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Classic NHL Rivalry Heats up for 5th Time This Season

The Montreal Canadiens are mired in their longest home losing streak in more than seven years. Facing red-hot Vesa Toskala and the Toronto Maple Leafs may extend that slide even further.

The Canadiens will try to notch a rare home win when they take on surging Maple Leafs on Saturday night.

Montreal (15-11-5) has lost six straight at the Bell Centre - including two shootouts - after starting the season 5-2-2 there. It’s the Canadiens’ longest home losing streak since a seven-game skid from Oct. 28-Nov. 25, 2000.

Finding the back of the net has been Montreal’s biggest problem at home recently, as it’s scored two regulation goals or less in five of six games. The Canadiens are 2-1-1 this season against the Maple Leafs (14-12-6), but they lost the one game played in Montreal 3-2 on Nov. 3.

Toskala made 32 saves for Toronto in that game, and is 2-0-1 with a 2.32 goals-against average in four career games versus the Canadiens. Toskala - in his first year with Toronto - is having his best stretch of the season, going 6-1-0 in his last seven games and allowing two goals or less in each of those contests.

“I’m seeing the puck well,” Toskala said. “Overall, I’m really comfortable. I’m having fun. That’s the key.”

Toskala continued his hot streak Friday, stopping 24 shots as the Maple Leafs beat Atlanta 4-0 in the opener of a season-high seven-game road trip. It was his second shutout of the season, and eighth of his career.

Montreal, though, is coming off a strong game on the road, getting two goals from Mark Streit in a 4-1 win over Philadelphia on Thursday. After playing defense in the early part of the season, Streit is now part of a forward line.

“I played defenseman for about 25 games because we had a couple of injuries,” said Streit, who scored his first goals in 22 games. “When the coach put me up front, I didn’t maybe shoot as much as I wanted to, but finally tonight I scored twice and it’s a great feeling for my confidence.”

Streit has four goals and 17 points on the season.

Montreal also got a strong game in goal from rookie Carey Price, who has made five straight starts in place of Cristobal Huet, sidelined by a groin injury. Price - the fifth overall pick in the 2005 draft - made 29 saves against the Flyers.

Price is 2-2-1 with a 2.74 GAA since Huet’s injury, and 2-0-0 with a 2.88 GAA in two career starts against Toronto. In his last matchup with the Maple Leafs, Price turned away four of Toronto’s five shootout attempts as Montreal won 4-3 on Nov. 27.

A sixth straight start for Price would pit him against a Toronto team that has scored six goals in two of its last three games. The Maple Leafs lead the NHL with 44 second-period goals, including two Friday.

Associated Press

The Penguins and their young offensive stars look to stay hot as they try for their longest winning streak of the season Saturday against the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Pittsburgh (11-11-2) closed out November with its third straight win Friday, beating the Dallas Stars 4-1. Sidney Crosby scored twice for his 13th and 14th goals of the season, and Evgeni Malkin added his third goal in four games to give him 10 on the year.

Crosby’s first goal came 24 seconds into the game.

Pittsburgh is looking to win four straight for the first time since March 24-29.

Like the Penguins, the Maple Leafs (9-11-6) struggled last month. They beat the Thrashers 4-2 on Thursday to snap a four-game losing streak and win for only the second time in nine games.

“It’s a start for our team,” coach Paul Maurice said. “I’m not trying to sell that we’re really happy about where we are. … We’re not by any means out of the woods or where we want to be. The important thing is that in that (dressing) room they understand what they did well, what we need to improve on, and have the confidence that they’re getting better.”

The four goals were the team’s most in 14 games, and the two goals Toronto gave up was the fewest it allowed in five games. The Maple Leafs have allowed a league-high 92 goals this season, but they believe they can improve.

“When you’re confident, you’re doing the right things more often on the ice,” goalie Vesa Toskala said. “you feel more relaxed. It’s like a snowball.”

Toskala recorded 18 saves on Thursday for his first win since beating Ottawa on Nov. 17. He is 7-8-3 with a 3.10 goals-against average in his first season with the Maple Leafs.

Toskala, who spent the previous five seasons with San Jose, is 2-1-0 with a 3.02 GAA in his career against the Penguins.

The Penguins and Maple Leafs have split their first two meetings this season, with each winning on the road. The last four games in Toronto have featured plenty of offense, with the teams combining for 38 goals.

Associated Press

nhl.com

Ferguson not about to make changes to Maple Leafs

It didn’t get much better for Leafs goalie Vesa Toskala after he replaced Andrew Raycroft who gave up two goals in the first 10 minutes of the game. The Leafs lost 5-1 to Phoenix.
Steady as she goes for listing club despite ugly outing against Phoenix

Nov 25, 2007 04:30 AM
Mark Zwolinski
Sports Reporter
GLENDALE, ARIZ. – Leafs GM John Ferguson emerged from an hour-long, post-game meeting with coach Paul Maurice last night to announce that the club will stay the course with its coaching staff and roster.

After an alarmingly bad performance in a 5-1 loss to Phoenix at the Jobing.com Arena, there was a strong sense that something had to give.

But Ferguson expressed confidence in his roster and the team’s ability to turn around what is now a three-game losing streak and losses in six of the last seven games.

“We sat here tonight and talked about a lot of different things, and it is a time now when we are not getting things done we need to get done,” Ferguson said.

“We addressed … that we need to get more out of the group we have.”

That seemed a stunning appraisal to critics who had just watched the Leafs’ performance.

While they’ve ruined good efforts with giveaways during their current funk, this was the first time this season the Leafs had the look of a team that knew it had no chance from the start.

But Ferguson was joined by Leafs captain Mats Sundin and the rest of the players in giving a vote of confidence to Maurice.

“I think Paul Maurice has done a great job since he’s been here … the results are because of the players on the ice,” Sundin said after last night’s loss.

“Paul Maurice has done everything he can to prepare the players and what’s going on in games has nothing to do with him.”

As for his job security, Ferguson said his focus is strictly on the team and bettering its performance and results.

“I don’t, not at all,” Ferguson said when asked if he’s worried about losing his job.

“All our focus is on competing with other teams, with getting into the top eight and going from there. And right now it’s an ongoing challenge.”

The biggest challenge remains goaltending, something which is tied directly to Ferguson’s off-season moves over the past two years.

Last night, Andrew Raycroft allowed goals by Daniel Winnik and Peter Mueller off big rebounds. Maurice yanked him after the second goal, and there was no denying afterwards that the well-liked Raycroft had not performed up to expectations.

“Obviously, Andrew has to be better than he was tonight,” Ferguson said.

“But that goes the same for every one of our players. Our standards are high, the standards in the league are high, and he (Raycroft) has to be better.”

The Leafs weren’t in the game from the opening faceoff, and when Steve Reinprecht scored on the first shot replacement goalie Vesa Toskala faced, things were about as bad as they have been all season.

Kyle Wellwood’s slap shot goal breathed some life into the game for the Leafs, but Derek Morris scored less than two minutes later for Phoenix.

Darcy Tucker and Mark Bell dropped the gloves for spirited bouts to show the Leafs had at least some character in the face of their poor play.

Afterwards, the players staged a meeting in their dressing room to address not only their weak effort last night, but the predicament brought on by their growing winless streak.

While they are just three games under .500, they have won only eight games in their first 24 – a streak of futility that, if continued, will leave them well shy of a playoff berth.

“Losing is never fun, and it’s part of the business to have to answer for losing,” Sundin said.

“We’re in a winning business. You have to win to stay in it and we’re not winning right now. We’re in a rut, a funk, but we’ve been there before. And good teams find way to get out of it.

We have something like 60 games left, and as a group, we have to get on the right side of the line. So far, we haven’t had the right things go our way. But I wouldn’t call it rock bottom. No … we have to realize what it takes to win in this league, and go out as a group and do it.”

http://www.thestar.com/NHL/MapleLeafs/article/279672

Coyotes 5, Maple Leafs 1

GLENDALE, Ariz. (AP) -Ilya Bryzgalov has fit in perfectly in goal for coach Wayne Gretzky’s Phoenix Coyotes.

Bryzgalov made 25 saves for his fourth straight victory since joining Phoenix after being claimed off waivers from Anaheim, leading the Coyotes to a 5-1 victory over the Toronto Maple Leafs on Saturday night.

“He is truly one of the pieces of this puzzle,” Gretzky said. “He’s helped us turn this team around, and maybe our franchise. It’s only four games and we have a long way to go. It’s a nice start for him.”

Bryzgalov has allowed only six goals in Phoenix’s four-game winning streak, its longest since a seven-game run last Dec. 26-Jan. 9.

“Our players feel pretty good right now,” Gretzky said. “Sure, we’ve win four in a row. The last time I’ve checked, however, that doesn’t win you too many rings.”

Toronto has lost four of its last five.

“Right now, this team is in a funk, and good teams found ways to get out of situations like this,” Leafs captain Mats Sundin said. “Teams find out what it takes to win, and that’s what faces us. No, we have not hit rock bottom, and have 60 games left to turn this thing around.”

The Coyotes scored four goals in the first period, two in an 18-second span.

Daniel Winnik opened the scoring at 4:16, and Peter Mueller then beat Andrew Raycroft to the short side at 8:24. At that point, Toronto coach Paul Maurice pulled Raycroft for Vesa Toskala.

“I didn’t like that first goal and made the change,” Maurice said. “But that was not the story. We didn’t move our feet, and that’s a big part of the game.”

Toskala allowed a goal on the first shot he faced, with Steven Reinprecht firing a wrist shot under the crossbar and over the goalie’s glove hand at 8:42.

Kyle Wellwood countered for Toronto, but Derrick Morris made it 4-1 with 1:57 left.

“We’re not playing the way we are capable,” Toronto Darcy Tucker said. “If everyone works hard, we can turn this around. Our responsibility is to be accountable, and we all know what needs to be done.”

Radim Vrbata completed the scoring at 2:05 of the second period. With a goal and assist, Vrbata has five points in the past two goals.

“Sometimes, you have to be lucky and be in the right spot at the right time,” Vrbata said. “Before these two games, I didn’t think I had a point in six. Now, I’m hot and the puck has found me.”

Notes: Toronto’s Jason Blake has failed to score in 16 straight games. His assist on the Leafs’ lone goal was his first point since an assist Nov. 2 at New Jersey. … The Coyotes will play 10 of their next 12 on the road, including a six-game road trip. … The announced crowd of 17,190 was the Coyotes’ second largest of the season.

Associated Press

nhl.com

The Ottawa Senators started building momentum when they opened the season by sweeping the Toronto Maple Leafs in a home-and-home series. They’ve been nearly unbeatable since.

The Senators look to set a franchise record with their eighth straight victory and continue their recent dominance of the Maple Leafs when the Northeast Division rivals meet on Tuesday at Scotiabank Place.

One season after going to the Stanley Cup finals for the first time in franchise history, the Senators (12-1-0) have emerged as the NHL’s best team.

It all began when Dany Heatley scored his second goal of the game with 2:03 left in overtime to give the Senators a 4-3 win at Toronto on Oct. 3. The next night, Daniel Alfredsson provided the winner with 4:59 left in a 3-2 home victory for Ottawa.

The Senators opened with five straight victories before falling 5-3 at home to Carolina on Oct. 11. Since that defeat, they’ve won a franchise record-tying seven in a row, previously set from Oct. 25-Nov. 13, 2001.

Ottawa completed another home-and-home sweep Sunday, this time winning 2-1 in a shootout at Boston. Antoine Vermette scored the winner in the shootout after his short-handed goal early in the third period tied the game.

The Senators went a season-worst 0-for-6 on the power play after scoring three times in six opportunities with the man advantage in Saturday’s 3-2 home win over the Bruins.

“I wouldn’t say it was unorthodox, but to score a short-handed goal after having so many power-play opportunities and not really either finishing or looking very good,” Senators coach John Paddock said after Sunday’s victory. “To tie it short-handed, it’s just a good ‘find a way to win’ game.”

Martin Gerber earned his NHL-leading ninth win, making two saves in the shootout after stopping 21 shots in regulation and overtime. Gerber, who has displaced Ray Emery as Ottawa’s starter, is 19-1-2 with a 2.01 goals-against average in 22 appearances since last Dec. 23.

Toronto (6-6-3) opened a four-game road trip with a 3-2 loss to New Jersey on Friday, but avoided a third straight defeat Saturday as Matt Stajan scored with 1:34 left in the third period to give the Leafs a 3-2 win at Montreal.

“I thought coming into this building on a Saturday night on back-to-back nights, with them rested and them rolling the way they are, to win in regulation, it’s a great outing for us,” Toronto coach Paul Maurice said.

The Maple Leafs, whose 57 goals against are tied with Atlanta for the most in the NHL, improved to 5-0-0 when allowing fewer than three scores.

“We played two good road games this weekend but, unfortunately, we only got two points,” goalie Vesa Toskala said. “But I like how we played. I felt pretty good. I got a little lucky a couple of times.”

Heatley has 23 goals and 43 points against Toronto, both career bests against any opponent. Jason Spezza has a goal and 13 assists during a seven-game point streak against the Leafs, but he’s missed Ottawa’s last three contests with a slight groin pull.

The Senators are 14-2-2, including 7-1-1 at home, against the Maple Leafs since the start of the 2005-06 season.

Forward Mark Bell will make his debut for Toronto on Tuesday after completing a 15-game suspension for a drinking and driving incident. Kyle Wellwood, who has been sidelined after having surgery for a sports hernia, is also likely to make his season debut.

Associated Press

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