a rough year: he came onboard with a lot of hope, but some of his big power moves have been controversial.
Chiefly, Burke's high-stakes deal for forward Phil Kessel -- obtained from Boston for two first-round draft picks -- has been criticized as overly risky.
Kessel has been hit or miss since coming to the Leafs, and he spent the opening part of the season out of the lineup with a shoulder injury. While he can certainly score 40 goals a year, it's hard for fans to stomach losing a potential top three pick at the entry draft.
Indeed, Burke has been under fire in Toronto for a disappointing season, and the trades show that he is willing to tweak his formula.
While the trades leave Toronto with a heavily-depleted offence for the reminder of this season, Burke will probably come out on top of this deal in the long run.
The old hockey trade blockbuster adage is the team to receive the best player wins (think Joe Thornton to San Jose). That means the Leafs could come out on top thanks to Phaneuf, who is by far the best player in this deal.
He may be having an off-year, and he is still prone to major defensive lapses, but in 2008 he was a Norris trophy finalist and he's only 24.
Meanwhile, putting Giguere in a starting position again may be what he needs to snap out of a disappointing season. The former Duck is also an upgrade over Vesa Toskalaand.
Still, if you haven't already considered this season a write-off, it certainly is now. While the loss of Matt Stajan, Niklas Hagman, Jamal Mayers and Ian White is not insurmountable – none are considered elite players – the fact is, the weak Leafs farm system won't be able to replace them.
Prepare for a lot of low-scoring games, unless Kessel decides to get streaky again.
Sunday's trade comes as the Leafs nurse yet another demoralizing loss, where they blew a 3-1 lead to the Canucks. The Buds are also 2-6-2 in their last 10.
While Burke said he still believes a playoff spot is possible, obviously, something needed to be done for the long-term, too.
"These pieces were in place prior to yesterday," Burke told reporters, adding that the trades are intended to shake up the team's dressing room vibe.
"We have had a sense of entitlement here and we're trying to change that," Burke said. "Today is an important part of changing that."
