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Wednesday, October 27, 1999
Leafs watch
Thomas, 36, scored his first goal of the season Monday in the Leafs' 4-0 win against Dallas -- Toronto's 11th game. Last season after 11 games, Thomas had three goals and six assists and was a plus-3. This season, he has one goal and seven assists and is a plus-5.
Defenceman Chris McAllister also did not skate. He has been hampered by a bruised knee after blocking a shot during a pre-season game. He has not dressed for six of the past seven games.
COLD AS ICE: NHL ice expert Dan Craig is in Toronto studying the conditions at Air Canada Centre. He took in the game against Dallas on Monday and will be at the arena tonight for the Leafs' game against the Atlanta Thrashers.
Yesterday, Craig attended the Leafs practice at Maple Leaf Gardens. He declined an interview, saying interview requests had to go through the NHL office in New York.
Frank Brown, the NHL's vice-president of media relations, answered "no" when asked for permission to interview Craig.
"He is not an employee of the league, he is a consultant," Brown said. "He does not speak for the league."
SHOT BLOCKER: With former Dallas Stars defenceman Craig Ludwig now retired, Alexander Karpovtsev of the Maple Leafs may be the league's best shot-blocking defenceman.
After 11 games, Karpovtsev has blocked 30 shots, including five shots apiece against Dallas on Monday and Montreal last Saturday.
"It's all about timing," Leafs general manager/coach Pat Quinn said.
"Some guys should not be blocking shots because they just mess it up. Some guys have a good sense and Alex has a good sense for blocking shots."
TIGHTENING UP: The Leafs have given up just 1.92 goals a game, third-best in the league behind Detroit (1.61) and Ottawa (1.87).
The Leafs have given up 25.6 shots a game. Last season, they yielded an average of 28.8 shots a game.
Goaltender Curtis Joseph is among the league leaders with his 1.88 goals-against average (tied for fifth), six wins (tied for first), .926 save percentage (tied for fifth) and two shutouts (tied for second).
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