Phil “The Philibuster” Kessel and the Leafs take on The Senators
By Danny Gray
12 years ago
The Leafs and Senators are both playing their second game in two nights with both teams securing a W last night. The Sens reeled off their 5th straight win in New York last night with a come from behind shootout win over the Rangers. While the Sens have been able to string a few wins together they are really riding the percentages and have been the beneficiary of a substantial amount of luck. They only have 3 regulation wins to the Leafs 6. Most of their goals have come in the third period and they have not played with a lead for long stretches this season. Somewhat surprisingly the Leafs are a perfect 4-0 this season when giving up the first goal. They may want to spot the Sens the lead to take them off their game.
The Set-Up:
Phil Kessel has ruined more Senators than a filibuster. I’m going to start calling him the Philibuster. He has 27 points, 18 goals and 9 assists, in 32 career games against the Sens. Phil is currently leading the NHL in both goals and points, a game against the Senators should help pad his already stellar stats even more.
The Leafs will exit the month of October with at least seven wins for the first time since 2001-2002 which was the last year they appeared in the Conference Finals. While the Leafs haven’t been playing perfect hockey they have been able to mask any deficiencies with solid goaltending and an offence that is ranked 5th in the league. There are a handful of games in the past month that other Leaf teams would have found a way to lose. It’s hard not to genuinely believe that this team has turned a corner. Burke said that he will only evaluate the team’s success after the first 20 games. They are just past the halfway point, and I’ll be he’s extremely pleased with the result.
What I’m watching for tonight:
- How many goals will Phil Kessel score?
- Will Stephan Da Costa simply curl up in the fetal position at the sight of Phaneuf?
- Can the Monster make it three in a row?
- Will Luke Schenn take out his frustrations on Chris Neil’s face?
- Can Matt Frattin finally score a goal already?
The Performance:
Leafs’ Line-Up:
Likely the exact same as last night
Senators’ Line-Up:
Same as last night but with Butler in for the injured, read: old and terrible, Alfredsson
The Magicians of the Meshed Mansion:
For the Leafs: Jonas Gustavsson
For the Senators: Robin Lehner
The Prestige:
Anytime Phil Kessel plays the Senators he puts on a show. The Sens winning streak has been all smoke and mirrors. The NHL’s leading scorer will expose the Sens’ illusion and the Leafs will leave October with 8 wins. Oh, and Phaneuf will absolutely obliterate someone tonight.
Go Leafs Go!
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