To say that last night’s game between the Toronto Maple Leafs and the Buffalo Sabres was a must-win situation for the Leafs would be a severe understatement. Sitting 6 points back of the 8th and final playoff spot, and with the Sabres having a game in hand, a loss would have meant the Leafs would have fallen 8 points behind, with just 13 games remaining, and would have allowed the Atlanta Thrashers to pass them once again, dropping into 11th. The deficit may well have been insurmountable.
In their typical fashion, the Leafs gave up the first goal of the game, as a Mike Weber point shot found its way through a screened James Reimer to give the Sabres a 1-0 lead. The Leafs would strike back later in the period, as Clarke MacArthur’s wrist shot from the left slot banked in off the outer post behind Ryan Miller to tie the game at 1 going into the second period.
The Leafs came out strong to start the second, leading to a Tyler Bozak breakaway. Ryan Miller shut the door on Bozak’s deke attempt, but the Leafs were able to maintain pressure on that shift, and it eventually led to Bozak receiving a Phil Kessel pass in front of the goal and lifting the puck over Miller’s pad to give the Leafs the lead. It would prove to be short lived, as just 50 seconds later, Jochen Hecht scored on a rebound to tie the game at 2. Then, an old Leafs tradition reared it’s head once again as they gave up a power play goal on their only penalty of the game to give the Sabres a 3-2 lead at the end of the second.
With their season on the line, the Leafs came out firing on all cylinders in the third, led by captain Dion Phaneuf. He controlled the play from the point, eventually getting the puck to Carl Gunnarsson, who fed Mikhail Grabovski for a one-timer to tie the game. Feeding off the building momentum and the energized crowd, the Leafs were quick to take over and were rewarded as a snap shot by Phil Kessel banked in off a defender to give the Leafs a 4-3 lead.
James Reimer, who had been busy up to this point, was called upon once again to make several key saves, and the Leafs held on for a 4-3 victory, beating the Sabres in regulation time. Reimer made 39 saves on 42 shots to earn the game’s first star honours. Dion Phaneuf had one assist and finished a +3. Phil Kessel contributed a goal and an assist. The Leafs key players came up big when the team needed them the most.
And while last night’s game was arguably the most important of the season for the Leafs, this week’s schedule should tell the tale a little more closely, as key matchups include the Hurricanes and Sabres, Thrashers and Devils, and the Islanders and Rangers on Tuesday. The Leafs will control their own fate with games against the Lightning, Hurricanes and Panthers this week. Can the Leafs continue to defy expectations and edge closer and closer to a post-season berth? Can the Leafs hold off the advances of the Thrashers and Devils?
It’s been a while since there’s been this much excitement surrounding the Leafs position in the standings. Just a few weeks ago there wasn’t much of a playoff race in the Eastern conference at all. Recent stumbles by the Rangers, Hurricanes and Thrashers, as well as solid play by the Leafs, Devils and Sabres have just about made this a six team race for two spots. Needless to say, the odds are stacked against them, but the Leafs might just like it that way.
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Born and raised in Northern Ontario but currently living in Toronto, Tyler wouldn't have it any other way. Home to his two favourite sports teams, Tyler revels in the day to day sports experience that is Toronto. 