GDT: Leafs@Lightning 7:30M SNO

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Budsfan

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GAME DAY: Maple Leafs at Lightning
Lance HornbyMore from Lance Hornby
GAME DAY: Maple Leafs at Lightning

7:30 P.M. AMALIE ARENA TV: Sportsnet; RADIO: FAN 590
THE BIG MATCHUP
G Frederik Andersen vs. G Andrei Vasilevskiy

Both have been dominant when healthy, with Andersen getting more attention in the conference while Vasilevskiy was down and the latter retaining dominance as Andersen nursed a groin injury after Christmas. But Vasilevskiy has the better team in front of him at present, is coming off a 35-save, 2-0 shutout in Dallas and was the star the last time Leafs were in town.
KEYS TO THE GAME
1. NO TIME FOR MOPING:
The Leafs left Toronto feeling the wrath of their fans, but had better clear their heads by puck drop. If middle-of-the pack teams can bump them off their game, the league-leading Lightning aren’t going to reveal many weak links. The Bolts already beat Toronto once here last month. Mike Babcock will have some juggled lines in place, at least to start the game.
2. DEPTH CHARGE: How deep are the Lightning? Ex-Leaf Anton Stralman, an accomplished veteran defenceman, was a recent healthy scratch and they’re running at plus 58 in goal differential. They’ve lost just twice within the Atlantic Division this season and have an overall mark of 19-2-1 in their past 22 outings.
3. HEY NIKITA, IS IT COLD?: It’s highly unlikely NHL scoring leader Nikita Kucherov goes pointless a third straight night, having banked 10 in the first five games this month. In the first match against Toronto, he had a goal and assist.
4. STAMMER TIME: GTA product Steve Stamkos, always one to watch when these clubs get together, is on a four-game point streak with a goal and five helpers and is up to 27 points in his past 17 games.
5. POWERFUL FIGURES: The Lightning not only front the league in power play success, they killed off six Dallas advantages the other night. Toronto’s top unit has misfired of late.


Leafs head to Florida focused on improvement

by Staff Writer MapleLeafs / MapleLeafs.com January 16th, 2019
Leafs head to Florida focused on improvement
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As the Maple Leafs stepped off the ice after practice Wednesday - and before the team headed out to Florida for games against the Tampa Bay Lightning Thursday and the Florida Panthers Friday - both the coaching staff and the players were resolute in finding improvement in their game and ending a two-game losing streak.
"We know what we're capable of in this room, and we know the players and the depth that we have," centre Auston Matthews said Wednesday. "And we've got to put it together. Obviously, we're going through a bit of a lull right now, and it's our job to dig ourselves out and call back into playing the way we were earlier this season. That's up to us. Nobody else."
"We've been hit-and-miss since Christmas time, and we didn't feel our work ethic was up to a level to be proud of last game," added Leafs head coach Mike Babcock. "As a group, what makes that happen and what makes the group go, you don't always know. But if it's just changing some lines around, then we'll do that."
Indeed, Babcock did juggle his lines at practice: winger Zach Hyman was on a line with Matthews and winger William Nylander - a familiar grouping that had significant time together over the past two seasons - and winger Andreas Johnsson was moved alongside centre John Tavares and winger Mitch Marner. But the primary directive for all players was a relatively simple one: ratchet up their competitive levels.
"I just think we can play harder," Babcock said. "I thought we tried to play real well and be stingy defensively. In saying that, I think we can play, as Tavares said, at another level. I think we can play harder. I think we can work harder."
The bitter taste of the Leafs' most recent loss - a 6-3 loss to Colorado Monday at Scotiabank Arena - was out of the players' mouths, but they understand what the underlying major issue was in the game.
"I think they just out-battled us and outworked us," Matthews said. "I think that was pretty clear. They didn't give us much space, we turned the puck over into their hands all game… maybe we just weren't good enough."
Turning their attention to the NHL-leading Lightning - a division rival that's 19-4-0 at home this year - the Leafs know what they have to do to stay at their level. Approximately one month ago - in a 4-1 loss to the Bolts in Tampa Bay Dec. 13 - the Leafs generated a season-high 49 shots. Only one beat goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy, but the Buds scored first and put a scare into Tampa Bay.
Still, if the Leafs can fire another 49 shots at Vasilevskiy Thursday, there's a chance more of them go in the net. And if Toronto plays as it did for roughly the first 39 minutes of that Dec. 13 game, there's a chance the Leafs can get back to the winning ways that put them near the top of the league for the first half of the 2018-19 campaign. And don't for a second think Leafs players are unaware of the things they did right in that 4-1 defeat. This time, it's all about stretching that effort until the final buzzer.
"We skated well, we didn't give them much time and space," Matthews said of the Dec. 13 game. "We trapped well, picking off pucks and going the other way. When we're playing with our speed and our skill and doing things right, playing smart, taking care of the puck, we're a tough team to play against. But it's a matter of putting that all together through a full 60 minutes and a full game."
 

Budsfan

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We don't know what the Lineup will be but Hyman looks to become Matthews L/W and Johnsson, Tavares L/W
 
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tom leafers

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a nice hard fought grindy win would be perfect right about now. With Boston losing yesterday, we have to put some friggen space between us
 

Budsfan

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Is this Maple Leafs’ slump a sign they’re not built for a long playoff run?

David Shoalts
TORONTO
Published 15 hours ago
Is this Maple Leafs’ slump a sign they’re not built for a long playoff run?

This edition of the Toronto Maple Leafs is in the midst of its first real crisis.
For the most part, the players who make up the roster now and over the past three years have been spared the anger and derision of the fans that so many Maple Leafs of the past came to know. The fans embraced the idea of a tank job to get Auston Matthews, sat through the rebuild and were rewarded when it went a lot faster than expected.
But now, with Matthews and his talented young colleagues stalling in the season they are supposed to challenge for an NHL championship, they discovered ...
...
Read full article at link: Is this Maple Leafs’ slump a sign they’re not built for a long playoff run?
...
“No one comes to the rink and says: ‘I’m not going to work today,’ ” Hyman said. “But sometimes you have to dig in a little bit harder. You learn from those games and you move forward.
“Yeah, when you’re desperate, you work. We have to find that desperation every night, and you can’t be forced into it. You have to bring it every single day.”

read full article at link: Is this Maple Leafs’ slump a sign they’re not built for a long playoff run?

The other loss that hurt was goaltender Frederik Andersen, who just returned to the lineup after missing six games with a groin injury.
Going into the Colorado game, Avalanche head coach Jared Bednar challenged his players, saying it was time for them to “put up or shut up.” Leafs head coach Mike Babcock was asked if his team needed to be called out the same way but, probably wisely, sidestepped the question.
“Well, I just think we can play harder,” he said. “Did we have a built-in excuse? I don’t know – when [Andersen] was out, maybe. I didn’t think we tried to use that. I thought we tried to play real well and be stingy defensively. In saying that, I think we can play at another level.”
Still, Babcock seems to think a small shakeup might help. He took Hyman off John Tavares’s line and reunited the Leafs top line from the previous two seasons. Hyman went back to left wing with Matthews, and also moving in was William Nylander, still looking for his mojo after a prolonged absence due to contract problems.
Babcock said he isn’t sure he will keep them together for the Tampa game, but Pat Quinn is the only Leafs coach of recent vintage known for shuffling his lines in practice only to go back to the old ones at game time.
“We’ve been hit and miss since Christmastime,” Babcock said. “We didn’t feel our work ethic was up to a level to be proud of last game as a group.
“What makes that happen, and what makes the group go, you don’t always know. But if it’s just changing some lines around, then we’ll do that.”
 
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LeafFever

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Feb 12, 2016
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Is this Maple Leafs’ slump a sign they’re not built for a long playoff run?

David Shoalts
TORONTO
Published 15 hours ago
Is this Maple Leafs’ slump a sign they’re not built for a long playoff run?

This edition of the Toronto Maple Leafs is in the midst of its first real crisis.
For the most part, the players who make up the roster now and over the past three years have been spared the anger and derision of the fans that so many Maple Leafs of the past came to know. The fans embraced the idea of a tank job to get Auston Matthews, sat through the rebuild and were rewarded when it went a lot faster than expected.
But now, with Matthews and his talented young colleagues stalling in the season they are supposed to challenge for an NHL championship, they discovered ...
...
Read full article at link: Is this Maple Leafs’ slump a sign they’re not built for a long playoff run?
...
“No one comes to the rink and says: ‘I’m not going to work today,’ ” Hyman said. “But sometimes you have to dig in a little bit harder. You learn from those games and you move forward.
“Yeah, when you’re desperate, you work. We have to find that desperation every night, and you can’t be forced into it. You have to bring it every single day.”

read full article at link: Is this Maple Leafs’ slump a sign they’re not built for a long playoff run?

The other loss that hurt was goaltender Frederik Andersen, who just returned to the lineup after missing six games with a groin injury.
Going into the Colorado game, Avalanche head coach Jared Bednar challenged his players, saying it was time for them to “put up or shut up.” Leafs head coach Mike Babcock was asked if his team needed to be called out the same way but, probably wisely, sidestepped the question.
“Well, I just think we can play harder,” he said. “Did we have a built-in excuse? I don’t know – when [Andersen] was out, maybe. I didn’t think we tried to use that. I thought we tried to play real well and be stingy defensively. In saying that, I think we can play at another level.”
Still, Babcock seems to think a small shakeup might help. He took Hyman off John Tavares’s line and reunited the Leafs top line from the previous two seasons. Hyman went back to left wing with Matthews, and also moving in was William Nylander, still looking for his mojo after a prolonged absence due to contract problems.
Babcock said he isn’t sure he will keep them together for the Tampa game, but Pat Quinn is the only Leafs coach of recent vintage known for shuffling his lines in practice only to go back to the old ones at game time.
“We’ve been hit and miss since Christmastime,” Babcock said. “We didn’t feel our work ethic was up to a level to be proud of last game as a group.
“What makes that happen, and what makes the group go, you don’t always know. But if it’s just changing some lines around, then we’ll do that.”
Silly article. Virtually every team goes through this. Different set of rules for the Leafs.
 
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Alerion

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They played Tampa well last time, they better elevate their play to that level again because the media and some portions of the fan base will lose their minds if this is another loss.
 

ShaneFalco

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Jul 15, 2012
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They played Tampa well last time, they better elevate their play to that level again because the media and some portions of the fan base will lose their minds if this is another loss.

Especially if they shit the bed like they did last game.....and a few others recently
 

Gary Nylund

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Oct 10, 2013
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They played Tampa well last time, they better elevate their play to that level again because the media and some portions of the fan base will lose their minds if this is another loss.

I'm fully expecting to lose tonight myself. Hoping to be pleasantly surprised but ...
 
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Burnie97

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Jun 26, 2015
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When you're in a lull/slump ... Whatever you want to call it. Games like this show you what you've really got. It's sink or swim time. Time to produce boys. No excuses.

I know they're ahead of the curve compared to probably where everyone thought they would be 3 years ago... but then prove it.

If you're going to win a cup... this would be the team right here you're going to most likely have to beat.

Let's light Tampa the f*** up... we have the talent... now have the effort level.

If they have Hyman Matthews Nylander tonight ... I think they'll have a great game.

I like Johnnson with Tavares and Marner.

The 3rd line needs to be way better. Hopefully Kappy will drive that line a little more.

And to me like usual... Andy has to be great, and he usually has been really good. Maybe he'll steal one tonight. We need a W.
 

SHANNYPLAN

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Gonna be a statement game for the Boys. Leafs win and begin to turn things around!
 

Mess

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Feb 27, 2002
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Leafs Home Board
Tampa Bay is 8-2 in their last 10 and Leafs are 5-5 after losing 5 of their last 7 games.

Since Dec 1st TB is 18-2-1.

Leafs will have their hands full tonight..
 

LeafFever

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Feb 12, 2016
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Leafs are struggling mostly because of a big dip in goaltending. They have to start getting goaltending like they had in the first 2 months.
 

Kelly

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Nov 12, 2012
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Hoping last game lit a fire under their ass, lots of players need to start playing again.

Go Leafs Go
 
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