In a way, it was a perfect last game for both Reimer and the Toronto Maple Leafs. Reimer stopped 36 of 37, including several breakaways after defensive breakdowns, but got no goal support and was saddled with the loss. The Leafs had a goal called off by an obvious high stick, and the Senators had a Peter Holland own-goal called off for a phantom goalie interference. Your game in six:
The only goal to beat Reimer was on the power play, as the high man - unpressured - passed the puck to Spezza - unpressured and below the faceoff dot. Spezza rifled the shot off the far post and in. The rest of his game was exactly what we've come to expect from the netminder: the constant and consistent bailing out of the defensively inept squad in front of him.
Granberg had his NHL debut, and even though the on-ice shot attempts were largely stacked against him, I liked more than a few aspects of his game, including the first pass, some physical plays, and some decent positioning. It's a shame he, like every other Toronto Maple Leaf, spent a lot of time in his own zone (and I'm not sure why the NHL first timer saw the bulk of his time against Jason Spezza). We'll see how he looks next year, but he could be a pre-season contender for a third-line role.
Rielly and Gardiner continued to look good. If you can't build an offensive/breakout system around the Leafs' mobile, skilled defensemen, I don't know what you're doing as an NHL coach. I also have no idea why JVR played 23 minutes in a meaningless game when he's rumored to be dealing with an injury. The top line had the bulk of offensive zone starts, but weren't able to convert on any of their zone time. Honestly, it felt like the must-lose game that it was.
And really, this loss is for the better: the Leafs were passed by Winnipeg on the draft board, and could have gotten to seventh if Vancouver had been able to beat the now-third last team in the league, rather than losing to Edmonton 5-2. Barring a lotto-based mix-up, the Leafs will draft 8th in the NHL entry draft. There will be no playoffs for this coaching staff and for this team - I'll have a season recap going up some time next week, so let's keep the comments to last night's game. For the last recap of the 2013-2014 season: Go Leafs Go.
