Dein erstes Forum » Bolland in the faceoff circle against Sidney

TORONTO – The fire was stoked on the plane ride back from Ohio late Friday evening. Jevon Carter Jersey . “I think a lot of guys were embarrassed and disappointed with the Columbus game,” Carl Gunnarsson told the Leaf Report 24 hours later. Mortified by their performance in an unseemly loss to the Blue Jackets, the Leafs deemed a response necessary with the imposing Penguins in town the following night at the Air Canada Centre. That response was a thorough 4-1 victory over Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and company, one that featured contributions from a wide range of sources. “We had to respond off our effort [Friday] and thats really what we asked of our group,” Randy Carlyle said after the win, the Leafs eighth this season. “We werent happy with what we brought to the table as far as our effort and our commitment to playing a game and being tough on the puck and winning the 1-on-1 battles. We didnt have that [Friday] night in Columbus and we were bound and determined that we were going to make amends...” The Leafs became just the second team in 11 games this season to hold Crosby off the scoresheet, the best player in the world slowed by a line featuring Dave Bolland, Mason Raymond and David Clarkson as well as the top defensive pairing of Gunnarsson and Dion Phaneuf. Hard on Crosby and linemates, Chris Kunitz and Pascal Dupuis, in all three zones, they were determined to keep the daunting trio in check. “We seemed to have that drive to win every battle,” said Gunnarsson, noting the efforts of the Bolland line on the back-check and in slowing Crosby through the neutral zone. “Of course Reims was good tonight too.” Making his first start since Oct. 17, James Reimer kept all but one of 38 shots from the back of the Toronto net, the 25-year-old improving to 4-0-2 lifetime against the Penguins. He was at his best – and needed to be – in the second frame, the Leafs outshot 16-4 in 20 minutes dominated by the Penguins. Midway through the period, Reimer made what proved the save of the night, sprawling out with a right pad stop on Pascal Dupuis to keep the game even at one. “You dont win in this league without goaltending that gives you a chance and Reims gave us a chance,” Carlyle said. “We didnt have a very good second period obviously – we were hemmed in our zone and they had a lot more energy than we did.” Held in by Reimers effort in that middle frame, the Leafs surged in the final frame. Filling in for the injured Tyler Bozak alongside Phil Kessel and James van Riemsdyk, Nazem Kadri scored the eventual game-winner moments into the third. The 23-year-old took a dart pass from Kessel before dancing around a lunging Marc-Andre Fleury with a skillful backhand. In addition to his work opposite Crosby, Bolland would also break free for a shorthanded goal in the opening frame, the first of two from the 27-year-old. With additional contributions from the likes of Colton Orr (10 sturdy minutes), Jay McClement, David Clarkson (seven hits), and the recently recalled Carter Ashton, the Leafs managed what was truly a team victory. The persistent, speedy, and determined identity that was so lacking one night earlier was evident throughout, just as it was earlier in the week against the Ducks. “We didnt want to lose two in a row and we wanted to show that we could go back to playing how we played against Anaheim, especially when were at home too,” said Gunnarsson. Five Points 1. Reimers Evening Reimer improved to 3-0-0 on the year with the 37-save performance, his save percentage rising to .933 in the process. Under considerable pressure in the second frame, he was also sturdy throughout a busy opening period. Though he was beaten far-side by Kris Letang on the games opening goal, Reimer did halt Malkin moments before Bolland knotted the score at one. “With an offence like that, I mean theyre gifted plain and simple and as good as you play, as good defensively and as sound defensively as we play I think theres going to come a time where theyre going to hem you in; whether it be one shift or five shifts in a row or half a period you name it, thats just the kind of team they are; and as a team, youve got to just be resilient and ride out the storm. “Youve got to fight and find a way to ride it out,” he continued. “Thats part of what good teams do.” Jonathan Bernier had started the previous three games for the Leafs. Reimer hadnt played since he was knocked out 32 seconds the Leafs Oct. 17 game against the Hurricanes. 2. Kadri Emerges Opposite Malkin With Bollands trio squaring off against Crosby, it was up to Kadri, Kessel and van Riemsdyk to slow Malkin. Slow him they did. Malkin was held to just two shots, registering an assist on Letangs power-play goal. “Hes a world-class player,” Kadri said of Malkin. “Its definitely hard to cover him, especially with how big and how skilled [he is] and he can skate too.” Kadri was feisty and often electric in nearly 20 minutes against the Penguins, providing the kind of sizzle and skill that Bozak ultimately does not possess. Unlike the injured top centreman, though, he has yet to prove that he can withstand the defensive rigours of playing in such a high-profile position. His determined effort against Malkin was a baby step in the right direction. And with Bozak out the next little while (more on his status below), Kadri will have a solid opportunity to prove his worth alongside the Leafs two first line wingers. “Nazzie played hard,” said Carlyle of Kadri, who also had four shots and four hits. 3. Face-offs The Leafs left Fridays game in Columbus as the second-worst faceoff team in the NHL. A night later they topped a Penguins squad that entered the night as second-best overall, winning 53 per cent of the draws. Without Bozak, the teams most trusted faceoff man, the Leafs turned most prominently to Bolland, who struggled badly against the Blue Jackets one night earlier (3-15). Finishing 17 of 31 against the Penguins, Bolland topped Crosby on 12 of 22 draws. “Weve been off a couple games so thats big, starting with the puck and not just giving it to them,” Gunnarsson said. Jay McClement was tops on the night, winning 12 of 19 for a 63 per cent mark. 4. Clarksons Power-Play Opportunity David Clarkson was a first unit power-play contributor during his final two seasons with the Devils. The 29-year-old averaged 3:03 per game on the man advantage two years ago, tallying eight goals and 16 points. Last season, he saw that opportunity rise to 3:33 per game with totals of six goals and eight points. But in spite of the considerable expectations he brings to Toronto, Clarkson is unlikely to garner the same quantity of opportunity with the Leafs. Kessel, van Riemsdyk and Bozak typically man the top power-play group and save for injury, are likely to remain together. Carlyle kept the trio aligned all of last season and once again this season. That leaves Clarkson with fewer minutes on a second unit, likely to include Kadri and Joffrey Lupul when healthy. Worth monitoring is the level of opportunity he manages moving forward and how that affects his overall production. Teamed with Kadri and Mason Raymond on Saturday, Clarkson garnered two minutes on the man advantage against the Penguins. 5. Bigger Minutes By the final month of last season, Cody Franson was averaging nearly 22 minutes nightly for the Leafs, up considerably from the 13-plus he garnered just months earlier in January. Picking up right where he left off, the 26-year-old is drawing the second most minutes on the Toronto defence so far this season. “Im enjoying it,” he said of the opportunity, remaining at what would be a career-high of 22 minutes per night. “This is what Ive tried to work towards my whole career is being a guy that they lean on.” Of the differences heavier minutes require, Franson listed the personnel hes charged with facing – Malkin on Saturday – among other things. “Its just a matter of trying to be physical for 22 minutes rather than 13,” he said. “It takes a little more out of you, but thats what we train through the summers for is to be ready for that. You have to be very focused going into games knowing that youre going to go up against guys like Malkin and Crosby and those talents. Theres a lot of different factors that play into it, but thats what we work for. Im happy that Im able to do that and Im looking forward to doing it more.” After leading the team in ice time against Columbus, Franson actually had the fewest minutes of his season against Pittsburgh. He played just under 17, mostly opposite the Malkin line. Bonus Point – Injury Updates Already down Nikolai Kulemin, Mark Fraser and Joffrey Lupul, the Leafs were without Tyler Bozak against the Penguins. The 27-year-old suffered a lower body injury against the Blue Jackets and will miss at least the next 7-10 days. Trying to determine if the injury to Joffrey Lupul was more serious than suspected – he has missed the past two games with a bone bruise on the right foot – the Leafs sent the 30-year-old for a CT scan on Saturday. The results came back clean with no fracture. Lupul will make the trip out west and could be available to play when the Leafs visit his hometown of Edmonton on Tuesday. Kulemin (right ankle) and Fraser (left knee) continue to skate – both have missed the past 10 games – with early November as the soft target time-frame for return. Both are expected to make the trip out west. Stat-Pack 4-0-2 – Career record for James Reimer versus Pittsburgh. 10:04 – Minutes for Colton Orr on Saturday. 12-22 – Mark for Dave Bolland in the faceoff circle against Sidney Crosby. 19:46 – Minutes for Nazem Kadri on Saturday. 6 – Number of times the Leafs have come from behind to win this season. 53 – Faceoff percentage against Pittsburgh. 7 – Hits for David Clarkson. 7 - Goals for Phil Kessel in 12 games this season. Special Teams Capsule PP: 1-3 PK: 2-3 Quote of the Night “Not many guys can go in and make that play that he made to score the goal.” ¬ Randy Carlyle on the game-winning goal from Nazem Kadri. Up Next The Leafs depart on a three-game swing to Western Canada, landing in Edmonton on Tuesday night. Leandro Barbosa Jersey . The same for both the Calgary Flames and the Edmonton Oilers. Richard Dumas Jersey . In Englands first game since its worst-ever World Cup showing, Roy Hodgsons side rarely looked like scoring against unambitious opposition and the breakthrough in the friendly only came when Raheem Sterling was tripped in the penalty area. https://www.cheapsunsonline.com/659z-michael-finley-jersey-suns.html .com) - The 2014 Holiday Bowl is the first postseason venture pitting a pair of ranked foes against each other, as No. NEW YORK -- The huge lead was gone, and the New York Knicks were in danger of a loss that would have hurt far more than their two straight blowouts. "From a mental standpoint, if this game would have got away from us, aint no telling what would have happened," Carmelo Anthony said. It didnt, thanks to Amare Stoudemires biggest moment of the season. Anthony had 30 points and 10 rebounds, Stoudemire made the tiebreaking jumper with 2:35 left, and New York pulled out an 83-78 victory over the Chicago Bulls on Wednesday night after blowing a 23-point lead. Stoudemire finished with 14 points and nine rebounds for the Knicks, who ended a two-game losing streak but made it harder on themselves than necessary with some sloppy second-half offence. Stoudemire was a catalyst in a 19-0 second-quarter spurt while playing on both nights of back-to-back games for the first time this season. He was playing restricted minutes and was forced to sit out some games earlier this season following summer knee surgery, but has progressed past that and was on the court for nearly 30 minutes. He had scored 17 and 15 points in the previous two games, but this time his improved play resulted in a victory. "Its great in order to be out there playing in a desperation game down the stretch," Stoudemire said. "It feels good to be back on the court, Id tell you that much. A lot of hard work has been put in to be in top shape." Mike Dunleavy Jr. scored 20 points for the Bulls, who have lost three straight and five of six. They are having a dreadful time scoring, topping out at 75 points in their previous two games and barely surpassing that in this one. Joakim Noah had 12 points and 11 rebounds in his return after missing a game with a bruised right thigh, but Luol Deng missed his third straight game with a sore left Achilles for a team already without Derrick Rose and Jimmy Butler. "We got them. We tied them. We just couldnt get over the top," Dunleavy said. "We couldnt break through." The Knicks were without Raymond Felton, who was resting a sore left hamstring and could be out for what coach Mike Woodson said would "probablly be a little while. Dan Majerle Jersey. " Fellow starting guard Iman Shumpert joined him among the injured in the third quarter after bruising his left knee during a collision. The Knicks led by 12 points at halftime and were cruising in the third quarter before committing five turnovers in less than 2 minutes late in the period, allowing Chicago to pull within 68-54 heading to the fourth. The Bulls then held the Knicks to three field goals in the first 9-plus minutes of the fourth quarter, outscoring them 20-6 to tie it at 74 on Noahs follow shot with 3:39 remaining. Stoudemire broke the tie with his jumper, and Anthony made it 78-74 with two free throws with 1:29 to go before Chicago turned it over to end the comeback hopes. "We just couldnt get good shots," guard Kirk Hinrich said. "We had some turnovers, some bobbles. I feel responsible for a lot of those times." The Knicks have been far worse than expected, creating a strange situation before this game where both coaches were asked about the Knicks coaching job. Theres frequent speculation that Woodsons job is in jeopardy, and he acknowledged that the Knicks arent playing as well as last season, though added he thinks they can once they get healthy. Meanwhile, an ESPN.com story suggested that the Knicks would try to get Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau, who was an assistant here under Jeff Van Gundy. "I dont pay any attention to any of that stuff," Thibodeau said. "To me, the only thing I have to do is concentrate on our team, our next opponent, our improvement, and never get away from that. You know, theres a lot of stuff that gets thrown out there ... so if you pay any attention, it does no good." Thibodeau went on to say how much he liked his team, though there wasnt much to like when Chicago missed its first 11 shots of the second quarter, turning a 17-15 lead into a 34-17 deficit before Dunleavy ended the drought with a 3-pointer with 5:43 remaining in the period. NOTES: The Bulls had won the last six meetings. They beat the Knicks 11 straight times in the regular season from 1990-92, the longest winning streak in a series that dates to 1966. ' ' '