TORONTO – This time it was the Leafs stifling their opponent, furiously dictating the play, and peppering the opposing netminder. [url=http://www.fakeyeezysforsale.com/]Fake Yeezys Boost[/url] . But in what was easily their most complete performance of the season they were on the wrong side of the sc

TORONTO – This time it was the Leafs stifling their opponent, furiously dictating the play, and peppering the opposing netminder. Fake Yeezys Boost . But in what was easily their most complete performance of the season they were on the wrong side of the scoresheet. "Its amazing isnt it?" said an optimistic Randy Carlyle late Wednesday night. "Thats what pro sports [is], theres always something that happens that makes you shake your head. By far was our best effort in the last couple months, but no reward for it." Despite outshooting their opponent for just the fourth time all season – yielding just 23 shots while firing 39 at rookie netminder Martin Jones – the Leafs ultimately fell for the 12th time in the past 18 games (6-9-3), edged 3-1 by the savvy L.A. Kings at the ACC. In control of the play for the better part of 60 minutes – while playing without the suspended Dion Phaneuf – the Leafs more closely resembled the plucky, feisty group they were for so much of last season. Energetic on the forecheck, feisty on the backcheck, and finally effective at moving the puck out of the defensive zone, there was a lot to like for the home side in defeat. "Ive got no complaints with the work ethic of our group," said Carlyle. "We executed from a defensive standpoint. We made good breakout passes, we attacked, we forechecked, but we didnt win. Simple as that." "Its what we were discussing and what we needed to do to give ourselves better chances to win games," said Cody Franson, the 26-year-old who scored his first goal of the year in defeat. No team in the NHL has yielded more shots nightly than the Leafs this season – 37 per game prior to Wednesdays game – but against the Kings it was something different entirely. Facing his former team for the first time, Jonathan Bernier saw just 23 shots or about half of the 44 he had faced on average in his previous four starts. "We definitely played our best game of the year tonight," said Bernier. "We deserve a better fate." "Be better on the defensive side of the puck and in turn thatll give us more good offensive chances," said Franson. "It showed tonight. We really paid attention to the details of defence and we were able to keep them to a lower shot count than us for the first time in a while. We had some good chances, we just didnt score enough tonight." Coming off back-to-back shutouts, Jones stopped 38 of 39 shots, including an impressive stop on Joffrey Lupul shortly after Franson scored the lone Leaf goal. Jones held the Kings in it long enough for Jeff Carter to score the go-ahead marker midway through the final period, a bad pinch from Paul Ranger ending up in the back of the net. The Leafs were fortunate to swipe many victories in the opening two months on the shoulders of goaltending and a terrific power-play, but rare was the game in which their performance rarely wavered from start to finish. Despite falling short of the desired result, this was one of those nights. Amid a difficult portion of the schedule – the Blues, Blackhawks and Penguins are up next – more of the same will be needed in the days ahead. "If we have that type of dogged work ethic, if we can effectively move the puck out of our zone the way we did tonight and backcheck as hard and create as many offensive opportunities then well win our share of games," said Carlyle. "But pushing that snowball, every time you lose it gets bigger." "Weve got to build off what weve done," Mason Raymond said. "I dont think theres any question that was one of our better games weve played in a long time. The shot totals, not giving up odd-man rushes, a lot of good things you can take from it. "Sometimes you dont deserve wins and you get them and we were on the opposite of that maybe tonight." Five Points 1. Bernier vs. L.A. Then the head coach of the Anaheim Ducks, Carlyle got his first glimpse of Jonathan Bernier in London, England at the O2 Arena on Sept. 29, 2007. It was the first start of Berniers NHL career and the outset of the 2007-08 season. "He was a young kid then," Carlyle recalled of the now 25-year-old Leafs netminder, drafted by the Kings in the first round of the 2006 Draft. Bernier stopped 26 of 27 shots that day across the pond, backstopping Los Angeles to a 4-1 win. "For an 18-year-old to come out of junior hockey and start in the NHL it was quite a feat," said Carlyle. Starting against his former team for the first time, Bernier made 20 saves. He was beaten five-hole by Carter for the eventual game-winner. Speaking prior to the game, Carlyle said the Leafs were "very, very fortunate" to have Bernier on their side. "Theres been a focus right from the day we acquired him that he was going to be our starting goaltender, he was going to be this, he was going to be that, he was here to seize the opportunity, seize the job, and he hasnt disappointed," said Carlyle of Bernier, who owns a .927 save percentage this season. 2. Rielly Checks In Simplicity was the message for Morgan Rielly as he re-entered the lineup on Wednesday night. "The simple things are the best way to go right now," Carlyle said in regards to Rielly prior to the game. "Make the simple play; make the good first pass, take the body, stop progression, jump up in the play when you have an opportunity, but move the puck. Move the puck, move it effectively. Dont try to do too much." Paired with Jake Gardiner for the first time all season, the 19-year-old logged nearly 20 minutes against the Kings, replacing John-Michael Liles on the Toronto back-end. Rielly had been a healthy scratch in the previous three games. "We felt Morgan Riellys worked hard and is deserved of an opportunity and well make decisions again for the next one [Thursday] night," said Carlyle. 3. Defensive Effort Among the more encouraging elements of the Leafs game in defeat was the ferocity with which they defended, eliminating many of the odd-man opportunities which had plagued their game in October and November. Especially impressive for the group in that regard was the effort of the forwards on the backcheck. "If youre not giving up odd-man rushes it makes easy on a goaltender and the shot numbers as I kind of mentioned earlier," said Raymond. "We were better on the defensive side of the puck," said Franson. "Our forwards worked real hard on our forecheck and they backchecked hard all night and made it an easier night on [the defence] to make reads when to jump in and when to back out." The 23 shots against was the second fewest for the Leafs all season. Back on Nov. 25, they yielded just 22 in a 6-0 blowout loss to Columbus. 4. Welcome to the NHL It was the lockout year (2005-06) and a young Jason Spezza was playing in Jerry DAmigos hometown of Binghamton, New York. DAmigo was just in bantam hockey then, but it was there at a team function with the Senators AHL affiliate – spaghetti dinner! – that he met Spezza. Befitting of his welcome into the NHL, the 22-year-old lined against the Senators captain over the weekend and was suitably in awe. "It was just crazy just seeing him out there and playing against him," DAmigo told the Leaf Report. "I actually thought to myself Im like wow this actually really happened." 5. Road to the NHL Picked in the sixth round of the 2009 Draft, DAmigo played in 208 games with the Marlies before finally getting his first NHL opportunity with the Leafs. "Its definitely been awhile," said DAmigo, limited to just under five minutes against the Kings. "The three years I spent in the minors, it seems like a long time, but when [I was called up] obviously everything kind of flushes from your mind and you dont think about that stuff anymore. You just think about that youre here and youre not wanting to leave basically." DAmigo arrived at his first NHL training camp in the fall of 2010 amid considerable hype and (probably unfair) expectation. There was even talk that he might crack the Leafs opening night lineup. But when that failed to materialize the buzz on the former American World Junior star quieted down to the point of his long-awaited debut against the Stars on Dec. 5. "It was one of those things where I had high hopes to make it, but I didnt know how hard it was going to be and then I sort of got that," DAmigo said. "You want to think its going to happen soon, but it doesnt. It takes a lot of hard work and a lot of learning of systems, learning how to prepare on and off the ice basically and thats what I had to do the past couple years to sharpen those tools a little bit and be where I am now." Former Marlies coach and now Oilers bench boss Dallas Eakins often spoke of the need for DAmigo and other young Toronto prospects to learn what it takes to become a professional. "And you dont really notice it until it happens, until you see the progression that youve made," DAmigo said. "I can see my first year, my weight, my eating habits were terrible. Ive had guys along the way that helped me, especially Dallas, and a lot of other coaches and players as well." Stats Pack 6-9-3 – Leafs record over the past 18 games. 4 – Games this season in which the Leafs have outshot their opponent. 4 – Consecutive games with a point for Jake Gardiner. Gardiner has a goal and three assists in that span and now has 10 points in 31 games this season. 19:28 – Minutes for Morgan Rielly against the Kings. 1 – Goal for Cody Franson this season, scoring his first against the Kings on a five-on-three advantage. 216 – Consecutive games streak snapped Wednesday for Dion Phaneuf, who served the first of a two-game suspension against the Kings. 9 – Consecutive games in which the Leafs have allowed a power-play goal. 6 – Shots for David Clarkson against the Kings, a season-high. 35-21 – Shots advantage for the Leafs at even-strength. Special Teams Capsule PP: 1-3Season: 24 per cent (4th overall) PK: 1-2Season: 76.6 per cent (27th overall) Quote of the Night "Sometimes you dont deserve wins and you get them and we were on the opposite of that maybe tonight." -Mason Raymond, on falling to the Kings despite the largely positive performance. Up Next The Leafs get right back at it on Thursday night, visiting the Blues in St. Louis. Fake Yeezy Boost 350 V2 . "Im proud, obviously. Its been a long day, but now Im a Crystal Palace player, Im very happy," Bannan said. "The seasons been started now for a couple of weeks and Ive not featured at Villa. Fake Yeezys Store . This week, topics cover the World Series champion Red Sox, John Farrell and what to look forward to this off-season. http://www.fakeyeezysforsale.com/ . Jagr had a goal and two assists, Andy Greene scored 43 seconds into overtime and Marek Zidlicky had two goals as the Devils rallied past the Washington Capitals 5-4 Saturday night.It is January 27, 2006 and UEFAs members are all gathered together in Switzerland for the draw of the 2008 European Championships. For the draw that day Spain are placed in pot two and ranked by the co-efficients as the thirteenth best side in Europe. They are given a group led by Sweden. It is now the summer and the Spanish are in Germany for the World Cup. They never look like a power and are thrashed by France in the last 16. Three months later a team featuring Iker Casillas, Sergio Ramos, Carles Puyol, Xavi, Xabi Alonso, David Villa and Fernando Torres lose 3-2 to Northern Ireland. A month later they are beaten 2-0 by Sweden, trailing for 80 minutes of the match. Spain are nobodies on a track to a major tournament in third gear, preparing to fail once again at a major tournament. Coach Luis Aragones thought differently. He saw the special players he had and demanded they change their style. It was the first seed that was planted that led to the losers becoming winners. "Aragones changed our style, no longer regularly crossing from those wide areas. It was then when he decided to put his faith in the smaller players, said midfielder Marcos Senna. Spain made it to Euro 2008 and when David Villa scored a 92nd minute winner against the aforementioned Sweden in the group stages, people still didnt believe in their credentials. They always fail and will again was the public sentiment. It is June 22, 2008 and Spains quarterfinal game against Italy has ended 0-0. Time for penalties. Their record from the spot in such scenarios was 2-4 in major tournaments. Losers again. Cesc Fabregas, only 21, changed everything when he slotted home the winner that night in Vienna. Sure, Spain were delighted to win but the overriding emotion was relief. Relief that led to belief. Russia, beaten already in the group stages, were easy opponents in the semifinal and then Germany were defeated 1-0 on a sublime pass from Xavi and a clinical finish from Torres. From losers to winners inside two years. Vicente Del Bosque took over from Aragones after Euro 2008. "Some said it was the worst time to inherit the squad, it was the best," he would later say. Now they were winners, under the guidance of the brilliant Del Bosque, Spains integral players took over and their outstanding football brains became the difference. At the 2010 World Cup they lost to Switzerland in the first game but as European champions they didnt think of themselves as flops. David Villa and Andres Iniesta got them into the knock-out stages and against Portugal in the last 16, another tight game, one moment of brilliance was the difference. Iniesta danced outside the box, saw a gap between the channels for Villa to run on to but it was a tad too slow. "I had seen the pass by Andres, meant for Villa, so I just backheeled it," Xavi would say. Villa did the rest. 1-0 Spain. Helped by the brain of the master. It would be 1-0 Spain again defeating Paraguay in the quarterfinals, a game that was far from easy and again won on the field and in the mind. Iker Casillas saved a penalty from Oscar Cardozo but it was not on instinct. Spains intelligence rose again. Casillas recapping the game said; "Pepe (Reina, backup goalie) is obsessed with how the opposition takes penalties, with his help I knew he would go that way." Reina added: Cardozo, in tight matches, always went to his safe side." Spain would win 1-0, again led by Iniesta and finished by Villa, to finally get beyond the quarterfinals. Through their brilliance on the field and their preparation off it they were knocking down barriers past Spanish teams fell over. "We broke old ways of thinking (that day), that we were inferior to others," said Del Bosque. The semifinal against Germany was equally as tight. Spain controlled the game, showed Germany what they needed to do to improve, but they still couldnt score. Xavi recalled: "At half-time Puyol said we had taken three or four corners already and said if you put it near the penalty spot, then we could cause problems." In the 73rd minute at Durban that day, Xavi produced another stunning assist in a major game, and Puyol did exactly what he said. 1-0 Spain. Another victory won by their brilliance on and off the pitch. By now Spain were easily the best team in the world. They just needed a game to prove it. And 116 minutes. Iniesta, fittingly, delivered the knock out punch and Spain were champions of the world. They had conceded fewer goals than any previous winner. They had changed the game annd set the standard. Fake Yeezy Boost 350 V3. Since losing to Sweden almost four years earlier they had trailed just five times, none more than 46 minutes, losing just once to Switzerland. Qualifying for Euro 2012 was much the same. They went down a goal to the Czechs but came from behind to win, as they always did. They were huge favourites for Euro 2012 despite star striker Villa being ruled out injured. Del Bosque used it as an opportunity to try something new. The great innovators, who were being copied by everyone - after all, winners are always imitated - were changing their identity again. Fabregas, as a false nine, scored three minutes after Italy opened the scoring in the first game and Spain would never trail again. The false nine gave them great mobility, dropped deep, controlled the space, and stopped the opposition starting transitions. France were destroyed in the quarters, and then came another tight game with Portugal. 0-0, time for penalties. Del Bosque recalls the moment as easy as many of his players wanted to take one. "We made one late switch, replacing Iniestas order with Fabregas, because he wanted to take the last one, remembering four years earlier." Intelligence once again coming to the fore. Fabregas scored the final penalty and Spain went on to crush Italy in the final, again with Xavi starring with two more brilliant assists in a monumental match. Spain were accused of being boring throughout that tournament but this team was a team to watch with a smile on your face; not with frustration. They had made something very difficult look easy, had produced ball treasurers and space invaders that forced their opponents to re-think their own styles. Major tournaments like the World Cup care little for reputations; they create them. And in a knock-out tournament, where one game, one mistake, one decision can change a game it was Spain that dominated three of them in a row. During that, they not only changed their own reputations but they changed how the game was played. A decade before their success it was thought that players below six feet tall were not strong enough to deal with physical demands of the direct play that was so evident in the modern game. Then came the little masters from Spain. Their place in football history is secure. Yes, they were successful but they were also pioneers led by true footballing greats. Greats like Iker Casillas, a magnificent goalkeeper and captain who united a team divided by Barcelona and Real Madrid and no longer tolerated the antics that held the team back. Greats like Carles Puyol, a man who was never physically gifted to play at the highest level of his profession but who was a winner and who read the game brilliantly. Greats like Xavi Hernandez, simply one of the best players to play the game, and arguably the best player Spain has ever produced. The true conductor of the orchestra, the cleverest of all of midfielders, whose tactical awareness and vision we should talk about for the rest of our lives. Indeed, it isnt just Xavi that we should recount stories about. We are key witnesses; the guardians of history and in years to come will often be able to tell generations to follow just how this Spain team were. That book closed on a raucous night at the Maracana on Tuesday. It was not the death of tika-taka, far from it, instead it was simply the end of a team thats core players struggled to still play together. Many of their core players were off form and they were not a team built to play from behind against talented teams. From that loss in Sweden in 2006 to the start of this World Cup, the World and European champions had trailed in just seven of 54 competitive matches, winning 47 of them and losing just once. Chasing a game against a top side, their pivot of Sergio Busquets and Xabi Alonso struggled for the second straight game. Casillas, past his prime and not sharp could do nothing. Xavi, dropped, watching on the bench was powerless. It was a sad ending to a wonderful chapter in the sport. Sure, Spain will come again. At 30, Iniesta must surely delight many a neutral who desires to see him play in another World Cup, and legitimate world class players like Gerard Pique, Sergio Ramos, Sergio Busquets and David Silva will not be going anywhere. They will be joined by many young stars that they have coming and it will not surprise anyone to see this team win another major tournament in the next decade. However, theyll never be like they were. Our parents had Brazil 1958-1970 and we had Spain 2008-14. We should never forget them. ' ' '