Ultimately, the team came away with the victory, though it was Ilya Samsonov who was to thank for the 2 points, after a 32-save shutout performance that had everyone in Leafs Nation celebrating - not only because of the win, but because Samsonov, by all appearances, is back.
The Leafs are now just 1-for-20 with the man advantage over their last 8 games. Ahead of their rematch tonight in Winnipeg, Leafs head coach Sheldon Keefe issued a stark warning to his group that if his top powerplay unit doesn't begin to produce results, there may be a major shakeup coming.
Keefe's comments follow a benching of the top unit in Wednesday's game after they gave up a 2-on-0 break to a shorthanded Jets team. Fortunately, Samsonov was able to stand tall and make two of his best saves of the season.
Should the Leafs struggle to connect on a powerplay early in the game tonight, it would not come as a surprise to see Keefe shuffle both units and split up the top dogs to try to generate some success at 5-on-4.
POLL | ||
27 JANVIER | 375 ANSWERS Keefe issues a warning to the Leafs' top players ahead of a crucial rematch with the Jets Should the Leafs have broken up their top PP unit already? | ||
Yes, the slump has gone on long enough | 245 | 65.3 % |
No, they'll figure it out. They're too good not to | 130 | 34.7 % |
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