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SAN JOSE — To the great relief of the Toronto Maple Leafs, Vesa Toskala declared himself ready to start in goal Saturday night against his former team, the San Jose Sharks.
Toskala, who returned from a groin injury on Wednesday night against the Anaheim Ducks, was the cause of much concern because he was pressed into duty the next night against the Los Angeles Kings when Andrew Raycroft fell apart in the first period. According to Leafs general manager John Ferguson, there was some tenderness in Toskala's groin muscles after the game and prize prospect Justin Pogge was called up from the Leafs' farm team just in case Toskala could not play.
"I wouldn't be risking anything if I didn't feel good," Toskala said after the morning skate when he was asked if his excitement at facing his former team for the first time made him less prudent about playing with an injury.
"I feel completely healthy," he said.
Leafs goalie Vesa Toskala has been deemed healthy enough to start against the Sharks Saturday night. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
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Toskala, who battled Evgeny Nabokov for the No. 1 goalie's job with the Sharks for a few years, was traded to the Leafs last June along with Mark Bell for first-round and second-round picks in the 2007 NHL entry draft plus a fourth-rounder in 2009.
Leafs head coach Paul Maurice, whose job is up in the air along with Ferguson's, was practically giddy after Saturday's morning skate. This was partly gallows humour, but also because Toskala was able to play. This not only gives the Leafs their best chance of a win against the powerful Sharks but it spares Maurice and Ferguson the inevitable second-guessing if Pogge had to make his NHL debut in a bad situation.
"I think it's always interesting when you return home, where you spent time and have relationships," Maurice said. "[Toskala] knows the boards, he knows the shooters. I hope we don't expose him to too many of them right away."
Maurice was even able to joke about sloughing off the media storm over the Leafs' latest bout of losing, which has them at 10 losses in their last 12 games and outscored 10-2 so far on their three-game trip to California. He said there is a big difference between what is done on the ice and what is said and written, implying not much of the latter should be taken seriously.
"Some of you are good at your jobs," he said to a group of reporters. "But I haven't called any of you guys for your input on the power play for a reason."
