The Maple Leafs did not get blown out of the building by the San Jose Sharks on Monday, but the difference in the 4-2 loss was the Pacific Division leader’s ability to seize on Toronto’s penchant for playing passively and taking lazy penalties.
The Leafs played effectively early in the game, but any confidence or progress was derailed as Frazer McLaren took the first of three Toronto minor penalties in the first for retaliating against San Jose’s Andrew Desjardins after a clean hit on Jerred Smithson. Toronto killed off the penalty, but the Sharks used the power play as a springboard and spent most of remaining minutes of the period cycling the puck in the offensive zone which led to former Leaf Mike Brown’s opening goal and a 5-on-3 power play that extended their lead to 2-0.
Toronto came out for the second with renewed purpose and tied the game on the strength of power play goals from Raymond and Phil Kessel, but the Sharks turned the game around with one shift late in the middle frame, as the Leafs fourth line of Smithson, McLaren and Colton Orr could not extricate the puck out of their own zone for close to two minutes. San Jose was able to hold onto the puck and get fresh players on the ice while maintaining possession, which inevitably led to Brad Stuart’s game winning goal.
The Sharks strength up the middle against Toronto’s short-handed center corps was integral to the victory, as the Leafs were without Nazem Kadri, who was unavailable due to the death of his grandfather and lost Tyler Bozak midway through the second period with an upper body injury. Potential 2014 Olympians Joe Thornton and Logan Couture had goals and Joe Pavelski had one assist, while Bozak assisted on Kessel’s tying goal before leaving for the night.
The concerns for Toronto continue to be the increasing amount of injuries they are dealing with. Bozak is having an MRI to determine the severity of his injury, Orr has an elbow injury and Kessel asked to be excused from practice at the ACC Wednesday morning with an undisclosed injury.
The Leafs situation up the middle is perilous in the wake of their difficult December schedule. Bozak’s status is uncertain, Kadri has underachieved for most of the season, Peter Holland has not seemed out of place but has not made a significant impact thus far, McClement is purely a defensive forward and was hobbled in Montreal over the weekend, Trevor Smith has played much better than expected for someone who before this season had played all but 24 games of his career in the AHL and Smithson has been so ineffective that the club placed him on waivers.
Sportsnet’s Nick Kypreos reported on Tuesday that injured center Dave Bolland could be back on the ice before the end of December and conceivably be back in the Leafs lineup shortly after the New Year. The two-time Stanley Cup winner suffered an ankle tendon tear on November 2 in Vancouver, which would put him at seven or eight weeks out from the injury.
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