The Maple Leafs hope Martin Havlat stays dormant for at least one more game.
The Minnesota Wild sniper, who was tough on the Leafs as a member of the Ottawa Senators and Chicago Blackhawks and has eight points in 11 career games at the Air Canada Centre, has just one goal in 14 games as the Wild prepare to meet the Leafs tonight.
“I thought his last game was one of his best," an optimistic coach Todd Richards said after practice. "It's been a hard (adjustment) for him, a new city, a new team and a new coach. And he has been compared to (departed Wild top gun) Marian Gaborik."
The Leafs will be trying to extend their points streak to eight game as well as win three straight for the first time since late last February. It promises to be a top-notch goaltending duel with Jonas Gustvasson against fellow Scandinavian Niklas Backstrom of the Wild. Leaf centre John Mitchell will try for a goal in his third consecutive game.
Across the hall, Wild winger Derek Boogaard will be trying to score his first in 174 games, an NHL high, though Richards is happy the much feared enforcer is holding his own defensively.
"Before one of his first games of the year, I didn't trust him," the coach recalled. "Now he has that trust. Everybody knows the other element he brings to our team."
Boogaard, who has only needed to rack up 11 penalty minutes this year after being well over 200 in his minor-league days, was once a winger for Leaf centre Rickard Wallin when both were playing for the Wild's AHL affiliate in Houston.
Mike Komisarek will be back on the Leafs' defence after sitting out the last half of Saturday's game with a lower body injury, but Petr Sykora and Pierre-Marc Bouchard have head injuries and are scratched from the Wild.
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TONIGHT'S LINEUPS
TORONTO
Goal
Jonas Gustavsson
Vesa Toskala
Defence
Francois Beauchemin - Ian White
Tomas Kaberle - Mike Komisarek
Jeff Finger - Luke Schenn
Forwards
Jason Blake - John Mitchell - Phil Kessel
Alexei Ponikarovsky - Mikhail Grabovski - Nikolai Kulemin
Niklas Hagman - Rickard Wallin - Lee Stempniak
Wayne Primeau - Matt Stajan - Colton Orr
MINNESOTA
Goal
Niklas Backstrom
Josh Harding
Defence
Greg Zanon - Marek Zidlicky
Nick Schultz - Brent Burns
John Scott - Shane Hnidy
Forwards
Andrew Brunette - Mikko Koivu - Antti Miettinen
Derek Boogaard - Benoit Pouliot - Owen Nolan
Chuck Kobasew - Kyle Brodziak - Cal Clutterbuck
James Sheppard - Eric Belanger - Martin Havlat
