Almost six months to the day of their epic playoff collapse, James Reimer and the rest of the Toronto Maple Leafs returned to the scene of the crime.
The victim: The playoff hopes and dreams of the 2012-13 Maple Leafs. The assailant: The Boston Bruins, namely two-way centermen and playoff hero, Patrice Bergeron. And legend has it that if you look closely towards the ice, you’ll still see the chalk outline of Reimer’s outstretched frame, beaten by Bergeron in the first overtime of last year’s unforgettable Game 7.
For the Leafs, second in the Atlantic and with 11 wins in their first 16 games of the year, ‘revenge’ for their playoff loss wasn’t possible with a potential Nov. victory in Boston. But sending the Black-and-Gold a message that simply says that you’re not going away anytime was. But despite a Frazer McLaren bout with the Bruins’ Adam McQuaid just under two minutes into the game, the Leafs’ ability to hang with the B’s simply wasn’t there in the first period.
“I didn’t think we had a very good start to the game, they were all over us,… said Toronto bench boss Randy Carlyle. “ We didn’t do a lot of things, and from a physical standpoint we didn’t get involved early.… Surrendering 21 shot attempts to the B’s in the first period -- attributed largely to a near two-minute shift spent in the Toronto zone from the Krejci line and defensemen Dougie Hamilton -- the Leafs stood tall, but simply couldn’t stay bulletproof on enemy ice.
On the penalty-kill when a completely gassed Jay McClement was called for a hold on Milan Lucic, some slick play-making from (who else but) Torey Krug down to Jarome Iginla and then to Zdeno Chara was enough to give the Boston captain an empty cage to fire home his third of the year. Giving Big Z three net-front power-play goals in 2013, and putting the Bruins up 1-0 after 20 minutes of play, the ice tilted with a strong Leafs response in the middle frame, and with Boston on the long change with five defensemen due to a McQuaid injury.
Flying at the Bruins with 18 second period shots on goal (and 26 attempts), the Leafs knotted things up behind noted Bruin-killer Joffrey Lupul’s eight goal of the year, and set the stage for yet another epic third period between the Leafs and Bruins.
That was until a dumb (and late) second period penalty from James van Riemsdyk left the Maple Leafs hit with a four-minute kill, and forced ‘em to open the third with just four skaters.
Beginning the period with 2:40 left on van Riemsdyk’s penalty, Bergeron and the Bruins proved to only need 66 seconds to make JVR and the rest of the Maple Leafs pay.
With Reimer down and out in the crease, B’s forward Carl Soderberg calmly flipped the puck to Bergeron, giving the Bruins yet another open cage, and more than enough room for No. 37’s first goal since Oct. 30’s loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins.
Two power-play goals in one game? What kind of witchcraft is this?
“It’s something that we’ve worked on for a few years now and now it seems to be clicking. Obviously that helps the team a lot,… Bergeron said of the club’s revamped and suddenly potent power-play unit. “That’s something that we’ve talked a lot about and that we needed to be better at. So far it’s been good. We’ve got to keep building on that and PK is the same thing.…
Seizing control of the Leafs’ attack, and crushing Toronto with each entry into the Boston zone -- with huge (and questionably high) hits on Dion Phaneuf and Mason Raymond -- the Bruins were able to successfully on Tuukka Rask and his 33 saves to keep Toronto at bay, while Bergeron’s second of the night, an empty-netter, sealed the deal on a 3-1 win in the Hub.
Bergeron! Bergeron!: B’s center appearing to get second line firing
Whether it’s been because of injuries, slumps, or anything else thrown the B’s way in 2013, the second line, anchored by two-way center Patrice Bergeron, has been a painfully slow work in progress. But with the line striking with goals in two straight games, we might be watching the trio of ultra-talented forwards break towards the light at the end of the tunnel.
I mean, let’s be honest-- The raw talent of Bergeron, Loui Eriksson, and Brad Marchand is too good to be this cold for this long.
“I felt his line as a whole was coming along but they weren’t producing at the rate that we think they can. I think [Brad] Marchand is playing better now; he’s starting to skate a little bit more so that’s made a difference. Loui [Eriksson]’s coming back and I thought Loui skated better tonight too,… a pleased Julien said after the club’s second straight win. “So slowly but surely that line is getting better and because of that, I think Patrice [Bergeron] is benefiting from that as well. It’s good to have some good teammates around you. I thought he did a great job at being at the right spot there on that power play goal and again in the right place when the empty net was available to him.…
The middle: Leafs continue to lessen talent-gap with Boston
Entering tonight's contest, the Bruins had won 20 of their last 28 contests against the Maple Leafs. To say that their head-to-head was 'one-sided' would be putting it lightly.
But these aren't your Bruins vs. Leafs gongshows of two years ago. The Leafs, led by former Bruin Phil Kessel and two strong goaltenders, can certainly hang with Boston. That's no longer disputable. Yes, the Leafs still give up way too many shots per game, and that'll always be an issue (or so it seems), but they're opportunistic as all hell, and have proven to be a worthy adversary for a rather hot-and-cold B's club.
"It was an important game for both teams. We want to win the division and it was a hard battle last year as well," B's forward Carl Soderberg said of the game. "I think they wanted to show us that they’re not happy with that. But we came out good today and they played yesterday too so it was a little bit tiring to feel that."
Despite the Leafs' effort, however, round one of 2013-14 went to the Bruins.
McQuaid exits contest with early injury
Just moments after serving his five-minute major for a spirited scrap with the Leafs’ enforcer Frazer McLaren, B’s defensemen Adam McQuaid found himself helped off the Garden ice with what appeared to be a lower-body injury of sorts. Looking unable to put much weight on his leg, and leaving the Garden under his own power (but gingerly), the Bruins were mum (as usual) when it comes to providing an update on the status of No. 54, a fixture on the club’s third pairing.
“It’s hard to give you a real good assessment after a game. He didn’t come back because he couldn’t,… Boston coach Claude Julien noted. “We’ll probably give you more tomorrow when it’s a little bit clearer. Sometimes, you have to give it at least a day to calm down and see what the situation is.…
Forcing the Bruins to skate with five defensemen, the loss of McQuaid saw a larger role for young blue-liners Dougie Hamilton and Torey Krug, who were forced to log some rare shorthanded time on ice at points throughout the night.
“We rotated through and they did a good job. Where we lacked was probably in the second period; got away from our game,… said Julien. “But that wasn’t the defensemen it was the whole team.…
The 27-year-old McQuaid has missed 29 games since the start of the 2011-12 season due to various injuries, and was a Masterton Trophy finalist last season after dealing with a dangerous blood clot last summer, and has meshed quite well with budding fan favorite Krug at 5-on-5 play.
If he’s unable to go on Monday, the B’s will slide Matt Bartkowski back into the lineup.