Shocking Comeback Leads Toronto Maple Leafs To Another Win

There is a strange phenomenon that has been gripping the Toronto Maple Leafs lately. It is known as the reverse-meltdown. The latest team to fall victim to this shocking occurrence was the hapless New York Rangers at the ACC. The Rangers currently own the best record in the league, and were arguably the best team in the NHL coming into tonight's game. So they should of had no trouble with the Leafs than right? For most of the game, it certainly looked that way.

The Maple Leafs started off the game strong, winning most of the faceoffs and outshooting their foes, but they couldn't translate their hard work into success early on. Yet again, it would be their opponent who would capitalize on their chances, and New York took a 1-0 lead headed into the 1st intermission. The Maple Leafs started off the 2nd period playing with some good intensity, but halfway through it appeared as though they were running out of gas, and another Rangers goal seemed to sap all the life out of the Leafs and the entire ACC. By the end of the 2nd period, the Leafs were down 2-0. Does this sound familiar? If it doesn't, it should, because a 2 goal defecit appears to be the boiling point at which the reverse-meltdown begins to take its effect on the Leafs.

By the time the final period rolled around, it seemed as though the Leafs didn't have another comeback in them. For half of the 3rd period, the Rangers defense was having no problem choking the life out of the Maple Leafs. Toronto couldn't get the puck into the attacking zone, and they were turned back every time they crossed into center ice. Frustration began to set in, and John Mitchell took a penalty that would rob the Leafs of precious time, but more importantly give the Rangers a chance to seal the game if they could score on the powerplay. They did not. The Maple Leafs penalty killing unit kept the Leafs alive, with some help from Vesa Toskala in goal. Then John Mitchell stepped back onto the ice, and this is where things get exciting for Maple Leafs fans.

Mitchell quickly redeemed himself for the costly penalty he took, by ripping an excellent shot that easily beat Steve Valiquette, who was in goal for the Rangers. This brought the Leafs to within one, and the Air Canada Centre exploded at this point. The burst of energy from Leafs fans seemed to have been felt by their team, and much to the terror of Steve Valiquette, the onslaught was just beginning. Less than two minutes later, Jason Blake deflected a shot into the net that evened the score at 2 a piece. Old man Blake deserves some credit, as he has worked hard to keep up with the work ethic of the young roster around him. Tonight it paid off with his 2nd goal of the season. However, Leafs fans in the building hadn't even finished celebrating the tying goal yet, before Pavel Kubina would rifle a heavy shot from the point that found its way through traffic and into the back of the net. Less than a minute later, it was 3-2 in favor of Toronto. Still with me? Good, because it doesnt end there. John Mitchell would net his 2nd goal of the game not even a minute and a half later. He made the game 4-2 on a beautiful shot from almost the same angle as his first one.

The Maple Leafs still weren't done though, and their 5th goal was the wildest one of them all. With John Mitchell racing towards the net to try and complete his hat trick, New York goalie Steve Valiquette charged out of his crease to stop the shot. Fortunately for him, he did. Unfortunately for him however, the rebound landed right onto the stick of Dominic Moore. Bummer! With Valiquette sprawled out on the ice way out in front of his crease, his net was completely unprotected, and Moore had no problem finding the empty net to make the final score 5-2 for the Maple Leafs. The Leafs scored 5 goals in a span of 5:21 in the 3rd period. And that my friends, is the reverse-meltdown.

Wow. I am too lazy to look it up, but I can't help but wonder if that is some kind of record. Never have I seen so many goals scored so fast. The Toronto Maple Leafs never say die. The fact that this team just will not go away when they fall behind is making them one of the most exciting teams in the NHL to watch. Looks like somebody forgot to tell Ron Wilson that his team was supposed to be one of the worst in the league, because it doesnt look like he got that memo. The work ethic he has installed in these young Maple Leafs is a vast improvement over the lazy play of last year. He has worked hard to make his team better at every level than they were last season, and the Toronto Maple Leafs are showing those improvements every time they hit the ice. Of course, it doesn't hurt to get a bit of help from the phenomon known as the reverse-meltdown. Maybe from now on we should just start the game down 2 goals?