season. 8 – Shootout wins for the Leafs from zgr123's blog
PITTSBURGH -- Jim Rutherford doesnt believe the Pittsburgh Penguins need to undergo a massive overhaul to regain their spot among the NHLs elite. Cheap Derek Wolfe Jersey . One thing is for certain: Dan Bylsma wont be part of the process. The Penguins fired the franchises all-time winningest coach on Friday while hiring Rutherford away from the Carolina Hurricanes to replace Ray Shero as general manager. Rutherfords first decision was to end the three weeks of limbo for Bylsma, whose star-laden teams had fallen well short of the Stanley Cup since winning it all in 2009. "What ownership wants here is a complete change in direction, one with the GM and one with the coach," Rutherford said. Bylsma won 252 games behind the bench and was the Jack Adams Award winner in 2012 as the NHLs Coach of the Year but failed to produce a bookend to the championship he captured with stars Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin in 2009. The Penguins were just 4-5 in playoff series since raising the 2009 Cup, with each loss coming to a lower-seeded team. Pittsburghs latest defeat came last month when the Penguins fell to the New York Rangers in seven games in the Eastern Conference semifinals. Rutherford met with Bylsma on Friday morning as part of an organization-wide shake-up. In addition to dismissing Bylsma, the Penguins promoted Jason Botterill to associate general manager, named Bill Guerin and Tom Fitzgerald assistant general managers. The 65-year-old Rutherford takes over for Shero, who was fired on May 16. The new gig is a homecoming for the former goaltender. Rutherford played for the Penguins in the 1970s before spending 20 years with the franchise that began as the Hartford Whalers, moved to North Carolina in 1997 and won the Stanley Cup in 2006. The Hurricanes struggled maintaining that success, missing the post-season each of the last five years. It led to Rutherford stepping down in April when the Hurricanes promoted Ron Francis -- who helped Pittsburgh win consecutive Cups in 1991 and 92 -- to the GMs job. Rutherford took on an advisory role in Carolina with a small ownership stake in the team, a position he will relinquish in the near future. The Penguins, meanwhile, plan to get their moneys worth out of a man closer to the end of his career than the beginning. Rutherford allowed he will likely only be around "two or three years" and will serve as a mentor to his new staff, adding he will give Botterill and company "big roles with a lot to say." Rutherford hopes to find Bylsmas replacement by the time free agency begins in July. Considering the talent at the top of the roster, the job will certainly be attractive. Finding the right fit, however, may be challenging. "With some changes, they dont have to be sweeping changes, we can (win another Cup) in the near future," Rutherford said. While its unlikely Rutherford will do much to mess with the core of Crosby, Malkin and defenceman Kris Letang, there are some serious depth issues, particularly along the bottom two lines. "Our supporting cast needs to be improved," Rutherford said. "I look at our fourth-line players and some of those guys are in double-digit minuses and we cant have that." What the Penguins do have is arguably the leagues best player in Crosby and one of its most dynamic in Malkin. The duo has dominated during the regular season when healthy -- with Crosby the favourite to pick up his second Hart Trophy as league MVP after leading the NHL with 114 points this season -- but that success hasnt translated into deep playoff runs. Crosby struggled in the post-season. He scored just once in 13 games while maintaining he was not injured. Rutherford will try to find the right kind of role players to take some of the pressure off his high-wattage stars. Coincidentally, the Hurricanes are also looking for a new coach -- Francis first big decision in his new job was firing Kirk Muller after three years -- and Carolina has been mentioned as a possible landing spot for Bylsma. The move by Rutherford -- who won 44 games in net for the Penguins from 1971-74 -- is the latest in a series of significant ties between the organizations. Carolina has the longest active playoff drought among Eastern Conference teams. Its last post-season appearance came in 2009 -- when the Hurricanes were swept in the East final by a Penguins team that went on to win its only Stanley Cup under Sheros leadership, the crowning achievement of his eight years as Pittsburghs GM. Rutherford and Shero orchestrated the blockbuster trade of the 2012 NHL draft when forward Jordan Staal was sent to Carolina and reunited with big brother Eric in exchange for Sutter and prospects. Cheap Brandon McManus Jersey . -- Canadian womens amateur golf champion Brooke Henderson is a little less starstruck as she prepares for her second career appearance at an LPGA Tour major event. Cheap Denver Broncos Jerseys . -- The Atlanta Braves are facing the possibility of losing another pitcher for the season after general manager Frank Wren said Saturday that Cory Gearrin has a serious injury to his right elbow.TORONTO – The shootout has proven a viable saving grace for this years edition of the Maple Leafs. When Reid Boucher shot wide in what would be the Devils final attempt on Jonathan Bernier in the third round of the skills competition Sunday, he handed Toronto its eighth victorious decision in the shootout this season – tied for the most in the NHL. In fact, the Leafs have more victories in the shootout since the start of November (six) than they do in regulation/overtime (five), a fact thats masked, until recently, just how poorly the team has performed in the past two-plus months (12-16-5). But for a team that was teetering on a four-game losing streak – the second longest this season – the winning decision at the ACC, in a reality divorced from the game itself, was nonetheless needed and important. "Well, we can breathe," said Randy Carlyle, following the 3-2 victory, the second in two tries against the Devils this season, both wins coming in the shootout. "Theres been a lot of gasping going on, and even in this game there was a lot of gasping going on how tight it was." It was not a pretty performance in many regards – the Leafs were outshot 38-25 and out-attempted 83-48 – but one that at least offered some of the requisite intensity and desire that had been missing amid the recent slide and quite often throughout whats been a disappointing campaign to date. And they might very well have won it in regulation had it not been for a blown call on Tyler Bozaks apparent go-ahead goal in the second frame. "Guys are a little looser tonight already," Mason Raymond told the Leaf Report shortly after the win. "It feels good. It feels good to get a win." "Hopefully this relieves a little bit of the stress thats involved for our hockey club, and they can get back playing to the way were capable of playing," added Carlyle. Consistency has been a foe of his team so far. The Leafs have reeled off exactly one winning streak since October – it lasted three games, two of which were won in shootouts – winning back-to-back games on just two other occasions. Stringing together heartier efforts against the Capitals and Devils in recent days then is just a mild step in the right direction. The teams response in an upcoming back-to-back with the Bruins and Sabres will indicate whether, in fact, a corner is gradually being turned. "I dont think its an exact recipe you can follow," Raymond said of achieving consistency. "Youve got to build off the things, in my opinion, that you did well, stay positive and believe. I think thats a big part of it is just believing that we can get the job done and go out there and get wins." "I think the last few games our compete level and effort has been way better," said van Riemsdyk, who scored for the second straight game, "and I think if we continue to play in that same mold well have some more results that we want." Five Points 1. Gardiners Development Pt. 1 Carlyle labeled 23-year-old Jake Gardiners performance in Washington Friday night as "the model in which wed like him to play. Gardiner, who had been scratched for just the second time all season one night earlier in Carolina, raised his performance in the eyes of the coaching staff against the Capitals. "Much different Jake Gardiner," said Carlyle, observing improved strength and intensity in the defensive zone as well as better decision-making with the puck. Such is the road to development for a young defender in the NHL. Many ups come with many downs. "Jake is a talented young player and there are steps that he has to continue to take," said Carlyle, who met with Gardiner briefly at the end of Sundays morning skate. "With Jake, he has the ability to move the puck both with his hands and with his feet – he can skate. He would like to make more consistent decisions with the puck and so would we. Weve struggled to find a consistent level for him over the last probably five or six games." That inconsistency led Carlyle to scratch Gardiner last week, a questionable move that blew up in a 6-1 loss to the Hurricanes. But if the sit-down was designed to spark a reaction then it may have achieved some success the next night in the U.S. capital. "I think what happens with young players is they find that theyre always trying to do one thing and maybe trying to do too much of one thing and that sometimes turns into where you skate the puck into areas where you shouldnt and turn over the puck," said Carlyle. "But hes a young player that has got a tremendous upside." 2. Gardiners Development Pt. 2 What Carlyle has done additionally, in the meann-time, is remove Gardiner from the teams top two pairings – he and 19-year-old Morgan Rielly formed the third grouping for the second straight game against the Devils – and thus lighten the burden he is exposed to on a night to night basis. Cheap Darian Stewart Jersey. Speaking to the Leaf Report on Sunday morning, Gardiner described his decision-making with the puck as one needed improvement, an issue again at times on Sunday night. "Dont try and force anything," he said. "I think I was trying to make plays that werent there and I was maybe trying to move the puck a little bit too quickly. When theres not an open guy, maybe just be patient and hold onto the puck a little bit." Gardiner, who played over 24 minutes against the Devils, is averaging nearly 22 minutes per game this season, second on the team. 3. Bolland Front Dave Bolland hasnt played since Nov. 2, when his left ankle was sliced by the skate blade of Canucks forward Zack Kassian. The 27-year-old has missed 32 games with the injury, but is due to finally start skating with the team on Thursday. Bolland recently traveled to Montreal in hopes of having a new boot designed specifically to support the injured area. That boot was due to arrive in Toronto on Monday with the Mimico native then expected to skate before joining the Leafs on a four-game road trip next week. An exact timeframe for return remains unclear. 4. Harder to Play Against? Asked before the game if this version of the Maple Leafs was as difficult to play against as the one that ended a lengthy playoff drought last season, Carlyle responded flatly in the negative. "Nowhere near," he said. "Weve been scratching our heads and trying to figure out why." And if there was one element that remained constant from a Friday loss in Washington to Sundays win in Toronto, it was the intensity of his group. The execution may have been lacking at times, but the compete Carlyle has been prodding for remained. "Thats one thing that weve really tried to put at the forefront in the last three weeks to a month is that our compete level has to go to a level where were satisfied," said Carlyle on Sunday morning. "Thats the one thing that weve said is our compete level has to go up." Carlyle pointed to the simple will required to win puck battles. "We have been guilty of just standing around in those situations," he said. "I call it getting inside. I think to be inside in todays NHL is the key because you cant hook and hold, you have to skate your way to get inside. "When we do it we can play effective hockey and give ourselves a chance to win. And when we dont do it were receiving the game, were standing around. I would say thats the biggest mystery for the coaching staff." 5. Stunted Starts Toronto has exited the first frame with a lead in 12 of 47 games this season, trailing, by comparison, on 17 occasions. Substandard starts have been a source of considerable trouble, often requiring the club to dig out from an early hole without much ultimate success. "All year long, weve [had] pretty poor starts," said Gardiner. "We try to dig ourselves out of it and then we start playing well and its too late by that time so if we can play almost desperate and aggressive I think well have better starts and itll lead to a better outcome." The Leafs started slowly again on Sunday – outshot 7-1 in the opening 10 minutes – but rebounded during the back half of the period, finding the games first goal from Tyler Bozak, his seventh this season. "We were rusty, I thought, for the first 10 or 12 minutes of the game," said Carlyle. Stats-Pack 8-4 – Leafs record in the shootout this season. 13 – Points in the past 11 games for Tyler Bozak, who has 19 points in 23 games this season. 8 – Shootout wins for the Leafs this season, tied with the Capitals for the most in the NHL. 1 – Goals in the past 14 games for Nazem Kadri. 24:23 – Ice-time for Jake Gardiner against the Devils, second on the team to Dion Phaneuf. 62% - Leafs success rate on the draw against the Devils. 2 – Consecutive games with a goal for James van Riemsdyk, who had two in the preceding 15 games. Special Teams Capsule PP: 1-4 Season: 21.8% (5th) PK: 3-4 Season: 77.4% (27th) Quote of the Night "I asked him if he could watch it after the game and maybe next time he has a game [with us] he can apologize or something because that was pretty brutal." - James van Riemsdyk, on his conversation with an official following Tyler Bozaks waved off goal in the second period. Up Next The Leafs visit the Bruins in Boston on Tuesday night. 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