Jonas Gustavsson Meets First of Many Milestones Against The Bruins

by Eric LaForge… A lot of people are talking about the great win the Maple Leafs had over the Bruins the other night in Toronto.

However, I think that’s a little bit less important than Gustavsson’s milestone. Most of you know that Gustavsson made his first career shutout last night against the Bruins.

This was his first start since the heart surgery that put him on the sidelines.

When the Maple Leafs put Gustavsson on the ice at the beginning of the season, they were trying to develop him into a solid goalie that could win a lot of games in the future. They really didn’t have any other choices, although Toskala doesn’t look like too bad of an option right now.

Last night, Gustavsson had everything going for him. It seemed like everybody wanted him to get the shutout. The offense was putting pressure on Boston, and the defense only made a few big mistakes.

However, Gustavsson kept coming up huge. The had a couple of chances to score a goal, but there weren’t really any “that shot should have gone in” moments.

I thought that the defense did a great job protecting Gustavsson and allowing him to make crucial saves.

Although the defense hasn’t been outstanding recently, it has been better than it was at the beginning of the season. Hopefully, they will play this way for the rest of the season.

Because if they can, they may still make the playoffs.

See more of my NHL opinions at my blog, TipsForHockey.com