best game I've watched in a long time...

I have not had as much fun watching a Leafs game in a long time as I did last night's win over the Rangers at the ACC. After being down 2-0 going into the third period, the Leafs scored 5 goals in the span of 5:21 to win 5-2. Steve Valliquette, the Rangers goalie, had an inexplicable meltdown after the first goal was scored by John Mitchell (Mitchell's first NHL goal, a gorgeous wrist shot and his first of two in this 5-minute span) and this sparked goals by Jason Blake, Pavel Kubina, another by Mitchell, and Dominic Moore. The Leafs were dominating the third frame up to this point and when Mitchell scored, the ACC started to come to life. Blake's goal got them pretty fired up, and with Kubina's goal, they achieved liftoff. It was a brilliant display of character after making a lot of mistakes in the first two periods and being outplayed by the Rangers--Toskala really kept the Leafs in the game and was the big reason that the comeback was even possible. It could just as easily have been a four or five goal lead for New York.

Like Don Cherry, I have been hugely impressed with John Mitchell this season and last night's display just added to that. He skates well, hits well, is good with the puck, and does not make many mistakes--why the heck was he in the AHL last year??? I grow more and more impressed with Wilson and Fletcher's choices for the Leafs and their future direction when I see players like John Mitchell. As I've said in previous posts, this Leafs team is fun to watch and I enjoy their heart and spirit far more than the teams of the past few years. They have been a very pleasant surprise thus far...

Tonight the Leafs are in Carolina to face the Hurricanes--they play again on Tuesday in Toronto.