Listen to the March 13th Edition of Leaf Buzz tonight with CTV London's Norman James and myself talking about the Leafs, Jake Gardiner and the trade deadline possibilities.
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We'll be taking questions in the Talkshoe chat room at 10pm
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The Maple Leafs put forth their worst performance of the 2013 season as Blake Wheeler scored two goals and ex-Leafs Nik Antropov and Kyle Wellwood combined for five points in the Jets 5-2 victory over Toronto at the MTS Center in Winnipeg on Tuesday.
The loss was the Blue and White’s third in a row and narrowed the gap between them and the ninth place Jets to three points in the Eastern Conference standings.
Toronto was only on an equal footing with the home club from a physical standpoint, as enforcer Colton Orr battled Winnipeg tough guy Chris Thorburn and team captains Dion Phaneuf and Andrew Ladd exchanged punches in the opening twenty minutes, but the Jets clearly had the advantage in puck possession, offensive chances and special teams.
The Leafs trailed 1-0 after twenty minutes thanks to Antropov’s second goal of the season on the power play, but responded with the tying goal just 38 seconds into the middle frame, as Phil Kessel’s stick snapping shot snuck past Jets goaltender Ondrej Pavelec.
Toronto tried to capitalize on the Jets being back on their heels seconds after tying the game, but the line of Mikhail Grabovski, Nikolai Kulemin and Matt Frattin did not convert and got caught deep in the offensive zone, allowing a Winnipeg counterattack that resulted in Blake Wheeler’s ninth goal of the season.
The turning point of the game came midway through the second, as Antropov and Mark Stuart took minor penalties six seconds apart and gave the Leafs a 1:54 two man advantage. As has been the case for most of the season, The Toronto power play was unable to move the puck quick enough to generate premium scoring chances during the 5 on 3 and registered only two shots on Pavelec. The momentum derived from the key penalty kill led to the Jets increasing their lead to 3-1, as Wellwood, scored his second of the season.
The Leafs could not narrow the lead in the second and the first half of the third, as Carlyle sat the Grabovski line for a long stretch and gave the fourth line of Orr, McClement and Frazer McLaren more ice time.
The Jets put the game away and chased Reimer midway through the third as Evander Kane undressed Korbinian Holzer and scored his eleventh of the year. Former Bruins and U.of Minnesota teammates Wheeler and Kessel scored their second goals of the game to round out the scoring.
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The Twitter universe was abuzz after the completion of the Leafs – Jets game on Tuesday, as agent Ben Hankinson (representative for defenseman Jake Gardiner) took to the social media site and proclaimed “#FreeJakeGardiner”, which is likely in reference to the young blueliner’s extended stint with the Toronto Marlies.
There was no further explanation of the tweet from Gardiner’s representative this morning, but the brief statement is undoubtedly an expression of his client’s frustration at remaining with the Leafs AHL affilitate, rather than being back with the Leafs, where he had a very successful rookie campaign.
Gardiner’s demotion originally was a product of circumstance, as he was not in game shape after being inactive for over a month due to a concussion suffered against the Rochester Americans in early December. The 22 year old was demoted after playing two games with the Leafs and has slowly regained his confidence and offensive joie de vivre over the last month, but he remains with the AHL club because of roster considerations and the fact that the blueline with the parent club had been playing well.
Only recently has the play of former Marlie farmhands Holzer and Mike Kostka begun to cause concern and raise the question of when Gardiner will be called up.
Gardiner is clearly one of the six most talented defensemen in the organization. In fact, he may have the most upside, but with veterans John-Michael Liles and Mike Komisarek sitting in the press box, it is more likely that one of them would step back into the lineup if Carlyle decides to shake up his pairings.
What has to be factored into the current situation is that Gardiner is on his entry level deal and because of the number of games played so far, does not have to clear waivers, while everyone on the Leafs blueline with the exception of Holzer would be exposed. With the impending return of the injured Joffrey Lupul, the demotion of Holzer makes the most sense, with Liles or Komisarek getting back into the lineup.
This situation will likely be resolved within the next couple weeks, as it is expected that GM Dave Nonis will make a deal or two before the April 3rd deadline, but protestations from player agents will likely not have any effect on his timetable.
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