Leafs' Grabovski gets revenge on Habs

On a night to celebrate the newest hall of famers and to remember fallen soldiers, hockey's greatest rivalry got a little bit bloodier with a disabling hit on Maple Leafs defenceman Mike Van Ryn.

And Mikhail Grabovski began to write his own tale as one of the rare breed who have played for both the Montreal Canadiens and the Leafs.

While Grabovski held court in front of a throng of cameras and tape recorders following Toronto's 6-3 win over Montreal, word spread that Van Ryn was lying in a hospital bed after being slammed into the boards by Tom Kostopoulos during the first period.

"He's got a concussion, a broken nose and a broken hand," said Leafs coach Ron Wilson, "so, he'll probably be out somewhere around a month. Every bad thing that could happen, happened on that play."

The league was reviewing the play last night, but there was no immediate word on whether Kostopoulos would be suspended.

The hit came early in the game, at 7:03 of the first, but it was a rallying point for the Leafs, who ended a three-game losing skid.

On the ensuing five-minute power play, Grabovski scooted up the right side, pulled a head fake that fooled Montreal defender Andrei Markov and fed a perfect pass to Niklas Hagman, who was able to score the first of his two goals on the night.

Grabovski then scored the Leafs' second goal at 1:48 of the second on a quick wrist shot.

"Grabbo," as he's called in the Leaf room, was a dynamo all night, getting under the skin of the Habs, with Saku Koivi sniping at him and Sergei Kostitsyn taking runs at him.

He did a lot of hard work that doesn't show up on the scoresheet - his second effort on a faceoff helped set up Hagman's second goal - and generally outshone the players in the bleu, blanc et rouge who were entrenched ahead of him in the Habs' depth chart last season.

"The Canadiens knew what they had in Mikhail," Wilson said of his team's major off-season acquisition. "(But) they've got an unbelievable group of forwards with so much skill and he probably wasn't going to get a fair opportunity. Fortunately for us, we were able to pick him up. He's into a real good rhythm. He's been our best player for two weeks. That's why he's got seven goals now."

Grabovski speaks some English but last night, with a crush of media in front of his stall, it was up to teammate Alexei Ponikarovsky to translate when reporters asked what Koivu told Grabovski.

"He (Koivu) gave him some special advice," said Ponikarovsky, getting a laugh. "He told him it would help him in the future. He (Grabovski) just listened to his advice because he respects him."

Grabovski has six goals in his last four games and is among the rookie scoring leaders. He doesn't like to talk about his Habs playing days, where he got into just 24 games over two seasons and was banished to the AHL Hamilton Bulldogs.

"We go play, we win," Grabovski said in his broken English of last night's effort. "Nothing special."

Habs coach Guy Carbonneau didn't want to chat about his former player.

"Listen, I have enough of my own problems," said Carbonneau. "I don't really care about what he thinks or what he says. He's playing well, good for him."

Linemate Hagman said he was sure Grabovski loved showing up his former teammates.

"For sure," said Hagman. "And they've got a lot of Russian players in that room. That could give a little more extra boost."

Former players Igor Larionov and Glenn Anderson, the late Ed Chynoweth and retired linesman Ray Scapinello were honoured at centre ice in the Hall of Fame game. Former Leaf and World War II veteran Gaye Stewart read "In Flanders Fields" before the game, part of Remembrance Day celebrations.

Tlusty gets another shot with big club

Jiri Tlusty returned to the Maple Leafs yesterday hoping to recharge his game.

He was sent to the Marlies last month, but was recalled yesterday to fill in for the injured John Mitchell.

"I'm looking forward to my chance, and I hope I can play my best game," said Tlusty, who had two assists in five games with the Marlies. "I wasn't playing very well and my confidence went down. I have to forget that now and play better."

WESTERN JOURNEY: The Leafs embark on a three-game road swing through western Canada next week. It marks Toronto's first games against the Flames, Oilers and Canucks since the 2005-06 season.

"We haven't been out there in three seasons?" said Matt Stajan. "That's not good for the game."

No comeback this time as Leafs ripped by Bruins

BOSTON - It seemed only a matter of time before tempting fate would catch up with the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Continuing their season-long habit of falling behind early in games, the Leafs could not crawl out of a 2-0 hole in the first period Thursday and were beaten 5-2 by the Boston Bruins at TD Banknorth Garden.

Despite more admonishment from coach Ron Wilson, the Leafs began another game sloppily, and this time the opposition was ready. The Bruins jumped to an early 2-0 lead - as they did against Toronto in this building a couple of weeks ago. But, the visitors could not repeat their 4-2 comeback effort and are now riding a three-game winless streak.

Forward Blake Wheeler scored his first career hat trick to pace the Bruins. It included an empty-net goal in the final minute.

The Leafs trailed 3-0 heading into the third period and got an early goal from Alex Steen. They dominated from that point and had a chance to narrow the lead during a five-on-three power play late in the frame. They could not beat goalie Tim Thomas, however, and Zdeno Chara restored the three-goal advantage shortly after his club returned to full strength.

The early deficits are becoming an annoyance for Wilson, whose team has fallen behind by at least two goals in six of its past nine outings. "I don't know what to say about that," the coach shrugged. "Whether it's 2-0 or 3-0, it doesn't matter. It just happens. We're not a good enough team to say we're going to automatically score the first two goals.

"Again, we took a couple of unnecessary penalties early in the game, and we didn't get the job done. We didn't move the puck quickly tonight and got in trouble."

The Leafs were also hit with their first significant injury of the season.

Rookie forward John Mitchell sustained a suspected separation of his right shoulder on an innocent-looking check by Boston defenceman Aaron Ward early in the second period and will be sidelined indefinitely. Nik Antropov blocked an Andrew Ference slapshot in the opening frame and briefly returned before calling it a night. X-rays on Antropov's foot were negative.

"We have to have better starts and we know it," Leafs forward Matt Stajan said. "We talked about it before the game, but we didn't go out and do it. It's kind of an old story for us this season. I guess we can't come back every night."

Dennis Wideman and Wheeler scored power-play goals to give the Bruins their 2-0 edge by the 7:46 mark of the opening frame. Wheeler scored again in the second period and had the empty-netter with 53 seconds left.

Steen's goal at 2:13 of the third got the visitors rolling, and they had a golden opportunity to make another late comeback when Chara and Mark Stuart were both in the box for more than a minute later in the period. But, it was not to be. Mikhail Grabovski scored for the Leafs to make it 4-2 less than a minute after Chara's goal.

The crowd got a rise out of Jason Blake being deposited into the Bruins bench by a hip-check from Stuart midway through the first period. Blake came down between the Boston players and the inside of the boards, and was out of sight for a brief moment before regaining his feet and scrambling back onto the ice.

Wilson has alternated Jonas Frogren and Anton Stralman in a number of games - Frogren played Thursday - but Leafs veteran Carlo Colaiacovo continues to be a regular scratch, sitting for the eighth time in the past nine outings. It's been a bitter pill to swallow for Colaiacovo, given his tenure with the hockey club and the number of severe injuries he has overcome. But, neither he nor his agent, Todd Reynolds, has yet to approach Leafs' GM Cliff Fletcher for a trade.

"No, no - my heart is still (with the Leafs)," Colaiacovo said, halfheartedly, after skating with the spares Thursday. "But, there are all kinds of things going through my head because it's been extremely difficult and frustrating for me. You wait so long to get your chance and something like this happens. But, I've overcome so much already in my career, and this is just another stumbling block."

The Leafs return home to face Montreal Saturday.

Overtime heartbreak for Leafs

A quick peek at the plus-minus column on last night's Leafs game sheet told an intriguing story.

The line of Mikhail Grabovski, Niklas Hagman and Nikolai Kulemin each registered plus-2. Everyone else wearing a Leafs jersey was either even or minus-1.

Indeed, Grabovski's line was magical against the Carolina Hurricanes, accounting for three of the Leafs' four goals, and triggering another comeback that seems to be part of the Leafs' script for success so far this season.

The line, though, couldn't steal the show, or the win. That went to the Hurricanes, thanks in large part to the faulty defensive play by the rest of the Leafs in a 5-4 verdict in overtime at the Air Canada Centre.

"We talked about it in the first period (intermission)," Hagman said of the Leafs' unacceptable defensive effort, which saw them fall behind 3-0 and 4-1 in the first period. "It's going to be a long season (if the team has to repeatedly come from behind to win)."

The Leafs have come from behind to tie or win games on six occasions this season, but last night's comeback script was ruined when Niclas Wallin's slapshot sailed past a screened Vesa Toskala into the net at 1:52 of the extra period.

Toronto blew a two-man advantage that lasted 1:13 in the third, and Toskala, in allowing five goals on 24 shots, could have helped matters a bit more despite the fact his team abandoned him on too many occasions.

But the excitement generated so far by Leaf comebacks helped the home side gain a point in a game it should have lost.

"In Dallas last year, we came back quite a bit and I hope I can bring some of that here for this team," said Hagman, a 27-goal scorer with the Stars last season.

Watching Hagman this year has been a treat for Leaf fans. He's gone from a free-agent signing who looked like he could help a rebuilding team to arguably the club's best player after 13 games.

Hagman has certainly helped Grabovski, who bagged a pair of goals - one off a gorgeous Hagman setup on the power play. And Kulemin, who was too quick to gel on a line with Nik Antropov earlier this season, has found a place where he can maximize his offensive gifts alongside Hagman and Grabovski.

"I am comfortable here," Grabovski said, referring in part to a mercurial season in Montreal last year. "I like (Hagman). He is fast and he is smart. He is helping me a lot."

Grabovski now has five goals, tops on the Leafs, and is coming into his own after failing to score his first goal for almost a month.

Hagman picked up his fourth goal and added an assist. He now shares the team lead in scoring with Antropov (each with 10 points).

Leafs coach Ron Wilson has long recognized Hagman's abilities.

As head coach in San Jose, he saw large parts of Hagman's 27-goal season last year and wasn't surprised that the impressive tally came with Hagman skating much of the time on the Stars' third line.

"Hagman wasn't miscast in Dallas," Wilson said. "They had that much talent there and the reason we got him is there were only so many players they could keep.

"The reason he isn't there is because they decided to go after Sean Avery.

"Right now that line (Grabovski's) dominates almost every time they're on the ice ... something exciting happens when they're out there," Wilson added. "Now we have to get some of the other guys going again."

The Leafs will practise today, focusing on their defensive play. They've bagged eight goals in the past two games but lost both.

Wilson, though, will also put the power play through its paces, especially in 5-on-3 situations.

"It wasn't the first period that lost us the game, it was the 5-on-3 that cost us the extra point," Wilson said.

Kovalchuk to Leafs 'a wild rumour'

Despite rumours to the contrary, Cliff Fletcher flatly denies the Maple Leafs are pursuing Atlanta Thrashers star Ilya Kovalchuk.

"I can absolutely tell you there has been no conversations about any player with Atlanta, let alone the player you mentioned," said Fletcher.

Kovalchuk, one of the few pure snipers in the NHL, sounds as if he wants out of Atlanta. Russian newspaper Sports Express Daily said the Leafs and Montreal Canadiens were the front-runners for his services.

"The start of the season could have been better," Kovalchuk said. "Atlanta lacks stability to win (more) often. One match we play well, another only start well. And we must play on the same high level for all 60 minutes."

Thrashers GM Don Waddell said he was aware of the story but called it "a wild rumour. I have no interest in trading Ilya."

Kovlachuk also said he'd rather play in a full arena than in front of the sparse crowds Atlanta has been drawing. The Thrashers are 28th in home attendance, with an average of 13,795 a game.

"Empty stands influence the mood of course," Kovalchuk said. "But not everything depends on us. There is an economic crisis in the country and people think how they can survive in the current situation and not about sport. But if we start winning the stands will fill up."

Sports Express said Fletcher approached Waddell at the recent league meetings in Chicago.

"I might have said hello to Don," said Fletcher. "But I haven't really talked to him in months."

Fletcher said he doesn't expect trade talk to heat up until December. "It's not like trades are happening around us. Usually you get to the 20-, 25-game mark before trades start happening."

Leafs shuffle defencemen in loss to Hurricanes

RALEIGH, N.C. - Who were those two strangers wearing the white jerseys Sunday night, and how much longer will one or the other be staying with the Toronto Maple Leafs?

The Leafs stepped onto the ice at Carolina's RBC Center with Nos. 7 and 8 in uniform together for the first time this season, and it took only a few moments for Ian White and Carlo Colaiacovo to have an impact on the hockey club.

Colaiacovo was on the ice six minutes into the opening period when White scored his first goal in his first game of the season, but the weary Maple Leafs were ultimately subdued 6-4 by the Carolina Hurricanes.

Toronto's record fell to 5-4-3, identical to the club's mark after 12 games last season.

White did not appear in any of the Leafs' first 11 games, while Colaiacovo sat out the previous six matches and seven of the past eight. So Sunday night's dual appearance was either strategic intuition by coach Ron Wilson or a classic showcase for general manager Cliff Fletcher, who admitted he will ultimately trim his bloated defence corps.

"We've had preliminary discussions with a few managers," Fletcher said during the game. "And there will be a time I'm sure in the near future when a trade could be available for us. We'd be looking to move just one defenceman and hopefully get a forward in return that would fit into our scheme of things."

A three-goal outburst in a 3:20 span late in the second period turned around the game for Carolina, erasing a 3-1 lead for the visitors. Ray Whitney, Dwight Helminen and Tuomo Ruutu did the damage against Leafs' backup goalie Curtis Joseph, with Helminen notching his first career goal.

The quick strike occurred fewer than 24 hours after a five-goal explosion late in the third period by the Leafs at the Air Canada Centre obliterated a 2-0 lead for the New York Rangers.

Though White lined up as a winger against the Hurricanes, his natural position in the NHL has been on defence. To make room for White and Colaiacovo, Wilson had to scratch Jonas Frogren and Anton Stralman, continuing a trend that has seen two blue-liners in the press box through the early part of the schedule.

But Fletcher insisted he will not pull the trigger simply to make decisions easier for his coach. "No, we're not going to trade somebody just for the sake of making a deal," he said. "It would only happen in a case where we could get someone we really like to help us up front."

Fletcher dismissed rumours he was pursuing Atlanta sharpshooter Ilya Kovalchuk. "We haven't talked to the Thrashers about anything," the GM said. "That's one rumour that has no authenticity whatsoever."

White understands the situation both he and the Leafs are in.

"If you look at the numbers, someone has to move," he said after the game.

"Teams don't carry nine guys (on defence) so something has to happen. It's great to play (in Toronto) because I have tons of friends there but I'm up for anything that will keep me on the ice."

Colaiacovo saw only 41 seconds of playing time in the third period. "Carlo got hit with a puck and was limping around," Wilson said. "We needed someone with a little jump and Ian White was providing that for us."

White's goal was the only one of the opening period. The Hurricanes, dressed in their predominantly black third jerseys, tied the score 34 seconds into the middle period when Joe Corvo's slap shot deflected past Joseph off defenceman Jeff Finger. The Leafs then gained a 3-1 lead on consecutive goals fewer than four minutes apart by Mikhail Grabovski.

But that was it for the visitors, as the Hurricanes took control with their late-period spree. Carolina got some insurance early in the third from Chad Larose, which came in handy after Niklas Hagman slapped a bouncing puck past Hurricanes backup Michael Leighton at the 8:44 mark. Eric Staal iced the win with an empty-net goal.

Joseph made his second start of the season and his record fell to 0-2-1.

Rookie defenceman Luke Schenn played the game on his 19th birthday.

Toronto and Carolina meet again at the Air Canada Centre Tuesday night.

Fewer goals, more wins for Leafs

Ten games into the post-Sundin era and the rebuilding Maple Leafs have a better record than they did at the same time last season.

That modest improvement - from nine points to 11 points - has arrived despite a dramatic drop off in goal production. It was projected that, with the departure of star centre Mats Sundin, the Leafs would have trouble finding the net. That was one of the few accurate predictions about this upstart squad.

Even after unexpectedly putting five past all-world goaltender Martin Brodeur in regulation time on Wednesday, Toronto is averaging just 2.6 goals a game. That's more than a goal off their pace of last season.

Not only has no one stepped up to dominate in the way that Sundin could - this is a Toronto team without a go-to offensive player - the Leafs have improved with several players underachieving early in this campaign.

Alexei Ponikarovsky tops the Leafs with nine points but that total had him tied for 35th in the NHL before last night's action. While Ponikarovsky's production has been a pleasant surprise and Nik Antropov's team-leading four goals is about what might be expected from the lanky Kazakh, several other Leafs have yet to be heard from offensively.

Former 40-goal scorer Jason Blake has just one goal and is actually behind his pace of last season when he managed a miserable 15 goals. Some thought this might be a breakout campaign for Alex Steen - isn't that an annual expectation? - but he didn't get his first goal until Wednesday.

Management projected that new players Nikolai Kulemin and Mikhail Grabovski would make up for some of Sundin's absent offence but, together, they combine for just three goals and have faded noticeably in recent games. Niklas Hagman has been handed more of an offensive role in Toronto than he had while scoring 27 goals for Dallas last season but he is on pace for just 16 goals.

Only three forwards on the Leafs have more than two goals. Matt Stajan and Ponikarovsky have three and Antropov, as mentioned, has four. Those three form the team's top line.

"We have a lot of guys that can score goals in here and have skill. It's going to come," said Stajan, who broke out with two goals in a Toronto 6-5 shootout win over the Devils.

"We're showing we can win games when it's not there, which is a positive. When we start getting goals consistently while playing defence the way we are and checking the way we are, we're going to be a tough team to play against and that's all we want to be."

The Leafs' speed, enthusiasm and work ethic has given Toronto one more victory than last year's squad largely because they have cut down on shots (against), penalty minutes and goals against while showing improvement on the power play.

"We have a lot of work ahead of us but we're going to be a good, fast team and hard-working team that gets a lot of shots on net. We've been getting that lately," said veteran defenceman Tomas Kaberle.

"We haven't scored as many goals as we probably would like to. But there's a good chance you're going to win hockey game if you keep your goals against low."

Last year's version of the Leafs played eight of its first 10 games at home. This year's team has split the games evenly between the ACC and the road, impressively winning three of those away games and losing another in a shootout.

"I think maybe we've exceeded some people's expectations. But we're all professionals and we knew we could do the job and we were going to be a competitive team," said defenceman Mike Van Ryn. "Time will see how it works out."