Leafs and Devils

The Toronto Maple Leafs look to put a streak together tonight, while the Devils are seeking control of the Atlantic division. Tyler Bozak and Phil Kessel each have 6 points in their last 4 games, while Nikolai Kulemin is showing signs of becoming a promising top two line player with 7 points in his last 5 affairs. He has arguably been the Leafs’ best player for the second half of the season.

Toronto hosts the Devils in this matchup. A win tonight would put the Leafs over 0.500 at home. They are currently 14-14-5 (28th in the league). The Devils are 12th in the league on the road (18-15-2). Toronto is 4-1-0 in their last five games and it seems with the new youth movement, things are looking positive. It’s possible that with their current club, they could have been in the mix for the 8th seed this season.

Who’s Hot? Devils:

Martin Skoula (D) 2 pts in last 2 GP
Mike Mottau (D) 4 pts in last 5 GP
Zach Parise (LW) 3 pts in last 2 GP
Patrik Elias (W/C) 3 pts in last 2 GP
David Clarkson (RW) 2 pts in last 2 GP
Rob Niedermayer (W/C) 2 pts in last 2 GP
Martin Brodeur (G) 3-0-0, 1.67, .948 in last 3 GPI

Who’s Hot? Leafs:

Tyler Bozak (C) 6 pts in last 4 GP
Phil Kessel (RW) 6 pts in last 4 GP
Nikolai Kulemin (RW/LW) 7 pts in last 5 GP
Viktor Stalberg (LW) 5 pts in last 5 GP
Mikhail Grabovski (C) 5 pts in last 5 GP

Who’s Not? Devils:

Brian Rolston (C/W) 0 pts in last 4 GP
Jamie Langenbrunner (RW) 0 pts in last 4 GP
Jay Pandolfo (LW) 0 pts in last 3 GP
Yann Danis (G) 0-2-0, 3.14, .889 in last 3 GPI

Who’s Not? Leafs:

Jeff Finger (D) 0 pts in last 4 GP
Jean-Sebastien Giguere (G) 1-5-1, 3.38, .886 in last 7 GPI

Post your predictions on tonight’s game including what player will be most effective in the win for his team.

Around the League:

Wisniewski handed an 8 game suspension for his hit on Brent Seabrook. Click Here to see the hit.

Watch a solid AHL fight between Phil Oreskovic and Luke Gazdic.

Other Articles:
Bruce Boudreau is CFB’s Idiot of the Week
Mir Ready for Carwin, Still Hates Lesnar

Micheal A. Aldred

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  • Cameron

    I think I miss Antropov more than “the Ukraine Train”. 61 points, and 21 goals this year for the big guy.

  • Cameron

    @ Tim Horton:

    It’s just an idea that’s caught on, but for me, the value in him training our prospects comes in his hockey knowledge and aura – it can’t be a bad thing to spend a summer with a badass like Gary Roberts.

  • Pat.b

    an interesting stat tsn had on the broadcast was how good our pk has been with sjostrom in the lineup 90% with him

  • kaz

    Beauchamin pisses me off sometimes, the guys hockey judgement seems a bit off at times…
    -He doesn’t know when to pinch and more importantly when not to pinch, nor is he fast enough to make up for his mistakes;
    -His shots always get blocked, I rarely see him look for a seem to send in a shot, he just blasts it into someones shin pads or stick.

    Today I saw him cross the ice onto his defensive partners zone just to make a hit (I think it was in OT) luckily it didn’t cost us.

    And please don’t give me this “he’s a workhorse so he’s bound to make mistakes”, I mean Kaberle and McCabe played almost 30 minutes a night when they were partners…Moreover, I really don’t know what he’s done to earn all those minutes.

  • Largus

    The reason Phoenix has had such a turn around is Dave Tippett. Great coach given the shaft in Dallas after 1 injury plagued season, and his team continously underperfoming in the playoffs. He walk into a very good young team, with great goaltending and replaced a very poor coaching staff. Games 561 Wins 313 Losses 178 Ties 28 OTL 42

    Dont expect much from Phoenix in this season playoffs, but I would love to be proved wrong.

  • The Captain

    WHO GIVES A FUCK ABOUT GARY ROBERTS AND HIS WORKOUTS!!

  • kaz

    The Captain wrote:

    WHO GIVES A FUCK ABOUT GARY ROBERTS AND HIS WORKOUTS!!

    I agree, people talk about him like he’s some god…he can’t be any better than a good personal trainer. The best conditioning and speed coaches (guys we should have) should provide more advice than Roberts in terms of quality of workout and athletic form. If anything, Roberts benefits would be due to the fact that he’s played the game and players can relate to him rather than his workouts.

  • REID

    Don’t know if this has been mentioned yet but Jesse Blacker signed an entry level contract today.
    http://mapleleafs.nhl.com/club/news.htm?id=521888&navid=DL

  • Waiting4LSC

    Finally an exciting group.

    But wait a minute. Stempniak, Antropov, Poni all scoring. Steen is doing well, and our Calgary exports are doing pretty good. Wellwood, well he seems to have stuck even though he is not lights out. What should I make of this. Our talent evaluation is way off, or our system and coaching suffocates players, or we signed up a group of players who can only excel when surrounded by much better players.

    Maybe starting anew with young players and molding them may be the trick. For the first time in a long time, I’m pumped. I hope BB has found a winning formula, but I find it interesting how our exes are producing so much better.

  • the Surreal McCoy

    Waiting4LSC wrote:

    Finally an exciting group.
    But wait a minute. Stempniak, Antropov, Poni all scoring. Steen is doing well, and our Calgary exports are doing pretty good. Wellwood, well he seems to have stuck even though he is not lights out. What should I make of this. Our talent evaluation is way off, or our system and coaching suffocates players, or we signed up a group of players who can only excel when surrounded by much better players.
    Maybe starting anew with young players and molding them may be the trick. For the first time in a long time, I’m pumped. I hope BB has found a winning formula, but I find it interesting how our exes are producing so much better.

    ..not disagreeing with you at all, but i did hear, (was it on hockeycentral?) that Stajan has scored 3 goals in 15 games..

  • Missing Testikessel

    wtf stempniak?

  • Cactus

    REID wrote:

    Don’t know if this has been mentioned yet but Jesse Blacker signed an entry level contract today.
    http://mapleleafs.nhl.com/club/news.htm?id=521888&navid=DL

    Does that mean the first of the three years begins in 09/10 or 10/11?

  • kaz

    the Surreal McCoy wrote:

    Waiting4LSC wrote:
    Finally an exciting group.
    But wait a minute. Stempniak, Antropov, Poni all scoring. Steen is doing well, and our Calgary exports are doing pretty good. Wellwood, well he seems to have stuck even though he is not lights out. What should I make of this. Our talent evaluation is way off, or our system and coaching suffocates players, or we signed up a group of players who can only excel when surrounded by much better players.
    Maybe starting anew with young players and molding them may be the trick. For the first time in a long time, I’m pumped. I hope BB has found a winning formula, but I find it interesting how our exes are producing so much better.
    ..not disagreeing with you at all, but i did hear, (was it on hockeycentral?) that Stajan has scored 3 goals in 15 games..

    Yup, Stajan has 9 points in 15 games on the Flames first line…I hope they enjoy him for the next 4 years at 3.5 million. :P

  • lanny14d

    I can’t remember a time when the Leafs scored 3 for 3 in a hockey shootout. I am soooooooooooo happy. The times they are a changin.

  • BeLeafer

    @ CarltontheBear:
    still can’t believe Krusty didn’t get a couple games for that cheap and dangerous shot on Beauchemin

  • BeLeafer

    @ Julie Sucks:
    I never really liked that Lindros hit by Stevens.. the contact was all upper arm/elbow in Lindros’s head.. yes he had his head down but Stevens drove the arm through the head almost like he wanted Lindros to not get up.. yah, we all know how stevens played over his career but I for one thought he took a run at Lindros there, wasn’t respectful at all

  • BeLeafer

    @ goater55:
    still stupid though.. doesn’t Carolina want the 2nd overall pick.. maybe we’ll see a bit more tanking from the 4 teams above us in the final 10-11 games….

  • Gauvreau26

    @ cameron

    For using the word “au*a*(you know which word) in your first post of this page, you must submit your man card and realize you lost some credibility! I think that you should take down that gary roberts poster off your bedroom ceiling because you obviously are obsessed with the man haha! You have to remember that one trainer is not universally great for every athlete. I doubt that roberts has the same creativity that some of these young trainers have.

  • BeLeafer

    @ Hine:
    How is stempniak scoring now???….lol, the guy has hands of stone around the net and can’t really snipe.. very bizarre, he will cool of soon and will probably do next to nothing in the playoffs

  • ndk

    The Captain wrote:

    WHO GIVES A FUCK ABOUT GARY ROBERTS AND HIS WORKOUTS!!

    Anyone who has a clone of Gary Roberts on their hockey team that’s who! Jeez, talk about ask a stupid question.

    I totally agree with you though. Gary Roberts is a player who found out what worked for him. He had an opportunity to run his mouth about the leafs’ conditioning training and all these people think that because he had an opinion that he’s some kind of workout guru. Believe me, an organization that has as much to prove as the maple leafs will throw as much money into backoffice and training staff as necessary to generate success… and if Roberts was the man with the plan, we’d have him. Lets leave the conditioning to the experts and stop dropping names… it’s a little ignorant.

    And how about that Johnny Mitchell gents? Yeap, he absolutely has no business being in the NHL. We should throw him under a bus along with all struggling young guys we have on this team.

    I remember last year when he was one of our best young players, and i saw a solid 3rd line player in him. He’s got some moves (still needs to learn when and where to use it) and speed, and a decent shot. I hope he’s still on this team next year.

  • Charlie

    Oreskovic kinda looks like Mitchell.

    And Gazdic must be one of the worse names to have.

  • Julie Sucks

    Charlie wrote:

    Oreskovic kinda looks like Mitchell.
    And Gazdic must be one of the worse names to have.

    haha… reminds me of my friends last name…Hadcock. Now that’s bad.

  • DownGoesBrown

    Julie Sucks wrote:

    Charlie wrote:
    Oreskovic kinda looks like Mitchell.
    And Gazdic must be one of the worse names to have.

    haha… reminds me of my friends last name…Hadcock. Now that’s bad.

    A friend’s last name was Woodcock – he changed it to woodroy, much to the dismay of his family..

    An old french teacher’s name was Hiscock and then there’s my brother in law who’s a Cockburn… which is of course pronounced “coburn” yeah, sure buddy :)

  • wags31

    @Cameron
    Is Antropov making the playoffs? Nuff said, I liked him too, but he is a born loser, same as Stajan. They should get 60 pts playing on the 1st line all season long.
    @Kaz
    Agreed on Beauchamin, But McCabe is a bad example, no one in Leaf history has made worse blunders, well maybe Jim Mckenney a way back when…But Beauchamin was touted to high cause he played with the likes of Neidermayer and Pronger, Sorry but Kaberle couldn’t hold those two guys jock straps in their prime, same might be said for Komiserik, I think Markov is a better player than most give credit for.
    BB, move Kaberle in the off season for a number one centre please…

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Micheal Aldred

Author: Micheal Aldred

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I am an avid hockey fan and a writer for The Score Federation. I own Checking From Behind.com and bleed blue and white. I hope to one day become Wyatt Earp.