Getty Images The player deposed Leafs GM Brian Burke never stopped believing could be a top goalie in the NHL is playing a lot like a top goalie in the NHL.
As such, James Reimer is expected to make his fifth straight start tonight when Toronto hosts Carolina.
Reimer, 24, is 3-2-0 with a .922 save percentage and 2.46 GAA. On Saturday, he stopped 33 of 34 Boston shots in a 1-0 loss.
Of note, Leafs head coach Randy Carlyle is quick to credit new goalie coach Rick St. Croix — who replaced Francois Allaire (who didn’t leave on the best terms) in September — for Reimer’s improved play.
“I think [Reimer's] comfortable,” Carlyle said recently. “Rick St. Croix has had a measured amount of change with him and that’s not throwing anybody under the bus that was previously here. It’s just a different approach in some things.
“He looks confident. It looks like a lot of pucks are hitting him, because he’s in the right position. We’ve tried to make him a little more aggressive in certain situations. All those things are a culmination of a player coming into camp in the best shape he’s been in and in the right frame of mind.”
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Want to win in the playoffs? Have a two-way player to lead the way
May 18, 2013, 9:44 AM EDT
AP
Selke finalists show us how it’s done.
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Boston leads New York 1-0 in the series.
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‘It’s up in the air right now’: Kings’ Clifford skating, but a trip to San Jose?
May 18, 2013, 12:45 AM EDT
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Oh, the mystery.
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Ottawa has yet to play with the lead in this series.
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Ottawa in a hole.
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Pittsburgh now two wins away from advancing to conference final.
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Senators’ coach MacLean: Karlsson ‘wasn’t one of the best players’
May 17, 2013, 11:08 PM EDT
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Drastic reduction in ice time in Game 2 compared to Game 1.
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Continue the debate.
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Sid the Kid nets three.
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Video: Penguins’ Vokoun denies Senators’ Greening on the breakaway
May 17, 2013, 9:49 PM EDT
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Ottawa hanging around in the third period.
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Rangers’ Staal skates Friday, but no word on possible return
May 17, 2013, 9:26 PM EDT
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Played once in these playoffs.
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Video: Crosby scores hat trick, hits playoff milestone against Senators
May 17, 2013, 9:01 PM EDT
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Pittsburgh up in Game 2, up in the series.
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After 12-game absence, Miller could return to Wings lineup on Saturday
May 17, 2013, 8:07 PM EDT
AP
He’s been out with a broken thumb.
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Torres won’t appeal suspension, Sharks call punishment ‘grossly unfair’
May 17, 2013, 8:02 PM EDT
According to Sharks GM Doug Wilson.
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Havlat ‘getting closer and closer,’ could return for Sharks in Game 3
May 17, 2013, 7:12 PM EDT
Oh, and Adam Burish has a broken hand.
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AP
Shots haven’t been a problem
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Seth Jones, Nathan McKinnon and Jonathan Drouin all on hand.
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Avery: Playing for Tortorella ‘one of the best things that ever happened to me’
May 17, 2013, 5:04 PM EDT
Well, that was certainly unexpected.
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Both are tall defensemen, but only one is getting kudos for his conditioning.
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“He’s trying to do things the right way.”
