It took them 9 games, but the Toronto Maple Leafs finally won a game on Monday night, as they downed the stumbling Anaheim Ducks, 6-3. Jonas Gustavsson got his first career NHL win, making 25 saves and, more importantly, making a couple of big saves early in the game to keep the Leafs in the contest.
Early in the first period, Gustavsson pokechecked Teemu Selanne’s attempted breakaway, and then made an incredible pad save on Erik Christensen to keep the game scoreless. With Gustavsson playing solid in net, the Leafs finally put together a complete 60-minute effort, something they had yet to do all season.
Perhaps the best thing the Leafs did all night was stay out of the box, as Anaheim took 17 penalties, and gave Toronto 4 different 5-on-3 opportunities. Niklas Hagman scored 3 powerplay goals for his 2nd career hat trick, and Mikhail Grabovski, Lee Stempniak and Tomas Kaberle all notched one apiece, as the Leafs’ usually inept special teams finally showed up to play. Kaberle also had four assists, giving him five points on the night, while Matt Stajan had 3 assists on the evening.
From the very start of the game, both teams played a strong physical contest. Fortunately for the Leafs, they were able to maintain a level of discipline which the frustrated Ducks simply could not. Anaheim, usually one of the more well-rounded teams in the league, is off to a poor start, and there were a number of occasions where a player let his emotions get the best of him and it cost the team. One clear example was when team leader Scott Niedermayer took an uncharacteristic roughing penalty while the Ducks were already on the kill. Hagman scored his 2nd goal of the night on the ensuing 5-on-3, and the Leafs never looked back.
Petteri Nokelainen scored to put the Ducks up 1-0, but for the first time all year, the Leafs managed to respond quickly and get themselves back in the game. By the time Bobby Ryan scored the Ducks’ second goal, the Leafs had already scored 3 goals and were dominating the flow of the game. Perry’s goal was nothing more than a stat padder at the end of an already-decided game.
The Leafs outshot their opponent for the 6th time this season, dominating the shot chart, 39-28. The loss was Anaheim’s 4th in a row, and the Ducks have now lost 5 of their last 6. Toronto continues their road trip against Dallas on Wednesday.