Neal’s seventh marker gave the Stars (6-2-4) their third win in four games, while the Leafs (1-8-2) picked up their third point in the first three of what will be a five game road trip.

They won their first game of the season on Monday in Anaheim.

Box Score: Leafs at Stars

Mike Riberio got the the tying goal in the third for the Stars, while Nikolai Kulemin scored two and Lee Stempniak added another for the Leafs.

Marty Turco (4-2-3) made 33 in the victory, his third win in a row while Jonas Gustavsson (1-3) took the loss despite a 31-save performance, one game after recording his first career victory.

After Kulemin got his second at 13:11 of the third to give the Leafs a 3-2 lead, Ribeiro responded just over four minutes later, with his second in eight games, to tie the game at 3-3.

That enabled Neal the opportunity to net the winner at 2:57 of overtime after both clubs had chances.

Teams trade goals in the third

An Alexei Ponikarovsky interference penalty 27 seconds into the final frame, followed by a Mike Komisarek call for high sticking at 1:32 put the Stars on the power play.

Richards then fired his second of the game, a 41-foot slapshot past Gustavsson  20 seconds later for the 2-1 lead.

But Dallas got itself in some penalty trouble as well as Brendan Morrow was called for holding Matt Stajan and the Leafs  responded.

Stempniak fired home his third goal on the year and the Leafs’ right winger now has five points in his last two games.

Richards opens the scoring for Dallas

Richards, the former Conn Smythe winner, fired a shot that deflected off Ian White past the Leafs goaltender for the 1-0 lead, the 10th time this season the Maple Leafs have allowed the first goal.

But Kulemin responded, as his wrister squeezed past Turco a minute and 47 seconds later to tie the game at 1-1. The sophomore Russian winger has endured a rough start to his campaign as he has been a healthy scratch four times already.

Notes: Jason Blake’s three assists ties a career-high … Stars centre Steve Ott was not in the lineup as he served the first of his two-game suspension for his illegal hit on St. Louis’ Carlo Colaiacovo Oct. 24 … Dallas has won three straight games against Toronto … The Leafs will continue their road trip with a meeting against the Buffalo Sabres on Friday, followed by a trip to the Bell Centre to take on the Montreal Canadiens on Saturday before returning home Nov. 3 to take on the Tampa Bay Lightning.

But on Tuesday, Joey MacDonald  took hold of the team’s goaltending reigns against the streaking Colorado Avalanche, attempting to halt the Leafs slow start and giving head coach Ron Wilson a reason to consider the journeyman as a solution in net, rather than a stopgap.

Neither ended up occurring as the Leafs [0-5-1] dropped their sixth straight game in a 4-1 loss to the Avalanche [4-1-1] at the Air Canada Centre.

Despite making 24 saves, the former New York Islanders goaltender performed decently at best, allowing two questionable goals in the opening period to put the Leafs down 2-0 and into catch-up mode once again.

Avalanche defenceman Brett Clark got the game’s opening goal on the power play at 11:43, as his shot from the top of the point beat the Leafs goaltender.

And with just nine seconds left in the first, David Jones managed to beat MacDonald on the left side of the net, as the Nova Scotia native backtracked too far in his own crease.

In the second period, with the Avalanche on another power-play after Mike Komisarek was assessed an elbowing penalty, MacDonald gave up a rebound on a Marek Svatos shot and former Leaf Darcy Tucker got his right skate on the puck and put it in at 5:58 for a 3-1 Avalanche lead.

Colorado made it 4-1 at 9:36 when a John-Michael Liles pass attempt towards the Leaf net hit Komisarek in the head and ended up beating the Leafs goaltender.

While MacDonald may be criticized for his performance, Toronto has allowed the first goal in every one of their games and coming into tonight’s contest, ranked second last in the league in penalty killing at 57.9 per cent.

So far, the Leafs have allowed 10 power-play goals this season, a major reason why Toronto is last in the league in goals against [4.67 per game].

With Gustavsson placed on injured reserve last week with a groin injury and Toskala expected to be out 10-14 days with a knee injury, the Leafs have recalled James Reimer from the Marlies to fill the backup role.

Now Toronto is faced with a situation neither Wilson nor general manager Brian Burke envisioned when the season started.

MacDonald and Reimer, both of whom began their years with the  Marlies of the AHL,  are now the main men in net for the big club and will play a part in how the Leafs’ season unfolds.

The club earned an undisclosed fine from the NHL Wednesday in regards to head coach Ron Wilson’s comments about the Leafs’ pursuit of Vancouver’s Henrik and Daniel Sedin before they became unrestricted free agents on July 1st.

In an interview with the Fan 590 radio station on June 30, Wilson said “there’s a real possibility, I would think, that we would be going after the Sedins.”

Bill Daly, the league’s deputy commissioner, released a statement saying  Wilson violated an NHL by law by speaking “generally” about the Leafs’ interest in the twins.

“The League has imposed a fine on the Maple Leafs’ organization as a result.”

Wilson is yet to comment on the decision, but Leafs general manager Brian Burke told the Toronto Star on July 8, “If the league decides we’ve crossed the line here and they punish us, then we’ll accept that. You won’t hear a peep out of us.”

However, Wilson was not the only member of the Leafs organization who had been under the NHL microscope.

On Monday, Canucks general manager Mike Gillis told the Team 1040 radio station in Vancouver his club had been discussing possible tampering charges with the league for comments Burke had made during this year’s entry draft.

The fiery GM wore a microphone during the June weekend, as part of a future Leafs TV feature.

During the taping he discussed a potential deal involving the Canucks and Tampa Bay Lightning — an attempt by Vancouver to secure the second overall pick.

The Canucks players involved in the deal were reportedly defenceman Kevin Bieksa, left winger Alexandre Burrows as well as the team’s first-round selection (22nd overall).

An NHL statement said while releasing Burke’s comments was “unfortunate and inappropriate,” it did not constitute tampering.

There would be no fine in this case.

Winger Viktor Stalberg and goaltender Jonas Gustavsson were absent from the ice one day after the Leafs dropped their third game in a row, this one a 2-1 decision to Ottawa.

“He’s got a bit of a tight groin right now,” coach Ron Wilson said of Gustavsson. “He’s had [that] for a couple of weeks, and with this being his first action, we just wanted to shut him down today.”

The Swedish netminder also missed time in the pre-season after undergoing a minor procedure on his heart.

At this point, Wilson plans to have his rookie goalie back on the ice for Thursday’s practice.

In Gustavsson’s place, the coaching staff put out a wooden cutout of a goalie to stand in one of the nets.

“We’re missing the net too many times,” Wilson said.

Right now there is no word as to who between Gustavsson, Vesa Toskala, or the wooden cutout will start the next game on Saturday. They’ll play at home against the Stanley Cup defending champion Pittsburgh Penguins.

Possible concussion

As for Stalberg, he left Tuesday night’s game late in the first period after a hard but clean check by Senators defenceman Anton Volchenkov.

“He had his bell rung and took the day off,” Wilson said. “I probably don’t expect him to be in the lineup on Saturday, but that might be too early to make a prognosis on him.

“We’ll see how he feels tomorrow.”

Stalberg will have to do a baseline test before returning to the ice, as is always the case for any player who potentially suffers a concussion, Wilson said.

After starting the season at 0-2-1, the players knew they were in for a tough practice, and readied themselves for it.

“It’s never too early,” forward Alexei Ponikarovsky said to TSN. “It’s just the way it is. You play a bad game, you just have to set your mind straight.

“To do that, you go through a hard practice and you know what needs to be done.”

The lines for the portion of practice that involved pucks were somewhat different than the ones used in the loss to Ottawa, but Wilson didn’t want anyone to look too much into it.

“Don’t go by what the lines were today,” Wilson said. “I just threw that together to get through practice. I’ve got to figure out some chemistry on a couple of lines that haven’t gotten anything going five-on-five.”

Toronto has now hit a stretch in its schedule that sees them play just four games over the next sixteen days, a situation that allows for hard practices like the one Wilson called for on Wednesday.

“It had quite a bit of skating,” Finnish winger Niklas Hagman said. “It was fairly tough.”

The rookie goaltender, known as “The Monster,” made 26 saves on 28 shots.

While this was Gustavsson’s first NHL start, his first career appearance came in the final two periods of the Leafs’ 6-4 loss on Saturday night in Washington. The Swede allowed three goals on 19 tries.

Gustavsson’s first period on Tuesday produced seven stops, including a 15-footer by Alexandre Picard that opened the game. 

The best saves of the period for the young goalie were a pair of consecutive chances from winger Jonathan Cheechoo and defenceman Anton Volchenkov, with the rebound testing his recovery ability.

Ottawa’s  first goal came in the second period on a scramble that saw Gustavsson down on his rear. 

After making the initial stop on a two-on-one, Ottawa kept the puck in tight until Shean Donovan chopped the puck out of mid-air and into the net.

Ottawa’s second goal came shortly after in dramatic fashion when Gustavsson got a chance to face Daniel Alfredsson on a penalty shot.

The Senators captain deked to his backhand and roofed the puck over the sprawled netminder for the eventual winner.

Leafs head coach Ron Wilson didn’t blame Gustavsson for either goal.

“Alfredsson made a great move on that penalty shot, and the other one he couldn’t do anything on that,” Wilson said. “They got a little lucky on that, [Gustavsson got] unlucky.”

Ottawa continued to press on the power-play that followed the penalty shot, but Gustavsson held his ground.

In the third, the Swedish netminder made a heads-up play to reach out and poke-check Chris Neil with the shaft of his stick when a quick pass in the Toronto zone saw the forward in alone.

Moments later, a Luke Schenn giveaway left Milan Michalek in very close, but Gustavsson was in position to make the stop.

The Toronto Maple Leafs have not developed many goaltenders who became true starters in the NHL.

In fact, the last goalie to begin his career in a Leaf uniform and become a starter was Felix Potvin, who appeared in five games in 1991-92 before making the jump to becoming their number one guy for the next six seasons.

Others who have become a team’s starting goaltender not as a result of injury include:

• Damian Rhodes, who played his first game for Toronto in 1990-91. He would go on to become a starter for the Ottawa Senators in their first playoff series win as well as being the first number one netminder in Atlanta Thrashers history.
• Ken Wregget made his first appearance with the Leafs in 1983-84 and after being traded to the Philadelphia Flyers for two first-round picks, would split time with Ron Hextall as well as Tom Barrasso in Pittsburgh.
• Ron Low began as a rookie on the 1972-73 Leafs, playing 42 games before becoming the starting goalie for the expansion Washington Capitals.

The list’s briefness only further drives home the point that the Leafs could benefit from a goalie that they themselves developed, albeit only partially so in Gustavsson’s case.

In Toronto, the talk of the town focused on who would be the one stopping goals.

In the nation’s capital, it was a matter of who would be the one scoring them.

As it turned out, it was the Ottawa Senators finding just enough of an attack to down the Toronto Maple Leafs 2-1 at the Air Canada Centre.

The Sens (1-1-0) snapped a three-game skid on the Leafs home ice in the process, thanks to two second period goals that came less than a minute apart.

Toronto (0-2-1) pushed hard late and had a few quality chances to tie the game in the final minute, but has now suffered two straight losses.

Matt Stajan’s third goal of the campaign cut the Senators’ 2-0 lead in half at 5:36 of the third period, but that stood as the lone mark for the Leafs.

Toronto showed some of its new found offensive creativity on the play, as Thomas Kaberle and Francois Beauchemin were able to swing the puck around the blue-line and pick out Stajan with a well-timed, back door pass.

Minutes later, Mike Komisarek had the home fans jumping after a blast from the point rang out off the post with under 11 minutes remaining.

Leafs head coach Ron Wilson was less than impressed with his team’s efforts.

“We’ve got to figure out whether it’s line combinations, whether it’s calling some of the guys up from the minors who provided the spark in the preseason,” Wilson told reporters following the game.

“There are a few guys who made the team based on last year, not on what they did in training camp, and I need to find the way to light the fire under a few guys’ rear ends here.”

Controversial score

An official review into a goal at 6:45 of the second by Ottawa fourth-liner Shean Donovan that he appeared to knock in with a high stick was allowed to stand, making it 1-0 for the visitors.

The unassisted tally was Donovan’s first goal of the year in his first game dressed.

Less than a minute later, Luke Schenn was called for a high-sticking major on Ottawa’s Milan Michalek who earned a penalty shot for his efforts.

Michalek was unfit to take the shot himself, setting up a Swede versus Swede showdown.

Daniel Alfredsson faked a wrist shot, then dragged the puck to his backhand and flipped it over the top of a down-and-out Gustavsson.

The goal was Alfredsson’s second in two games.

Early injury

Leafs rookie Viktor Stalberg left the game in the second frame and did not return after a hard check.

Despite the added attention of what is already being called a goaltending controversy, rookie Jonas Gustavsson was solid in his first game as the starting Leafs netminder, stopping 26 of 28 shots, with two pivotal saves coming late in the third to keep his team in the game.

Pascal Leclaire turned aside 26 of 27 shots at the other end of the rink.

Despite being out shot and out played for the majority of the game, two timely goals by Gorges and forward Glen Metropolit spoiled a two tally outing by Leafs forward Matt Stajan.

Through the first two periods of the game Toronto (0-1) outshot the Canadiens 30-13, but in the third frame Montreal came back with 10 shots and four more in overtime.

Toronto managed only 12 in the third and four in the extra period.

Box Score: Canadiens at Leafs

Late in the game with the Leafs nursing a 3-2 lead, defenceman Mike Komisarek’s aggression got the better of him when he took a cross checking penalty right in front of a referee.

It cost the Leafs as Metropolit managed to stand right in front of goalie Vesa Toskala without being touched from where he tipped in a Gorges point shot during the power play.

That late goal gave Montreal some energy and they picked up their play, controlling the final four minutes of regulation and forcing Toskala to make a number of good saves.

Stajan gave Toronto a 3-2 lead with nine minutes left in the frame, when he scored his second power play goal of the night by tapping the puck into the empty Canadiens’ net.

Jason Blake’s hard work led to the score as he chipped the puck over the sprawled goalie Carey Price.

Alexei Ponikarovsky had the other Toronto goal.

Toskala made 23 saves, while Price stopped 43 pucks.

Toskala and Komisarek had a rough third period. In a span of three minutes, Scott Gomez slammed into the Leafs netminder who was later hit by forward Travis Moen.

Sloppy early work

Both teams managed to overcome some sloppy play to take a 1-1 tie after the first period.

Leafs forward Colton Orr and defenceman Jay Rosehill had their first fights of the season. Orr took on Georges Laraque, while Moen took on Rosehill.

Montreal’s first tally (11:05) came seconds after Komisarek, the former Hab, was sent off for a high-sticking double minor.

The Leafs tied the game at 14:27 when a Niklas Hagman forecheck caused a turnover and Ponikarovsky one-timed a slap shot past Price.

Right at the end of the frame, forward Lee Stempniak had a great chance to break the deadlock, but was unable to lift the puck over the shoulder of the Canadiens’ netminder.

Habs take the lead

After a 1-1 first period, Montreal took the lead when Moen managed to slide the puck into the far side of the net after both Toronto defenders were caught behind the end line.

Before the goal, forward Maxim Lapierre was allowed to take several whacks at Toskala’s glove hand prior to a Leafs player getting there to check him.

The Leafs knotted the game at 10:38, when Stajan made a good play to tip a point shot past Price while Toronto was enjoying a two man advantage.

Notes:  Toronto has just 13 players returning from the 2008-09 roster  … Viktor Stalberg cracked the opening night lineup, the only former NCAA in the Leafs system to do so … Toronto and Montreal split the six-game series last season … The 48th Highlanders band performed their traditional opening night role before the game

Toronto needs a player to represent the new era ushered in by general manager Brian Burke and head coach Ron Wilson. The Truculent Age, if you’d like.

Someone who can speak on behalf of an edition of the Maple Leafs meant to live by team founder Conn Smythe’s adage “If you can’t beat ‘em in the alley, you can’t beat ‘em on the ice.”

That spokesman? Look no further then Mike Komisarek.

Komisarek was one of Burke’s biggest acquisitions this past summer, and adds a great deal of toughness and skill to Toronto’s defensive corps.

Ask Jordan Staal, who had the misfortune of fighting Komisarek on Sept. 22, whether or not the 6-foot-4, 245 pound former Montreal Canadiens blue-liner can handle himself in hockey’s rougher elements.

Although he’s not a prolific scorer, Komisarek can be relied on to have a good plus-minus. His last three seasons with Montreal he was a total of plus-16.

He’ll undoubtedly get a lot of ice time too, as he will be invaluable on the Leafs’ penalty kill and will be responsible for shutting down the biggest offensive threats on Toronto’s opponents.

There are a few other names on the Leafs that could be considered for the captaincy. Certainly, Tomas Kaberle has spent the most time with the club and has long been a calming influence in the locker room.

But the Burke-era has been all about being brash on and off the ice. Although Kaberle will always be a leader, the soft-spoken Czech does not exemplify the Leafs’ new attitude.

Burke followed this sandpaper formula to great success in Anaheim. There Chris Pronger led the Ducks to a Stanley Cup championship, providing a combination of grit and defensive prowess.

Although Kaberle has the skills, he doesn’t have that same nasty attitude and outspoken demeanor. Komisarek, however, is like a younger Pronger.

Forward Matt Stajan, born and raised in the Toronto suburb of Mississauga, is always happy to answer the media’s questions. He’s also the team’s NHLPA representative and has been with the Leafs for eight seasons.

But with almost the entire roster new to the locker room in the Air Canada Centre, seniority doesn’t matter that much.

It’s only been one season since the departure of veteran centre Mats Sundin, and in that time, no one has worn a ‘C’ on their blue and white sweater.

Although it was only a year ago, the Leafs are an entirely different team from Sundin’s last game with Toronto.

It’s therefore fitting that some of the new blood shoulders assumes leadership on the team.

Komisarek is already the torch-bearer of this new era, it is high time that the Maple Leafs make it official by sewing the letter C on his jersey.

The trio of Vesa Toskala, Jonas Gustavsson and Joey MacDonald bring promise of a better season between the pipes for the Blue and White based on potential and experience.

And while that argument was disproven last year when the tumultuous trio of Toskala, Curtis Joseph and Justin Pogge (and later Martin Gerber) ranked 30th in goals against, there is legitimate reason to believe that the top three goalies are a definite improvement.

Toskala had quite possibly his worst campaign last year, finishing with a 3.26 goals against average and an .891 save percentage. He appeared to be hobbled by injuries most of the season, and was finally shut down in March after the acquisition of Gerber.

This year, the Finnish netminder has come into camp and appeared healthy in pre-season action. His mobility and positioning looks better, a good sign that he’s both physically and mentally ready to knock last year’s woes clear from memory.

He’ll need to do so, because unlike last year, he has a challenger waiting in the wings.

General Manager Brian Burke flew to Sweden in order to sway Gustavsson to the Leafs and surely one of the GM’s selling points was the chance to steal significant ice time.

Gustavsson, known as “The Monster,” played 42 games for Farjestads of the Swedish Elite League, posting a superb 1.96 GAA and a .932 save percentage.

He upped his stock in the playoffs, registering a 1.03 GAA and a .961 save percentage en route to winning the SEL’s championship.

Apart from a period on Friday and two more Saturday, there really isn’t anything to go on for Gustavsson in the NHL. He does look very calm in the crease and his six-foot-three frame allows him to cover the top of the net while in the butterfly.

“That’s why we pursued him so hard,” Leafs head coach Ron Wilson said. “We thought he was the best goalie not in the NHL.”

Gustavsson also made the save of the pre-season Saturday night when he robbed Johan Ryno on a 2-on-0 with a right pad save while doing the splits.

“He’s had three periods so far and he’s looked good, but we don’t want to get too far ahead of ourselves,” Wilson said.

While some would compare his hype with that of Justin Pogge’s, Gustavsson has done something that the former Leaf did not dominate in a professional league.

Should either falter, or play well enough to make the other expendable, the Leafs have MacDonald to go to. 

Last season, he took over for the injured Rick DiPietro in Long Island and put up an impressive .901 save percentage with the league’s worst team.

Although he likely wouldn’t be chosen to start for Toronto in any must-win situation, he does provide additional depth to an area of concern in recent years by being a serviceable backup.

The mantra preached by Wilson upon his arrival was that of defence first. The goaltender can play a very important part of that equation.

An impressive 6-2 start to the pre-season coupled with a .909 save percentage before Saturday’s game means that the Leaf goalies have looked good to this point.

But pre-season and the regular season are two very different creatures, and it’ll be up to these netminders to prove that they really are an upgrade on last year’s edition.

It was a big night for Swedish players.

Niklas Kronwall scored Detroit’s (2-3) first two goals, while Johan Franzen gave them a third period lead with two of his own in quick succession.

Viktor Stalberg made a statement scoring twice with an assist as he tries to find a spot on the Maple Leafs (5-2) roster for 2009.

“Some nights he’s been our best forward and tonight he played very well,” said head coach Ron Wilson. “His speed is just incredible, you could see the Red Wings turning and retreating when he picked up the puck.”

Fellow Swede Jonas Gustavsson started in his first exhibition game with the Leafs after having surgery to repair a heart murmur.

“He used his size and his rebound control was unbelievable,” Wilson said. “You have to remember, he’s only practiced like three times in the past couple of weeks.”

A former star with Färjestads BK, the Monster made seven saves in the opening period, before giving way to Vesa Toskala who played well, stopping 29 of 33 shots.

Chris Osgood gave up four goals on 31 shots.

Wings come flying back

Entering the third period, Toronto had a solid 3-1 lead.

However, Kronwall had ideas of his own, scoring his second goal of the night, sending a slap shot through a Red Wings’ screen to bring Detroit within a score.

Detroit then tied the game 3-3 on the power play.

Pavel Datsyuk brought the puck into the zone before passing across the ice to the patient Johan Franzen who waited for Toskala to slide low across the crease before snapping the puck into the top corner.

Franzen struck again just 14 seconds later to give the Red Wings a 4-3 lead. Stripping Garnet Exelby on the forecheck, he skated around the net and put the puck past Toskala with his trusty wrist shot.

It looked all sewn up for the home team with 1:10 left to play until Mikhail Grabovski tied it on a Nikolai Kulemin pass.

After five minutes of overtime, the game moved to the shootout.

Toskala turned away Franzen and Datsyuk and Tomas Holmstrom missed the net completely. Chris Osgoode made saves on Jiri Tlusty and Christian Hanson.

Daniel Cleary scored for Detroit, while Kulemin and finally Mitchell scored for the Leafs.

Although the game featured some veterans, it was the Leafs new players that shone. Nazem Kadri had a goal for Toronto, while Hanson and Tyler Bozak had a point each.

Stalberg’s wrist shot over Chris Osgoode’s glove opened scoring 10 minutes into the first, as the rookie continues to impress this preseason.

The marker was setup by freshmen Tyler Bozak and Christian Hanson who had aggressively forechecked the Red Wings defence to win the puck.

Three minutes later, Stalberg would score again.

After working behind Detroit’s net, he fed Hanson for a quick shot. The rebound landed at Stalberg’s feet, which he quickly shot into the net to put Toronto up 2-0 at the end of the first.

Former Leaf Brad May was spoiling for a fight all night. Halfway through the game, Toronto rookie Jay Rosehill obliged sending the veteran sprawling after several haymakers.

Stalberg was the catalyst of another Leafs’ goal 10 minutes into the second frame.

Playing in the defensive end, he stripped a Red Wing of the puck and streaked up the ice, followed by fellow rookie Nazem Kadri.

Taking a drop pass from the Swede, Kadri skated into the slot and scored his second goal of the preseason to give Toronto a 3-0 lead.

Detroit finally responded four minutes later, when Niklas Kronwall blasted a rebound past Toskala to make it 3-1 headed into the third period.

Coach Ron Wilson said before the game that he plans to have Gustavsson start for two periods tomorrow night in the rubber match at the Air Canada Centre.

After bringing in highly-touted players such as Mike Komisarek, Jonas Gustavsson and Phil Kessel, more is expected from this season’s edition of the Toronto Maple Leafs.

There is no question that the Leafs are looking towards the playoffs, but what are their chances of making it in?

The Eastern Conference breaks down into four categories — cup contenders, playoff probables, bubble teams, and the rebuilding projects.

The teams line up as follows:

Cup Contenders

Pittsburgh Penguins – The defending cup champs boast a similar lineup, with almost every current roster player now earning the moniker of being “a cup veteran”. No reason to believe that they won’t be in the thick of things again.

Washington Capitals – Alexander Ovechkin has a pretty strong surrounding cast and if goaltender Simeon Varlamov plays as well as he can, this team becomes a perennial cup contender.

Boston Bruins – Even without forward Phil Kessel (traded to the Leafs), the team is steady all around. Goalie Tim Thomas continues in his role as the NHL’s resident Rodney Dangerfield.

Philadelphia Flyers – As every competitive Philly team post-Bernie Parent has been, their only real question is the goaltending. Defenceman Chris Pronger just seems like he was born to be a Flyer.

Playoff Probables:
Carolina Hurricanes – They may not make it to the conference finals again, but with two quality scoring lines and a couple of puck-moving defencemen on the back end, the team should have no problem making it back to the post-season.

New Jersey Devils – New/old coach Jacques Lemaire and his hard-nosed defensive system may not be pretty, but it works. It should be interesting to see how it affects forward Zach Parise and his 94-point campaign.

Bubble Teams:
New York Rangers – Forward Marian Gaborik is a dangerous threat, if only he were ever healthy. The Rangers have a habit of winning a lot of 2-1 games, and if goalie Henrik Lundqvist holds up, they’re a playoff contender.

Toronto Maple Leafs – Toronto got bigger, tougher and better. The team won’t be pushed around anymore, allowing their limited skill to produce.  Kessel has the chance to become the best young scorer for the Leafs since Mats Sundin.

Ottawa Senators – The fact the team got anything valuable from the Sharks for star forward Dany Heatley speaks volumes about general manager Bryan Murray. If goalie Pascal Leclaire can return to his ‘07-’08 form, Ottawa has enough potential offence up front to make a playoff run.

Buffalo Sabres – This team keeps falling just short of the playoffs. They’ll need strong defensive work and players like forward Drew Stafford and defender Andrej Sekera to get to the next level if they want to have any post-season hope.

Montreal Canadiens – The Habs are an unknown given the amount of change they’ve undergone in the off-season. Forwards Scott Gomez and Mike Cammalleri have played in big markets, but they’ve never faced one like this. Can they handle the heat?

Florida Panthers – Former Leaf defender Bryan McCabe was recently named the team’s captain. Despite losing blue liner Jay Bouwmeester they remain strong defensively, but will need offensive output from more guys than just forwards Stephen Weiss and Nathan Horton.

Rebuilding Projects:
Atlanta Thrashers – It looks as though forward Ilya Kovalchuk will finally have some quality linemates. Bryan Little and Nik Antropov provide some pop and Atlanta is at least four-deep in offensive defencemen. It’s still unlikely they make the playoffs, though.

Tampa Bay Lightning – Vincent Lecavalier and Martin St. Louis continue to be islands of scoring on a team of turmoil. The speed of Steven Stamkos and defenceman Victor Hedman’s development will affect how soon Tampa gets back into the post-season.

New York Islanders – They’re hoping that first overall pick John Tavares draws people back to the team. On the ice however, they’ll still be pretty bad. Their three-headed goaltending situation of Rick DiPietro, Martin Biron and Dwayne Roloson should support this team if it doesn’t cause rifts in the dressing room.

The physical forward, who came over from Colorado in the off-season, picked up a loose puck in front of the Toronto goal and stuffed it under Joey MacDonald’s left pad.

That goal at 15:42 of the second period gave Buffalo a 3-1 lead, an advantage that they wouldn’t relinquish.

Playing for the second time in as many nights, the Maple Leafs looked sluggish for the first 40 minutes, being outshot 29-15.

Ryan Miller played the entire game for Buffalo, stopping 23 shots for the win.

MacDonald went the distance for the Leafs, and despite a strong performance and 28 saves, wound up with the loss.

The Leafs came out flying to start the third and were rewarded. Nazem Kadri and John Mitchell teamed up to bring the score to 3-2. Kadri circled the net and sent a pass in front to Mitchell, who snapped the puck into the right corner.

Alexei Ponikarovsky nearly tied the game five minutes later when he broke in alone on a shorthanded breakaway, but couldn’t hang on to the puck as it drifted wide.

There was no scoring in the first period thanks to the play of MacDonald. He was strong early on, stopping eighteen shots through the first 20 minutes.

His best saves of the frame included a reaction right pad save on Mike Grier and snagging a tipped shot by Derek Roy.

The lone fight of the night was contested between Jay Rosehill and McCormick just 3:11 into the game.

Nathan Paetsch opened the scoring early in the second on a delayed penalty. After Garnet Exelby knocked over Jason Pominville, the Sabre forward had the wherewithal to get in front of the net and screen MacDonald on Paetsch’s point shot.

Jochen Hecht added to the lead less than four minutes later on another drive from the blue line. Hecht’s shot went off of Exelby’s foot and past MacDonald to give Buffalo a 2-0 lead.

Jiri Tlusty brought the score to 2-1 via the penalty shot. After he found himself in alone on Miller, he was tripped up by Tyler Myers and was awarded a penalty shot.

That momentum was short-lived though, as McCormick’s marker would restore Buffalo’s two-goal lead. The second period ended with the Sabres ahead 3-1.

The young Czech went to the left and deked before whiffing on the puck, which slowly slid through Miller’s legs. The unlikely goal gave the Leafs a temporary boost.

NOTES: Jamal Mayers did not play after suffering an injury Tuesday night. There is no word yet on when he will return to the lineup … Both teams played a lot of regulars as the exhibition season winds down … These teams will meet again on Sunday night in Toronto to close out the pre-season … Olaf Kolzig announced his retirement on Wednesday afternoon. He was acquired by the Leafs from Tampa Bay at last season’s trade deadline, but was injured and did not suit up in a Leafs uniform.