Dein erstes Forum » Thats as close as the Leafs would get

TORONTO -- A short mid-game lapse was the difference between victory and defeat for the Toronto Maple Leafs on Monday night. Defenceman Dalton Prout and centre Artem Anisimov scored less than three minutes apart in the second period as the visiting Columbus Blue Jackets held off the Leafs for a 2-1 victory. "We had a mediocre second period and it cost us the game," said Leafs defenceman Cody Franson. "We got away from our game plan, we tried to get cute with the puck and turned it over too many times. And when you play a team that has that kind of transitional ability, thats not what you want to do." The Leafs carried the play for the majority of the first period and skated with desperation in the third, but ultimately couldnt break through the Blue Jackets defence. "For the first period we had lots of life and we were winning battles," said Leafs coach Randy Carlyle. "In the second period we just started to stall in the neutral zone. Were a team that needs to push the puck up the ice and establish a forecheck and we didnt do that for the first 13, 14 minutes of the second period." When the Leafs were able to apply some pressure, Sergei Bobrovsky was more than equal to the task. The Columbus goalie made 28 saves and stood especially tall when Toronto pushed for the tying goal in the final minutes of the game. "Their goalie made some really big saves in the third period and we missed some opportunities that we usually score on," said Leafs winger Joffrey Lupul. "We had some good chances, they just didnt go in." Its the Leafs third consecutive defeat since the Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia. Toronto dropped overtime games on the road to the New York Islanders on Thursday and Montreal Saturday. "The three losses hurt because we had points available to us on the road," Carlyle said. "Thats the hard part, losing two overtime games on the road when we had one-goal leads in both games. That kind of kicks you a little bit, it doesnt feel very good." The Leafs remain in fifth place in the Eastern Conference, but five teams are within five or fewer points. "Obviously we wanted a different outcome in the past three games," Franson said. "But if you look at them we were sloppy on (Long) Island and still gave ourselves a chance to win. I thought we played a pretty decent game against Montreal, a couple of bounces and some penalty trouble cost us that one. "We didnt play a full 60 minutes tonight and thats on us. The other two games couldve gone either way." The loss against Columbus ended a seven-game home winning streak for Toronto, the Leafs longest at Air Canada Centre since a nine-game run in 2006-07. "We were rolling pretty good there and feeling quite confident in what we were doing (before the Olympic break)," Franson said. "When youre rolling like that, sometimes it can be difficult to find that smoothness in how you were performing before." The victory gives the Blue Jackets a sweep of the season series as Columbus beat Toronto 5-2 on Oct. 25 and thumped the Leafs 6-0 on Nov. 25. "They play a stingy game, they dont give you too much," Franson said. "They forecheck hard, they make you execute down low and if you dont youre going to get bit." Mason Raymond scored the lone goal for Toronto (32-23-8), making a game of it when he wired a slapshot past Bobrovsky at 15:45 of the third period. Thats as close as the Leafs would get, however, despite a late flurry when goalie James Reimer was pulled. "We didnt have enough of getting pucks through," Carlyle said. "It seemed like when we had glorious opportunities early in the game, they were blocking the shots. Later on, we stopped going to the front of the net and Bobrovsky had clear sightlines to make the saves." Reimer made 31 saves in a losing effort. It was his first start since Jan. 25. "I hadnt been in there for a while, so youre a little rusty and the games different than a practice, its faster, you have to battle harder through traffic," Reimer said. "There was a little rust there, but I felt pretty good." The teams were tied 0-0 after the first period and Columbus led 2-0 through 40 minutes. "They took over the game in the second period, they played really well, and we didnt find an answer soon enough," Lupul said. Reimer was sharp early as the Blue Jackets applied pressure, including a clear-cut breakaway by Columbus left-winger Nick Foligno less than for minutes into the game that was denied by the Leafs goalie. "We gave up two point-blank breakaways and Reimer stopped them both," Carlyle said. "You cant point to our goaltending as a deficiency, for sure. He did his part to give us a chance." Aided by a pair of power plays in the middle of the opening period, Toronto took over the momentum for the rest of the first period and had a handful of scoring chances but couldnt solve Bobrovsky. Prout opened the scoring when his slapshot from the left point beat a screened Reimer at 9:44 of the second. It was the defencemans first goal in 30 games this season and his second goal in 63 career NHL games. "Hes one of those guys that you root for and his teammates root for," said Blue Jackets coach Todd Richards. Anisimov gave the vistors a two-goal lead when he converted Nathan Hortons pass at the side of the crease at 12:38. Columbus went 0-for-1 on the power play while Toronto was 0-for-2. NOTES: The announced attendance at ACC was 19,577. a The Blue Jackets shut out the Leafs 6-0 at ACC in the last meeting between the two teams on Nov. 25, 2013. a Columbus defenceman Ryan Murray left with a lower-body injury in the first period and did not return. Fake Puma Jerseys . Yahoo! Sports columnist Marc Spears says that the Boogie Smooth album may have been an elaborate April Fools prank. Fake Jerseys Free Shipping . -- Washington Capitals forward Brooks Laich is expected to miss the rest of the regular season after having an operation on a groin muscle. http://www.fakejersey.com/fake-baseball-jerseys/ . But qualifying for her first Scotties Tournament of Hearts after years of falling short in tough Manitoba provincial championships is as good as consolation prizes get for the 29-year-old from Winnipegs Fort Rouge Curling Club. Fake MLB Jerseys . Wrights first stint with Milwaukee was on a 10-day contract from March 14-23. He played in two games, averaging six points and two rebounds in 16. Fake Hockey Jerseys . You can listen to the game live on TSN Radio 690 in Montreal or on TSN.ca/Montreal. Also, TSN.ca features live streaming of the post-game news conferences from the Bell Centre. The Rangers grabbed a 3-1 lead in the Eastern Conference Final after Sundays 3-2 overtime victory against the visiting Habs. SEATTLE -- Two days after his baserunning error cost Tampa Bay, Sean Rodriguez atoned for his mistake with a key pinch hit. Rodriguez hit a go-ahead single in the eighth inning on Sunday and the Rays rallied past the Seattle Mariners 4-1 Sunday to build their wild-card edge. "I (will) definitely sleep better now," said a relieved Rodriguez about the cross country flight home. "Considering that happened only two days ago, you dont usually get an opportunity right away. Thats instant gratification. Instant redemption. Im very fortunate." Rodriguez had been picked off second late in the game on Friday in the Rays loss that night. The Rays lead Baltimore and Cleveland, who both lost, by two games for the second AL wild-card spot. Trailing 1-0, Tampa Bay scored three times in the eighth. Evan Longoria was hit by a pitch from Yoervis Medina (4-5) to start the inning and Luke Scott walked. James Loney followed with a tying double that landed just inside the right-field line. Rodriguez, hitting for Matt Joyce, singled sharply up the middle off new reliever Oliver Perez to score Scott. Loney also came home when centre fielder Abraham Almonte bobbled the ball for an error. The Rays began their 10-game road trip in sole possession of the first wild-card spot and a four-game lead on the second position. Tampa Bay completed the swing at just 3-7. The Rays contend, though, that the record on the road trip is less important than the momentum they grabbed with the win Sunday. "The thing is, everybody goes through bad moments," Rays manager Joe Maddon said. "Everybody does. Every team out theres gone through bad moments this year. Ours is just occurring right now. A lot of it is its a tough trip. Its a tough trip. "So it was kind of a buzz saw moment. We kind of survived it in a sense. We get to go back home. Again, of course you got to believe. I believe every moment of every day. I never lost faith in any of this. Youre just looking for that moment when you can break through again. It (happened) ttoday.dddddddddddd" Rays starter Matt Moore got a no-decision despite tossing 6 1-3 innings of one-run ball. The left-hander allowed four hits, walked three and struck out three. Moore hasnt lost since June 14, a span of nine decisions. "Had really good fastball velocity, I thought he maintained it pretty much the entire gamem," Maddon said. "Curveball and changeup were there, but I think he actually pitched with his fastball well today." Jake McGee (4-3) got two outs and the win. Fernando Rodney closed for his 33rd save in 41 chances. The Rays picked up an insurance run in the ninth on an RBI double by Desmond Jennings, but still left the bases loaded. Tampa Bay also squandered a chance with the bags full in the seventh, as pinch-hitter Delmon Young grounded into a double play and Ben Zobrist flew out to end the frame without putting a run on the board. The Rays went 4 for 10 with runners in scoring position on Sunday, but still only hit .177 (17 for 96) in those spots during the road trip. Mariners starter Erasmo Ramirez pitched into the seventh, blanking the Rays on four hits and working around four walks. "I thought Erasmo was good," Mariners skipper Eric Wedge said. "I loved his aggressiveness early in the game and he was able to hang on to it and sustain it." Kendrys Morales led off the Seattle second with his 20th homer of the season and 99th of his career. It was just one of five hits the Mariners were able to record. NOTES: Rays SS Yunel Escobar did not start for the first time since July 21. He pinch-hit in the eighth. Maddon said Sundays pitching matchup gave him a good excuse to sit Escobar, who he wants to keep from completely wearing down by the end of the season. ... Seattle 2B Nick Franklin was not in the lineup on Sunday, a day after taking a knee to the head while attempting to field a fly ball. Wedge said the decision was not entirely based on Saturdays collision, though, and Franklin is fine. Franklin struck out pinch-hitting in the ninth. ' ' '