TORONTO - It has been five years since the Toronto Maple Leafs and Ottawa Senators last met in the post-season.Based on where the two teams are in the standings, a rematch is not likely to happen anytime soon. But the provincial rivals, who probably have a better chance at the draft lottery than the playoffs, still found plenty to fight about on Saturday.
In what was a heated game that featured 60 hits and 48 penalty minutes, the Leafs earned bragging rights by defeating the Senators 3-1 at Air Canada Centre. Toronto now leads the season series 2-0-1.
"Both teams are fighting pretty hard to compete for playoff spots," said Leafs forward Dominic Moore, who scored his eighth goal of the season. "They came out with a good competitive edge. I thought it was good to match it."
As usual, Toronto gave up the first goal in the opening 20 minutes, but the Leafs tied the game in the second period and scored twice in the final frame.
The win gives the Leafs 38 points in 40 games. The team, which is still in 11th place in the East, is now five points out of a playoff spot. Though the Senators are right behind in the standings, they trail Toronto by seven points.
"I think we saw it tonight that Ottawa suddenly realized that they better start acting desperate if they want any shot at making the playoffs at all," said Leafs head coach Ron Wilson. "I don't know what we are (in the standings) . . . but they've got a heck of a mountain to climb. I think they showed some intensity tonight. And that was good for us. We responded."
In a pre-game ceremony, the Leafs honoured the Canadian Forces. It seemed appropriate. As soon as the puck dropped, Toronto and Ottawa waged their own war.
A mere 17 seconds into the game, Jason Spezza speared Moore in the midsection. Several open-ice hits and post-whistle scrums followed. And at one point in the second period, a combined six players were sitting in the penalty box with roughing penalties.
"The rivalry brews," said Moore, who was surprised that Spezza was only penalized for a minor slashing penalty. "It was a spear. But again, you can't complain . . . to the refs."
Vesa Toskala was nearly perfect after having the last two games off. The 31-year-old goaltender had allowed four goals in each of his last two starts, but on Saturday he seemed to be moving around in his crease with ease as he stopped 30 shots for his 14th win of the season.
"He bounced right back," said Wilson. "He's mentally fresh and physically probably felt as best as he has in a month."
Daniel Alfredsson put the Senators up 1-0 lead on a power-play goal at 7:05 in the first period. Ottawa might have had padded its lead, but the team had difficulty burying its chances.
On a two-on-one opportunity in the opening frame, Spezza slid a pass to Chris Phillips, who had a wide-open net but shot wide. Another example of why the Senators headed into the game having scored only 83 goals - the fewest in the league.
Phillips' night managed to get even worse in the second period.
The snake-bitten defenceman, who has a team-worst minus-19 rating, somehow managed to miss the puck on a defensive clearing attempt. And as luck would have it, Moore grabbed the loose puck and tied the game on the power play.
The Leafs took a 2-1 lead on an even-strength goal by Alexei Ponikarovsky at 10:03 in the third period.
Pavel Kubina had just exited the penalty box after serving a holding infraction when he raced behind the Ottawa defence for a loose puck. The Toronto defenceman then slid a pass in front of the net to Ponikarovsky, who beat goaltender Martin Gerber with a wrist shot. It was his 12th of the season
Blake added an insurance goal with 4:09 remaining in the third.
"I saw (Kubina) coming out of the box and thought, 'OK, we have a two-man advantage,' " said Ponikarovsky. "I yelled that I was open . . . and we got a goal."
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