Two Leafs attack Canes star for putting the puck in after the whistle
There has been a growing trend in Toronto this season, and no, I'm not talking about poor goaltending. I'm referring to the increased level of physicality and snarl that we've seen from following the meeting with Sheldon Keefe and Brad Treliving back in November.
As you may recall, the team did not have much of a reaction to Brad Marchand's dangerous trip on Timothy Liljegren, which sidelined Liljegren for 6 weeks with a high-ankle sprain. This, of course, led to Treliving and Keefe addressing the team and, well, it would appear as though the message has been received, since the Leafs have been taking far less crap from the opposition of late.
With that in mind, the Leafs have continued to show that snarl against the Carolina Hurricanes on Saturday after Canes forward Martin Necas opted to go for the wrap-around and fire the puck in the empty net after the whistle. Jake McCabe and Simon Benoit were the first two Leafs on the scene and they didn't let Necas get away with a freebie.
The officials pulled off Necas for unsportsmanlike conduct on the play, but they also nabbed McCabe for roughing on the play, forcing the two sides to play a little 4-on-4.
I have to say, I've really enjoyed the backbone that the Leafs have been showing of late, especially around their own net. We have seen numerous examples of Leafs defensemen pushing and pulling guys away from their net in recent weeks, with the aforementioned McCabe and Benoit the two primary parties - though William Lagesson has also been very protective of his goaltenders when he's been in the lineup.
| POLL | ||
DECEMBRE 30 | 733 ANSWERS Two Leafs attack Canes star for putting the puck in after the whistle Have you noticed an increase in the Leafs' physicality of late? | ||
| Yes | 462 | 63 % |
| No | 271 | 37 % |
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