Pickard loses Leaf debut in OT
DENVER – Thrust into a back-to-back for his first start, with no team practice and two time-zone travel tossed in, goalie Calvin Pickard was going to need plenty of help.
Not enough assistance arrived at the right time here Friday to get Pickard his first win in his first game as a Maple Leaf, but he did get them a point, earned some praise from the coach and added another support element to what once was the most inconsistent position on the team.
After no marquee Leaf stepped up on offence and the usually dependable Morgan Rielly was on for three Colorado goals, James van Riemsdyk scored late to force overtime, but the Avalanche's J.T.
Compher had the 4-3 winner with Connor Brown in the box.
"It was a pretty crazy 24 hours," said Pickard, called up from the Marlies on Thursday when scheduled starter Curtis McElhinney had a lower body injury in the morning skate in Arizona.
"Flying to Denver and starting, it's been pretty surreal," Pickard said.
"Tough to see it go the wrong way at the end, but the guys battled hard in front of me.".
Pickard was coming back to an old team, that let him go in the expansion draft to Vegas, which in turn traded him to the Leafs.
"I'm friends with a lot of (Avs), it was pretty unique and I just had to channel those emotions.
It was a well-earned point at the end.".
Coach Mike Babcock will feel better about taking three of four points on consecutive nights and coming back three times in the game, but groused about the interference call on Brown in extra time.
Brown did his best to lawfully impede Nathan MacKinnon on an odd-man rush after he'd already racked up three points at Pickard's expense.
"Pickard gave us opportunity (to win)," Babcock said.
"That's all you can ask for.".
Inside the two-minute warning with Pickard pulled, a blocked Rielly shot came to van Riemsdyk, who chipped a backhander in for his team leading 17th.
Until then, there was not much finish from a group that put seven goals past last-place Arizona the night before.
Fourth liner Matt Martin and bulky defenceman Roman Polak had the only goals on Semyon Varlamov, both ugly.
"Whenever you get a guy in there who is new to the team, first start or whatever, you want to play well for him, make life a bit easier, especially early," said defenceman Rielly before the game.
"I've known Calvin for a long time (they were in the world championships together), he was a great teammate and is a great goaltender.
Mitch (Marner) has played with him, too.
For a guy like that, travelling all day yesterday and being on the ice (alone) this morning, he's feeling good.
"We have all the confidence in the world in him.
It's not the ideal situation (Friday), but that's just the way it works.".
Pickard stopped the first five shots, a couple of them clean looks for Colorado shooters.
He also survived an early Leaf bench minor penalty.
But after Auston Matthews was stripped of a puck down the ice by Gabe Landeskog, it was dumped on net where the forceful MacKinnon hustled to a rebound that fell into no man's land in front of Pickard and Rielly.
MacKinnon, Landeskog and Mikko Rantanen have been the best thing about the Avs and they broke a 1-1 tie with more fiesty play, MacKinnon spinning off a Brown hit to set up Rantanen for a quick snap upstairs.
Alexander Kerfoot looked to have the winner before van Riemsdyk.
Centre Nazem Kadri was a no-show after an elbow in the head Thursday, his injury described as "upper body" and "day to day", which is often Bab-talk for a week off.
Nine Leafs, led by Tyler Bozak, took face-offs on Friday, compensating as they did for Matthews' absence in the middle before Christmas.
Babcock took the opportunity of the back-to-back to sit out defenceman Connor Carrick, who had played with Jake Gardiner thus far since Nikita Zaitsev went down with a lower body injury.
Carrick had struggled a bit on Thursday, so Martin Marincin came in, coincidentally a player drafted just a few places from Pickard in the second round in 2010.
Marincin, who had been getting some penalty killing work with Marlies to try and rebuild his confidence, was given some of that duty in Denver.
Now it's Viva Las Vegas for the Leafs, a day off to sight-see in the NHL's newest city before playing the league's most surprising team.
1 Frederik Andersen will be back for that game.
Asked about the obvious temptations for his players in Sin City, Babcock shrugged.
"They're all over 12 (years-old).
There's lots of things to do in Vegas (but) they know it's three games in four nights.
They're pros.".
For more infomation >> CNN Breaking News DEC 31,17 | Soldier dies in Bronx fire trying to rescue others - Duration: 1:08. 
For more infomation >> CNN Breaking News DEC 31,17 | Record cold, heavy snow grips much of the US, with more on the way - Duration: 1:41. 
For more infomation >> 왜 김태희는 '손예진'이 될 수 없었을까. [Korea News] - Duration: 14:15. 
For more infomation >> [사랑을 믿어요] 박주미, 민폐캐릭터 '최악의 선택'! - Korean News - Duration: 7:25. 
Không có nhận xét nào:
Đăng nhận xét