One of the Hot Stove readers asked for an update on how the Leafs have fared without Mike Van Ryn. And the results are actually quite surprising.
Northeast Division
Ed. Note: Thanks to all our readers and contributors for making the first four months at MLHS a success and cheers to a great year ahead. Merry Christmas!
Merry Christmas folks.....this is a small attempt at poetic humour...hope you all enjoy. -Rib
The Holiday break is as good a time as any to take a peek at who the Maple Leafs' leaders are in the major statistical categories, and how they stack up against the league leaders as of December 24th.
It's hard to imagine that by the Christmas break, the offensively-challenged, Sundin-less forward corps of the Toronto Maple Leafs would be sitting at 7th overall in league scoring. They're averaging a robust 3.10 goals for a game, which is a marked improvement over their 2.74 goals for average from last season. And what's even more impressive is that key roles are being played by some of the Leafs younger players. [more…]
Ed. Note: Lots of holiday reading going up today for you guys. Merry Christmas.
Here we are the Christmas break, and I’d like to take the time to look back at what we saw in September, what we expected by Christmas and what we envision for the future of the Blue and White.
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The Maple Leafs, now bearers of a winning record at 14-13-6, are looking to continue their offensive onslaught against the league's fifth worst defense as they return home to host the underachieving Dallas Stars.
As they hit the road for a three-game away stretch, the Maple Leafs look to extend their three game winning streak but must start by conquering the impenetrable fortress known as the TD Banknorth Garden, home to the Eastern Conference-leading Boston Bruins. The 21-5-4 Bruins boast an 11-1-1 home record and are currently riding an eleven game home winning streak during which they've outscored their opponents by a collective score of 53-22. The big, bad Bruins are back.
The Maple Leafs look to extend their two game winning streak Tuesday night as they entertain the New Jersey Devils sans Martin Brodeur. Rookie Jeremy Williams looks to continue a streak of his own having scored in each of his first two appearances this season.
Williams & White score to rally Leafs to 2-1 win at the HSBC
The Maple Leafs escaped from the House of Pain with two points tonight and, better yet, their two call-ups were superlative in the process. Jeremy Williams sniped his second in as many games from the half boards to even the game at ones late in the second frame before Ian White beat Ryan Miller with a seeing eye double to give the Leafs the edge in the third. Fellow call-up Jaime Sifers was a physical force on the blue-line, throwing a team-leading three hits and finishing second only to Jeff Finger in terms of ice-time (a resounding 21 minutes including 5 minutes of short-handed time). Sifers played a role in a critical penalty kill in the late stages.
Be sure to check out Scot Louck's post-game thoughts below.
First of six meetings between Leafs & Sabres this season
The Maple Leafs renew acquaintances with their northeast rival Buffalo Sabres at the HBSC tonight, a building home to both some chilling and some rosy Leaf memories, from the Bryan McCabe own goal and other monumental Leaf collapses to some pretty all-around satisfying Ws.
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Wilson had some choice words for the media after last night's brutal loss that made Phoenix, one of the league's lowest scoring teams, look like an offensive juggernaut out there. Talking about why he benched his all-star defenseman for the entire 1st period, Ron had this to say about Tomas Kaberle:
“Yeah, I sent [Kaberle] a message, and he sent me a message back by being minus-4".
