Fallen Leafs

It’s not often the Leafs have been able to say this, but Vesa Toskala was the difference for the team’s victory over the Washington Capitals. A goalie who has been maligned the past few seasons for seemingly losing “it”, provided the performance many people bore witness to in his first season with Toronto.

Losing confidence is a tough attribute to gain back. But in Vesa’s case, gaining the trust of his teammates was another thing altogether. Sure, the clichéd responses of never losing confidence in your goalie were flying every which way, but the team noticeably sagged and deflated when Toskala was in net. Even against Washington on Saturday evening, the Maple Leafs were down 2-0 after the first period. But unlike so many games featuring Toskala, the goals scored by the Capitals were nearly unstoppable. Toskala’s penchant for allowing those backbreaking goals have cut down recently.

That isn’t to say the so-called “softies” are completely gone (Washington’s third goal was one such incident), but there is a sense that the team is slowly regaining their confidence in Vesa Toskala again. Clear offensive chances and eventual goals scored by the Leafs were in direct consequence of several key saves from Toskala. Not surprisingly, Toskala was voted the first star of the game.

As the mind processes Vesa Toskala giving the Leafs competent and confident goaltending, the Leafs as a whole are 7-3-0 in their last 10 games. Though it has been “LAYOFFS!!1” for the Leafs lately, Toronto is now just four points from the glorious P word. Of course, the season is still a long ways to go.

But the world just recovered from almost ending after a disastrous October. Thank the Maple Leafs for saving all your lives.