The Maple Leafs continued the reversal of their losing road trip last night. After dominating the Philadelphia Flyers on Wednesday, the team followed it up with a 2-1 win over the Boston Bruins last night. Here’s our play-by-play recap of the game:

Maple Leafs win game, beat Bruins, lose Samsonov

The big story though is not the win, but what happened to Ilya Samsonov. Brad Marchand was awarded a penalty shot in the game and in trying to make the save, Samsonov apparently injured himself. He didn’t return for the third period, with Erik Källgren replacing him.

Needless to say, this is a potentially disastrous situation. Matt Murray is already out with an injury, and reportedly still needs more time to recover to a point he can play again.

Sheldon Keefe had no status update available immediately after the game, but right after midnight it was further reported the Leafs made a stop-gap move by signing one of the Marlies goalies to an NHL contract.

This is a fluid situation, and signing Keith Petruzzelli could simply be for insurance purposes for the very short term. The Leafs are playing again today, in a very rare Sunday game, and at an also rare 5:00 p.m. start time. If Samsonov is now seriously injured too, then Källgren and Petruzzelli will be the tandem until some other arrangement can be made, or Murray can return.

Ilya Samsonov leaves the Bruins game with a knee injury
Nicolas Aubé-Kubel is claimed on waivers

Amazingly, this signing of Petruzzelli is only possible because of another event yesterday when the Leafs lost Nicolas Aubé-Kubel to the Washington Capitals who claimed him off waivers. The Capitals forward ranks are depleted from injuries, including to Tom Wilson, so it was no surprise they would make a waiver claim to grab him as they need bodies to fill lines, but if they hadn’t done that, the Leafs would be at the 50 contract limit and they would have had to find a way to dump a contract to get Petruzzelli signed, or make arrangements for someone to sit as an EBUG for today’s game. Here is Petruzzelli interviewed only two days ago by Todd Crocker. I’m sure at the time he wouldn’t believe only 48 hours later Kyle Dubas would be calling him with a contract offer.

What happens next will depend on how badly Samsonov is hurt. If it’s minor, then things can go back to normal later this week; the Leafs play on Tuesday, but then are off until Friday. If it’s major, well, anything could happen then. We will all have to sit and wait to see what will happen. OR WE COULD PANIC!

All the above being said, the Leafs did win last night, their second in a row, which should relieve even more of the concerns over the California slide.

We’ll have our preview of this... afternoon’s? Evening’s? Whatever you call 5:00 p.m., the game is then. Oh, and that’s 5:00 p.m. Eastern Standard Time, by the way. Make sure you reset that clock on the stove and the microwave! Unless you have a “smart” microwave that is internet connected, because of course those exist even though I cannot fathom why. I am actually a weird person who doesn’t have a microwave, but that’s a story for another day.

Other News

Matt Knies is impressing with the University of Michigan. Will he play for the Leafs next season?

The Edmonton Oilers were trounced by the Dallas Stars yesterday afternoon, losing 6-2. The game got quite out of hand with even the normally calm and collected Zach Hyman at the center of the maelstrom on two occasions. First he went in for a revenge hit on Joe Pavelski.

Then Jamie Benn showed him what he thought of his actions. Are Oilers-Stars the new Oilers-Flames?

Chucky is in mid-season form with his new team. Maybe Panthers-Kings is the new Flames-Oilers?

The Mitchell Miller saga has a new twist with the NHLPA responding to Gary Bettman’s comments that he would not be allowed to play in the NHL with surprise.

Bettman says Bruins newcomer Mitchell Miller ‘not eligible’ to play in NHL - CBC
While I certainly agree that he should not play, and the Bruins move to sign him was stupid, there is now a question worth exploring regarding how Gary Bettman can decide that a player who signed a contract, which the NHL itself appears to have approved as valid, can be “not eligible” to play in the NHL. The power or authority he is invoking to make this decision should be explained and examined, particularly since his league accepted the contract.

Disabled Victim’s Mother Speaks Out Against Bruins’ Mitchell Miller – NBC Boston
The victim’s mother, Joni Meyer-Crothers, says he was regularly called the N-word, beaten and targeted over the course of years by Miller.

Report: Borje Salming Planning to Attend Hockey Hall of Fame Festivities as ALS Battle Continues - SI
Swedish news outlet Hänt Nyheter reports that Borje Salming is planning to fly to Toronto to receive treatment for ALS and attend Hockey Hall of Fame festivities scheduled for this month. It was previously reported Salming’s condition has deteriorated rapidly over the past year, to a point he may no longer be able to even speak. This will likely be his final public event.

Meera Sodha’s vegan recipe for hot-and-sour squash Thai curry - The Guardian
A cashew-thickened hot-and-sour curry/soup that’s the perfect balance of sweet, salty and tart.

From The Branches