The Maple Leafs are expected to announce a fourth member to Legend’s Row on Friday afternoon and according to the Toronto Sun’s Lance Hornby , the choice will be Hockey Hall Of Fame defenseman Borje Salming.
Borje Salming to be added to Leafs' Legends Row. Get the scoop from @sunhornby http://t.co/hxkj9Vbly1 pic.twitter.com/lMz3ONvhyr
— Toronto Sun (@TheTorontoSun) November 14, 2014Salming is in Toronto for this weekend's Hall-of-Fame ceremonies for fellow Swede Peter Forsberg, Mike Modano, Dominik Hasek, former Leafs coach Pat Burns and referee Bill McCreary. His statue will be added to the monument outside of Air Canada Center which includes teammate Darryl Sittler, five-time Stanley Cup winner Ted “Teeder… Kennedy and goaltender Johnny Bower, who celebrated his 90th birthday this week.
“In addition to being one of the all-time Toronto Maple Leaf greats, Borje Salming deserves credit for helping to open the doors in the NHL for many of the European players that followed,… Team President Brendan Shanahan said in a statement. “Borje was offensively gifted but he was especially loved by Toronto fans for his toughness and he will make an outstanding addition to Legends Row.…
Salming statue will be one of three or more added to Legends Row next September after being determined by the Toronto Maple Leafs Historical Committee.
“Wearing the Toronto Maple Leaf sweater for 16 seasons was a great honor, but to be recognized among some of the top players with a statue on Legends Row, especially with my teammate Darryl Sittler, is something I couldn’t have imagined,… Salming said. “I always look back on my time in Toronto with fondness and enjoy the chance to visit every chance I get. The chance to come back for the statue unveiling next September with my family will be very special.…
The native of Kiruna, Sweden was signed as a free agent in May 1973 and was the first European player to achieve a high level of success in the NHL, being named a First or Second Team NHL All-Star every year from 1975 to 1980. In 16 seasons with the Maple Leafs, Salming scored 148 goals and 620 assists in 1099 games and was inducted to the Hall of Fame in 1996.
Legend's Row is expected to have up to 11 players immortalized with bronze statues and Salming is the first defenseman to be honored, but expect Hall-of-Famer Tim Horton to be selected eventually and Reginald "Red" Horner to be in the mix as well.
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The unusual Friday night home game between the Leafs and Pittsburgh Penguins features two of the league’s hottest clubs. Toronto won their third straight on Wednesday with a 6-1 trouncing of the Boston Bruin and are 6-1-1 in the last eight games, while the Pens and superstar Sidney Crosby had a seven game winning streak snapped in New York on Tuesday, losing 5-0 to the Rangers at Madison Square Garden.
Crosby leads the NHL with 24 points and scored a goal and two assists in Pittsburgh’s 5-2 domination of the Leafs on October 11. Toronto hopes to use the bad performance earlier in the season as motivation in the Pens final visit to the ACC.
The Leafs will go with the same lineup as Wednesday, including goaltender Jonathan Bernier in goal. Bernier started the season 1-3-1(including the loss to the Penguins) but has gone 4-0-1 in his last five starts. Backup Thomas Greiss will get the start for Pittsburgh in the first of back-to-back games, as Pens coach Mike Johnston will save starter Marc-Andre Fleury for their rematch with New York at Consol Energy Center on Saturday.
Toronto will likely go with James Reimer in the second of back-to-back games on Saturday in Buffalo.
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