R1G3: Bruins @ Leafs - May 6th, 7:00pm - CBC, TSN 1050

[TML fan]

Liles has to come in for either Fraser or O'Byrne next game.

Fraser. Please for the love of god Fraser.

I think the O'Byrne turnover was the worst play.  As I said Fraser at least forced his man outside, if you watch the play we stood a chance if Gunnar coming back took the pass or the other man.

I wasn't a fan of the turnover, but it's not just that goal why I'm blasting Fraser. The Leafs lost momentum in the first after two bad shifts by the 3rd pairing and in particular a couple of soft plays by Fraser. I've also been begging to have Fraser taken out for most of the year so it wasn't just about tonight.

I said earlier that a lot of their old habits were starting to creep back into their game that weren't there in game 2. The O'Byrne giveaway was just to most blatant example of it. That kind of hesitation and indecision has plagued them for most of the year.

 

[PG]

I'm glad Bozak got an assist on the last goal. Keep padding those stats so some other team massively overpays you this summer.

 

[azzurri63]

Well I know the other teams play dictates how well you look and Boston being up 4-1 after 2 knew the Leafs had to come full board and I think Boston took the foot of the pedal. If they can play like that for more than just a period on Wednesday they will tie this series back up. Have a good night everyone. Hopefully be here on Wednesday.

 

[leafplasma]

I am not sure who I would sit on the back end Wednesday night. O'Byrne maybe, I just can't see Fraser coming out.

 

[Derk]

This sucks. Oh well.

 

[drummond]

I'm glad Bozak got an assist on the last goal. Keep padding those stats so some other team massively overpays you this summer.

they changed it to JvR and Franson

 

[Bates]

You take out the size on the backend and this series will be over quickly as the Bruins dominate our smaller D all night long.

 

[lamajama]

I am not sure who I would sit on the back end Wednesday night. O'Byrne maybe, I just can't see Fraser coming out.

Sadly, Fraser will not come out. Carlyle is too stubborn. He'd take Gardiner out first - which shows you his mentality.

 

[CarltonTheBear]

Somehow Fraser managed to get more ice-time than Gunnarsson tonight (18:15 to 17:06). This is despite the fact that Fraser was benched for almost the entire 2nd half of the 3rd period, playing just one shift after the empty net goal was scored.

 

[x.jr.benchwarmer]

Gardiner was so good in rushing the puck (as other posters have noted).  In fact, he should be getting the bulk of the time on the power play, IMHO.  He is able to move the puck so much quicker and has such agility, and he is so superior to Phaneuf offensively that he merits more ice time.

And Frattin was relatively dangerous when he got out there. 

It seems that the current lines, especially with Bozak playing on every power play, just aren't good combinations against the Bruins.  I think that Carlyle should try something a little differently to try to generate more offense.

And let's face it, tonight the Leafs got (in the vernacular) out-goaltendered.  Task was superior to Reimer in many ways.  In fact, Kypreos on Sportsnet indicated that Reimer had a poor first game, and said that if he lets in one bad goal a game, the Leafs are going to lose.  And that first goal, in every sense, was a bad goal.

 

[Screwball]

I'll just say, a win on Weds and I'll count the series as a positive no matter what the outcome.  We're holding our own against a much more experienced team with a top-notch D corps.  The score doesn't indicate it but our effort tonight was way above Game 1.

 

[Zee]

I am not sure who I would sit on the back end Wednesday night. O'Byrne maybe, I just can't see Fraser coming out.

Sadly, Fraser will not come out. Carlyle is too stubborn. He'd take Gardiner out first - which shows you his mentality.

There's no way he sits Gardiner next game after he scores a goal and was generally dangerous all night leading the rush. O'Byrne comes out I think.

 

[leafplasma]

Somehow Fraser managed to get more ice-time than Gunnarsson tonight (18:15 to 17:06). This is despite the fact that Fraser was benched for almost the entire 2nd half of the 3rd period, playing just one shift after the empty net goal was scored.

Yeah, he wasn't so much as benched as he was sat in order to get more offense into the game to mount a comeback.  I can't see RC actually benching Fraser due to not being happy with his play.

 

[gunnar36]

I am not sure who I would sit on the back end Wednesday night. O'Byrne maybe, I just can't see Fraser coming out.

Sadly, Fraser will not come out. Carlyle is too stubborn. He'd take Gardiner out first - which shows you his mentality.

There's no way he sits Gardiner next game after he scores a goal and was generally dangerous all night leading the rush. O'Byrne comes out I think.

Gardiner was the most dangerous Leaf on the rush all night

 

[pnjunction]

I can't see Fraser coming out so take that off the table.  I liked the way O'Byrne played Jagr early in the game but then he fell apart so I hope he comes out for Liles.

Of course there is always the option of RC driving us nuts by leaving them both in.

 

[princedpw]

This is perhaps not terribly relevant but I keep thinking back to the trade that sent Bouwmeester to St. Louis.  I'm not sure we could have afforded to absorb his cap hit next year (even assuming a Liles + Komi buyout) but he really would have helped solidify our D:

Phaneuf - Gunnar
Bouwmeester - Franson
Gardiner - X

That would give us 2 legit 2-way pairings.  You could see tonight that aside from Phaneuf - Gunnar, our D just isn't that good.  (One can see Gardiner has potential but he's still a rookie in the defensive end.)

 

[Stickytape]

I think the difference between what the Leafs did right, and what they did wrong should be plain as day.  Erase a couple brutal turnovers and that's a 2-2 game there.  On top of that, the bounces just didn't go their way for the majority of the night.

Still a better game than game 1, by a long shot.  The home ice jitters should be gone; looking forward to game 4.

I'm going to be in TO over the weekend; should be able to make it down to Nathan Phillips square or wherever they're putting people at the ACC late Friday, or Sunday, assuming there is a Sunday.  Please let there be a Sunday game.

 

[CupOneDay]

O'Byrne should be a scratch for Liles game 4. He just looked off his game out there. After his first few shifts I was screaming at the television to bench him, but nope, he stays out and lays a few nice eggs. I like the guy but you have to see when someone is just having an off night and let them sit!!

 

[Jalili]

This is perhaps not terribly relevant but I keep thinking back to the trade that sent Bouwmeester to St. Louis.  I'm not sure we could have afforded to absorb his cap hit next year (even assuming a Liles + Komi buyout) but he really would have helped solidify our D:

Phaneuf - Gunnar
Bouwmeester - Franson
Gardiner - X

That would give us 2 legit 2-way pairings.  You could see tonight that aside from Phaneuf - Gunnar, our D just isn't that good.  (One can see Gardiner has potential but he's still a rookie in the defensive end.)

Bouwmeester would have been great.. one of the best skating workhorses in the league. It would've cost us our 1st, but he's worth it.

Way back at the beginning of the year I thought the D looked thin, and one guy I hoped would stabilize it was Holzer. He seemed like he could be another Gunnarsson. That didn't happen though.

Leaf management will have to go outside the box to solve the problem, because Fraser and O'Byrne just won't do.

 

[princedpw]

It is super-irritating that Carlyle said in the post-game press conference that "in the last couple of games Gardiner has started to improve and reduced the negative plays."  Well, maybe if you'd played him in the regular season and in the first game of the playoffs he could have ironed out those problems earlier ??????  Arg.