from Rob Longley of the Toronto Sun,

In their home city, the Leafs are subject to a fan base and hockey culture that makes it difficult to breathe when things are spiralling out of control.

In Carolina, they will play before a half-empty house in a region where hockey can be an afterthought and, on Friday, a family of four can each get a ticket, pop, hot dog and soda for a combined $99.

Pick your poison.

While it’s difficult to feel too much sympathy for the hardships of millionaire athletes, the perception of Toronto trouble can become reality and is undoubtedly an added challenge in the Brendan Shanahan-led rebuild.

Players around the NHL have been avid viewers of the Leafs circus — TSN, Sportsnet and the NHL Network blare in every dressing room in the league — and, for some, it’s the last place they would prefer to be.

“They don’t really ask, they kind of just see it,” Leafs centre Tyler Bozak said on Thursday when we wondered whether other players are curious about life under the big tent. “It’s going to be a little negative when things are going the way they’ve been going right now.

“For someone who did look at the media and was already feeling down, reading some negative things about you or the team, it probably doesn’t help.”

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