Nostalgic Memorable Leafs Games

[The Winter Soldier]

This was a nice surprise finding this game on youtube.

Leafs vs. Atlanta 1979. Game 1 Opening Round of Playoffs.
Coach Roger Neilson

This was one of my all time favourite games as a Leafs fan growing up. Exciting game, intense, this was a very good team with a nucleus of stars headed by Sittler, Mcdonald, Turnbull, Saiming and Palmateer in net.

Watch the highlights, some crazy saves by Palmateer, a line brawl, and Walter Mckenchnie the hero of the night.

Fun stuff. Leafs ended up winning the series 2-0

Click to read more...

 

[Damisoph]

Thankfully you don't see those bench clearing goal celebrations anymore. Ridic.

 

[The Winter Soldier]

Thankfully you don't see those bench clearing goal celebrations anymore. Ridic.

For those not old enough to remember, this was the norm in the playoffs. Score a goal, everyone off the bench.

The Sittler era had many good memories, this game was near the top of the list IMO.

 

[All_blueandwhite]

March 15th, 2004. The night before my birthday and I remember listening to this game on the radio because we didn't have the channel.

The leafs were down 5-2 going into the 3rd to the Buffalo Sabres. HSBC arena was literally at least 60-40 in favour of leafs fans. My favourite Leaf of all time, Alex Mogilny was sitting on 999 career points. With under a minute to go and the game 5-4, Mogilny scored the tying goal and his 1000th career point. He later got point 1001, an assist on Tomas Kaberle's OT winner to cap off the 3 goal comeback. Trevor Kidd started in goal for the Leafs that night.

 

[LeafOfBread]

I'm going to try and post something out of the ordinary, cause I know all those crazy playoff games from the early 2000s will be posted regardless

Even though we ultimately didn't make the playoffs in 2010-2011, it was my favourite 'loser season', just cause of how exciting it was to watch the team down the stretch from January and onwards. The emergence of Reimer was awesome, Lupul-Kessel tandem starting to develop, Phaneuf playing like a beast after healing from his tendon injury, the M-G-K line, and just seeing some of the young guys play well.

This was one of my favourite games from that year, we were right in the thick of things, trying to squeak into the playoffs, and we were set to play Carolina who was also hovering at 8th/9th in the East, trying to get in



Phaneuf was an absolute beast this game. One of the best games I've ever seen him play.

March 15th, 2004. The night before my birthday and I remember listening to this game on the radio because we didn't have the channel.

The leafs were down 5-2 going into the 3rd to the Buffalo Sabres. HSBC arena was literally at least 60-40 in favour of leafs fans. My favourite Leaf of all time, Alex Mogilny was sitting on 999 career points. With under a minute to go and the game 5-4, Mogilny scored the tying goal and his 1000th career point. He later got point 1001, an assist on Tomas Kaberle's OT winner to cap off the 3 goal comeback. Trevor Kidd started in goal for the Leafs that night.

This was a great game. I was only about 10 at the time, and I remember being really upset and angry when we were down 5-2. I turned the game off for a little bit but then flipped it back on since I had nothing else to do My bro was watching too and then they made an awesome comeback with a great OT goal to cap it all off. Very memorable game for sure. That comeback against Ottawa from the same season was also a good one, aka the 'flu' game.

 

[The Winter Soldier]

March 15th, 2004. The night before my birthday and I remember listening to this game on the radio because we didn't have the channel.

The leafs were down 5-2 going into the 3rd to the Buffalo Sabres. HSBC arena was literally at least 60-40 in favour of leafs fans. My favourite Leaf of all time, Alex Mogilny was sitting on 999 career points. With under a minute to go and the game 5-4, Mogilny scored the tying goal and his 1000th career point. He later got point 1001, an assist on Tomas Kaberle's OT winner to cap off the 3 goal comeback. Trevor Kidd started in goal for the Leafs that night.

A lot of Hall of famers in Leafs uniforms in this game.

 

[dsf]

This was a nice surprise finding this game on youtube.

Leafs vs. Atlanta 1979. Game 1 Opening Round of Playoffs.
Coach Roger Neilson

This was one of my all time favourite games as a Leafs fan growing up. Exciting game, intense, this was a very good team with a nucleus of stars headed by Sittler, Mcdonald, Turnbull, Saiming and Palmateer in net.

Watch the highlights, some crazy saves by Palmateer, a line brawl, and Walter Mckenchnie the hero of the night.

Fun stuff. Leafs ended up winning the series 2-0

Very interesting to note the waving of the confederate flag in the stands. Significant due to the controversy of the flag but really puts things in perspective given the game was being played in the late 70s in the South.

 

[Jer416]

Couldn't find a youtube video of it, but probably a great memory would be CuJo replacing Gerber in the last minute of the 3rd and then shutting the door in OT and the Shootout vs. Washington.

Honorable Mention: That one PK unit against Carolina when Tim Brent blocked like 3-4 shots on the same shift...small but satisfying

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RHn_XET11tk

 

[The Winter Soldier]

Very interesting to note the waving of the confederate flag in the stands. Significant due to the controversy of the flag but really puts things in perspective given the game was being played in the late 70s in the South.

That team was a Cliff Fletcher built team. Atlanta was known for acquiring big strong players.

I remember it well, very intimidating place to play. Bill Hewitt was calling play by play then.

Leafs GM Jim Gregory made some solid additions to compete with Montreal. Picked up Dave Burrows who was the 7th D man for Team Canada in the Canada Cup years prior for our present coach. You may notice Ron Wilson was on that team with another NHL coach Joel Quennville.

Leafs also picked up Dan Maloney another ex coach, he was on the tail end of being the toughest player in the NHL when we got him. Ron Ellis came back out of retirement to play a couple of seasons. Had a 20 goal year.

Good team, just couldn't get by the Habs dynasty. Even though we lost 4-0 in rd 2, the games were close and could have gone either way. This was our best team before they hit the skids until Pat Burns came on the scene. Long time between droughts.

 

[Damisoph]

For those not old enough to remember, this was the norm in the playoffs. Score a goal, everyone off the bench.

I remember seeing that in the late 70s but did they do it before that?

So many games from that playoff run in 93 I remember like they were yesterday. Games 5 and 7 vs Detroit, games 1, 5 and 7 against St Louis, games 1, 5, 6 and 7 vs LA.

 

[Patience]

I'll throw in one of the few highlights worth remembering from that awful run from 2005 to 2012, Sundin's hat trick including an OT winner to get to 500 career goals:

 

[Mess]

One of my favourite post 1967 Leaf memorable games was Darryl Sittler's 10 point game February 7th, 1976.

It was a thing of magic watching everything he touched turn to gold.

 

[nsleaf]

Lanny's game/series winner over a powerhouse Islanders team.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rptpVloPyYk

 

[Pitt the Elder]

I was at this game as a kid with my grandfather:



Still probably my favourite live Leafs memory. That overtime period was insanely back and forth, really exciting to watch.

 

[Deebo]

Game 6 in 2002 against Ottawa.

- Leafs go down 2-0 under 5 minutes into the 1st (Hossa, Alfredsson)
- Ottawa gets 5 minute major (Persson)
- Leafs tie it up before the end of the first (McCabe and Roberts)
- Leafs take 3-2 lead in 2nd (Roberts)
- Ottawa ties it up with 25 seconds left in the 2nd (White)
- Leafs go up 4-3 5 minutes into the 3rd (Mogilny)
- Ottawa pours it on late and Leafs hang on with great shot blocking from Corson


- Leafs go on to shut Ottawa out 3-0 in game 7 (Mogilny (2), McCabe)

 

[Duke Silver]

From recent-ish memory:

Game 82 vs. Canadiens in 2006-07 (IIRC) where we won 6-5 to knock MTL out of the playoff race (stupid Dubliewicz).

Game 7, Round 1 vs. Ottawa where Nieuwendyk scored twice on Lalime 5-hole. I was very nervous going into this game.

Our 6-0 stomping/bullying of Montreal last season was one of our more satisfying victories in recent times.

 

[The Winter Soldier]

Today's contribution is the best game I have ever witnessed as a Leafs fan.

Magical year, we were big underdogs going into Detroit after getting blown out of the rink in game 6 in Toronto. Detroit were a powerhouse this year. Odds were firmly stacked against us. But we had Dougie and one hell of a coach in Burns.

Game 7, Detroit Joe Louis arena, very hostile environment. Most intense game I have ever watched. My hands were numb after this game. If you were not born when this series was on, I truly hope we see another one like it.

What a game, and what a call by Cole and Neale.

 

[Deebo]

What a game, and what a call by Cole and Neale.

This has been an unbelievable turn of events!

 

[TootooTrain]

I was at this game as a kid with my grandfather:



Still probably my favourite live Leafs memory. That overtime period was insanely back and forth, really exciting to watch.

Myself and my brothers broke our basement couch jumping when Thomas scored.

 

[Kyle Doobas*]

Probably my favourite game of that whole post-lockout losing era.

 

[Goonface2k14]

Most memorable season for me, by far, was 1993.

Three most memorable events, off the top of my head:

Borchevsky's goal eliminating Detroit (trainer Chris Broadhurst shooting water from the water bottle on the bench, Murphy and Fletcher hugging like superfans in the press box, Burns looking up towards them and giving a fist pump).

Clark's tying goal as the extra attacker against LA in game 6 of the conference finals - my brother and I couldn't stop jumping up and down, and then of course, Kerry f'kn Fraser had to ruin it all.

Gilmour's behind the net goal against Cujo and the Blues in round 2 game 1 OT. What a creative, on the spot play by the best to ever wear the Leaf jersey in any single season.

For me, nothing will ever top 1993 as far as nostalgic games go.

 

[Gary Nylund]

That team was a Cliff Fletcher built team. Atlanta was known for acquiring big strong players.

I remember it well, very intimidating place to play. Bill Hewitt was calling play by play then.

Leafs GM Jim Gregory made some solid additions to compete with Montreal. Picked up Dave Burrows who was the 7th D man for Team Canada in the Canada Cup years prior for our present coach. You may notice Ron Wilson was on that team with another NHL coach Joel Quennville.

Leafs also picked up Dan Maloney another ex coach, he was on the tail end of being the toughest player in the NHL when we got him. Ron Ellis came back out of retirement to play a couple of seasons. Had a 20 goal year.

Good team, just couldn't get by the Habs dynasty. Even though we lost 4-0 in rd 2, the games were close and could have gone either way. This was our best team before they hit the skids until Pat Burns came on the scene. Long time between droughts.

Before putting up a tough fight despite losing 4-0 to MTL (in round 3), the Leafs first beat NYI in a thrilling series in the quarter finals with Lanny MacDonald scoring the winner in OT of game 7. This was a HUGE upset and was definitely the high point for Leaf fans until Fletcher, Burns and Gilmour came along 15 years later. NYI was already a super strong team and two years later started their 4 year cup run. Torontos biggest star (apologies to Sittler) Borje Salming got injured in game 4 I think it was of that series and the Leafs seemed to be doomed but others stepped up including Ian Turnbull who played the best hockey of his life in those playoffs (before fading to obscurity almost immediately afterwards) and Randy Carlyle who didn't put up a lot of points but played really well after Salming went down despite having only 100 games or so of NHL experience.

I would say that the "additions" Jim Gregory made in fact marked the beginning of a seemingly endless era of dumb trades the Leafs made. The 2 big trades that were supposed to "get them over the hump" brought in Dave Hutchinson and Dave Burrows. Hutchinson sucked big time and Burrows was just average and when you consider what the Leafs gave up for these guys the trades were unquestionably awful, the most notable player being Randy Carlyle who went on to win the Norris trophy a couple of years later. This set the tone for the future, the Leafs would go on to impatiently trade away tons of young players who ended up having solid careers elsewhere and the team went steadily downhill until the death of their seemingly Pejorative Slured owner Harold Ballard may god have mercy on his soul.

Solid trades myass.

Here's Lanny's goal (just notice someone already posted it, oh well, it's worthy of repeating ):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rptpVloPyYk

 

[gtforepro]

This was a nice surprise finding this game on youtube.

Leafs vs. Atlanta 1979. Game 1 Opening Round of Playoffs.
Coach Roger Neilson

This was one of my all time favourite games as a Leafs fan growing up. Exciting game, intense, this was a very good team with a nucleus of stars headed by Sittler, Mcdonald, Turnbull, Saiming and Palmateer in net.

Watch the highlights, some crazy saves by Palmateer, a line brawl, and Walter Mckenchnie the hero of the night.

Fun stuff. Leafs ended up winning the series 2-0

I was 6 years old watching this series...one of my earliest Maple Leaf memories. Nice find and thanks for posting it. Took me right back to sitting in front of the big wooden tv in the living room in my first house...begging my parents to let me stay up for the whole game.

 

[Frelimo]

A lot of Hall of famers in Leafs uniforms in this game.

All a little past their prime by that point, but it sure was fun watching all those guys. Was a real treat. Just wish they were healthy, and that Nolan could have played in the playoffs.

 

[Raging Bull]

Last playoff series win, funny game to watch with a Sens fan.