It Gets Better.

Posted by michaelrevell on January 31, 2018
Posted in: Uncategorized. 1 Comment

“In the midst of winter, I found there was, within me, an invincible summer.

And that makes me happy. For it says that no matter how hard the world pushes against me, within me, there’s something stronger – something better, pushing right back.”

 — Albert Camus

Today is my most important day of the year, #BellLetsTalk Day. Since its inception in 2011, we’ve seen incredible growth across the mental health community. We’ve seen millions of dollars raised, we’ve seen stigma drop, we’ve seen more and more people begin to intricately understand mental health, and we’ve helped others and even saved some lives.

We can do better.

We can and will continue to grow this campaign, as well as others like it. We can and will save more lives, raise more funds, share more stories, and improve more lives.

Now more than ever before, people are understanding mental health. People are starting to truly understand how it can affect literally anyone at anytime. How the depths of mental illness does not care about wealth, status, ethnicity, creed, or gender. How people can suffer without physically looking like they are suffering.

People are also starting to understand another aspect of mental health a little better. People are starting to understand that mental illness does not mean the end of the road. People are understanding one crucial thing.

Despite mental illness, people CAN get better.

With Albert Camus’ famous quote in mind, I thought of the version of me that existed back when #BellLetsTalk Day was inaugurated, 7 years ago.

That person laughed when he read that quote.

That version of me thought it was a joke. I thought that Camus was, for lack of a better term, full of shit. I was stuck in the depths of a losing battle against mental illness, and had not come out and told the world, or even a friend or family member, my story and what I was fighting against.

2011 me was severely sick. The 2011 version of Michael Revell had resigned himself to death, stuck in the trap of depression and anxiety, with what seemed at the time like no possible way out of the pit I had fallen into.

2012 through 2014 Michael Revell was even worse. 2012 me brought in the year in a hospital bed in my hometown of Richmond Hill, Ontario, after a failed suicide attempt at the end of 2011. 2012 me swallowed handfuls of random pills and medications, and chased it with Jack Daniels and Jose Cuervo, hoping for my heart to stop. 2012 me dropped out of school in an attempt to “find myself” and “get better” and ended up in an even deeper hole. 2012 me found myself running out of my various prescriptions too quickly, and fell into the trap of street drugs, a fact that 2008 me and 2018 me is ashamed to admit and simply cannot believe is true.

2013 and 2014 weren’t much better, although I am proud to say that I had woken up one day to find myself surrounded by empty liquor and prescription bottles and decided that I no longer wanted that to be my life.

Actually, to be truthful, I can honestly say that I decided that I didn’t want that to be my death. The depression told me that I still wanted to die, the anxiety told me that I wasn’t good enough to live, that hadn’t changed, but even my clouded and sick brain realized that I did not want my amazing, supportive, loving mother to come into my room one day and find her son dead from an overdose. I wanted to die, but resigned myself to a life of pure misery instead.

I threw out every pill and bottle I had and promptly went on a planned family vacation with my parents, sister, and some extended family. What was supposed to be an incredible and wholesome family trip ended up being pure hell for me.

I went through awful withdrawal symptoms, vomiting, battling vertigo, fighting off cold sweats and the shakes, and lashing out to those that I loved that truly deserved better. I came back from the trip even worse.

I relapsed shortly afterwards and found myself at a sketchy street corner outside of a club in downtown Toronto at 2 AM on a weekday, buying Xanax pills that definitely weren’t Xanax pills off of a club promoter a “friend” knew.

In truth, I spent close to a full decade wishing I was dead, and doing everything I possibly could to achieve that goal, and it seriously is remarkable that I am still on this Earth today.

Looking back, I was lucky. I told my family about some of my struggles and they couldn’t have been more loving and supportive. I slowly started to realize and see things that were worth living for.

Flash forward to 2017. Donald Trump is President of the United States and the world looks like a bleak hellhole. 2017 also ended up being the best year of my adult and young adult life.

Through the help of my incredible support network and my own hard work and determination (2012 me couldn’t ever talk about myself like that, so I apologize if I seem full of it, but I feel like it’s important for me to write those words out), I rose out of the darkness that enveloped my life for the previous decade or so.

2016/2017 was the year the Toronto Maple Leafs started to succeed again. Seems irrelevant and stupid of me to mention, right? To quote a terrible President and even worse human being, “WRONG!”

I had lucked out and gotten a job offer through a direct message on Twitter in 2015 to write about the Maple Leafs and Toronto Marlies.

For the first time in years, I felt an emotion that wasn’t overwhelmingly negative.

I felt a sense of pride.

Someone out there valued my thoughts enough to offer me a paid job analyzing the hockey team I grew up adoring. The hockey team that I had barely cared to watch for the last few years, because that version of me could no longer feel joy from watching my favourite childhood sport that had meant so much to me. I was proud and honoured to get that job offer, and gladly took it, but that didn’t change the fact that I did not feel that my brain could process the feelings and emotions associated with joy and happiness, and watching the terrible 2015 Maple Leafs definitely did not make me happy.

Thankfully, Auston Matthews exists.

I write that with a smile on my face, because what the hell does Auston Matthews have to do with my happiness?  Well, I do not personally know the guy, and he as a person has had no impact on my life, but the Leafs drafted the superstar hockey player in 2016 and started the youth movement that turned the team into an exciting, fun, GOOD team again.

I walked into BMO Field on January 1, 2017 for the Centennial Classic between the Maple Leafs and the Detroit Red Wings with my father, the man who figuratively carried me through my darkest hours, and physically carried me, not only when I was a child, but when I called him out of the blue one early morning in 2012, shivering and crying on the floor of my condo, coming down from the variety of pills and alcohol I ingested the night before.

I looked around at the scene in front of me. I looked at the soccer stadium that had been transformed into a hockey rink for an incredible outdoor game to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the NHL, a game that I was privileged enough to be attending. I took in the beautiful day I was experiencing, the sunny, picturesque weather, the slight chill of the Canadian winter that I always loved, and my favourite hockey team, that I now got paid to cover, skating around the ice in front of me. I looked at my father wearing his Doug Gilmour jersey and Maple Leafs toque and thought of the love he felt for me.

My dad is a man that did not really care for hockey before I became a fan. This is a man who took it upon himself to drive me to every game and practice growing up, who spent his hard earned money taking me to as many Leafs games as possible, well into adulthood, because he knew I loved it. I know it broke his heart to see me lose my spark and passion for the Leafs and hockey on the whole, and I know he did everything he possibly could to reignite that fire inside me. I looked at him and he beamed. “Isn’t this awesome?” he said.

Thoughts spun around my head. I thought of everything I just mentioned, the scene unfolding in front of me. I thought of how good the Leafs suddenly were, and how fun they were to watch. I thought of him doing everything he could to get us tickets to this incredible event, so we could spend time together enjoying something he knew I loved. I thought of my amazing mother and sister back home, who loved and cared for me so dearly.

I took in everything I was feeling and felt a tear come to my eye. I suddenly realized that seemingly foreign emotion I was feeling. For the first time since I was a child in elementary school, I felt it.

I felt true happiness.

The realization was nearly overwhelming. I quickly brushed a couple of escaping tears aside and beamed right back at my father, the man I consider my best friend. Yes, this really was awesome. And I couldn’t believe I was truly enjoying it to the full extent.

It was that moment where I realized that I was actually starting to get better. It was that moment where I realized that I no longer wanted to die, that there really were things to live for. It was that moment where I fully realized, accepted, and embraced the fact that mental illness could be treated and ultimately vanquished.

Since that life changing day, I’ve poured myself into my work. I’ve accepted other jobs and now not only cover the Leafs and Marlies, but scout the OHL as well. I’m looking into employment at the Hockey Hall of Fame. I’ve written mental health articles for SickNotWeak, The Mighty, and other initiatives and publications. I’ve gone on dates for the first time in 5 years. I’ve weeded out people in my social circle that I realized were either not good for me to be around or didn’t truly care about me. I moved from the toxic condo where I spent so many of the worst moments of my life to a beautiful new townhouse in a new neighbourhood. I went to Las Vegas, Edinburgh, Amsterdam, Bruges, London, and the Galapagos Islands. I picked up former passions of mine such as reading and engulfing myself in music. Long story short is this; I taught myself how to enjoy the little things again.

I tell my story every year for a few reasons. For one, if my story can help even one person then it is completely worth it. Two, I find it incredibly freeing and therapeutic to talk and write about what mental illness has put me through. Three, I find it immensely enjoyable to see an obvious and definite improvement in my health.

One does not simply decide that mental illness will no longer affect them. My depression and anxiety still resides within me, but I now find them both manageable. I realize that life is worth living. I realize that self improvement is possible. I also realize how hard it is to come out of what I call “The Darkness.”

It isn’t easy. In fact, vanquishing and managing my mental illnesses is the hardest thing I’ve had to do in my life. You have to put in work. You have to will yourself out of bed when it’s the last thing in the world you want to do. You have to go outside and leave your “depression nest”, as I like to call it.

I have a rule. Celebrate minor victories.

What is a minor victory? That can be something as simple as taking a shower in the morning. Personally, I know how hard that can be when you’re in “The Darkness” and don’t give a rats ass about your well being. So when you find yourself taking that shower, or getting out of bed and going outside to face the world, CELEBRATE IT!

Give yourself that pat on the back that you deserve. Treat yourself a little. Buy those shoes you’ve been looking at for months. Let yourself have cream in your coffee this one time rather than the almond milk you’ve resigned yourself to getting to stay healthy. Text that cute girl or guy you were thinking of asking out. Treat the ones you love, it feels good! Surprise your mother for lunch one day. Go visit your sister at that university in a different town. Take your dad to that hockey game instead of going for beers with friends. Chase, catch, hold onto, and appreciate those good feelings, no matter how fleeting they are.

Of course, I’m no doctor or therapist, and I know that everyone struggling is different, and that “it’s not that easy”, but these are some things that I’ve found has helped me during my worst times, and I felt that it was important to share.

When you’re in “The Darkness” it’s easy to feel that you don’t deserve a shred of happiness, and it’s not possible to achieve anyway.

That couldn’t be further from the truth.

You deserve to chase happiness. You deserve to fight to see another day. You deserve to vanquish the enemies in your head and your heart. You deserve to live and you deserve to thrive.

Mental illness is not a death sentence, I am living proof. You CAN get better, it’s really true. And hey, if you ever need a helping hand, or a person to talk to, or a person to just sit back and listen, give me a shout. Tweet me. Message me on Facebook. If you’ve got my number, give me a call or a text. You’re not alone, you’re NEVER alone, even when you’ve never felt more alone in your life. Never be afraid or embarrassed to reach out for help.

To anyone reading this that is suffering, I’ll leave you with this.

You can beat this. You are loved. You are worth fighting for. Life is worth living.

As a mental health community, may the year 2018 be the best year yet.

Thanks to everyone that read this post, and give me a follow on Facebook or Twitter @MichaelRevell9 if you want to reach out.

— Michael Revell

#BellLetsTalk About Mental Health

Posted by michaelrevell on January 24, 2017
Posted in: Uncategorized. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

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“Mental toughness and mental illness have absolutely nothing to do with each other.” – Mike Babcock

Tomorrow is Bell Let’s Talk Day, the day of the year I hold closest to my heart.

Since it started in 2011, we’ve seen the number of total interactions on this day (texts, calls, tweets, Facebook posts, etc.) rise from 66,079,236 all the way to 125,915,295 last year. Over $6 million in community fund grants alone have been raised and 344 individual organizations have been supported.

So much support has been given since 2011. We’ve seen an absolutely massive shift regarding the views and stigma surrounding mental health. We’ve seen organizations focused on not only research, but the care and treatment of mental health patients sprout out of nothing. We’ve seen workplaces change the way they handle mental health, many adopting the voluntary Standard for Psychological Health and Safety in the Workplace.

Hundreds of athletes, media personalities, and celebrities have signed on and pledged their allegiance to this cause. Some, like star Olympian Clara Hughes, comedian/entertainer Howie Mandel, TSN and #SickNotWeak’s Michael Landsberg and Toronto Maple Leafs coach Mike Babcock have even become official spokespeople or ambassadors.

It’s beyond amazing to see how far this initiative has come. It’s incredible to think that not even 7 years ago I was losing my battle with mental illness, had never felt more hopeless, had accepted what felt like inevitable death, and truly thought I was completely alone in my fight. It’s astounding to think of the impact that Bell Let’s Talk Day has had, not only on my life and those around me, but on the lives of countless others around Canada and the rest of the world.

It’s awesome to see what can happen when people rally together, but one thing is still for sure…

We can do better.

I want to see the numbers grow. I want to see the number of total interactions rise from 125,915,295 this year. I want to see the number of dollars raised pass the $6 million or so raised last year. Perhaps most importantly, I want to see the chatter continue and the stigma surrounding mental health continue to evaporate before our eyes.

I’ve focused on depression, anxiety, OCD, eating disorders, PTSD, schizophrenia, numerous other mental illnesses, and generalized mental illness in previous years. This year, being my 6th year campaigning for Bell Lets Talk, and my 2nd year with the #SickNotWeak initiative, I want to focus in on one particular manifestation of mental illness that’s particularly dear to my heart.

This year I want to focus on a mental illness that many still struggle to classify as a mental health issue. I want to focus on addiction and substance abuse.

Anyone that has me on any social media platform should expect a constant barrage of tweets, retweets and posts regarding the #BellLetsTalk campaign tomorrow, addiction and substance abuse being my main topic of conversation, but not limited to just that.

With that, I challenge those that read this to do their best to participate in the campaign as well, in whatever way they can.

Let’s keep fighting mental illness, together. We may just end up saving some lives along the way.

Enroth Waived: Who’s Toronto’s Next Backup Goalie?

Posted by michaelrevell on December 5, 2016
Posted in: hockey, Sports. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

December 5, 2016

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The Toronto Maple Leafs officially waived backup goaltender Jhonas Enroth today, leaving both the club and the player at a crossroads.

The undersized Enroth has struggled mightily this season, perhaps being a tad too small to play behind a defence this inexperienced and porous, sporting an 0-3-1 record through just 6 games of work with the Maple Leafs with a 3.94 GAA and an ugly save percentage of .872.

Enroth excelled in the backup position last year as a member of the Los Angeles Kings, winning 7 games while recording a 2.17 GAA and a .922 save percentage.

It remains to be seen if Enroth will be claimed, but he’s a capable, experienced NHL backup that did not work out in Toronto’s system, but is likely too good for the AHL. Theoretically, if he clears waivers, Enroth could be sent to the AHL Toronto Marlies, but there’s a glut of goalies in Toronto’s system (Antoine Bibeau, Garret Sparks, Jeff Glass, Kasimir Kaskisuo) and going to the Marlies would likely not be beneficial for Enroth’s career.

Instead, if Enroth doesn’t get claimed, it is entirely possible that he seeks employment overseas, perhaps in his home country of Sweden.

From a team standpoint, it seems a little early (but not entirely unexpected) to waive an experienced backup goalie with a limited sample size of games played, but it’s clear that Lou Lamoriello and the rest of management had seen enough in the 6 games Enroth played to decide that he’s not right for this current system.

A smaller goalie, Enroth is listed at 5”10 and 171 pounds, is not in a position to succeed behind a weak defence that allows too many breaks, odd-man rushes, and shots overall. Enroth’s high sides have been consistently exploited by the opposition this year, and the two quick goals scored by Calgary in the first period of Enroth’s last start may have been the final nails in the coffin. Toronto’s defence needs to take some responsibility for letting Enroth down, but shaky defence aside, it quickly became clear that Jhonas Enroth is not the right backup goalie for the Leafs at this time.

So, now that Enroth is waived, who is going to be Frederik Andersen’s new backup?

Toronto has a few options here, as former Calgary netminder Karri Ramo has been seen practicing and working out with the team for the last few weeks as he rehabs a left knee injury, not to mention the four goalies in the Toronto system that were mentioned earlier.

Nazem Kadri; Karri Ramo

The obvious answer here is to sign Ramo as soon as he officially becomes available to return from his injury, but things are never that simple in the hockey world.

Remember when the Leafs acquired Jared Cowen in last season’s Dion Phaneuf trade with Ottawa? Remember how Cowen claimed to be injured when Toronto attempted to buy him out in the offseason and he filed a buyout grievance? This could potentially haunt the Leafs in more than just a monetary sense, as Cowen could take up a much coveted Standard Player Contract (SPC) spot in the organization if the buyout does not go through.

Toronto currently has 48 SPC’s, 49 if Cowen succeeds in his legal case. The important thing here is that every NHL team can have a maximum of 50 SPC’s, meaning they’d reach the full quota if you count Jared Cowen, Jhonas Enroth clears waivers and his contract isn’t terminated,  and if they sign Karri Ramo.

Assuming that happens, or assuming Toronto wants to keep some roster flexibility and not have Ramo take up another roster spot, who are the other options for backup goalie?

The easiest answer is Marlies starter Antoine Bibeau, who has looked stellar on the Marlies for the past couple of campaigns, and has been called up a number of times without seeing any NHL action as of yet. In fact, he was called up just a few days ago as an emergency call-up when Frederik Andersen was fighting off illness.

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So far this season, Bibeau has seen action in 13 games for the Marlies, registering a 6-5-3 record with a 2.54 GAA and .907 SV%. The 22 year old has likely earned at least a part time shot at the backup role, until the Cowen situation plays itself out and until they figure out what to do with Enroth at the very least.

If management decides to go another route, there are still two other potential options; Garret Sparks and Jeff Glass.

Garret Sparks made headlines recently for being suspended by the team for comments he made in a closed Facebook group he’s a member of, but has since returned to the Marlies. He’s seen action in 6 AHL games this season, going 4-2-0 with a solid 2.36 GAA and .913 SV%.

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Leafs fans will remember him as the guy who became the first Leafs goalie to record a shutout in his NHL debut when he blanked Edmonton last season (and don’t forget about his CuJo style mask and awesome Trevor Kidd-esque pads), and he ended up playing in 17 games for the big club down the stretch.

Sparks looked overwhelmed at times last season when up with the Leafs, and it became clear that he wasn’t yet ready for full-time NHL action. A 7th round pick in the 2011 draft, Sparks’ ceiling is lower than Bibeau’s, despite seeing more NHL action than the Marlies starter, and it’s far more likely that we see Sparks take over as the full-time/1A Marlies starter than see him get called up to the bigs.

The last potential option is a total wild card, but we cannot yet rule it out. That wild card is 31 year old former World Junior champion, Jeff Glass.

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Glass is currently on a professional tryout (PTO) with the Marlies, another result of Toronto’s SPC situation, and has only played in 2 games with the Marlies thus far. However, he’s an experienced vet that has backstopped Canada to World Junior gold back in 2004/2005 as a member of that star studded team led by the likes of Sidney Crosby, Patrice Bergeron, Dion Phaneuf and Jeff Carter.

More recently, Glass has been a mainstay in the KHL since the 2009/2010 season, recording stellar numbers all around and even got a chance last season to play for Team Canada once again, this time as a member of their Spengler Cup team. He’s recorded a 1-1 record with a 2.05 GAA and .917 SV% in two games with the Marlies this year.

While it’s highly unlikely that Glass becomes the next Leafs backup, it’s still possible if Toronto decides that Bibeau and Sparks are not ready for NHL action, Karri Ramo does not recover from injury in time or prices himself out of the equation, and they still want to go the inexpensive veteran route. What’s far likelier is that Glass becomes the AHL backup/#1B, splitting time with Garret Sparks, assuming Antoine Bibeau gets the call-up.

Here’s a look at what the goalie shuffle could potentially end up looking like, once all the dust settles.

Toronto Maple Leafs             Toronto Marlies                   Orlando Solar Bears

Frederik Andersen                     Garret Sparks                         Kasimir Kaskisuo

Antoine Bibeau                          Jeff Glass                                 Ryan Massa

Jhonas Enroth —> Europe                          Karri Ramo —> UFA

Toronto Maple Leafs Prospect Report #1: Jeremy Bracco & Nikita Korostelev

Posted by michaelrevell on November 10, 2016
Posted in: hockey, Sports. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

*This is the first in a series of reports on select Toronto Maple Leafs prospects.

November 3, 2016

Kitchener 3 – Sarnia 5

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On November 2nd I had the opportunity to view two of the Maple Leafs’ most highly touted prospects in one go, as the Kitchener Rangers rolled into Sarnia to face the hometown Sting. Jeremy Bracco and Nikita Korostelev were the main attractions, both Leafs draft picks that have been tearing up the OHL this year, leaving both fans and team personnel figuratively drooling in anticipation of the future.

Here is what I took away after studying their play over the years and finally getting a chance to witness the both of them in action together.

Jeremy Bracco:

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As most Leafs fans know, Kitchener is the Junior home of Jeremy Bracco, the skilled, scoring winger Toronto drafted in the 2nd round, 61st overall in 2015. The American left Boston College after just five games last season and had an excellent first season in the OHL, recording 64 points in 49 games, and tallying another 14 points in 9 playoff games.

Heading into this season, much was expected out of Bracco. No one really expected him to make the Leafs out of training camp, and he was an early cut and was sent back to Kitchener. He stormed out of the gate, winning both the OHL and CHL Player of the Week honours early on in the season. Currently, he sits second in team scoring for Kitchener, behind only Adam Mascherin, with 9 goals and 18 assists (27 points) in 14 games.

This particular game wasn’t fantastic for Bracco. His speed and hustle in the offensive end was immediately apparent, and his sheer offensive ability was notable. As expected, speed and offence were the aspects he was strongest in, although I did notice some slight defensive improvements from last year.

He blocked a Korostelev slapshot early in the second period, after a relatively nondescript first frame, and although this was the highlight for him defensively, it’s still an improvement from the past. The Kitchener coaches do not seem to trust him fully in the defensive end, seeing limited defensive zone draws. That’s not to say that the coaches decision was not justified.

Bracco still floats at times defensively, and consistently looks lackadaisical on the backcheck. He circles the neutral zone looking for the breakout pass and waits for opportunities to come to him, something that will absolutely not work at the NHL and will be beaten out of him by Mike Babcock and the rest of Toronto’s coaching staff, assuming he makes it to that level.

There were four notable bad moments for Bracco in the second and third periods, starting with a bad shift on the powerplay.

Bracco plays the point on the powerplay, understandable as he likes to play “point guard” on the PP and completely control the play. However, on this particular second period powerplay, the decision to put Bracco on defense almost cost Kitchener. Sarnia got the puck and broke through the defense for a shorthanded 2-on-1 and Bracco completely abandoned his man on the rush, resulting in a fantastic scoring opportunity for the Sting.

The second notable bad play was another odd man rush he allowed on the powerplay, and once again he looked lackadaisical and uninterested in coming back to help out defensively.

The third black spot was not a defensive miscue, but a moment where he completely failed to control his emotions and looked immature and childish in the process. Now, Bracco is still a teenager and it’s expected that he’s going to show moments of immaturity, but this moment still stuck out to me. Bracco threw the puck towards the Sarnia net, with heavy traffic in front, and it looked like there was a great scoring opportunity in the making for Kitchener, but the referee lost sight of the puck and blew the play dead. Bracco threw his arms in the air in exasperation and noticeably whined and pouted to the ref like a petulant child. Again, it’s normal to get frustrated with calls that are not going your way, and normal to mouth off a bit, but this particular moment looked incredibly childish and very much not the Mike Babcock way of doing things. Like every other player in junior hockey, Bracco has some growing up to do.

The fourth, and worst, Bracco miscue was once again a defensive one. Late in the game, with the score 3-2 in favour of Sarnia, he once again looked lackadaisical on the backcheck, barely skating back and not covering his man. The Sting took advantage this time, with Jordan Kyrou scoring Sarnia’s fourth goal of the game, effectively putting an end to a real shot at a Kitchener comeback.

Now, we got the bad stuff out of the way, it’s time to take a look at the good things Jeremy Bracco did in this game.

He was undoubtedly the fastest player in this game, he completely paces the opposition when he gets going and his explosiveness is off the charts. The problem is, he only seems to turn the jets on when he spots a prime scoring opportunity. Great for his scoring numbers, but it would be nice to see him put the same effort in his backchecking.

As stated before, he’s the “point guard” on the powerplay, and has outstanding passing and playmaking skills, showcasing elite cross-ice vision and tape-to-tape passing.

While not overly physical, understandable as he is a small, skilled player, he shies away from corners but is not afraid to crash the net hard.

His speed and chemistry with Mascherin was apparent, resulting in a number of scoring opportunities, especially in the third period when Kitchener was trailing late. He showed good patience with the puck, going cross-crease to Mascherin late, but the latter could not convert the chance.

Bracco did notch an assist in the game, early in the third period, when he patiently held the puck behind the net before spotting Joseph Garreffa on D. He sent the puck back to the blueline with a laser tape-to-tape pass, which Garreffa took full advantage of, tying the game for the first and only time.

Overall, I was a little disappointed in Bracco’s game. His defensive deficiencies are impossible to ignore, and he needs to up the compete level if he wants to crack a Babcock lineup. His offensive skills are off the charts, and he has shown the ability to dominate a game offensively at the OHL level, but we already knew he had that power. Now it’s time for Bracco to tighten up defensively, show more effort on the backcheck, not constantly cherry pick and wait for opportunities in the neutral zone and create more offensive chances himself.

The sheer skill is undeniable, but it’s very clear to me that sending Jeremy Bracco back down to the OHL this year was the right call.

Nikita Korostelev:

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Sarnia Sting right winger Nikita Korostelev is an interesting case. The Moscow, Russia native moved to the Toronto area as a teenager and played midget and minor midget hockey in Toronto and nearby Vaughan before entering the OHL with the Sting. He’s developed a scoring touch in recent seasons, but was previously more known for his all-round play and surprising physicality. His move to Canada at a young age is apparent in his style of play, as he plays a more physical brand of hockey than the majority of Russian forwards. His tenacity, toughness, scoring ability and overall all-round play has made him one of the more intriguing prospects the Leafs have, despite being picked late in the 2015 draft, in the 7th round, 185th overall to be exact.

Korostelev put up 53 points in 55 games in his draft year, fell a little last season with his point totals and was on the verge of losing his late-round draft steal status, but has flown out of the gate this season. In fact, he’s currently tied with Jordan Kyrou for the Sarnia scoring lead with 24 points in 16 games.

Nikita Korostelev outshone Jeremy Bracco in this particular game. While Bracco was sporadic at best on defense, Korostelev was a factor in every zone and was a massive part of Sarnia’s win.

Upon first live glance, it became obvious that at this point Korostelev is a more complete player than Bracco. Yes, he’s less speedy than the Rangers player, and Bracco’s off the charts offensive instincts trumps Korostelev’s, but the Russian born winger dominated aspects of the game that Bracco didn’t even get near, while maintaining a heavy offensive presence and often times leading Sarnia’s scoring rushes.

Right off the bat he had a good shot attempt early in the first period, nearly beating goaltender Dawson Carty on the high glove side. That was just the beginning of the offensive onslaught Korostelev had planned for the night.

He continuously looked for offensive breaks in the neutral zone and cycled the puck well in the offensive zone, eventually leading to a Sarnia goal from Brady Hinz. Korostelev retrieved the puck and held on to it through Kitchener’s defense and started the offensive cycle. The end result was Hinz’s goal, giving Sarnia the 1-0 lead late in the first period.

Coach Derian Hatcher clearly likes to use Korostelev as a guy to run the offence around, the first time in Korostelev’s four years with the team that he’s been thrust into this role. Sarnia saw prized forwards Travis Konecny and Pavel Zacha graduate to the NHL this year, and Hatcher has since leaned heavily on Korostelev, along with Jordan Kyrou, to be the go to guys offensively.

Korostelev possesses a heavy, NHL ready wrist shot that he will unleash from anywhere in the opposing teams end, but is particular lethal in the high slot. In fact, he used that deadly wrist shot to score what was at the time the go ahead 3-2 goal after taking a pass from Franco Sproviero while entering the offensive zone.

He’s a constant threat with the puck, regardless of what zone he starts in, and it’s a near guarantee that there will be a scoring threat when he gets his stick on the puck. His puck vision is elite, and although he has 14 goals compared to 10 assists, he still has a knack for playmaking, favouring the cross-ice/crease centring pass. Late in the third period he impressed with a quick shot on goal from the left side of the slot before grabbing his own rebound and showcasing a nifty drop pass that Sarnia wasn’t able to convert.

Pure offensive ability aside, what really impressed me with Korostelev’s play compared to Bracco’s was the physical and defensive sides of his game.

Korostelev is still prone to floating at times on defense, understandable for a teenager who’s main role is to score goals, but he seemed to snap out of it and help out on defense a lot quicker and a lot more frequently than Bracco. He’s improved steadily in the defensive end, and his hustle and backchecking skills put him on the ice in nearly every game scenario, which we cannot say about Bracco.

Korostelev’s physicality was mentioned before, and was noted in previous prospect reports from seasons gone by. This game was no different, as he threw his body around with skill and finesse, not looking for the massive, game-breaking, open ice Scott Stevens hit, but was physical through other means. He crashed the net effectively, didn’t shy away from chippy board play, and effectively used his body to tie up opposition both offensively and defensively.

My final thought about Korostelev was “I can see this guy buying into the Babcock system rather quickly”, completely contrasting my final thoughts on Bracco.

Verdict:

I would give Jeremy Bracco a B- for this game, while giving Nikita Korostelev an A.

Both players are exceptionally talented, especially compared to the majority of their OHL peers, and both players are heavily relied on by their respective teams in the offensive zone.

The main difference between the two players is that Bracco at this point is a purely offensive player that contributes little else to the game. That’s something that needs to change if he wants to make a Mike Babcock team, or even survive at the NHL level at all. There’s countless examples of elite level offensive talents that couldn’t survive long term on the game’s biggest stage because they couldn’t adapt and develop the other aspects of the game. Jeremy Bracco has significant improvement to do if he wants to avoid being put in the same category as the likes of Robbie Schremp.

At this point, Nikita Korostelev is the more complete prospect. His skill in all zones, his acquired defensive acumen, all-round hockey sense and physicality gave him the advantage in this game. While it remains to be seen if he can take these abilities to the next level in the NHL, the early look points to him being a top notch late round steal for the Maple Leafs.

Regardless of who won this game and who outperformed who, Toronto fans and management have a lot to look forward to when it comes to watching the continuing development of Jeremy Bracco and Nikita Korostelev.

The Weekly Leaf: Week 3

Posted by michaelrevell on November 2, 2016
Posted in: hockey, Sports. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

The Maple Leafs returned home from a rather unsuccessful three game road trip last week, beginning with a Tuesday night game against Steven Stamkos and the Tampa Bay Lightning.

Tampa Bay 7 – Toronto 3

nylander lightning.jpg

As every Leaf fan knows, Stamkos famously spurned his hometown Leafs this past offseason in favour of returning to the only NHL city he has ever known. Unsurprisingly, a few jaded Leaf fans seemed to take personal offence to this, undeservedly booing the Markham, Ontario native and Canadian hockey icon. Even as a Leafs writer, I must say I was kind of happy when Stamkos immediately answered the catcalls with a goal just over a minute into the game. Stamkos ended up with two goals and two assists for the night, as his Lightning squad annihilated a clearly overmatched Leafs team.

Once again, the Leafs had a relatively strong offensive game, recording 43 shots compared to the 24 they surrendered, but as is the story of this young season so far, Toronto’s shoddy defense let them down. In fact, even with the massive shot advantage, it wasn’t long before the Leafs found themselves down 4-0 in the game.

It was another case of missed defensive assignments, poor board play, unnecessary risks taken by defenders, and an inability to remove the puck from their own end once Tampa seized control of the puck. A lack of communication and defensive structure was evident on a number of goals, notably on the Victor Hedman goal that put the Lightning up 4-0. Crossed signals all around, veterans James van Riemsdyk and Tyler Bozak, along with the new defensive pairing of Morgan Rielly and Nikita Zaitsev seemed confused as to who was supposed to be covering who, giving Hedman, Stamkos and friends all the time in the world to bury one behind Frederik Andersen.

As stated in previous week reviews, this is going to happen this season. The Rielly-Zaitsev pairing is a new one and it will take time before they properly learn to play with each other, but more is expected out of the Leafs vets, Bozak and van Riemsdyk being prime examples.

Offensively, the Auston Matthews-William Nylander duo looked strong again, while Nazem Kadri, Rielly, and Zaitsev all had notable moments offensively as well.

A beautiful pass from Kadri resulted in a power play goal from Nylander, while strong offensive vision from Rielly and incredible patience from Zaitsev turned into a tip in from van Riemsdyk.

Oh, and there was yet another Nylander to Matthews wrist shot goal, but we’re all getting rather used to that now.

Overall, it’s an understatement to say this was a bad game for Toronto. It’s not like many people were expecting a Leafs team in the process of a youthful rebuild to defeat a Stanley Cup favourite in the Lightning, but giving up seven goals is a failure in anyones eyes. If Toronto tightened up a bit defensively, and had Andersen stopped one or two more relatively stoppable shots and the Leafs still lost, we’d all be looking at this game a little differently.

Toronto Maple Leafs 3 – Florida Panthers 2

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This is the game that Frederik Andersen and the rest of the Leafs needed, especially after the drubbing they took from Tampa Bay.

A very strong Florida Panthers team rolled into town, looking to continue where their Florida state counterparts left off. Instead, they faced a Toronto team that played what may have been one of their strongest games of this young season.

Florida took the early lead, with Jonathan Marchessault, one of the best stories of the season thus far, took advantage of a bad Morgan Rielly giveaway that lead to a 2-on-1 that Andersen had really no chance to stop. Toronto battled back before the end of the period, Tyler Bozak scoring the tying goal late in the frame, with Mitch Marner recording his first assist of three on the night. Marchessault scored again, this time on the powerplay, before James van Riemsdyk took advantage of an outstanding no look pass from Marner to tie the game up yet again. Bozak scored his second goal of the game just a few minutes later, once again off of a beauty pass from Marner to put the Leafs up 3-2 and they never looked back.

Toronto held a one goal lead throughout the entire third period for the first time this season, although it wasn’t exactly due to a good all-round defensive effort. Instead, Frederik Andersen stood on his head, playing the best game he’s had as a Leaf, preserving the 3-2 victory.

However, even though they recorded the win, it was another lacklustre defensive performance from the Leafs, littered with defensive zone breakdowns, relatively poor even strength play, and some bad decision making on the offensive side of things from their defensemen, such as multiple attempts at low percentage outlet passes and bad pinches.

Nonetheless, Toronto won a game against a very good Panthers team, and they took that momentum to Montreal, as they headed to Quebec to take on the arch-rival Canadiens on Saturday.

Montreal Canadiens 2 – Toronto Maple Leafs 1

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Alright, forget what I said about the Florida game possibly being the best game from the Leafs this season, and forget the fact that Toronto lost this game; THIS was the best effort from the 2016/2017 Maple Leafs thus far.

Toronto dominated play for the majority of the first two periods against a Montreal team that have exploded out of the gates so far this season, propelled by outstanding play from Shea Weber and the dominant return of the best goalie in the world, Carey Price. If not for the incredible play of Price, Toronto may have entered the third period with the lead, instead of being behind 1-0.

Morgan Rielly found himself caught behind Alex Radulov and Alex Galchenyuk, who have displayed incredible chemistry so far this season, early in the second period, resulting in an odd-man rush that saw Galchenyuk bury a Radulov pass that put the Canadiens in the lead.

A beautiful pass from William Nylander early in the third frame resulted in a tip-in powerplay goal from Nazem Kadri that tied the game up, but after that the Canadiens seemed to find a second gear, overtaking the flow of the game and surging back in the shot attempts column.

Poor discipline and defensive play ended up being Toronto’s downfall in this game, as Connor Carrick, who’s struggled on the defensive side of things at times this season, lost his positioning in a 4-on-4 situation and ended up taking a hooking penalty that gave Montreal a 4-on-3 powerplay. Shea Weber took immediate advantage of the situation, scoring what turned out to be the winning goal on an absolute bomb of a slapshot from the point.

Carey Price stood on his head from there on, resulting in the 2-1 win for Montreal.

Even though they lost, there was a lot of good to be taken out of this game from a Toronto point of view. Montreal is off to a torrid start and the Leafs stayed competitive throughout the whole game, pushing the Habs to their absolute limit. Frederik Andersen had his second straight great game, Nylander, Matthews, Kadri, and a number of other players had stellar overall games, and even Martin Marincin, one of the goats of the team so far, had what was without a doubt his best game of the season.

There was seemingly a lot to look forward to as Toronto headed to Brooklyn to face the Islanders in a rare 6:00 Sunday evening game.

New York Islanders 5 – Toronto Maple Leafs 1

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Well, THAT was a step backwards.

One day after their strongest game of the season, a tired looking Leafs group laid an absolute egg against a struggling Islanders team.

Toronto started off poorly almost immediately, allowing a Travis Hamonic shot to go in on just the second shift of the game. The veteran duo of Tyler Bozak and James van Riemsdyk, who have been woefully inconsistent to start the season, looked bad on the goal, Bozak uncharacteristically losing a defensive zone draw, and JVR showing poor defensive stick work and having the Harmonic shot deflect off of his stick and past a hopeless Jhonas Enroth.

Toronto recovered and had a number of strong shifts before the Bozak and van Riemsdyk had another poor shift that resulted in a goal. Bad footwork from Roman Polak lead to a break and both Bozak and JVR looked slow and careless on the back check, resulting the Isles’ second goal of the game.

A number of strong shifts for Toronto followed that goal, but New York goalie Thomas Greiss stood tall and stoned the Leafs on a few good looks, notably from Bozak and Connor Carrick.

Jake Gardiner scored a powerplay goal at the start of the third period, making it a 2-1 game before New York took over the rest of the match.

It quickly turned into a blowout, with the JVR and Bozak combo recording a -4 +/- rating, and ended up being called out by Mike Babcock following the game, saying “They need to be a lot better.”

It was a disappointing finish to the opening month of the NHL season, but there is a lot to be excited about in LeafLand. It’s been over a decade since Toronto was this exciting to watch, they’re an absolute treat to watch offensively, and the defensive aspect of the game will come to this young group with time. All the losses aside, it’s an exciting time to watch the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Player Notes:

William Nylander: His 11 points in 9 games leads rookie scoring and is good for third overall in the league. His offensive chemistry with Matthews thus far is outstanding, and he’s been a pleasure to watch in the offensive zone. Obviously, the defensive side needs work.

Auston Matthews: I don’t like to say he’s “fallen off” since his massive debut, but he’s understandably slid a little. He wasn’t going to be averaging four points a game all season, and he’s still been a gem offensively. Has 10 points in 9 games.

Mitch Marner: Was an absolute beast against Florida, notching three assists. Aside from that, he’s been sound all over the ice, showing more defensive prowess than expected. Has showcased incredible vision and speed, and has carried his line mates at times, usually van Riemsdyk and Bozak.

Nikita Zaitsev: Staggered a little this week in a bigger role, spending significant time with Morgan Rielly on the top pairing. Has still been a massive bright spot throughout the first month of his NHL career.

Martin Marincin: Looked better this week after being bumped down the defensive depth chart and put back on his natural left side. Started off the season poorly, but had his best game of the year against Montreal.

Frederik Andersen: Battled through a few rough outings and rebounded nicely with sterling performances against Florida and Montreal. This is the Andersen the Leafs thought they were getting.

Nazem Kadri: Has adapted well to a more checking oriented role, while still chipping in with big moments offensively. Could be better on the draw, but has shown great grit, been responsible in both ends and is emerging as a team leader. A great start to the season for Kadri.

Tyler Bozak and James van Riemsdyk: Have both been streaky all season. There’s moments where they’ve been huge, but have also been the two vets that have made the most mistakes this year. Bozak’s been fantastic on the draw though, and both players have chipped in with timely goals. Both need to be more consistent.

Morgan Rielly: Has looked a little overmatched as a number one defenseman thus far, struggling with bad turnovers at times and occasionally scrambling in the defensive end. Having a rotating cast of d-partners hasn’t helped, it’ll be interesting to see if he develops good chemistry with Zaitsev.

Seth Griffith: Finally made his Leafs debut and was solid if unspectacular in three games. Had a few good scoring chances he couldn’t capitalize on, but was a top notch player possession wise in limited minutes. Overall, had a good first week of action as a Leaf.

The Week Ahead:

Connor McDavid plays in the ACC for the first time as the Edmonton Oilers come to town on Tuesday, then the Leafs head to Buffalo to take on the Sabres on Thursday before returning home to face the Vancouver Canucks on Saturday night.

William Nylander was named October’s Rookie of the Month, leading all rookies in scoring.

Josh Leivo was loaned to the Toronto Marlies for a conditioning stint, Matt Hunwick was placed on the IR with a lower body injury, and Nikita Soshnikov was recalled from the Marlies to fill the roster spot.

The Weekly Leaf: Week 2

Posted by michaelrevell on October 24, 2016
Posted in: hockey, Sports. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

After a three day break to start the week off, it was a quick three games in four nights for the Toronto Maple Leafs, starting with a much anticipated visit to Winnipeg on Wednesday.

Winnipeg 5 – Toronto – 4 (OT)

jets-leafs

The trip to Winnipeg meant one thing for both fanbases, the first head-to-head matchup of the #1 and #2 picks of the 2016 draft, Auston Matthews and Patrik Laine. Matthews, of course, set the hockey world on fire with his four goal debut, but this time it was Patrik Laine’s time to shine.

The Leafs burst out of the gate with Connor Carrick’s first goal of the season, almost seven minutes into the game. Nazem Kadri made it 2-0 before the end of the first period, then William Nylander got the third goal of the game early in the second period (which saw Matthews record his first career assist), followed by Kadri’s second goal of the game just eight seconds later. The game was seemingly in the bag, or so we thought.

Leafs fans are no strangers to third period collapses, as we’ve seen countless times over the past decade, most notably a certain game seven collapse against the Bruins that we shall never mention again. This time, the meltdown started just over halfway through the second period.

Tyler Myers started the scoring for Winnipeg, before Laine scored his second career goal, making the score 4-2 going into the third period.

Mark Scheifele scored early in the frame and then Laine tied the game up on a power play goal.

The game was sent into overtime, where Matthews was denied by Michael Hutchinson on a great breakaway chance that ended up turning into Laine’s hat trick goal.

After Hutchinson’s save, Dustin Byfuglien corralled the rebound and sent a pass to Laine, who burst down the right side of the ice and fired a wrist shot past Frederik Andersen and just under the crossbar, completing his first career hat trick and ending the game, much to the delight of the Winnipeg faithful.

So, what went wrong with the Leafs? How did yet another third period collapse happen?

First, let me preface this by saying it is far from time to panic. Toronto has points in all three games they’ve played so far, and we’ve seen significant improvement compared to last season. Actually, significant is an understatement, this team isn’t even in the same realm as the majority of Leaf squads from the past 15 years or so.

This team is supposed to have its ups and downs, and so far, they’ve delivered as advertised. They’ve been an explosive team offensively, rush after rush, scoring chance after scoring chance. However, defensively they’ve left a lot to be desired. Honestly, if you expected otherwise this season, you’re kidding yourself.

Simply put, Winnipeg got their act together about halfway through the second period, and Toronto couldn’t keep up with their push. The Jets owned even-strength possession for most of the game and eventually, the Leafs inexperienced d-core cracked.

The youthful line of Matthews, Nylander and Zach Hyman underwhelmed for the second game in a row, providing good offensive moments, but looked lacklustre defensively even strength, getting caught in their own end for long periods of time on multiple occasions.

Overall, it was obviously a disappointing game for Toronto, no one wants to blow a 4-0 lead. But, there are supposed to be growing pains this year, and honestly, Toronto’s offence is looking as good as advertised, possibly better. Yeah, there’s a lot of work to do defensively, but that’s what rebuilding seasons are for.

Player Notes:

Nazem Kadri: Scored two goals, including one on the power play, and did good work digging the puck out of the Jets’ defense on a 5 on 3 PP, allowing Nikita Zaitsev and Matthews to set up a beautiful Nylander goal.

William Nylander: Solid PP goal on a beautiful finish, assisted on Kadri’s second goal of the game. Looked great on the PP, mediocre defensively even strength.

Auston Matthews: Similar to Nylander, looked great on PP, not great at even strength. Might be interesting to see a bit of a line juggle to avoid having three rookies on the same line. Notched his first career assist.

Jake Gardiner: Same old story with Jake. Jumping into the rush frequently, resulted in at least two goals; one for Toronto, one for Winnipeg. Bad pinch led to the Tyler Myers goal. Needs to contain and regulate his aggressiveness.

Martin Marincin: Led the Leafs in ice time, which should never happen. Overmatched once again, and playing on his wrong side, he needs to be replaced by Zaitsev as Morgan Rielly’s partner.

Nikita Zaitsev: Once again, may have been Toronto’s best d-man. Will have a bigger role moving forward.

Leo Komarov: Great on PP, did the dirty, physical work on Kadri’s PP goal, ended up with a secondary assist. Won battles all night long, creating chances offensively.

Frederik Andersen: Was probably Toronto’s best player early on, making key saves throughout before the entire team went off the rails in the third. Looked slow and laboured on the PP one-timer goal from Laine. Did make 29 saves and bailed the Leafs out numerous times early on.

Fourth line: Matt Martin, Peter Holland and Connor Brown had another good game, hard-working all throughout and even had a couple of scoring chances and were responsible for a few changes in momentum.

Minnesota 3 – Toronto 2

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Once again, the end result was a loss for Toronto, this one being their first regulation loss of the season, but there was more to the loss than meets the eye.

Toronto played quite well for the majority of the game, especially considering the fact that they were playing their first back-to-back games of the season, and Minnesota was well rested. Let’s add in the fact that the man in net, Jhonas Enroth, was making his season debut and Martin Marincin, who as mentioned earlier led the Leafs in ice time last game, was out with an injury. All things considered, this was not a bad game for the 2016/2017 Maple Leafs, and they actually controlled even strength play for most of the game.

As per usual and as should be expected this season, there were untimely defensive errors and a lack of clutch goaltending, but once again, this is what this season is for; to iron out the kinks.

Toronto probably even should have had a couple more goals, Wild goalie Devan Dubnyk stood on his head throughout the game, and it was only Dubnyk and Eric Staal, who apparently thinks it’s 2008 again, that won the game for Minnesota.

Enroth did well enough throughout the game, coming up with key saves throughout the first two periods. However, his efforts were not enough, as a couple of defensive miscues, namely from Connor Carrick and Auston Matthews, led to a couple of scoring chances and goals. Regardless of the team’s defensive play, I’m sure Enroth would like to have at least one of the third period goals back, both were relatively stoppable pucks.

Player Notes:

Jhonas Enroth: Stood tall in the first couple of periods, but as previously stated, let in a soft goal or two. All in all, not a bad debut for the new Leafs backup.

Connor Carrick: Has had growing pains defensively so far this year, but again, to be expected. Contributed to two Wild goals, one where he left Morgan Rielly out to dry with an overaggressive move at the blueline, and a bad pinch that helped out Eric Staal on his breakaway goal. Doing good things possession-wise however, actually leading the team in CF% for the night.

Auston Matthews: Scored another goal, this one on the powerplay, capitalizing on his chances. Was smothered by Ryan Suter throughout the game, and his possession numbers and breakout chances suffered accordingly. Not a bad thing, 99% of the league would have suffered a similar fate. Had a turnover that contributed to Staal’s breakaway goal.

Fourth Line: Connor Brown, Peter Holland and Matt Martin continue to impress. Tenacious all around, they’ve gritted their way to a few offensive chances and continue to be momentum setters. Martin’s been effective in a penalty killing role thus far as well.

Roman Polak: Slotting in for the injured Marincin, Polak scored the opening goal of the game with a blast from the point. Blocked seven shots in 15 minutes of work.

Nikita Zaitsev: Needs to be paired with Rielly ASAP. Continues to impress mightily, looks poised and unafraid of any opposition. Successfully boxed out opponents, led the team in ice-time, and doesn’t miss many defensive assignments. Really feel like it’s only a matter of time before he ends up as Rielly’s full time partner.

William Nylander: Outstanding as a puck carrier and on the powerplay, his play in his own end is still scary at times. Will continue to improve in that aspect throughout the year. Assisted on the Matthews goal, giving him five points in four games thus far.

Chicago 5 – Toronto 4 (SO)

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Toronto recorded another point, albeit in yet another overtime/shootout loss, but still has points in four of five games. Started slow out of the gate, struggling to get the puck out of their own end and out of the hands of Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane.

Coughed up another third period lead, much to the ire of the Twittersphere, but defensive miscues are going to keep happening this year as this team grows, and fans need to quickly accept that.

This year is going to be full of growing pains, it’s time to expect as such.

Defensively, the Leafs were scrambling yet again, and Frederik Andersen has yet to hit his stride.

Player Notes:

Frederik Andersen: Loss was not his fault, but would like to have the tying goal back. Absolutely robbed Kane on a couple of chances in the slot. Not a particularly inspiring performance, but far from bad.

Roman Polak: Was a physical beast, wrecking Dennis Rasmussen on a hit that resulted in a penalty, but nonetheless set his physical tone for the game. Failed to clear the puck that lead to Richard Panik’s tying goal.

Auston Matthews: Played head to head against Toews and came out with the shot attempt advantage. Assisted on Nylander’s power play goal and may have played his best defensive game of the season. Scored in the shootout as well.

William Nylander: Had two goals on the night, continuing to show brilliant chemistry with Matthews, nearly assisting on a backhand that Matthews missed as well. Has seven points in five games to start the year.

Tyler Bozak: Beautiful tip in the slot resulted in a goal, was strong defensively and in the face-off circle. Improving after a lacklustre first couple of games.

James van Riemsdyk: Continued to struggle a bit, and was replaced by Connor Brown at times. Woke up in the second period, had multiple scoring chances, his best resulting in a goal and a hit post.

Mitch Marner: Had plenty of offensive chances and was buzzing throughout the night. Is starting to gain Babcock’s trust on the defensive end, seeing ice time in the final minutes of play. Had a notable block on Patrick Kane.

Nazem Kadri: May have had his worst game of the young season. Took a bit of a step back after a good first few games, he looked slow at times defensively, especially on the Panarin goal. Had poor possession stars, mediocre face off numbers, and took a careless high-sticking penalty. Don’t expect his next game to be like this one.

Zach Hyman: Played nearly five minutes on the penalty kill and led the team in puck possession. Had a couple of notable scoring chances in the goalmouth and continues to show doggedness and tenacity.

Connor Brown: May be playing himself out of the fourth line, will undoubtedly be bumped up upon the first injury. Saw time with Bozak and Marner as well as Kadri and Komarov. Did not look out of place there at all, he may end up on the Kadri line full time sooner rather than later.

Jake Gardiner/Connor Carrick: This pairing has been scaring me so far, and had a poor night defensively. Both had off nights, frequently losing positioning and leading to Chicago scoring chances. Babcock’s experimented with his d-pairings constantly thus far, and it wouldn’t shock me to see Carrick scratched at some point to see what Frank Corrado can do. Not a knock on Carrick, again, this is to be expected this year.

Growing pains. It’s going to happen throughout this season, especially on the defensive end, so get used to it, Leaf fans.

The Week Ahead:

Josh Leivo and Martin Marincin remain out with lower-body injuries. Leivo has yet to play this season, and is not due for an imminent return. Marincin’s injury had led to playing time for Roman Polak, expect Polak to continue seeing action, and maybe we’ll see an appearance from Frank Corrado.

The Leafs come back home after a three game road trip and play host to Tampa Bay on Tuesday and Florida on Thursday before heading to Montreal for Hockey Night In Canada on Saturday.

The Weekly Leaf: Week 1

Posted by michaelrevell on October 17, 2016
Posted in: hockey, Sports. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

So, THAT happened.

auston-matthews

The Toronto Maple Leafs kicked off their centennial season in style this past week, honouring the legends of the past, while simultaneously showcasing their pool of young talent, led by a record breaking performance from Auston Matthews.

By now every hockey fan knows what happened in Ottawa on Wednesday night. In the season opener against the Senators, Auston Matthews netted four (yes, FOUR) goals, becoming the first player in modern NHL history to debut with a four goal game. Yes, the Leafs lost the game 5-4 in overtime, but thats really besides the point. It was an absolutely dominant performance from Matthews, the kind of night a player has that makes fans 30 years down the road ask their friends “Where were you when Matthews scored four?” The Leafs lost the game, but Matthews and company gave Leafs fans something to truly go nuts for, it really was a debut for the ages.

Matthews aside, the Leafs as a team actually outperformed Ottawa for the majority of the game, let down only by subpar goaltending from Frederik Andersen, and untimely defensive breakdowns. Mitch Marner was great in his debut, as was Nikita Zaitsev. The young guns come out firing, Marner in particular having an ample amount of opportunities to score, and William Nylander and Zach Hyman looked fantastic on a line with Matthews.

Defense was suspect, but that’s to be expected this season. It’s no secret that Andersen had an off night in goal, but the Leafs brass is confident that he will turn it around moving forward. All in all, it was a promising night for Toronto, win or not.

Three days later, the Leafs made their home debut against the Boston Bruins after a lengthy ceremony honouring Toronto’s centennial season and the great Leafs of the past. The organization did a wonderful job with the ceremony, which ended with the retirement of all the previously “honoured” numbers, plus the great Dave Keon, who had a falling out with the old Ballard led Leafs brass. It was great to see both the organization and Keon move on from what happened in the past, and seeing all those great Leafs stand around centre ice and have their jerseys retired brought chills down my spine.

Moving on to the game itself, Toronto came flying out of the gates, led by physical play from Matt Martin, Nazem Kadri winning a rematch fight against David Backes, and ended the first period with goals from Connor Brown, James van Riemsdyk, and Mitch Marner’s first career goal.

Frederik Andersen was much better than he was against Ottawa, and saved the Leafs a number of times in a second period that saw Boston take advantage of some weak defensive play and poor puck possession numbers.

Milan Michalek tipped in a Morgan Rielly shot to seal the game up at 4-1, and just like that Toronto had their first win of the young season, finishing off the week with a 1-0-1 record and 3 points.

Toronto’s next games are against Winnipeg, Minnesota and Chicago, starting in Winnipeg on Wednesday.

Here are some notes on some key Leafs players:

Auston Matthews – What else is there to say? It was a breathtaking performance, a truly special night, and a pleasure to watch. We may never see a debut like this again, so Leafs fans, cherish this moment. The first goal saw strong forechecking from Nylander and Hyman result in Matthews receiving a pass from behind the goal directly in the slot. The second was a thing of beauty. It was a solo effort that saw Matthews embarrass three key Ottawa players (Mark Stone, Mike Hoffman and two-time Norris winner Erik Karlsson) with dekes before sneaking the puck through Craig Anderson’s five hole. The hat trick goal, which occurred only a couple of minutes into the second period, was set up by Morgan Rielly, who threw a beautiful pass to Matthews that he finished off with relative ease. The fourth goal showcased some already great chemistry between Matthews and Nylander, with the two of them going off on a 2-on-1 before Nylander slid the puck across to Matthews, who quickly buried it and sent the visiting Leafs fans into a frenzy. It was a spectacular night, one that Leafs fans will never forget. He wasn’t quite as dominant against Boston, staying off the scoresheet, but we were still treated with occasional flashes of elite offensive action from him and his linemates.

William Nylander: Had two assists on Matthews goals and had great chemistry on a line with him and Zach Hyman. Nylander looked solid and speedy on the forecheck and showed his innate sense for playmaking throughout the night, specifically with the saucer pass that set up Matthews’ fourth. Like Matthews, was shut down by the Riley Nash, Dominic Moore, Noel Acciari line.

Zach Hyman: Did a lot of the dirty work for Matthews and Nylander, going into the corners and fighting for the puck. Was great on the forecheck and looked solid overall when pressured on the defensive side.

Mitch Marner: Had a fantastic debut, although he was held off the scoresheet. Had numerous scoring chances, including a breakaway and a hit crossbar, and carried his linemates, Tyler Bozak and James van Riemsdyk, throughout the entire game. Marner’s speed and sense for the net was shown throughout, but at times it looked like he was still playing a “Junior hockey” game. By that I mean that Marner occasionally took too long to make a play and Ottawa’s defense would catch up to him. It seemed like he thought he would have all the time in the world, like he’s accustom to in the OHL, but the pro game is faster and stronger, and Marner seemed to be caught off guard at times. No worries though, it’s only a matter of time before he learns and adapts. Had a great second game, receiving a pass from Nikita Zaitsev, and blowing a wrister past Anton Khudobin for his first NHL goal. That goal aside, Marner had a few absolutely dominant shifts, showing off his elite speed, handles, and offensive ability.

Frederik Andersen: Five goals on 30 shots, it wasn’t the best of debuts for Toronto’s latest hope in goal. I’m giving Andersen a pass on this game however, as it’s easy to forget that he had a shortened pre-season due to his injury he sustained while playing an Olympic qualifying game. His defense didn’t exactly help him, with Jake Gardiner not covering Bobby Ryan properly, resulting in a screen and a goal. Martin Marincin didn’t look great on the Derick Brassard goal either, but that was still a shot Andersen probably should have had. He looked much better against Boston, recording 24 saves and playing with poise throughout. That was the Frederik Andersen we saw in Anaheim, and the one that Toronto needs. Expect some off nights moving forward as he adjusts to a new system, but his play against Boston was promising.

Nikita Zaitsev: Heavily impressed me so far, looked great in both games defensively, and recorded his first point with an assist on Marner’s goal. Took a bigger role in the Ottawa game when Matt Hunwick was injured, and looked comfortable playing with Morgan Rielly. Will likely take Marincin’s spot playing with Rielly full time at some point soon. Was excellent in boxing players out, physically removing players off of the puck, and properly using poke and sweep checks. Moved the puck well, was solid defensively and physically, Zaitsev couldn’t have kicked off his NHL career any better.

Matt Martin: Stirred things up physically, went after Chris Neil and fought Mark Borowiecki and Zdeno Chara. Finished his checks, provided leadership and free space to roam for Toronto’s more skilled players. Every team needs a Matt Martin on it.

Nazem Kadri: Taking a bit of a side role offensively nowadays, he’s becoming more of a two-way centre now and played a defensively responsible game against both Ottawa and Boston. Was seen on the penalty kill, and did a fine job stifling the oppositions offensive presences. Still saw a lot of power play time, was dominant in the face off dot (69% in both games) and even fought, and beat, David Backes in a rematch from last year. A very impressive start to the season from Kadri overall.

Morgan Rielly: Played big minutes in both games and recorded his first point of the year with his assist on Matthews’ hat trick goal. Interesting to note that he was a 41.67CF% when playing with Martin Marincin, and a 63.63%CF when playing with someone else. Zaitsev looked good with him, would be interesting to see that pairing full time.

Martin Marincin: Overmatched on a top pairing, plain and simple. Was on the ice for three goals against in Ottawa and looked bad on a couple of them. Will not last on the top pairing with Rielly for much longer.

Jake Gardiner: Looked poor defensively on the Bobby Ryan goal, failing to tie him up or move him out, but otherwise looked alright while playing with Connor Carrick. Keep an eye on that pairing moving forward.

James van Riemsdyk: Had an underwhelming game against Ottawa, with only the odd good shift, but rebounded in game two, scoring his first goal of the season. JVR, Komarov and some of the other vets need to be better.

Tyler Bozak: Marner drove the line and JVR and Bozak struggled to keep up at times. Tried playing too fancy at first, but improved in game two when going back to what he’s best at; driving the lane and setting up the more skilled players.