Toronto Maple Leafs Shootout Woes Continue

For the Toronto Maple Leafs, tonight's matchup against the Anaheim Ducks looked like a broken record. The Leafs dropped yet another shootout, as frustration begins to mount over their consistency as the league's shootout doormat. It has seemed that no matter the opponent, or no matter the players, the Toronto Maple Leafs are a sure bet to lose the tiebreaker. Tonight though, Ron Wilson tried a gamble when the final horn sounded in overtime-he switched Vesa Toskala and replaced him with the aging Curtis Joseph when it came time for the event all Maple Leafs fans have come to dread. The goalie switch was justified on Wilson's part, because as he pointed out, Joseph's save percentage and win-loss record is better than Toskala's in the shootout. This despite the fact Toskala has been the better netminder for the Leafs so far, and had been warmed up from 3 full periods of hockey. However, the switch did show Ron Wilson's willingness to take a gamble, and "play the percentages" as he put it. I respect that about him, despite the fact the move did not play out the way the Maple Leafs had hoped. Joseph was scored on twice, but did not get any help from the Leafs shooters. Nikolai Kulemin and Thomas Kaberle shot for the Toronto Maple Leafs, neither of which were able to beat the Ducks netminder. Kulemin, who has been the only Leaf so far whos been able to score in the tiebreaker, finally missed his mark and shot the puck wide of the net. Kaberle's luck was no better, as the Maple Leafs were once again haunted by their shootout woes.

Though it may not be much consolation to Maple Leafs fans, their team did put up a spirited fight to tie the game and force overtime, and looked as though they outplayed their opponent for most of the game. The most promising aspect of their comeback, is that the Toronto Maple Leafs held the Ducks without a single shot on goal for the entire 3rd period. As many people have predicted during the offseason, the Maple Leafs defence and goaltending is keeping them in close games, while their troubles lie with scoring goals. They allowed a goal early on in the first period, and even though they outshot Anaheim, an unfortunate breakaway led to the Ducks taking a 2 goal lead. After that though, the Maple Leafs blue line slammed the doors and barred them shut, as the Ducks would not score in the 2nd or 3rd period. Jonas Frogren once again led the defensive charge, and made the Anaheim forwards pay for every puck they carried into the Leafs zone. His hits were absolutely punishing. It would seem that Cliff Fletcher certainly succeeded in finding a dominant physical presence for the Maple Leafs blue line. Frogren is the real deal, and in my opinion, has been one of the Leafs best players right alongside Luke Schenn.

The outstanding play of the Maple Leafs defence eventually allowed Nik Antropov to spearhead the comeback. Antropov, who was regarded in the offseason as Toronto's only proven top 6 forward, reaffirmed that title tonight. Pavel Kubina hammered a shot from the point in the 2nd period that Antropov was able to deflect into the net, bringing the Leafs within one goal. Though the goal belonged to Antropov, I will say this about Pavel Kubina-he is not afraid to put the puck on the net! While many Leafs fans complain that their defence does not shoot enough, and lacks a powerful shot from the point, I think it is more than possible for Kubina to step into that role. He proved tonight that he can put pucks on the net, and he had multiple shots tonight that resulted in rebounds ready to be banged into the net.

Once the 3rd period began, The Toronto Maple Leafs shut down the Ducks completely, but took almost 19 minutes to net the tying goal. They had several good scoring chances, and once again showed their weakness on the powerplay by failing to get a goal with the man advantage, but finally got what they worked so hard for all night when Vesa Toskala was pulled from the net with about a minute left in the game. With the extra attacker on the ice, the Maple Leafs applied desperate pressure, and tied the game when Antropov knocked in the rebound from Mike Van Ryn's point shot. The Maple Leafs outplayed the Ducks clearly tonight, and yet again were robbed of a just win by the shootout. However, tonight they displayed excellent defensive play, forechecking, and determination. Ron Wilson must be pleased with his team's effort despite the tiebreaker. If the Toronto Maple Leafs can keep playing the way they did tonight, the wins they deserve will start to come. A little bit of luck in the shootout wouldn't hurt either.