Sundinless: will Leafs wilt down the stretch?

one period into Wednesday night's tilt against the Philadelphia Flyers, the Leafs' captain, leader in all offensive-output categories, was felled after 8 shifts by a muscle strain and pulled himself out of a must-win game. this was probably the best news ever because a) if we lose two games, the season will be done and we can work our way down to a higher draft pick; b) if we win without the captain, we'll develop the character and grit required for high-stakes games; c) younger players have a chance to step up and build up some NHL experience. win-win-win.

i posted earlier about who i felt which players should be considered the core of the team to build around in the upcoming off-season. my sentiments were echoed a few days later by Damien Cox, a prominent sports columnist for the Toronto Star.

with Sundin out of the lineup, we were given an excellent opportunity to see which players would step their games up. lo and behold, the ones who gave us the win were the ones i listed. click for box score of the game.

note Matt Stajan's stats for the night. with the captain down, who shouldered the heavy lifting? he led the forwards in ice time (21:34), played in every situation (powerplay, short-handed, 5-on-3 shorthanded) and was called upon to take the key faceoffs that Sundin (NHL leader in faceoffs taken) would have, going 17-12 on the night. the previous night, back in Toronto, Stajan went 12-3 in the faceoff circle. when he first cracked the NHL lineup, the faceoff was his weakness. he may not have registered a point in this game, but he was instrumental in the game-winning power play goal by Kubina early in the third period. after winning the draw and gaining the zone, he cycled the puck to the point and went to the net, screening Biron on Kubina's slapshot from the left circle. all Biron could see was ass.

to the eventual GM of the Leafs: if you know what's good for you, keep Stajan.