ELMONT, N.Y. — Sheldon Keefe warned of an adjustment.
Following a three-game, point-stacking run against bona fide bottom-feeders in Anaheim and San Jose, the head coach of the Toronto Maple Leafs was keenly aware his group would be tested much more stiffly on Long Island, where the captain’s former team is very much fighting for a playoff berth.
“Aggressive team offensively,” Keefe cautioned at Thursday’s morning skate. “They’re going to come to the net hard. Puck is going to go to the net.”
And while the Maple Leafs proved up to the task 5-on-5, rallying from a first-minute 1-0 deficit to build a 3-1 lead of their own, it was their odd-man situational play that failed them in a 4-3 overtime loss that snuffs Toronto’s win streak at four games.
“Special teams were rotten tonight — power play, penalty kill, overtime. That costs you games,” Keefe said, pointedly. “Power play had one chance and did nothing with it. It’s as bad as we’ve looked in any power play. And then penalty kill, it’s in our net before you can even blink to start the game.”
He’s not wrong.
‘Special teams were rotten’: Maple Leafs’ Keefe doesn’t hold back criticism after loss
The game’s first shot on net bounced off the inside of a well-screened Martin Jones‘s blocker and landed on the tape of New York’s Kyle Palmieri, who deposited the game’s second shot into the net at the 40-second mark.
“It was a difficult night, for sure,” Jones said. “Just dealing with traffic, bodies and sticks in front.”
Unrattled, the Leafs settled into the game’s flow and scored three unanswered even-strength markers, each one prettier than the next: a Bobby McMann one-timer teed up by a nifty no-look Noah Gregor pass, plus two more in-tight strikes by Rocket leader Auston Matthews, who is now up to 33 goals on the campaign.
Five-on-five, the Leafs outscored the Islanders 3-1, outshot them 25-18, and led in high-danger chances 12-6.
No wonder Keefe was peeved when, still leading with seven minutes to go in regulation, defenceman Timothy Liljegren committed a “careless high stick” on Brock Nelson that gave the home side its third power-play opportunity of the contest.
Bo Horvat promptly tied the game, converting a second power-play goal on a smart pass from Noah Dobson after the Leafs failed to clear the zone.
Matthews puts Maple Leafs up two with pair of early second period goals vs. Islanders
“Those are the kind of mistakes that cost you games and cost you points,” Keefe said.
Credit Dobson (four assists) and game-winning goal-scorer Mathew Barzal (four points) for their game-breaking efforts.
Blame the Leafs for not executing nearly well enough on special teams as they did 5-on-5.
Turning points that gifted energy to the more desperate Islanders, who juggled all four of their lines ahead of Toronto’s arrival after dropping four of their past five games.
“A couple times where we gave them that life, and they fed off it, and they fed off the crowd a little bit too,” McMann observed. “They had some big goals and found that momentum and we just weren’t able to crush it near the end there.”
In terms of league-wide ranking, both the Maple Leafs’ power play (sixth at 26.7 per cent) and their PK (24th at 76.8 per cent) have taken a step back from where they rated in 2022-23.
Maple Leafs lose their win streak but turn in quality performance vs. Islanders
“Not doing a good enough job on the kill,” Mitch Marner lamented. “S—– bounces, obviously. We gotta get our clears when we got ’em. A couple times we’d just miss the lane by half an inch, half a millimetre, and it ends up in the back of our net.”
Small margins, big differences.
Fox’s Fast Five
• The relentless booing of John Tavares on Long Island continues, to the shock of no one. Only time he received cheers Thursday? When a linesman tossed him from the faceoff dot.
“J.T.’s my buddy. He’s a great captain. But these fans aren’t backing off,” ex-Leaf Matt Martin told Real Kyper & Bourne. “They’re passionate. They care. They don’t like the way it ended. There’s not telling them otherwise.
“We love our fans the way they are. Myself personally, I don’t hold anything against J.T. personally for going home to play. That’s his decision. But, yeah, our fans aren’t going to let up — and that’s the beauty of it.”
• All-star voting ended Thursday at midnight. The fans’ choices to play in the Toronto showcase will be revealed Saturday. Keefe said he would be surprised if more Leafs don’t join Auston Matthews at the event.
William Nylander, who leads all candidates at last check, is a slam dunk, but a deserving dark horse is Morgan Rielly — who has never been invited.
“He should’ve been there already,” Tavares says, “so I think it’s long overdue. And no better way than for his first one to be in Toronto, especially what he’s given to this city and this organization and the level that he’s playing at and just how much we rely on him. One of the most unselfish players, teammates, that I’ve had in my time in the league and the game, so would be great to see him get that recognition.”
• Conor Timmins hasn’t played a hockey game since Dec. 21. William Lagesson hasn’t played since Dec. 27. As Toronto finds its stride defensively with three consistent pairs, those players’ healthy scratches will continue.
“For the time being, while we’re healthy, we don’t see a reason to change,” Keefe says.
• The Islanders have developed a fine depth forward in 22-year-old Simon Holmström.
The 2019 first-rounder is already up to 11 goals in his first full NHL season despite skating just a shade over 13 minutes per night and starting 64 per cent of his shifts in the D-zone.
Moreover, Holmstrom leads all NHLers with five shorthanded goals and six shorthanded points.
• His Sudbury special flapping out the back and both earholes of his helmet, Tyler Bertuzzi simply continues to be a dog on the forecheck. A fine complement for Tavares and Nylander.
“Yeah, he’s just been all over it. I just find the puck kinda stays glued to him on the forecheck. When he has it roaming around in the O-zone, he’s really good at protecting it. And if somebody thinks they stole it, he just gets it back. And he’s just really good at shielding and coming out of it with the puck in his hands,” Matthews says.
“He’s been playing really good for us over the last couple weeks, and he just continues to get better.”
SUDBURY, Ont. – The Pittsburgh Penguins went “old school” on Sunday, getting three goals from Evgeni Malkin and two from Sidney Crosby to defeat the Ottawa Senators 5-2 in an NHL pre-season contest at Sudbury Community Arena.
The Senators had built a 2-1 first-period lead on goals from Nick Cousins and Tim Stutzle, but the Penguins’ veterans rallied to take a 3-2 lead into the third period, then added two more in the final frame despite being badly outshot 30-19.
Defenceman Kris Letang chipped in with two assists for the Penguins, who tallied twice on the power play. Malkin also had an assist for a four-point game.
Starting netminder Tristan Jarry stopped 24 of 26 shots for the Penguins before being replaced by Filip Larsson who made four saves.
Anton Forsberg played the entire game in net for the Senators, stopping 14 of 18 shots.
UP NEXT
Penguins: Visit the Detroit Red Wings on Monday.
Senators: Visit the Montreal Canadiens on Tuesday.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 29, 2024.
ROGERS, Ark. (AP) — Jasmine Suwannapura made a 12-foot eagle putt on the second hole of a playoff with Lucy Li to win the Walmart NW Arkansas Championship on Sunday.
Suwannapura — playing in the group behind Li — also eagled the par-5 18th in regulation to force the playoff at Pinnacle Country Club. They each birdied the 18th on the first extra hole.
Suwannapura shot a career-best 10-under 61, playing the back nine in 7-under 28, to match Li at 17-under 196. Tied for 25th entering the day, Li shot a tournament-record and career-best 60, making her third eagle of the round on 18.
“Lucy was not the easy player to play in a playoff with, so I’m really glad to play and stay calm and stay within myself, play my game,” said Suwannapura, who jumped into husband-caddie Michael Thomas’ arms after the winning putt. “Today happened, so I’m very happy.”
Suwannapura won her third LPGA Tour title, playing the final 22 holes without a bogey. The 31-year-old Thai player also won the 2018 Marathon Classic and teamed with Cydney Clanton to take the 2019 Dow Great Lakes Bay Invitational.
“It’s been a long time, and there is a time that I think I probably not going to win again,” Suwannapura said. “But today everything just fall in the right place, right time. And we did it with my husband is even more special.”
Li, the 21-year-old American who played in the 2014 U.S. Women’s Open at age 11, missed a chance for her first LPGA Tour victory.
“I had honestly no clue that this was going to happen,” Li said. “I did not think I was in it at all. I mean, after two three-putts in the first four holes I was just like, ‘I don’t know.′ And then some magic came and I shot 60. Even though I didn’t win, just this is the greatest thing.”
Sei Young Kim was a stroke back after a 63. She made a 20-footer for eagle on 18.
Savannah Grewal of Mississauga, Ont., was the top Canadian, finishing tied for 44th at 6 under. Maude-Aimee Leblanc of Sherbrooke, Que., finished tied for 58th at 5 under.
Mao Saigo (65) and Arpichaya Yubol (66) tied for fourth at 14 under, and second-round leader Ashleigh Buhai (69) was sixth at 13 under.
University of Arkansas sophomore Maria Marin topped the Razorbacks contingent in the field, closing with a 69 to tie for 17th at 10 under in her first tour start.
BOSTON (AP) — The Boston Red Sox honored longtime radio voice Joe Castiglione, who called his final game Sunday, with an on-field pregame ceremony.
The 77-year-old Castiglione, who was honored by the Baseball Hall of Fame this summer with the Ford C. Frick Award, has been the team’s lead radio voice since 1983.
During the ceremony, the team played highlights of his calls over videos of the American League championship team in 1986, and Boston’s World Series title teams in 2004, ’07, ’13 and ’18 on the center-field scoreboard.
Members of those teams came onto the field during the ceremony. Hall of Famer Jim Rice highlighted the ’86 group and Hall of Famer Pedro Martinez was one of the ’04 former players.
Castiglione referred to his call ending the ’04 championship that broke an 86-year title drought, when he thanked the fans. It came on a ground ball back to pitcher Keith Foulke, who was also there to represent that team.
“I will miss being your eyes and ears,” he said. “For 42 years, all I can say is: Can you believe it!”
Asked how he felt making the call of his final out — a liner to center by Tampa Bay’s Richie Palacios that ended a 3-1 victory by the Red Sox, Castiglione said: “I was sort of numb. It sort of felt like the ninth inning in St. Louis in ‘04. … It still really hasn’t set in, probably won’t until next spring.”
Before the top of the eighth, the team ran a montage of his calls over highlights shown on the center-field scoreboard. When it was over, the entire Red Sox dugout emptied, with players, coaches and manager Alex Cora stepping onto the field, looking up and applauding toward him in the booth behind home plate.
“I had some moments, especially when Alex brought the players out,” Castiglione said.
Jackie Bradley, the 2018 ALCS MVP, caught a ceremonial first pitch from Castiglione.
“Forty-two years is a long, long time for someone to be working every single day to go through the struggles and the successes, the travel and the lifestyle, and always have a smile,” Martinez said. “Those are the kind of people that deserve all the respect that we are giving him today.”
Boston Mayor Michelle Wu handed him a proclamation declaring Sept. 29, 2024, as “Joe Castiglione Day” in Boston. Team President Sam Kennedy presented him with letters from Fenway Park’s infamous Green Monster that read: “CASTIG” in white with a green background color of the Monster.
Cora, a member of the ’07 team, was also on the field and Chief Baseball Officer Craig Breslow, representing the ’13 squad, was on the field as well.
Castiglione signed off like he does each season, reading part of A. Bartlett Giamatti’s “The Green Fields of the Mind.”
“I did right away, right after the game ended,” he said.
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This story has been corrected to show that Castiglione was honored with an award by the Hall of Fame, not inducted.
