TORONTO — Nikolai Kulemin scored
39 seconds into overtime and Jonas Gustavsson made 36 saves to outduel
Swedish counterpart Henrik Lundqvist in the Toronto Maple Leafs' 3-2
comeback victory over the New York Rangers on Saturday night.
Gustavsson extended his winning streak
to seven games, the longest run by a Maple Leafs goalie since Ed
Belfour won seven straight from Nov. 22-Dec. 6, 2003. Gustavsson hasn't
lost since before the Olympics, where he and Lundqvist were teammates on
the Swedish team.
Toronto won for the first time this
season after trailing going into the third period. Lundqvist made a
gaffe on Tomas Kaberle's goal late in the game to allow the Maple Leafs
to tie it. John Mitchell had the other goal for the Maple Leafs, who
have won nine of 12.
P.A. Parenteau and Brandon Dubinsky
scored for New York, which had a two-game winning streak snapped. The
10th-place Rangers are four points behind eighth-place Philadelphia with
seven games left.
Parenteau stole the puck high in the
Leafs zone and beat Gustavsson with a shot along the ice at 10:25 of the
opening period. It was the second career NHL goal for the 27-year-old
rookie, who was recalled from AHL Hartford on Friday.
New York extended its lead after more
sloppy play in the Toronto zone. Dubinsky skated behind the goal and
tucked the puck in with 10.6 seconds left in the first to make it to
2-0.
Mitchell got the Leafs on the board
1:33 into the second, beating Lundqvist with a high wrist shot after
receiving a backhand pass from Mikhail Grabovski. It was his sixth goal.
The Rangers mounted a quick
counterattack, but Gustavsson stretched out his left pad to rob Sean
Avery on the doorstep.
As the period wore on, some bad blood
between the teams emerged.
Dion Phaneuf and Avery shoved one
another after a whistle before the Rangers agitator was knocked out of
the game on a hit by Luke Schenn. Avery appeared to favor his left knee
when he hobbled to the dressing room with seven minutes to play in the
second.
Kaberle got the Maple Leafs even when
the defenseman fired a shot from the corner that found its way through
at 16:25 of the third period.
Notes
The Leafs sat out Garnet
Exelby and Wayne Primeau. … Rangers rookie D Matt Gilroy was scratched
for the first time and was replaced by veteran Anders Eriksson. …
Phil Kessel remained at 29 goals. Mats Sundin and Alex Mogilny are the
only Maple Leafs players to reach the 30-goal mark in 10 years. … The
exterior lights at Air Canada Centre were kept off in observance of
Earth Hour.