tonytalkssports My Take on Sports, particularly the Yankees, Maple Leafs and Browns

Kessel, Reimer Leads Leafs In 3-0 Win

Phil Kessel and James Reimer led the Toronto Maple Leafs to a 3-2 win over the Calgary Flames boosting the Leafs record to 3-0. After falling behind 2-0 in a first period which saw the Leafs look rather sluggish, the Leafs started their comeback on a goal from Joffrey Lupul who was set up on a nice pass from Phil Kessel. Kessel was not done as he scored at the 16:38 mark on a beautiful shot that beat Mikka Kiprusoff. And then early in the third, Kessel drove hard to the net and scored his second goal of the night which put the Leafs ahead to stay. Kessel picked up where he left off last week and was the most dangerous player on the ice.

After falling behind 2-0, James Reimer was solid in the net as he turned aside whatever the Flames threw at him. But the best save of the night was late in the third period with Phil Kessel in the penalty box and the Flames net empty, Alex Tanguay had a beautiful opportunity alone in front of the net and somehow Reimer stoned him preserving the victory. The Reiminister of Defense made 30 saves to post his third win of the season. Can't believe that some were questioning Reimer after the first period as he had no chance on the first Calgary goal.

There were a number of players who impressed me tonight. Tyler Bozak was very good tonight as he had two assists and was a dynamo on face-offs. He also made some excellent defensive plays particularly one on Jerome Iginla which ended up resulting in Kessel's first goal. Bozak's play has to make you wonder why the Leafs would move him off the first line when Tim Connolly comes back.

I was extremely impressed with Matt Frattin tonight. While he didn't score a goal, he was a force inside the Flames end and really uses his body along the boards. He had a couple of good scoring chances, including ringing one off the crossbar has he was coming to the end of a shift that he worked his butt off. I don't see how this kid can be sent down to the Marlies.

Joffrey Lupul also played very well tonight and he has 5 points in 3 games. Lupul seems to really have developed a chemistry with Phil Kessel and if he can stay healthy, the Beauchemin trade will even tilt more in the Leafs favor.

Carl Gunnarsson was very solid on defense tonight. There have been plenty of rumors that the Leafs were showcasing Gunnarsson and if he continues to play like he did tonight he could be a very marketable commodity. I've always liked Gunnarsson and I would be just as happy if the Leafs held on to him. The play of David Steckel and Matthew Lombardi certainly has made the Leafs penalty killing much better. Their ability to win face-offs gives Ron Wilson plenty of options when it comes time to take a big draw in their own end. I also thought Dion Phaneuf was solid as was John-Michael Liles.

The Leaf power play continues to sputter as it had a couple of two man advantages and came up empty along with an extended power play as a result of a four minute high sticking penalty against Oli Jokinen. The coaches need to come up with something different because what they have going is not working. I would love to see David Steckel on the power play. Put him in front of the net and it will be very difficult for their opponents to move him out. The other thing may be to put a Colby Armstrong or a Matt Frattin upfront to create space. I was really hoping with having a week to work on special teams that we would really see some progress with the power play however that was not the case tonight. This is an area that the Leafs must improve particularly when they face some of the Eastern Conference toughies.

The Leafs next game will be Monday against the Colorado Avalanche, who defeated the Montreal Canadiens tonight 6-5 in a shootout. It's a game that the Leafs can win but they will have to be on their game as the Avs have some offensive weapons. They need to have this effort every night if they are to make the playoffs. Until Monday night, GO LEAFS GO!!!!!