Toronto Maple Leafs: the Streak Is Over
By James Tanner
The Toronto Maple Leafs finally won a game in regulation.
December 28th, vs the Arizona Coyotes was the last time the Toronto Maple Leafs won a game without needing extra time. It was a streak of nine games, which might not sound like much, but it’s slightly over 10% of the schedule.
Offsetting the lack of winning is the fact that the team got points in six of those nine games. With the win last night, they now have points in seven of ten. If you’re going to go on a cold streak, that’s the way to do it.
Last night it looked like the Leafs would make it a full ten games, but they managed a sweet third period comeback and are back to their winning ways.
Morgan Rielly
Morgan Rielly injured (what I think was) his shoulder in the game on Thursday vs Philadelphia. The Leafs, already weak on the blue-line, can’t play for long without their best defenseman, but the good news is that he was a ‘game time decision’ last night, which suggests he won’t be out for long.
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Although, I do remember saying the same thing about Matthews and he was out for a while, so let’s knock on wood and hopes Rielly is back for the next game.
With Rielly on the shelf, Gardiner stepped up and played 20:00 solid 50% CF minutes, and led all Leafs skaters in 5v5 ice-time. He had two 5v5 points and added a third on the PP. Overall, Gardiner had a fantastic game paired with Ron Hainsey on the Leafs top unit.
Also worth pointing out is that Connor Carrick was partnered with Travis Dermott on the Leafs second pairing. In 16:00 dominant 5v5 minutes, they put up a 65% CF. Both of these guys should be in the lineup every night.
I know the Leafs have a bit of a weak Blue-Line, but Rielly, Gardiner, Dermott and Carrick is a better top-four than I think a lot of people realize. If the Leafs would partner Rielly and Gardiner, I think they could have a pretty special partnership. (If you think this is a bad idea, please check back later when I’ll have an entire post dedicated to it).
Next Week
After that sweet come-from-behind win, the Toronto Maple Leafs will have today off and host the Colorado Avalanche tomorrow at the ACC.
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Despite recently coming off a bye-week, the Leafs still have played three more games than the Bruins, and are currently five points back. The Bruins (and Avs, now that you mention it) are on some kind of crazy win streak. They’re not that good however, and once it all evens out, I think the Leafs can catch them.