30 years of Leaf photos

Standing in a Saturday evening mist outside the south-end service entrance of the Air Canada Centre, Graig Abel smokes a cigarette and watches the traffic on Lake Shore Blvd., waiting for the Maple Leafs game to begin.

Though unknown to the public, Abel's pre-game smoke – he's there before every home game, and during most intermissions – is probably the oldest of all Leaf rituals. (Unless, that is, not winning the Stanley Cup counts as a ritual.)

Consider: since 1977 the Leafs have had six captains, 15 head coaches, three sets of owners and hundreds of players, but there has been only one official team photographer – Abel.

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