With the season nearly halfway done, Leafs GM Jason Taylor brought his two goalies into his office. He explained that they would continue to platoon, although Ed Belfour was officially being given the starter’s tag. Taylor stressed that they would continue to split the games roughly 50-50. Ken Wregget clenched his jaw but didn’t complain, and Belfour simply said thank you. Taylor was relieved that both showed maturity, hoping that they would continue to be competitive while also being supportive of one another.
Game 37 - 4-1 W v NYI
Dan Daoust scored with 10 min left to take a 3-1 lead, and then iced the game on an ENG with 2 seconds left. Phil Bourque had 2A and was +3 filling in for Vinny Damphousse, and Wregget stopped 22 of 23 to show he had no intention of letting Belfour keep the starter’s role without a fight.
Unfortunately the next day (Boxing Day), Dan Daoust fell down a flight of stairs. He suffered a dislocated shoulder and other minor injuries, which would put him on the IR for 1-2 months. Gary Leeman was nearly back, so hopefully the impact would be minimized, but still very disappointing for the Leafs to lose their #1 sub.
Game 38 - 3-3 T @ QUE
Quebec scored twice in the first minute of the 2nd to go up 3-1, but the Leafs blueline (Brad Marsh and Borje Salming) tied it up in the 3rd. Toronto outshot Quebec 43-28, but Ron Tuggnut turned in a stellar performance with 40 saves to get the tie. Belfour was solid with 25 saves. Quebec’s stars also saved the day; Peter Stastny (1-2-3 and +3) and Michel Goulet (1-1-2 and +3) had Toronto on the ropes all night.
Year-End Player Poll results:
Game 39 - 6-4 L v QUE
The Nordiques took Toronto down on New Year’s Eve, despite being outshot 33-24. Peter Stastny had an incredible 4-goal night, and Robert Picard had 3A. Ken Wregget’s awful showing (he only stopped 18 of 24) sunk Toronto, although Dave Reid (2A) and Ron Wilson (2G) did their best to keep Toronto in it.
CHI C Denis Savard and MIN G Don Beaupre were POTM
DECEMBER LOOKBACK- In December the Leafs were 5-5-4 with 66 GF and 51 GA. The returned to the .500 form they showed in October. Several losses and ties were the result of incredible goaltending performances for their opponents, which could suggest the Leafs need a bit more finishing skill up front.
- Toronto’s skid cooled them off somewhat, but at the halfway mark they are still 2nd overall (2 points behind the Flyers). The Leafs are 22-12-5 with 178 GF and 153 GA, and still have a 10-point lead on Minnesota in the Norris.
- Toronto was 3rd in offense, 11th in defense, 2nd in shots for and 6th in shots against. They continued to struggle on the powerplay (19th of 21) and penalty kill (13th), and they would need to improve on these to have a strong playoff run.
Other highlights:
- Toronto had seven players with 13+ goals, and two more in double-digits. The scoring by committee was working for the most part, but their inability to solve hot goalies could indicate they need a clutch scorer (likely on the wings).
- The Leafs continued to be powered by their two star forwards Olczyk (13-39-52) and Leeman (22-17-39 in 29GP), as well as solid offense from their blueline in Al Iafrate (13-18-31) and rookie Zarley Zalapski (15-27-42 and +29 in 31GP).
- In net, Belfour has been streaky but overall decent. Taylor was beginning to question Ken Wregget though; he was far too prone to turning in absolute stinkers, and didn’t seem to be able to maintain top form for more than a few games at a time. With Wregget on the last year of his deal, Taylor would have to make up his mind on whether to extend or trade him.
Other Key Callouts:
- Olczyk is 2nd in the league in assists with 39
- Toronto’s 2nd defense pairing of Zalapski and Craig Muni were T-2nd in +/- at +29
- Brad Marsh led the league with 119 blocked shots
- Ron Wilson was 1st in the league with 5 SHG, and Reid was tied for 2nd with 3 SHG
- And despite not appearing all season, Wendel Clark’s #17 jersey had improved to 14th best-seller among all NHL jerseys in December
