Toronto- Joe Thornton scored a fluke goal just seven seconds into overtime to lift his Toronto Maple Leafs to a 3-2 decision over the visiting New Jersey Devils Wednesday night.
Thornton also started the scoring in the game. He tallied, his seventh of the season, at 12:20 of the first period on an assist from Danny Briere. Thornton won a faceoff to Briere, whose shot missed the net. But Thornton located the rebound and sent a shot pass the Devils Kari Lehtonen.
The Devils must have had a rough time getting through customs and into to Canada because they barely showed up in the first period, managing only two *^*^ shots on Pascal Leclaire.
(Monty:You cant say *^*^ in an BRHL2 article. Uecker: Who cares? No one is reading this)
In the second, the Devils (11-4-2) found their skating legs. Their second line of Martin Erat, Valtteri Filppula, and rookie Eric Tangradi found sustain pressure in the attack zone. Just over two minutes in, Filppula sent a shot wide of the Leafs cage. Tangradi gathered the miss, and fired at net. His offering was blocked by Bryan McCabe. But Erat was the first to the loose puck, and fired a wrist shot through the five hold of Leclaire to knot the score at one. It was number five on the year for Erat.
At 14:35 of the second, the Maple Leafs (8-7-3) would get their lead back. Brandon Sutter took Marcel Goc, who was scheduled to sit tonight in favor of Boyd Gordon but that didnt happen, to school on a face off. He won it back cleanly to Nikolai Kulemin, who fired it over the blocker of Lehtonen for his fifth of the season.
With just over seven minutes to go in the third, the Devils tied up the score again. This time it would be the hot Shane Doan with the marker. Brian Rolston started the offensive flurry by winning a draw to the side wall. Patrik Berglund, who was kicked out of the faceoff, battled on the wall with a Leaf defender. Berglund was able to come off the boards and around the net until he saw Doan in the high slot. Using a saucer pass, Berglund set the puck up on a tee for Doan, who snapped it over the glove of Leclaire. For Berglund and Doan the point was each their 21st, which is tops on the club and tied for 2nd in BRHL2.
With the one point now secure for each club, a 4-on-4 overtime was played, but it didnt last long. After an offside call on Toronto just three seconds in, the Leafs won the ensuing faceoff to the boards and Thornton. Thornton attempted to dump the puck hard into the corner, but his attempt hit rookie defenseman John Carlson in the skate. The deflection found its way into an empty goal as Lehtonen had gone behind the net to play the dump in.
The Devils return to action in two days to face division rival New York Islanders (8-7-2). Thus far the teams have split their first four meetings, but the Islanders were the winners in the last two matchups.
SWAMP THINGS- Gordon, Randy Jones, and Jeff Tambellini continue to be the scratchesDevils only allowed 21 shots on a goalDoans point scoring streak reached 13 games.
