TORONTO – It took whole pile of stops for the Maple Leafs to withstand an all-out Blackhawks rally and win their third in a row. Forty-five saves in all for James Reimer on a Saturday night in Toronto, including each and every one of the 26 peppered on goal during Chicago’s furious third period push – a tilted 20 minutes that saw the Leafs held to just seven shots and none in the final seven minutes. “He was first star, simple as that,” head coach, Randy Carlyle, said of the 26-year-old after the game. “The way he played and just the number of saves that he made in the third period [and] quality saves. A lot of times you’ll get a lot of stuff from the outside, but they had some point-blank chances and he stood tall to the task that’s for sure.” Peter Holland scored his first of the year just two minutes into that final frame – the eventual game-winner – and from there the floodgates opened and the Blackhawks simply poured it on. They pumped shot after shot at Reimer, but were continually turned aside. There was one particular two-minute power-play barrage – just after Holland made it 3-2 – that saw five shots flung at the Leafs goal, an improbable glove stop on Brent Seabrook among those kept out. “I think it was pretty self-explanatory,” Dion Phaneuf said of Reimer’s performance afterward. “He made not only big saves, but at key times and it’s about momentum swings and I thought that he really swung the momentum in our favour many times.” Reimer was making his first start in more than two weeks and if there was some rust early it quickly wore off as the evening rolled along. “The more pucks you see and stop the better you feel,” said Reimer, who holds a .929 save percentage in five games this season. He couldn’t quite remember Chicago’s first goal – both came on the power-play – unable to see the second one, a point shot from Seabrook with Andrew Shaw camped in front. From there nothing made it through. Reimer made one key left pad stop on Patrick Kane with less than four minutes left and then a handful more as the Blackhawks kept pressuring until the final buzzer. “He battles when there are second opportunities and sometimes third ones,” Phaneuf said. “He was a difference-maker for us tonight and I can’t say enough good things about the way that he played.” Sputtering out of the gates in October – five losses in the first eight games – the Leafs appear to be turning a corner of sorts, scoring wins over the resource-depleted likes of Buffalo and Columbus before outlasting Chicago by the slimmest of margins on this night. It was arguably their most difficult test so far. “I think for us it’s a good measuring stick,” Stephane Robidas said of the challenge before the game. “It’s one of the better teams in the NHL the past few years and we’ve got to use it as a measuring stick and see where we’re at.” And while they were under complete siege for nearly all of the final 20 minutes, the Leafs actually held tough with the Blackhawks for the opening two periods, especially at even-strength. “We stuck with the game-plan,” Carlyle said. “We weren’t pretty. And our goaltender gave us a chance in the end and that’s all you can really ask of your team.” Five Points 1. 5-on-5 A testament to some recent improvement, Toronto has outscored opponents 9-1 at even-strength during this three-game win streak – the lone goal coming in Columbus on Friday night. Chicago’s dangerous collection was held off the board in such situations Saturday, both of their markers coming on the power-play. Asked what stood out about his team’s play in 5-on-5 situations, Carlyle responded with four words and only four words. “More offensive zone time,” he said. 2. Limiting the Load Dion Phaneuf didn’t have a lot left in the tank by the time March rolled around last spring, the pile of hugely difficult minutes admittedly taking their toll. “I’d be lying to say that it did not wear you down,” Phaneuf said on the first day of training camp. “When you’re playing those big minutes, by the time Game 70 comes around you might be feeling it a little more.” Phaneuf averaged more than 24 minutes before the Olympic break last season and struggled down the stretch, but so far this year that number is down to less over 22 minutes nightly and that’s not by accident. The coaching staff implemented an soft minute count for their captain this season. That threshold would seem lie at 22 minutes. “í think what we’ve tried to do is tried to share minutes more evenly,” Carlyle said. “We felt that there was a threshold that we would try to keep him underneath and some games we have, some games we haven’t.” Phaneuf played more than 24 minutes Saturday for just the third time this season, helping to hold Chicago’s top line off the score-sheet. 3. Balance Saturday was indicative of that newfound balance on defence. None of the six dressed against Chicago played less than 17 minutes and only Phaneuf topped 21 minutes. Leafs Defence Ice-Time DEFENDER TOI VS. CHICAGO Dion Phaneuf 24:41 Roman Polak 20:55 Cody Franson 20:31 Jake Gardiner 19:35 Morgan Rielly 17:21 Stephane Robidas 17:11 4. An Opportunity Maybe the biggest beneficiary in Joffrey Lupul’s absence is 23-year-old Peter Holland. Holland leapt one rung higher in the Leafs lineup with Lupul out, centering a third unit with Leo Komarov and Mike Santorelli. Totaling a season-high of nearly 16 minutes, he scored the eventual game-winner and also took Lupul’s former spot on the team’s second power-play unit. “I think anytime you move up the lineup and you take on a bigger role it’s definitely an opportunity so it was something I was trying to focus on tonight and I thought [Santorelli], Leo and myself did a great job tonight,” he said. Oddly, four of his 11 career goals have come against Chicago. “I’m not really sure [why but] I seem to be a bit of a Blackhawk killer,” he said. Lupul, meanwhile, will miss three weeks with the broken right hand or in the neighbourhood of nine more games – he’s already sat out the past two. 5. Carrick’s debut An odd text popped up on Sam Carrick’s phone from Marlies teammate on Saturday morning, Frazer McLaren. “Congrats buddy,” it read. McLaren had been at the Marlies home rink, the Ricoh Coliseum, and saw that Carrick’s equipment had been removed. Carrick, picked 144th overall in 2010, was confused. Two minutes later the phone sprung to life again, this time with Leafs assistant general manager, Kyle Dubas, on the line. Carrick was being recalled to the big club, Dubas said, and would make his NHL debut against Chicago. “I was pretty excited,” said Carrick before the game. Coming off an increasingly impactful second AHL season – he had nine points in 14 playoff games – the 22-year-old offered a strong impression to Leaf coaches and brass at training camp and was the first Marlie to get the call when Joffrey Lupul broke his hand Friday in Columbus. “What we’ve tried to do is always make a statement that if you go down and play well you’re going to be recognized,” Carlyle said. Stats-Pack 9-1 – Mark by which Toronto has outscored opponents at even-strength in the past three games. 22:09 – Average ice-time for Dion Phaneuf this season. 5-0-0 – Leafs record when scoring first this season. 6-0-0 – Leafs record this season when Phil Kessel records a point. 26-7 – Blackhawks shot advantage in the third period on Saturday. Special Teams Capsule PP: 0-3 Season: 16.% PK: 2-4 Season: 81% Quote of the Night “Enough was enough because we couldn’t continue to go the way we were going.” - Randy Carlyle, on turning things around after a one-sided loss to Boston last week. Up Next The Leafs leave the earliest signs of winter behind, visiting the newly minted Arizona Coyotes on Tuesday. Nate Thompson Jersey .com) - Lloyd Sam struck in stoppage time on Wednesday as Red Bull New York hung on for a crucial 1-0 win over Atlantic Cup rivals D. Dustin Brown Jersey . And all things considered, the first 40 games have offered a little bit of everything from a hockey club that faced many questions in its first year under new management, with a new head coach and with a number of new faces in the lineup. However, with a recent dip in scoring, it seems some of the same old questions persist and several new ones have been raised after a somewhat troubling homestand. http://www.authenticlakingspro.com/Luc-robitaille-kings-jersey/ . Vonn had another scary moment at Saturdays World Cup downhill in Val dIsere, ending up clutching her knee in pain after losing her balance and missing a gate. But she gave a reassuring answer shortly afterward, saying no new damage had been done to the surgically repaired knee, and that her plans for the Sochi Olympics were still intact. Oscar Fantenberg Jersey . Its the second straight year he has decided not to play as he cuts back his schedule. Stricker was replaced in the field by Ryo Ishikawa of Japan. Jeff Carter Jersey . - Novak Djokovic beat John Isner 7-5, 6-7 (2), 6-1 on Saturday to reach the final of the BNP Paribas Open, where hell resume his longtime rivalry with Roger Federer.CLEVELAND -- Johnny Manziel is back at work after a holiday weekend in Las Vegas. And when youre Johnny Football, what happens in Vegas doesnt necessarily stay in Vegas. The Browns celebrated rookie quarterback reported for organized team activities Tuesday following a few days in Vegas, where he kicked off his summer by hanging poolside with New England Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski, attended a UFC fight and was captured on video spraying champagne on patrons in a nightclub. And, according to Manziel, he found time to study his new playbook. Following his first practices with Clevelands veterans last week, Manziel took advantage of a break in the workouts to head to Las Vegas. On Saturday, a photo of him and Gronkowski, surrounded by other partiers, appeared on several social media sites. Later, Manziel posted a photo on his Twitter account of him standing with UFC President Dana White along with a thank-you note. Although this was all done on his free time, and Manziel didnt commit a crime or have any known issues, his actions raised eyebrows in some circles about his commitment to playing in the NFL. He seemed to fire back at any criticism by posting a photo on his Instagram account Monday night of his Browns playbook and iPad with the caption: "Guess its impossible to enjoy the weekend and study?" Manziel, who was selected with the No. 22 overall pick by the Browns after slidingg in the first round, is expected to challenge Brian Hoyer for the starting job.ddddddddddddLast week, first-year Browns coach Mike Pettine said Manziel was having typical problems for a young player. "Its like any other rookie, that hes just inconsistent," Pettine said. "I think a lot of its the mental part of it. Hes more worried about getting the formation right, making sure the motion is correct, and hes got the cadence. Then, hes got to worry about where guys are. Being good mechanically takes a back seat to learning the system first. I think you see over the maturation process, once all that stuff becomes second nature, that hell be a lot more comfortable." Manziel has made a favourable impression with the Browns in his first weeks as a pro. Hes said all the right things during two media availabilities, echoing the teams stance that hes only a backup and will have to earn his starting job. Pettine also said Manziel has shown humility, fitting in nicely with some teammate who may have expected Johnny Football to act differently. "Hes quiet actually," Pettine said. "Hes a good guy to be around. I think the guys in the locker room will be able to tell you that hes a fun guy. But you can tell, when its time to work he works, and hes very serious about this. You can tell hes very competitive." 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