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 With the Philadelphia Flyers brewing another comeback, Hunwick
whipped a slap shot into the back of the net with 7.5 seconds left
in regulation, boosting the hapless Toronto Maple Leafs to a
stunning 3-2 win Tuesday at Wells Fargo Center.
"You need to win to feel good about yourself," Maple Leafs coach
Mike Babcock said. "Suddenly we'll have much more energy tomorrow
than we would have."
It was just three days ago that Toronto lost such a game when the
Boston Bruins handed it another disheartening loss, this one with 47
ticks remaining on the clock.
But for the Maple Leafs (17-20-7), who entered with the NHL's fewest
wins, Tuesday's final-minute thriller was in their favor as they
halted a five-game losing streak. Toronto also received goals from
left winger Joffrey Lupul and defenseman Roman Polak.
"It just shows you how the margin for error is so small," Lupul
said. "We battled right to the end and got rewarded."
The Flyers (20-16-8) had all the momentum in the third period when
defenseman Shayne Gostisbehere went coast to coast off a turnover to
net the game-tying goal 12:59 into the final stanza.
Philadelphia came in with five third-period comeback wins, but its
rally was thwarted as was its six-game point streak.
"It would've been great to get into overtime," Flyers goaltender
Steve Mason (10-11-6) said after stopping 32 shots. "But at the end
of the game there, we got what we deserved for the effort that we
had tonight."
Philadelphia, which has had issues getting up for games against
lower-tier teams, is 8-9-3 against clubs in the bottom half of their
respective conferences.
"The way we came out tonight, we are not a playoff team if we come
out like that," Gostisbehere said. "That's just not good for us. We
have to prepare for everyone no matter who they are."
Maple Leafs goaltender James Reimer (8-7-4) made 31 saves and
finally got some offense. Over the five-game skid, Toronto had been
outscored 19-5.
"It's a lift when anybody scores," Babcock said. "It's been a
drought for us."
The Flyers struck first 11:06 into the opening period when
defenseman Evgeny Medvedev saved their fluttering power play. With
the man advantage ticking down, Medvedev pinpointed a long entry
pass to slashing right winger Matt Read, who backhanded the puck
just between the left goal post and Reimer for a 1-0 lead.
Some hustle and second-chance effort by Polak drew the Maple Leafs
even just over two minutes later. Mason made a save on right winger
Brad Boyes, but as he went to corral the rebound, Polak came
scrambling in to punch it home for his first goal of the season.
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Toronto appeared to jump ahead in the second period when center
Peter Holland put the puck in the net off a bad Philadelphia
turnover, but the goal was overturned after Flyers coach Dave
Hakstol successfully challenged the play. The Maple Leafs were ruled
offside.
However, Toronto made up for it not long after as Lupul deposited a
juicy rebound with 4:50 left in the second period. Mason had no
chance after sprawling to his left to save a wide-open shot by
defenseman Dion Phaneuf. The puck bounced right to Lupul, who handed
the Maple Leafs a 2-1 lead entering the third.
"I haven't woken up one day thinking about who's ahead of us or
behind us in the standings," Hakstol said. "I'm worried about the
two points that are at hand and tonight we didn't play well enough
to compete for the two points."
The Flyers nearly stole them when Gostisbehere turned a Maple Leafs
mistake into a tie game with seven minutes left in the third.
That was until the final seconds came around and so did Toronto.
"I thought we played a real strong, consistent game. For them to
score there, I thought it was good response by us," Phaneuf said.
"We got one late and that's how hockey goes."
NOTES: The Maple Leafs are without LW James van Riemsdyk, who will
miss 6-to-8 weeks with a non-displaced fracture in his left foot
announced on Jan. 11. The 2007 first-round draft pick of the Flyers
entered Tuesday second on the Maple Leafs in points with 29. ...
Flyers C Jordan Weal, acquired in a trade with the Los Angeles Kings
on Jan. 6, was a healthy scratch and has yet to appear in a game
with Philadelphia. ... D Frank Corrado and LW Josh Leivo were
healthy scratches for the Maple Leafs. Both have played in a
combined seven games this season. ... Flyers D Brandon Manning was a
healthy scratch for the third consecutive game since D Shayne
Gostisbehere's return from a lower-body injury.
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