Leafs break record for longest losing streak

Cup-winning 1967 team had lost 10 straight

• Patrik Elias scored his 400th career goal and the New Jersey Devils sent the Toronto Maple Leafs to a franchise-record 11 th straight loss, 4-1 Friday night.

Cory Schneider had 33 saves, giving up a third-period power-play goal to Tyler Bozak. Tuomo Ruutu, Steve Bernier and Jaromir Jagr also scored as the streaking Devils won their third straight for the first time since the start of the season and improved to 8-2-2 in the last dozen games.

The Maple Leafs’ skid breaks the old mark set by the 1966-67 team. That group rebounded with a 10-game unbeaten streak (eight wins, two ties) and won the Stanley Cup, the last time Toronto was in a Cup final.

The Maple Leafs will have a chance to end the streak Saturday against Edmonton, the NHL’s second-worst team.

Elias, who has spent his entire 17-year NHL career with the Devils, became the 91st player in league history to score 400 goals with a shot from inside the right circle early in the second period off a nice pass by Travis Zajac. It came less than a minute after Elias hit the post.

Ruutu had given the Devils the lead midway through the first period, aided by a lucky bounce off the boards behind the net. Ruutu made a crossice pass to Mark Fraser at the left point, but Fraser’s shot was wide of the net. The puck came out the right side and Ruutu slid the puck in off the skate of goaltender James Reimer, who could not get to the goal post quick enough.

Bernier extended the lead to 3-0 later in the second period with his sixth goal in eight games. Reimer made a pad save on a shot by Adam Larsson from the right point, but the rebound hit the back of Bernier’s skate and went into the net.

Until Bozak scored with 8:09 left in regulation, the closest the Maple Leafs came was a shot off the crossbar by former Devil David Clarkson in the first period.

Bozak got his 15th by tapping the rebound of Phil Kessel’s shot into an open net. Kessel’s shot hit off the crossbar and the Devils seemed to stop playing, thinking the shot went in the net.

Jagr scored into an empty net for his 716th career goal, one behind Phil Esposito for fifth in NHL history.