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Game 32: Bruins @ Leafs - Mar. 23, 7:00pm - CBC

more than happy to be wrong about the outcome of this game ...i figured they needed at least one out of the two ..and they got it ...a point or more out of the next one and i'll be thrilled ....i still think they'll need more then we saw here though..leafs were badly out-chanced and were the definition of opportunistic and that was with the last change...on the other hand ..lupul + kadri..might be enough to force boston into somewhat of a coaching dilemma ..does chara shutting down kessel worth letting lupul and kadri run somewhat freely?
 
Ill admit  I'm not a fan of Kessels, but these last couple games he's be playing better. Skating hard for the puck and not just when it's on his stick. Beat out an icing last game and took a hit to do it which lead to a scoring opportunity. Keep it up Phil!
 
Wow, Reimer - outshot almost 3 to 1 and he steals this win from Boston.  We got a little lucky in that Boston fanned on plenty of shots, but who knows if Reims would have stopped 'em anyway.

Aside from difficulty pulling the trigger on a number of key shots, Boston played well.  They're very energetic and fight so hard for the puck at every single opportunity, and their aggressive forecheck creates so many turnovers.  I felt the Leafs did pretty well in staying disciplined and minimizing the turnovers.

Kessel and even Grabbo seemed to put in a little more effort than ususal, too.  Kessel had some great defensive plays - feels weird typing that, but I like it.

Now let's do this all again in Boston - only with bonus Lupul!
 
I wonder if Kessel sees the attention Kadri is getting and has elevated his game because of it? I know it's kind of a silly thought, but I just see Kessel more involved and playing more defense, since Kadri has become the top dog so to speak.

If it's true, I like that Kessel has that competitive spirit in him, it can only make our team better in the long run.
 
I think there has been far too much spotlight on Kessel since he came to Toronto. He can't be a saviour but he can be a great piece of a winning team. He may perform better now that Kadri has grabbed the headlines.
 
I've been watching the fourth line more carefully lately, and I really think that MMO line gets the job done.  They don't really take any bad penalties, they forecheck quite effectively. 

The goal last night was a nice bonus too.

Now I wonder who comes out for Lupul?
 
Glad to see we got the 2 points and nice to see our goalie stealing some points. Even after 2 periods I don't think the shot total was a good indicator of the play. We had our chances and were probably deserving of the lead but the 3rd period Boston showed how far we have got to go. If they play like that again tomorrow might be ugly unless Reimer stands on his head. One area that I keep seeing game in game out and that Carlyle has to address is clearing the puck out of our end. It has become flat out horrible. Never seen so many weak attempts to get the puck out and these just keep leading to more scoring chances and shots by the opposition. At times yes they are pressured but a lot of the times it's weak clear outs or hanging onto the puck too long and then coughing it up. That area and leaving the opposition D men open because of the forwards coming back too far has got to change. The shot total in the game is the result of us getting hemmed in when the puck should have gone out. I have seen this far too often this year and boggles my mind why it hasn't been addressed or corrected. What are these coaches and management watching?
 
azzurri63 said:
Glad to see we got the 2 points and nice to see our goalie stealing some points. Even after 2 periods I don't think the shot total was a good indicator of the play. We had our chances and were probably deserving of the lead but the 3rd period Boston showed how far we have got to go. If they play like that again tomorrow might be ugly unless Reimer stands on his head. One area that I keep seeing game in game out and that Carlyle has to address is clearing the puck out of our end. It has become flat out horrible. Never seen so many weak attempts to get the puck out and these just keep leading to more scoring chances and shots by the opposition. At times yes they are pressured but a lot of the times it's weak clear outs or hanging onto the puck too long and then coughing it up. That area and leaving the opposition D men open because of the forwards coming back too far has got to change. The shot total in the game is the result of us getting hemmed in when the puck should have gone out. I have seen this far too often this year and boggles my mind why it hasn't been addressed or corrected. What are these coaches and management watching?
Click to expand...

It's almost like Boston is a better team with a fantastic forecheck.
 
WhatIfGodWasALeaf said:
tumblr_mk5bgvlpJn1rileugo1_500.gif
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Not this time, Seguin!

That really was awesome to see.
 
Frank E said:
azzurri63 said:
Glad to see we got the 2 points and nice to see our goalie stealing some points. Even after 2 periods I don't think the shot total was a good indicator of the play. We had our chances and were probably deserving of the lead but the 3rd period Boston showed how far we have got to go. If they play like that again tomorrow might be ugly unless Reimer stands on his head. One area that I keep seeing game in game out and that Carlyle has to address is clearing the puck out of our end. It has become flat out horrible. Never seen so many weak attempts to get the puck out and these just keep leading to more scoring chances and shots by the opposition. At times yes they are pressured but a lot of the times it's weak clear outs or hanging onto the puck too long and then coughing it up. That area and leaving the opposition D men open because of the forwards coming back too far has got to change. The shot total in the game is the result of us getting hemmed in when the puck should have gone out. I have seen this far too often this year and boggles my mind why it hasn't been addressed or corrected. What are these coaches and management watching?
Click to expand...

It's almost like Boston is a better team with a fantastic forecheck.
Click to expand...

Yeah but Tampa and Buffalo aren't.
 
WhatIfGodWasALeaf said:
I wonder if they'll go nuts and give Reilly a look with Liles out.
Click to expand...

That would shock me.  I would think Kostka is the obvious choice at the moment.  I'm as excited as anybody to see Rielly play, but there's so much downside to giving him a look right now.
 
Was at the game.  Kadri was really good.

Orr actually had a really solid overall game.  He's clueless with the puck on his stick but he chipped the puck along the boards well and broke up a few Boston chances with intercepted passes.  His fight was enjoyable too.  Overall I think McLaren is actually a better 4th liner though. 

Bozak is clueless.  He looks to pass when he should shoot and shoots when he should pass.  He came in on a 2-on-1 and had a glorious spot to shoot and passed the puck into the guy who had a bad angle and was being covered.

The Leafs really need to work on getting the puck out of the zone.  They rush clearing attempts without looking up the ice and then take too long making decisions when they try and carry the puck up and get stick-checked.  It seems pretty simple.  Keep your head up when chipping the puck up the boards.
 
Another point - wasn't it a few games ago in the game thread that we had "none" for injuries shown?

This is the Hockey Gods reminding us who is in charge here...
 
Frank E said:
azzurri63 said:
Glad to see we got the 2 points and nice to see our goalie stealing some points. Even after 2 periods I don't think the shot total was a good indicator of the play. We had our chances and were probably deserving of the lead but the 3rd period Boston showed how far we have got to go. If they play like that again tomorrow might be ugly unless Reimer stands on his head. One area that I keep seeing game in game out and that Carlyle has to address is clearing the puck out of our end. It has become flat out horrible. Never seen so many weak attempts to get the puck out and these just keep leading to more scoring chances and shots by the opposition. At times yes they are pressured but a lot of the times it's weak clear outs or hanging onto the puck too long and then coughing it up. That area and leaving the opposition D men open because of the forwards coming back too far has got to change. The shot total in the game is the result of us getting hemmed in when the puck should have gone out. I have seen this far too often this year and boggles my mind why it hasn't been addressed or corrected. What are these coaches and management watching?
Click to expand...

It's almost like Boston is a better team with a fantastic forecheck.
Click to expand...


They have been playing like this for much of the season. Way too many scoring chances due to poor coverage and weak attempts to clear the zone. I have stated this in the past and if they can improve in these two areas we have a good team. Do you honestly think Ottawa and Mtl have better a better team than us. Only edge I might give to both teams is they have better net minding Mtl for sure but they win because they play better defensively. You look at Mtl's lineup and it boggles my mind how they are in the position they are. Ottawa with all their injuries seem to keep winning or scooping up points. Reason I think is their defensive play. If you look at the Leafs early in the season what was the reason we were winning. If I recall Reimer and Scrivens were playing great so don't think much as changed as far as team defence etc.
 
McLaren and Colton Orr) on the team?s fourth line this season, the coach wasn?t surprised to see one of them chip in with a timely goal.

?If you watch, those are the guys that spend the time after practice and do all of the little skill drills and whatnot,? said Carlyle. ?He should be rewarded. It?s the winning goal, so it?s a great play by a big man.?

The Leafs blocked an impressive 31 shots ? including a late one from Phil Kessel on the same shift where he had a spirited backcheck and knocked Tyler Seguin to the ice.

"Now we know we can beat them,? said goalie James Reimer, who was solid with 31 saves. ?We were confident before, but now we can definitely see it on the scoreboard.

"My message after the game was to be business-like about the win and to recognize that we have three more periods in a very tough building where we haven?t had success before,? said Carlyle. ?It?s going to take a more intense effort than we had tonight to go in there and have success."

http://www.sportsnet.ca/hockey/nhl/johnston-on-leafs
 
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