The Toronto Maple Leafs may have lost Saturday night, but the Toronto Marlies won Saturday and Sunday to continue their dominance of the AHL.
The Marlies are 9-1-0-0 in their last ten, with a ridiculous +67 goal differential and only eight regulation losses on the season. Earlier in the season, it looked liked the AHL veteran-laden Wilkes-Barre Scranton Penguins would pose a big challenge for the Marlies, but Toronto has separated themselves and are the class of the AHL in the regular season.
The Marlies also benefitted from the return their best player from last season, Connor Brown, who put on a huge performance (see below). Now they await the return of franchise’s prized prospect, William Nylander — possibly as soon as this week.
That’s the scary thought for the rest the AHL: There’s a reasonably good chance that the Marlies are going to get better from now until the end of the season with addition of their — debatably — #1 and #2 players on the roster.
Game Review: Toronto Marlies 7 vs. Utica Comets 1 https://t.co/HnLeNqaYsd pic.twitter.com/IPYaiyrKl1
— Maple Leafs Hotstove (@LeafsNews) January 25, 2016
I guess @Breeze2Greeze was more than ready to return to @TorontoMarlies lineup yesterday. 2 goals, 7 SOG, 1st star pic.twitter.com/O3TxbJDKTJ
— OrrHockeyGroup (@OrrHockeyGroup) January 25, 2016
#Leafs dads in the stands pic.twitter.com/FRBJWrs68X
— Terry Koshan (@koshtorontosun) January 25, 2016
McKenzie on Stamkos: "I don't believe he's going anywhere before the (trade) deadline, no matter what." #TBLightning
— Chris Nichols (@NicholsOnHockey) January 25, 2016
Friedman trade talk w/ mentions of #NHLJets, #mnwild, #NHLDucks, #Canes, #Habs, and #Flames. https://t.co/rY8H1qr0wf
— Chris Nichols (@NicholsOnHockey) January 25, 2016
Why does Jean Chretien’s billionaire son-in-law want to build an NHL arena in Ottawa? What’s his play? https://t.co/2yy3Rdk1Wu
— Rick Westhead (@rwesthead) January 25, 2016
Story: The Leafs have begun to shop some of their players in advance of the trade deadline https://t.co/I91jj5zBEd pic.twitter.com/HLDuJsdg4k
— James Mirtle (@mirtle) January 25, 2016
It’s time for the #nhlJets to trade Andrew Ladd https://t.co/TKNbx40gKy
— gary lawless (@garylawless) January 25, 2016
Dave Keon on Leafs today: "I hope that they stick to the plan, to get better from within."
— Jonas Siegel (@jonassiegel) January 24, 2016
In case you missed Coach’s Corner on Saturday, here’s a precis:
Coaches Corner Notes:
– Nugent Thompson shouldn't be on the PK
– Russians dive like Rodondo
– Keep foreigners out— Alec Brownscombe (@MapleLeafsHS) January 24, 2016
From Saturday’s Toronto Marlies game:
Game Review: Toronto Marlies 4 vs. Utica Comets 2: Marlies power past Comets On Superhero day … https://t.co/Jp1o5qLr3u #Leafs #TMLTalk
— Maple Leafs Hotstove (@LeafsNews) January 24, 2016
News of long-rumoured Russian free-agent right-shot defenceman, Nikita Zaitsev, signing with Toronto has been all but made official, courtesy of Elliotte Friedman. MLHS author Quinn MacKeen has the definitive Zaitsev piece here:
Nikita Zaitsev: Part of the new Maple Leaf Russian 5? Part VIhttps://t.co/OPQMDKC1QA
via @quinnesqhttps://t.co/IS1jUjbVHP— Maple Leafs Hotstove (@LeafsNews) January 22, 2016
Lastly, Dave Keon, perhaps the greatest Maple Leaf of all-time, was honoured on Saturday night by the franchise (along with Tim Horton and Turk Broda). Vintage Leaf Memories writer, Michael Langlois, graced us with a beautiful post on just how good Dave Keon was and what he meant to Maple Leaf fans.
Great read from @VintageLeaf – Dave Keon: More to the story than meets the eye https://t.co/NwhrLFd8HH #Leafs pic.twitter.com/UzPXeaBO9i
— Maple Leafs Hotstove (@LeafsNews) January 22, 2016
And here’s the video of the ceremonies for those that missed it.
Legends Row: Dave Keon, Turk Broda & Tim Horton video tributes #LeafsNation #TMLtalk #MapleLeafs #Leafs https://t.co/NVvQqpcgyp
— Maple Leafs Fans (@MapleLeafsViews) January 24, 2016
