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As the Maple Leafs wondered what tweaks are coming at the trade deadline, major surgery was going on around the NHL — including Wednesday’s opponent.
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“You definitely don’t expect that to happen,” said Buffalo Sabre Dylan Cozens when informed before the game that their top scorer, Casey Mittelstadt was dealt to Colorado for defenceman Bowen Byram. “I got woken up from my nap with a bunch of missed calls and text and wondered ‘what is going on here?’.
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“It’s sad, Mitts is such a great guy and a great player and it sucks to see him go. But we’re getting a really good player in return.”
Teammates Kyle Okposo, Zemgus Girgensons and defenceman Erik Johnson (the latter a healthy scratch in recent games) also awaited their fate, all considered targets of Cup contending teams as the Sabres wallowed 10 points out of a playoff spot.
But the trade energized them to the point of fighting the Leafs to overtime, losing 2-1.
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Across the league the dominoes began falling ahead of 3 p.m. Eastern Friday. Prized defenceman Noah Hanifan was set to move from Calgary to defending champion Vegas pending an unannounced third team retaining some of his salary, while Edmonton added to its arsenal by getting Adam Henrique and Sam Carrick out of Anaheim. The Avs also picked up highly desired blueliner Sean Walker from the Flyers.
The Leafs flew off after the win to take on the Bruins in Boston, lining up for a possible first-round series, both teams yet to finalize their rosters. But division-leading Florida upped the ante Wednesday by getting Vladimir Tarasenko from Ottawa.
It’s anticipated general manager Brad Treliving is working on blue line help more than anything, deadline buzz was unavoidable.
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But back-to-back games were a welcome distraction said William Nylander.
“We look at the next one and whatever (management) do, we’ll be ready for that.”
KNIVES OUT FOR LEAFS
Sheldon Keefe stood at the same podium as Red Kelly, Pat Burns, Pat Quinn and any number of coaching predecessors, trying to explain how the Sabres keep slaying the Leafs.
The difference in talent was pretty obvious in the days the French Connection lit up the Leafs, which Ted Darling and Pat Hannigan delighted in describing for viewers in Western New York. Since Buffalo won the first game, 7-2 in 1970, they have owned the all-time series 112-86-18-11 — almost doubling its win total at home.
Comparing its current 13-year playoff drought to Keefe’s third season in the 100-point district means nothing. Keefe himself noted Wednesday morning that Buffalo had scored 15 goals in its two wins over Toronto this season, almost 8% of his team’s total against, including a 9-3 road defeat just before Christmas.
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“We go in there and we fill their building with fans,” Keefe wryly noted of packing KeyBank Center twice a year to poke the bear. “There’s a lot of reasons for them to be at their best against us — and lots of reasons for us to be at our best. I don’t think it’s any surprise to get a team’s best when they come to Toronto.”
Toronto’s record is 3-6 this season against teams below it in the Atlantic Division — Buffalo, Ottawa, Montreal and Detroit.
But Keefe moved the narrative to the Leafs.
“(Wednesday’s game) is less about the motivating. We’re in a much better place (than Dec. 21). But it gets your attention,” Keefe said. “They’re one of the most skilled teams in the league. You don’t defend, you don’t take care of the puck, they make you look bad.
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“It’s not just us, it’s teams across the league. When they’re at their best and the game’s going their way, that’s what they do. You have to respect that.”
Dahlin grew up in Sweden, far away from the Peace Bridge, and was a toddler when the Sabres beat Toronto in the Eastern Conference final, their only playoff meeting. But he was in a physical exchange with Auston Matthews in the outdoor game in Hamilton last season and embraced the rivalry with the Sabres’ closest geographical foe.
“I’ve been in Buffalo six years, I know the history and I take a lot of pride in that for sure.”
BEING SICK SUCKS
The Leafs were trying to put the brakes on another flu outbreak Wednesday morning.
Centre David Kampf was not at practice for a second straight day, with Keefe saying he would be a game-time decision.
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“He’s better today (but) it looks like we’re going through this again, it’s catching up to us. We have some others (ailing) as well,” the coach said.
An encouraging sign was defenceman Mark Giordano attending the optional skate after returning to the ice alone Tuesday. He has been out since last week with a concussion, but is on injured reserve.
A STAR IS BORN
Buffalo coach Don Granato had a unique early look at Leafs star and current NHL goal leader Auston Matthews as a young teen when Granato was an instructor with the U.S. National Development Program.
“You absolutely saw the potential for (another Rocket Richard Trophy run), the appetite he has,” Granato said. “At age 15, day one when you get all those best kids in the program, the best in the country, head-to-head, you see who rises. And he rose immediately in the days and weeks to separate himself.”
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LOOSE LEAFS
An encouraging sign was defenceman Mark Giordano attending the optional skate after returning to the ice alone Tuesday. He’s been out since last week with a concussion, but is on injured reserve … Two more minors to Timothy Liljegren, one avoidable, didn’t help him get out of Keefe’s doghouse, but the Leafs had three other Swedes doing a credible penalty killing job on one unit, Nylander, Calle Jarnkrok and Lagesson … Pontus Holmberg, whom Keefe gave some tough love to after Tuesday’s practice, was a scratch as Noah Gregor got back in after sitting seven of the past eight … We asked Joe Bowen his most memorable Leaf deadline trade in 40-plus years and he lamented how the second Doug Gilmour trade went down in March of 2003. Gilmour suffered a career ending knee injury in his first game in Calgary. “That cheated Doug and a lot of fans out of what would’ve been an incredible homecoming game,” Bowen said. “They’d have blown the roof off this place and he’d have helped them in playoffs that year (to go beyond a first-round exit to the Flyers)” … The Marlies were 3-2 winners over Belleville in a school day game at Coca-Cola Coliseum as Nick Abruzzese, Roni Hirvonen and Zach Solow scored, supporting Dennis Hildeby’s 28 saves … Leaf first-rounder Easton Cowan reached a 30-game points’ streak for the London Knights Wednesday against Guelph, longest in the OHL since Jordan Kyrou went 30 for Sarnia in 2016-17.
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2024-03-07 04:38:26Z
CBMiZGh0dHBzOi8vdG9yb250b3N1bi5jb20vc3BvcnRzL2hvY2tleS9uaGwvdG9yb250by1tYXBsZS1sZWFmcy90cmFkZXMtd2luZHMtcnVzdGxlLWJlZm9yZS1sZWFmcy1zYWJyZXPSAQA
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