NHL Update: Toronto Maple Leafs beat Carolina Hurricanes, 3-0
James Reimer made his first career shutout, turning aside 27 shots to lift Toronto Maple Leafs to a 3-0 victory over Carolina Hurricanes, at Air Canada Centre on Thursday night.
Darryl Boyce and Kris Versteeg both found the net for Maple Leafs, which had dropped the last five contests against Hurricanes. However, Toronto has won back-to-back play-offs for the first time since a four-game winning streak from 6 to11 January. Clarke
MacArthur also tallied a goal in the winning effort.
Cam Ward stopped 38-of-41 shots for Carolina, which has dropped two consecutive games.
Toronto came out of the gates shooting, blasting a total of 13 shots on net over the first 20 minutes. Ward, though, held strong between the pipes to keep it goalless.
Maple Leafs broke through for 1-0 lead in the eighth minute of the middle stanza, as MacArthur's wrist shot from the point, sailed through the scramble in front, and settled past Ward.
Maple Leafs killed off a 5-on-3 power play halfway through the second period.
"He (Tim Brent) did the things that you need penalty killers to do," Maple Leafs head coach, Ron Wilson, said. "He got at least two blocks and Luke (Schenn) got a big one, too. So you need sacrifice like that especially at that part. They're having an extended
five-on-three. Actually two of your penalty killers are the guys in the box and you have to find a way to do it...and we did."
Boyce gave Toronto a two-goal advantage 2-0 with five minutes to play in the second frame. Carolina attempted to clear the puck out of its own zone, but Boyce held on along the boards to prevent the puck from passing him. He then drifted in on net and rifled
a wrist shot past Ward.
Reimer was strong between the pipes and did not let Hurricanes open their scoring. His most important of 27 saves came on a Chad LaRose breakaway late in the middle session.
“He made a big save on Rosie,” Carolina captain Eric Staal said. “That would have cut it to 2-1 and we’re feeling better going into the third period. But it was too late for us to get it going.”
Maple Leafs, though, struck again for a 3-0 edge on Versteeg's goal in the seventh minute of the final frame.’’
"I don't think our effort was terrible but I don't think it was good enough," Staal said. "We need to be at our best consistently or we don't get the results."
Carolina’s net-minder made a great save in the third stanza, when he dove across his net and got a glove on Brent’s shot. However, Hurricanes struggled hard till the end, but failed to provide offense and Leafs sealed the win at 3-0.
Tags: