Once again the Maple Leafs didn't show up for the first period in their game against the Buffalo Sabres last night and that was the difference in the game. The Leafs were out shot 16-5 in the first period and although they woke up for the second period to out shoot the Sabres 31-12 in the final 40 minutes, it was already too late.
Everything about the Leafs was bad in the first period with the exception of Gustavsson who let in 2 goals but kept the game close. The Sabres could have easily had another 2 or 3 as they were either left standing in front of the Leaf net or handed the puck over by generous defenders. There were dumb penalties by Orr and Versteeg that led to Sabre goals. The Versteeg penalty was so stupid and pointless that I am prepared to hand over to him the Tie Domi Cementhead Award for 2010-11 despite the season only being 1/4 completed. Versteeg elbowed Nathan Gerbe which gave Buffalo a 5-on-3 advantage 16 seconds after Jordan Leopold made the score 1-0 and lead to a second powerplay goal. That preceded Orr's poorly-timed attack on Paul Gaustad that led to a triple minor for roughing, I can't remember ever seeing that penalty called. The Leafs played better but the combination of weak offense and great goaltending by Ryan Miller made for a failied comeback. Their powerplay was again 0 for 6.
But the worst part of the game is how Gustavsson has been hung out to dry. The Leafs lead the league in turnovers and my guess is that Mike Komisarek is the worst offender. Although last night even steady Luke Schenn was a repeat offender. Then the offense is unable to compensate by getting the team back in the game. One goal late in the third just isn't good enough. Gustavsson has a mediocre 3-5-1 record despite a decent .919 save percentage.
No comments:
Post a Comment