Last night, Zach Parise's goal with 48.3 seconds left in regulation secured the Devils 2-1 win over the Maple Leafs. However, Leafs fans are angry as hell.  They wanted to know why Jamie Langenbrunner can barge into Toronto's goaltender Vesa Toskala without an interference penalty called.  In fact, Langs' collision with Toskala happened seconds before Parise found the loose puck and pushed it by the Leafs netminder. Let's review the play and determine if Langs committed a minor infraction. 

FIRST: Leafs defenseman Bryan McCabe passed the puck from his defensive end to teammate Matt Stajan situated in center ice.

SECOND: Zach Parise forced Stajan to turn the puck over to Patrik Elias who brought it back into the Leafs zone.

THIRD: Patrik Elias skated in, sending a cross ice pass to an unknown teammate (replays deem inconclusive), who returned the puck to Elias

FOURTH: Elias took a shot from the right circle, but Toskala stopped him.

FIFTH: Parise recovered the puck behind the net, circling back to towards the right circle and snapping a shot on net.

SIXTH: Vesa Toskala made the initial save on Parise but failed to cover the puck up for a faceoff.

SEVENTH: Jamie Langenbrunner, who situated himself between the hash marks, attacked the net and seemingly interfered with Toskala.  However, replays also indicated that Leafs defenseman Carlo Colaiacovo made contact with Langenbrunner as he stormed Toskala’s crease.

More importantly, Toskala fell backwards in a wild scramble in front of his net, unsure of the puck’s location.  NHL.TV replays do not reveal a good angle about Langenbrunner’s “interference” with Toskala.  It’s very possible that Colaiacovo pushed, deliberately or unintentionally, Langenbrunner into Toskala, causing the Leafs netminder to fall on his ass.

EIGHTH: Zach Parise quickly rushed to the net, slipping the puck by Toskala with 48.3 seconds left in regulation.

Toronto head coach Paul Maurice expressed his feelings about the goal.

''I think there should have been a penalty.  When a guy drives your goalie, it should be a penalty,'' Maurice said during a brief post-game press conference.  ''It's not a matter of a whistle, it's a matter of a penalty.''

In addition, TSN added a poll concerning the NHL’s instituting video replay on disputable goals.  Although I adamantly voted NO, I remained in the minority (19%), while the majority of responders voted YES (81%).  Then again, TSN remains the mainstream and most popular sports network in Canada, so it’s suffice to say that Canadian natives expressed negative feelings after yet another loss to New Jersey, clinching the four-game season sweep.

OTHER POINTS OF INTEREST:

Blame Stajan for the blunder in the final 70 seconds of a 1-1 tie.  Stajan’s error led to the Devils decisive score.

Blame Devils goaltender Martin Brodeur, who made 42 saves last night and 41 saves on Tuesday’s 4-1 win in Toronto.

Blame the Leafs power play, which finished 1-for-5, despite holding an extended power play for a crucial part of the third period.  They failed on a 5-on-3 for 14 seconds, but later took advantage of John Madden’s hooking infraction with Mats Sundin’s team-leading 31st.

Blame New Jersey for qualifying as the better team last night.  The Devils may have allowed 40 plus shots on Brodeur, but they knocked away any second chances.

Blame the goal post, which denied the Leafs three times in the first period.

BUT, don’t blame Zach Parise, Jamie Langenbrunner and Patrik Elias, who hustled from the start to the finish.

Parise finished what he started, scoring both Devils goals while Langenbrunner added two assists and Elias the secondary helper on Parise’s game winner.

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