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TORONTO – Standing just outside the Toronto Maple Leafs dressing room after yet another defeat in the shootout, James Reimer slammed his right hand against a door in an unusual show of frustration. Packers #59 Jersey . "It really sucks for a goalie when you lose," he said a few minutes later. Two pucks found their way behind Reimer in a 3-2 shootout defeat to the Bruins on Monday night. The Leafs have yet to win in the shootout this season, falling for the fourth time at TD Garden on Monday night. While they emerged from a home and home set with Boston clutching three important points – they sit sixth in the East with 38 points – theres an argument to be made that all four were there for the taking – shootout notwithstanding. The 25-year-old in goal shouldered the weight of the shootout decision again afterward, but its increasingly difficult to assign blame entirely his way. The fact is, Tyler Bozak remains the only Leaf to actually score in the shootout this season; he is now 3-4 after another successful attempt on Monday night. Collectively, Toronto shooters now rank third-worst in the shootout this year (3-21, 14.3 per cent), with the 10 candidates besides Bozak now empty in all 17 attempts. "The shootout seems to be a big thorn in our side right now," Leafs coach Randy Carlyle acknowledged afterward. "We do work on it and we do provide video of what the opposition likes to do, what their goaltenders are like. But again, its an individual thing, its 1-on-1, player versus another player, all you can really do is provide the information that you think is important to the situation and thats what we try to do. And then we try to work on it with our own guys and our own goaltenders." "I think Im just saving them all for the game," Nazem Kadri, now empty in four attempts, managed to crack after the game. He was stopped by Tuukka Rask on his latest attempt Monday. "I dont know exactly what it is. I feel like every single time Im going down I have the goaltender beat, its just a matter of elevating [the puck] a couple more inches or just being a little more patient, but I feel like Im making the right moves." Reimer meanwhile dropped to 3-8 lifetime in the shootout after yielding goals to Tyler Seguin and Patrice Bergeron. His career. 650 save percentage is actually middle of the pack among active goaltenders. However, the 25-year-old has posted a .619 mark on 21 shots this season which ranks 14th out of the 21 goaltenders who have faced at least 10 attempts. "You know you take it for what it is," he said. "Obviously you want to win it and it sucks when you lose." The Leafs have tried to maintain an even approach as it pertains to the shootout, but they cant help but be frustrated by the points theyve failed to snatch as a result of it. In a playoff race that will only tighten in the coming weeks, those points are all too important to keep losing. "We cant focus on the negative of losing the point tonight," Carlyle said. "We dont want to get too low on the shootouts or too high when we win them." Five Points 1. Lost leads, missed opportunities The Leafs held a lead of 2-0 which evaporated amid a valliant Boston pushback. Joffrey Lupul (power-play) and Nik Kulemin scored six minutes apart in the middle frame to put the Leafs in front by a deceptively safe margin. It was less than two minutes after the Kulemin goal that Milan Lucic broke free of Cody Franson and Ryan Hamilton to score the Bruins first goal, cutting the deficit quickly in half. The Leafs proceeded to come up dry with two critical opportunities on the man advantage, one with Dennis Seidenberg in the box towards the end of the second, another early in the third with Patrice Bergeron whistled off. "Our unit tonight just wasnt running on the same ropes I guess you could say," Franson explained of a unit that also includes Dion Phaneuf, Phil Kessel, James van Riemsdyk and Tyler Bozak, quick to note his own struggles with the puck firstly. It was about eight minutes after the unpunished Bergeron infraction that the same Bruins pivot knotted the score at two, the resulting shootout frustration detailed above. Grasping three of a possible four points against a team of the Bruins caliber is admirable, but lost leads and missed opportunities cannot be ignored. "We know the mistakes we made and we know what bit us," Franson said. "I think we have to be able to sharpen that up for Florida." 2. Kessel vs. Chara A fact that speaks to the dominance of Zdeno Chara over his former teammate: Phil Kessel has yet to score an even-strength goal against in 22 games against his former team. The 25-year-old has managed only three career markers against the Bruins, all three coming on the man advantage. Bruins coach Claude Julien is rightfully obsessive in launching his six-foot-nine goliath on Kessel, manically deploying him anytime Kessel is on the ice, home or away. "Thats their mandate," Carlyle said. "They make no bones about it. Every time that [Kessel line is] on the ice, theyll change one D just to make sure [Charas] out there … thats part of star players in the league having to play against the best players in the league." 3. JVR Cold spell His Leafs career took off with a bang; 11 goals in the first 18 games this season. But since that point, James van Riemsdyk has cooled off in the goal-sniping department socring just three goals in the past 15 games and none in the past six, a season-long dry spell. "Try to stick with it," said van Riemsdyk prior to Mondays game, who also has just four assists since February 21st. "I think Ive been doing some good things and some times you just dont get the puck luck. I think Im continuing to go to the areas where you get the goals at, its just a matter of maybe getting a bounce or having a puck sit there a couple inches closer and maybe you dont hit a pipe and it goes in and things look a little different." van Riemsdyk may not be far off as far as ‘puck luck is concerned. Through the opening two months, the 23-year-old was firing at an inflated 17 per cent clip, far above his three-year career average of 10 per cent. In the month of March, he has dipped to about 8 per cent, meaning some leveling out is likely if his game ramps up to the level it had been previously. van Riemsdyk failed to land a shot against the Bruins on Monday and was benched for the final 10 minutes of the third period and all of overtime. "I think JVR has got some work to do in some areas," Carlyle said of his younger winger, who still logged 18-plus minutes. "Hes been a great player for us but I think hes in a little bit of a dry spell for us right now. We need him to get his feet moving and start to create more." 4. Igniting Kulemin One shining testament to Nazem Kadri this season has been his ability to make others better. From Matt Frattin to Clarke MacArthur, Kadri has helped improve the performance of every player hes played with. There is perhaps no better example of this than with Nik Kulemin. Kulemin has tallied a point in four of the five games in which he has played alongside Kadri, with three goals in that brief span. "Hes a good player," Kulemin said of Kadri, who found him open for a breakaway goal against the Bruins. "He sees the rink very well and passes it at the right time." The 26-year-old Kulemin added of his recent return to goal-scoring prowess (now with five this season), "I think I just started shooting more and I have more opportunities to shoot because Naz has a lot of attention on him." 5. Kadri on the draw One element of Kadris game that will continue to be tested as his responsibilities increase is his work on the draw. Squaring off against the leagues top faceoff team on Monday, the 22-year-old finished with just four wins on 18 tries, including a 3-for-14 showing against Bergeron, the top faceoff man in the league this season (62%). "Hes just a smart guy," Kadri said of Bergeron. "Hes strong on his stick and even sometimes when youre looking just to tie up his stick and make it a foot-battle it seems like hes always winning those as well." Quote of the Night "It really sucks for a goalie when you lose." -James Reimer, on the shootout. Quote of the Night II "I think Im just saving them all for the game, I dont know exactly what it is." -Nazem Kadri, on the team-wide struggles in the shootout. Stat Watch 14.3 per cent: Torontos shooting percentage in the shootout (3-for-21). 3-for-4: Tyler Bozak in the shootout, the one Leaf to score this season. 0-for-17: Shooters excluding Bozak in the shootout. 0: Career even-strength goals for Phil Kessel against Boston. 26-for-70: Leafs on the draw versus the Bruins (37 per cent). 5-Game Point Streak: Kadri extended the streak with an assist on Kulemins goal, now with 10 points total in that span (three goals, seven assists). 88-for-103: Leafs penalty kill this season, fifth overall on the year. 9-6-2: Toronto road record. Minute Watch 21:01: Mike Kostka. The 27-year-old returned to the lineup in place of the injured John-Michael Liles. Up Next Last place in the Eastern Conference, the struggling Florida Panthers visit the Air Canada Centre on Tuesday for the second end of a Toronto back-to-back set. Packers #2 Jersey ., but it was always a tough ticket to get into Madison Square Garden. Just once before he got on the ice at the age of 12 for an intermission pee-wee shootout, and then Monday night at the age of 28 the Los Angeles Kings goaltender made a much more memorable appearance. Demetri Goodson Packers Jersey .Y. -- The Buffalo Bills could identify a new owner within three months, leading Gov. TORONTO -- James van Riemsdyk tugged at the Toronto Maple Leafs logo on his chest, mimicking the celebration P.K. Subban made after an overtime goal two nights earlier. That wasnt a coincidence. Van Riemsdyk was on edge after some taunting from the Montreal Canadiens defenceman but waited until after scoring the game-winning goal Saturday night before letting that emotion show through. It was tension that was building throughout a 5-3 Leafs victory that was a showcase for the rivalry. "Im usually not one to engage in stuff like that, but I was a little bit fired up," van Riemsdyk said. "It just kind of happened." Those are the things that happen when the juices are flowing and emotions are heightened as they were for this game between the Leafs and Habs. Of the 19,667 fans in attendance, more than a few were cheering for Montreal, and it made for a much more raucous atmosphere than usual at Air Canada Centre. "If you dont get shivers and chills on Toronto-Montreal on a Saturday night on Hockey Night in Canada, either in Montreal or Toronto, then I dont think you understand the true meaning of the game here in Canada," Leafs coach Randy Carlyle said after his teams season-high fourth consecutive victory. With the teams trading chances back and forth, it was an excellent example of what the NHL is supposed to offer. And even though eight total goals were scored, neither the Leafs Jonathan Bernier (30 saves on 33 shots), nor possible Canadian Olympic starter Carey Price of the Habs (25 saves on 29 shots) could be faulted. Instead, this was a case of two offences getting the job done. Before van Riemsdyk scored the game-winner at 14:27 of the third, Cody Franson, Phil Kessel and Mason Raymond also scored for the Leafs (25-20-5), while Brendan Gallagher, Brian Gionta and David Desharnais scored for the Habs (27-17-5). "Were a team that was pushing the pace and we were skating well," Montreal coach Michel Therrien said. "Individual mistakes cost games. Thats where its disappointing. We give goals. Theyre not even supposed to be scoring chances." But scoring chances were readily available. Toronto centre Nazem Kadri had two of the games best passes, setting up Franson for the Leafs first goal and then Raymond for his on the power play. It was a breakout night for Kadri, who has been the subject of criticism and trade rumours lately. "I wanted to come out and have a big game," Kadri said. "Obviously the magnitude of this game was huge. For us to chase that top spot in the division is still a realistic goal for us." The Leafs victory moved them to within four points of the third-place Habs. They still trail the Atlantic Division-leading Boston Bruins by seven points and have played three more games. But when the focus was on one game against rival Montreal, the Leafs brought close to their A-game. Carlyle called their start by far the best of the season, while Gionta wasnt thrilled with how he and his teammates responded. "The first 10 minutes we were fairly slow getting going, but after that I thought we diid a good job of forcing the play and getting some good chances," Montreals captain said. Davante Adams Packers Jersey. "Its definitely a tough one to lose." It wouldve been a tough one for the Leafs to lose after their strong start and considering the emotional investment. "That was a statement game for this team," Kadri said. "Its the Montreal Canadiens. Theyre one of the better teams in the conference and obviously theyre ahead of us in the division, as well. The rivalry speaks for itself. We wanted to come out here, home ice, and give these fans something to cheer about." Montreal fans had something to cheer about early thanks to stellar goaltending from Price, who kept the Habs in the game despite being out-shot by a wide margin. Chants of "Carey" became jeering ones later on when Leafs fans got on him, loud enough that the goalie at the other end could hear them. "The crowd was pretty amazing tonight," Bernier said. "It felt like a playoff game." No Leafs players were alive the last time the Leafs and Habs met in the playoffs -- 1979. Only Montreals Gionta, Andrei Markov, Daniel Briere and Francis Boullion had been born by then. But a lack of recent playoff history didnt seem to hurt Saturday night, thanks in part to Subban skating by the bench after Gallaghers goal and giving the Leafs some motivation. "He was saying some stuff to our bench and we werent thrilled about that," van Riemsdyk said. "Its hockey. Hes got to do what hes got to do -- hes a great player, its fun to play against players like that. Obviously theres some emotions that were flying around out there." Subban did not speak to reporters after the loss. He was a central topic of conversation in hockey circles since his celebration of an overtime goal against the Ottawa Senators on Thursday night brought some criticism. Subban flashed the crest on his jersey a few times before going down the tunnel. Don Cherry said on "Hockey Night in Canada" that "all (Subban) does is pump up the other team." "He has to stop that stuff," Cherry said. "Its absolutely ridiculous." Van Riemsdyk wouldnt even go that far, choosing instead to show Subban up after scoring his 19th goal of the season. "If they wanted to play that game, then well play it, too," van Riemsdyk said. Van Riemsdyk insisted popping his jersey wasnt a pre-meditated act. Instead, it was the release of a build-up of emotions that went beyond just redirecting Tyler Bozaks pass past Price. Asked earlier in the day about goal celebrations, van Riemsdyk said that he preferred an understated approach. His teammates didnt mind when he veered from that just once. "Obviously you get excited when you score," Kadri said. "Thats on JvR -- he likes scoring goals, so more power to him." NOTES -- Joonas Nattinen made his NHL debut for Montreal and played 1:45, all in the first period. Nattinen replaced Rene Bourque, who was a healthy scratch. ... Toronto called up Troy Bodie from its AHL affiliate to replace the injured David Clarkson. ' ' ' |
