With key members of the club already out of the lineup, the Maple Leafs can ill afford any additional losses. In last night's 3-2 shootout victory in St. Louis, both winger Joffrey Lupul and defenseman Mike Komisarek were injured as a result of slashes and were unavailable for significant time during the game. Lupul took part in team practice this afternoon but left the ice early, while Komisarek; who had one of his better performances in his 2+ seasons last night, did not take to the ice.
Coach Ron Wilson indicated that both players should be ready to go for tomorrow night as the Leafs face the Ottawa Senators in the annual Hockey Hall Of Fame Induction night at the ACC, which should be extra special since three of the four inductees (Doug Gilmour, Joe Nieuwendyk and Ed Belfour) are former Maple Leafs. Former Aero, Whaler, Flyers and Red Wings defenseman Mark Howe is the other member of the Class of 2011.
Forward Tim Connolly also did not participate in practice today at the MasterCard Centre, but did skate with the Leafs strength and conditioning coach for almost an hour and should be about a week away from returning to the lineup.
******
In the world shrouded in secrecy also known as James Reimer's medical condition, things are apparently looking slightly more optimistic.
Reimer's agent Ray Petkau indicated to TSN last night that the 23-year-old netminder has started to feel better after experiencing irregular headaches.
Petkau stated that the cause of the headaches is still a mystery to himself and the Leafs medical staff, and that Reimer's baseline testing went well and did not indicate a concussion.
"We are 100 per cent confident the Leafs are handling this situation well and that includes James, his family and all involved."
The unknown factor is how long “soon” will be. Since the injury on October 22, Reimer has supposedly been close to getting back in the lineup on at least two occasions, only to pull back because the symptoms had returned.
Toronto leads the Northeast Division with a 10-5-1 record, but they do not have much of a cushion and face a daunting schedule of mostly road games for the rest of November.
Rookie Ben Scrivens repeated his impressive NHL debut in Columbus a week ago with another stellar 38 save performance against the Blues last night. He will undoubtedly be the starter tomorrow night against Ottawa, since Jonas Gustavsson has been underwhelming between the pipes. If Scrivens can build on these two impressive road starts and provide Toronto with stability in net in the short-term, then GM Brian Burke will not have to search for a veteran stopgap via free agency or trade.
******
For those who have served in the Canadian and US Armed Forces, for those families who have been deprived of spending time with their loved ones and for those heroes who gave their lives in defense of the freedom we all enjoy, we pay honor to you on this Remembrance Day and Veterans Day.
Follow me on Twitter: @mikeinbuffalo
If you are interested in sponsorship or advertising your business in the Greater Toronto / Southern Ontario area on this column, please send a message for more information by clicking on the “Contact” button at the top of the page.
KINDLE USERS: Please sign up for Maple Leafs Buzz. For more information
click here.
Toronto Maple Leafs Blogger • 
Join the Discussion:
»