Toronto closed out 2014 against the Bruins, one of the closest chasers for the wild cards spot the Leafs are fighting for.
Toronto had a great start, dominating the first period in chances and getting an early lead. That continued at the start of the second, and at the halfway point of the game the Leafs were in command, up 3-1 and holding Boston to 2 ES chances. That didn’t last, as the second half of the game was almost a mirror image of the first half. Toronto managed only one chance on the Boston net in the last twenty-eight minutes of regulation, and saw their lead evaporate as well. Despite the Bruins’ control of the game in the third, Toronto was able to hold on to earn the single point, and then survived being out-chanced 4-1 in the overtime period to make the shoot-out, which they won.
| Status | Overall | Even Strength | ES Close | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team | TOR | BOS | % | TOR | BOS | % | TOR | BOS | % |
| 1 | 9 | 4 | 69.2% | 6 | 2 | 75.0% | 6 | 2 | 75.0% |
| 2 | 6 | 7 | 46.2% | 5 | 5 | 50.0% | 3 | 3 | 50.0% |
| 3 | 1 | 5 | 16.7% | 1 | 4 | 20.0% | 1 | 4 | 20.0% |
| 4 | 1 | 4 | 20.0% | 1 | 4 | 20.0% | 1 | 4 | 20.0% |
| Total | 17 | 20 | 45.9% | 13 | 15 | 46.4% | 11 | 13 | 45.8% |
You can see how well the Leafs did in the first period, really carrying the play, and how badly they fell off late. The redeeming factor is that the four ES chances for Boston in the third isn’t too bad while trying to hold on for a road point, but Toronto’s inability to generate any offense in that time is disappointing.
| Club | St | P | Time | TSc | Osc | Note | Toronto | Boston | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BOS | ES | 1 | 19:40 | 0 | 0 | Bergeron post from Smith | 42 | 81 | 21 | 3 | 4 | 45 | 37 | 63 | 18 | 27 | 33 | 40 |
| TOR | ES | 1 | 15:24 | 0 | 0 | Winnik wide from Kadri | 26 | 43 | 19 | 3 | 4 | 45 | 46 | 53 | 17 | 27 | 33 | 40 |
| TOR | ES | 1 | 14:15 | 0 | 0 | Kessel from loose puck | 24 | 47 | 81 | 44 | 46 | 45 | 11 | 20 | 61 | 47 | 86 | 40 |
| TOR | PP | 1 | 10:54 | 0 | 0 | Kessel drives wide | 42 | 81 | 21 | 3 | 4 | 45 | 23 | 21 | 33 | 86 | 40 | - |
| TOR | PP | 1 | 10:07 | 0 | 0 | Lupul drives | 43 | 19 | 71 | 44 | 51 | 45 | 11 | 20 | 43 | 44 | 40 | - |
| TOR | PP | 1 | 10:04 | 0 | 0 | Rielly from rebound of Lupul shot | 43 | 19 | 71 | 44 | 51 | 45 | 11 | 20 | 43 | 44 | 40 | - |
| TOR | ES | 1 | 09:38 | 0 | 0 | GOAL! Komarov from Holland | 24 | 25 | 47 | 44 | 46 | 45 | 37 | 63 | 17 | 47 | 86 | 40 |
| TOR | ES | 1 | 05:56 | 1 | 0 | Gardiner wide from Kessel | 42 | 81 | 19 | 46 | 51 | 45 | 34 | 20 | 61 | 27 | 47 | 40 |
| BOS | ES | 1 | 02:18 | 1 | 0 | Krejci drives wide | 43 | 81 | 21 | 3 | 4 | 45 | 46 | 53 | 17 | 27 | 33 | 40 |
| TOR | ES | 1 | 02:09 | 1 | 0 | Kessel drives | 43 | 81 | 21 | 3 | 4 | 45 | 46 | 53 | 17 | 27 | 33 | 40 |
| TOR | ES | 1 | 02:09 | 1 | 0 | Kessel penalty shot | 43 | 81 | 21 | 3 | 4 | 45 | 46 | 53 | 17 | 27 | 33 | 40 |
| BOS | SH | 1 | 00:01 | 1 | 0 | Bergeron wide from Kelly | 26 | 47 | 3 | 55 | 45 | - | 34 | 37 | 18 | 21 | 27 | 40 |
| BOS | SH | 1 | 00:00 | 1 | 0 | Bergeron deflects Soderberg shot | 26 | 47 | 3 | 55 | 45 | - | 34 | 37 | 18 | 21 | 27 | 40 |
| BOS | SH | 2 | 19:43 | 1 | 0 | Soderberg deflects Smith shot | 26 | 47 | 3 | 55 | 45 | - | 34 | 37 | 18 | 21 | 27 | 40 |
| BOS | SH | 2 | 19:43 | 1 | 0 | GOAL! Soderberg from rebound | 26 | 47 | 3 | 55 | 45 | - | 34 | 37 | 18 | 21 | 27 | 40 |
| TOR | ES | 2 | 19:12 | 1 | 1 | GOAL! Van Riemsdyk from Kessel | 42 | 81 | 21 | 51 | 55 | 45 | 37 | 63 | 18 | 27 | 33 | 40 |
| TOR | ES | 2 | 15:37 | 2 | 1 | Bozak wide from Van Riemsdyk | 42 | 81 | 21 | 3 | 4 | 45 | 34 | 63 | 18 | 33 | 86 | 40 |
| TOR | ES | 2 | 11:54 | 2 | 1 | Kessel from giveaway | 24 | 81 | 21 | 44 | 46 | 45 | 23 | 34 | 21 | 44 | 47 | 40 |
| TOR | PP | 2 | 10:15 | 2 | 1 | GOAL! Kessel from Phaneuf | 42 | 81 | 21 | 3 | 4 | 45 | 37 | 63 | 33 | 44 | 40 | - |
| TOR | ES | 2 | 09:02 | 3 | 1 | Kadri drives | 26 | 43 | 71 | 51 | 55 | 45 | 46 | 53 | 17 | 27 | 47 | 40 |
| TOR | ES | 2 | 08:38 | 3 | 1 | Gardiner from Clarkson | 26 | 43 | 71 | 51 | 55 | 45 | 46 | 53 | 17 | 27 | 47 | 40 |
| BOS | ES | 2 | 07:05 | 3 | 1 | Marchand deflects Hamilton shot wide | 23 | 81 | 21 | 3 | 4 | 45 | 37 | 63 | 18 | 27 | 33 | 40 |
| BOS | ES | 2 | 06:13 | 3 | 1 | Marchand from Bergeron | 26 | 42 | 20 | 51 | 55 | 45 | 37 | 63 | 21 | 44 | 86 | 40 |
| BOS | ES | 2 | 03:54 | 3 | 2 | Marchand deflects Hamilton shot wide | 42 | 81 | 21 | 3 | 4 | 45 | 37 | 63 | 18 | 27 | 33 | 40 |
| BOS | ES | 2 | 03:01 | 3 | 2 | Kelly from Soderberg | 26 | 43 | 71 | 51 | 55 | 45 | 23 | 34 | 21 | 44 | 47 | 40 |
| BOS | ES | 2 | 02:29 | 3 | 2 | GOAL! Krug from Eriksson | 24 | 25 | 47 | 46 | 55 | 45 | 46 | 17 | 21 | 43 | 47 | 40 |
| BOS | SH | 3 | 18:46 | 3 | 3 | Krejci from Griffith | 24 | 25 | 4 | 55 | 45 | - | 46 | 53 | 63 | 33 | 47 | 40 |
| BOS | ES | 3 | 17:22 | 3 | 3 | Kelly deflects Seidenberg shot | 42 | 81 | 21 | 51 | 55 | 45 | 23 | 17 | 61 | 44 | 86 | 40 |
| TOR | ES | 3 | 14:59 | 3 | 3 | Booth from loose puck | 23 | 71 | 20 | 44 | 51 | 45 | 11 | 20 | 61 | 43 | 86 | 40 |
| BOS | ES | 3 | 13:52 | 3 | 3 | Griffith wide from Krejci | 42 | 81 | 21 | 44 | 46 | 45 | 46 | 53 | 17 | 27 | 33 | 40 |
| BOS | ES | 3 | 07:56 | 3 | 3 | Lucic wide from faceoff | 26 | 43 | 71 | 3 | 4 | 45 | 46 | 53 | 17 | 43 | 86 | 40 |
| BOS | ES | 3 | 03:03 | 3 | 3 | Lucic wide from Hamilton | 42 | 81 | 21 | 51 | 55 | 45 | 46 | 53 | 17 | 27 | 33 | 40 |
| BOS | ES | 4 | 04:20 | 3 | 3 | Marchand from Bergeron | 42 | 81 | 3 | 4 | 45 | - | 37 | 63 | 18 | 27 | 40 | - |
| TOR | ES | 4 | 03:48 | 3 | 3 | Kadri drives wide | 43 | 21 | 4 | 46 | 45 | - | 23 | 34 | 21 | 47 | 40 | - |
| BOS | ES | 4 | 02:19 | 3 | 3 | Bergeron wraparound | 24 | 25 | 3 | 4 | 45 | - | 37 | 63 | 18 | 27 | 40 | - |
| BOS | ES | 4 | 00:43 | 3 | 3 | Chara from Soderberg | 42 | 81 | 44 | 51 | 45 | - | 34 | 17 | 21 | 33 | 40 | - |
| BOS | ES | 4 | 00:07 | 3 | 3 | Smith from Marchand | 26 | 43 | 3 | 4 | 45 | - | 37 | 63 | 18 | 27 | 40 | - |
Player-by Player data:
| Player | Overall | Even Strength | ES Close | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| For | Against | Diff | TOI | For | Against | Diff | TOI | For | Against | Diff | |
| Phaneuf | 6 | 12 | -6 | 22:47 | 4 | 8 | -4 | 19:07 | 4 | 7 | -3 |
| Franson | 7 | 9 | -2 | 20:23 | 5 | 8 | -3 | 17:21 | 5 | 7 | -2 |
| Lupul | 4 | 0 | 4 | 08:51 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 08:08 | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| Booth | 1 | 1 | 0 | 09:55 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 09:55 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Van Riemsdyk | 8 | 7 | 1 | 19:21 | 6 | 7 | -1 | 17:44 | 6 | 6 | 0 |
| Smith | 1 | 1 | 0 | 08:29 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 08:29 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Holland | 3 | 3 | 0 | 14:48 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 13:34 | 3 | 2 | 1 |
| Santorelli | 1 | 3 | -2 | 13:02 | 1 | 2 | -1 | 12:20 | 1 | 2 | -1 |
| Winnik | 3 | 8 | -5 | 20:57 | 3 | 4 | -1 | 18:24 | 1 | 3 | -2 |
| Bozak | 5 | 8 | -3 | 20:13 | 3 | 8 | -5 | 18:32 | 3 | 7 | -4 |
| Kadri | 8 | 4 | 4 | 19:11 | 6 | 4 | 2 | 18:28 | 4 | 4 | 0 |
| Rielly | 6 | 2 | 4 | 19:21 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 18:38 | 4 | 2 | 2 |
| Polak | 5 | 2 | 3 | 23:53 | 5 | 2 | 3 | 22:33 | 5 | 2 | 3 |
| Komarov | 2 | 5 | -3 | 13:05 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 10:51 | 2 | 1 | 1 |
| Gardiner | 7 | 5 | 2 | 23:02 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 22:15 | 3 | 4 | -1 |
| Holzer | 3 | 10 | -7 | 20:34 | 3 | 5 | -2 | 18:56 | 1 | 4 | -3 |
| Clarkson | 5 | 2 | 3 | 16:58 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 16:15 | 1 | 2 | -1 |
| Kessel | 9 | 9 | 0 | 22:12 | 7 | 9 | -2 | 20:35 | 7 | 8 | -1 |
| Bernier | 17 | 20 | -3 | 58:37 | 13 | 15 | -2 | 47:30 | 11 | 13 | -2 |
Phil Kessel broke his goal-less streak, saving us all from hearing about it on every sports network, and had a solid overall game as well. He was the driving force behind the Leafs‘ offensive success in the first half, on for a game high 9 Leaf chances. This included a number of chances when he was on the ice without Bozak, who ended up with much worse numbers, the worst on the team, in fact. The main problem was that the top line was on for quite a few of the Bruins’ chances in the second half of the game, with Bozak bearing the brunt of the defensive chances against. Van Riemsdyk was more successful, on for a similar number of chances as Kessel. Nazem Kadri and Peter Holland both had good games, ending up in the positive at ES. Joffrey Lupul was going well before he was hurt and Leo Komarov had an effective return to the line-up. Outside of Bozak, none of the forwards really struggled, everyone else finishing around even.
Dion Phaneuf and Cody Franson had the toughest zone starts on he team, and responded with the worst numbers on the defence, ending up at -4 and -3, respectively. That’s been a theme recently, as when they get used for harder minutes, they tend to see their numbers take a nosedive. Korbinian Holzer continued to struggle, as he was -3 at ES Close, despite getting more protected zone starts. The good news was that the pairing of Rielly and Polak, freed from being buried in their own zone, both had strong games, the only defencemen to finish above even at ES Close.
Cumulative numbers this season:
| Overall | Pos | # | Even Strength | ES Close | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| For | Against | % | TOI | For | Against | % | |||
| Franson | D | 36 | 204 | 202 | 50.2% | 15:55 | 121 | 109 | 52.6% |
| Winnik | F | 36 | 112 | 139 | 44.6% | 12:21 | 62 | 60 | 50.8% |
| Komarov | F | 24 | 80 | 74 | 51.9% | 12:28 | 41 | 41 | 50.0% |
| Kadri | F | 38 | 183 | 204 | 47.3% | 14:23 | 110 | 114 | 49.1% |
| Clarkson | F | 38 | 144 | 162 | 47.1% | 12:27 | 77 | 81 | 48.7% |
| Phaneuf | D | 38 | 215 | 253 | 45.9% | 17:17 | 132 | 147 | 47.3% |
| Panik | F | 33 | 62 | 69 | 47.3% | 08:22 | 38 | 44 | 46.3% |
| Smith | F | 22 | 36 | 44 | 45.0% | 08:02 | 18 | 21 | 46.2% |
| Rielly | D | 37 | 183 | 217 | 45.8% | 15:23 | 97 | 115 | 45.8% |
| Bernier | G | 27 | 366 | 442 | 45.3% | 45:08 | 216 | 258 | 45.6% |
| Kessel | F | 38 | 210 | 248 | 45.9% | 14:37 | 125 | 150 | 45.5% |
| Lupul | F | 26 | 120 | 148 | 44.8% | 13:46 | 65 | 79 | 45.1% |
| Bozak | F | 38 | 196 | 232 | 45.8% | 14:41 | 110 | 138 | 44.4% |
| Polak | D | 28 | 129 | 179 | 41.9% | 17:55 | 78 | 99 | 44.1% |
| Gardiner | D | 35 | 163 | 208 | 43.9% | 17:12 | 89 | 114 | 43.8% |
| Van Riemsdyk | F | 38 | 191 | 244 | 43.9% | 14:39 | 112 | 144 | 43.8% |
| Reimer | G | 15 | 188 | 245 | 43.4% | 42:24 | 96 | 129 | 42.7% |
| Santorelli | F | 38 | 140 | 175 | 44.4% | 13:36 | 74 | 100 | 42.5% |
| Holland | F | 38 | 106 | 159 | 40.0% | 11:29 | 56 | 82 | 40.6% |
| Robidas | D | 34 | 131 | 184 | 41.6% | 15:07 | 65 | 112 | 36.7% |
| Booth | F | 17 | 26 | 48 | 35.1% | 09:25 | 14 | 28 | 33.3% |
| Holzer | D | 14 | 57 | 92 | 38.3% | 16:17 | 27 | 55 | 32.9% |
The returning Komarov has the best ES chance numbers of any Leaf regular this season, as his injury coincided with the weakest stretch of the season for the Leafs in chances. He made a solid start to his return, and hopefully he can help lift the play of a player like Clarkson, who has been falling off lately. When Lupul returned from his first injury, he was in the same position as Komarov, having much better numbers than most of the team, but he has been fairly poor recently, falling into the bottom half of the rankings. It seems Peter Holland will miss some time as well. Up front, only David Booth has been below Holland in chances, so I’m not as concerned about his absence, if the ice time manages to shift to a player such as Richard Panik.
