By now it should be no secret that the Detroit Red Wings lost to the Toronto Maple Leafs 5-1 the other day. They were on a three game winning streak, at that time, more than Toronto had won all season.

This is also the first winning streak the Leafs have had this season. They beat Carolina earlier this week.

Wings Injuries and Close Calls

To me, the Wings were the biggest losers during the off-season, losing a good portion of the team that took them to the Stanley Cup.

However, they’re starting to lose a lot of players during the regular season as well. Franzen is out for 3 more months, Filpulla’s out for a while, and last night, Jason Williams broke his leg, putting him out for a while.

The only positive thing that the Wings could possibly think about is the fact that Brad May returned to the lineup after being injured in Calgary.

Thankfully, he will not be another long abscense for the team.

Positives for Toronto

Toronto is playing a lot better than people give them credit for. I saw a post on frozenleafs.com that said that the Leafs are 3-0-4 in their last 7 games.

That’s ten points gained in the last 7 games. Not bad for a crappy team.

That same post also talked a little bit about the other positives that the Leafs have been having, including goalie Jonas Gustavsson.

Problems Between the Detroit Pipes

The Detroit vs. Toronto game was a battle of the defenders. The problem for the Red Wings is the same problem that has been plaguing them all season, goal tending. The defenders for Detroit didn’t do a horrible job keeping the puck away from Osgood.

Even though the Red Wings lost the game 5-1, they still outshot Toronto 36-28. Ozzie let in about a sixth of the shots that he faced. He’s going to have to play better if the Wings are going to win games.

The other problem is that Ozzie can’t be benched. His backup goalie, Jimmy Howard, is playing worst than he is. In fact, the majority of Wings fans have already given up on Howard and are looking for a replacement.

Solid Performance from Gustavsson

I’ll be honest, I don’t think that Detroit would have won even if Osgood was having an average day. He still would have let in 2-3 goals and that still wouldn’t have won the game.

The other factor that we have to consider is Gustavsson. Even though he face 36 shots from some of the best shooters in the league, he still only let one goal in.

Needless to say, Gustavsson was very happy after the game finished.

What the Future Holds for Toronto

Obviously, the Maple Leafs were very happy about beating the Western Conference Champions on home ice. However, this doesn’t signal a turnaround just yet.

I will give them a little bit of credit though, they aren’t the worst team in the league anymore. I think that Carolina is playing a lot worst than Toronto.

I also think that the Maple Leafs are starting to get used to their team. Osgood didn’t play his best hockey, but I was still impressed with the increased effort and teamwork that the Maple Leafs are using.

It’s going to be a very fun season to watch in Toronto.

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