Maple Leafs 4 - 3 Avalanche
Final
  for this game

Reimer and playoff-hopeful Leafs head to Colorado

Mar 24, 2011 - 3:17 PM (Sports Network) - If the Maple Leafs do rally to claim a playoff spot, they'll open up the first round on the road. That should be just fine with rookie goaltender James Reimer.

First Toronto has to get there and it continues that quest tonight at the Pepsi Center against the hosting Colorado Avalanche, who have begun to put the pieces back together following an epic slide.

Toronto picked up a 3-0 victory at Minnesota on Tuesday night, winning the opener of a three-game swing and improving to just 16-17-3 as the guest this season. Reimer, though, is one reason that the club has nearly gotten back to .500 on the road.

Reimer made 29 saves to beat the Wild and is an excellent 11-3-1 with a 2.48 goals-against average in 16 road games. He has never faced the Avalanche.

Joffrey Lupul, Carl Gunnarsson and Mikhail Grabovski all backed Reimer with goals on Tuesday for the Maple Leafs, who remain 10th overall in the Eastern Conference and five points back of a postseason spot with eight games to play.

"We didn't get any help tonight [in the playoff race], but it's still a big game and a big win," Toronto defenseman Luke Schenn said. "We would be even further behind if we didn't get the two points, so it's important."

Toronto has won two straight and four of its last six overall. The Leafs could be without both Darryl Boyce (upper body) and Mike Komisarek (groin) tonight as both skaters are questionable.

Tonight's meeting in Denver seemed like a gimmie to the Leafs a week ago, but the Avalanche have put together back-to-back wins since a 1-18-2 stretch, recording both victories in a shootout. After stopping a 10-game slide with a win at Edmonton last Saturday, the Avs won consecutive games for the first time since Jan. 14-18 by beating Columbus, 5-4, on Tuesday.

On the night he joined Joe Sakic and Adam Foote as the only players in team history to play in 900 career games with the franchise, Milan Hejduk had the lone goal of the shootout to lift his team to victory. Hejduk had missed the past four games with a shoulder injury and remains one tally shy of reaching the 20-goal mark for an 11th straight season, which would tie Sakic's club record.

Daniel Winnik forced overtime on a goal with just 3.3 seconds left in regulation, while Matt Duchene scored twice to give him four tallies and four assists in his last five games. Brian Elliott made 29 saves through overtime and another three stops in the tiebreaker.

"Just getting into overtime was huge. We had to battle back hard," Elliott said. "We have to play the role of spoiler and take pride in that."

Colorado stopped an eight-game slide at home with its first victory at the Pepsi Center since Jan. 24 and is expected to go with Elliott tonight for a third straight win. He is 3-5-1 with a 3.05 GAA lifetime versus the Leafs.

Both Foote (foot) and Philippe Dupuis (illness) are questionable for tonight.

The Avalanche have won three of four and four of their last six versus the Maple Leafs, including last year's 4-1 road victory in the lone meeting between the clubs. Toronto, though, snapped a three-game slide in Denver with a 7-4 triumph back on Jan. 29, 2009.






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