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MAPLE LEAFS 5, Devils 3
Leafs snap three-game losing streak
TORONTO (CP) -- Down 2-0 to the first-place team in the Eastern Conference and with a home crowd growing restless, Sergei Berezin saved the Toronto Maple Leafs on Saturday night, scoring a highlight-reel goal that revved up his teammates en route to a crucial 5-3 win over the New Jersey Devils.
"Sergei, I thought, had his best game ever for us," said Leafs captain Mats Sundin. "That first goal, you don't see those anymore in the NHL."
Berezin, who scored twice on the night, brought the Air Canada Centre crowd alive midway through the first period with a breathless foray from centre ice that saw the Russian winger undress veteran defenceman Ken Daneyko with a between-the-legs deke, and poke a wrist shot through goalie Martin Brodeur's legs. The Leafs then played their best hockey in two weeks.
"Sergei changed the game for us," said Leafs head coach Pat Quinn. "He was jumping around and had the hot stick. It seemed to rally everyone."
Nik Antropov, Garry Valk and Darcy Tucker also scored for the Leafs, who ended a three-game losing streak and inspired hope in their fans with the type of gutsy effort that will be needed in the playoffs.
Facing the proverbial four-point game, a loss would have dropped Toronto nine points behind New Jersey with two weeks left in the season. Instead, the win moved the Leafs (41-26-7-3) five points behind the Devils (42-26-8-5) for first in the conference with Toronto having one game in hand. The Leafs remained third in the conference, two points behind second-place Washington, who beat Ottawa 4-3 in another game Saturday. "We've had some big games this week but this was the biggest one," said Sundin.
The line of Berezin, Antropov and centre Yanic Perreault did most of the damage for the Leafs, combining for six points.
"That line is the only thing we've had from an offensive point of view lately," Quinn said.
Quinn knew Perreault and Berezin worked well together, having put them on a line last season after Perreault was acquired from Los Angeles at the trade deadline.
"Sergei and I have always had good chemistry since I got here," Perreault said.
The problem this season was that both players were out with long-term injuries at different points.
Curtis Joseph was his usual self in goal for Toronto, stopping 29 shots, including 12 in the third when the Leafs sat back, protecting the two-goal lead.
But like the rest of his teammates, Joseph was dazzled by the Perreault line.
"Those were some of the prettiest passing plays of the year," Joseph said. The Devils, now 1-1 under new head coach Larry Robinson, looked nothing like the charged-up squad that hammered the New York Islanders 8-2 on Friday night, Robinson's first game behind the bench after replacing the fired Robbie Ftorek.
John Madden had two goals and Petr Sykora also scored for the Devils, who hung in there for the first half of the game before the roof collapsed on them. After Madden's goal midway through the second period gave New Jersey a brief 3-2 lead, Toronto turned the tables on the Devils, outskating the visitors and punishing their blue-line with an aggressive forecheck that forced many uncharacteristic giveaways in the New Jersey zone.
"Some of our decisions are still a little shaky," said Robinson, whose club, despite leading the conference, has only six wins in its last 19 games.
Berezin responded just over a minute after Madden's goal during a Leafs' power play, pounding a slapshot from the right faceoff circle in the top left corner past Martin Brodeur's outstretched glove, tying it 3-3.
Tucker then posted the winner on a controversial play with less than five minutes to go in the second, scoring into a half-empty net after it appeared Sundin had interfered with Brodeur. The Devils argued, but to no avail.
"The way I saw it, (Sundin) deliberately bumped into (Brodeur)," Robinson said.
Quinn disagreed: "I think Brodeur was trying to check Mats. That's not Mats' style anyway. He doesn't do that."
If there was any bad news coming out of Saturday's win, it's that the Leafs' blue-line continues to shrink. Already without Bryan Berard due to his horrific eye injury and Danny Markov (broken foot), Toronto also played without the reliable Alexander Karpovtsev, who was nursing a bruised foot. Forward Dmitri Khristich was also out, having re-aggravated a groin injury.
Notes: The Leafs won the season series 3-0-1-0 . . . It doesn't get any easier for Toronto, who plays against the league-leading Blues in St. Louis on Wednesday . . . After going pointless on Saturday, Sundin has only one point in the last seven games.
Summary
-----------------------------
New Jersey 2 1 0--3
Toronto 2 3 0--5
-----------------------------
FIRST PERIOD -- Scoring: 1, New Jersey, Madden 14 (Pandolfo, Stevens),
6:20. 2, New Jersey, Sykora 24 (Mckay, Sutton), 6:51. 3, Toronto, S
Berezin 23 (Di Yushkevich), 11:03. 4, Toronto, Valk 10 (shorthanded)
(unassisted), 15:30. Penalties: Arnott, N.J. (Obstr hooking), 1:26; Gomez,
N.J. (roughing), 9:51; Adams, Tor (roughing), 9:51; Mcallister, Tor (Obstr
hooking), 15:05.
SECOND PERIOD -- Scoring: 5, New Jersey, Madden 15 (Oliwa, White),
12:00. 6, Toronto, S Berezin 24 (power play) (Kaberle, Perreault), 13:47.
7, Toronto, Tucker 20 (Thomas), 15:17. 8, Toronto, Antropov 11 (Perreault,
S Berezin), 18:45. Penalties: Arnott, N.J. (holding), 13:08.
THIRD PERIOD -- Scoring: None. Penalties: Di Yushkevich, Tor (cross
checking), 5:26; Toronto bench, served by Domi (too many men on the ice),
7:44; Gomez, N.J. (cross checking), 8:06; Mcallister, Tor (interference),
13:13.
Shots on goal:
---------------------------------
New Jersey 11 9 12--32
Toronto 12 9 4--25
---------------------------------
Power-play Conversions: Njd - 0 of 4, Tor - 1 of 3. Goalies: New
Jersey, M Brodeur (25 shots, 20 saves; record: 40-18-8). Toronto, Joseph
(32, 29; record: 33-18-7). A:19,300. Referees: Murphy, Van Massenhoven.
Linesmen: Nowak, Dapuzzo.
INDIVIDUAL PLAYER STATISTICS
New Jersey Toronto
G A +/- Shots G A +/- Shots
Arnott 0 0 even 0 Adams 0 0 even 0
Brylin 0 0 even 1 Antropov 1 0 +1 3
Elias 0 0 -1 4 Cross 0 0 +1 0
Gomez 0 0 -1 0 Di Yushkevich 0 1 +2 0
Holik 0 0 even 3 Diduck 0 0 -1 0
K Daneyko 0 0 -1 1 Domi 0 0 -1 2
Lemieux 0 0 -1 5 G Andrusak 0 0 even 0
Madden 2 0 +2 4 Hoglund 0 0 even 1
Malakhov 0 0 -1 1 Kaberle 0 1 +2 0
Mckay 0 1 -2 4 Korolev 0 0 even 0
Mitchell 0 0 even 1 Mcallister 0 0 -2 0
Mogilny 0 0 -2 2 Mccauley 0 0 -1 0
Oliwa 0 1 +2 1 Perreault 0 2 +2 3
Pandolfo 0 1 +2 1 S Berezin 2 1 +2 6
Stevens 0 1 -2 1 Sundin 0 0 -1 1
Sutton 0 1 +2 0 Thomas 0 1 -1 5
Sykora 1 0 -2 2 Tucker 1 0 -1 3
White 0 1 +1 1 Valk 1 0 +1 1
Quint Healthy K King Healthy
Bombardir Healthy Clark Healthy
Nemchinov Neck Injury Khristich Groin
Rafalski Rib Injury Karpovtsev Foot Injury
Markov Foot Injury
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