Allsports Says: Maple Leafs Started Their Christmas Break a Bit Early

First and foremost Allsports would like to wish everyone that looks for and reads sports news stories on the Web, a very Merry Christmas and all the best to you and your families in 2009.

So last night the Maple Leafs came back form their road trip to host a well rested Dallas Stars team. Dallas was all over the listless Leafs in posting an 8-2 victory. Local boy James Neal (he grew up in Whitby) had a big game for the Stars, scoring a hat trick in the game. It was a bad game all the way though the Leafs lineup from Vesa Toskala out. Know one on the Leafs had any legs at all and the Stars jumped on them early and often. While not making excuses for the Leafs, it was their fourth game in six nights.

They had played the night before in Atlanta. They played pretty well there, beating the thrashers 6-2 and got a little bit of payback after Atlanta had beaten them earlier in the year at the ACC. Justin Pogge got his first NHL start and was steady in the victory.

Anyway other than last night, which was a total washout (Toronto had sugar plumbs dancing in their collective heads), the Leafs had been playing some good responsible hockey where they had won five of six.

Toronto goes into the Christmas break with a 500 record, better than the experts thought at the beginning of the year. Toronto does not get much of a break. Boxing Day they fly off to take on the woeful New York Islanders the next night.

“No Guts No Glory”

Walt Webb

More sports news stories on the web for the Dallas and Atlanta games.