MAKING A LIST
After their 5-4 win last night, Rosie DiManno has some gift ideas for the Leafs,
“Last year I had a girlfriend, so I went to her family. That was a lot of fun. I wasn’t lonely. Now we’ve broken up.”
Santa Baby: Please bring Andreas Johnsson a new girlfriend for Christmas. Goal No. 8, that was a gimme gift the other night, initially and wrongly stuffed into Mitch Marner’s Xmas stocking.
A bass guitar, the Leaf rookie has already bought for himself. Couple of weeks ago. To replace the acoustic version which just wasn’t making de- cent music to anyone’s ears. When Johnsson took it to his “audition’’ for the team’s jam band, he cracked up his musician mates. But that had more to do with Johnsson’s demo choice, which he’d been practising for months: Justin’s Bieber’s “Love Yourself.” Who knew Andreas was a Belieber?
“I’m going to take it on road trips,” says Johnsson of his axe. “Got one of those box things too, what’s it called?’’ An amp, it’s called an amp. Ojoy, for anybody who comes within harking distance.
Collectively, of course, the Maple Leafs have been making beautiful music together this season. An overtime jingle-jangle on Festivus Sunday, to usher them into the NHL holiday hiatus, Kasperi Kapanen, sneaking through to five-hole putt the puck past Jonathan Bernier, 5-4, with 3:07 left in the extra period.
Detroit, in the nether regions of the NHL, should have been plump for the picking, of course, like a Christmas goose. Yet the Wings had squeezed Toronto in OT just a fortnight earlier and took a 3-1 lead midway through the second period.
Kapanen had put the ginger biscuit in the basket just 27 seconds after the opening faceoff, to open things, a rude how-do-you-do for ex-Leaf Bernier. Detroit almost immediately countered, Filip Hronek unassisted (off Nikita Zaitsev’s skate). Thereafter through the opening frame, the Leafs were in a heap o' penalty trouble – Mitch (Beastie Boy) Marner drawing a deuce of them.
The second left Toronto two men short for 29 seconds but the PK crew was valiant and Garret Sparks, making only his seventh start, was sharp between the pipes, A delayed penalty to the Leafs resulted in a redirect by Michael Rasmussen under the crossbar with 41 seconds remaining in the first, as the home side was out-shot 14-3. In the seasonal spirit of giving, Jake Gardi-
ner was the benefactor on both goals.
Travis Dermott was bowled over by Christoffer Ehn midway through the second to notch his first career NHL goal, Wings up 3-1. But the Leafs bang-banged right back, Frederik Gauthier with his first of the season – assist to Trevor Moore, making his NHL debut – followed just over a minute later by a John Tavares dipsy-doodle-deke, Morgan Rielly deep in the offensive zone to take the pass, goal No. 13.
Nice hard-work rally, almost for naught. The Leafs had tons of chances, especially on a tic-tac-toe PP, but couldn’t re-establish a lead. Instead, Frans Nielsen hot-wired a long Sparks rebound with 7:57 in regulation time. The Leafs looked done. But wait. With under eight seconds left and Sparks pulled for the extra attacker, Gardiner uncorked a slapshot from the point that John Tavares just tipped on a leap in the goal crease.
So, the Leafs will ho-ho-ho into their Noel gap, the lucky ones surrounded by family and friends. That’s what Christmas is all about, yes? But being a professional athlete often means long-distance cheer, separated from kinfolk, particularly those who are an ocean away from loved ones.
“I’ve been dealing with that for 10 years now,” shrugs Freddie Andersen. “It’s a small sacrifice. It’s tough to go home because we don’t have that much time off. Even if I were home, my dad wouldn’t be home anyway because he’s with the world juniors.”
Ernst Andersen is goalie coach with Team Denmark. So, in Canada but on the opposite of the country.
Players recently enjoyed a moms-only road trip to Florida and some of those mothers from afar decided to hang for the holidays. “Mama was on the trip and she’s still here,” Johnsson happily reports. “And my dad came to Toronto this week.”
The 24-year-old Johnsson, youngest son of a Swedish hockey player, recalls family Christmas traditions growing up in Goteborg. “In the morning me and my brother would play a lot of video games. After lunch, we’d watch all Disney movies.’’
There was a dice game they still play which, simplified, involved the winner taking all the loser’s Christmas presents. Which seems awfully mean. Johnsson laughs. (He really does have the widest, toothiest grin in the Leaf dressing room.) “Just the small toy gifts.”
Christmas Eve dinner was Swedish meatballs and ham. “No turkey.”
Even the depth chart Leafs are, of course, far from requiring Christmas alms and can buy themselves just about anything they want short of a Porsche.
But just in case, we have some suggestions.
William Nylander: A goal. Been almost three weeks since Willie finally signed that new contract and returned to the fold. Rustiness was to be expected. The commentariat, however, is starting to grumble about making good on that nearly $42-million haul. Pretty as a tree ornament. But just ring-a-ding one in the kettle already.
Tyler Ennis and Zach Hyman: New ankles.
Nikita Zaitsev and Igor Ozhiganov: A bit of quid pro quo boldface recognition. On the team’s California road swing last month, the Russian duo crossed paths with Jennifer Lopez at a restaurant. Like excited schoolboys, they asked Jenny From The Bronx for an autograph. She blew them off. Guess J-Lo only knows from baseball players.
Jake Gardiner: Some salarycap elbow room to re-sign as a pending free agent. Gardiner has been such a good boy for the Leafs this year; hardly any brain cramps at all.
John Tavares: Man-size Maple Leaf PJs, unless he now sleeps in the nude.
Patrick Marleau: A wee gift of the gab.
Morgan Rielly: A “C” on his sweater because he deserves it.
Nazem Kadri: A stable complement of wingers and a Joe Thornton Chia pet.
Freddie Andersen: A balaclava if he’s going to keep robbing snipers. Oh, and a Vezina please.
Garret Sparks: The trust of his coach.
Kasperi Kapanen: A snood for his Farrah Fawcett (aging myself) locks because they stick out weirdly from under his helmet.
Travis Dermott: A puppy to make him even cuter.
Connor Brown: A grindstone for his nose, a four-leaf shamrock and an anti-toxin for the snake that done bit him.
Andreas Johnsson: A dating app.
Ron Hainsey: Botox injections for his 37-year-old droopy knees.
Par Lindholm: Just one Par Lindholm jersey moving off the rack.
Frederik Gauthier: A tapemeasure to remind him that he’s six-foot-five, so play that way.
Martin Marincin: Mike Babcock socks, to pull up and make the lineup more often. Auston Matthews & Mitch Marner: Christmas will actually arrive in the off-season, with gaudy $$$ contracts for the twin restricted free agents. Eat their Leafs lunch boys.
Mike Babcock: A thesaurus, so that he can vary his postgame scrums with descriptors beyond “good” and “not so good.”
Kyle Dubas: An old-fashioned pager because he sure as hell doesn’t return phone calls, text messages or emails from reporters.
Brendan Shanahan: A bright shiny tall silver object.
Leaf fans: A parade.