Post Game Notes: Detroit Red Wings @ Toronto Maple Leafs – October 17, 2014

Detroit Red Wings      4               @               Toronto Maple Leafs      1

 

 

Date: October 17, 2014

 

Henrik Zetterberg  had four assists in a 4-1 victory against the Toronto Maple Leafs at Air Canada Centre on Friday.

Penalties and turnovers turned to a cascade boos as the Toronto Maple Leafs turned in an uninspired performance against the Detroit Red Wings. One fan even threw his blue and white jersey on the ice in protest [ Again 😦 ].

James Reimer wasn’t at his best in allowing four goals on 35 shots. Mike Santorelli scored the Leafs’ only goal.

Detroit got on the board with their third shot exactly midway through the first. Roman Polak gave the puck away to Zetterberg behind the net and he made a slick cross-crease pass to Franzen for his first of the season.

The Leafs took two more penalties the remainder of the period, but Reimer and the PK units got the job done. Winger Brandon Kozun even cut the final kill short by drawing one of his own.

Wings made it 2-0 at the 5:42 mark of the second thanks in part to a badly-timed change by Morgan Rielly that left defensive partner Jake Gardiner exposed. Zetterberg skated by Gardiner in front of the net and waited out Reimer until the goaltender went down and he found Franzen for his second of the night.

A few minutes later, the Leafs lost Kozun to a scary left leg injury. Checked by Kyle Quincey, Kozun‘s left leg hit awkwardly against the end boards, and he spent several minutes down on the ice before leaving with some help. Kozun, the biggest surprise of training camp and one of the team’s better penalty killers early in the season, put no weight on his left leg as he went down the tunnel. Will have an MRI Tomorrow once swelling goes down.

Wings padded their lead on another heads-up play by Zetterberg at 18:16 of the second. Zetterberg beat Polak to the puck after Jakub Kindl flipped it in and fed it to a streaking Nyquist, who shot it under Reimer’s left pad to make it 3-0.

It was Nyquist‘s fourth goal in four games this season. He had 28 goals in 57 games last season in leading the Red Wings to the playoffs.

The crowd of 19,054 showered the Leafs with boos as they left the ice at the second intermission. Some of the biggest cheers of the night came during the intermission when an usher was shown on the video boards dancing to Taylor Swift‘s “Shake It Off.”

 

Notes:

• This was the first of eight Friday night games for the Leafs this season and first of three at Air Canada Centre. In the past nine seasons dating to the 2004-05 lockout, Toronto hosted a total of three Friday night games.

• Several new Canadian citizens were sworn in at a ceremony at centre ice earlier in the day, and they helped anthem singer Doug Tranquada sing “O Canada.”

• Howard finished with 23 saves on 24 shots.

 

 

 

 

Pregame Notes: Colorado Avalanche @ Toronto Maple Leafs – October 14, 2014

Colorado Avalanche               @               Toronto Maple Leafs

Pregame Notes 

Toronto Maple Leafs Notes:

Last Game:

• Toronto 6, New York 3 – Led by the play of their top line, who combined for seven points, Toronto spoiled New York’s home opener on Sunday night at Madison Square Garden. The Maple Leafs offence erupted for five second-period goals (in a span of 9:54), including a powerplay, even strength and shorthanded marker in less than five minutes. Phil Kessel led the way with three points (1 goal, 2 assists) while James Reimer made 24 saves to earn his first victory of the season.

 

Worth Nothing:

• Sunday night’s game against the Rangers marked the first time the Maple Leafs have scored five goals in a period since January 7, 2011 (9-3 win at Atlanta)

• With an assist on Sunday night against New York, Stuart Percy became the first rookie defenceman in Maple Leafs history to record a point in each of his first three games

• The last time Toronto scored six goals in their road opener was October 5, 2006 at Ottawa (6-0 W)

 

Injury Report:

• David Booth – Sustained broken right foot in preseason game against Buffalo, September 28 and placed on injured reserve (expected out four or more weeks)

• Cody Franson – Sustained knee injury in preseason game against Buffalo, September 28 (missed one regular season game; removed from IR October 11)

2014-15 Total Regular Season Man Games Lost: 4
2013-14 Total Regular Season Man Games Lost: 231

 

Recent Transactions:

• September 30 – Assigned Troy Bodie to the Toronto Marlies (AHL)

• October 6 – Assigned William Nylander to Modo (SHL)

• October 7 – Assigned Korbinian Holzer, Frazer McLaren and Colton Orr to the Toronto Marlies (AHL). Loaned Viktor Loov to the Toronto Marlies. Recalled Troy Bodie from the Toronto Marlies (AHL)

• October 9 – Claimed forward Richard Panik off waivers from Tampa Bay. Assigned Josh Leivo and Troy Bodie to the Toronto Marlies (AHL)

 

Notes of The Night:

• Phil Kessel holds the NHL’s sixth longest active games played streak, having skated in 367 consecutive games dating back to his time with Boston. Kessel has never missed a game in his time with the Maple Leafs

• Through three games Toronto ranks 5th in NHL powerplay percentage (41.7%)

• The Maple Leafs currently rank 2nd (tie) in the NHL with 11 goals scored in three games

• Tyler Bozak is currently riding a 3-game goal streak (3 goals), the longest of his NHL career. Bozak is set to play the 300th game of his NHL career

• Stuart Percy is currently riding a 3-game point streak (3 assists), the longest of his NHL career

• Leo Komarov registered the first multi-point game (2 assists) of his NHL career on Sunday against New York

 

Tonight’s Matchup: Colorado Avalanche vs Toronto Maple Leafs:

• 2013-14 Series: 1-1-0 (0-1-0 at Toronto)
• All-Time Record: 26-36-9-1 (16-18-4-1 at Toronto)
• Last Game: January 21, 2014 at Colorado (Toronto 5, Colorado 2)
• Next Game: Thursday, November 6, 2014 at Colorado
• Current Streak: 1 win (Toronto)

 

Toronto Notables vs Colorado:

• Dion Phaneuf leads all Maple Leaf skaters with 20 career points (6 goals, 14 assists) in 38 games against Colorado. Phaneuf’s first NHL point (1 goal, 1 assist) came on October 10, 2005 against the Avalanche

• Joffrey Lupul had 3 points (1 goal, 2 assists) in 2 games to lead the Maple Leafs against the Avalanche last season

• Carter Ashton collected his first career NHL point (assist) on October 8, 2013 against Colorado

• Tyler Bozak played his first NHL game and recorded his first point (assist) against Colorado on October 13, 2009

• Stephane Robidas played his first NHL game against the Avalanche on October 20, 1999

 

Moving Up The List:
With three points on Sunday night against the Rangers, Phil Kessel moved past Bill Derlago into 27th spot on the Maple Leafs all-time scoring list with 336 points in 366 games. Kessel needs 4 points to move past Dick Duff for 26th all-time.

 

Upcoming Player Milestones:
Games Played

• Tyler Bozak‘s next game will be his 300th career NHL and 300th Maple Leaf game
• Daniel Winnik needs 7 games to reach 500 career NHL games played
• David Clarkson needs 11 games to reach 500 career NHL games played
• Phil Kessel needs 11 games to reach 600 career NHL games played
• Stephane Robidas needs 12 games to reach 900 career NHL games played
• Dion Phaneuf needs 17 games to reach 700 career NHL games played

Goals

• James van Riemsdyk needs 4 goals to reach 100 career NHL goals scored
• Joffrey Lupul needs 15 goals to reach 200 career NHL goals scored

Assists

• James van Riemsdyk needs 2 assists to reach 100 career NHL assists
• Stephane Robidas needs 4 assists to reach 200 career NHL assists

Points

• James van Riemsdyk needs 5 points to reach 100 Maple Leaf points
• James van Riemsdyk needs 6 points to reach 200 career NHL points
• Mike Santorelli needs 12 points to reach 100 career NHL points
• Joffrey Lupul needs 13 points to reach 400 career NHL points
• Tyler Bozak needs 13 points to reach 200 career NHL and 200 Maple Leaf points
• Cody Franson needs 15 points to reach 100 Maple Leaf points

—

Colorado Avalanche Notes:

Last Game:
Colorado 2 at Boston 1 – Daniel Briere scored his 300th NHL goal with less than a second left in regulation to give the Avalanche a 2-1 victory over the Boston Bruins at TD Garden. Jamie McGinn also scored for the Avs and Reto Berra stopped 27-of-28 shots in his first start of the season. The win was Colorado’s seventh straight victory at Boston, as the Avs haven’t lost in Beantown since March 30, 1998.

 

Current Injuries:

• Patrick Bordeleau (back).
• John Mitchell (head).
• Jesse Winchester (head).

 

Recent Transactions:

• None

 

Avs Continue Four-Game Trip Tonight In Toronto:
The Colorado Avalanche continues their four-game road trip tonight in Toronto against the Maple Leafs. The Avs opened the trip with a 2-1 victory in Boston yesterday afternoon. The Avalanche will play at Ottawa on Thursday before wrapping up the trip on Saturday night in Montreal.

 

Avs & Maple Leafs:
Tonight is the first of two meetings between the Avalanche and Maple Leafs this season. Toronto will visit Denver on November 6. The Avs have won their last four visits here to the Air Canada Centre. Colorado’s last loss in this building was March 20, 2004.

• All-time Record vs. Toronto: 37-26-9
• Home Record: 18-10-5
• Road Record: 19-16-4
• Record Since Moving To Denver: 14-10-2
• 2013-14 Record: 1-1-0 (1-0 on the road)

 

Briere Tallies 300th In Dramatic Fashion:
Daniel Briere scored his 300th NHL goal yesterday afternoon in Boston, lighting the lamp with under a second left in regulation to give the Avalanche a 2-1 victory. Briere is the first Avalanche player to ever score a game-winning goal with one second left in regulation.

 

Back-To-Back:
The Avs are playing their first of 12 back-to-back games, as they take on the Maple Leafs tonight after beating the Bruins 2-1 yesterday afternoon in Boston. The Avalanche played 10 back-to-back games last season, going 7-2-1 in the first game and 4-4-2 in the second.

 

East Side Story:
The Avs are 1-0 vs Eastern Conference teams this season after beating the Bruins 2-1 yesterday afternoon. Colorado finished 21-9-2 against Eastern Conference teams last year, 10-4-2 at home and 11-5-0 on the road. After yesterday’s victory in Boston, Colorado is now 35-13-3 against the East since the start of the 2011-12 season, 55-23-9 since 2009-10 and 83-43-9 since 2005-06.

 

Iginla Climbing The All-Time Lists:
Jarome Iginla has 1,167 career points—including 560 goals—in 1,313 career regular season games. His 560 goals are tied with Guy Lafleur for 24th place on the NHL’s all-time list, while his 1,167 career points rank 50th on the all-time scoring list. His next goal will not only move him past Lafleur but also tie him with Mike Modano (561) for 23rd all-time. Iginla needs three points to tie Bobby Hull (1170) for 49th all-time. Only Jaromir Jagr (705) has more goals among active players and only Jagr (1757) and Joe Thornton (1195) have more points. Iginla has twice finished runner-up for the Hart Trophy (2002, 2004), which included finishing second in the closest voting ever in 2001-02. He won the Maurice “Rocket” Richard Trophy as the NHL’s leading goal scorer in both 2002 and 2004 and captured the 2002 Art Ross Trophy as the league’s scoring leader. Iginla was named to the NHL’s First All-Star Team in 2001-02, 2007-08 and 2008-09, and the NHL’s Second All-Star Team in 2003-04. He was selected to the NHL All-Rookie Team and was a finalist for the Calder Trophy in 1996-97. Jarome has won the 2004 NHL Foundation Player Award (community service), 2004 King Clancy Memorial Trophy (leadership and humanitarian contribution in his community) and the 2009 Mark Messier NHL Leadership Award.

 

Player Milestones:

• Brad Stuart needs just 12 games to reach 1,000 career regular season games in the NHL. Alex Tanguay can also reach the 1,000-game mark this season, as he has appeared in 941 contests, 59 shy of 1,000.

• Jan Hejda needs one assist to reach 100 NHL assists.

• Semyon Varlamov has appeared in 153 games as a member of the Avalanche, tying Ron Tugnutt for seventh place on the franchise’s all-time list for games played by a goaltender. Varlamov’s 78 wins with Colorado rank seventh in franchise history, one behind Mario Gosselin (79) for sixth.

• Alex Tanguay needs one goal to tie Dale Hunter (142) for ninth place on the franchise’s all-time goal-scoring list.

 

• Cody McLeod needs 15 penalty minutes to reach 1,000 career PIM. He will become the first player in Avalanche history and sixth in franchise history to surpass 1,000 PIM.

• Ryan O’Reilly needs nine points to reach 200 career points.

• Maxime Talbot needs 12 games to reach 600 career contests and five assists to reach 100 career helpers.

 

Central Division Champs:
The Avalanche tied their franchise record with 52 wins and posted their-second highest point total ever (112) en route to winning the Central Division title in 2013-14. Colorado finished 52-22-8, exactly 26-11-4 at home (56 points) and 26-11-4 on the road (56 points). The Avs set a franchise mark for road wins on their way to finishing with the best road record in the NHL.

 

Ninth Division Crown; First Since 2002-03:
The Avs last season won their ninth division championship since moving to Denver, their first since 2002-03. It marked Colorado/Quebec’s 11th division title in franchise history, which includes an NHL-record streak of nine consecutive division crowns from 1995 to 2003. The Avalanche/Nordiques have now won the Central Division (2013-14), five Northwest Division titles (1998-99 to 2002-03), three Pacific Division crowns (1995-98), a Northeast Division title (1994-95) and an Adams Division banner (1985-86).

 

Road, Sweet Road:
The Avalanche last year set a franchise record for road wins in a season with 26. The Avs led the NHL in road wins, points (56) and winning percentage (683%). The Avalanche began the year a league-best 6-0 away from home, matching their longest road winning streak to begin a season in franchise history, and finished the year 15-5-2 in their last 22 road contests.

 

Central Success:
Colorado finished 19-6-3 against Central Division opponents last season, 9-3-2 at home and 10-3-1 on the road. The Avs were 4-1-0 vs. Chicago, 4-1-0 vs. Dallas, 4-0-1 vs. Minnesota, 3-1-0 vs. Nashville, 1-3-0 vs. St. Louis and 3-0-2 vs. Winnipeg. The Central ended up being the only division to produce five playoff teams in 2013-14.

 

Award-Winning Season:
The Avalanche took home three individual trophies at the 2014 NHL Awards Show in Las Vegas on June 24. Nathan MacKinnon won the Calder Trophy as the league’s top rookie, Ryan O’Reilly won the Lady Byng Trophy for sportsmanship and gentlemanly conduct, while Patrick Roy won the Jack Adams Award as the coach of the year. The Avs and Boston Bruins were the only teams to produce three winners. Semyon Varlamov was a finalist for the Vezina Trophy, making Colorado one of only two teams with four awards finalists (Tampa Bay was the other).

 

The Power Of One:
The Avs were 28-4-8 in one-goal games last year, the best winning percentage in the NHL (.700%). Colorado’s 28 one-goal wins were also a league high.

 

Working Overtime:
The Avs finished 15-8 in games that went beyond regulation last season, 10-4 in overtime and 5-4 in shootouts. The Avalanche’s 10 overtime wins and 15 combined OT/shootout wins led all NHL teams. Colorado was 7-2 in road overtime games, setting a franchise record for road OT wins in a single season.

 

Getting Offensive:
Colorado finished fourth in the NHL in scoring last season, averaging 2.99 goals-per-game (245 total). It was the club’s most goals and highest average since 2006-07 (267 total, 3.26 per). Colorado had five different 20-goal scorers and five different 50-point producers, the first time the Avs have accomplished either feat since 2006-07. Boston, Chicago, Pittsburgh and St. Louis were the only other teams to have five different players reach both scoring plateaus. Colorado’s defensemen combined for 48 goals and 173 points, their highest totals since 2005-06 (52 and 204).

 

Specialty Teams:
The Avalanche finished tied for fifth in power-play percentage last season at 19.8% (50-for-252), the club’s highest ranking since placing fourth in 2006-07. Colorado finished 24th in penalty killing at 80.7% (201/249). The Avalanche allowed only one short-handed goal, setting a franchise record for the fewest SHG allowed in a single season. Only the Predators, who did not allow a single short-handed goal, gave up fewer SHG in 2013-14.

 

 

 

Post Practice: October 14, 2014

Not much to report from practice today:

Phaneuf peged Kessel in the skate with a hard shot/pass. Kessel angrily returns the favour and hits Phaneuf with one. Some words exchanged but they come away laughing – all good.

Reimer starts tonight vs Avs. Good call by Carlyle. It’s to Leafs benefit to have both goalies rolling.

Percy surprised to stick in lineup over older players? “Maybe I didn’t expect it, but definitely strived for it.” Best advice Percy received?: “Keep your foot on the gas & don’t let up”; Steve Staios told him that right before 1st NHL game. Says most memorable moment of his young NHL career so far was national anthem (sung by ACC fans) in season opener.

Gardiner: “That’s just how it goes: If someone’s playing really well or you’re not playing your game then you’re not going to play.” Gardiner has reviewed film. What stands out? 1. Needs to do a better job containing players in D zone. 2. Must move the puck quicker. “Been playing a little too loose defensively and I think I can definitely sharpen up in that area.”

Carlyle on Gardiner: “We feel that we have a quality hockey player that can play to a higher level and he agrees with that…end of story.”
Carlyle said Robidas gets more leeway to work thru issues bc he’s a veteran coming off serious injury only playing once in pre-season: “Not easy doing what he’s doing, we know that and it’s not like we’re hiding him in our lineup. He’s playing big mins.”

Robidas: “I’m not where I want to be. I know I can be better. It’s little things [I must improve]: timing & play without the puck. I can make a good first pass & that’s where I got to get back to, make good plays with the puck & be very strong defensively.” Robidas recalls being healthy scratch 20 times in 2nd season: “Sometimes it’s good, a little bit of adversity sometimes can be good”

Carlyle on scratching players: “Everything you do is for the betterment of the team and that’s the only way a coach can present it.”

Reimer: “Right now we’re starting a playoff push.” A little early for playoff talk? Reimer: “I know, I know, but all the pts are important! On a number of occasions [Sunday] I was kind of looking for the puck & just before the guy shot one of our d-men boxed out [a NYR] It’s not a secret: defence wins and I thought we did a great job in NY. We worked the hardest I’ve seen us work this year.” Reimer’s 2nd straight start; sign of open competition? James: “It’s pretty early, I don’t think you can read into anything here really.”

 

Links:

• Leafs juggle struggling Jake Gardiner, soaring Stuart Percy
• Leafs shouldn’t make scratching Jake Gardiner a habit

 

Post Game Notes: Toronto Maple Leafs @ New York Rangers – October 12, 2014

Toronto Maple Leafs      6               @               New York Rangers      3

Date: October 12, 2014

Maybe the Toronto Maple Leafs just needed to get out of Toronto to get their game in order. The Maple Leafs beat the New York Rangers 6-3 at Madison Square Garden tonight because they played with speed and with the puck, dominated on special teams and got a solid performance from James Reimer. Basically, they beat the Rangers for their first win of the season because they did everything they didn’t do well enough in losses to the Montreal Canadiens and Pittsburgh Penguins at Air Canada Centre.

Leafs were even good enough to chase Rangers goalie Henrik Lundqvist from the game late in the second period. Lundqvist allowed six goals on 24 shots before he was replaced by Cam Talbot with 4:47 to play in the period. Toronto scored five goals on Lundqvist in a span of 9:54 in the second period to take a 6-2 lead.

Reimer, making his first start of the season made 24 saves before leaving with 13:17 to play in the third period. He was hit in the head by Rangers center Dominic Moore while reaching for the puck at the side of the net. Bernier replaced Reimer, who still picked up his first win since April 3 — which was after Toronto lost eight in a row to fall out of the Stanley Cup Playoff race in the Eastern Conference.

Reimer said he’s fine and that he didn’t want to come out of the game, but he had to. “We have protocols to come out; err on the side of caution, I guess. I was feeling good and I felt like I was stopping pucks, but our trainer’s job is to ensure the safety of the players and enforce the protocols in place.”

Toronto’s first-line wings van Riemsdyk and Kessel, without a point in the first two games, each scored a goal and combined for five points. Kessel’s goal came on the power play. van Riemsdyk scored his on a shorthanded breakaway.

Defenseman Cody Franson, who didn’t play in the first two games because of a knee injury, got Toronto started with a power-play goal at 7:45 in the first period. He added an assist.

Carlyle: “Franson’s goal was a big goal that got us going, it was nice to see him come back and make a contribution and you win. All of those things are positives.”

Toronto was 2-for-4 on the power play and 2-for-2 on the penalty kill, along with van Riemsdyk’s shorthanded goal. The Leafs were 3-for-8 on the power play in their first two games, but they allowed three power-play goals to the Penguins in a 5-2 loss Saturday.

Toronto also got goals from Tyler Bozak, Nazem Kadri and David Clarkson, who scored his first of the season.

In building a 6-2 lead through two periods, Toronto had a 30-23 advantage in shots on goal and 46-42 edge in total shot attempts. The Leafs were outshot 41-25 and out-attempted 71-52 by Pittsburgh. They were outshot 32-27 by the Canadiens in a 4-3 loss this past Wednesday.

Other Notables: 

• Leafs scored five goals in one period for the first time since January 7, 2011, when they found the back of the net six times in the second period of a 9-3 win at ATL.

• The Leafs also recorded six goals in a road game for the first time since February 9, 2013, when they posted a 6-0 victory at MTL.

• The line of Kessel (1-2—3), Bozak (1-1—2) and JvR (1-1—2) combined for 3-4—7, including the game-winning goal (by JvR).

• Kessel now has 8-11—19 in 28 career games versus the Rangers, including 6-8—14 in 16 contests at Madison Square Garden.

• Bozak found the back of the net for the third consecutive game and now leads the Maple Leafs with 3-1—4 this season. His three-game goal streak is the first such run of his NHL career (299 GP).
• JvR scored his third career shorthanded goal and 18th career game-winner. His other two shorthanded tallies came last season: October 30 at CGY and March 1 at MTL.

• Rookie defenseman Stuart Percy picked up an assist for the third consecutive game.

• Cody Franson added 1-1—2 in his season debut.

• Leo Komarov (0-2—2) posted his first career multi-assist/point game.

Links:
* Thanks to Jeffler for these

• Dominic Moore hip-hit to James Reimer’s head

• Tyler Bozak and David Clarkson’s goals

• Nazem Kadri’s goal

• Phil Kessel scores his first goal of the year

Reimer, Franson File for Arbitration

Reimer, Franson File for Arbitration.

Hearings will be held in Toronto from July 20 to August 4, although in recent years very few cases have reached that stage. The player’s representative and the team will make a proposal based on performance, on comparable players who’ve yet to reach eligibility for unrestricted free agency, and other factors. The neutral arbitrator has discretion to come up with a dollar figure that differs from the two proposals. The team has the option of walking away from a player-initiated arbitration ruling, which would make the player an unrestricted free agent.

Without reading too much into it, seems clear that Reimer and his agent Ray Petkau are intent on sending a message to the Leafs that Reimer’s time as an affable back-up is over one way or the other.

Reimer is a Group 2 Restricted Free Agent (“RFA”) because the Leafs extended him a qualifying contract offer of $1.6 million dollars, which required the Club to offer him 100% his actual salary from the preceding season. This is Reimer’s final off-season as an RFA as he’ll be 27 years of age before June 30th of next year, meaning he will be a Group 3 Unrestricted Free Agent (“UFA”) – as provided by Article 10.1 – whenever his next contract expires.  Generally the Leafs (as the party being brought to arbitration) can elect whether the awarded contract would span one or two years, however, because Reimer is eligible to become a UFA next offseason the arbitrator will only be permitted to award a one year contract, meaning that barring a negotiated agreement Reimer will be a UFA at the end of the 2014-2015 season, at which time he’d undoubtedly shop his services to a club needing a viable starting goaltender.

Franson has a pretty strong case for a raise. He might not have had the best season defensively, but astoundingly, he had the most points for a Leafs defenseman last season. That will almost assuredly get him a raise over the $2 million he made last season.

Pregame: Toronto Maple Leafs @ Buffalo Sabres – November 29, 2013

Buffalo’s Notes:

Last Game:
Wednesday, November 27 – Montreal 3 at Buffalo 1 – Goals: Moulson  ~ Goalie: Miller (28 saves/31 shots) ~ PP: 0/2; PK: 2/4;  ~ Shots: Montreal 32 –Buffalo 25

Current Injuries:
Cody McCormick (upper body, November  24; injured reserve) –2 games

Total Man Games Lost: 79

Recent Transactions:
11/27: Claimed Matt D’Agostini off waivers from Pittsburgh; Placed Corey Tropp on waivers
11/28: Lost  Corey Tropp on waivers to Columbus

Streaks:
Goals: No active streaks
Assists: Drew Stafford (2 / 2 games)
Points: Drew Stafford (0-2-2 / 2 Games)

Tonight’s Game: Leafs vs Sabres:
This is the third of five meetings between the Sabres and Maple Leafs this season.

Last meeting: Toronto defeated Buffalo, 4-2, in Toronto on November 16

The Sabres are 5-4-1 in their last 10 games vs the Maple Leafs; 8-1-1 at home.

This is the 191st game all-time between Buffalo and Toronto; Buffalo leads the series with a 105-62-23 record.

The Sabres are 63-25-8 at home against the Maple Leafs all-time.

Things You Should Know:
The Sabres are 12-1-1 in their last 14 home games against the Maple Leafs. Toronto hasn’t won consecutive games in Buffalo since March 21 and December 12, 2008. Their last regulation win in Buffalo was a 2-1 win on February 16, 2011.

Drew Stafford leads all Sabres with 28 points (12+16) in 38 career games against the Maple Leafs.

Ryan Miller is 30-15-1 all-time against Toronto with a 2.45 GAA and a .922 SV%; Miller has more wins (30) and shutouts (4) against the Maple Leafs than any other team.

Back-To-Back:
Tonight’s game wraps up Buffalo’s sixth of 13 sets of back-to-back games this season. The Sabres are 2-3-0 in the first game of back-to-back sets and 1-4-0 in the second game this season. Buffalo’s point breakdown in previous back-to-back sets this season is: four points (0), three points (0), two points (3), one point (0) and zero points (2).

Upcoming Milestones: 
Games Played – John Scott ~ 8 games for 200 career games played
Goals – Steve Ott ~ 3 goals for 100 career goals
Points – Matt D’Agostini ~ 4 points for 100 career points and Cody Hodgson ~ 6 points for 100 career points

 

Toronto’s Notes:

Last Game: 
November 27 – Toronto 5   @  Pittsburgh 6 (SO) – Evgeni Malkin scored twice in regulation, added an assist and had a goal in the shootout to lead the Pittsburgh Penguins to a 6-5 win over the Toronto Maple Leafs at CONSOL Energy Center. Chris Conner, Kris Letang and James Neal each had a goal for the Penguins while Sidney Crosby collected two assists and scored the deciding goal in the shootout. Marc-Andre Fleury and Jeff Zatkoff combined for 19 saves on 24 shots in the win for Pittsburgh. James van Riemsdyk posted two goals and an assist for the Maple Leafs, and Nazem Kadri, Phil Kessel and Tyler Bozak also scored in the loss. Jonathan Bernier made 43 saves for Toronto in a losing effort. TOR PP: 1-3 / PIT PP: 3-5 / Shots: 24-48.

Additional Notes: During the 6-5 shootout loss to the Penguins, the Maple Leafs scored two goals in the first 42 seconds of the second period (van Riemsdyk – 0:13 / Kessel 0:42). The last time Toronto had two goals that quick to start a period was in March of 1984 (Rick Vaive / John Anderson, 27 seconds). The Leafs then went shotless in the third period, marking the first time since Apr. 3, 2000 at Buffalo the team failed to register a shot on goal in a period.

Current Injuries:
Dave Bolland – Injury occurred on November 2 at Vancouver. Bolland severed a tendon on the outside of his ankle. Expected to be out indefinitely. Games Missed: 10

Joffrey Lupul – Injury occurred on November 25 vs CBJ. Lupul’s status is currently listed as day-to-day and is known to have a grade 2 groin strain and will not travel with the team on its upcoming three-game road trip. Games Missed: 1

Recent Transactions:
November 29 – Recalled Carter Ashton from the Toronto Marlies (AHL)

Streaks:
Goals: No active streaks
Assists: No active streaks
Points: No active streaks

Toronto vs Buffalo:
2013-14 Series: 1-1-0 (0-1-0 at Buffalo)
2012-13 Series: 2-1-1 (1-0-1 at Buffalo)
All-Time Record: 67-97-18-8 (27-59-6-4 at Buffalo)
Last Game: November 16, 2013 at Toronto (Maple Leafs 4, Sabres 2)
Next Game: December 27, 2013 at Toronto
Current Streaks: Toronto (one win)

Individual Players vs Buffalo: 
Phil Kessel leads all Toronto players in career games played (44), goals (13), assists (15) and points (28) against Buffalo.

Colton Orr leads all Toronto players in career penalty minutes (83) in 28 games against Buffalo.

Mason Raymond leads all Toronto players with three points (1 goal, 2 assists) and James van Riemsdyk leads the team with two goals in two games against Buffalo this season.

Cody Franson has registered more career assists (8) and points (9) against Buffalo than against any other NHL club.

Back-To-Back Games:
The Maple Leafs will play on consecutive nights 16 times this season, posting a record of 3-2-0 in the first game and 4-1-0 in the second contest so far. Last season, Toronto played nine back-to-back games, posting a record of 5-3-1 in the first game and 4-4-1 in the second contest.

Upcoming Milestones:
Mason Raymond needs 1 game for 400 NHL games played
Jerred Smithson needs 2 games for 600 NHL games played
Paul Ranger needs 7 games for 300 NHL games played

David Clarkson needs 1 goal for 100 NHL goals
Phil Kessel needs 2 goals for 200 NHL goals
Mason Raymond needs 12 goals for 100 NHL goals

Cody Franson needs 10 assists for 100 NHL assists
Dion Phaneuf needs 11 assists for 100 Maple Leafs assists
Joffrey Lupul needs 14 assists for 200 NHL assists

Paul Ranger needs 2 points for 100 NHL points
Jay McClement needs 4 points for 200 NHL points
Jerred Smithson needs 4 points for 100 NHL points
Mason Raymond needs 5 points for 200 NHL points

Record By Days Of The Week:
       2013-14 Season:                                                              2012-13 Season:

• Sunday: 0-0-0                                                                Sunday: 0-0-0
• Monday: 0-1-0                                                              Monday: 6-2-1
• Tuesday: 5-1-0                                                              Tuesday: 3-3-0
• Wednesday: 2-0-2                                                       Wednesday: 3-2-1
• Thursday: 1-2-0                                                            Thursday: 6-6-1
• Friday: 1-2-0                                                                   Friday: 0-0-0
• Saturday: 5-3-0                                                             Saturday: 8-3-2

Pregame: Columbus Blue Jackets @ Toronto Maple Leafs – November 25, 2013

Toronto’s Notes:

Last Game:
November 23 – Torontor 2 vs Washington 2 (SO) ~ James Reimer made 49 saves on 50 shots and stopped three of the four shooters he faced in the shootout to lead the Toronto Maple Leafs to a 2-1 win over the Washington Capitals at Air Canada Centre. David Clarkson scored Toronto’s lone goal in regulation and Joffrey Lupul had the deciding marker in the shootout for the Maple Leafs. Alex Ovechkin potted Washington’s goal and Braden Holtby made 27 saves in a losing effort. TOR PP: 1-1 / WSH PP: 0-3 /Shots: 28-50

Additional Notes:  Reimer’s 49 saves on Capitals’ 50 shots on goal marked the third time this month that an NHL goaltender has recorded a shootout victory after facing 50 or more shots on goal during the “real hockey” part of the game. The other netminders to do that were the Coyotes’ Mike Smith (November 2) and the Sabres’ Ryan Miller (November 5), both in games at San Jose. Before this month no NHL goaltender had pulled off that feat since the Oilers’ Devan Dubnyk on April 10, 2010 at Los Angeles.

Current Injuries:
Dave Bolland – Injury occurred on November 2 at Vancouver. Bolland severed a tendon on the outside of his ankle. Expected to be out indefinitely. Games Missed: 8

Total Man Games Lost: 63

Recent Transactions:
November 22 – Signed Connor Brown to a three-year entry level contract

Streaks:
Goals: No active streaks
Assists: No active streaks
Points: Nazem Kadri (1-1–2 / 2 games)

Toronto vs Columbus ~ Head-to-Head:
2013-14 Series: 0-1-0 (0-0-0 at Toronto)
2012-13 Series: DNP
All-Time Record: 6-2-1-2 (3-1-1-1 at Toronto)
Last Game: October 25, 2013 at Columbus (Maple Leafs 2, Blue Jackets 5)
Next Game: March 3, 2014 at Toronto
Current Streaks: Columbus (one win)

* The Maple Leafs will wear their third sweater tonight for the 4th of 13 games this season. (3-0-0)

Individual Players vs Columbus:
Jay McClement leads all Toronto players in career assists (11) and points (tie-16) in 41 games against Columbus. McClement has registered more career assists (tie) against Columbus than against any other NHL club.

Dave Bolland leads all Toronto players in career goals (10) and points (tie-16) in 26 games against Columbus. Bolland has registered more career goals and points (tie) against Columbus than against any other NHL club.

Dion Phaneuf leads all Toronto players in career penalty minutes (54) in 23 games against Columbus. Phaneuf has registered more career penalty minutes against Columbus than against any other NHL club.

Jerred Smithson has registered more career goals (tie-3), assists (8) and points (11) against Columbus than against any other NHL club.

Upcoming Milestones:
Colton Orr needs 2 games for 200 Maple Leafs games played
Mason Raymond needs 3 games for 400 NHL games played
Jerred Smithson needs 4 games for 600 NHL games played
Paul Ranger needs 8 games for 300 NHL games played

David Clarkson needs 1 goal for 100 NHL goals
Phil Kessel needs 3 goals for 200 NHL goals
Mason Raymond needs 12 goals for 100 NHL goals

Cody Franson needs 11 assists for 100 NHL assists
Dion Phaneuf needs 12 assists for 100 Maple Leafs assists
Joffrey Lupul needs 14 assists for 200 NHL assists

Paul Ranger needs 2 points for 100 NHL points
Jay McClement needs 4 points for 200 NHL points
Jerred Smithson needs 4 points for 100 NHL points
Mason Raymond needs 5 points for 200 NHL points

Record By Days Of The Week:

2013-14 Season:                                                              2012-13 Season:

• Sunday: 0-0-0                                                                Sunday: 0-0-0
• Monday: 0-0-0                                                              Monday: 6-2-1
• Tuesday: 5-1-0                                                              Tuesday: 3-3-0
• Wednesday: 2-0-1                                                       Wednesday: 3-2-1
• Thursday: 1-2-0                                                            Thursday: 6-6-1
• Friday: 1-2-0                                                                   Friday: 0-0-0
• Saturday: 5-3-0                                                             Saturday: 8-3-2

 

Individual Player Notes:
Mark Fraser – Returned to the lineup November 23 vs WSH – Missed two games (November 19, 21) due to knee injury

Dion Phaneuf – Leads Maple Leafs in +/- (+11) and TOI per game (24:09), and is 2nd in hits (58) and BKS (44)

Cody Franson – Leads Maple Leafs in assists (12) and hits (73), is 2nd in TOI per game (21:20) and 3rd in BKS (37)

Jay McClement – Leads NHL in SH TOI per game (4:23) and is 3rd in SH TOI (96:45).Leads Maple Leafs in FO% (55.6)

Mason Raymond – Leads Maple Leafs in GWG (tie-3), is 2nd in points (17), +/- (+6) and PPG (tie-3), and 3rd in goals (tie-8) and assists (tie-9). Posted a 5-game point streak (Nov. 13-21) with 6 points (3 goals, 3 assists) in that span

Paul Ranger – Leads Maple Leafs in SHG (tie-1) and is 3rd in hits (50). Was a healthy scratch November 23 vs WSH

Joffrey Lupul – 2nd on Maple Leafs in shots (67) and 3rd in goals (tie-8)

James van Riemsdyk – Leads Maple Leafs in SHG (tie-1), is 2nd in goals (9) and PPG (tie-3), and 3rd in points (tie-16) and shots (61)

Colton Orr – 2nd in NHL in PIMs (tie-68)

Carl Gunnarsson –  Leads Maple Leafs in BKS (58) and is 3rd in +/- (tie +5)

Frazer McLaren – 2nd on Maple Leafs in PIMs (40)

Tyler Bozak – Leads Maple Leafs in SHG (tie-1) and is 3rd in +/- (tie +5) and TOI per game (21:16). Missed 12 games (October 26-November 23) due to hamstring injury ~ He is expected to be back in the lineup for tonight’s game

Nazem Kadri – 2nd on Maple Leafs in assists (10) and 3rd in points (tie-16) and PIMs (tie-30)

Morgan Rielly – Has been a healthy scratch five times this season

David Clarkson – 3rd on Maple Leafs in PIMs (tie-30). Scored a goal and named 3rd star November 23 vs WSH

Phil Kessel – Leads Maple Leafs in goals (12), points (21), PPG (4), GWG (tie-3) and shots (87), and is 3rd in assists (tie-9)

 

Columbus’ Notes:

Last Game:
CBJ 2 at VAN 6 (11/22/13)  ~ Sergei Bobrovsky finished with 29 saves as Columbus lost in regulation for the second time in eight games (3-2-3). Richards defended his goalie, who was beaten from a sharp angle by Daniel Sedin late in the first period, had Kassian’s unscreened shot from the faceoff dot go under his blocker, and then accidentally kicked Henrik Sedin’s first goal into the net with his heel. The Canucks outshot Columbus 14-4 in the opening period, and Daniel tied it from a sharp angle with 15.4 seconds left with a shot that hit a stick and lifted over Bobrovsky on the short side. The Canucks outshot Columbus 14-4 in the opening period, and Daniel tied it from a sharp angle with 15.4 seconds left with a shot that hit a stick and lifted over Bobrovsky on the short side. After Bobrovsky robbed Alexandre Burrows and Ryan Kesler during a power play, and Cam Atkinson missed a glorious chance to put Columbus back in front, Kassian opened the floodgates shortly after the Canucks’ No. 1-ranked penalty kill shut down the Blue Jackets’ fourth chance on the power play.  Brad Richardson, who was in the penalty box for tripping, got to a loose puck and fed Kassian at the far blue line for a 1-on-1 rush and the shot under Bobrovsky’s arm. Henrik knocked a rebound of a high shot by Daniel behind Bobrovsky a couple shifts later, and Edler wired a point shot that hit a defender and went in off the post for his first goal in 15 games. Henrik deflected in Daniel’s point shot midway through the third, but after Bobrovsky stuffed Jannik Hansen on a penalty shot with 3:27 left, Anisimov batted in a rebound on the next shift to make it 5-2.

Current Injuries:
M. Gaborik (knee); placed on IR on 11/15, expected to miss 4-6 weeks
D. Prout (back); placed on IR on 11/20 retroactive to 11/14
N. Horton (shoulder), out indefinitely
B. Dubinsky (foot) is day-to-day

Total Man Games Lost: 80

Recent Transactions:
November 20 – Placed D. Prout (D) on IR retroactive to November 14
November 21 – Activated M. Calvert (F) from IR

Streaks:
Goals: No active streaks
Assists: Nikita Nikitin (2 / 2 games)  ~ David Savard (2 /2 games)
Points: Nikita Nikitin (1-2–3 / 2 games)  ~ David Savard (0-2–2 / 2 games)

Columbus vs Toronto:
All-Time Record: 4-6-1
Road Record: 2-3-1
GF/GA: 26-37
SF/SA: 334-300
PP: 6-for-49 (12.2%)
PK: 36-for-44 (81.8%)
PIM: 139-159

All-Time CBJ/TOR Transactions:
October 3, 2003: CBJ claimed C Travis Green from TOR in Waiver Draft
March 8, 2006: CBJ traded D Luke Richardson to TOR in exchange for a conditional draft pick
February 25, 2012: CBJ claimed C Darryl Boyce off waivers from TOR

CBJ Team Notes:
CBJ is 3-2-3 in their last 7 games and 2-2-0 on their current 5-game road trip
Dating back to last season CBJ is 27-17-8 in their last 52 games and 12-10-4 in their last 25 road games
CBJ is 31-0-0 when leading a game after 2 periods under head coach T. Richards (since 1/9/12)
CBJ has recorded the fewest # of giveaways in the Eastern Conference (136) this season
CBJ is 3-1-1 in their last 5 Monday games (30-40-13 all-time)

Individual Players vs Toronto:
M. Letestu has registered 3G-2A-5P in his last 5 games vs Toronto
A. Anisimov (w/NYR) recorded a career high 4 points (0G-4A) vs Toronto on 1/19/11
N. Foligno (w/OTT) made his NHL debut vs Toronto on 10/3/07
R. Murray scored his 1st career NHL goal vs TOR on 10/25/13 (opposing goalie: J. Bernier) 

Upcoming Milestones:
N. Horton – 2 goals shy of 200 for his NHL career

 

Pregame: Carolina Hurricanes @ Toronto Maple Leafs – October 17, 2013

Toronto’s Notes:

Last Game:  OCTOBER 15 – TORONTO 4 vs. MINNESOTA 1 – James Reimer made 36 saves on 37 shots and Mason Raymond potted two goals to lead the Toronto Maple Leafs to a 4-1 win over the Minnesota Wild at Air Canada Centre. Tyler Bozak and Trevor Smith also scored for the Leafs while Cody Franson and Morgan Rielly each had two helpers in the win. Jason Pominville had the lone Wild marker. Darcy Kuemper suffered the loss for Minnesota after allowing three goals on seven shots before being replaced in the second period by Josh Harding who stopped all six shots he faced. TOR PP: 2-3 / MIN PP: 1-5 / Shots: 14-37

• Additional Note:  James Reimer made 36 saves in the game – Toronto recorded only 14 shots on goal. It was the third time in the Leafs’ last 24 regular-season games that they had no more than 14 shots on goal, yet all three games have resulted in regulation wins for Toronto. The other games were last season: a 3-2 win over Boston on March 23 and a 2-0 victory against New Jersey on April 15, with Reimer in goal and making more than 30 saves in each of those games

 

Injury Report:

• Mark Fraser – Knee – Expected to miss 4 weeks. Injury occured on October 2 at PHI – Games Missed: 5
• Nikolai Kulemin – Ankle – Expected to miss 2 weeks. Injury occured during practice on October 4 –  Games Missed:  5
• Frazer McLaren – Broken Finger – Injury occured during practice at training camp on September 13 – Games Missed: 7
• James van Riemsdyk – Back Spasms – Occured on October 14, status is currently listed as day-to-day –  Games Missed: 1

 

Recent Transactions:

• October 15 – Recalled Trevor Smith from Marlies

 

Streaks:

• Goal: None
• Assists: Phil Kessel (4 / 3 Games) – Nazem Kadri (3 / 3 Games) – Cody Franson (4 / 2 Games)
• Points: Phil Kessel (1-4-5 / 3 Games) – Nazem Kadri (1-3-4 / 3 Games) – Tyler Bozak (2-1-3 / 3 Games) – Mason Raymond (2-2-4 / 2 Games) – Cody Franson (0-4-4 / 2 Games) – Dave Bolland (1-1-2 / 2 Games)

 

Vs Carolina:

• 2012-13 Series: 1-2-0 (1-1-0 at Toronto)
• Al-Time Record: 38-49-11-6 (19-26-6-1 at Toronto)
• LAST GAME: March 28, 2013 at Toronto (Maple Leafs 6, Hurricanes 3)
• NEXT GAME: December 29, 2013 at Toronto
• CURRENT STREAKS: Toronto (one win)

~ Paul Ranger leads all Toronto players in career assists (13) and points (17) in 25 games against Carolina. Ranger has registered more career games played (tie), goals (tie-4), assists and points against Carolina than against any other NHL club.

~ Joffrey Lupul leads all Toronto players in career goals (6) in 17 games against Carolina.

~ Troy Bodie played 50 games for Carolina in 2010-11, registering three points (1 goal, 2 assists) with 54 penalty minutes.

~ Mason Raymond has five points (3goals and 2 assists) in four games against Carolina

~ James Reimer is 4-1-1 with a 2.14 GAA and one shutout in six games against Carolina. Jonathan Bernier is 1-1-0 with a 2.52 GAA in two appearances.

~ Carolina defenceman Mike Komisarek played 158 games with Toronto over four seasons (2009-10 to 2012-13), registering 19 points (2 goals, 17 assists) with 169 penalty minutes.

~ Carolina forward Jiri Tlusty played 74 games with Toronto over parts of three seasons (2007-08 to 2009-10), registering 20 points (10 goals, 10 assists) with 14 penalty minutes.

~ Carolina defenceman Jay Harrison played 20 games with Toronto over parts of three seasons (2005-06 to 2006-07, 2008-09), registering two assists with 18 penalty minutes.

 

Upcoming Milestones:

• Jake Gardiner needs six games for 100 NHL games played
• David Clarkson needs three goals for 100 NHL goals
• Phil Kessel needs 13 goals for 200 NHL goals  ; needs 13 points for 400 NHL points
• Jay McClement needs six points for 200 NHL points
• Paul Ranger needs eight points for 100 NHL points

 

Record By Days Of The Week:

2013-14 Season:                                                              2012-13 Season:

• Sunday: 0-0-0                                                                Sunday: 0-0-0
• Monday: 0-0-0                                                              Monday: 6-2-1
• Tuesday: 2-1-0                                                              Tuesday: 3-3-0
• Wednesday: 1-0-0                                                       Wednesday: 3-2-1
• Thursday: 1-0-0                                                            Thursday: 6-6-1
• Friday: 0-0-0                                                                   Friday: 0-0-0
• Saturday: 2-0-0                                                             Saturday: 8-3-2

 

—–*—–

Carolina’s Notes:

Last Game: Chicago 3, Carolina 2 (SO) – October 15, 2013 * PNC Arena * Raleigh, NC – Carolina Goals: Alexander Semin, Ron Hainsey / Chicago Goals: Patrick Sharp, Marian Hossa / Carolina Goaltender: Cam Ward (Loss) –64:51, 34 saves, 36 shots faced / Chicago Goaltender: Corey Crawford (Win) –64:41, 32 saves, 34 shots faced / Carolina D Ron Hainsey scored his first Hurricanes goal and first since March 12, 2011. / Carolina F Tuomo Ruutu recorded his first point of the season. / Carolina G Cam Ward has stopped 30 or more shots in each of his four starts this season/ Chicago F Patrick Sharp scored the only goal in the shootout. / Chicago D Niklas Hjalmarsson blocked seven shots.

 

Injury Report:

• Anton Khudobin, – lower body – missed one game
• Elias Lindholm – upper body – missed two games
• Tim Gleason – injured reserve – concussion – missed seven games
• Joni Pitkanen – out for season – heel – missed seven games

 

Recent Transactions:

• October 14 – Recalled Justin Peters from Charlotte

 

Streaks:

• Goal: None
• Assists: None
• Points: Eric Staal (1-1-2 / 2 Games)

 

Team Notes:

~ Cam Ward is the only goalie in the NHL with 30 or more saves in each of his first four starts this season. Entering tonight’s game, he’s ranked fifth in the Eastern Conference with 146 saves.

~ Jeff Skinner leads the team in assists (5) and points (7) this season and was tied for seventh among Eastern Conference forwards in assists through games of October 16. He also leads the team with a (+5) rating, and has recorded an (even) or better rating in every game this season.

 

Vs Toronto:

~ Carolina leads all-time, 55-35-13-1 (104), including 28-17-6-1 (52) at home and 27-18-7 (52) in Toronto.

~ The Hurricanes have not lost a season series to the Maple Leafs since the 2006-07 campaign.

~ The Hurricanes have won 16 of the last 23 meetings between the clubs, including five in overtime/shootout, going 16-6-1 during the stretch.

~ Carolina has gone 11-5-2 over the last nine seasons at Air Canada Centre.

~ The Hurricanes have scored four or more goals in 10 out of the last 19 games against Toronto. Carolina is 9-1-0 in those games.

 

CAR career point-per-game players vs. TOR:

• Eric Staal –36 points (16g, 20a) in 33 games
• Alexander Semin –23 points (9g, 14a) in 21 games
• Jeff Skinner –nine points (3g, 6a) in nine games.
• Cam Ward is 13-8-2 with a 2.78 GAA and two shutouts in 23 career games against Toronto.
• Justin Peters is 1-1-0 with a 2.52 GAA in two appearances against the Maple Leafs.

Upcoming Milestones:

• Ron Hainsey  – two games shy of 600 NHL games played
• Eric Staal – three games shy of 700 NHL/Hurricanes games played
• Andrej Sekera – five points shy of 100 NHL points
• Tim Gleason –  one game shy of 600 NHL games played and one point shy of 100 Hurricanes points

Pregame: Minnesota Wild @ Toronto Maple Leafs – October 15, 2013

Toronto’s Notes: 

~ Last Game: OCTOBER 12 – TORONTO 6 vs. EDMONTON 5 (OT) – James van Riemsdyk and Joffrey Lupul each had two goals, and Dave Bolland scored in overtime to lift the Toronto Maple Leafs to a 6-5 win over the Edmonton Oilers at Air Canada Centre. Nazem Kadri also scored, Dion Phaneuf, Cody Franson and Mason Raymond each collected two assists, and Jonathan Bernier made 26 saves in the win. Ryan Smyth tallied twice for the Oilers while Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Boyd Gordon and Jordan Eberle each added a goal. Devan Dubnyk surrendered six goals on 26 shots in the loss for Edmonton. TOR PP: 1-3 / EDM PP: 1-4 / Shots: 26-31 

• Additional Notes: 

  • Dave Bolland’s goal at the 2:09 mark in overtime  was the second overtime goal of Bolland’s NHL career and his first for the Leafs, but it wasn’t his first OT goal in Toronto. Bolland scored his only other NHL overtime goal while playing for the Blackhawks in a game against the Leafs in Toronto on Nov. 22, 2008

  • Toronto overcame four one-goal leads, the Leafs haven’t had four score-tying goals in one game since Oct. 25, 1989 in an 8-6 win over the Penguins. It was the first time that the Leafs won a game in overtime after scoring a tying goal in the final minute of the third period since their 6-5 victory at Buffalo on March 15, 2004. In that game, Gary Roberts tied the score with 38 seconds remaining in the third period and Tomas Kaberle tallied the overtime winner. 

 

~ Injury Report:

• Mark Fraser – Knee – Expected to miss approx 4 weeks. Injury occured on October 2, 2013 at PHI – Games Missed: 4
• Nikolai Kulemin – Ankle – Expected to miss at least 2 weeks. Injury occured during practice on October 4 – Games Missed: 4
• Frazer McLaren – Broken Finger – Injury occured during practice at training camp on September 13, 2013 – Games Missed: 6

* James van Riemsdyk’s status for tonight is unclear. He didn’t par-take in practice yesterday (October 14th) as he was given a “maintenance day”. This morning during practice, he arrived late and left early. It is unknown at this time what the nature of the injury is, or if there even is one. 

 

~ Recent Transactions: 

• October 11 – Assigned T.J. Brennan to the Marlies. 
• October 15 – Recalled Trevor Smith from the Marlies.
  • * Leafs have also brought in long time Predators Center –  Jerred Smithson on a AHL tryout for the Marlies. 

 

~ Streaks:  

• Goals: Joffrey Lupul ( 5 / 4 games)  // James van Riemsdyk (3 / 2 Games) 
• Assists: Phil Kessel (3 / 2 Games) // Jake Gardiner (2 / 2 Games) // Nazem Kadri (2 / 2 Games) 
• Points: Joffrey Lupul (5-3-8 / 5 Games) // James van Riemsdyk (3-1-4 / 2 Games) // Phil Kessel (1-3-4 / 2 Games) // Nazem Kadri (1-2-3 / 2 Games) // Tyler Bozak (1-1-2 / 2 Games) // Jake Gardiner (0-2-2 / 2 Games) 

* Dating back to last season, Joffrey Lupul has scored 16 goals in the past 19 regular season games

 

~ Notes vs Minnesota:  

• 2012-13 Series: DNP 
• All-Time Record: 7-3-0-0 (5-1-0-0 at Toronto) 
• Last Game: January 19, 2012 at Toronto (Maple Leafs 4, Wild 1) 
• Next Game: November 13, 2013 at Minnesota 
• Current Streaks: Toronto (two wins)

~ Dion Phaneuf leads all Toronto players in career games played (33), goals (7), assists (9), points (16) and penalty minutes (38) against Minnesota.

~ Dave Bolland has 10 points (5-5=10) in 16 games. 

~ Jonathan Bernier has posted a 3-1-2 record with three shutouts and a 1.14 goals against average in six career games against Minnesota.

 

~ James Reimer stopped all 29 shots faced in his only start against the Wild (3/22/11). 

~ Minnesota General Manager Chuck Fletcher is the son of Maple Leafs’ Senior Advisor Cliff Fletcher.

 

~ Upcoming Milestones: 

• Jake Gardiner needs seven games for 100 NHL games played 
• David Clarkson needs three goals for 100 NHL goals (currently suspended) 
• Phil Kessel needs 13 goals for 200 NHL goals ; needs one assist for 200 NHL assists ; needs 14 points for 400 NHL point
• Dave Bolland needs one assist for 100 NHL assists 
• Jay McClement needs six points for 200 NHL points 
• Paul Ranger needs eight points for 100 NHL points

 

~ Record By Days Of The Week:

2013-14 Season:                                                              2012-13 Season:

• Sunday: 0-0-0                                                                Sunday: 0-0-0
• Monday: 0-0-0                                                              Monday: 6-2-1
• Tuesday: 1-1-0                                                              Tuesday: 3-3-0
• Wednesday: 1-0-0                                                       Wednesday: 3-2-1
• Thursday: 1-0-0                                                            Thursday: 6-6-1
• Friday: 0-0-0                                                                   Friday: 0-0-0
• Saturday: 2-0-0                                                             Saturday: 8-3-2

—–*—– 

Minnesota’s Notes: 

~ Last Game: Wild 2 at Sabres 1: Jason Pominville scored against his 30th NHL franchise, netting the game-winning goal as the former Sabres captain returned to Buffalo Monday night. Kyle Brodziak earned his first goal of the season, while Josh Harding made 22 saves to earn his third win in as many starts 

 

~ Injury: 

• Niklas Backstrom –3 games (knee strain)
• Charlie Coyle (IR) –4 games (knee strain)
• Mike Rupp (IR) –6 games (lower body)  

 

~ Recent Transactions: 

• October 14 – Recalled Darcy Kuemper from Iowa (AHL) 

 

~ Streaks: 

• Goals: None 
• Assists: Matt Cooke (3 / 3 Games) // Jared Spurgeon (3 / 2 Games) // Mikko Koivu (2 / 2 Games) // Jonas Brodin (2 / 2 Games) 
• Points: Matt Cooke (2-3-5 / 3 Games) // Jonas Brodin (1-2-3 / 3 Games) // Jared Spurgeon (0-3-3 / 2 Games) // Mikko Koivu (0-2-2 / 2 Games)

 

~ Wild vs Leafs: 

• All-Time Record: (3-7-0 overall, 1-5-0 in Toronto)
• 2012-13: Did not play.
• 2011-12: The Leafs topped the Wild 4-1 at Air Canada Centre in their last meeting (1/19/12). Joffrey Lupul registered three assists for Toronto. Joey Crabb, Mikhail Grabovski, Nazem Kadri and Phil Kessel scored and Jonas Gustavssonstopped 20 shots. Nick Johnson scored for Minnesota and Niklas Backstrom made 29 saves.

~ Dany Heatley has 51 points (27-24=51) in 40 games against the Maple Leafs, tied for his most points vs any team.

~ Jason Pominville had four points (3-1=4) in four games against the Maple Leafs last season and owns 48 points (18-30=48) in 50 contests, his highest total against any team.

~ Zach Parise has 17 points (10-7=17) in 24 contests. 

~ Backstrom is 2-2-0 with a 2.50 GAA and a .915 SV% in four starts vs. Toronto // josh Harding and Darcy Kuemper have not faced the Maple Leafs. 

~ Darby Hendrickson was selected by Toronto in the 1990 NHL Entry Draft and skated in 233 games with the Maple Leafs (1994-99).

~ Phil Kessel played one season for the University of Minnesota (2005-06).

~ Jake Gardiner is from Minnetonka. 

~ the Wild has scored less than two goals in six of its seven all-time losses to the Maple Leafs. In its three wins,
Minnesota has outscored Toronto 16-6. Three of Bernier’s seven career shutouts have come against the Wild. 

 

Additional Notes:  

~ Matt Cooke has five points (2-3=5) and two GWG in his last three games. He leads Minnesota in points (3-3=6), multi-point games (2), plus/minus rating (+5) and has yet to take a penalty 

~ Justin Fontaine and Mathew Dumba became the fourth Wild duo to score their first career NHL goals in the same game Saturday. Fontaine not only set a franchise record for fastest Wild goal to start a game (:12), he also matched the NHL’s record for fastest first career goal (Rick Boh, North Stars,1988) 

~ Mikko Koivu leads Minnesota with four assists this season, including a power-play assist last Tuesday to notch his 400th career NHL point (119-281-400). He also became the Wild’s all-time leader in power-play points Oct. 5. He needs 36 points to become Minnesota’s all-time leading scorer (Gaborik, 219-218=437). His 119 career goals are tied with Andrew Brunette for second on the Wild’s all-time list (Gaborik, 219) 

Pregame: Ottawa Senators @ Toronto Maple Leafs – October 5, 2013

Toronto’s Notes:

Last Game – October 2 / TORONTO 3 at PHILADELPHIA 1 – Dave Bolland scored twice, including his first goal as a Maple Leaf, and Jonathan Bernier made 31 saves and stopped Wayne Simmonds on a penalty shot in the second period in Toronto’s 3-1 win over the Philadelphia Flyers at Wells Fargo Center. Phil Kessel also scored for the Leafs and Joffrey Lupul added two assists in the win. Brayden Schenn had the Flyers lone tally, while Steve Mason allowed three goals on 25 shots in the loss. TOR PP: 1-2 / PHI PP: 1-7 / Shots: 25-32

Injury Report – Frazer McLaren – Broken finger – Injury occurred on September 13 during practice at training camp – Current stats – IR   //  Mark Frazer – Knee – Injury occurred on October 2 @ Philadelphia, he is expected to miss approx 4 weeks of action – Current status: IR  // Nikolai Kulemin –  Fractured Ankle – Injury occurred October 4 during practice when he blocked a shot, he is expected to miss approx 2 weeks. Kulemin could have played on the ankle for about a month, but faced the potential of injuring more severely in the process.

Recent Transactions –  October 4: Recalled Jamie Devane from the Toronto Marlies  // October 5: Recalled Spencer Abbott from the Toronto Marlies. Note: Leafs have the cap space to accommodate both Devane and Abbott under Fraser’s LTIR, which allowed for this call up. Devane $575k (his base salary) plus Abbott at $650k = $1.225m. Fraser’s hit $1.275m.

Team Notes – Toronto vs Ottawa, head-to-head:

• 2012-13 Series: 4-1-0 (2-0-0 at Toronto)
• All-Time Record: 43-41-3-8 (23-18-2-5 at Toronto)
• Last Game: April 20, 2013 at Ottawa ( Leafs 4. Senators 1)
• Next Game: December 7, 2013 at Ottawa
• Current Streaks: Toronto – 3 wins

Additional Notes:

• Phil Kessel, who leads all Toronto players in career games played (42), goals (21), assists (18) and points (39) against Ottawa, has registered more career goals and points against Ottawa than any other NHL club
• Nazem Kadri, who led all Toronto players in goals (5) and points (7) in five games against Ottawa last season, has registered more career goals (6) and points (tie-8) against Ottawa than against any other NHL club
• James Reimer has a career record of 8-1-1 with a 1.69 goals against average and three shutouts in 10 games against Ottawa
• Tyler Bozak has registered more career goals (8), assists (8) and points (16) against Ottawa than against any other NHL club
• Cody Franson has registered more career assists tie-6) and points (8) against Ottawa than against any other NHL club
• Colton Orr has registered more career penalty minutes (123) against Ottawa than against any other NHL club

Leafs in home openers- Tonight marks the 96th home opener in franchise history for the Toronto Maple Leafs. All-time, Toronto has posted a record of 44-33-15-3 in home openers. The Maple Leafs have played the Ottawa Senators in five openers, posting a 0-3-0-2 record in those games. Note: The Toronto Arenas defeated the former Ottawa Senators 11-4 in the first home game in Toronto’s franchise history on December 22, 1917 at Arena Gardens – later known as Mutual Street Arena.

Additional Notes: 

• The Maple Leafs, who won 4-3 at Montreal in their season opener on Tuesday, made it two road wins in two days when they posted a 3-1 victory in Philadelphia on Wednesday. It’s the first time in franchise history that Toronto has started a season with two straight road games and won both games. However, the Leafs  have only began a season with consecutive road games seven other times and not since the lockout-delayed and shortened 1994-95 season.
• Jonathan Bernier made his Maple Leafs debut on October 2 at Philadelphia, stopping 31-of-32 shots and turning aside a penalty shot (Wayne Simmonds) in Toronto’s win. Bernier became the first goaltender in Maple Leafs history to face a penalty shot in his debut with the club. Note: Dave Bolland, Mason Raymond and Paul Ranger made their Maple Leafs debut on October 1 at Montreal. To date, 895 players (806 skaters, 89 goaltenders) have played at least one game for the Maple Leafs – David Clarkson and Morgan Rielly are the remaining players named to the team’s opening roster for the 2013-14 season that have yet to make their debut in the blue and white. (( Side Note: Morgan Rielly, has been told he will be playing in tonight’s game and will be paired with Cody Franson. His parents are making the flight from Vancouver to be in attendance for his debut.

Upcoming Milestones:

• Jake Gardiner needs 11 games for 100 NHL games played
• David Clarkson needs 3 goals for 100 NHL goals
• Phil Kessel needs 14 goals for 200 NHL goals and 5 assists for 200 NHL assists
• Dave Bolland needs 2 assists for 100 NHL assists
• Mason Raymond needs 2 assists for 100 NHL assists
• Jay McClement needs 6 points for 200 NHL points
• Paul Ranger needs 8 points for 100 NHL points

2013-14 Record by days of the week:                                                       2012-13 Record by days of the week:

• Sunday: 0-0-0                                                                                     Sunday: 0-0-0
• Monday: 0-0-0                                                                                    Monday: 6-2-1
• Tuesday: 1-0-0                                                                                    Tuesday: 3-3-0
• Wednesday: 1-0-0                                                                              Wednesday: 3-2-1
• Thursday: 0-0-0                                                                                  Thursday: 6-6-1
• Friday: 0-0-0                                                                                        Friday: 0-0-0
• Saturday: 0-0-0                                                                                   Saturday: 8-3-2

Additional Links:

• 3 Star selection winners
• Report: Back-to-back games
• Report: Record when scoring first
• Report: Record when being outshot vs outshooting
• Report: Record when captain scores
• Report: Record in 1,2,3 or more goals
• Report: Plus-Minus
• Report: Even Strength – Power Play – Shorthanded
• Report: Record when leading, trailing or tied
• Injury Report

—– * —–

Ottawa’s Notes:

Last Game – October 4 – 1-0 win at Buffalo: Anderson made 35 saves to register his 23rd career shutout, moving into a tie for fourth (Elliott) among all-time Senators with his ninth whitewash for the club, in a 1-0 Ottawa win over Buffalo at First Niagara Center. Karlsson’s 12th career game-winning goal 18:25 into the third period proved the difference as the Senators defeated the Sabres in a season-opening contest for the first time in three attempts. MacArthur notched his first point in his first game in an Ottawa uniform with an assist on Karlsson’s goal in a game that was played before a sold-out crowd of 19,070. Miller made 45 saves in taking the loss in goal for the home side. Scratches: Corvo, Kassian; Injuries: None; Shots: OTT – 46, BUF – 35; PP: OTT 0-3, BUF 0-4

Injury Report –  None

Opening game record – Friday’s contest in Buffalo represented the 21st season-opening game for the Senators. Ottawa has a record of 8-2-4 in 14 season-opening games played on the road following the team’s 1-0 win at First Niagara Center. The senators have outscored the opponents 65-56 through 21 season-opening games

Ottawa vs Toronto:

• Overall Series: 49-38-3-5, Home: 25-16-1-4, Road: 23-22-2-1
• Last OT Result: February 28, 2009 – 4-3 OT loss @ Ottawa
• Last Shootout: February 19, 2011 – 1-0 SO Win @ Toronto

Additional Notes:

• Phillips has the most career games played against Toronto (76)
• Spezza leads all players in goals (15), assists (37) and points (52)
• Neil has the most penalty minutes (273)

Heritage Jersey – The senators are scheduled to wear the heritage jersey 13 times this season. The team holds a record of 76-44-7-16 when wearing the alternate jersey and a record of 14-6-2-1 when wearing a red alternate and a 62-38-5-15 when wearing a black alternate

Franchise Record – Ottawa has posted an all-time record of 705-668-115-89 over 1577 games. They’re 383-297-60-48 through 788 all-time home games and 322-371-55-41 through 789 all-time road games

Upcoming Milestones:

• Cowen – 10 games from 100 career
• MacArthur – 7 goals from 100 career
• Neil – 6 goals from 100 career
• Ryan – 11 points from 300 career
• Spezza – 7 assists from 400 career