|
WINNIPEG – James Reimer was hoping to reignite the Leafs goaltending competition with a start just outside his hometown of Morweena, Manitoba. It didnt go as planned. Reimer allowed two goals on the first four Winnipeg shots, the was pulled for the fifth time this season in an eventual overtime loss to the Jets. Afforded just his fourth start in the past 16 games, the 25-year-old was unable to snatch an opportunity toward reclaiming some part of his old no. 1 job, one that has become the tentative property of counterpart Jonathan Bernier. "Just a tough one," said a sullen Reimer after the 5-4 defeat, which concluded a four-game western road trip. "I felt my head was in the right place and sometimes things just dont go your way. And when theyre not going your way, its obviously harder mentally, but you have to find a way to stay focused and I felt that I did what I could to stay focused and ready and prepared and it just didnt happen." Trading starts with Bernier for the opening three months, Reimers season has gradually slid in the wrong direction, the unquestioned starter a year ago now the unofficial backup. Though he offered a sturdy start in Colorado earlier this week, that performance failed to translate into any semblance of momentum. Reimer gave up four goals in relief of Bernier in Dallas and was pegged for four more on just 19 shots in Winnipeg. He now owns an unflattering .870 save percentage in six appearances this month and a .911 mark on the season. "Its tough when you get in there and you dont have a good game," said Reimer. "It doesnt sit well." Seven minutes had not yet elapsed before the Jets had struck twice on the embattled netminder. Mark Scheifele and Blake Wheeler both snuck shots through the body of Reimer, one under the arm and another through the five-hole with the latter a partial power-play rush by the Jets winger and future US Olympian. "The first two goals were goals that I thought were scored in the middle of the net," said Maple Leafs head coach Randy Carlyle. "Those are tough ones." It was at that point, down 2-0 on the road, that Carlyle considered pulling the seemingly nervous netminder, only to leave him in for a chance to fight back. And though Reimer managed to rebound in some respect, including a shorthanded stop on Michael Frolik, he was unable to close the door entirely, allowing two more goals in the middle frame. Bernier stepped in with 13 saves as the Leafs rallied from a 4-1 deficit, only to fall on Dustin Byfugliens overtime winner. Pocketing five of a possible eight points on the four-game swing, Toronto now sits third in the Atlantic division with 60 points. Five Points 1. Kessel in Winnipeg Winnipeg remains advantageous hunting ground for Phil Kessel. The 26-year-old knotted the score at 4-4 with less than two minutes to go in regulation, beating Ondrej Pavelec with his 27th goal of the season, an unlikely snipe from just above the goal-line. He has scored at least a goal in eight-straight games at the MTS Centre, totaling nine in that span. Kessel has 16 points in the past nine games overall and has vaulted to sixth in league scoring with 54 points in 54 games. 2. Sour Penalty Kill Yielding two more power-play goals to the Jets, the Toronto penalty kill fell deeper into whats become a year-long hole. The unit has allowed a bloated 13 goals over the past 15 games and sits as the second-worst in the NHL this season (76.8%.) "Weve found ways to leave people uncovered in that critical area," said Carlyle of the penalty kill. Wheeler scored the first of two power-play goals when he burst wide on Cody Franson, beating Reimer through the five-hole. Bryan Little added the second marker, redirecting a sneaky point pass from Tobias Enstrom. "We shouldve had coverage on that and we vacated that area," Carlyle said, noting a need to intercept the pass with a stick in the lane. 3. Potent Power-play Countering the teams struggles on the penalty kill has been a continually productive power-play, one that ranks as the third-best in the NHL. Dion Phaneuf scored his first power-play goal of the season against the Jets, giving the Leafs at least one mark on the man advantage in eight of the past 11 games. Cody Franson, second on the team with 16 power-play points, detailed the different components of the top unit, which also includes Phaneuf, Phil Kessel, James van Riemsdyk, Tyler Bozak, and how theyve functioned to have success. "Obviously, [Phaneufs] got a big shot and teams are aware of that and they want to try and take that away. Phil can do so many things with the puck. Hes very deceptive. He makes guys think that hes going to pass and hell have that quick release shot. And its not a quick release where theres nothing on it – he can rip a puck. Theres that shot threat. I take pride in being able to shoot the puck, so hopefully thats something other teams are thinking about when Im out there. Youve got JVR in front. Hes one of the best at providing a screen and knocking pucks out of the air. Hes a guy that if teams are doing a good job on us, we can just throw it at the net and we know that hes going to be there whacking at rebounds or tipping pucks into goalies and making it tough on them." Franson calls Bozak the secret facilitator of the units success. "When teams are pressuring really quick, you usually need that quick out to try and get away from the pressure and make them back off and allow us to set up and Bozies probably the most important piece of that," explained Franson. "Hes the guy that controls the middle of the ice and has to make those reads in order to be in the right spot for the guys that are getting the puck in tight situations. He does a great job with that and it allows us to break away from pressure and allow us to set up and do what we want to do out there." 4. Career-High Dishing to Kessel on the game-tying goal, van Riemsdyk notched his 40th point of the season, matching a career-high he set with the Flyers in the 2010-11 season (78 games.) The 24-year-old required 51 games to meet the mark, on pace to set new career-highs in just about every offensive category. "Ever since I got here Ive been given an opportunity to play some key minutes and some key situations," said van Riemsdyk, who also screened Pavelec on the Phaneuf marker. "Ive always had the confidence in myself to be able to contribute when I knew I was getting the chance to do that." Sitting at 20 goals on the year, van Riemsdyk remains one off from matching another career-high (21.) 5. Rare Goal It had been quite awhile for Tim Gleason. Gleason scored the third Leaf goal on Saturday, his first since Dec. 18, 2011 in a string of 117 scoreless games. Not relied upon for his offence in any sense, the 30-year-old grinder has just 16 goals in 627 career games. Stats-Pack 2-1-1 – Record for the Leafs on four-game road trip. 4 – Starts for James Reimer in the past 16 games. 10-11-5 – Leafs road record this season. .870 – Save percentage for Reimer in the month of January. 5 – Players on the Toronto roster from the province of Manitoba. 29 – Career points for Phil Kessel in 28 games against the Jets. 40 – Points for James van Riemsdyk this season, matching a career-high. 13 – Power-play goals scored against the Leafs in the past 15 games. 117 – Games without a goal for Tim Gleason, who finally scored Saturday against the Jets. Special Teams Capsule PP: 1-5Season: 22.4% (3rd) PK: 1-3Season: 76.8% (29th) Quote of the Night "Its tough when you get in there and you dont have a good game. It doesnt sit well."-James Reimer, on a rough outing in Winnipeg. Up Next The Leafs host the Lighting on Tuesday night. .com) - Willie Cauley-Stein and Karl-Anthony Towns each scored 12 points in the top-ranked Kentucky Wildcats 70-55 victory over the Alabama Crimson Tide. . He learned about pressure and expectations at the 2010 Games in his hometown of Vancouver. His next mission is to build on that experience at his next Olympic appearance in Sochi, where he plans to ride the momentum from the teams strong start to the season. .com) - The Grand Slam season will get underway Monday at the Australian Open in Melbourne, where a new champion will be crowned this year. . James Jones got his turn Sunday. And the lift he brought, combined with the expected playoff showings from LeBron James and Dwyane Wade, have the Heat off and running in these playoffs. . Iwakuma pitched seven strong innings to stay unbeaten in road games since last July, leading the Seattle Mariners to a 5-2 win over the Cleveland Indians on Tuesday night.GREENBURGH, N.Y. -- Phil Jackson lost out on his preferred coach, but hes working hard on keeping his star player. The New York Knicks president said Friday he has talked to Carmelo Anthony about postponing free agency, and the All-Star forward responded that hell think about it. "I told him it might be a good idea to hang in here and see what its like for a year, and go out the next year," Jackson said. Anthony can opt out of the final year of his contract, which would pay him $23.3 million, and has repeatedly said that was his plan. But Jackson said there are financial benefits to Anthony waiting, for both sides, and told him that during a dinner about a month ago. "He opened the door and I stuck my foot in it and said this is what we can do," Jackson said to the teams beat writers. Jackson also told Anthony that Steve Kerr would be coming in to coach, a plan that didnt work out. Kerr was his first and only known candidate to replace Mike Woodson, and Jackson said Kerr had essentially committed to leave the TNT broadcast booth to take the job. But then the Golden State job opened up when the Warriors fired Mark Jackson, and Kerr preferred that one to remain close to his family in California. "Unfortunately for him, he committed to me the day before the job opened with Golden State. So I had to kind of release him to actually go to this job and say you have to do whats right for yourself," Jackson said. "I understood entirely the process he was going through to have that job open up. That was something he kind of thought would be a good fit for him. So thats good, were happy for him." Jackson said hes been doing some interviews, though wouldnt name those candidates. Hes interested iin talking to Derek Fisher, who played for him in Los Angeles, after Oklahoma Citys season is finished, but ruled out Brian Shaw, his former player and assistant who just completed his first season as Denvers first coach.dddddddddddd The Nuggets have said they are happy with Shaw -- and Jackson doesnt want to give them any compensation even if they would consider letting him leave. "Brian is under contract with Denver," Jackson said. "Denver has everything that we owned for the last few years, so theres nothing else I want to give them." He was referring to the exorbitant price the Knicks paid to acquire Anthony from the Nuggets in 2011. It is still costing them even now, as Denver owns the Knicks first-round pick next month in Jacksons first draft in charge. The deal would hurt even more if Anthony left this summer. But perhaps Jackson, who is a little more than two months into his job, wont have to worry about it after giving Anthony something to think about that he previously wasnt considering. "Im not losing sleep over it, but Im definitely concerned about the idea of a guy going into free agency," Jackson said. "It only takes one bidder out there that has the ability and can ruin your hopes and your chances. "We will survive it. Thats what Ive said and well go forward. But this is a guy we recognize his talent and his skill is the kind of skill and talent that gets you through playoff games where things get sticky, grind out and basketball becomes a force game and suddenly you need to have a player who has the capabilities of scoring with someone hanging on them in a situation thats critical. "Hes one of those players, one of the few players who can do that." ' ' '
|
