DETROIT – Randy Carlyle made sure he was being asked about James Reimer after a one-goal loss in Detroit, pausing before he offered an assessment of the now 26-year-old understudy. “I thought he was okay, you know, just okay,” said Carlyle with a tone of evident frustration after a 3-2 defeat to the injury-riddled Red Wings squad, the Leafs third in the past four games. Long a point of stability this season Toronto goaltending has suddenly been thrown into question with Carlyles remarks, Reimers performance and the uncertain status of injured no. 1 Jonathan Bernier. Starting in place of Bernier for the second straight game – his fourth consecutive appearance – Reimer allowed three goals on 31 shots, including a game-sealing squeaker under the left arm from Daniel Alfredsson with the Leafs down one in the final minutes of regulation. It was the kind of stop Bernier has made routinely this season, one that Reimer needed to make at that point in the game and perhaps what soured Carlyle most afterward, Torontos comeback attempt ultimately falling short. “So he said I was just okay,” said Reimer, responding to Carlyles comments. “I thought I played good, but obviously youd like to make at least one of those saves in the third.” Such blunt discontent was certainly out of character for Carlyle, who rarely, if ever, singles out any one player, even under the most obvious of circumstances. He was surely agitated by the loss – which saw the Leafs drop further behind Tampa and Montreal in the race for second in the Atlantic – unhappy with the officiating and displeased with a schedule that has his club right back at it Wednesday following 10 long days on the road. To land Reimer in the cross-hairs though on this night was unfair. His team started slowly opposite a Detroit squad that was missing a slew of key components, including Henrik Zetterberg and Pavel Datsyuk. They also suffered breakdowns – Tim Gleason and Paul Ranger both caught flat-footed at the offensive blue-line – that led to Nyquists two breakaways, while also managing just two goals for the third time in four games (all losses). Whatever his motivation the remarks wont help a sketchy dynamic between coach and player, one that includes a very public stare-down from Reimer in the first period of a loss to these same Red Wings on Dec. 21. Further inflaming the matter afterward were the words of Reimers agent and close friend Ray Petkau, who tweeted, "As is customary in Toronto, when your team plays poor defensively game after game you blame your goalie." Petkau later said the tweet was not in response to Carlyles comments. Doubted and dissected often throughout his Toronto tenure and a restricted free agent to be in the summer of 2014, Reimer will probably use this latest bit of critique as motivation and for the Leafs that may be a good thing. Bernier remains out for the foreseeable future (more on that in Five Points) leaving Reimer as the go-to guy in goal with key division battles ahead against the Lightning and Canadiens. They need him to regain the form he showed last year and displayed recently in relief against the Kings, a brilliant performance that saw him turn aside all 31 shots he faced in an impressive road win. “I dont know if I was great and I would like to be great, but I thought I made some good saves when I needed to,” Reimer concluded of his evening. “Unfortunately at the end, especially that third one, you want to come and make a big save for your team there. Unfortunately wasnt the case tonight.” Five Points 1. Kessel Cools Off Cooling off from an unsustainably scorching stretch that saw him post 31 points in a 17-game span, Phil Kessel had seven shots and was a force against the Red Wings, but ultimately went point-less for the fourth straight game and sixth time in the past eight. Its the fifth time this season that the 26-year-old has gone three games or more without a point. The Leafs are now 6-19-2 on such occasions, two of those wins coming in recent weeks against the Flyers and Kings. Chasing the first 40-goal season of his NHL career – he has 34 currently – Kessel has just one goal in the past eight games. James van Riemsdyk, who thrived through a recent stretch of 11 goals and 21 points in 17 games, has also cooled some, snapping a seven-game drought with the late marker in Detroit. The Leafs have leaned heavily on their top line – which also includes Tyler Bozak – for offence, needing the likes of Nazem Kadri (two goals in the past 13 games), Joffrey Lupul (two goals in the past 13), David Clarkson (one in the past 22) and Mason Raymond (the hottest of the group with six in the past 15) to chip in regularly for support. Aside from the odd contribution, however, theyve not done so consistently. Toronto forwards were responsible for only five goals (of 12) during the five-game road trip. 2. Road Trip A road trip that began with so much promise for the Leafs – following wins in Anaheim and Los Angeles – soured at the end with losses in Washington and Detroit. Toronto finishes the season-long swing with a 2-3-0 mark, not bad, but hardly desirable. “I wouldnt call it a success,” said Jake Gardiner, who scored for the fourth time in the past six games. “We were thinking three out of five wouldve been good. Two of five is okay. Games on the road are always tough, something we have to move on from.” “This game and the last game I dont think that we played as well as we have been playing or can play so thats the negative about it,” said Carlyle. “But we battled back, we didnt quit, we found a way to get two goals tonight and make a game of it. Flush this and get ready for tomorrow.” The Leafs have played two more games than the Lightning, whom they host Wednesday, and trail them by a point. They sit three back of the Canadiens, whom they face at home on Saturday. 3. Wearing Down? Second and third among Toronto forwards in ice-time this season and both key members of Team USA at the Sochi Olympics, one might be led to wonder whether Kessel and van Riemsdyk are simply wearing down at this late stage in the season. Both have seen their ice-time rise (slightly) in March as the Leafs trend toward an 11-forward, seven-defender lineup. Kessel, who had a second period breakaway attempt stopped by Jimmy Howard, actually entered the night as the team-leader in ice-time this month, averaging more than 22 minutes. van Riemsdyk was just a touch behind at nearly 22 himself. “Its been very demanding,” said Carlyle of the schedule and its effects on playing time. “Its the first time in my career that you go out on a 10-day road trip and you come back and youve got to play back-to-back at home with your first game back. I dont know where that one comes from.” van Riemsdyk led all Toronto forwards this night with more than 22 minutes, Kessel a shade behind with just under 21, including exactly nine minutes in the third. Carlyle employed eight forwards for most of that final frame as the Leafs looked to even the score. 4. Bernier Status Nursing a groin injury, Bernier remained off the ice for the fifth consecutive day on Tuesday. He then missed his second straight game in Detroit and will sit out again at home on Wednesday when the Leafs host the Lightning. With a likely day off for the team on Thursday, his status for the weekend also appears in real doubt with a back-to-back looming against the Canadiens and Devils. That would mean a return next week at the earliest, all of which ups the pressure on Reimer to perform. “Theres always going to be that push to get your people back,” said Carlyle ahead of a tilt against the Red Wings. “Bottom line is the player makes the decision. All we can do is treat him medically, provide him with the right environment, give him the opportunity to test his injury if hes good enough to go and well make the decision based upon input from him the player.” Though hes split each and every back-to-back set between his two goaltenders this season, Carlyle would be hard-pressed to not come back with Reimer on Wednesday even in light of Tuesdays circumstance. Though hes enjoyed a fine season with the Marlies, Drew MacIntyre has yet to start an NHL game. 5. Phaneuf Scare Upended by the stick of David Legwand in the final frame of Tuesdays affair, Dion Phaneuf remained down on the ice before quickly departing for the Toronto dressing room. He returned to the bench a few moments later, chirping at ref Dan OHalloran for the non-call on Legwand. “Theres no point in talking about it,” said Phaneuf afterward. “It wasnt a slew foot, it was actually a stick, but its done and over with.” The Leafs captain said he had the wind knocked out of him on the play. He still managed to lead his team with more than 23 minutes on this night. Stats-Pack 2-3-0 – Leafs record on five-game road trip. 1 – Goals for Phil Kessel in the past eight games. 208 – Man games lost to injury for Toronto this season, a pittance compared to the 322 lost by Detroit, who were without the likes of Henrik Zetterberg, Pavel Datsyuk, Stephen Weiss, and Darren Helm on Tuesday night. 6-19-2 – Leafs record this season when Kessel does not record a point. 4 – Consecutive appearances by James Reimer, doing so for the first time this season. 6 – Consecutive games with a goal by the Toronto defence, four of which have come from Jake Gardiner. 5 – Goals from Toronto forwards on the five-game road trip. 41-48 – Leafs penalty kill over the past 16 games. Special Teams Capsule PP: 1-4Season: 20.7% (5th) PK: 4-4Season: 78.7% (28th) Quote of the Night I “I thought he was okay, you know, just okay.” -Randy Carlyle, on the performance of James Reimer against Detroit. Quote of the Night II “So he said I was just okay. I thought I played good, but obviously youd like to make at least one of those saves in the third.” -James Reimer, in response to Carlyles assessment. Quote of the Night III “Nobodys feeling sorry for us two months ago when we were missing our top two centres. I didnt see you pointing the question at us then.” -Randy Carlyle, questioned on the Red Wings injury troubles ahead of Tuesdays game. Up Next The Leafs host the Lightning Wednesday night in a key division battle at the ACC. Jordan Roland Jersey . Then youve got to worry about the other up and coming teams in the two weaker divisions in the "Junior Circuit". Nike MLB Jerseys .com) - Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson lost an appeal to have his indefinite suspension overturned, the NFL announced Friday. https://www.cheapmlbjerseysjustwholesale.com/nike-nfl-jerseys-2020.html . The 48th-ranked Williams made her first appearance in Dubai since she won her second straight title here in 2010. Shed missed the last three years either because of injury or Sjogrens Syndrome. Authentic MLB Jerseys .J. -- Fabian Johnson scored his first international goal and Clint Dempsey doubled the lead after a defensive lapse as the United States beat Turkey 2-1 Sunday in the second of three World Cup warm-up matches for the Americans before they head to Brazil. MLB Jerseys . - The Clippers have signed guard Dahntay Jones to a second 10-day contract.TSN Hockey Insiders Darren Dreger and Pierre LeBrun have the latest on Jason Spezzas future, the Kings plans for Mike Richards, possible destinations for Vincent Lecavalier, Dan Boyle, Bob Nicholson, and more. Bryan Murray made an announcement after the GMs meetings - and as was reported by Pierre LeBrun a couple of weeks ago - that Jason Spezza wants a trade out of Ottawa. Whats the latest on that? Pierre LeBrun: Yes, he made it public. As you said, we talked about this for a couple of weeks but I think that Murray felt compelled to stop playing around with this. Its not a rumour. Jason Spezza wants out and Murray has taken calls from other teams. Nothing is imminent, and Murray believes that things will heat up around the draft. But in any package for Spezza, he wants a player that helps them now plus some futures - it will be a high asking price. The Stanley Cup Final is on but GMs are already focusing about next season. We expect Brad Richards to be bought out by the New York Rangers - what about Mike Richards by L.A.? Darren Dreger: Well the Los Angeles Kings dont plan on buying out Mike Richards because then they would have to replace him. But Mike Richards doesnt want to be a fourth-line centre next year for the Kings. The Kings are expected to push Richards in the off-season to improve his conditions and get a little bit stronger. But we also know that Richards is a strong and confident young man and he may not want to follow the path that the Kings want him to follow. So this could get very interesting. Is current Philadelphia Flyer Vincent Lecavalier soon to be an ex-Flyer? Dreger: Hes a fourth-line forward making $4.5 million and I cant believe that Ron Hextall is going to want to pay him that. So the word on the street is yes, Lecavalier most definitely is in play. But keep in mind that he has a no-move clause. I know that his agent Kent Hughes has already talked to Hextall about the possibility of moving his client. There are no specific teams yet, theres no list, but if they want to move him they are going to have to go to Vinny and identify a specific place. LeBrun: To the disappointment of many teams, one player who is not on the move is Shea Weber and Im not sure why.dddddddddddd For whatever reason, his name pops up all the time as a trade target. David Poile, the GM of the Predators, after the meeting on Wednesday said, "I am never trading Shea Weber." Hes not going anywhere, theyre building their team around him...thats the end of it. Dan Boyles rights are owned right now by the New York Islanders. But could he end up a Toronto Maple Leaf? Dreger: The Toronto Maple Leafs are high on Dan Boyles list. Hes expected to alert Islanders GM Garth Snow at some point this week as to whether or not he intends to negotiate with the Islanders with the possibility of staying there after New York made the trade for his negotiating rights. I know that the Islanders have already made an offer but there is no negotiation. Boyle wants a two-year deal, and the money might be more than the Leafs are willing to pay but they definitely have interest. LeBrun: Speaking of money, the Chicago Blackhawks are going to open the vault again for Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews. Chicago GM Stan Bowman told us today that he wants them signed by July 1. He has to set up his entire off-season and his cap room by knowing how much these guys will make. Hes optimistic that these deals will get done shortly between now and July 1. Bob Nicholson has left Hockey Canada, but we will find out shortly what his new job is going to be. Dreger: Yes, very soon news will break that Bob Nicholson is jumping into the National Hockey League. He left Hockey Canada and will join the high ranks of an NHL team in a high executive capacity - above the level of president and below that of an NHL owner. But hes joining the NHL. The NHL GMs discussed the draft lottery and possibly changing the odds, but is there no consensus just yet? LeBrun: Well it was sort of a confusing day. We spoke to Tim Murray of the Buffalo Sabres who said he was relieved, because he has three first-round draft picks in 2015 and his understanding is there wont be changes to the lottery before then. But we heard from league sources that its still possible that Bill Daly and commissioner Gary Bettman will make a proposal to the Board of Governors in less than two weeks. So its up in the air at this point. ' ' '