Leafs 4 v. Devils 3 (SO): A Call to Arms (Elbows)

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This part is just to blow off some steam. I don't actually want to see anything other than clean hits on Janssen. Lots and lots of clean hits. And a fight with Belak.

Let's get the hit out of the way first. You can see the video on YouTube but I cannot link to it because I can feel my blood pressure rising with each viewing. It was a disgusting hit from an absolute scrub. A hit by such a gutless puke that he did not touch the ice for the rest of the game despite Belak not being in the lineup. Of course the referee, Kelly Sutherland (that's a girl's name) missed the hit. He was probably stoned.

The hit was late (later than the Neil hit on Drury) and from the blindside. But that's not what gets the hackles up since, in my opinion based on the replays, Neil's hit was not an attempt at a headshot. This hit was different as you can see Janssen make a clear move to not only hit Kaberle's but to drive through his head. As a proxy, look at the Letowski hit on Armstrong earlier in the season. The frustration is only amplified by the realization that Colin Campbell's Wheel of Justice will most likely fall on a 0 game suspension. With that disgusting thought in mind, Al Capone sums up the message that should be sent to Belak and Tucker and whoever else is in position to get Janssen:

I want you to get this f-ck where he breathes! I want you to find this nancy-boy Cam Janssen, I want him DEAD! I want his family DEAD! I want his house burned to the GROUND! I wanna go there in the middle of the night and I wanna PISS ON HIS ASHES!

The Leafs did nothing at the moment of the hit and I will atribute that to the fact that the play was going up ice and that Ms. Janssen did not see the ice again. However, on March 20th I want to see vengeance. Whether it's Belak fighting him three times or the Leafs repeatedly running Elias, Gionta, Parise, or any other skill player on the Devils I want some price to be paid. If the league won't handle things then they will see some vigilante justice which I am sure will make Campbell happy. That must be why his suspensions are so haphazard and ineptly handed out. He wants to see it happen. I hope the Leafs give him his money's worth.

As for the game, the Leafs looked completely out of it as they played their way to a 2-0 deficit but something funny happened in the third period. The Leafs' defenders took up the charge for their fallen compatriot. First Carlo burst through the Devils' defence and pick up a nice Steen pass before deking Brodeur. Then White took a good point shot on the powerplay that was tipped in by Antro before Hal Gill scored on a shot that deflected off of Paul Martin's stick.

The Leafs looked poised to cap the comeback before Bryan McCabe and a bad bounce conspired to send the game to overtime. Nothing was settled in the extra period so the Leafs tooke their 3-6 record into the shootout. Stajan (despite deking Brodeur out of his jockstrap) and Sundin both missed their opportunities before "Don't Panic It's" Yanic Perreault, Alex Steen, and Jeff O'Neill all tallied to give God's team an improbable victory. The boys can't dwell on the win for too long as they travel home to face the Sabres who are 8-1-1 in their last 10 and just waxed the Leafs 6-1 on Tuesday. Kaberle will be out of the lineup so the team will have to show the same jam as their did in the third period last night or that effort will have been wasted.