Leafs Storm Passed the Lightning

 

Photo From TSN

 

I have to unfortunately start this article on a sad note, as I am sure many readers are aware on Monday there was a mass shooting in Vaughan Ontario that saw five innocent people lose their lives and yesterday afternoon when the public learned the names of the victims, we happened to find out that one of the victims was the maternal grandfather of Leafs defender Victor Mette. All I can say is my thoughts are with everyone affected by this tragic event.

It's a difficult transition obviously but about the game, last night the Leafs had returned from their quick two game road trip where the team suffered back-to-back regulation losses, but they were home to host the Tampa Bay Lightning. This would be the first meeting between the two clubs in Toronto since Game 7 of the playoffs. Calle Jarnkrok would make his return to the lineup after missing seven games with a groin injury. This game would also be a milestone night for Calle because he would be appearing in his 600^th career game.

Matt Murray would get the start in goal and for the Lightning their starter would be Andrei Vasilevskiy. The narrative heading into this game was how difficult the game was going to be for Toronto because as mentioned they had lost their last two games while the Lightning had been on a five-game winning streak. In the two previous games Leaf fans saw their team get off to a sluggish start and giving up the opening goal. Last night was a completely different story because right from the opening faceoff the opening period of play was all Toronto, they spent what seemed to be the entire first period in the Lightning end of the rink piling up score chance after scoring chance, but Vasilevskiy would do what he does best, and his huge saves would keep the score level despite the early Leaf pressure. With a little over three minutes remaining in the first period the Leafs would open the scoring. William Nylander would enter the Lightning zone on the forecheck and end up winning the battle for the puck, Nylander would center a pass to a wide-open Michael Bunting who would beat Tampa’s goalie on the blocker side for his 8^th goal of the season and his 11^th game with a point, but Toronto would open the scoring after controlling the play. Late in the first Ian Cole would be called for tripping but that wasn’t the big story from the first period. In the final seconds in the period Tampa’s Pierre Edward Bellemare would throw a late hit on Mitch Marner and as expected his teammates would defend Mitch, Michael Bunting would get involved which isn’t a surprise to anyone but what everyone was focused on was the linesman literally shoving Bunting off the ice down the hallway after the horn sounded. Now, I saw fans online crying foul saying the official should be suspended or should lose his job. Let’s take a deep breath, yes, the official shoving Bunting was a surprise to everyone watching but screaming for the guy to get fired is a major overreaction. The official will likely have a conversation with the NHL’s head of officiating, and he may get a fine or he might miss a game or two, but he won’t lose his job.

The Leafs would start period two on the powerplay thanks to the Ian Cole minor and it didn’t take the Leafs long to find the back of the net. Mitch Marner and Rasmus Sandin would team up and each pick up an assist as Auston Matthews would send his wrist shot passed a screened Vasilevskiy giving Toronto the 2-0 advantage. We saw the Leafs dominate the opening period with their play and it continued in the second and Toronto would test the Lightning once again with all sorts of pressure but thanks to their goalie this game was still in reach which is a dangerous situation with a team like Tampa because from line one to line four, they can score and turn momentum to their favor. The chances would continue to mount but Toronto wasn’t able to find the back of the net for the rest of the second period, but they would lead this game 2-0 after forty minutes of action thanks to Auston’s 17^th goal of the season.

Toronto would now be twenty minutes away from victory, but everyone knows Tampa Bay wasn’t going to pack it in for the night they would press in an attempt to get back into the game. The Leafs would receive some bad news as Rasmus Sandin would not return for the third after suffering a neck injury late in period two. After the game however, Sheldon Keefe said sitting Sandin for the third was a move of caution so hopefully Sandin’s injury isn’t serious, and he’ll be back Thursday if not when the team returns from the Christmas break.

Toronto would be playing the rest of this game with five defensemen which would be a challenge for the Leafs let alone any team in the NHL. Things would get interesting because less than five minutes into the third the Lightning would finally get on the board. The faceoff would come in the Leafs end and in fact be won by Toronto, but the puck would end up hitting the skate of Auston Matthews and end up of the stick of Vladislav Namestnikov and he would score his second goal of the season and his second goal against the Maple Leafs.

With Toronto now lead by a score of 2-1 Tampa would try to apply pressure searching for their second goal but Toronto to their credit would continue to play a strong defensive game by not allowing the Lightning to gain any momentum. Late in the third Tampa would pull their goalie but Pierre Engvall and William Nylander would both add empty net goals, Engvall’s 6^th and Nylander’s 19^th goals of the season and the Leafs would end the night with a well-deserved 4-1-win snapping Tampa Bay’s five game winning streak.

 

As I was working on this article I bounced back and forth with the idea of addressing something I have faced by fans online. Now yes, I know I shouldn’t pay any attention to what anyone says in comment sections, but it had been happening enough that I decided I wanted to give my two cents on the situation.

Everyone is entitled to an opinion obviously but let me remind you I write for this blog because I love hockey and love the Toronto Maple Leafs but seeing some of the names, I have been called for giving my thoughts and opinions on this team throughout the current season and previous is just ridiculous. Back in October when this fanbase was crying their eyes out wanting Sheldon Keefe fired and Barry Trotz to be hired as the new coach I wrote an article giving my thoughts on the situation. In that article I mention that yes Trotz was a good coach and has had plenty of success in the league but at that point in the season I didn’t think bringing Trotz in would solve the issues the Leafs were dealing with. I ended the article by saying that fans should stop panicking and relax because Sheldon Keefe is a great coach, and this Leaf team has too much talent and too much skill to not turn the early struggles around. I pointed out that this year the Leafs finished with ten points whereas the year before they finished with nine points. Last season despite the slow start the Leafs went on to finish with their best record in franchise history finishing with 115 points. This season with a slow start in October followed by another strong month in November this Leaf team is on pace to finish with 120 points.

When I pointed out these facts to readers and fans, I was apparently an idiot or a dumbass for saying fans need to relax, those were two of the nicest names I could mention but seeing that this Leaf team is tied for second overall in the league I have one question to everyone that went at me earlier in the season. It’s simple my question is, how does that crow taste? This Leaf team with an injured blueline basically from day one has stayed in a playoff spot where most teams dealing with injuries like the Leafs had would fold and fall down the standings. This Leaf team remained competitive because the players had bought into Sheldon’s philosophy of the next man stepping up and we can see the results are showing that what Sheldon has done and adjustments he has made are because he is a good coach, and he knows what players can step up and where they can go in the lineup so that they and the team can have success.

So, again I write this blog for free I don’t get paid for this I do this for my love of hockey and for the Toronto Maple Leafs, I am by no means an expert in the game, but I have been involved in the sport in some fashion since the age of ten and have coached at different levels for close to a decade. I have studied this game and have learned from many great coaches. When I give my thoughts on a Leafs game, signing, or trade I try to bring both the fans perspective but also, I use my experience as a coach when I break things down.

I just wanted to get that off my chest and give everyone my two cents, at the same time of course I appreciate everyone who reads and supports this blog but if I happen to say something that you don’t agree with instead of attacking me maybe take a deep breath and understand that while watching the games I may see minor details that others don’t but that’s only because I have spent years studying the game and asking coaches questions trying to learn and grow my knowledge of the game.

Thanks as always for reading our Leafs are back in action Thursday afternoon when they host the Philadelphia Flyers.