A New Beginning

So, October was a fun month, eh?

Everything pointed towards the Leafs being a better team then this before the season began. The defence was supposed to be tougher. The goaltending was supposed to improve. The penalty kill was supposed to be somewhat effective.

With one month done and only one win, the Toronto Maple Leafs have looked worse then the team from last year. Losses to Washington and New York stick out in particular as moments this Leafs team would like to forget. Vesa Toskala was absolutely terrible and has lost his starting job. Mike Komisarek and Francois Beauchemin have had a difficult time fitting in. Finding goals has been difficult.

Looking forward, there is some hope still for this Maple Leafs team to turn things around. The last four games have seen a huge improvement in all aspects of the game. Jonas Gustavsson has been fantastic. The defence has done a better job in front of the net. The powerplay has started to perform at a high level, mostly because of Tomas Kaberle.

The Leafs have recieved points in all of their last four games, but only won the game in Anaheim. They deserved better against Dallas, Buffalo and Montreal.

Despite the terrible start, Toronto is only 7 points back of a playoff spot. With "The Monster" in goal and the addition of Phil Kessel to the line-up, the Leafs will begin the long climb back into contention tomorrow night when the Tampa Bay Lightning come to the Air Canada Centre.

I personally believe Kessel will make a difference for the Leafs. Although some say Marc Savard is the reason Kessel scored 36 goals, the majority of Kessel's goals actual come from his powerful wrist shot. His ability to put a hard, accurate shot on goal from all angles will be a big help to a Leafs team that sometimes fails to even hit the net.

This is a new beginning for the Leafs. Hopefully it is a good one.