Sport-scan daily brief

There might even be a post-season NHL first, with the Leafs in and all three New York teams out. But Toronto players are looking at the scoreboard first and the opposing crest second.

“A shortened season is always kind of goofy with a lot of predictions,” defenceman John-Michael Liles said Sunday. “You look at Montreal (worst to first in the Northeast) and where we were predicted to finish (anywhere below eighth by most). Predictions can be a bit of guesswork, but ultimately it’s about a team coming together, believing in what you’re doing and gelling.

“It’s not a focus as much on who you are playing. It’s almost like the whole season has been a playoff push and we’re coming to crunch time, now. We just want to make sure we’re continuing to play to our idenity, stay with what we’re preaching and that everyone buys in.”

The Leafs draw the Rangers twice this week, with the return engagement Wednesday in Manhattan. Toronto lost the first meeting there 5-2 on Jan. 26, one of the rare times they have fallen below .500 this season. Marian Gaborik had the game-winner for the Rangers that night, but he’s since been traded and there is a much different Broadway cast than the one projected to defend the Atlantic Division’s first seed.

“People can debate all they want about where teams are going to finish, but you don’t know until the games really start going,” goalie James Reimer said. “People thought New York and New Jersey would be better seeds than they are right now, but that’s just the way the season goes. Things happen.

“We go into these games with a chance to get a little separation in the standings. That would be big for us, but we know (the Rangers) want to improve with all the people on their tails.”

One game remains for Toronto against both the Devils and New York Islanders, as the Leafs count down their final 10 games. With too many moving targets to calculate a magic number for Toronto’s first playoff appearance since 2004, the Leafs can basically shoot for a rough combination of nine points to reach the 55 plateau, which most consider a safe haven.

But coach Randy Carlyle is not likely to accept the Leafs crossing the wire in cruise mode.

“Ultimately, you are trying to position yourself as best you can,” said Liles, who knew exactly that his 36th and most recent playoff game came almost three years ago in Colorado. “We’re not just thinking: ‘Oh. we’re in a playoff position, we’re fine and it’s okay to be sixth, or seventh’. You’re trying to get up to those top three spots.”

Toronto won’t catch Montreal for the division lead, unless Boston and Ottawa decide to go away before the Leafs meet the Habs for the final game on April 27. But there is plenty of keep them busy in the meantime.

“We want to be chasing teams, getting that home-ice advantage,” Reimer said. “It’s nice to be in a playoff spot right now, but if you let your foot off the gas pedal, that can change pretty quickly, We have to play with confidence and desparation, even if we’re in fifth or sixth, because that’s what other teams are doing.

”These are high-pressure games and there’s a buzz in the arena and we have a little more ‘oomph’ for lack of a better word. That’s what makes these games so exciting.”

Toronto Sun LOADED: 04.08.2013

668864 Toronto Maple Leafs

Maple Leafs accustomed to pressure

Lance Hornby

Toronto Sun

First posted: Sunday, April 07, 2013 10:40 PM EDT

Updated: Sunday, April 07, 2013 10:45 PM EDT

Goalie James Reimer has been through almost three years in the most scrutinized position of a Toronto pro sports team, not to mention weathering two trade deadlines and the endless Roberto Luongo rumours.

So he allowed himself a chuckle when asked if he and the Leafs were sensing playoff pressure around the corner.

“I don’t think about it too much,” Reimer said. “When you think about it, what’s the difference between the playoffs and the regular season? There’s the (same) pressure, the expectations. When you’re playing in a market such as this, there is always that pressure.

“We’ve all played in high-pressure games, a lot of must-win games. That experience does play a big role and we’ve all had that at some level (of hockey).”

Jake and Jim share mark

After a 2-1 win against Hall of Fame-bound Martin Brodeur and the Devils on Saturday, Reimer was flattered to have his name mentioned with Jacques Plante. Saturday’s win was Reimer’s 48th as a Leaf, tying him with Plante on the franchise list at 15th overall. Like many younger Leafs, Reimer did not know the Habs’ legend and father of the modern goal mask had played for Toronto, between 1970-73.

“That’s cool,” Reimer said of the milestone. “Obviously he’s a pretty big name and he did a lot for our position.”

Next on the list is Ken Wregget at 55 victories. The idle Ben Scrivens, meanwhile, is sitting on 11 Leaf wins. That’s 50th on the franchise list, tied with current goalie coach Rick St. Croix.

Still with Scrivens, he loaned his blocker and catcher to Nazem Kadri at the end of Sunday’s practice, with Kadri showing some flair between the pipes. albeit on soft shots. Using Kadri’s stick, Scrivens skated in and tied one of Kadri’s fancy dekes.

Numbers game

Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment president and COO Tom Anselmi tried to needle the Red Wings during his Sunday remarks at the Winter Classic press conference in Detroit. Anselmi pointed out the Leafs have a 276-275 advantage in wins for the regular season series since the 1920s. Detroit general manager Ken Holland, once a Leaf draft pick, responded that when ties and overtime are factored in, Detroit is actually ahead on points, 646 to 645.

“This is a perfect rubber match,” Anselmi said.

Defenceman John-Michael Liles was in the lineup for Michigan State when it played the first major outdoor game at the rival Big House in Ann Arbor, the 2001 ‘Cold War’.

“That was a special experience,” Liles recalled of the nearly 75,000 in attendance from the two Michigan schools. “It was pretty cold, not as bad as you saw at some NHL outdoor games in Calgary and Edmonton, but we were under the lights and it was an interesting experience for sure.”

One more time

The Winter Classic will also have alumni, junior and college games as part the festivities. More than 100 ex-Leafs and Wings will be involved in two games.

“I really look forward to getting back on the ice with Lanny (McDonald) and Tiger (Williams),” Leafs captain Darryl Sittler told nhl.com. “(Detroit) are going to have a little bit younger of an alumni team than us. But they’re having two games and every player who is an alumni of these two teams gets a chance to be a part of it.”

Loose Leafs

Phil Kessel is scoreless in his past five games against tonight’s opponents, the Rangers, going back to the start of last season ... The Marlies are poised to clinch an AHL playoff berth in the next few days. They have not been in the playoffs the same year with the parent Leafs since transferring to Toronto from St. John’s in 2006, with the last joint post-season trip in 2002 ... Junior call-up David (The Brolldozer) Broll was in a late-game fight Saturday as the Marlies beat the St. John’s Ice Caps 4-2. The big news of course was draft pick Garret Sparks stopping 23 of 25 shots for his first pro win, also surviving two St. John’s power plays.

Toronto Sun LOADED: 04.08.2013

668865 Toronto Maple Leafs

Lupul back on the ice

Lance Hornby

Toronto Sun

First posted: Sunday, April 07, 2013 02:36 PM EDT

Updated: Sunday, April 07, 2013 11:19 PM EDT

A “good day” for Joffrey Lupul immediately became a great one for the rest of the Maple Leafs.

The sighting of their top winger back on the ice Sunday at the MasterCard Centre, 48 hours after what was feared a serious head injury against the Flyers, was a relief, even if his skate lasted just 20 minutes.

Lupul won’t likely return from the unspecified injury for Monday’s home game against the Rangers. But having him for some or all of the nine remaining games afterwards would give the Leafs a better chance to make the first round of the playoffs and perhaps go beyond.

Lupul was rocked early in Thursday’s game, sandwiched by Jay Rosehill and Adam Hall, and staggered to the Toronto bench. He has been undergoing tests and was fine to take a solo skate at the start of Sunday’s optional practice. He shot some pucks around, then went to the dressing room once 12 Leafs skaters and two goalies started ramping up the pace.

The Leafs have been careful not to publically call Lupul’s injury a concussion. On Saturday, coach Randy Carlyle said Lupul had undergone several tests that afternoon, as well as trying to overcome a stiff neck.

Neither he nor Carlyle were made available for comment, but the general impression was that Lupul “had a good day” relayed a club official. Lupul looked fine and was in good spirits during an off-ice workout and plans to skate again Monday morning at the Air Canada Centre before the Rangers game.

Lupul has 14 points in 10 games of this injury-marred season, yet the Leafs have been able to stay in the Eastern Conference playoff hunt without him. On Saturday, they hung on to nip the New Jersey Devils 2-1, improving their record to 15-13 without Lupul in the lineup. But they don’t want to make a habit of it.

Clarke MacArthur took Lupul’s left wing spot in New Jersey on the line with Nazem Kadri and Nikolai Kulemin. Carlyle also used defeceman Jake Gardiner after a couple of games in the press box, sitting Mike Kostka and holding newcomer Ryan O’Byrne back.

Toronto Sun LOADED: 04.08.2013

668866 Toronto Maple Leafs

Leafs to play in Winter Classic

Lance Hornby

Toronto Sun

First posted: Sunday, April 07, 2013 11:44 AM EDT

Updated: Sunday, April 07, 2013 02:37 PM EDT

The only thing that can stop the Winter Classic now is a New Year’s Day heat wave in Michigan.

After the looming lockout put a damper on preparations for a 2013 outdoor

game between the Maple Leafs and Detroit Red Wings, eventually canceling it, the NHL announced Sunday that the entire event is back on, same time, same channel, including a week of related outdoor festivities.

The big match will be on Jan. 1 at the Big House at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. A record crowd in excess of 100,000 is expected with alumni, college and AHL games also being outside at Comerica Park in Detroit in the days leading up to the event.

Losing the 2013 game cost the NHL and by extension the players, millions of dollars in revenue. Five of the past six most watched NHL games on U.S . television were outdoor games.

The inclusion of the Leafs, who have no feasible facility to host an outdoor game, will guarantee the league a great pay day, from the sale of items such as the commemorative vintage game sweaters.

Leafs fans brought the information website crashing down when the 2013 game was first announced.

Details on 2014 prices will be announced shortly.

Toronto Sun LOADED: 04.08.2013

668867 Toronto Maple Leafs

Injured Leafs forward Joffrey Lupul skates with team, but no timetable for return

Sean Fitz-Gerald

Toronto Maple Leafs winger Joffrey Lupul practised briefly with teammates during their optional skate on Sunday, and a team official said the injured 29-year-old plans to skate again on Monday, before the Leafs host the New York Rangers.

There is still no timetable for his return, and Lupul declined to speak with reporters after his workout. He was injured early in a game against the Philadelphia Flyers on Thursday, when he was sandwiched between forwards Jay Rosehill and Adam Hall.

The team has obliquely described Lupul’s condition as an “upper body injury,” though he did skate gingerly to the bench in an apparent daze after the collision. A replay suggested he also missed the door to the bench on his first attempt. And still, the Leafs have been at pains to avoid describing the injury as a concussion.

“He’s a dynamic player and he brings a lot to this team,” Leafs goaltender James Reimer said. “It’s unfortunate that he’s out. And as a teammate, you feel bad for him because you know he works hard and has had some unfortunate bounces this year.”

Lupul has missed most of the season due to injury. He was sidelined for 25 games after a Dion Phaneuf point shot broke his arm. Lupul also has a documented history of dealing with concussion, having missed more than a dozen games as a member of the Flyers in 2008.

Leafs coach Randy Carlyle was not on the ice for the optional practice on Sunday. He did raise eyebrows in an interview with Rogers Sportsnet, in which he offered a theory he has developed about why incident rates of concussion seem to be on the rise in hockey.

“Everyone sweats a lot more, the brain swells. The brain is closer to the skull. Think about it. Does it make sense? Common sense?” Carlyle told Rogers Sportsnet reporter Michael Grange last week. “I don’t know if it’s true, but that would be my theory. Heat expands and cold contracts. The brain is like a muscle, it’s pumping, it swells, it’s a lot closer to the outside of the skull.”

Carlyle did not address reporters after the practice on Sunday.

Lupul worked out on his own before joining his teammates on the ice, where he skated for perhaps 20 minutes. He has 14 points in 10 games this year — recording 10 of those points in the last five games.

“With him out of the lineup, we have guys who can step in and kind of fill the role and play well,” Reimer said. “We’re going to need more of the same going forward.”

Lupul had a good day according to the team. Still considered day-to-day, but hopes to skate again tomorrow.—

For the second time, the Leafs have been announced as participants in the NHL Winter Classic. And, maybe, this time, they will actually get to play in it.

NHL commissioner Gary Bettman confirmed the news on Sunday: Toronto will play Detroit at Michigan Stadium on Jan. 1, 2014, after their first attempt to play the game scrubbed by the NHL lockout.

“It would have been nice to have played in one this year,” Leafs defenceman John-Michael Liles said. “Unfortunately, it didn’t work out like that. It’s nice to be able to get the opportunity play in one next year.”

National Post LOADED: 04.08.2013

668868 Vancouver Canucks

Canucks Notebook: Kesler 'itching' for a return to game action

By Elliott Pap

Vancouver Sun

April 7, 2013

Even better news is that Kesler is speaking to the media again. The Canucks have in recent seasons enacted a policy in which injured players are shielded from reporters, presumably so they don't torpedo the team's interests by saying something wrong.

However, once a player resumes practising, all is good again. Kesler participated in an optional practice Saturday and then talked, the best indicator he is nearing a return to game action. He last suited up Feb. 26, almost six weeks ago, when his broken right foot was discovered by a CT scan that X-rays had missed.

“I'm itching to play, I'm itching big time,” Kesler said. “It's been a tough year for me but everything happens for a reason. Skating with the team is obviously the next step. It felt good to be out there again. Now it's just a matter of getting my wind back and for me to feel comfortable.”

Kesler, who famously uttered “no timeline” throughout his rehab from off-season shoulder and wrist surgeries, was it again even though the evidence suggests he'll be back within a week or so.

“No timeline but even if I did have one, I wouldn't be able to tell you guys,” he said, smiling. “Obviously my goal is to get some games in before the playoffs and feel good about my game.”

Kesler was injured killing a penalty in the second period of his first game back after missing 12 due to the shoulder and wrist. He finished that game and played another six before the CT scan revealed the fracture.

“It was a tough bone to X-ray, I guess,” said Kesler, who was scheduled to skate again Sunday and Monday.

MAX FACTOR: Saturday's 5-2 Canuck victory over the Calgary Flames provided an interesting local angle as West Vancouver's Max Reinhart, son of former stalwart defenceman Paul, made his NHL debut.

Max, 21, was summoned Saturday morning from the Abbotsford Heat and played left wing on a line with Mikael Backlund and Roman Cervenka. He finished with three shots, one hit, one takeaway and one faceoff win in 16:08 of ice time. He was also a minus-2, the first minus coming on the game's opening shift when Dan Hamhuis scored at 0:34.

“Definitely a high to a low,” Max told reporters after the game. “Obviously it's not the way you want to start, but that kind of stuff happens in hockey. You just have to shake it off and go out and forget that it happened.”

Max is the oldest of three hockey-playing Reinhart brothers. Griffin, 19, was a first-round pick of the New York Islanders last June and is captain of the WHL’s Edmonton Oil Kings. Sam, 17, is a highly-touted prospect for the 2014 NHL entry draft and is heading to Sochi, Russia this week with Canada’s U-18 national team.

Paul Reinhart and wife Theresa attended Saturday's game.

“I think all three boys have had some great experiences in the game of hockey and I think they would all say the pinnacles of their careers will be playing in the National Hockey League,” Paul commented. “For Max to have reached it at this particular point is a wonderful experience. I think he had a very good game against the Canucks and he was able to compete. He can gain a lot of positives as well as the recognition of where he needs to go to be a consistent professional.”

QUOTABLE: “They had some great shifts that were long and dominating and they were really good at some moments. And, at some other moments, they gave me a little bit of stress.” – Canuck coach Alain Vigneault on the line of Sedin-Sedin-Burrows, which collected eight points in Saturday's win but also turned over the puck too much for the coach's liking.

Vancouver Sun: LOADED: 04.08.2013

668869 Vancouver Canucks

Vigneault, Henrik are milestone men in win over Flames

By Elliott Pap

Vancouver Sun

April 7, 2013

Vigneault, Henrik are milestone men in win over Flames

Seemed like a Grade A quality idea, though. The coach and the captain both achieved personal milestones Saturday night as the Canucks knocked off the Calgary Flames 5-2 before another soldout house at Rogers Arena.

Vigneault coached his 530th regular-season game, surpassing Marc Crawford for the all-time franchise lead, while Henrik collected his 600th assist – and later 601st – in the victory.

Vigneault already held team records for most regular-season wins, most playoff wins, most playoff games coached and best winning percentage. During his tenure, which began with the 2006-07 season, he has helmed the Canucks two Presidents Trophies, five Northwest Division titles and six playoff-round victories. He won the Jack Adams Trophy as NHL coach of the year in 2007 and was a finalist again in 2011.

His teams have, at various times, led the league in goals for, goals against, power play, penalty kill and faceoff percentage – although not this year, of course.

Henrik Sedin has played in every single Canuck game coached by Vigneault and offered his theory on AV's success and longevity. Vigneault is currently the league's third longest serving coach behind Nashville's Barry Trotz and Detroit's Mike Babcock.

“When he came in, we were still young guys and he put a lot of trust in us,” said Henrik. “Not only in me and Danny but in Ryan Kesler, Kevin Bieksa, Mason Raymond and other guys, too. There have been some ups and downs but he has kept believing in us even though we has been through some tough times. It says a lot about him and it makes it fun to play for him.”

According to Daniel Sedin, who has played in 501 of AV's 530 games coached, Vigneault's success is a by-product of his dogged preparation. The players had Sunday off but Vigneault was planning to spend his 'down time' dissecting the Phoenix Coyotes and developing a game plan for Monday night's date at The Rog.

“Coaches right now they need to be prepared and they need to study film because players in this era are smarter, too,” said Daniel. “They can watch a lot of games, learn how other teams play and, I mean, if they're not prepared, the players are going to read through them right away. Our coaching staff is always prepared and that makes them successful and us successful, too.”

Vigneault has had to do some of his finest coaching this season, playing most of it without a proven centre for both his second and third lines. The formidable Ryan Kesler has appeared in just seven games, six and a half of those on a broken foot. Faceoff ace Manny Malhotra was shut down after nine games due to vision issues. Special teams and faceoff percentages have suffered accordingly yet Vigneault still has the Canucks atop the Northwest Division and on an 8-2-0 run.

Missing five forwards at times due to injury, he had the the Canucks dumb it down and they were able to grind out ugly wins. Now Derek Roy has arrived to fill one centre spot, others have returned from the infirmary and the Canucks have netted nine goals in their last two games. Even the power play has scored twice, for crying out loud.

"Fans always want to see goals and we understand that,” Daniel said. “But it was during a time when we had a lot of injuries and we had to get as many points as we could. It wasn't pretty but we got a few points there.”

Vigneault, for his part, seemed surprised that he had passed Crawford in games coached. Apparently it wasn't something that had been on his mind. Victories, of course, are another matter. He has 308 of those, 62 more than Crawford.

“The wins are definitely the most important thing,” he noted. “I want wins.”

A number of them, including Saturday's victory, were due to Henrik's passing wizardry. In seven seasons under Vigneault, Henrik has set up 442 goals.

“Henrik is a great passer,” praised the coach. “Without a doubt, he and his brother have something really good going and Burr (Alex Burrows) complements them really well. Henrik is our captain, a great player and I'm really happy for him.”

Not surprisingly, Henrik took his latest achievement in stride. Earlier this season, he passed Markus Naslund to become the Canucks' all-time leading pointgetter.

“Six hundread assists, it's a good number,” he said. “I've played with a lot of good players. I told Burr at the bench I think half of the helpers have been to him. I've had some great linemates.”

Daniel, by the way, has moved past Naslund into second place in career Canuck points. He has 751 and trails only Henrik, who has 783. Daniel collected three assists in Saturday's win.

ICE CHIPS: Goalie Cory Schneider stopped 36 of 38 shots in Saturday's win to boost his save percentage to .926 and lower his GAA to 2.16. Both were top 10 in the league before Sunday's slate of games... Dan Hamhuis, Dale Weise, Alex Burrows, Alex Edler and Henrik, into the empty net, scored for the Canucks on Saturday. Henrik's came shorthanded, the team's first 'shorty' of the season.

Vancouver Sun: LOADED: 04.08.2013

668870 Vancouver Canucks

Canucks Hat Trick: More Cory glory, Zack back on attack, the Kesler countdown 2.0

Ben Kuzma

Three things to ponder after the Canucks’ sloppy 5-2 win over the Flames on Saturday at Rogers Arena:

1. CORY IS THE STORY: You have to go back five games to find the last time Cory Schneider allowed two goals in an outing at Rogers Arena. That home-ice run of resiliency includes two shutouts, but what the starter accomplished when plopped into a shooting gallery against the Calgary Flames on Saturday was just as impressive. On a night where the Northwest Division leaders sacrificed any semblance of defence because the visitors looked more like the Abbotsford Heat and should have gone quietly into the night, they learned a wounded animal packs a pretty good bite. And it wasn’t so much that the Flames managed 38 shots, it was where they came from and how much they tested Schneider that was both alarming and amazing.