Sunday, December 5, 2010

That was better!


That win against the Bruins was unique for this young Leaf team in many ways. Not just because they actually won a game because these moments have been rare but there were so many positives coming out of the game.
  • Phil Kessel actually scored a goal against the Bruins although it won't count in the stats because it was in shootout.
  • Nazem Kadri scored an electrifying goal on his backhand in the shootout that scored high in the WOW category. He also made some incredibly plays while on the powerplay and showed that he will be a key player in the future.
  • J-S Giguere matched the goaltending clinic demonstrated by Tim Thomas on the other end of the rink.
  • The Leafs played with a very high level of intensity and only Thomas kept this game close. Which leads to the question why not every night?
  • Kessel looked good at centre. With the Leaf's glaring weakness at centre I was pretty sure we would eventually see him moved there.
  • It was fun watch Colby Armstrong battling Charo in front of the net. I felt earlier in the season that all the first line mutations lacked grit and Armstrong was a logical player to move onto the line with Kessel.
  • The forwards backchecked.
  • The fans will get behind the team if they play hard.
  • Carl Gunnarsson scored a goal which was the first goal by a Leaf defenseman in quite a while.
These Leafs are frustrating because we have no idea when we will see a game like this out of them. I'm not sure if this is just a reflection on their youth, the coaching or just a bad team. Or maybe this is an example of how even a blind squirrel finds the occasional nut.

What a beautiful shootout goal by Kadri:



The winner by Kessel:



What should have been the winner in overtime:

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