Sparks to start for Maple Leafs against Sharks as Bernier’s struggles continue

Stamkos is in the final year of his deal, his uncertain contract saga is the talk of the hockey world, specifically in his hometown of Toronto, where Maple Leafs fans are clamoring for the Markham, Ontario native to return home in free agency this summer.

Coach Mike Babcock doesn’t have much faith in Jonathan Bernier, who was beaten for five goals on 27 shots in a 5-4 overtime loss to Tampa Bay on Tuesday.

Bozak set up van Riemsdyk for his ninth goal of the season with a pass into the crease at 18:03 of the first period, and Toronto led 2-1. “But we battled back, we let (Vasilevskiy) get some big saves at the end”.

Nikita Kucherov had a goal and an asisst, Andrej Sustr finished with a pair of assists while Anton Stralman scored his third of the season with 35.5 seconds left in the second period to pull Tampa Bay to within a goal. “To me, it was just to focus on what I can do”.

Bernier wasn’t a pariah by any means when he was giving up ill-timed goals, but how he has handled his demotion could earn him even more respect among teammates. His contract situation will continue to linger, but he tried to block out the noise for a night.

“I don’t have a win”, he said.

“I just think that the puck’s going in, so Sparks will start”, Babcock told a group of reporters. It’s exciting that way.

From the drop of the puck, the Leafs (10-14-5) played with the energy of a team that hadn’t played in a week.

First-period goals by Bozak and van Riemsdyk gave the Leafs the lead, and Rielly added another in the second after an important five-on-three penalty kill.

Jonathan Bernier is not the only Maple Leaf who knows what a slump feels like.

Winnik deflected a shot by Roman Polak past Vasilevskiy 13:28 into the third period to tie it back up and get the Leafs to overtime. Then as the second penalty expired, Marchessault broke his stick on a one-time attempt that allowed the Leafs to go the other way on a 2-on-1 that was finished by Morgan Rielly at 11:34 and Tampa Bay looked like a team ready to pack it in for the night.

“It was awesome, we showed no quit and that’s how good teams play, ” Namestnikov said. “We had run support tonight, we were unable to get it done”. Sparks will be back in net for the Leafs on Thursday against the San Jose Sharks. Maple Leafs D Frank Corrado played his first game since being claimed from Vancouver on October 6….

“(Hertl) had tweaked something last game”, DeBoer said.

The success of the Leafs’ plan, which led to James Reimer aggravating an injury and Garret Sparks playing more than anyone could have expected, can’t be judged yet. Another callup, wing Yanni Gourde, making his National Hockey League debut on his 24th birthday, picked up his first career point on the tying goal by fellow birthday boy Blunden, who turned 29.