Joffrey Lupul is one of the few athletes I follow on Twitter. For the most part, if an athlete says something interesting it's bound to be retweeted into my timeline so I don't have to follow the inane "bro tweets" (see Brett Lawrie) that you have to filter through to get the lone nugget of interesting information.

Lupul, however, is a different case. While not as funny as Roberto Luongo, who has the most brilliant Twitter feed of any athlete, Lupul comes off as a likeable, genuine guy and is a really good follow.

He took over the NHL account for a few hours on Wednesday and was funny, interesting, and enlightening.

The only two Toronto Maple Leafs, at least according to the scoresheet.

Thankfully December is a time of holiday cheer because Leafs Nation was getting little to cheer about. It’s also a good thing that the holidays are filled with drinking and stuffing your face into a stupor because if they weren’t it would be all the more painful to realize what’s happening to the Leafs.

Winning! Scoring goals! Getting goals scored on! But still winning! Sometimes! More often than not! Bobby Ryan wet dreams!

All in the month of a Leafs fan. November recap. Get at it.

Stephane's mom always warned him about playing close to the tracks.

The Leafs are off to a great start and the derisive cries of "it'll never last" get quieter and quieter after their improbable run continues. The longer they hold high in the Eastern Conference the more people have to wonder whether the Leafs are a legitimately good team this year. They certainly don't look like the bottom dwellers of years past, although there are certainly some major flaws to their start.

Unfortunately, the Leafs were mathematically eliminated from the playoffs Tuesday night thanks to a Buffalo Sabres victory over the Tampa Bay Lightning. It was miraculous that the Leafs were even in the playoff hunt this late in the season considering how poorly they played before the All-Star break.

The Leafs are one of the youngest teams in the league and playing down the stretch in a legitimate playoff race – one where they were essentially required to win every night – is a great experience moving forward. Of course actually playing in the playoffs would be a better experience, but we’re taking baby steps here, so I’m pleased with the late season run.

This season the Leafs answered a lot of questions.

At the beginning of the season everyone asked if anyone besides Phil Kessel would score. Everyone assumed Phil Kessel would hit 30, but not many predicted the same for Nikolai Kulemin and (possibly) Mikhail Grabovski. If Grabbo adds to the 29 goals he already has it will be the first time since Gilmour, Sundin, and Gartner all scored 30+ in 1995-1996 that a Leafs trio has accomplished this feat. They would also be the only team in the league with three 30-goal scorers (Anaheim, Chicago, and, amazingly, the New York Islanders are close as well). Not too shabby.

Everyone also questioned whether the Leafs would actually receive stable goaltending after years of historically bad netminding. It seemed like the Monster and J.S. Giguere answered that ‘yes’ the horribleness would continue, but that answer changed once James Reimer rode in on a white horse and saved the Leafs’ season, Ron Wilson’s job, and our collective sanity.

The most pressing issue (at least for fans) was whether the Leafs would transfer the Bruins another lottery pick. I would cry if that happened, but, thankfully, the Leafs’ play over the last few months ensured that the pick would be around 10. I can live with that.

However, this season created many more questions heading into next season.

I'll remember you for this and not the egregious giveaways.

Brian Burke doesn’t like waiting for the NHL trade deadline. Last year he made a major splash on January 31st, acquiring Dion Phaneuf, Keith Aulie, and J.S. Giguere (uh, and I guess Fredrik Sjostrom). This year he made another deal, albeit less significant.

Gone is the much maligned Francois Beauchemin. In his place is Joffrey Lupul, probably best known for being traded for Chris Pronger on two separate occasions. The Leafs also get former first round pick Jake Gardiner and a conditional fourth round pick. According to Pierre LeBrun, the pick is a fourth rounder if Lupul plays 40 games for the Leafs next season, if not, it becomes a sixth round pick.

This is a pretty good trade for both the Anaheim Ducks and the Toronto Maple Leafs.