Toronto Maple Leafs

Leafs Lose Game One In Boston

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The first playoff game for the Maple Leafs in nine years ended on a sour note as
Boston defeated Toronto by a score of 4-1.

After James van Reimsdyk opened the scoring for the Leafs early in the first period,
but it was all Boston after that as they dominated nearly the entire game.   Boston
outshot Toronto 40-20.

As a Leaf fan I found this game difficult to watch but I will point out some positives
that hopefully the Leafs can build on use to make this a competitive series.  I
liked the way James Reimer played, he only gave up one real questionable goal to
Johnny Boychuk, though it was a bullet of a slap shot.  If it wasn’t for Reimer’s
efforts in net this game could have been a blowout.  Also, I didn’t think the Leafs
were too over-matched physically by the Big Bad Bruins.

I’m looking forward to game two on Saturday night.  It was tough to lose game one
but Leaf fans like myself are just happy the boys are finally back in the playoffs after
nine long years of misery.   The future is still bright for the blue and white.

PUCK YOU!, Tampa Bay Lightning, Washington Capitals

Nate Thompson Makes a Convincing Argument For Visors

During the tilt between the Tampa Bay Lightning and The Washington Capitals, a Mike Green slap shot shattered Nate Thompson’s visor into pieces. While it cut him open “hardway”, with minor lacerations, One can only imagine how worse this would have been had he not have been wearing a visor. Looking at the proximaty of the shot, and the force behind it, Nate Thompson is a lucky man. Without said visor, he might have lost an eye and/or suffered an concussion.

It’s reasons like this that the “visor issue” is a hot topic in the NHL. I understand that the athletes want to appear tough. But if I was an owner, I’d want my GM to protect my investment by enforcing necessary safety regulations on players. I hate likening the players to cattle, since the the recent lockout is still a very sore topic to allude to… but… a rancher builds a fence and invests in a shot gun to prevent the herd being lost to predators. Why on Earth would an owner not want to prevent paying out massive contracts to I.R. players that take unnecessary risks? Seems dumb to me. But I’m just a fan, so what the hell do I know?

Washington would go on to win the game 6 – 5 in OT.