A Week In The Life...

The past week for the Leafs has seen Wellwood and Tucker make their returns to the lineup, Kaberle continue his recuperation from the scrub's hit, a couple of tough losses, a stultifying win, and a momentum shifting comeback.

Saturday March 3, 2007 - Leafs 1 v. Sabres 3: Will No One Finish?

The Leafs hosted a Sabres team that was ripe for the picking as they were (and continue to be) in their first real injury crisis since last year's playoffs. I guess the Leafs understood how they felt and wanted to do their part to help the Sabres through their troubled time. It was a magnanimous gesture on the part of the Leafs but one that they could hardly afford. Despite keeping a lid on the Slugs the buds coughed up enough mental errors and missed chances to allow the team from across the Peace Bridge to steal a 3-1 decision.

If you assume that the Leafs will face the Sabres in the first round if they qualify then it could hvae been a strategic move to play the inept possum. However, considering the Leafs have two games left against these same Sabres then you would not be wrong in thinking that the Leafs lacked a certain finishing edge to their chances. Something that a player like Tucker or Wellwood could provide when healthy.

Tuesday March 6, 2007 - Leafs 3 v. Capitals 0: Shoot Me

This was a terrible game that lacked flow, passion, and excitement but the Leafs won so I cannot be too upset despite having to pay MLSE's ridiculous prices. We kept joking that we did not realize that Ovechkin and Semin were healthy scratches as they were completely invisible. Raycroft had a good solid game as he turned away 24 shots for his second shutout of the season and Tucker picked up the GWG. Yanic Perreault scored his first goal in his third run with the team on a nice burst of speed down the boards before slotting the puck behind the Hershey Bears' starting goaltender. Nik Antropov and Alex Ponikarovsky combined to ice the game on a nice bit of interplay. Poni dropped the puck at the blueline and drove to the net where he deflected Antro's low, hard shot into the net.

Thursday March 8, 2007 - Leafs 1 v. senators 5: No Goals Please, We're Grinders

This was a game of missed opportunities as Travis Green, Matt Stajan, Bates Battaglia (TWICE!), and John Pohl all missed wide open nets. Each (save for Green's) came at crucial junctions that could have changed the momentum of a game that saw the senators score on their first two powerplays and one of Toronto's. Not the start that the Leafs wanted to this home-and-home series with their nemesis.

Saturday March 10, 2007 - Leafs 4 v. senators 3 (OT): Domination Rewarded

I stretched my personal win streak to three games with this one although the result was in doubt for most of the game. It was an odd one that, despite numerous scoring chances for the Leafs, had a bit of a dull feeling to it until the last 10 minutes of the third. The senators looked poised to steal a win on the back of some opportunism and excellent goaltending by Ray Emery despite being heavily outplayed by the good guys.

First, Boyd Devereaux scored on the only mistake in an otherwise stunning display of goaltending when he sneaked a shot over the shoulder of Ray Emery who had gone down too early. Then, Mats outskated Wade Redden and slipped a pass to the much maligned Nik Antropov who used his 8 foot reach to whack home his own rebound. That set the stage for the Leaf fans' sweetheart, Darcy Tucker, to finish the game off on a nice one-two with Pavel Kubina to notch his second goal of the game. The ACC erupted as the Leafs' faithful celebrated a deserved victory and smug sens' fans sat shocked wondering how another lead slipped away in the third.

Wellwood made a welcome return to the Leafs lineup and his skill showed as he set up a number of chances. Last night was the first time since December 19th that he and Tucker were both in the lineup. No surprise that one of them was the difference in the game as both picked up stars. They provided the skill and finishing that was lacking on Thursday night and that has cost the Leafs so many points in 2007. The race for eighth is down to the final 13 games and the cavalry looks to have made its appearance just in time.

A Wild And Crazy Ride

When I last posted the Leafs had just won their first game in a run of five straight road games with a solid performance against the Carolina Hurricanes. Since then the Leafs have returned home the proud owners of a 4-1 record on their travels. The key to their success was the continued great goaltending of Andrew Raycroft (he won the Battle of Ontario 'Name' Game) and a new dedication to discipline. It is no surprise that in their four wins the Leafs gave up four, two, three, and three powerplays while giving up eleven powerplays in their only loss.

While getting ready for tonight's rematch with the rampant Penguins let's take a stroll down memory lane and check out just how the Leafs vaulted themselves back into playoff contention.

Leafs 2 v. Rangers 1: Razor Sharp

Razor put together a 37 save performance to keep the Rangers off the board. Aaron Ward laid a dirty, late headshot on Alexei Ponikarovsky but he replied by opening the scoring for the Leafs. Mats Sundin scored the winner on a brilliant Ian White long pass.

Leafs 3 v. sens 2 (SO): 'Name' Game

This game pitted Razor against his jumped-up opposition Ray Emery for the right to the sharp nickname. Both goalies had outstanding games but in the end the Leafs' tender emerged victorious thanks to his brilliant performance in the shootout. Leafs Nation invaded the Bank (including yours truly) and proceeded to outcheer and outjeer the hometown's fans as they shrank back in the face of our deafening roar. O'Neill and Sundin gave the Leafs a 2-0 lead heading into the third but the Leafs wanted to provide some drama. They allowed the sens to send the game to a shootout befor John Pohl beat the goalie formerly known as Razor with a nice backhand.

Leafs 2 v. Blues 1: Defence First

By all accounts the Leafs won this game with solid defence, clutch goaltending, and just enough offence. This gave the Leafs a chance to clinch their first 5-0 road trip in franchise history. It was not to be but this 4th straight road win and 5th straight overall put the Leafs not only within two points of 8th place but within striking distance of 4th in the Eastern Conference.

Leafs 2 v. Predators 4: Missed Opportunity

The Leafs missed a great chance to topple one of the West's top teams as a lack of discipline and shoddy refereeing torpedoed their chances at victory. The Predators are faster than greased lightning but the Leafs were generally able to hold their own. The line of The Soviet Bloc and the Captain were dominant. They held onto the puck at will and only some timely pokechecks, saves, and blocked shots kept them from putting up more than one goal.

Leafs 2 v. senators 3: Rage Blackout

Game Recap

As I watched this game with a large group of friends the story of this game shifted frequently. After a first period that saw the Leafs absolute dominate the senators the frustratingly great play of Ray Emery was in the spotlight. As the game progressed, the dual brain cramps of Mssrs. Kaberle and McCabe came to the fore. The shorthanded goal that Ottawa scored was galling enough because it came while the Leafs had a chance to build on their slim lead. Toss in the fact that Kaberle gave up on the chase and ignored the goal scorer McAmmond and that McCabe not only did not take a man but was curling into the corner when the senators strike and any observers of our little gathering would have heard a stream of colourful expletives filling the room. Luckily only one young lady fell victim and she seemed to enjoy her exposure to the fanatical side of sports.

The game morphed into a tightly contested battle in which Raycroft matched Emery save for save as the game seemingly moved towards overtime. The story quickly became how Raycroft had, with a stunning glove save on Dany Heatley which was turned into a Boyd Devereaux goal by Bates Battaglia, stolen the game from the senators. After waiting so long since the third period of the 4-1 win over Buffalo earlier in the season Razor had finally stepped up with the sort of performance that would go a long way towards rebuilding the confidence that he showed prior to hurting his groin in November. Alas, a defensive play with two minutes remaining that can only be described by a word that starts with 'cluster' took the game to overtime. Of course, Chris Phillips, who I have spent so much time mocking over at BoO, fanned on a shot and wrong-footed Raycroft for the winning goal. It has since been labelled a 'soft' goal by the anti-Raycroft media. I guess he will learn not to snub reporters that ask stupid questions ever again.

Sadly, the senators win another regular season matchup (how's that playoff record?) and, in a rare state of affairs, they did not deserve to win. Ray Emery and mental errors stole the game from the Leafs but at least they picked up a point. Next up, the Bruins in Toronto in a pair of games that did not turn out as I had expected.

Update: In my haste to post this recap and get back on top of the games I forgot what caused the biggest buzz amongst the viewers at my buddy's apartment: a lack of Leafs retribution. Time and time again the senators crashed the net and barrelled into Raycroft without any sort of response from the boys in blue. To top it off Chris Neil was doing his typical post-whistle routine of slashing, pushing, and chirping while being 'held back' (read: protected) by the linesman. I appreciate the fact that the Leafs were in a tight game and some sort of retribution could have cost the team the game. However, I still would have liked to see Belak fly into Emery once to let the sens know that the Leafs were not going to accept the sens shenanigans.

The Life of Bryan

(Note: This is a submission written in the hopes of becoming the new Leafs commentator at The Battle of Ontario. Please go over there and support me. It is a nice piece of schadenfreude)

With the Senators in the midst of a 5-game losing streak and mired in mailaise since the beginning of the season the calls for the heads of John Muckler and Bryan Murray have become louder and more urgent. The case for Muckler's firing has been laid out pretty conclusively but why get rid of Murray? Well, mostly because his tenure has already peaked. sens fans have already lived the Bryan Murray Experience. All that is left is the inevitable firing.

Here, cherry-picked to prove a point, are the season's relevant to Senators fans:

1983-84: Washington Capitals 48-27-5 .631 Lost in Round 2

1984-85: Washington Capitals 46-25-9 .631 Lost in Round 1

1985-86: Washington Capitals 50-23-7 .669 Lost in Round 2

1991-92: Detroit Red Wings 43-25-12 .613 Lost in Round 2

1992-93: Detroit Red Wings 47-28-9 .613 Lost in Round 1

2005-06: Ottawa Senators 52-21-9 .689 Lost in Round 2

Those last three playoff exits are famous for their meeknes.

1991-92 saw the Wings cough up a 3-1 series lead to the San Jose Sharks.

1992-93 will be familiar to Leaf fans as Nikolai Borchevsky became a folk hero with a Game 7 OT winner (how is that clip NOT on YouTube?) after the Wings coughed up another 3-1 series lead.

2005-06 as everyone saw on TV ended as the team captain and top defenceman watched a 3rd line grinder skip past them both and score the series winner...shorthanded.

Six times Murray has coached a team to a plus-.600 winning percentage only to bow out meekly in the first or second round.

Muckler's failures are documented, Murray's shortcomings are evident, and the less said about the Senators players' mental toughness (see: Playoffs) the better.

The answer to the survey is secret answer e: Fire Muckler, Fire Murray, and make a trade for a proven leader.

Leafs 2 v. sens 7: Don't Panic

Game Recap
Scoresheet
Statistics

Results like last night's make for long days. sens' fans will be chirping about the latest beating and getting themselves in a tizzy about how their team is on a roll but as we can tell them first hand, a few good games can turn into a few debacles just as easily as they turned their bad start into three strong efforts. Maybe it was a sign that I just finished the above book before these two games because I feel like panicking but the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy assures me that that won't help the situation.

The rough stuff did not materialize mostly because the Leafs played with none of the heart and grit that gave the Leafs a 4-0 playoff record against their provincial baby brothers and an eternal trump card. The only players that showed up for the game were poor Andrew Raycroft who made a number of great saves and kept us from seeing double digits despite being hung out to dry, Mike Peca who must be wondering what he has gotten himself into, Alexei Ponikarovsky who started using his size and speed to crash the net and was almost unstoppable, and Bates Battaglia who again earned a spot on the top line with his hard work and was rewarded with a goal that came solely from hustle. If the rest of the team could wake up (Paging Mssrs. Sundin, Wellwood, Steen, McCabe, Kaberle) and mimic their effort then maybe the season could get back on track.

3 things that showed that the Blessed, Holier-than-thou sens are just like the rest

1. Glen Healy is still finding his way as an analyst but his 'Viewpoint' segment showed something that was obscured by the angle that TSN and Sportsnet used. As Eaves and Tucker were squaring up St. Patty hit Darcy with a headbutt! What a dirty play. I wonder if sens fans will have the 'little friends' to admit that it was dirty or if they will ignore/justify it? My guess is that despite being self-annointed as the cleanest and most team in the history of the NHL that not a single fan will admit that what he did was disgusting. Even their Italian fans will think it was ok.
   
   
2. With the score 4-2 Jason Spezza had the puck in the Leafs zone with Stajan working hard to cover him only for Spezza to escape and set up the fifth goal and effectively end the game (if it wasn't already over). How did he get loose? By throwing an elbow at Matt and nailing him right in the kisser. The sens are just as dirty as the Leafs or any team in the NHL and their deluded fans will refuse to admit the truth.
   
   
3. The boards at Scotiabank Place were atrocious. First, they came apart, then pucks were bouncing off edges that were sticking out all game. Sure, a partition fell off at the ACC but this was embarrassing. It was like they didn't know how to put the boards together.

5 things that will leave clumps of hair in your hands

1. From a friend: "I've said it many times before (including way before they re-signed him), and I'll likely say it many times more; Bryan McCabe (and his contract) will single-handedly impede the franchise's ability to build a cup contender for the next five years."
   If McCabe wasn't coughing up the puck with no one around then he was taking a stupid penalty or he was standing around watching the game.
   
   
2. Kaberle is killing our inept powerplay. The Leafs went 0-4 in the first when the game was still within reach but he repeatedly lost the puck at the blueline or his dump-ins were lost because the forwards had to stop at the blueline waiting for him.
   
   
3. Mats has been a ghost the past few games. I have no idea what is wrong with him but he has been far from the player that ended last season on a tear or started this year so strongly. He is settling for a shot from the outside far too often and has not been driving the net with his usual gusto.
   
   
4. Ian White, for all of his assists and offensive skills, has started to look like a cheaper and smaller version of McCabe. He is frequently making terrible decisions with the puck in his own end and has now added stupid passes in the offensive zone to his repertoire. All he needs to do is stop getting his shots through from the point, hit some more shin pads, and the transformation will be complete.
   
   
5. The team's inability to do the small things. The Leafs are not clearing the zone (1st goal), marking properly in their zone (3rd, 4th, 5th, 7th goals) or hitting anyone (2nd and 6th goals). It is incredibly frustrating to see NHL players making novice mistakes.

6 things to get you through the day

1. Our penalty kill was 7 for 8 and killed of an almost two minute long 5-on-3. Peca and Gill have been great additions to the PK. It is still a work in progress but it is getting better (the Rangers game and Tuesday's game being abberations).
   
   
2. Ponikarovsky might have realized that he is both big and strong. If he can get going then he gives that line a good dynamic with O'Neill as the finisher, Stajan as the playmaker, and Poni as the grinder. His efforts paid off by setting up O'Neill for a tap-in.
   
   
3. Goaltending is not an issue. Last year the Leafs were losing games because in addition to their shoddy defensive play Belfour (Bell-Five! Bell-Six!) was letting in a tonne of softies. This year Raycroft has been making the big saves but has been let down by the team. If the team can improve then they can benefit from the strong goaltending they have been receiving.
   
   
4. The defence is healing up. Pavel Kubina will be back soon. Anyone who doubts the difference that he makes wasn't watching the first three games he played. He takes minutes and pressure from Kaberle and McCabe and allows Gill to play fewer and more effective minutes.
   
   
5. Check out the results comparison. Even after last night we are still 3 points better than the equivalent games from last year. In fact, we lost the second game and second away game against ottawa 8-0 and 8-2 respectively last year. Baby steps.
   
   
6. At least we didn't get killed by the Coyotes. Fellow victims include the New York Islanders and St. Louis Blues. Heady company indeed.

The light at the end of the tunnel in...

The Final Word

"I'm not going to quit out there. I'm not going to take the easy way out."
Andrew Raycroft, Goalie, showing the kind of fight that one hopes is infectious.

Round Four

Research
Any Leaf fan can tell you that Chad Kilger is one of the hardest working and cleanest players on the team. Since his arrival off waivers from Montreal he has seemingly found a home in Toronto. That is why Tuesday's 'roughing' penalty was a bit of a surprise. Here is the best explanation I have seen for what happened:

With one mighty spear to Christoph Schubert's nether region, the Maple Leafs' Chad Kilger provided an answer to an age-old hockey question. The Ottawa Senators do have cojones after all.

He was trying to find out if the sens have a pair. It's long been suspected that they lack something (see: Playoffs, Chokes in) in their makeup but according to Schubert they always have their boys with them:

I was falling down and the next thing I see, I just got a stick in my two lovely friends.

Here's hoping that Chad doesn't try to see if the sens do, in fact, have hearts. That could be messy.

Tough Talk

There has been a lot of rhetoric flowing from the capital since Tuesday and most of it is coming from ottawa's tough guys Chris Neil and Brian McGrattan. Neil is under the impression that Tucker purposefully chose a guy that had not fought since he was 16 (he's only 22 now) instead of the first senator that actually stepped up to fight him (Fisher did a lot of hacking and slashing, Neil's specialty, but no actual fighting) and now he wants revenge:

If we have a chance to finish checks on him, we'll do it. But we won't do it cheap, we'll do it the right way.

I wonder if by 'right' way he means the 'senators' way. Look out Darcy, you're in store for some stickwork and hits from behind!

McGrattan added:

Going after a guy that's never fought before, I'd just never do it. There's plenty of guys that do that. Tucker's not the only one.

and that is true, McGrattan has fought within his weight class, he has largely gotten drilled, but he does not fight newcomers to the game. Neil, on the other hand, counts such noted pugilists as Nolan Yonkman, Radovan Somik, and Mike Commodore as dance partners. I am guessing we will probably see more chirping and slashing after the whistle than fighting out of Christina.

Leafs 2 v. sens 6: Jekyll and Hyde

Game Recap
Scoresheet
Statistics

This game is best summed up by the head coach:

There's only one mistake that we made tonight: We didn't compete as hard as we need to as a team. That's it.
Paul Maurice

And this post from Ninja that captures the frustration of watching the Leafs pick and choose the periods they want to play as if they were good enough to give less than 100%.

If you are still curious about last night's trainwreck of a game then read last game's recap. The bad stuff still applies (except for the shootout) and there were fewer goals. Or if you want to re-read something happy check out the Flames game. Mats also made history last night AND those truths were clearly in evidence last night. However, if you are determined to read about last night's game then carry on.

The Leafs did put in a solid 30 minutes. Unfortunately, it was the second 30 minutes and the score was already 5-0. Here is a summary of how not competing and the collective mental nap that the Leafs took from the puck drop to the 8:00 mark of the second period cost the Leafs any chance in this game:

1-0 - Kaberle makes a terrible pinch at the blue line which is followed by Belak over-committing on a 2-on-1 to leave Raycroft alone.
2-0 - Leafs can't clear the zone despite numerous chances and the point shot is deflected by a Leafs player.
3-0 - Gill gets outmuscled by Patrick Eaves in front of the net and he pots the rebound to score his first goal since the season opener against the Leafs.
4-0 - Wellwood misses a great opportunity to get the puck by letting it slide under his stick in the corner. McCabe can't tie up Vermette and he fired Fisher's pass through Raycroft's pads.
5-0 - The Leafs all get outworked. Sundin had the puck on the boards and couldn't clear. Spezza eventually gets the puck and centres to Heatley who got away from Wellwood.

On the bright side, the Leafs could have easily gone into the third trailing only 5-4 instead of 5-1. The Gerber Baby made a number of last-ditch saves to rob Mats and Wellwood of goals. He did look a little weak in the third, especially on Sundin's record setting goal, but unfortunately the Leafs cannot build on that since Emery get the start Thursday night.

The two heavyweights took a little dance but it turned out to be a pretty terrible fight and indicative of the game. Belak didn't do too much while McGrattan did just enough until Wade slipped up and he pounced. It was nice to see McGrattan win his first-ever fight. I can only assume it was his first win because despite not landing any good punches and basically just falling on Belak he tried to mock Belak by making "turtle" motions.

Team pest Darcy Tucker did his best to energize the team. One sequence showed what he brings to the team. First he nailed Spezza, who proceeded to slash him and run to the bench, then Tucker hit Eaves, who jumped at Darcy as he was hit. Tucker dropped the gloves, grabbed him and said 'let's go'. Eaves made a valiant effort but Tucker dropped three huge rights and topped off the sequence by returning McGrattan's mocking by mimicking him.

Most Ottawa fans are outraged, calling Eaves a skill player and suggesting that Neil fight Wellwood in relatiation. That is just nonsense. We all know that Neil doesn't fight. Plus Eaves is the sens answer to Tomas Holmstrom (from what I have read) and he is 2 inches taller and 10 pounds heavier. Tucker didn't throw a punch until Eaves dropped the gloves.

Schubert continued the sens pattern of injuring Leafs through stick violence (Alfie was the exception, he used a hit from behind) with a hefty slash on Kilger and he was repaid by something that Harry Neale called "The Separator". Not a noble retaliation.

The sens replied to the Leafs dirty tricks with their tried and true dirty trick, a hit from behind on Tucker. This time it was Heatley, who is apparently the sens' injurer-in-chief now, who drilled Tucker. No penalty of course.

The animosity is building in anticipation of Thursday night. Of course because of the ridiculous NHL schedule, that will be the fourth game in October followed by a long layoff to let the steam cool. What a shame, things were just getting interesting. Hopefully, both teams show up tomorrow night (paging the home team) or a repeat of the 6-0 drubbing. I could handle that.

Maple Leaf Goals
First Goal
O'Neill wins the faceoff back to White who gets his shot through. O'Neill sneaked past the sens centreman and was stoned (that has been a theme this season) but Stajan has an empty net for the tap in.

Second Goal
Shades of Lalime. White hit Tucker with a good breakout pass and he found an open Sundin on the left wing. He shot on net as he crossed the blueline and Gerber absolutely blew it. He passes Dave Keon (he of the curse) into second on the all-time Leafs scoring list. Not quite as good as his 500th but you can only score on who you're facing.

The Final Word

You know their pride will kick in and they’ll come more prepared Thursday night. The last time Ottawa beat them up on home ice, they did much worse in response.
Chris McMurtry, Hockey Country, summing up the best case scenario.

As usual when these clubs meet, not all went off without a hitch. Darcy Tucker backs down from no one, but his decision to start a fight with Eaves, a non-fighter, in the second period did not please Senators brass. "It's a cowardly act," Sens general manager John Muckler said.
Terry Koshan, Toronto Sun, probably wondering if Muckler remembers Alfie's cowardly check or Heatley's cowardly slash or Spezza's cowardly slash. Maybe it's senility kicking in.

Leafs 6 v. sens 0: Release the Hounds!

Game Recap
Scoresheet
Statistics

I have vowed to try to tinge my objectivity with a litte optimism mainly to prevent depression and to counteract the deluge of negative press that the Toronto Media slams down Leafs fans' throats. Sometimes this requires deep inspection (see: Night, Wednesday). Then there are the glorious evenings such as the one that just passed. Last night allows you to ignore any shortcomings (McCabe is getting paid $5.75M but is playing like he is worth about $750K) and just bask in the greatness of beating one of your bitterest rival 6-0, in their home rink no less.

I mentioned to a friend after the first period that it seemed that someone had pissed in the Leafs coffee because they came out of the gate fired up. Darcy Tucker and Chad Kilger showed up, which was nice of them, and were impact players all night. They finished checks, scored a pair of goals each, and that seemed to push the rest of the team to improve their play. Of course, Mats was a beast last night. The sens' defence could only hope to contain him as he chipped in with two assists. Peca, was once again a force especially during the penalty kills when he was not in the box.

Pavel Kubina showed the difference that he can make. His presence allowed the defence's ice time to be more spread out. He was strong on the puck and skillfully avoided falling on Andrew Raycroft when chris neil tried to push him onto our tender. Naturally, neil fought no one last night. There was a fight between McGrattan and Belak but it consisted mostly of little lefts and the big loser was the air who took the brunt of the force of the right-handed roundhouses.

The two big stars for the game were Kyle Wellwood who picked up four assists and used his quickness and shiftiness (two completely different things) to full effect. And last, but certainly not least, the new goaltender Andrew Raycroft. After last night he is the proud owner of a 1.51 GAA and .957 Sv%, a far cry from last year's numbers. Much of the talk over the summer was whether he could re-capture something approximating his Calder Trophy-winning form. Well, he certainly looks well on his way. He smothered any shots that came near his chest, he challenged the sens' shooters aggressively, and made key breakaway saves again including one perfectly timed pokecheck. Meanwhile, Martin Gerber is one game closer to Patrick Lalime territory and probably felt a little like this last night.

All in all, the Leafs not only improved their effort but they also showed that the reports of their demise were greatly exaggerated. If they can keep the work rate up then they will be in with a shout for the playoffs but they will be far from the laughingstock that most people had predicted. See the goals here!

Other Highlights

After a shocking evening of silence from the ACC crowd the SBP crowd decided to show that they could do one better. After a decent start they quickly moved to booing the sens ineffective powerplay before leaving the building almost devoid of any sens fans towards the end of the third period. Good show sens fans!

Meanwhile, the true Leafs fans (the ACC crowd is generally only about 50% true Leafs fans...much like SBP) held their own in terms of Go Team Go chants before asserting their dominance by loudly booing the sens' captain every time he touched the puck. Of course, sens fans were confused because they had no idea Bozo was in the line-up.

Next to face the Leafs juggernaut: Montreal Saturday Night.

Now, with a special theme (I think you will pick it up quickly) it's an all-goaltender themed...

The Final Word

Martin Gerber. After pretty much stealing the first period for the Sens Wednesday night, allowing the Sens to rally in the second period and get the win, Gerber fell back to Earth and gave me, and many of you I’m certain, visions of Patrick Lalime. That first goal by Chad Kilger was vintage Lalime during the 2003-04 season, and unfortunately it didn’t get better from there. The Ottawa defence didn’t do Gerber any favors, as they had an equally awful night, however, when you have a $3.7 million goalie, you’d hope he could stop a lot of those shots that lit the lamp. The alleged goaltending controversy, sparked by his poor pre-season, was quieted 24 hours ago, but this is the kind of outing that gets that talked started all over again.
Chris McMurtry, reminding us of just how familiar that Kilger goal seemed.

Chad Kilger played the part of Joe Nieuwendyk, beating Gerber from the left wing faceoff circle with a shot that everyone admits should have been stopped. Tucker made it 2-0 with a good wrister, but also one that would have hit Gerber had he been upright...The Senators were a bad lot in this embarrassing, 6-0 home opening loss to a team that will have its hands full making the playoffs. And a very inconsistent Gerber -- in two periods before being mercifully replaced -- was the worst of it...Think maybe John Muckler should have went after Andrew Raycroft instead of Gerber in the offseason?
Don Brennan, Ottawa Sun, points out the obvious.

Gerber was the toast of Bytown after Wednesday, but was heckled after giving up five goals in two periods last night.
Lance Hornby, Toronto Sun, reminding everyone that Gerber only managed 40 minutes.

They pumped five goals past an overwhelmed Martin Gerber in the Ottawa net, chasing him after two periods, en route to this laugher. Then they rubbed a little road salt in the wound with another goal in the third, beating backup goalie Ray Emery.
Paul Hunter, Toronto Star, calling a spade a spade.

The Ottawa Senators might have been better off last night if they had slapped some goalie pads on Spartacat. Or Lyndon Slewidge. Or any one of the Governor General's Foot Guards who stood alongside Slewidge for O Canada. Or found out where Damian Rhodes lives and sent a cab for him.
Allen Panzeri, Ottawa Citizen, revealing the sens proposed goaltending shopping list.

Meanwhile over at the Globe Dave Shoalts weighed in with a gloating column entitled "Leafs faults on full display" Maybe today we could have one with "Toronto Sports Media Faults on display"?
The Meatriarchy, Battle of Ontario, suggesting that jumping the gun and a mob mentality might not suit journalism.

What a start!

The Leafs are off to a hot 2-0 start...in this year's mapleleafs.com PS2 preview season. I bet those PS2 sens fans are bringing up the past even more than the real ones.

Leafs 3 v. sens 5: Fisher sinks Buds

Game Recap
I will not lie. I forgot that there was a game last night. Toronto, still more Marlies than Maple Leafs, dropped to 3-3 in the pre-season after coming out on the short end of a 5-3 decision. I only caught about five minutes of the third but I still managed to see the most heartbreaking play of the pre-season.

After dueling end to end rushes the puck found itself in Public Enemy #1's skates. Alfredsson compliantly looked down in an attempt to locate the puck while simultaneously getting on the trolley tracks. Lo and behold Ponikarovsky comes flying into the picture from offscreen. "Great! revenge for that Tucker hit!" Alas, Alex pokechecked the sens' captain. I guess he wanted to take an eighth shot. Revenge will have to wait for another game. Oh well. Since I missed the game, here are a couple of highlights from opposing bloggers.

The Fans' Eye View

On the flipside, it was another piss poor performance from the Russian that was supposed to save us. Murray gave Kaigorodov every chance to succeed even though he took him off the Alfredsson line. He was lined up with red hot Denis Hamel and Patrick Eaves, who has an uncanny ability to find the net, and yet he still didn't generate much in the way of offensive chances.
Chris McMurty, Hockey Country

The post game scrum around Mikael Tellqvist was telling, the reporters and the now embattled Leaf backup seemed resigned to the fact that he has probably played his last game in a Leaf uniform. Mikael expressed a hope that a decision would be made soon as it is hard on both him and his fiancee not knowing what is happening.
The Meatriarchy, The Battle of Ontario

The Final Word

With seven of Toronto's starters missing from the lineup, last night's game against Ottawa was hardly a barometer for the season. Instead, it gave head coach Paul Maurice yet another look at the many Leaf hopefuls. And with three games remaining on the pre-season schedule, several players had more than just winning on their minds. Forwards John Pohl and Alexander Suglobov hoped to land a roster spot by scoring goals, while goaltender Mikael Tellqvist simply wanted to stop more pucks than backup candidate J.S. Aubin has so far this pre-season.
Michael Traikos, National Post

And because sens fans love to talk about the playoffs here is a video to remind them of them successes. Pause at the end and see some hilarious regular season points total versus playoff games statistics. Pay close attention to 2000-2001. I wonder who swept them?

Leafs 2 v. sens 3: Marlies Win Streak Snapped

Game Recap
The Halifax Metro Centre was the site of this 'home' game for the Leafs. Thanks to our national fan base the poor sens were treated to a less than hospitable reception. Paul Maurice dressed almost the entire Marlies squad in order to reward them for their hard work in camp. The AHL team came flying out of the gates against the veteran laden sens and skated them off the rink. The Baby Leafs outshot them 19-6 and outscored them 2-0.

Unfortunately, the second and third periods saw Mark Lee put in an impressive performance for the sens. What? You have never heard of Mark Lee? well that's because he was the ref for the game but that did not stop him from helping the sens out with a few 5-on-3s (Heatley and Spezza promptly scored) and a string of penalties that took the wind out of the team's sails. A blistering first intermission team talk from Brian Murray probably helped improve the sens's effort as well.

sens' fans can also take heart from the fact that both goal scorers are in mid-season form. Spezza hacked Steen in the back and tried to intimidate him until Brad Brown suggested that maybe Jason would prefer to dance with him. Spezza (aptly described as a punk)promptly skated hard for the bench. And, in a clear sign that Dany has now completely acclimated himself to the sens, he took a two-handed tomahawk chop to Brendan Bell's ankle. In typical sens fashion, that brutal baseball swing added the defenceman to the injured list which now reads like the Leafs starting defence corps.

All in all it was a good game. The penalty kill again looked good. 5-on-4 the Leafs got in the shooting lanes well and put pressure on the puck. 5-on-3 was where the class of the sens' forwards shone through. Although the scoresheet will show that the Leafs allowed 3 PPGs fans can take solace in the fact that one came with one second left in a penalty (Kelly's goal was scrambled in front) and two came on 5-on-3s. The work that has been done on the powerplay was evident as the puck was moved around sharply and quickly regardless of the on-ice personnel.

Maple Leaf Goals
First Goal
This one was courtesy of the powerplay. Wozniewski passed it to Bell at the top of the zone who then feathered a pass to O'Neill. He blasted a one-timer through Emery's legs to give the Leafs the lead.

Second Goal
Jay Harrison, in another solid outing, stopped a clearance at the blueline and got a low wrist shot on net. The soon to be a Leaf John Pohl pounced on the rebound and fired it high to double the lead.

The Final Word

The ottawa senators should have known they were in for a tough night the minute they touched the ice at the Halifax Metro Centre. They got booed. It was just like playing at the Air Canada Centre. Even the big screen mocked the senators by flashing "Go Leafs Go." Halifax is Maple Leafs Country. It looked as if the sellout crowd of 10,595 would go home happy, too. The Leafs took it to the Senators in the first period and took a 2-0 lead on goals from Jeff O'Neill and John Pohl. At that point, though, senators coach Bryan Murray exploded, and it worked.

Allen Panzeri, The Ottawa Citizen

Despite a disappointing 3-2 loss here last night that saw the Ottawa Senators take control of the scoreboard with two goals in the third period, the Leafs gave a solid, encouraging account of themselves, and have now set up some tough decisions for the next round of roster cuts.

Mark Zwolinski, The Toronto Star

Three Stars
Since this was not played in an NHL arena there are no official NHL stats so I have no real idea if any were selected. Here is my opinion:

3rd star: JS Aubin - he is definitely not making the back-up decision easy and he has to be the favourite to stay with the big club.

2nd star: Jay Harrison - another strong defensive effort will see the defenceman's chances of staying with the Leafs take a boost. If not, he will definitely be one of the first call-ups when the injuries came. He is also the best defenceman at getting his shot through on net.

1st star: Mark Lee - whenever the sens looked like the Baby Leafs might build up some momentum Lee made a big play to stall them. Instrumental in both 5-on-3 powerplays in the third period that saw the sens take a lead that they would no relinquish.

Leafs 3 v. sens 1: Re-book the Parade!

The Leafs' playoff chances were written off after their 4-0 loss to the Sabres on Monday so I can only assume that last night's 3-1 win over the Cup contender sens that city officials are looking at parade logistics this morning. That's right, the Leafs renewed the Battle of Ontario without missing a beat and rang up a second consecutive win against the ladies from the nation's capital.

Seriously, it is only pre-season but it is good to see some good performances out of some of the youngsters, most notably Brendan Bell, and trade-bait Mikael Tellqvist. On the forward front, my co-favourite for a big year, a rebuilt and revitalized Jeff O'Neill, was a revelation as was a former charge of Paul Maurice, Bates Battaglia. The bottom line is that this is one more game spent by the boys learning Maurice's system and each game helps.

Of course, the joke of the day is the the sens saw 'p-season' on the schedule, thought it was the post-season, and let a hot Leafs goalie shut them down in a demoralizing loss. The bad news is that Kubina is joining Kaberle and Carlo on the injured list. Also, Hal Gill had four giveaways. Hopefully, all issues will clear up before the real games start.

The Final Word
As always (twice) here is the final word from each city:

Kaigorodov, 23, the touted Russian centre who is attempting to find a home on a line with captain Daniel Alfredsson and Peter Schaefer, didn't inspire much confidence last night. While he only had half a game to work with Alfredsson -- the captain left the game for precautionary reasons in the second period after suffering a groin injury -- he didn't showcase much. Early on, he shied away from a couple of hits at the blue-line. [Editor's Note: Sounds like he will fit in just fine] He suffered the embarrassment of falling, untouched, deep in his own end late in the first period. While the combination lasted, there was little chemistry between Kaigorodov and Alfredsson. In the third period, Mike Peca beat Kaigorodov cleanly on a draw deep in the senators' zone, leading directly to the Maple Leafs' third goal from Andy Wozniewski.

Ken Warren, The Ottawa Citizen

The Toronto Maple Leafs no longer enjoy the economic advantage that once that allowed them to shop in the free-agent market and buy some of the best talent available. But they are betting that their one-year, $2.5-million (U.S.) investment in Michael Peca will make a difference this coming National Hockey League season. Peca, playing his first exhibition game with the Maple Leafs, set up two goals in the third period that helped lift Toronto to a 3-1 win over the Ottawa Senators at Scotiabank Place last night. Centring a line with Nik Antropov and Chad Kilger, Peca was one of Toronto's better forwards, especially during the later stages of the game as the Leafs rallied from a 1-0 disadvantage midway through the second period.

David Naylor, The Globe and Mail

So it's a good start to Peca's Leaf career and an opening victory over the sens. It does not count for much in the pre-season but after missing the playoffs every little bit counts.