Leafs Watch

By TIM WHARNSBY -- Toronto Sun ALL-STAR BALLOT: Maple Leafs winger Steve Thomas doesn't feel like an all-star with his reduced production this season. But Thomas, along with goaltender Curtis Joseph, are the Leafs on the all-star ballot for Team North America.
Captain Mats Sundin, Sergei Berezin and Dmitry Yushkevich are Toronto's players on the World team ballot.

NIK THE STICK: Leafs rookie Nik Antropov is somewhat shy about using his sparse English to conduct an interview with reporters.
The 19-year-old Kazakh is understandably a lot more comfortable in speaking Russian. Here is an excerpt from a recent interview with a Russian newspaper, Sport Express.
"I went to Toronto during the summer with the idea that I would make the team, but I did not rule out returning to Moscow Dynamo or playing for the Leafs farm club.
"To go from Dynamo to the NHL was like jumping on a trampoline. In the beginning it was hard, especially against Chicago (in an exhibition game). In that game, players were fighting more than they were playing hockey and I was asking myself, 'Where have I come?'
"About three or four hours before my first NHL regular-season game I was nervous. But then I calmed down. In North America if you go on the ice with trembling knees, you can achieve nothing.
"Yes, I feel pressure right now. The management of the club counts on me and I must prove my worth. Maybe not immediately, but with time I can do it.
"My seven exhibition games gave me the feeling that I can play in this league and I don't think I played badly in my debut, but I was not the hero of the game or anything like that."

BIG MAC BACK: Sundin isn't the only Leaf ready to return from an injury. Defenceman Chris McAllister, who missed four games with a bruised knee, is fit again. McAllister suffered the injury when he blocked a shot during a pre-season game Sept. 23 against Vancouver.
"I thought I could play through it," McAllister said. "But then after one game I could hardly walk."

SLAPSHOTS: The Leafs have climbed to 14th in the league in penalty killing after killing off 12 consecutive penalties ... Before Craig Charron reported to St. John's of the AHL, the Leafs tried to swap him for New York Rangers unsigned defenceman Ruman Ndur, who played for the Guelph Storm of the OHL. The Rangers would not bite ... The Leafs likely won't replace St. John's fired playing assistant coach Greg Smyth until later this month.

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