Game in Six Sentences

Because, let's be honest, if every Toronto Maple Leafs game can be whittled down to six minutes, it can surely be pared down to six sentences. Probably four. But let's go with six.

1. Before the game, during player introductions, Tomas Kaberle was given the loudest ovation, redeeming my faith in Leafs fans.

2. I kid you not: The Maple Leafs were three-for-three on the penalty kill.

3. The Maple Leafs were zero-for-five on the power play

4. Who cares? Ron Wilson's troops are the best -- the best, 100%! -- at killing penalties in the NHL.

5. All Phil Kessel does is score goals.

6. So that's what it's like to have a goalie -- J.S. Giguere -- make massive saves in the late third period, while his team is leading, on home ice.

One-and-oh, yo.

And, to commemorate opening night, a special seventh sentence. Here's to a new season:

7. Mike Zigomanis.

Okay, fine, let's make it eight sentences, just this once:

8. Playoffs!!!1

Image of Tim Brent -- who? -- courtesy of The Associated Press via daylife.

Deep Thoughts

More on the Baseball Hall of Fame vote. Plus: the frustrating Toronto Maple Leafs, and the .500 Raptors:

1. The Tao of Stieb asked, on Twitter: "Impertinent Question: Why the fuck does someone from the Delaware County Times have a HoF quote?" Beats the hell out of me. So I moseyed on over to http://www.delcotimes.com/sports and at 2:00 am Thursday morning, found nothing on the Baseball Hall of Fame vote that became news at, oh, 2:01 pm eastern time Wednesday afternoon. Nothing. Of the four top stories, three were about the Philadelphia Eagles and one about the Philadelphia Flyers.

2. According to trusted source Wikipedia, three Toronto writers are members of the BBWAA: The Globe and Mail's Jeff Blair, Canadian Press and MLB.com writer Larry Milson, and the Toronto Sun's Bob Elliott. The Toronto Star's Richard Griffin isn't on the list, but said he's been a member for 15 years.

4. Jeff Blair wrote two excellent columns, one before the vote, and one after. You should read them both. What I like about Blair is that he flat out tells you who he voted for: Alomar, Tim Raines and Mark McGwire. Blair's colleagues in the city should follow his lead.

5. I trust guys like Tom Verducci and Jeff Blair to make this decision. Ken Rosenthal doesn't inspire the same confidence. And Jay Mariotti clearly cannot be trusted. The revolution will not be televised. It'll happen on the internet.

6. First Doc. Now Alomar. If Tom Cheek doesn't win the Ford C. Frick award, I might be forced to believe that the Toronto Blue Jays have "become the target of a systematic process of intimidation and manipulation the likes of which you have never" seen before.

7. On days like this, in the aftermath of a beating of the Toronto Maple Leafs by the Philadelphia Flyers, it's easier to tell yourself that Vesa Toskala played. The entire game. Even if he didn't.

8. At 8:21 pm yesterday evening, I received a text message from my brother: "Luke Schenn sucks." Good times.

9. It's bad enough that the Leafs lost, and gave up another three power play goals in the process. What makes it worse is that Daniel Carcillo scored. Carcillo needs to be placed on an iceberg, and sent floating off into frigid waters. It can't be possible for even Flyers fans to like Carcillo. Or can it? I mean, if Don Cherry hates him, what hope does he have?

10. When Reggie Evans was diagnosed with a "sprained left foot" on October 20, 2009, did you have any idea he still wouldn't be playing in January of the new year? I totally misjudged that injury. I was thinking a couple of weeks. Three, tops.

11. An office colleague of mine, whom I sit beside and genuinely enjoy working with, isn't as passionate about the Raptors as she used to be. Yesterday, she dropped the bombshell that she's not a fan of Chris Bosh. Aghast, I hopped out of my seat to confront her. This wasn't a through-the-cubicle-wall conversation. This was serious business. I said: "Twenty/ten!!1 Every night." She said it wasn't good enough. She said hurtful things: that Bosh couldn't deliver in the clutch; that he isn't a superstar. I stood my ground; 20/10 is no joke. And Scott Carefoot has pointed out at RaptorBlog that Bosh has been the definition of clutch this season. While my definition of superstar is clearly different from that my colleague's, there's no denying Bosh is a special talent. I maintain: max money. Really, the Raptors have no other choice. And, for everyone's sake, the Bosh hating needs to stop.

Progress!!!1

Your unlikeliest of heroes: Vesa Toskala and Jason Blake. I can only imagine exactly what was spoken.

Another win streak. (Yes, two games is most definitely a win streak.) A 7-2-1 record in their last 10 games, in which they've out-scored the opposition 34-29. For the first time over a 10-game stretch, the Maple Leafs are allowing less than three goals a game. Even after Saturday's Boston massacre. Progress. She's beautiful.

Toronto is as good as any other team in the league right now. The fact they still rank 29th in the league in points lets you know just how much they did not give a fuck in October.

Last night, by killing three out of four penalties, for a smooth 75% success rate, Ron Wilson's Leafs even improved their much-maligned penalty killing.

Everything's coming up aces.

A Monster Indeed

A .918 save percentage.

As a starter, it's even better: .924.

At home: an impressive .948. No doubt Jonas Gustavsson will play a significant role in making the Air Canada Centre a difficult place to play once again.

Shorthanded: a sublime .900. Up there with the big boys. Essentially: the anti-Vesa Toskala, who owns a .771 save percentage when there's four or fewer Toronto Maple Leafs in front of him. In Gustavsson's last four starts, the Leafs are 89% (16-18) on the penalty kill.

The formula is simple: Gustavsson makes saves; the Maple Leafs kill penalties; the Maple Leafs win.

Goaltending cures all. It triples Toronto's win total.

The sample size is small. But I can't help think that Gustavsson will single-handedly lead the Leafs to the playoffs, and to the most improbable of Stanley Cup championships, winning the Conn Smythe, Calder and Vezina Trophies along the way, in a magical season the likes of which we'll never see again get my hopes up.