Think Felix Potvin would be interested in coming out of retirement? What about Cujo? He’s got to have some miles left in the tank. Hell, Damien Rhodes is probably available.

No matter what direction Brian Burke decides to take with his goaltending, clearly Vesa Toskala is not the answer.

That much is certain after Monday night’s 7-2 embarrassment at the hands of the New York Rangers. Toskala couldn’t even stop shots from his own team, as Luke Schenn beat the Finnish goaltender from in tight for the opening goal in the first period.

Toskala’s .812 save percentage and 5.56 goals against average are good for last in the league among the 51 goalies who have seen National Hockey League action this year.  Vesa can, however, claim he leads the league in one statistical category amongst goalies — goals against, with 19.

Granted, Taskala has not been the beneficiary of a quality defence corps in front of him.

The Leafs new look defence was pegged to be the focal point of this year’s squad. If all else fails — and we all thought it would —at least the defence would be okay.

Well that’s all gone to hell now. Teenager Luke Schenn has regressed in a big way from his standout rookie campaign. Newly acquired rearguards Mike Komisarek and Francois Beauchemin have been nowhere to be found unless they’re taking a hooking penalty. Jeff Finger has looked like, well, Jeff Finger. And the reserved Tomas Kaberle has been as disinterested as ever.

It’s a motley crew to say the least and the 23 goals they’ve given up in just five games this season is good for last in the league. The Leafs lead the NHL in goals against last season with 293 and seem well on their way to eclipse that mark this year.

Unfortunately for Toskala, those woeful defensive numbers still can’t justify allowing five and a half goals a game and only stopping 81 per cent of the shots he faces. New York’s defence — led by Ottawa castoff Wade Redden and 22-year-old Marc Staal — hasn’t looked particularly Norris-worthy this year either. Yet, it didn’t seem to bother Rangers goalie Henrik Lundqvist much on Monday night. He faced just four less shots than Toskala and only allowed two goals.

It’s time to send Toskala to the American Hockey League’s Marlies. Don’t worry about putting him on waivers, having someone take his $4 million salary off Toronto’s hands would be a godsend. Until he can get his goals per game at or under three, he shouldn’t be in the NHL.