Toronto Maple Leafs: On Kadri's Goal, Leafs Were Offsides

Just saw this video, Nazem Kadri scored his first goal of the season last night against the Montreal Canadiens, but it should have never counted. If you watch the video, at the 1:45 mark you will see that Kadri's linemate Brandon Kozum was offsides. Oh well, it was a bang, bang play and the linesmen are human.

Are the Wild a soft team?

English: Kadri at the 2010 world juniors (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

From Michael Russo's blog today. Russo asked Yeo about the Wild being called a quote-unquote “soft” team.

“First off, obviously who’s the first [player] to jump on top of him [Kadri]?” Yeo said. “[Ryan] Suter. So to say that we didn’t do anything, that’s false actually. And if you want to get into it, it’s this simple really: They’ve got [Colton] Orr on the bench, they’ve got [Fraser] McLaren (he actually didn’t play, so I’m not positive whom Yeo meant), they’ve got [Mark Fraser]. They’ve got one after another. So if we go after Kadri, well, are they going to go after Konopka? No. They’re going to go after one of our top guys. They’ve got more down the line where they can keep playing that game.

“So where we have to be better is on the power play. Teams have to be afraid to pull that crap on us [because] they’re fearful of our power play. But at the same time, what I like is that our guys continued to play the game. I’ll take exception with anybody that tries to call us soft because that’s not true. Where it’d be soft is if they tried to have a physical impact on us. And as far as I’m concerned, we raised our game. And that to me is tough[ness]. It’s a different type of tough.

I think there's a good point here. Does Ryan Suter beat the crap out of Nazem Kadri and negate the power play or do the Minnesota Wild wait and pick a time to challenge Kadri later in the game. I say take the power play. The best way to make the Leafs pay is on the power play in that situation. Also, the Toronto Maple Leafs are full of cement heads and the Wild only have Zenon Konopka and Clayton Stoner, there's not a lot of other fighters on the Wild. That's not their game. I don't think their a soft team either.

Maple Leafs' Kadri suspended three games for Bush League hit (Video)

First, I was out of town and away from the computer, but this hit did get my ire. I don't like this hit one bit, it's a dangerous hit and it's unneeded. In my opinion, the headline should read, Maple Leafs' forward Kadri suspended five games for bush league hits. Second, why isn't there any supplemental discipline for the hit on Minnesota Wild forward Mikael Granlund? That's a dirty hit in my opinion as well. I don't know, maybe I am not looking at this objectively because I am Wild fan? Thoughts on this?

But I digress.

Nazem Kadri's hit on Niklas Backstrom is a chicken wing elbow. Anytime a player extends the elbow like this, it's intentional. I don't care what the players says at his hearing. The NHL has suspended Nazem Kadri three-games for his elbow on Backstrom.  Also, watch the suspension video, it's utter crap. I would use another word, but it's now a word that is used on this blog.

Toronto Maple Leafs: Sick Nazem Kadri goal

After signing a nice new two-year contract for a reported $5.8 million, Nazem Kadri took to the ice to show off his offensive skills. Nice, slick goal. Looks like the Flyers still have problems in net as well.

Holzer Lays A Huge Hit McNabb

Since there isn't any NHL hockey, I thought I would put up this hit by the Toronto Marlies defenseman Korbinian Holzer lays the wood to Rochester American's defenseman Brayden McNabb during the third period of Saturday's game.

Matt Frattin's shootout goal against the Jets.

Former Fighting Sioux forward Matt Frattin scored on one of his patented snapshots in third round of the shootout to give the Toronto Maple Leafs a 4-3 win shootout win over the visiting Winnipeg Jets. Frattin played 13:58 during tonight's game. Leafs forward Nazem Kadri who just recently returned from MCL injury was actually sent to the Toronto Marlies in stead of Matt Frattin.

Matt Frattin talks about making the Leafs out of training camp...

Goon's World would like to congratulate Matt Frattin for making the Toronto Maple Leafs opening day roster out of training camp. Toronto head coach Ron Wilson said this past week that former Fighting Sioux forward Matt Frattin is NHL ready .

Related articles

• Burke on Frattin - "He's going to get a good look in camp." (mvn.com)
• Frattin ready to break out? (mvn.com)
• Frattin talks about playing college hockey... (mvn.com)
• Hockey is in the air... (mvn.com)
• Toronto Maple Leafs' Matt Frattin and Nazem Kadri In for a Dogfight (bleacherreport.com)

Frattin ready to break out?

Every time I read the Matt Frattin story it makes me stop and think; what a story, here was a kid that made a few knuckle headed mistakes but he turned his life around and made it right. Like many of the college hockey players that had gotten into trouble in the past; Matt Frattin could have left school and signed a professional hockey contract, instead Frattin chose to go back home get his priorities straight and refocus and rejoin his teammates at the half way point of the 2009-2010 season. Now it appears that Matt is on the cusp to make his mark in professional hockey. Like coach Hakstol said last year, Matt took the hard road to get back to UND, the story was well documented, he worked a few jobs that were less than glamorous and came back to UND like a man that was possessed.

Kevin McGran; Toronto Star --- No one is under the microscope at this four-team tournament more so than Frattin — the only player on the Leaf rookie squad to have played a game in the NHL, and the only one singled out by GM Brian Burke as being ready to challenge for a spot.

That might sound like pressure to some. Not to Frattin.

“It’s a sign that things I’ve been doing last year and through the summer, that (Burke) thinks I’ve been doing the right things,” said Frattin, “and that I can be taking that spot after training camp if I keep doing the right things.”

Frattin’s been doing the right things for some time, after a summer of doing many things wrong.

Frattin’s well-told story of drinking-related hijinks — which got him arrested in the summer of 2009 and suspended from his college program — is far behind him now, but follows him everywhere.

Related articles

• Leafs rookie has learned from his mistakes (canada.com)
• Brian Burke says Maple Leafs lines are virtually all set heading into camp (prohockeytalk.nbcsports.com)
• Six to watch at Leaf rookie camp (thestar.com)
• Frattin talks about playing college hockey... (mvn.com)