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Leafs and Avalanche Preview

by on October 13, 2009 in Uncategorized - 592 Comments

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Bad goaltending is now blamed on an injury. The Leafs have called up rookie James Riemer who will be sitting on the bench tonight as Joey MacDonald gets the nod. Vesa Toskala has apparently suffered an undisclosed injury after last night’s 7-2 loss (my bet is a fan clubbed him Nancy Kerrigan style) and is now out. Toronto’s top two goaltenders (arguably) are now sidelined. Gustavsson is expected to return sometime next week.

The Leafs have also called up Tyler Bozak and Viktor Stalberg has been cleared to play. The Leafs will sit Matt Stajan and Niklas Hagman as healthy scratches from tonight’s lineup.

The Leafs host the Colorado Avalanche tonight – a game I will be liveblogging on TheScore.com. If you are unable to catch the game, I’ll have you covered on your mobile application. The Leafs hope to win their first game of the season tonight, and also look for the new changes to pay immediate dividends. Despite the season being just five games in, the Leafs have given up 9 potential points on the year that could prove costly when March and April roll around.

The Leafs only play 3 times between tonight and October 24th, or two Saturday’s from now. Darcy Tucker is playing in Toronto for the first time since being bought out. It will be an interesting game to say the least.

Update: Toskala’s injury occurred due to Jason Blake shoving Drury into Toskala.

“We have to shake things up,” said Wilson. “We’ve got Stalberg coming back and we brought up Bozak. It can’t always be like the movie ‘Usual Suspects.’ It’s easy to pick on four or five guys, but we need more from everybody. Although they’ve scored some goals, their overall play hasn’t been what we need it to be. We’re giving opportunities to younger people. It’s as simple as that.”

Will the kids be enough for the Leafs to get their first win of the season? Is Stajan and Hagman the two to blame on a highly lazy forward core?

Join me and the staff of Checking From Behind in a pre-game discussion of tonight’s game.

Micheal A. Aldred
[email protected]

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  • Almo89

    i wonder how niklas hagman felt up in the press box when they were talking about all the great players that wore the #9

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  • surfsimply

    I sleep at nights by telling myself the Leafs traded two firsts and a second for Kessel, Gustavsson, Bozak and Hanson.

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  • DIGGLER

    Kessel is also proven to be injured often and carrying rumours of not being a team player.
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    Leafs don’t need Marleau, another disappearing act player, who comes to play whenever he feel like it, he lost the team captaincy for a reason. To obtain him would be another horrendous amount of draft picks and young assets, which would also include Harding. Why do the Leafs need him with Gustavson on the team. What they need is a power forward that isn’t a pussy like I have been ranting for months. The only trade they should be targeting is for player like Horton or Staal or another of their calibre. They haven’t had a true power forward since Roberts left, and that includes Sundin. They need a player of these abilities to plug in this weak and fragile offensive core.

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  • DIGGLER

    and I agree Wilson should go soon. He lost the locker room, and what is he teaching that he didn’t teaching or coach in others team that fired him and inwhich it never lead him to any championship. How is he touted as one of the best if he has never won anything??

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  • daniel marois

    I keep dreading if this team goes 0-for-October.

    Peter Chirelli will win the Sam Pollock award for fleecing Burke into surrending two 1st round picks when he must have suspected this team WOULD bottom out this season.

    I just cannot believe we will be out a franchise bluechip prospect for Kessel and no one for him to play with.

    Just use Stalberg as an example. Here is a skilled guy that was stuck with non-skilled guys like Blake and Stajan on his line. Just a waste.

    Only porductive line was Bozak-Stalberg and they were stuck with Stempniak. Who will Kessel be stuck with?
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    Imagine we had all our draft picks for 2010 and we could move vets for even 3rd or 4th round picks? How stacked would we be for the draft.
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    As sad as it will be, I want to see Toronto finish last and have to see how Burke will justify the Kessel deal and unsuccessfully trading for more picks. His only hope is Gustavsson stealing games and Toronto miraculously starts scoring.

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  • Charlie

    @ DIGGLER

    Yeah, they need a big bodied scorer with a mean streak. Although Staal doesn’t exactly have one, but he is a big body and can score. Horton would be great. Byfuglien also. Hartnell… We might have a chance on Horton because Florida also needs to make some moves, and Byfuglien because Chicago (eventually) needs to free up cap space.

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