The Toronto Maple Leafs won their second game in a row with a solid 4-1 victory over the injury riddled Columbus Blue Jackets. The night began with the news that Joffrey Lupul has a broken bone in his hand and will be out of action for an undetermined amount of time. As a result, the Leafs top two lines had to be altered with Daniel Winnik teamed up with Nazem Kadri and Phil Kessel and David Clarkson matched up with Tyler Bozak and James van Reimsdyk. The restructured top two lines accounted for all four of the Leaf goals letting all Leaf fans breathe a sigh of relief.
Winnik did not look out of place on the top line, in fact he cleared space for his line mates and was rewarded with a goal late in the third period. Once again, Phil Kessel led the way with a goal and two assists which included a pretty pass to Kadri. The young center seems to be benefiting from being paired up with Kessel and hopefully this will continue. The constant bashing that Kessel gets from certain members of the media and the fan base because he only skated 10 times during the summer needs to end once and for all. The bottom line is that Kessel makes his line mates better. Look what he has done with Tyler Bozak and now it appears Kadri may be the next beneficiary.
Jonathan Bernier played very well last night and appears to have shaken off the early rust that he had in the first couple of his starts in goal. The Leaf defense played well last night. Morgan Reilly continues to grow and it seems that Roman Polak makes for a nice defense partner for him. It looked like Jake Gardiner played a much more simpler game last night and as a result was sound defensively.
The fourth line had one shift in the third period and that resulted in a foolish Matt Frattin penalty that led to a power play goal for Columbus. I didn't have a problem with the Leafs re-acquiring Frattin, even though I like Jerry D'Amigo's game. But Frattin has been awful since the pre-season and has not shown any signs of being a solid contributor for this team. It is unfortunate for his line mates, Peter Holland and Carter Ashton. Ashton needs to get a fair shot with the Leafs so they can determine where this kid stands in this organization. As for Holland, I still believe that this kid can be a solid possible top-6 forward with the Leafs. He set up the Clarkson goal with a nice pass to Dion Phaneuf. It is encouraging that Randy Carlyle is giving Holland power play time but he needs to get more minutes. If Frattin continues to be a liability then Leaf management needs to make a decision and bring up someone like Josh Leivo. As an aside, the Komorov-Santorelli-Panik line had a strong game and Komorov has been a difference maker on the PK along with Winnik.
Tonight the Leafs step up in weight class as they take on the Chicago Black Hawks at the ACC. In home meetings against Pittsburgh, Detroit and Boston, the Leafs were completely out played and out hustled. The games were brutal to watch. Last season, the Leafs had a huge 7-3 win against the Black Hawks at home where Peter Holland led the way with 2 goals. The Leafs have something to prove tonight to their fans and to themselves. A lackluster performance tonight will rewind the criticism of the core of this team. Fans will be looking for scapegoats. A win isn't necessary but what is necessary is some effort. Certainly a better effort than what they showed against the Penguins, Red Wings and Bruins. While it's fairly early in the season, tonight's game very well may be a statement game on this season.
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