Wins, injuries pile up as Komarov limps off
MARK ZWOLINSKI
BUFFALO— The Toronto Maple Leafs continued to test the depth of their organization in a 5-2 win over the Buffalo Sabres here Thursday night.
The win was the third in a row for the Leafs, but they watched with a hint of trepidation when forward Leo Komarov left the ice in the second period with an apparent leg injury.
The Leafs have the day off Friday, and Komarov becomes part of a short but critical list of regulars awaiting updates on their banged-up bodies.
Toronto, which had the redhot James van Riemsdyk score two more goals Thursday, lost its most important player, goal- ie Freddie Andersen, with an upper-body injury in Wednesday ’s win over Dallas. Defenceman Nikita Zaitsev has been battling a flu bug for five days, while star centre Auston Matthews has now missed six games with his shoulder injury.
That’s four key regulars injured in the span of two weeks, just three weeks before the playoffs. All of them could be back in the lineup shortly, but the extent of Komarov’s injury was not immediately known.
Leafs coach Mike Babcock had some welcome news re- garding Andersen.
“I don’t think there is much going on there, to be honest,” Babcock said at the morning skate. “He wasn’t playing tonight anyway (Curtis McElhinney got the start while Andersen remained in Toronto). It’s no different than (missing Matthews or Zaitsev). We need all hands on deck and to get as healthy as we possibly can. We’re finding ways with whoever is in the lineup.”
Andersen was hurt during a crease collision Wednesday in which big Dallas forward Alex Radulov was shoved into him by Leafs defenceman Roman Polak. Radulov came down hard on the back of Andersen’s left knee, but the impact jolted his neck, back and head.
McElhinney performed admirably — stopping13 of15 shots — after Andersen’s exit in the second period. Toronto recalled Marlies goalie Garret Sparks on an emergency basis to back up in Buffalo. McElhinney followed up with a wonderful effort against the Sabres, marking his first back-to-back appearances of the season. He improved to 9-4-1.
“(McElhinney) has been pretty consistent all year, in the games he’s started,” said Leaf Morgan Rielly. “That’s a testament to his character and we have a lot of confidence in him.”
Connor Carrick, Tyler Bozak and Patrick Marleau had the other goals for the Leafs, who have won a team-record 11 straight games on home ice and go for No.12 when the Montreal Canadiens visit Saturday.