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[Recap] Leafs 2 at Hurricanes 3 (OT): Rage Blackout

Wow, so after two periods this post was going to be about how Vesa Toskala has given the Leafs the ability to steal games once again and I was going to make fun of Habs fans again for thinking that their team is good and that their goalie has never stolen a game. Then a funny thing happened, the real Leafs made an appearance and instead of the determined, hard skating team that had played the first 58 minutes we were treated to an empty headed display of how to throw a game away.

There is tonnes of blame to throw around but none of it should touch VeTo who was nothing short of amazing especially during the first five minutes when the Hurricanes were outshooting the Leafs 10-1. His post-game interview certainly made it seem like he has finally got the measure of playing in Toronto. It'll be a long two more years for the Finn. The penalty kill was once again stellar but eventually ran out of gas in the overtime period.

Top 5 Blame Targets

  1. Paul Maurice - how often does he have to watch the Leafs get victimized by a quick-strike team before he learns to use his timeouts? Call a timeout, give Kubina and Gill a rest and put them out for the last minute and a half to deal with the flurry. Oh, and play Stralman. If Make-A-Wish Woz can get ice-time in which to take stupid penalties then surely an actual defenceman can get some time.
  1. Alex Ponikarovsky - Shoot it or dump it in the corner. Do not glide into the zone and see where you are going to shoot the puck and think and think and think and where the hell did the puck go?
  1. Nik Antropov - I am getting your jersey someday and you played a great game except for your last shift in overtime. First, good play ragging the puck on that last rush but why try to set up a goal? Dump it in the corner and let your line do what it does best. Also, for the love of God, don't try to block shots with your feet. Tie up the stick.
  1. Alexander Steen - Same to you. TIE UP THE STICK! Why is that the most common complaint about the Leafs' coverage in front of the net? You're in the NHL. That shit isn't even acceptable in house league hockey.
  1. Me - Why would I start thinking about it being a win before the final buzzer?

Of course, the Leafs threw away the lead on their own but the win was referee aided. How Hedican got away with blatantly kicking his leg out to trip Ponikarovsky is beyond me. Staal's bear hug of Sundin is maybe a little more understandable but two 5 on 3s against with the second coming in overtime on the back of two missed calls against the Leafs is criminal.

SPG winners were: Shot - Blake, Penalty - Bell, Goal - Devereaux. Vote for the player of the game in the poll below.

Poll
Who was the Leafs' Player of the Game?
  • Pavel Kubina (32:50 TOI including 10:07 SH)
  • Vesa Toskala (35 saves and many of the spectacular variety)
  • Tomas Kaberle (1 goal and 1 assist)
  • Hal Gill (28:58 TOI including 13:16 SH)

  18 votes | Results

0 recs | Comment 14 comments

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Road trippin'

A win, a not try and a choke during which we have likely kicked started two teams.  Yep, the Leafs are playing there game.

by penaltyshotsca on Dec 19, 2007 10:05 AM EST   0 recs

Right where they belong

This weekend a sens friend of mine asked my buddy and I if we thought that the Leafs were the worst team in the NHL. Of course we laughed and then my friend gave the most appropriate reply:

No, they're the 17th best in the NHL, 9th in the East.

Sadly, that point lost tonight reminds me of the one lost against the Islanders last year courtesy of a terrible Kerry Fraser blown call.

by PPP on Dec 19, 2007 10:15 AM EST to parent up   0 recs

Know any good TV repairmen?
I was barely successful in stopping myself from kicking the TV, aiming for the Leafs.  Suggestion: to the SPG contest, add "which Leafs team will show up tonight?"  1980's, deja vu, all over again!  Why do I do this to myself?
LeoSC

by leosc on Dec 19, 2007 11:42 AM EST   0 recs

let's not lose our heads

yes last night was brutal, but lets not lose our heads...

the leafs are 6-2-2 in their last 10...they are 4 points out of 4th place in the conference...

yes, a "W" was squandered last night, but a point is a point is a point...and it still counts in the standings...if we miss the playoffs by 1 stinkin point, sure, we can all look back to Dec. 19 and scream towards the heavens...

but the leafs are where we thought they would be - fighting for the final 3 playoff spots (6, 7 and 8)...i still think they are a playoff team...500 hockey on this road trip, and at least til colaiacovo gets into the lineup, will be fine by me...

by eyebleaf on Dec 19, 2007 11:58 AM EST   0 recs

If it was rare

If the Leafs being victimized for a flurry of goals without a timeout being called was rare...

If the Leafs blowing a third period lead was rare...

If the Leafs letting themselves get into penalty trouble was rare...

If the Leafs being unable to lift a stick was rare...

then more patience might be in order but it's just more of the same play that we have seen pop up all year at the worst possible moment.

Scrapping to get into 8th place is not good enough.

They are 4 points out of 4th but they have more games played than anyone else in the conference.

Then again, things are never as good as they seem and never as bad as they seem.

Take Carey Price for example, the Franchise Saviour (TM FHF) is 3-3-1 in his last 7. Hardly the stuff of legends.

by PPP on Dec 19, 2007 12:21 PM EST to parent up   0 recs

The problem with aiming low...
is that you may hit your goal.  The Leafs and us, the fans, should not be happy with making the playoffs.  It should be a given, and the goal should be to win the Stanley Cup. Any other goal is just business.
LeoSC

by leosc on Dec 19, 2007 12:31 PM EST to parent up   0 recs

Bang On

The team has the potential to be so much more than 8th place but all of the talk is allowed to centre around just making the playoffs.

Paul Maurice may have been off his rocker in proclaiming that the Leafs would not only make the playoffs but they would compete for the Cup but it was the right idea. The team needs to know that more is expected of it.

by PPP on Dec 19, 2007 12:53 PM EST to parent up   0 recs

i disagree

a few years back when the ducks made the cup final and lost to new jersey no one thought of them as stanley cup contenders.

ditto with calgary's remarkable run (and tampa, who won the damn thing)...and ditto for edmonton's remarkable run...none of those were perennial cup contenders...they made the playoffs, got hot, and the rest was history...

i agree with maurice - making the playoffs means that you are, indeed, competing for the cup...that's what making the playoffs means...the teams that don't qualify for the playoffs don't get to compete for the cup...

the post-season is a crapshoot as much as it is a test of a good team...you need a lot of luck to win the stanley cup...it's the most difficult trophy to win in pro sports, requiring 16 extremely grueling wins...

once you make the playoffs, the regular season is moot...it doesn't matter...it is thrown out the window...just like the year the leafs squeaked into the playoffs as the #7 seed to face #2 ottawa, and swept them 4 straight...anything can happen, especially in today's NHL, where as we saw last night, no lead is safe...

it's not that my expectations are low...the 4th place team (boston) has played ONE more game than the leafs...if they had 3 or 4 games in hand, sure, then it's not as simple as me saying we're only 4 points out of 4th...but it's only one game...

maybe its years of frustration, or maybe it's watching teams go on crazy, dramatic, remarkable runs when no one gave them a sniff, but making the playoffs, no matter what the seed, is just fine by me...

by eyebleaf on Dec 19, 2007 2:49 PM EST to parent up   0 recs

The exceptions that prove the rule

8th seeded teams do not win the Stanley Cup.

The Ducks' run was based on out of this world goaltending and timely scoring and the ability to tackle better teams into submission.

Same with the Flames. The Tampa team that they lost to had 46 wins and was first in the Eastern Conference.

The Oilers' run was similar to the Flames in that borderline players played about 4 levels above themselves. Fernando Pisani scored 14 goals after getting just 18 in the regular season.

Those three teams' miracle runs are known as that because they are miracles. All three team's follow ups reflect that truth.

And the important thing to remember with the Leafs is that they are terrible without home ice. Not only does it not bode well for them in game sevens but they are also terrible in game 5s (which are also played on the road). Tie that in with the Leafs general inability to close out series in less than 6 games and it's a poisonous brew.

The post-season is a crapshoot to a certain extent since you can never anticipate injuries (Koivu v. Carolina) or great performances (Pisani 2006) but the winners are invariably the teams that were at the top of the league throughout the season.

Deep down, I think that this Leafs team does have the potential to surprise people if it can make it to the playoffs but knowing their flaws (struggles with keeping a lead, Andy Wozniewski, road form) I don't want to let me hopes get up since the odds are long enough as they are.

by PPP on Dec 19, 2007 3:34 PM EST to parent up   0 recs

Making the playoffs should be a given
A team like the Leafs should not think of its goal to make the playoffs. It must be a given. That is my point.  It does make a difference. Shooting for the playoffs is like deciding to go on vacation to South Carolina, but there's a chance you might make it to Miami Beach.  Or starting to run a 10K, but maybe finish a marathon.
LeoSC

by leosc on Dec 19, 2007 3:54 PM EST to parent up   0 recs

Boston

How'd we make out against Boston so far anyhow?   Yikes.  Now imagine finishing fifth and being whipped by them in 4.  Not to worry, with 7 OT losses in 34 games we only have an outside shot at 7th or 8th.  

I don't know what it will take to have a workers mentality imbued into the Leafs.  Hasn't been there since around our first run with Dougie.  Then we brought in a bunch of talent that could win the game off one hard period and the work ethic left and now that talent is gone.

We should have hired Hitch.

by penaltyshotsca on Dec 19, 2007 3:51 PM EST   0 recs

The Northeast

My uncle the other day remarked that the Leafs were screwed because they can't beat the senators, they can't be the Habs, they can't beat the Sabres, and they can't beat the Bruins.

Hitch is a good short-term coach but like a lot of hard coaches (Iron Mike) their schtick does not necessarily last more than a season or two.

by PPP on Dec 19, 2007 4:00 PM EST to parent up   0 recs

short ter, schtick

So you are saying Maurice is around long term?   At least in Hitch and Keenan's short term stay there is a chance at the cup.

by penaltyshotsca on Dec 19, 2007 4:31 PM EST   0 recs

Maurice's Fate

is tied to JFJ's. If Junior gets the axe then so will Maurice. If there is an extension for JFJ then I doubt we'll see him replace Maurice this summer.

Hitch and Keenan's schtick works when it's put into a perfect storm (Dallas Stars late 90s and New York Ranger 1994). Hitch has made improvements with the Blue Jackets but they likely will still miss the playoffs.

The path of destruction that Iron Mike leaves in his path is well documented.

I am not sure that either would work that much better in Toronto and either way the Leafs missed the boat, once again, because of the boardroom politics.

by PPP on Dec 19, 2007 4:46 PM EST to parent up   0 recs

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