GAME DAY PREVIEWS
Updated: Saturday October 30, 1999 7:13PM EST
Saturday October 30, 1999 Calgary at Toronto 7pm
Owners of a league-best 17 points, the Toronto Maple Leafs look to stretch their winning streak to four games and their unbeaten streak to five tonight against the Calgary Flames. After Curtis Joseph blanked the Dallas Stars, 4-0, on Monday backup Glenn Healy stopped 16 shots in a 4-0 victory over Atlanta on Wednesday. The Maple Leafs have not allowed a goal in 159 minutes, 36 seconds.
Toronto has outscored opponents, 11-2, during a three-game winning streak and is unbeaten in its last four contests. The Leafs have lost only once in their last seven games (5-1-1) and are tied with San Jose for the league-lead in wins.
The fast start by Toronto is made even more impressive because star center Mats Sundin has missed the last eight games with a fractured ankle. Right wing Dmitri Khristich has three goals and one assist in his first four games with the team.
The Leafs have won eight straight meetings with Calgary, which last won in this series February 15, 1997.
The Flames continued their success in overtime with a 4-3 victory at Ottawa on Wednesday. They are 3-0-2 under the NHL's new 4-on-4 overtime format, but 0-7 in regulation.
This is the final stop on a six-game road trip for the Flames, who have yet to win at home (0-3-2).
Right wing Valeri Bure had a goal and three assists on Wednesday and leads Calgary with nine goals and 14 points.
Wednesday October 27, 1999 Atlanta at Toronto 7:30pm
The Toronto Maple seek their third consecutive win tonight when they host the expansion Atlanta Thrashers. Goaltender Curtis Joseph stopped 17 shots as Toronto blanked the defending Stanley Cup Champion Dallas Stars, 4-0, on Monday.
Just like last season, the Leafs offense has been exlposive, even without injured captain Mats Sundin. Toronto is tied for second in the league with 32 goals, with only San Jose tallying more (37).
The offense has become even more dangerous now that Dmitri Khristich is in the fold. The forward, acquired from Boston last week, recorded a goal and an assist in the first game with his new team.
The Maple Leafs are 4-1-1 over their last six games and lead the league with 15 points. Sundin is expected to miss another four weeks with a broken ankle.
The Thrashers are coming off their first home win of the season, 2-1 over the Calgary Flames on Tuesday, which snapped a three-game winless streak.
Atlanta's 18 goals this season are the second-worst in the league, three ahead of the New York Islanders.
Andrew Brunette and Ray Ferraro have been the team's only consistent scorers. Brunette has five goals and five assists during a six-game points streak while Ferraro is riding a four-game streak, collecting a goal and five assists.
Goaltender Damian Rhodes has the team's only wins this season and has allowed 16 goals in his six starts. Backup Norm Maracle has been ineffective, recording an 0-2-0 record with a 5.04 goals-agaisnt average.
Monday October 25, 1999 Dallas at Toronto 7:30pm
A pair of teams looking to put together their second three-game winning streaks of the season meet tonight at the Air Canada Centre as the Dallas Stars battle the Toronto Maple Leafs.Sergei Zubov scored 51 seconds into overtime to lift the Stars to a 2-1 victory over New Jersey on Friday for their second consecutive win.
Dallas and Toronto both opened this season with three straight wins.
Injuries have depleted the Stars roster of late. Center Joe Nieuwendyk (back), right wing Jere Lehtinen (ankle) and defensemen Daryl Sydor (groin), Shawn Chambers (knee) and Richard Matvichuk (knee) all were scratched on Saturday. Nieuwendyk may be back in the lineup tonight.
The injuries have given young forwards Blake Sloan and Warren Luhning an opportunity to display their skills. Each had strong games on Friday, creating seveal scoring chances while playing on a line with veteran center Guy Carbonneau.
Center Mike Modano has been one of Dallas' consistent performers recently, with four goals and five points during a four-game points streak.
Stars goaltender Ed Belfour is off to an impressive start. He is 5-2-1, allowing just 11 goals in his last seven games.
Sergei Berezin scored on an end-to-end rush with 88 seconds left in the second period as Toronto edged Montreal, 3-2, on Saturday. Berezin is on a three-game points streak in which he has two goals and an assist.
Tied for first with Ottawa in the Northeast Division, the Leafs are 3-1-1 in their last five games while playing without injured captain Mats Sundin.
The Leafs will be without defenseman Bryan Berard, who will be serving the last of his two-game suspension for his hit on St. Louis' Geoff Courtnall last week.
The teams split two meetings last season with each winning on the road.
Saturday October 23, 1999 Montreal at Toronto 7pm
One of the league's most storied rivalries takes place tonight at the Air Canada Centre as the Toronto Maple Leafs host the struggling Montreal Canadiens.
Despite going without a win in their last two games (0-1-1), the Maple Leafs enter tonight tied for first in the Northeast Division with the Ottawa Senators.
The Leafs are coming off a disappointing 3-3 tie with the Carolina Hurricanes on Wednesday as they squandered a two-goal lead.
Center Yanic Perreault has picked up the slack in the absence of captain Mats Sundin. Perreault has three goals and two assists in five games since Sundin went down with a fractured ankle.
Toronto could have forward Dmitri Khristich in the lineup tonight. Khristich, the Boston Bruins' second-leading scorer last season, signed with the Maple Leafs on Thursday after being dumped by Boston for financial reasons over the summer.
The Canadiens are coming off their second straight loss on Wednedsay, a 2-1 setback to the Colorado Avalanche, and are currently third in the Northeast Divison with six points.
Montreal's offense begins and ends with right wing Brian Savage. After scoring just 16 times last season, Savage leads the league with nine and has tallied at least one goal in each of his last four games. He has accounted for half of the Habs' goals this season.
Goaltender Jose Theodore played well in his first start in place of the injured Jeff Hackett on Wednesday, stopping 17 of 19 shots. He will be tested tonight by a team that scored a league-leading 268 goals last season.
The Leafs posted a 4-1 win at Monteal in the season opener for both teams on October 2.
Wednesday October 20, 1999 Carolina at Toronto 7:30pm
The Carolina Hurricanes continue their season-opening nine-game road trip tonight when they battle the Toronto Maple Leafs.
The Hurricanes are coming off a 4-1 win over Vancouver on Friday. Jeff O'Neill scored twice and Sami Kapanen and Bates Battaglia each added a goal and one assist to help Carolina stretch its unbeaten streak to three games (1-0-2).
Center Ron Francis and defenseman Paul Coffey are tied for sixth and eighth, respectively, on the NHL's all-time points list. Francis is tied with former teammate Mario Lemieux with 1,494 points and is seven assists shy of Gordie Howe for fifth on that all-time list.
The line of Battaglia, Francis and Kapanen has been red hot since the start of the season, combining for nine goals and 24 points over the first six games.
Carolina visits Buffalo and Pittsburgh before finally opening its new home, the Raleigh Entertainment and Sports Arena, against New Jersey on October 29.
Toronto is currently in first place in the Northeast Divison with 10 points following a 4-2 loss to the St. Louis Blues on Saturday.
Jonas Hoglund and Yanic Perreault have done a nice job picking up the slack for injured captain Mats Sundin. Both have seven points on the season with Hoglund collecting a team-best six goals.
Like last season, Curtis Joseph is providing stellar play in net for the Leafs. He is 4-1-1 with a 1.60 goals-against average and a .927 save percentage.
Carolina went 2-1-1 against Toronto last season and leads the all-time series, 30-16-8.
Saturday October 16, 1999 Toronto at St. Louis 7pm
Jonas Hoglund looks to extend his goal-scoring streak to five games tonight when the Toronto Maple Leafs visit the St. Louis Blues, who open a four-game homestand.Hoglund has four goals and five assists over his last four contests, including the first tally in Friday's 2-1 triumph over Chicago. He is tied with injured teammate Mats Sundin for the team lead with seven points.
The Leafs, who are riding a two-game winning streak, went 1-for-5 on the power play and have an extra-man goal in the last three contests.
Pierre Turgeon notched his third goal of the season Wednesday and Michal Handzus also scored his third, but their teammates could not provide any other offense in a 4-2 loss to Detroit. The loss snapped the Blues' two-game winning streak.
Handzus leads the Blues with five points.
St. Louis is 0-2 at home for the first time since 1977 and never dropped its first three home contests.
Toronto went 2-0-1 against St. Louis last season and won both contests at the Kiel Center.
Friday October 15, 1999 Toronto at Chicago 8:30pm
The Chicago Blackhawks try to post their first win of the season tonight when they cap a three-game homestand against the Toronto Maple Leafs.
Yanic Perreault snapped a tie with a power-play goal 14:23 into the third period as the Maple Leafs defeated the Florida Panthers, 3-2, on Wednesday.
Toronto has split two games since losing star center Mats Sundin for four to six weeks with a non-displaced fracture of his right ankle.
Free-agent acquisition Jonas Hoglund has helped pick up the slack with a goal in each of his last four games. Sundin leads the team with seven points and Hoglund and Perreault are tied with six apiece.
The Blackhawks have tied their last two games in heartbreaking fashion. They allowed Phoenix to score twice in the final six minutes of regulation for a 3-3 draw on October 8. Two nights later, Nashville scored with 1:32 remaining for another 3-3 deadlock.
Tony Amonte and Alexei Zhamnov have both started the season on a tear for Chicago. Amonte has a goal and six assists in four games while Zhamnov has three goals and three assists.
The 0-2-2 start is Chicago's worst since opening the 1997-98 season with seven losses.
The Maple Leafs took two of three meetings from the Blackhawks last season and are 6-2-1 over the last nine meetings between the teams.
Wednesday October 13, 1999 Florida at Toronto 7:30pm
The unbeaten Florida Panthers likely will be without two key contributors tonight against the Toronto Maple Leafs.
The Panthers edged the Montreal Canadiens, 2-1, on Tuesday but the win may prove costly. Superstar right wing Pavel Bure left midway through the third period with a strained groin and is listed as day-to-day.
Florida captain Scott Mellanby sustained a concussion at the end of the game when he fell awkwardly into the boards. He spent Tuesday night in Montreal General Hospital. Mellanby is the franchise's all-time leader in games, goals, assists and points.
The 3-0-1 start is the Panthers' best since opening the 1996-97 season with a 12-game unbeaten streak (8-0-4). Bure leads Florida with six points and center Ray Whitney is second with five.
After sitting out the season opener in favor of Sean Burke, Trevor Kidd has allowed just five goals for a 2-0-1 mark in the last three games.
Toronto got off to a flying start this season, winning its first three games by a combined 10-2 score but fell at Ottawa, 4-3, on Saturday and was defeated at home by Nashville, 4-2, on Monday. The Leafs only had one three-game losing streak last season.
The Leafs will be without All-Star center Mats Sundin for six weeks after he suffered a non-displaced fracture of his right ankle Saturday. He leads Toronto with seven points in four games.
The Maple Leafs went 2-1-1 against the Panthers last season, winning the two home games by a combined 13-2. Toronto leads the all-time series, 7-3-3.
Monday October 11, 1999 Nashville at Toronto 7:30pm
The Toronto Maple Leafs look to begin a new winning streak tonight when they battle the winless Nashville Predators. Toronto opened the season with three wins, but suffered its first defeat Saturday with a 4-3 setback to Ottawa. Jonas Hoglund scored for the third time in four games and is tied with Mats Sundin for the team lead with three goals.
Sundin and Steve Thomas each have a point in all four games for the Maple Leafs, who trail the Ottawa Senators by two points for first place in the Northeast Division.
Sergei Krivokrasov scored against his former team with 1:32 remaining as Nashville rallied for a 3-3 tie with Chicago on Sunday. The Predators have just five goals this season, tied with Boston and Calgary for second-worst in the league.
Nashville is 0-for-12 on the power play this season and no player has more than two points.
These teams battled to a 2-2 tie at Maple Leaf Gardens on October 19 of last season in their first-ever matchup.
Saturday October 9, 1999 Toronto at Ottawa 7pm
Two teams off to tremendous starts battle each other tonight as the Ottawa Senators host the Toronto Maple Leafs.
The Senators improved to 3-0 this season with a 4-3 victory over the Boston Bruins on Thursday as Daniel Alfredsson had two goals and Marina Hossa and Radek Bonk each chipped in a goal and an assist.
Ron Tugnutt made his first appearance of the season when he relieved an ineffective Patrick Lalime after the first period and stopped all 14 shots for the victory. Tugnutt was bothered all preseason with a knee injury.
Bonk and Hossa have each picked up the slack left by holdout Alexei Yashin. Bonk leads the team with five points while Hossa has three goals.
The Maple Leafs also have three wins in as many games after a 2-1 victory over the Colorado Avalanche. Mats Sundin had the game-winner and has scored in all three games. He leads the team with six points.
Goaltender Curtis Joseph continues to give Toronto solid play between the pipes. Joseph, who recorded 35 wins last season, has only allowed two goals in his three starts, while stopping 73 shots.
Toronto won three of the five meetings between the clubs last season, including a 4-2 win on April 7 that saw center Yanic Perraeult score four goals.
Wednesday October 6, 1999 Colorado at Toronto 7:30pm
A couple of teams trying to keep their perfect records intact meet at the Air Canada Centre tonight as the Colorado Avalanche face off against the Toronto Maple Leafs.
Joe Sakic batted in a waist-high centering pass with 5:15 remaining to give the Avalanche a 3-2 win over the Nashville Predators in their season opener on Tuesday.
Patrick Roy, who missed most of the preseason with a hip injury, turned aside 29 shots for his 413th career victory. He is within 10 wins of Tony Esposito for third place on the all-time list.
Colorado, which will be playing the second of five straight road games tonight, was without forwards Peter Forseberg and Adam Deadmarsh on Tuesday. Forsberg is out up to two months after undergoing offseason shoulder surgery and Deadmarsh has a hip injury.
Toronto began its season with a 4-1 victory in Montreal on Saturday and blanked the Boston Bruins, 4-0, on Monday. The Leafs opened last season with three straight wins.
Curtis Joseph posted his 23rd career shutout against Boston and has stopped 47 of 48 shots for a .979 save percentage.
Captain Mats Sundin is off to a flying start, recording two goals and two assists in the first two games.
The Maple Leafs shut out the Avalanche at Denver, 3-0, in their only meeting last season, but Colorado is 3-1-1 in the last five games.
Monday October 4, 1999 Boston at Toronto 7:30pm
Still without No. 1 goaltender Byron Dafoe, the Boston Bruins visit the Toronto Maple Leafs tonight in search of their first win.
The Bruins opened the season with a 3-1 loss to Carolina on Saturday.
Dafoe, a restricted free agent, has asked the Bruins to trade him and reportedly has put his house up for sale during a contract dispute. He helped the team finish sixth in the Eastern Conference at 39-30-13 last year and advance to the second round of the playoffs.
Rob Tallas started Saturday and stopped 17 of 20 shots in the loss to the Hurricanes.
The Maple Leafs began their season with a 4-1 victory at Montreal on Saturday as Curtis Joseph made 25 saves.
The highest-scoring team in the league last season, Toronto got goals from Mats Sundin, Jonas Hoglund, Tomas Kaberle and Sergei Berezin.
The Leafs begin their first full season at the Air Canada Centre, where they compiled a 7-4-3 record in the regular season last year.
The Bruins went 3-1-1 against the Leafs last season, including a 1-1-1 mark in Toronto.
Saturday October 2, 1999 Toronto at Montreal 7pm
The league's best offense and one of its
worst will be on display tonight at the Molson Centre as the
Toronto Maple Leafs and the undermanned Montreal Canadiens face
off in the season opener for both teams.
The Maple Leafs scored a league-high 268 goals last season and
used their high-powered attack to finish second in the Northeast
Division, six points behind Ottawa. Toronto defeated
Philadelphia and Pittsburgh in the playoffs before losing to
Buffalo in six games in the Eastern Conference finals.
There are no new faces for the Leafs this season expected to
make a major impact. They did sign goaltender Jimmy Waite to
back up Curtis Joseph, who was everything the Leafs hoped he
would be when they shelled out $24 million over four years to
sign him.
Captain Mats Sundin tied for 11th in scoring last year with 83
points and veteran Steve Thomas was rejuvenated with 28 goals.
Left wing Sergei Berezin led the club with 37 goals and bigger
things are expected from youngsters Steve Sullivan and Alyn
McCauley this year.
Montreal scored a lowly 184 goals last season, ranking 26th
among 27 NHL teams and did not make the playoffs, something that
did not go over well in hockey-mad Quebec. For the first time
since 1941, the Canadiens did not have a 20-goal scorer.
Veteran center Trevor Linden was acquired from the New York
Islanders in the offseason and the Candiens hope he can help
improve their dismal offense. But he has not reached the
30-goal mark since 1995-96.
Goaltender Jeff Hackett is coming off the best season of his
career. Playing for a pair of non-playoff teams in Chicago and
Montreal, he was a combined 26-26-10 with a 2.49 goals-against
average.
To make matters worse, Montreal will be missing a handful of
injured regulars tonight, including in Vladimir Malakhov and Jim
Cummins.
The Canadiens won three of five games against the Leafs last
season.
Montreal is 44-23-15 in season openers while Toronto is
30-28-14.