What the hell was he doing on the first Dallas goal. Absolutely pitiful. All Leafs are in front of him desperate for a line change and he soft swings it around the boards, turnover; 1-0 Dallas after Leaf domination. F me!
Posted on 10/28 7:07 PM | IP: 24.6.156.174
4-3 in ot. That leaf defenseman (?Jeff Finger?) had the chance to block it.
This post was edited on 10/28 5:48 PM by upice
Posted on 10/28 7:38 PM | IP: 66.25.42.23
That what you call snake bit. But the Leafs allow them selves to be snake bit. They have ZERO pressure on the points, both on the PK and even strength. It's a big problem for them as most shots get to the net, and the opposing players in front are not tied up in front.
The leafs have serious problems in their own zone. The lack of puck pressure by forwards is brutal. Its so pervasive I've got to believe this is a system RW has implemented.
Posted on 10/28 8:01 PM | IP: 24.6.156.174
....is playing worse that a midget player....he flubbed the puck on the overtime goal, and made a few boneheaded plays which almost cost the Leafs...perhaps he needs his minuates cut a little...maybe he can log the big minuates...Schenn played better...Gustavsson played well, but looks awkward..the last goal he was reaching for with his glove, rather than kicking his leg out at it...is he still hurt?? Overall, a better effort by the Leafs!!
Posted on 10/29 8:30 AM | IP: 142.142.123.174
I saw the Leafs hold Dallas to 2 shots for almost 20 minutes.
I seen a goalie that played another strong game and got an unlucky break with a shot be deflected off of a body with 3 minutes left to tie.
I saw Beau (inspite of making that one gaff and mis-read Kaberle on a around the net pass) do a much better job of pinching.
I thought Komi played a pretty steady game and did not take any stupid penalties (that were his fault)
The ref made two bad calls in a row and one was to create a 5 on 3. The call against Poni was marginal followed up by the call on Komi being non existant high stick giving Dallas a 5 on 3.
Kulemin had a good game after looking like a season was going to be a regression for him.
Exelby had one of his best games this year and Schenn looked like he was starting to improve his game a little and gain some confidence back.
Overall the team tried very hard and deserved a much better fate. Improvements to goaltending noted and improvements to there defensive systems were definately noted. Odd mad rushes were almost non existant and for long stretches the Leafs were able to hold Dallas to virtually no shots on net.....
I think that some bad luck+poor refering could have easily caused Toronto to get 0 points last night instead of 1 point. The one point they did get was almost 2 points and credit should be given to them for fighting back from being behind twice in that game.
Overall over the last three games the Leafs are a much better team. They got 3 points in the last 3 games and could have easily had 6 points......
The team is starting to make some good improvements and they desperately need to go .500 over there next two games against Montreal and Buffalo and continue to build upon the modest success they have had of late.
Posted on 10/29 9:37 AM | IP: 76.75.95.232
Yes Shakes, improved, but I'm very concerned about the lack of puck pressure in the defensive zone. Let's watch the next game and see what the team looks like in their own zone. I just can't figure out why the forwards don't pressure the puck?
It's killing the Leafs on the PK and even strength. Maybe it is a lack o' confidence?
I agree re: Gus, excited he's here for the long haul. It is also convenient that Toskala is hurt. Makes things much easier on the team. Hopefully he can steal a game or two by Sunday and control his fate.
Posted on 10/29 11:55 AM | IP: 67.161.33.19
Im pretty sure that the Monster has won the starting goalie start in the short term anyways. Anyone that honestly thought that Toskala would be the starter the entire season was praying he would return to San Jose Shark form. The Monster was brought in to be a back up but deep down most Leaf fans knew he would be the starter sooner or later....or at least that was what the hope was. I believe even the players on Toronto are buying into that.....He is just a very good goalie with size and will hopefully do nothing but good from here on out...I dont think it mattered if Toskala was healthy or not as the Leafs gave him a lot of opportunities and he always found a way to let one soft goal in and never steal a game for them.
I think the lack of pressure your refering to is most easily seen on the PK.....at even strength the Leafs looked much better then all three teams they faced (Vancouver, Ducks, and Dallas) Is it perfect? Nope........ but it is better then what the opposition was throwing at them over the last three game stretch. That is a step in the right direction. You cannot just wave a magic wand and hope that your defensive coverage gets better over night it takes time....goaltending is actually the first step and as the team gets more confidence/used in the way the Monster plays they will follow with more aggressive/defensive play as well.
Posted on 10/29 12:12 PM | IP: 76.75.95.232
Agreed. If it wasn't resolved before Saturday, it is now for sure. Rust or not, Toskala let in one, maybe two questionable goals and for the current term, there is no way the Leafs can afford to give up even one per game.
There's bad luck goals then there's bad goals and Toskala has been letting in both. Gus lets in a bad luck goal here and there but that's better than both.
Posted on 11/2 12:45 PM | IP: 24.114.255.83
You know with some luck, better refering, steady and improved goaltending from the Monster, continued steady improvement to the blueline, steady hard work from the forwards and a little added scoring depth from Kessel the Leafs may be able to put the horrible start behind them and crawl back to .500 and at the very least be a playoff contender. The last 4 game stetch has been there best of the season and they have caught some horrible breaks with the ref's and I think just about every defender has had a shot go in off of there legs recently yet they still managed to go .500 on there road swing. I believe the last 4 games the team emerged on the back of good goaltending and not necessarily great goaltending and you could see the improvements to the confidence levels. If they get great goaltending look out.....
Riddle me this..........How can the Leafs with one of the worst group of forwards in the NHL lead the league in PP percentage?
Posted on 11/2 4:35 PM | IP: 69.156.106.246
Is that a trick question/riddle? :)
I think its because when they are on the PP they actually loosen up and share the puck better, vs. at even strength it's a continuous stream of guys trying to charge the net on their own with the puck, not trying to gain the zone and set up plays.
At the very least, Kessel's presence will create more room for his linemates. Teams know they can't leave him uncovered. I'm hoping he's the drop in the bucket that puts the water above the line. I don't expect the guy to go out and rule the world - just bring what he brings and it should make the team as a whole just that much better.
Posted on 11/3 7:12 AM | IP: 24.114.255.83
I did not know the answer to the question.....and Im looking for solutions. I have theories but non of them make sense.
Maybe what your saying makes sense but at the same time the skill set the Leafs have does not support the numbers. Look at Pitts, Was, Flyers, Det, SJ, etc etc etc many number of teams have a ton more talented forwards and I have to assume they also would loosen up and share the puck better during the pp.
About the only conclusion I can come to is Kaberle logging the minutes on the entire PP + luck + guys willing to go to the net for screens.
One thing the Leafs are actually good at is cycling the puck........maybe they might be able to find a guy that can finish the cycles from the periphery.
Posted on 11/3 9:27 AM | IP: 76.75.95.232
We're reading too much into it right now. After the 3 for 19 run in the last three games the PP for the Leafs has dropped back to 4th overall. Considering that 5 of the 15 PP goals the Leafs scored so far came against the Ducks in one game, I would argue that the stat is inflated. I hope the PP is a strong point for the team over the season but one hot game against a struggling team isn't enough to be predictive. Take that game out of the equation and they would have a 20.8% success rate ranking them 15th, smack in the middle of the league.
Posted on 11/4 6:16 AM | IP: 96.30.191.15
Your point is quite valid and it is one I have considered also but Im not convinced it is totally an anomoly. In order to be lucky at something you have to be good at it also.
The thing is that other teams have had similar opportunities yet failed to capitalize....I think they have been pretty lucky on the PP thus far this year and they have drove to the net hard which is a recipe for sucess. Thus making them both lucky and good.....With the addition of Kessel the Leafs have a bonafide shooter on there PP and they are going to give him a ton of chances to succeed and a ton of ice time on the PP.
I do not mind if the Leafs drop back on the PP if they improve also on the PK and on the GA averages. On one hand I feel like they have had some luck on the PP but everywhere else they have had rotten luck. .........so go figure.
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