There are so many potential storylines that come with this new alternate world and I’m really excited to explore them. My very first thought was that Crosby would now have a natural rivalry with Malkin, who is only a few hours away in Montreal. With Ovechkin off on the west coast, it likely will be Malkin and the Canadiens standing in the way of Crosby and the Leafs, which is an amazing turn of events. I also remembered that the Leafs picked 4th overall in the 2004 Draft and nabbed Jonathan Quick, giving them two good young players in two important positions.
A quick review of the depth chart revealed that Sid would be learning under two of the best centres in Mats Sundin and Joe Nieuwendyk. Unfortunately, this does mean that he starts the season low on the depth chart. On Opening Night, the lines looked like this, with Sid on the fourth line between Josh Holden and Matt Stajan.
Sid’s first NHL game came at home against Ottawa on October 5, 2005. He played an underwhelming 7:18 and recorded one shot on goal.
Three days later, the Leafs played host to their rival, the Montreal Canadiens. The first of what I anticipate will be many matchups between Crosby and Malkin.
Sid scored his first NHL goal less than eight minutes into the game. The assists went to Karel Pilar and Nik Antropov.
The Leafs ended up losing 5-3 after Montreal tied it up and took the lead in a span of 45 seconds with less than three minutes to go.
Welcome to Toronto, Sidney.