Game 9 - Leafs @ Rangers - Thursday Oct 27th 2011 - 19:00 EST - 4-2 Win

[ZBBM]

HennyTweets Paul Hendrick
Leafs get their 6th win tonight. They didn't get win # 6 last season untill november 16th when they beat nashville.

Improvement!

The team is significantly better than last year, I think there's no doubt.  And I was, I admit, one of the skeptics, esp. about the forwards.  So far we have a legit first 2 lines.  And the other 2 are playing far better than their counterparts last year.

Lupul, in particular, has stepped up in a semi-quiet way.  And as cw said, Kessel is on a whole new level of completeness.  Gone is the fellow I called a one-dimensional creampuff.  Kudos to Phil.  He is playing at an elite level right now.

If Connolly can go like he did tonight -- and we escape major injuries -- this team will compete to make the playoffs.  That's an about-face for me. 

 

[ZBBM]

tsn.ca game story has our record wrong -- we're 6-2-1, not 5-2-1.

http://tsn.ca/nhl/story/?id=379068

 

[Britishbulldog]

I think it's great to have our 4th line out to protect the lead 

I actually noted that to my son as well.  Dupuis, Brown and Steckel out there with less than a minute.

Sweet.

They each played between 10:40 and 12:56 mins - which is a fair amount for one of Wilson's 4th lines. That allowed the other lines to go a little harder when they were out and they did.

Steckel won 71% of his draws.

9 of the teams 15 hits were delivered by them

Brown handily won his fight.

They did the brunt of the PK and keep the Rangers 0-3

They weren't on the ice for a goal against while Brown chipped in a goal.

I'd say they weren't a bad choice to close it out. They kind of earned it.

Thanks for the rundown.  I got in just before Brown scored and was wondering how that line did.  It's kinda funny for me to see Dupuis in a checking role because he could really score some beauties here in Moncton.

I was hoping that Connolly worked out too.

 

[cw]

I think it's great to have our 4th line out to protect the lead 

I actually noted that to my son as well.  Dupuis, Brown and Steckel out there with less than a minute.

Sweet.

They each played between 10:40 and 12:56 mins - which is a fair amount for one of Wilson's 4th lines. That allowed the other lines to go a little harder when they were out and they did.

Steckel won 71% of his draws.

9 of the teams 15 hits were delivered by them

Brown handily won his fight.

They did the brunt of the PK and keep the Rangers 0-3

They weren't on the ice for a goal against while Brown chipped in a goal.

I'd say they weren't a bad choice to close it out. They kind of earned it.

Thanks for the rundown.  I got in just before Brown scored and was wondering how that line did.  It's kinda funny for me to see Dupuis in a checking role because he could really score some beauties here in Moncton.

I was hoping that Connolly worked out too.

Dupuis nearly scored. His shot went over Lundqvist's shoulder and the net. He would have beat him if he'd hit the top shelf in my opinion.

I thought he was ok for his first game. He worked hard & checked. The notable moment was one world class backhand pass to the slot that didn't quite connect but it wasn't the type of pass you'd typically see from an average NHLer.

 

[maplesyrup]

I think its worth noting Kessel had another strong game... Not only did he lead the team in shots but I felt he really had the Ranger's defenders on their heels all night.

 

[jjjoejr]

I think Lundqvist stopped a lot of shots that were supposed to go in and let in a couple that could have been stopped. The Leafs had a pretty strong game. I'm glad other lines contributed on the score sheet tonight. We'll need some more balanced scoring up ahead for sure.

 

[Bender]

I think it's great to have our 4th line out to protect the lead 

I actually noted that to my son as well.  Dupuis, Brown and Steckel out there with less than a minute.

Sweet.

They each played between 10:40 and 12:56 mins - which is a fair amount for one of Wilson's 4th lines. That allowed the other lines to go a little harder when they were out and they did.

Steckel won 71% of his draws.

9 of the teams 15 hits were delivered by them

Brown handily won his fight.

They did the brunt of the PK and keep the Rangers 0-3

They weren't on the ice for a goal against while Brown chipped in a goal.

I'd say they weren't a bad choice to close it out. They kind of earned it.

Thanks for the rundown.  I got in just before Brown scored and was wondering how that line did.  It's kinda funny for me to see Dupuis in a checking role because he could really score some beauties here in Moncton.

I was hoping that Connolly worked out too.

Dupuis nearly scored. His shot went over Lundqvist's shoulder and the net. He would have beat him if he'd hit the top shelf in my opinion.

I thought he was ok for his first game. He worked hard & checked. The notable moment was one world class backhand pass to the slot that didn't quite connect but it wasn't the type of pass you'd typically see from an average NHLer.

Yeah, I don't think he was much of a factor as he's probably getting his legs from under him and is trying to gel on the top line, but you can tell he has exceptional vision, and he seems generally like an intelligent hockey player, and can be shifty when he needs to be.

I'll definitely look forward to him getting better.

 

[GhostofPotvin29]

Ho-hum just another 71% night on the draw for Steckel.

 

[crazyperfectdevil]

they suffered that meltdown in boston yet didn't let the wheels fall off for the rest of the road trip...almost like a real team

 

[Jalili]

All 4 lines contributed a goal tonight. It's a pleasant surprise to see the team with this much depth up front.

 

[cw]

http://www.tsn.ca/toronto/blogs/jonas_siegel/?id=379080
"Give our defence credit," said Wilson, noting strong play from the likes of Carl Gunnarsson and Mike Komisarek. "We did a great job in the second period, getting the puck heading north as quickly as possible. We had a great fore-check going because our D were moving the puck quickly."

While that's true, Schenn's pass behind Lombardi, that should have been pretty straightforward to execute, went behind Lombardi and caused the turnover to the first goal.

But more notably, during Quinn's years, one of my pet peeves was the forwards not coming back collectively and consistently to help move the puck up the ice. They put too much pressure on the Leafs D to make a longer, lower percentage pass that as we know, is much more prone to miss or interception. Or too often, they stood at the side boards waiting for a pass rather than having their legs going and in motion (far harder for the opponent to defend/stop)

A line that has been good at that since last season is Grabovski's. They were stellar at it last night. The three of them starting below the faceoff circle, tic-tac-toeing the puck around the Rangers as they skated up the ice out of the D zone. Although the Leafs are in possession of the puck at the time, I regard that as good team defence. Even if they turn the puck over making their higher percentage short passes, they're less likely to get someone badly trapped out of the play to win it back and more likely to be in position to stop the opponent. And it's easier for their D man, who is often under pressure, to get them the puck to start the play the other way. Hat tip to Wilson for getting these guys to do it. It was a major, consistent failure of the Quinn teams on too many nights and it cost them defensively. Hopefully, they'll keep it up but it is a positive developing characteristic of these Leafs forwards and in my opinion, it was a factor in the outcome last night - particularly when the Rangers were pressing to get back into the game.

Having said that, it's pretty basic stuff that one would expect of a good team. The Quinn teams drove me nuts when they wouldn't do it because they had everything else going for them.

 

[BlueWhiteBlood]

Yeah cw, I find Grabbo drops down low in the defensive zone almost all of the time to get the puck. I think he hates when he doesn't have it, so he comes back to get it himself so he can in turn, bring it back up the ice for a scoring chance.

Komisarek was very good at clearing the net and playing strong behind it last night, which was very encouraging to see. His confidence will be back in no time at a high level I think.

 

[cw]

Yeah cw, I find Grabbo drops down low in the defensive zone almost all of the time to get the puck. I think he hates when he doesn't have it, so he comes back to get it himself so he can in turn, bring it back up the ice for a scoring chance.

Komisarek was very good at clearing the net and playing strong behind it last night, which was very encouraging to see. His confidence will be back in no time at a high level I think.

Sundin often came back and I guess so did Roberts (not as much as he touted in my opinion). The difference to me is that all three of them come back and seem intent on working as a unit to move the puck up the ice.

The other thing about those three, and we see this more in the offensive zone, is that they seem to know where each other is so that they can make the quick little passes. Several times in the last year, you think a team has them defensively and they somehow dish it off to one of their linemates and I find myself a little surprised watching them that they even knew the pass could be made and connected (in part because one of them appears from off the screen). I guess that's a key to their chemistry. It's definitely above average for a NHL line.

 

[cw]

One other moment was kind of heartstopping for me:

Reimer is out. Kessel seemed to get banged up and struggled to the bench. Then Grabovski seems to get a worse knee sprain and struggles to the bench. For a flash, the season is on the line. Then Grabovski comes out the next shift and is right back to driving the Rangers nuts and gets a scoring chance. That guy is one feisty son of a gun.

 

[cw]

http://www.tsn.ca/toronto/blogs/jonas_siegel/?id=379080
Komisarek played a season-high 19:29 alongside John-Michael Liles, looking comfortable and confident against the Rangers. "That was Komo's best game of the season by a mile," said Wilson. "He kept it simple, didn't make any plays in the middle, just chipping it off the boards and it allowed our forwards to skate to those loose pucks and get 'em deep and hem the Rangers defence in."

That was the first thing I posted about in reaction to the game right after. I hadn't heard Wilson's words but given all the crap Komisark's been through (or put himself through with his play), I thought those words were worth noting.

It's key to me because if Phaneuf & Komisarek were to play this season up to their potential, barring crazy injuries, I have absolutely no doubt this is a playoff caliber team.

 

[BlueWhiteBlood]

That was the first thing I posted about in reaction to the game right after. I hadn't heard Wilson's words but given all the crap Komisark's been through (or put himself through with his play), I thought those words were worth noting.

It's key to me because if Phaneuf & Komisarek were to play this season up to their potential, barring crazy injuries, I have absolutely no doubt this is a playoff caliber team.

For sure. The rest of our defenders can really learn by watching Komisarek, as most of the time, even in his bad games, he knows how to lean on an opponent and drill them into the boards to take the puck away. Now it hasn't always worked for him in the last two years, but when he hits a player, he really hits them hard. I wish all of our defensemen would do that, as it really backs off the other team, you can see them think twice about going into the corner the next time around and ultimately slows them down.

Schenn was playing that game last year, but I find him less aggressive this season so far. Wilson was clear with Schenn when he struggles, when he doesn't play aggressive in the defensive zone, he becomes ineffective overall. I'd like to see him get back to that, because if we have both Komi and Schenn hitting hard at the same time, teams will not like to play against us, regardless of what pairing is on the ice. They already are aware of when Phaneuf is on the ice, for obvious reasons.

 

[cw]

Schenn was playing that game last year, but I find him less aggressive this season so far. Wilson was clear with Schenn when he struggles, when he doesn't play aggressive in the defensive zone, he becomes ineffective overall. I'd like to see him get back to that, because if we have both Komi and Schenn hitting hard at the same time, teams will not like to play against us, regardless of what pairing is on the ice. They already are aware of when Phaneuf is on the ice, for obvious reasons.

I still feel that it was more than coincidence that Schenn's best hockey came when he was partnered with Kaberle. Like Komisarek, Schenn should stick to a pretty simple game because he isn't that skilled offensively. The difference to me is that Kaberle helped Schenn to keep it simple. Kaberle would position himself so it was easy for Schenn to dump him the puck and then Kaberle would kind of do the rest and was more reliable to take the right man/do the right thing on a rush. And Kaberle would try to mind the store when Luke went off to the boards for puck battles. On offense, Schenn would cover for Kaberle defensively.

The same potential exists with Gardiner as a partner except Gardiner is still a little wild and learning. He isn't nearly as easy to play with right now even though he's got lots of talent. He's not always in a position to easily dump the puck off to. He isn't as reliable to take the right man on a rush. And he can get himself into some trouble that he often skates himself out of but it has to give his partner some jitters sometimes.

 

[hockeyfan1]

Gustavvson played solid (the way he should most of the time), getting the support from his teammates, etc.  I"m a firm believer that as Gustavvson plays more and proves his worth, he and his teammates' confidence will grow.  Feeling confident and believing in your goalie are very important ingredients for a team.  Having two net minders who inspire this feeling (Reimer & Gustavvson) is even greater, and will prove to be an integral part of the Leafs overall success this season.

 

[cw]

Top six by win% in the NHL today:
1 WASHINGTON  0.875
2 PITTSBURGH    0.750
3 CHICAGO        0.750
4 TORONTO        0.722
4 LOS ANGELES  0.722
6 DETROIT        0.714

So the upcoming Pens game is clearly no gimme but it's a darn nice start.

 

[BlueWhiteBlood]

I still feel that it was more than coincidence that Schenn's best hockey came when he was partnered with Kaberle. Like Komisarek, Schenn should stick to a pretty simple game because he isn't that skilled offensively. The difference to me is that Kaberle helped Schenn to keep it simple. Kaberle would position himself so it was easy for Schenn to dump him the puck and then Kaberle would kind of do the rest and was more reliable to take the right man/do the right thing on a rush. And Kaberle would try to mind the store when Luke went off to the boards for puck battles. On offense, Schenn would cover for Kaberle defensively.

The same potential exists with Gardiner as a partner except Gardiner is still a little wild and learning. He isn't nearly as easy to play with right now even though he's got lots of talent. He's not always in a position to easily dump the puck off to. He isn't as reliable to take the right man on a rush. And he can get himself into some trouble that he often skates himself out of but it has to give his partner some jitters sometimes.

But I found Schenn just as effective last season when he was on his game, after Kaberle had been traded. Sure, I'll give you the fact that Kaberle made things easy for anyone that he played with, however I still think Schenn is a very solid defender when he plays an aggressive game and hits opponents hard on the boards in the defensive zone.

I even found Schenn a very reliable first pass defenseman, he is able to be patient and find the open forward when he is on his game, not needing to rely on another puck mover to get him out of trouble. It's his game right now, between the ears, that is his problem. Whether that is his confidence level or what have you, something isn't as easy and I think he needs to buy himself a bit more time, by hitting hard and taking the player off the puck with authority, rather than trying to use his stick to poke the puck off the player alone. He doesn't have as much time to get the puck out as he does when he hits them. I'm not saying that using an active stick or using your partner are bad things, they should be encouraged, but I find Schenn much more effective, when he's punishing on the boards is all.