First day of December and the #Leafs are 4th in the East. I would have been laughed at and mocked beyond belief if I had suggested such a thing. I predicted them to end 6th in the East at the end of the season and everyone took it as a big joke. Well who's laughing now?
Oh, let's also not forget, our starting goalie only played 6 games before Gionta took his head off. We've played 19 games with our 2nd and 3rd string goalies. In addition to Reimer, we've had long injuries to:
Mike Komisarek
Colby Armstrong
Tim Connolly
Matthew Lombardi
Steckel, Grabovski, and MacArthur have all missed games with injuries (and a suspension) as well.
Not only have the Leafs gone 14-9-2 in the first two months of the season, but they've done it heavily undermanned!
Oh, and Kessel and Lupul are #1/2 in league-wide scoring.
Players who are under-performing include Dupuis, Kulemin, Franson, as well as Lombardi while he wasn't injured. Gustavsson started off the season horribly, but his play has improved as of late. Inconsistency is the main reason I can't see him being a starter right now, but he could very well be traded when Reimer gets back. Scrivens has started 6 games, going 2-4, but to his credit has a SV% of .904 (compared to Gus at .898).
Is this team complete? Not yet. Are they a playoff team? Most definitely.
How do we stack up against Last Year's Leafs? We currently have 30pts. We didn't get our 30th point until Dec. 26th last year (and stayed at that point total until Jan 1). We currently have 14 wins. Last season we didn't win our 14th game until Jan. 1st. Exactly one month difference from this season.
There's lots to be thankful for in Leafs nation, and a lot to look forward to. Go Leafs Go.
