Everything Leafs.

HNIC Preview: Leafs vs Canadiens [Jan 21 2012]

2012-01-21T12:16:00.000-08:00

Leafs (23-18-5, 9th in East) vs. Habs (17-21-9, 12th in East)

GAME TIME: 7:00pm EST
TV BROADCAST: CBC
RADIO BROADCAST: AM640

Courtesy Google Images

It doesn't get any better than this folks, a Saturday night at the ACC, Hockey Night in Canada classic, between arguably the biggest rivalry in the NHL, the Toronto Maple Leafs, and the Montreal Canadiens. The Leafs are coming into the game tonight on a high note after a great performance Thursday night, thumping the Wild 4-1 at the ACC. The Habs, on the other hand, are coming into the game in a slump, losing five of their last six games. No matter what the standings say, a game between these two clubs are always filled with excitement, and a playoff atmosphere. The roar of the ACC after a Leafs goal, the excitement in the players' goal celebration, and even the poor attempt of an "ole'ole'ole" chant from the Habs fans will always send chills down my spine, because this shows that hockey isn't just a game; its a passion.

With a win tonight (and a Florida loss), the blue-and-white will leap frog their way into a playoff spot. Jonas Gustavsson is expected to make his second consecutive start tonight, as Reimer will watch from the bench in a backup role. No line changes are expected to be made, as Lupul notched 3 assists against the Wild from the third line, and was named the "assistant captain" on Team Chara at the 2012 All-Star game. Coach Wilson seems to like idea of spreading out the talent amongst the top 3 lines, rather than having 2 scoring lines and 2 checking lines.

Projected Lines:

Lombardi-Bozak-Kessel
MacArthur-Grabovski-Kulemin
Lupul-Connolly-Kadri
Crabb-Steckel-Brown

Phaneuf-Schenn
Gunnarsson-Komisarek
Gardiner-Franson

Gustavsson
Reimer

Go Leafs Go!

Highlights: Leafs vs Wild [Jan 19th 2012]

2012-01-20T12:06:00.001-08:00

Courtesy: www.youtube.com/NHLvideo

Leafs end a 3-game losing skid with a 4-1 win over the Wild

2012-01-19T19:13:00.000-08:00

Leafs win 4-1 over the Wild in convincing fashion at the Air Canada Centre on Thursday night. A game in which both teams needed the two points to inch closer to a playoff spot. The Leafs took control early with goals coming from Kadri and Crabb, and headed into the intermission with a 2-0 lead. In the second, Clutterbuck makes an awfully blunt slash that lead to a 5-on-3 Leafs PP, and just as the first penalty expired Kessel tapped in his 25th goal of the season to extend the lead to 3-0. Heading into the third, the blue-and-white showing complete dominance over this game, Grabovski scores a tricky goal as it was deflected off his skate and into the back of the net. The original call on the ice was no goal, but after further review the goal was given and Mikhail had his 15th of the season. Gustavsson played a solid game, other than a puck-handling brain fart which nearly lead to a goal, and a late goal by Johnson which snuck between his arm and the post. The shutout was there for him but it was his own fault he lost it. Captain Phaneuf lead the Leafs with just under 27 minutes of playing time in this 4-1 win.

I personally thought the Leafs took total control of this game right from the start. The two quick goals drained the Wild, and they showed no signs of life throughout the game. The third line consisting of Lupul, Connolly and Kadri played great as their creative puck handling skills seemed to compliment each other. Lupul had a great night tallying 3 assists and a plus-3 rating. The defence was solid, and made simple plays to get the puck up and out of our end. Speciality teams played good, scoring once out of six powerplay attempts, and killing off the only short-handed stint. There's one thing about our PP that bothers me, and that's the cross-ice pace on the half boards. It never seems to work, always getting intercepted by a stick in the middle, I'd much rather see a simple pass that gets to the target. However, we came out with the win, and the crucial two points in the race for the playoffs, one point behind 8th-place Florida, and I'm happy.

The Leafs are in action again on Saturday at the ACC against the bottom-feeding Montreal Canadiens.

Don't stop beLeafing.

Leafs vs. Wild - January 19, 2012

2012-01-19T11:45:00.000-08:00

Leafs (22-18-5, 9th in East) vs. Wild (22-17-7, 9th in West)

Both teams coming into this game needing a win to bounce right back in to the playoff mix. Leafs Jonas Gustavsson gets the nod tonight from Ron Wilson. Also looks like Aulie will be the odd-man out on the blueline tonight while birthday boy Mike Komisarek, who turns 30 will be playing. John-Michael Liles and Colby Armstrong practised today, inching closer to return, Armstrong says he hopes to play a game before the All-Star break. Another interesting move by Wilson, Lombardi gets the promotion to the 1st line along-side Kessel and Bozak, while Lupul gets demoted to the 3rd line. Yes, you read that correctly, the NHL's 11th best leading point scorer is playing third line minutes tonight. Could be very interesting to see how Lombardi's speed will open up space for Kessel. I understand that Lombardi's been playing great the past few games, but has he really been playing good enough to get the first line promotion? Personally don't like this move, but with Wilson behind the bench, you've learned by now to expect the unexpected.

Toronto's lines:

Lombardi-Bozak-Kessel
MacArthur-Grabovski-Kulemin
Lupul-Connolly-Kadri *should be a very crafty line, hopefully they click.
Crabb-Steckel-Brown

Phaneuf-Schenn
Gunnarsson-Komisarek
Gardiner-Franson

Gustavsson
Reimer

Go Leafs Go!

photogallery.thestar.com

2011-2012 Leafs Roster

2012-01-19T10:56:00.000-08:00

# NAME Ht. Wt. D.O.B. AGE PLACE OF BIRTH

9	COLBY ARMSTRONG "A" **	6' 2"	195	23 NOV 1982	29	LLOYDMINSTER, SK, CAN
47	DARRYL BOYCE	6' 0"	200	7 JUL 1984	27	SUMMERSIDE, PE, CAN
42	TYLER BOZAK	6' 1"	195	19 MAR 1986	25	REGINA, SK, CAN
18	MIKE BROWN	5' 11"	205	24 JUN 1985	26	CHICAGO, IL, USA
12	TIM CONNOLLY	6' 1"	190	7 MAY 1981	30	SYRACUSE, NY, USA
46	JOEY CRABB	6' 1"	190	3 APR 1983	28	ANCHORAGE, AK, USA
11	PHILIPPE DUPUIS	6' 0"	196	24 APR 1985	26	LAVAL, QC, CAN
39	MATT FRATTIN	6' 0"	200	3 JAN 1988	24	EDMONTON, AB, CAN
84	MIKHAIL GRABOVSKI "A"	5' 11"	183	31 JAN 1984	27	POTSDAM, DEU
43	NAZEM KADRI	6' 0"	188	6 OCT 1990	21	LONDON, ON, CAN
81	PHIL KESSEL	6' 0"	202	2 OCT 1987	24	MADISON, WI, USA
41	NIKOLAI KULEMIN	6' 1"	225	14 JUL 1986	25	MAGNITOGORSK, RUS
15	MATTHEW LOMBARDI	5' 11"	195	18 MAR 1982	29	MONTREAL, QC, CAN
19	JOFFREY LUPUL	6' 1"	206	23 SEP 1983	28	FORT SASKATCHEWAN, AB, CAN
16	CLARKE MACARTHUR	6' 0"	191	6 APR 1985	26	LLOYDMINSTER, AB, CAN
38	JAY ROSEHILL	6' 3"	215	16 JUL 1985	26	OLDS, AB, CAN
20	DAVID STECKEL	6' 6"	215	15 MAR 1982	29	MILWAUKEE, WI, USA

59	KEITH AULIE	6' 6"	217	11 JUN 1989	22	ROULEAU, SK, CAN
4	CODY FRANSON	6' 5"	213	8 AUG 1987	24	SALMON ARM, BC, CAN
51	JAKE GARDINER	6' 1"	173	4 JUL 1990	21	DEEPHAVEN, MN, USA
36	CARL GUNNARSSON	6' 2"	196	9 NOV 1986	25	OREBRO, SWE
8	MIKE KOMISAREK "A"	6' 4"	243	19 JAN 1982	30	WEST ISLIP, NY, USA
24	JOHN-MICHAEL LILES **	5' 10"	185	25 NOV 1980	31	INDIANAPOLIS, IN, USA
3	DION PHANEUF "C"	6' 3"	214	10 APR 1985	26	EDMONTON, AB, CAN
2	LUKE SCHENN	6' 2"	229	2 NOV 1989	22	SASKATOON, SK, CAN

50	JONAS GUSTAVSSON	6' 3"	192	24 OCT 1984	27	DANDERYD, SWE
34	JAMES REIMER	6' 2"	208	15 MAR 1988	23	MORWEENA, MB, CAN

Source: http://mapleleafs.nhl.com/club/roster.htm

Who am I?

2012-01-19T10:28:00.000-08:00

Hello fellow beleafers,

I'm a high school student, who shares a passion for the Leafs like no other. I've been a Leafs fan for as long as I can remember, and this blog will share my opinions on the team, as well as news regarding trades, game-day lineups, roster moves, and basically every piece of Leafs information I can get.

Hope you enjoy the blog as much as I will enjoy writing it.

Go Leafs Go, and keep beLeafing.