The Toronto Maple Leafs rebuild has been underway for a few seasons now, ever since Brenden Shanahan stepped in as team president and ushered in a new beginning for the franchise.
With his expertise came a new outlook for fans which included a patient mindset urging Leafs Nation to trust in the process. The new management team which includes Shanahan, general manager Lou Lamoriello, and coach Mike Babcock, encouraged fans to stay optimistic in the upcoming rebuild, despite the unavoidable tough times that the team will definitely experience in the first few years.
With a few years of the rebuild behind our backs now, I can see it being similar to another team that who had a pretty good rebuild years ago. That team that can be compared to the Leafs, are the Chicago Blackhawks.
Now this may sound crazy at first. The Blackhawks have become a modern day dynasty, with three Stanley Cup championships in six years. But if you analyze both the core of the 2010 Blackhawks roster with the current up and coming Toronto Maple Leafs, there are more comparables than you may have initially thought.