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Maple Leafs 6, FLAMES 2
Healy leads Leafs to win over Flames
CALGARY (CP) -- The Toronto Maple Leafs continued their assault on the top spot in the Eastern Conference on Thursday night.
Glen Healy made 30 saves and the Maple Leafs got goals from six different players as Toronto won 6-2 over the Calgary Flames for their fourth straight win.
With eight wins in their last nine games, Toronto closes to within three points of the conference-leading New Jersey Devils.
"Top spot is there for us if we continue to do the right things but we're not making that our central focus," said Healy, who improves to 8-7-0. "This is the time of year when you depend on certain people and you get the job and you peak for that post-season because that's what you work all season for."
Yanic Perreault, Mats Sundin, and former Flame Jonas Hoglund each had a goal and an assist to pace the offence for Toronto (38-23-7-3), who were outshot 32-20. Also scoring was Tie Domi, Steve Thomas, and Sergei Berezin.
Replying for the Flames (28-32-8-5) were Derek Morris and Jason Wiemer. Calgary wrapped up an eight-game homestand with a 3-3-2 record and are headed for a key two-game road trip with stops in Los Angeles and San Jose.
The Flames remain ninth in the Western Conference trailing the Sharks and the final playoff spot by three points.
For the second straight game, the Flames' undoing came in the second period.
After giving up four goals in the second period in Tuesday night's 8-3 loss to the Colorado Avalanche, they were even more generous to Toronto.
The Leafs erupted for five second-period goals on just 11 shots to turn a 1-1 tie after the opening 20 minutes into a commanding 6-2 lead after 40 minutes.
Hoglund's go-ahead goal 36 seconds into the period would be a sign of things to come for the Flames and goaltender Fred Brathwaite, also the victim in the Colorado game.
From along the boards as he neared the corner, Hoglund's centring pass banked in off the leg of Calgary defenceman Darryl Shannon.
Thomas then added a power-play goal at 3:14 to make it 3-1.
"They got a couple lucky goals and things came unravelled," said Wiemer. "We don't want to run and gun with the Leafs but that's obviously what we ended up doing and the score shows it."
The controversial moment of the night came with just after the four minute mark of the second when Jarome Iginla fired a shot from the top of the goal crease that Healy gloved on the goal-line as he slid across the net.
Referee Dave Jackson was stationed behind the net and chose not to review the play. However, shortly after play had resumed, the Canadian Airlines Saddledome crowd of 16,504 became incensed when the video screens on the scoreboard repeatedly showed a replay in which it appeared the puck may have been gloved after it had gone over the goal-line.
"We're not sure how questionable it is when you look at it on the replay, it's in the net," said Wiemer of the play. "We're at home and you think somebody would have called downstairs but we didn't get that and it's a little bit frustrating."
The Flames argued with Jackson and second referee Paul Stewart but to no avail.
Making his 12th straight start, Brathwaite struggled for the second game in a row and has been victimized for 13 goals over the past two games.
"When he's playing well, you guys want me to send him to the all-star game and induct him to the Hall of Fame," Sutter said to the media afterwards. "Now when pucks are going in the net you guys want me to be critical and I won't, he's like everybody else.
"Should he have stopped the pucks? Yes, he should have stopped the pucks, that's what goaltenders are paid for and that's not being critical, that's being very honest and upfront," Sutter said. "There's going to be tough days that he's going to go through like this and it's how he responds that's going to make him a player."
Notes: Calgary was without Bill Lindsay (hand) and Rene Corbet (foot) who were both hurt in Tuesday night's loss to Colorado. Both are listed as day-to-day. . . Bureau had two assists giving him three assists in two games since joining the Flames on Monday. In 53 games as a member of the Philadelphia Flyers this season, Bureau had just two assists . . . Toronto was without Gerald Diduck. The Maple Leaf defenceman remains in Edmonton with his sister Carla who was seriously hurt early Wednesday morning when she fall four storeys down an elevator shaft.
Summary
-----------------------------
Toronto 1 5 0--6
Calgary 1 1 0--2
-----------------------------
FIRST PERIOD -- Scoring: 1, Toronto, Domi 5 (Valk, Adams), 3:58. 2,
Calgary, Morris 9 (M Bureau, Wiemer), 8:51. Penalties: Johansson, Cgy
(roughing), 13:33; Cross, Tor (roughing), 13:33.
SECOND PERIOD -- Scoring: 3, Toronto, Hoglund 27 (Di Yushkevich, Healy),
0:36. 4, Toronto, Thomas 18 (power play) (Kaberle, Sundin), 3:14. 5,
Toronto, Perreault 14 (Antropov, Kaberle), 9:00. 6, Toronto, Sundin 29
(Hoglund), 10:26. 7, Calgary, Wiemer 10 (M Bureau, M St Louis), 14:24. 8,
Toronto, S Berezin 19 (Antropov, Perreault), 18:14. Penalties: Nazarov,
Cgy (Obstr holding), 2:40; Di Yushkevich, Tor (holding), 5:43; Kaberle,
Tor (interference), 15:16.
THIRD PERIOD -- Scoring: None. Penalties: M Bureau, Cgy (interference),
0:19; Kaberle, Tor (Obstr holding), 3:06; Mcallister, Tor (slashing),
4:55; Mcallister, Tor (fighting major), 8:02; Roche, Cgy (fighting major),
8:02.
Shots on goal:
---------------------------------
Toronto 4 11 5--20
Calgary 11 12 9--32
---------------------------------
Power-play Conversions: Tor - 1 of 2, Cgy - 0 of 4. Goalies: Toronto,
Healy (32 shots, 30 saves; record: 8-7-0). Calgary, Brathwaite (20, 14;
record: 22-20-5). A:16,504. Referees: Jackson, Stewart. Linesmen:
Henderson, Wheler.
INDIVIDUAL PLAYER STATISTICS
Toronto Calgary
G A +/- Shots G A +/- Shots
Adams 0 1 even 2 Charron 0 0 -2 0
Antropov 0 2 +2 0 Cowan 0 0 -1 3
B Berard 0 0 -1 0 D Shannon 0 0 +1 2
Cross 0 0 even 0 Dollas 0 0 -2 1
Di Yushkevich 0 1 +4 4 Housley 0 0 -2 2
Domi 1 0 even 2 Iginla 0 0 -1 7
Healy 0 1 -- 0 J Shantz 0 0 even 0
Hoglund 1 1 +1 2 Johansson 0 0 even 2
Kaberle 0 2 +4 1 M Bureau 0 2 -1 0
Korolev 0 0 even 0 M St Louis 0 1 -1 0
Markov 0 0 even 0 Morris 1 0 +1 2
Mcallister 0 0 -1 0 Nazarov 0 0 -1 1
Mccauley 0 0 even 0 Regehr 0 0 -2 1
Perreault 1 1 +2 1 Roche 0 0 -1 1
S Berezin 1 0 +2 2 Savard 0 0 -1 6
Sundin 1 1 +1 3 V Bure 0 0 even 1
Thomas 1 0 +1 3 Wiemer 1 1 -1 2
Tucker 0 0 even 0 Wilm 0 0 -1 1
Valk 0 1 even 0
Diduck Healthy Corbet Foot Injury
Khristich Groin Lindsay Hand
Clark Healthy Scoville Healthy
Karpovtsev Foot Injury
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