SB Nation - Toronto Maple Leafs

It's Friday, I'm Tired

blurr1974 — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 10:00:21 -0000

More photos » by Charles Krupa - AP

This is all you need to know about last night. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)

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Sure Brendan Witt gets all the press, but Down Goes Brown wants you to know that hockey players get hit by moving vehicles all the time.
You know what Friday needs? More commercials.
Shhh. Jared's sleeping .
Yes, the Leafs lost, but there were still some positives in the game. MLHS spotlights a few players from last night who were playing better than the final score would indicate.
Leafs - Knock Knock. 5 other teams - Who's there? Leafs - Ketchup. 5 other teams - Ketchup who?? Leafs - Ketchup with ya soon!
TML Fan Fury picks a Leaf for every decade and calls them "the Greatest." Can you do better?
The Leafs need a proper power forward. Do they have one in Jimmy Hayes?

As always, add any you've missed in the comments. And lurkers, quit lurking. Sign in and get commenting!

Bruins down Leafs 5-2

Stanley Cup of Chowder — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 03:07:30 -0000

More photos » by Charles Krupa - AP

Boston Bruins' David Krejci pokes the puck past Toronto Maple Leafs goalie Vesa Toskala for a goal during the second period of their NHL hockey game in Boston, Thursday, Dec. 10, 2009. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)

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The Bruins were able to shutdown Phil Kessel and beat the Toronto Maple Leafs on home ice for the second time in the last 6 nights. For the second straight game against his former team, Phil Kessel was a complete non-factor. In 18:29 of ice time, Kessel recorded 2 shots on goal and 17,565 boos.

Mark Stuart's second goal of the season at 8:01 of the first period staked the Bruins to a 1-0 lead. Patrice Bergeron won the draw at the left wing circle to Marco Sturm. Sturm directed the puck back to Johnny Boychuck, who slid the puck to his defense partner Stuart out near the blue line in the (extremely) high slot. Stuart fired a slapper that beat Vesa Toskala five hole for his first goal since October 17th.

Derek Morris' power play goal with Ian White off for holding gave the B's a 2-0 lead 35 seconds into the second period. Morris' drive from the right point found it's way through several bodies in front of the net and past Toskala for the 2-goal lead.

After scoring the early goal, Mark Stuart looked like he really wanted the Gordie Howe Hat Trick tonight. He and Jamal Mayers dropped the gloves at 2:07 of the second period and were each given two minutes for roughing after a brief dust up. Not satisfied with their short scrap, both men exited the box and dropped the gloves again. This time they made it count, earning the full 5 minutes each.

David Krejci made it 3-0 with 8:50 left in the middle period when we broke in all alone on Toskala and tucked the puck in the net.

Mikhail Grabovski pulled the Leafs to within two 18 seconds into the third period when he found the puck lying in the slot and put it past Tuukka Rask for the Leafs' first goal of the night.

The Leafs struck again to make it 3-2 less than 4 minutes later when Mike Komisarek made a beautiful cross-ice pass from the right point to find Nikolai Kulemin driving to the net along the goal line on the left wing side of the ice.

Mark Recchi sealed the victory for the Bruins (and got a double fist pump from Cam Neely) on the power play with 2:37 remaining in third period. Blake Wheeler sent a pass from the right circle to Recchi at the doorstep for the 4-2 lead.

Recchi padded his stats with an empty-netter in the final minute to account for the 5-2 final score.

Final - 12.10.2009	1	2	3	Total
Toronto Maple Leafs	0	0	2	2
Boston Bruins	1	2	2	5

Complete Coverage >

Notes:

- Tuukka Rask made 32 saves

- The Bruins were completely out-played for much of the third period but were able to survive, thanks in large part to Jason Blake's high-sticking penalty at 15:59 of the period.

- Matt Hunwick skated as a forward in place of Byron Bitz ("under the weather"). Hunwick skated on the left wing tonight alongside Steve Begin and Shawn Thornton on the fourth line. He finished the game a +1 with 2 shots and 2 hits in 10:34 of ice time (all even strength).

- In just 10:58 of ice time tonight, Steve Begin recorded more hits (8) than Phil Kessel did in 70 games last season (6).

- In rare occurrence this year, the Bruins lost the face-off battle tonight 27-22.

- The B's have out-scored the Leafs 12-4 in the last two games.

- The Bruins are back in game action on Saturday night when they face the Islanders in Uniondale, NY.

What Happened?

Chemmy — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 02:32:45 -0000

More photos » by Charles Krupa - AP

about 13 hours ago: Boston Bruins defenseman Johnny Boychuk, left, checks Toronto Maple Leafs center Phil Kessel, who played for the Bruins since 2006, during the first period of their NHL hockey game in Boston, Thursday Dec. 10, 2009. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)

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There are a bunch of pretty simple explanations for why the Leafs got smoked tonight. To start off the Boston Bruins have a more talented group of players than the Leafs do. Tuukka Rask took a shutout into the third but didn't have a lot of work because Boston (especially Zdeno Chara) did an excellent job keeping Toronto to the perimeter of the ice and clogging up the neutral zone.

Toronto's played two games since they last met Boston, Boston stayed at home and rested. They had four days off while Toronto's played a game every other day since leaving Boston and having to come back. That's not going to get better any time soon, the Leafs play a ton of back to backs and play pretty much every other day until the Olympic break. They'll head home to play the Capitals on Saturday before playing Ottawa Monday, Phoenix Wednesday and heading to Buffalo on Friday before going back to the ACC to play Boston again in nine days.

I actually stopped writing this because Grabovski and Kulemin broke through and scored a pair to make it 3-2, but Jason Blake took his third high sticking penalty of the game, this time on Zdeno Chara, to torpedo the Leafs' effort late in the third.

Phil Kessel wasn't hugely effective; chalk it up to a Bruins team that knows not only his tendencies but also seems to be the only team that understands that he doesn't like to be hit and there's no one else on the Leafs worth covering. He hasn't scored in four games now, he needs to snap out of this before it turns into a funk. I have confidence in him, it's been a rough week.

This game was painfully boring to watch as a Leafs fan, but as Archimedies said all night if the Leafs played this style and won none of us would say a word so don't cry about it. If the Leafs were a better team they'd break through the trap and generate chances.If JFJ hadn't traded Rask and two first rounders for fringe NHLers in Toskala (who wasn't the problem tonight but didn't do anything to make me think he's competent either) and Raycroft we wouldn't be adrift praying for wins but here we are.

On the bright side Toronto's 6-3-1 in their last ten though and that's not terrible at all. The busy schedule might work in Toronto's favor if they can rattle off a few quick wins before facing Boston again. The good news is there are four games left to play against the Bruins and three of them are in Toronto. We'll have our revenge eventually.

Larry Jeffrey

1967ers — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 18:00:34 -0000

Heading back into Boston tonight, a little attention to defensive detail amongst the forwards might be a useful thing.

Larry Jeffrey was pretty good at that. It's how he carved out his niche in the NHL. Killing penalties and playing solid defense was also a good way to endear oneself to Leaf coach Punch Imlach, and Jeffrey managed to play a solid role on the 1966-67 Leafs. He'd miss a good chunk of the playoffs, though, thanks to a knee injury. Injuries to his knees would basically define his career.

Joe Pelletier described some of the "therapy" Jeffrey was given:

While playing junior hockey with the Red Wings affiliate in Hamilton, Jeffrey suffered a severe charley horse that prevented him from even bending the joint.

"It just kept causing me problems every year after that. Probably because in those days they didn't have the equipment to look after severe injuries," suggested Jeffrey. "They had a shower and a hose and that was your whirlpool-type thing. You held the hose to cause stimulation to the charley horse."

Later, adhesions developed on his leg. The Wings brought Jeffrey to Detroit to have them primitively broken.

"One doctor got my shoulder and held me, the other got on my leg and just literally grabbed it and bent it with his weight. They gave me a mild sedative. I remember everything about it. When he gave my knee the pressure, it was just like breaking bones. It was very painful. I heard the cracking. I thought they broke my leg rather than the adhesions. I thought it was a rather cruel way of doing it."

Jeffrey would play his entire NHL career wearing knee braces and would have nine different surgeries to try to repair the joint.

Post-1967, Jeffrey played with the Rangers, doing the same basic job he did with the Leafs. The knees would end his career by 1969.

---

Larry Jeffrey knocks down Chico Maki - via www.legendsofhockey.net

Larry's stats:

1957-58	Hamilton Kilty B's	OHA-B
1957-58	Hamilton Tiger Cubs	OHA-Jr.							9	0	0	0	0
1958-59	Hamilton Tiger Cubs	OHA-Jr.	54	21	20	41	149
1959-60	Hamilton Tiger Cubs	OHA-Jr.	46	14	24	38	84
1959-60	Hershey Bears	AHL	5	0	3	3	2
1960-61	Hamilton Red Wings	OHA-Jr.	48	28	32	60	105		12	6	3	9	39
1961-62	Detroit Red Wings	NHL	18	5	3	8	20
1961-62	Edmonton Flyers	WHL	48	20	22	42	80
1962-63	Detroit Red Wings	NHL	53	5	11	16	62		9	3	3	6	8
1962-63	Pittsburgh Hornets	AHL	21	14	7	21	12
1963-64	Detroit Red Wings	NHL	58	10	18	28	87		14	1	6	7	28
1964-65	Detroit Red Wings	NHL	41	4	2	6	48		2	0	0	0	0
1965-66	Toronto Maple Leafs	NHL	20	1	1	2	22
1965-66	Rochester Americans	AHL	51	10	20	30	36		12	6	5	11	4
1966-67	Toronto Maple Leafs	NHL	56	11	17	28	27		6	0	1	1	4
1967-68	New York Rangers	NHL	47	2	4	6	15	-13	3	0	0	0	0
1968-69	New York Rangers	NHL	75	1	6	7	12	0	4	0	0	0	2
1969-70	Detroit Red Wings	NHLMGNT
	Leaf Totals		76	12	18	30	47		6	0	1	1	4
	NHL Totals		368	39	62	101	293		38	4	10	14	42

- Traded to Toronto by Detroit with Marcel Pronovost, Eddie Joyal, Aut Erickson and Lowell MacDonald for Andy Bathgate, Billy Harris and Gary Jarrett, May 20, 1965.
- Claimed by Pittsburgh from Toronto in Expansion Draft, June 6, 1967.
- Traded to NY Rangers by Pittsburgh for George Konik, Paul Andrea, Dunc McCallum and Frank Francis, June 6, 1967.
- Traded to Detroit by NY Rangers for Sandy Snow and Terry Sawchuk, June 17, 1969.
- Suffered career-ending leg injury in automobile accident, October 5, 1969.

the HHOF take on Larry:

"Larry Jeffrey was a solid two-way left winger who played nearly 400 NHL games despite chronic knee woes. His ability to soldier on was remarkable considering the relatively primitive sports injury treatments that were available forty years ago.

The native of Goderich, Ontario played three seasons with the OHA's Hamilton Red Wings. It was in junior that he suffered a severe charley horse that prevented him from bending his leg properly. He kept playing and ended up putting tremendous strain on his knee ligaments and joints in the ensuing years.

In 1961-62, he debuted with the Detroit Red Wings and looked fairly solid with eight points in 18 matches. He spent the bulk of the season with the WHL's Edmonton Flyers where he averaged nearly a point per game. He played 53 and 58 games for Detroit over the next two seasons. The highlight of his career in Motown was scoring seven points when the team reached the final in 1964.

Jeffrey was sent to Toronto in May 1965 in the same deal that involved Marcel Pronovost and Andy Bathgate. In 1966-67, he played 56 games for Toronto in the regular season then played six in the playoffs before getting hurt. The Maple Leafs won the Stanley Cup that year and, fittingly, Jeffrey was on crutches for the team picture when they were presented their prize.

By the start of the 1967-68 season, Jeffrey was with the New York Rangers. Over the next two years he played his last 122 NHL games. He retired after suffering another injury at the training camp of the AHL's Cleveland Barons in 1970."

via img684.imageshack.us

Leafs at Bruins: Rivalry? Sorry, no.

Chemmy — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 16:00:23 -0000

More photos » by CHRIS YOUNG - AP

3 days ago: Toronto Maple Leafs' Alexei Ponikarovsky, center left, celebrates scoring a goal against Atlanta Thrashers with teammates, from left, Matt Strajan Tomas Kaberle and Phil Kessel during period of an NHL hockey game in Toronto on Monday, Dec. 7, 2009. (AP Photo/The Canadian Press,Chris Young)

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Puck Drop: 7PM Leafs TV

I got an email yesterday from a Bruins blogger asking if I'd contribute my thoughts on the Bruins - Leafs rivalry. My thoughts basically boil down to: what rivalry?

Are we supposed to be rivals because of the Phil Kessel deal? According to the Boston media Kessel is a player who didn't fit the Bruins system. He's lazy, he only scores with Marc Savard around, he fades down the stretch, he doesn't play physically or back check.

Boston didn't want him anymore. They could have actually negotiated with Milan Lucic instead of handing him a blank check and kept Kessel, Savard, David Krejci and Lucic. Boston didn't do that, so they moved him. As far as moving him goes Kessel didn't get offer sheeted, he got traded. Boston gets two firsts for a player they claim to not want, and we're pretty happy to have Kessel. Where's the drama? Where's the beef?

The obvious answer is that despite their assertions Bruins fans wanted Kessel. They're mad that he spurned their city and they're also rooting against Toronto for the pragmatic reason of hoping those two first rounders are really good picks which makes sense.

That doesn't make a rivalry though. Think about our division: Toronto, Buffalo, Montreal, Ottawa, Boston. I'm pretty sure no one here would root for Buffalo, Montreal or Ottawa under any circumstances. Boston? Eh, we don't like them because they're in our division but I'd rather see them win than Montreal.

Rivalries are built in the playoffs. The Battle of Ontario made us change our stance on the Senators from "dimwitted cousin" to "ancient enemy". We all hate Philly because of 2004 and Detroit because of our battles in the Norris division. Boston doesn't register.

Tonight the Leafs head back into Boston to avenge their piss poor outing on Saturday night. With a 7-2-1 record over their past ten the sky won't fall if the Leafs lose to a team picked to win the East handily but like any night we'd like to see Toronto win. That still doesn't make this a rivalry. Maybe three years from now Boston and Toronto will meet in the postseason, but until then it's just not happening on our end.

Which Thrashers Are Playing Well at Even Strength?

The Falconer — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 12:00:16 -0000

More photos » by Lynne Sladky - AP

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The Thrashers have excelled at Even Strength so far this season. After the goaltenders, the biggest reason for improvement in ES situations are the two players acquired mid-summer. Nik Antropov has been the Thrashers best forward at ES and Pavel Kubina has been the best defenseman at ES. I've been critical of Don Waddell's free agent acquisitions in past summers but he hit a home run with these two guys. They were precisely what the team needed and as a consequence the Thrashers are much improved.

Forwards

The coaching staff might not like to use terms like "first line" or "third line" but the ES Time On Ice (TOI) paint a rather clear picture. The Russian speaking line of Kovalchuk-Antropov-Afinogenov is clearly #1 in ice time. The next two lines are pretty even Kozlov-White-Little and Kane-Peverley-Armstrong. The 4th line (Boulton-Slater-Thorburn) with Marty Reasoner going back and forth between the 3rd and 4th lines.

Who is facing the toughest opposition? According the Gabe Desjardin's Quality of Competition measure (opponent's Relative Goal Differential at Even Strength) Todd White, Bryan Little Slava Kozlov and Ilya Kovalchuk face the best players, while Boulton, Slater and Thorburn are sheltered.

Who is most effective? At even strength the name of the game is winning on the scoreboard. I have ranked all the players below according to their Goal Differential (GFA-GAA) per 60 minutes of ES TOI. Antropov is your clear leader. Why have the Thrashers gotten so much better this season? Well look at that list of players and you can see that 4 of the 5 most effective ES players were not on this roster one year ago today. Peverley was added in last January an Antropov via Free Agency, Kane at the NHL Draft and Afinogenov was a late NHL Camp tryout. Every single one of those moves has worked out very well!

Another measure to compare players is Desjardins' "Rating" column which compares each players net Goal Differential when that player is on the ice to when that player is off the ice. For example, Ilya Kovalchuk averages a +.59 Goal Differential when he is on the ice, but his Rating is just .01 which means that the Atlanta Thrashers post a+.58 when Kovalchuk is off the ice at ES. On the other hand, the Thrashers do much better when Nik Antropov is on the ice than when he is off it. In fact, when Antropov is off the ice the Thrashers have been out-scored at ES this season--he is only forward for whom that is true.

NAME	GP	TOI/60	QUALCOMP	GF	GA	GFA	GAA	G Diff	RATING
NIK ANTROPOV	26	14.6	0.00	29	16	4.59	2.53	2.06	2.28
MARTY REASONER	26	9.2	0.00	14	7	3.52	1.76	1.76	1.57
EVANDER KANE	26	12.1	0.00	20	13	3.81	2.48	1.33	1.13
RICH PEVERLEY	26	12.9	-0.03	20	14	3.57	2.50	1.07	0.79
MAXIM AFINOGENOV	26	14.4	0.01	24	18	3.85	2.89	0.96	0.67
BRYAN LITTLE	24	12.6	0.09	16	12	3.17	2.38	0.79	0.64
ILYA KOVALCHUK	20	15.1	0.07	17	14	3.37	2.77	0.59	0.01
COLBY ARMSTRONG	25	11.6	-0.02	12	12	2.48	2.48	0.00	-0.49
VYACHESLAV KOZLOV	26	11.8	0.07	12	14	2.34	2.73	-0.39	-1.21
ERIC BOULTON	24	6.2	-0.09	4	6	1.62	2.43	-0.81	-1.31
CHRIS THORBURN	26	6.7	-0.06	4	6	1.38	2.07	-0.69	-1.40
TODD WHITE	26	12.0	0.13	10	15	1.93	2.89	-0.96	-1.99
JIM SLATER	11	8.4	-0.07	1	5	0.65	3.26	-2.61	-4.94

On defense Pavel Kubina has played like an All-Star minus big gaudy point totals.The Toronto Maple Leafs dumped Kubina's salary so they could sign Mike Komisarek, but I suspect that Kubina is having a better season than Komisarek is. When Kubina is on the ice in Even Skater situations the Thrashers have outscored the opposition by an astonishing 29-11 margin. Wow! When Pavel Kubina is off the ice at Even Strength the Thrashers have been outscored this season--Kubina is the only defenseman for which that statement is true. According to Desjardins Quality of Competition rating, Kubina is also facing the toughest opponents every night (with Ron Hainsey right behind him). Kubina makes some big coin ($5 million) and if he departs as a UFA this summer he will leave a giant hole.

Despite putting up some big goal totals this season Zach Bogosian has been exploited at times during even strength play. His 3.25 GAA is not very good. All three of the 3rd pairing defensemen appear to drag down the team's offense when they are on the ice (compare at their GFA to the top four guys).

NAME	GP	TOI/60	QUALCOMP	GF	GA	GFA	GAA	G Diff	RATING
PAVEL KUBINA	25	16.8	0.08	29	11	4.14	1.57	2.57	3.15
TOBIAS ENSTROM	26	16.3	0.02	26	17	3.69	2.41	1.28	1.20
ANSSI SALMELA	15	13.0	-0.04	7	6	2.15	1.85	0.31	-0.17
RON HAINSEY	24	15.6	0.07	19	18	3.04	2.88	0.16	-0.34
CHRISTOPH SCHUBERT	24	13.5	-0.04	11	13	2.04	2.41	-0.37	-1.14
ZACH BOGOSIAN	26	17.8	0.04	21	25	2.73	3.25	-0.52	-1.67
MARK POPOVIC	16	11.7	-0.09	7	10	2.25	3.22	-0.96	-2.31

Conclusion

The Thrashers are playing better because they are better. The new players that were added this summer (Kubina, Antropov, Afinogenov, Kane) all rank near the top at their respective positions.

Leafs Win, Isles Lose and My Dad is Taller Than Yours

blurr1974 — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 09:29:56 -0000

Oh, he's serious.

Well that was fun, and sticks with what appears to be the Leafs recent penchant for lose one, win two. That means tonight's game against Boston should be a...oh. Crap. Maybe we should give this guy's dad a call and put him in the line up. Seriously, he's like...well, you can read it, can't you?

There's not much else that puts me in a better mood than when the Leafs win. Mainly because the Barilkosphere buzzes to life and fantastic posts of hope and possibilities flow through the intertubes and into my laptop. I still contend that the best part about being a Leafs fan is the fans. We can disagree on a multitude of issues, including ones pertinent to the Leafs. However, when the team wins, well it's just icing on the cake...

Our very own WAC knows a thing or two about starting and ending your day right. Take two looks at each of these before you eat, and two more before you got bed. You'll feel better for it. I promise.
Shocking I know, but even eyebleaf can get down. More shocking is how Jason Blake and Vesa Toskala can cheer him up. Since he's feeling positive, you know he's only thinking one thing. No not, that you pervert. Well, ok, probably that as well, but in addition to PLAYOFFS!!!1
The general has been watching the Leafs slowly crawl their way back to respectability. In the process, he's noticed a few players stepping up and making an impact. Also, he's been conspicuously absent lately so maybe you should go over to his blog and ask what's up with that...?
Hungry Leafs Fan is having two times the funn at Leafs games. Especially since they finally won one with him in attendance.
The Battle of Ontario's Five-O puts together two statements that in previous days would have seemed incongruent.
Leafs Fan Forever likes surprises.
Newcomer to MLHS, Derek Harmsworth shines an ever widening spotlight on the better players for the Leafs last night.
TSM finds it interesting that the MSM seems to think Burke will resign all the team's pending UFAs and RFAs thanks to the recent improvement in play. It's curious because Burke didn't jump the gun when things were down. Why would he do that now?
Norman James has Nazem Kadri coming to his radio program "Da Hook" on Friday night. I thought we might want to mark that in our calendars...
Terry Sawchuk is not just a footnote in Martin Brodeur's assault on the record books, he's an icon in his own right. SBN's own Copper & Blue introduces you to "Uke."
As I've recently discovered, Pennsylvanians are a rough and tumble bunch. MYFO has the proof, on video.

UPDATES

Jared recaps the win. Click. Click. BOOM.
The Other Vatican shows how when Phil Kessel was benched by Boston in the playoffs, he responded well when finally getting the chance to play. So, how will he respond to the Bruins tonight?
How can Mikhail Grabovski have continued success at the NHL level? Vintage Leaf Memories thinks it knows the answer.
And one more for good measure. Yours truly was contacted by NESN to talk about tonight's upcoming match against the Bruins. Can you spot the diss?

*This post was published live at 1:30 AM Pacific. I can't sleep, but I'll make another attempt soonnzndfzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

Maple Leafs 3, Islanders 2: Tavares-led comeback erased by...Blake!

Dominik — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 05:01:12 -0000

More photos » by Frank Gunn - AP

Happier times.

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The first period looked like a repeat of the Roloson Miracle game, except with Dwayne not in the mood to play God again. (He was good, he just wasn't 58-save good.)

The second period was a wash -- the Islanders entered and exited down 2-0, with each team thinking it had reason for a better return.

But the third period, aided by a period-opening powerplay: Now that was a different story. The John Tavares Machine was fully operational, working from JT's office to the side of the crease, and the Islanders comeback was in effect. Tied up with five minutes to go, we just might steal another point or two in Toronto.

Then Jason Blake scored and fist-pumped and that was that.

Game Sum. | Event Sum. | Recaps: nhl.com | Isles official

Final - 12.9.2009	1	2	3	Total
New York Islanders	0	0	2	2
Toronto Maple Leafs	2	0	1	3

Complete Coverage >

But man if this game didn't give us some things to think about, in the napkin-sketching, roster-mixing kind of way. Take Tim Jackman out and you lose your de facto enforcer, but you get the chance to add another powerplay piece like Rob Schremp, who did not disappoint in that role ... and who held his own centering the 4th-line in limited minutes (9:30 total, 2:44 on the PP).

Kyle Okposo got the (quite beautiful) first assist on both Tavares goals, but the second assist was legitimately credited to Jeff Tambellini on the first and Schremp on the second. The powerplay actually looked functional.

Meanwhile, Schremp's 9:30 TOI was more than Josh Bailey, who ended up with a paltry 8:15 (just 0:23 on the PP). Bailey was also 0-5 on faceoffs. Hmmm...

We spend so much time (rightly so) fretting about this insufficient blueline. And lord knows Jon Sim and company get their licks for being used above their talent level. (Sim got 9:28, zilch on the PP, by the way.) But we can't forget the search for who on this team can score besides John Tavares and Matt Moulson -- who have accounted for all of the Islanders goals ~~in the last week~~ since Nov. 28 in New Jersey, when Richard Park scored the lone goal in a 6-1 loss. It's worth noting that without the ample powerplay time that Tavares gets, he doesn't have four goals in the last two games, either.

There remain several movable parts who have either not performed (one view) or not gotten the consistent chance to perform (the other view). In that group you'd have to include Bailey, Frans Nielsen, Tambellini, Schremp, Blake Comeau and Sean Bergenheim. With Bergenheim out, it opens up one more slot in the opportunity department.

Safe to say two of those guys (Comeau and Bergenheim) are destined to be non-top-six, two-way wingers with a focus on the defensive side. Two of those guys can probably only stick around if they can score consistently (Tamby, Schremp). And the remaining two are centers, centers with #2 potential, but centers who will need to show more than they have on the offensive side.

I'm not pigeon-holing anyone yet, but it would be fun to get more time with these guys being mixed up and down depending on performance and chemistry. Depending on the length of Bergenheim and Jackman's injuries, maybe that happens -- and maybe the people pining for more Schremp are at least temporarily appeased.

Or maybe somebody gets healthy again and Schremp goes back to the press box.

Either way, this now three-game losing streak is distressing, but it has put me back into the evaluation mode that I fully expected to be in all season. Which is a little different than living and dying with each win and loss to see how long the Isles can stick out this quasi-.500, point-per-game pace.

* * *

Game Thread Thanks

If you saw the game thread, that, friends, is what a Pension Plan Puppets invasion looks like. (If you weren't in there live, the PPP participation was all contained to the 1st intermission/2nd period, except for some stragglers.) Thanks for playing along and being nice hosts; thanks for not shouting at them just because they speak a different form of English. And thanks to our PPP visitors for bringing their unique brand of Leafdom hallucinations; I swear, those Canadian pharmaceuticals are something else.

Since our in-game threads range from quiet to noisy depending on the day and the opponent, it's fun to do accept a visiting high-volume tribe every once in a while to see how these can go at max capacity. Some games you need to get more off your chest in-the-moment, so just know it's always there (and some days you wish your comments would go away ... which is why the threads are a little more disposable). We only had one flare-up -- not bad for a high-volume cross-team visit, so no worries. Generally, I just want people here to welcome visitors, ignore trolls (or in rare cases, stomp them with extreme prejudice before they are banned) and be cool with each other.

On that note, I know I read most sites a lot more than I comment. So if there are things you want or don't want here, just let me know via comment (or via email if you want privacy or insist on remaining a lurker). I can't promise I'll answer every request (That's a nice way of saying your comment goes directly to our Customer Service Department, where it will be considered very important and our people will respond within 6 to 8 weeks).

But if your request fits I'll try, and if I know what people generally prefer (time, type of post, topic, etc.), it will help me know how bad I'm ticking you off when I insist on doing whatever the hell I want anyway. But seriously, for a moment: I just run this place so Islanders fans and hockey fans have a welcoming place to chat hockey, and hopefully I have a good idea every once in a while. That's all.

Let's Go Islanders. Let's Go Second Line.

Bruins and Maple Leafs ready for "Kessel-Mania II"

Stanley Cup of Chowder — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 01:57:50 -0000

More photos » by CHRIS YOUNG - AP

After demanding to be traded by the Leafs after just 18 games with the team, Phil Kessel was traded to a local youth team. Kessel is seen here working out with his new teammates. "I never demanded to be traded, but I am excited about the move. The league doesn't allow checking, so I don't have to worry about getting hurt. I also think that it will give me more ice to work with. Excuse me, Johnny's mom is here to pick us up. Talk to you guys later."

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The Boston media had hyped up Phil Kessel's return to The Hub of Hockey on Saturday night like a pay-per-view event and even dubbed it "Kessel-Mania". It turns out the game wasn't exactly an epic matchup, as it looked more like Tyson-McNeely than "The Rumble in the Jungle". The Bruins completely shutting down #81 en route to an easy 7-2 victory. The Bruins have been off since Saturday night's 7-2 romp. Meanwhile, the Leafs didn't have much time to dwell on the loss as they traveled back to Toronto for 2 games (Thrashers and Islanders). The B's and Leafs will square off Thursday in a re-match of Saturday night's laugher.

Notes:

- Since the Bruins just played the Maple Leafs a few days ago (and because the Leafs played tonight and I don't feel like waiting until that game is over), I am not going to do the usual full preview.

- The Leafs held an outdoor practice on Tuesday.

- Dennis Wideman is questionable for Thursday night's game with an upper body injury.

- Milan Lucic was in New York to promote the Winter Classic.

- I'm think this game will be more competitive than Saturday's game, but you can't rule out the possibility of a game like this:

H/T to Hub Hockey for finding this one

- The game starts at 7:00 and can be seen on NESN and heard on 98.5 The Sports Hub. The Public Skate open thread starts a half hour puck drop.

- Shameless Self-Promotion Alert: If you haven't done so already, vote for Stanley Cup of Chowder in round 2 of The NHL Arena's Bruins Blog-Off.

- For more on the "Truculent Leafs", check out Pension Plan Puppets

Today's Obligatory Embarrassing Leafs Fan YouTube Video

There can only be one SteveDangle and you sir are no SteveDangle.

Flames Game Day: Circles lead me back to you...

Robert Cleave — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 21:30:14 -0000

More photos » by Lynne Sladky - AP

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Calgary Flames vs. Atlanta Thrashers

Pengrowth Saddledome (what? where?)

7:30 PM MT

Opposition: Bird Watchers Anonymous

TV: Sportsnet West

The Flames get re-acquainted with the Saddledome this evening on the heels of a pretty useful road trip. The home record has been a point of conversation over the first third of the season, of course, but I suspect that it's more a fluke of timing than any legitimate issue. The team started to play a bit better in it's own end, and Miikka Kiprusoff decided that it would be a good time to start up his Vezina campaign, so the record has fallen into place.

If there is any basis to the Flames' home struggles, we'll see it over the next few weeks, with the club home for nine of its next dozen outings. The opponent tonight should make for an interesting match, because they have more skill than most clubs, and likely wouldn't mind a night of simply trading opportunities.

Since I'm doing most of this before the morning skate ends, I have no idea if the Dawes experiment will hold, but it hasn't appeared to be any great upgrade over the other options that Brent Sutter has employed to work with the big two. That line wasn't really at the heart of Calgary's dominating possession night in L.A., and their PP work appeared toothless.

Bourque-Langkow-Moss and GlenX-Conroy/Boyd-Nystrom were very good in the team's last outing, and Flames' preview on the official site doesn't mention Conroy as an injured player, so the forwards should all be in place. Prust is likely due for a game as well. Watching Brian McGrattan do his nightly do-si-do before retiring to a seat that teams should just sell for 500 bucks a night is a waste, at least for me.

The Sun has Regehr stating that he's ready. It should, as always, be noted that the Flames discuss injuries to players in the straight-forward manner best exemplified by this gent. Reggie or not, Adam Pardy will need to be better than what he displayed Monday, by a long shot. The news in that Sun piece regarding Sarich hints to me that he's been in a bad way since training camp, because even after he began playing, he looked dreadful. Not the sort of news I wanted to hear, to be honest.

In net, uh, Kipper, maybe?

The Thrashers got pantsed by the Maple Leafs on Monday, and they might be shaking up the lines to head off a losing streak. They do have a ton of skill, with Kovalchuk, Antropov and bargain-basement prize Maxim Afinogenov leading the way. Between last year's waiver claim of Rich Peverley and 800K this summer for Afinogenov, I might need to re-think my "Don Waddell is hopeless" world view. I suppose I could simply revert to the whole "even a blind squirrel finds an acorn every now and then" premise, but that doesn't seem entirely fair. Getting Pavel Kubina has also worked out for the Thrash, and Ondrej Pavelec has played fairly well, although this post from Scott Reynolds over at C and B might lead a person to suspect that he's headed for a correction. The Herald's tea-leaf reading is that Johan Hedberg might have a go in the net for the Thrashers tonight.

The Flames will need to get another solid night from the forwards away from the puck, and not turning it over in the neutral zone will likely be at the core of a Flames' win. This isn't the sort of team that the Flames want to trade odd-man chances with, even if Kipper stands on his head. It might be asking a lot for a low-event outing, but that's best way to a win tonight, IMO. Oh, and if the PP gets a clue, that wouldn't hurt anyone's feelings either.

Game time is 7:30 MT, with coverage on Sportsnet West.