DENVER – Even a six-game win streak isnt enough to ease the nerves of a head coach. “Coaches never breathe easy,” said Randy Carlyle with a chuckle after his team pulled out an unlikely 5-2 win in Colorado. Make it six straight for the Maple Leafs, who despite the challenges of the blistering Avalanche – one regulation loss in the previous 10, thin air of the Mile High City, and third game in four nights, managed to overcome with two points in the second tilt of a four-game road trip. The primary components of the win streak stood tall yet again. There was more terrific goaltending, this time from James Reimer, who stopped 35 of 37 Avalanche flurries. There was continued dominance from Phil Kessel, who extended his wild point streak to seven games with a pair of goals. There was another quick strike in the opening frame. And there was another fine special teams outing, the Leafs scoring again on the power-play while halting a scorching Colorado man advantage in all four opportunities. Sunny times roll on in the dead of winter for a once victory-challenged squad. “Theres a lot more life in the room,” said Dion Phaneuf after the latest victory. “Weve got a confidence in our dressing room right now that we feel good about ourselves. And thats a good feeling for a team.” Its been eight years since a Toronto club won six in a row, the last run coming during the 2005-06 season. This streak was especially unforeseen considering how dour the scene looked less than two weeks earlier and really for the better part of the season. The Leafs had just four wins in regulation during a stretch of two months and had dropped four consecutive games in the early days of 2014, including a pair of disastrous blowout losses to the Rangers and Hurricanes. But from those ashes has risen an unlikely string of victories – including four in regulation in this run alone – some good fortune aligning with good goaltending, strong special teams and elevated performance from some of the teams top guns, notably Kessel and the top line. “It was a tough stretch,” said Kessel, who has 26 goals on the year, “but we stayed positive and we fought our way out of it and were on a pretty good roll right now.” Five Points 1. En Fuego About the hottest hes ever been as an NHL player, Phil Kessel added two more points to a scorching seven-game point streak. Kessel, who scored twice against the Avalanche and now has goals in four straight games, has six goals and 14 points during the sizzling run. “Hes a mutant almost,” Morgan Rielly beamed to the Leaf Report during Tuesdays game. “Hes just scoring. Hes getting points. Hes happy. Hes flying around out there so its been great. Hes one of the top players in the world and hes proving it.” Kessel managed the two markers, but could have ended up with three or four considering the dozen or so opportunities he had on this night. He scored his first on a breakaway, beating Semyon Varlomov far-side, adding another on a rebound opportunity. “What did he have like 12 shots on goal tonight,” van Riemsdyk said of his linemate, who managed eight shots. “It was pretty incredible the display he put on.” “I couldve had a bunch tonight,” Kessel agreed. “I missed some good chances.” 2. Scoring First With the first of two goals from Kessel – a stretch pass from Dion Phaneuf feeding the winger – Toronto scored first for the fifth time during their rare six-game win streak, a point of emphasis for a team thats been outscored in first periods all season. “That was a big thing weve been keying on is having better starts,” said Tyler Bozak on Tuesday morning. “When you get that first goal the odds say that youve got a way better chance of winning so thats something that we want to do as much as we can.” Scoring first against the Avalanche was especially important. Colorado entered the night with 25-1-3 record when they landed the games first goal. And though the Leafs didnt exactly storm out of the gate – they were being outshot 11-2 at one point, no doubt stung by the altitude – they did manage to hang in, mostly due to the early efforts of James Reimer. “Reims stood tall for us,” said Carlyle of Reimer, who won his second straight start. “Thats what were asking of our goaltenders. When you get a chance to get in there give us what you can … Give us goaltending that you can hang your hat on.” 3. No Fly Zone James van Riemsdyk took hold of the team lead with his eighth power-play goal of the year against Colorado, redirecting yet another Cody Franson point shot beyond Varlamov for the Leafs second goal. “JVRs got a no-fly zone,” Franson chirped afterward. “Put it in a certain airspace its going down.” van Riemsdyk has proven adept at the tactic of tipping pucks, a skill-set he began practicing on the driveway of his home as a kid. That practice picked up when he reached the NHL in Philadelphia. Flyers assistant coach Joe Mullen helped the former University of New Hampshire star formulate a daily routine for working on it. And now at the end of just about every on-ice workout, the 24-year-old does exactly that. “I owe a lot of that to him because he would hammer away some slappers at me every single day,” said van Riemsdyk of Mullen. “And then Id have Chris Pronger breathing down my neck, getting me out there before practice sometimes doing it. Ive worked on it a lot over the years. It comes a little bit more naturally thanks to those guys.” 4. Offence from the D The Leafs stable of defenders barely made a blip on the offence in the opening two months of the season – just three goals in the first 28 games. Since that point, however, theyve offered a much greater contribution. The group had scored at least a goal in four consecutive games before Tuesday, totaling 17 on the year and a hearty 14 in the past 24 games. And though they didnt find the scoreboard against the Avalanche they did manage to aid in the attack. A pair of point shots – one from Franson on van Riemsdyks 20th of the season and one from Jake Gardiner on Nazem Kadris 13th this season – were redirected for goals. “Our job is to get the puck through or make plays with it up top,” said Phaneuf, who sits second on the team with 20 points this season. “Our forwards have done a really good job down-low of getting us the puck and giving us some time and moving it quickly up to us [at the point]. Weve been able to get some pucks through with some good screens and when you do that you generate chances and thats what weve had success with.” 5. Lead Protection Third period lead protection has been a recurring struggle for the Leafs this season – theyve been outscored 61-42 – and one thats been tested amid the win streak. Just a night earlier in Phoenix, the club had some difficulty protecting a big lead in the final frame – lackadaisical at times, according to Carlyle – before pulling out an eventual win. Again on Tuesday they were tested, but after a quick goal from Nathan MacKinnon, which closed the gap to 4-2, the club gradually found its bearings. “Hopefully this is a sign of growth for our group and we can continue to go forward,” said Carlyle. “Theyve got a lot of offence,” Phaneuf said of the high-powered Avalanche. “Theyre coming with four guys the whole time. We gave up some chances, but really we kept a lot of it to the outside. And when they were coming they obviously were pushing when theyre down by as many as they were. We did a good job holding them off.” Bonus Point – Man Advantage Now ranked third in the NHL, the Toronto power-play struck for the seventh time in the six-game win streak. The unit has sizzled with a 31 per cent success rate during the run (7-23). Stats-Pack 7 – Consecutive games with a point for Phil Kessel, who has six goals and 14 points in that span. 4 – Consecutive games with at least a goal for Kessel. .930 – Even-strength save percentage this season for James Reimer, tied for sixth-best among NHL netminders with at least 20 starts. 4 – Consecutive games with a point for Nazem Kadri, who has two goals and six points in that span. 8 – Shots on goal for Kessel on Tuesday, a season-high. 19 – Points in the past 16 games for Tyler Bozak, who had two assists against Colorado. Special Teams Capsule PP: 1-4Season: 22.9% (4th) PK: 4-4Season: 77.8% (27th) Quote of the Night “JVRs got a no-fly zone. Put it in a certain airspace its going down.” -Cody Franson, on James van Riemsdyks redirection abilities. Up Next The Leafs continue their four-game road swing in Dallas on Thursday night. Devonte Graham Hornets Jersey . Speaking with TSN 1050 following Brendan Shanahans introductory press conference, the Leafs GM also addressed the clubs perceived leadership issues and the type of working relationship that can be expected within Torontos front office. Caleb Martin Hornets Jersey . JOHNS, N. https://www.hornetslockerroom.com/Larry-...Edition-Jersey/. I wondered how NHL coaches would feel about a playoff schedule that allowed them to open a best-of-seven series on the road, which many claim to favour, yet still gave them the precious home-ice edge for a seventh game. Miles Bridges Jersey .com) - Virginia is for loving Latrell Scott. Robert Franks Jersey . -- The way Ted Ligety carved into turns looked so easy. PORTLAND, Ore. -- LaMarcus Aldridge wasnt even sure he was going to play against the Clippers. Portlands top scorer and rebounder had his wisdom teeth removed on Sunday. So on Thursday night he was still in some pain. Worse, he hadnt had much to eat. But Aldridge came out and had 32 points and 10 rebounds for the Trail Blazers in a 116-112 overtime victory over the Clippers. "Ive had nothing but soup for the last four days," he lamented. "So I was a little worried about my energy levels." In the end, he didnt even have a turnover as the surprising Blazers upped their record to an NBA-best 24-5. Portland has won seven of their last eight games, and theyve dropped just two at home this season. The Clippers, playing the second of a back-to-back, mounted a challenge after trailing by as many as 11 points in the fourth quarter. Blake Griffin had 35 points and 11 rebounds, while Chris Paul finished with 34 points and 16 assists. Aldridge hit a fadeaway with 39 seconds left in overtime and Portland went ahead 110-109. Griffin missed a layup on the other end before Nicolas Batum made a pair of free throws to make it 112-109 with 26.5 seconds to go. After Griffin dunked to narrow it again, Damian Lillard made two free throws for Portland. Portland clung to a 114-112 lead with 13.4 seconds left and padded it with Wesley Matthews foul shots. Paul missed a 3-point attempt as time ran out. Aldridge scored all of Portlands field goals in overtime, and finished with his ninth game this season with at least 25 points and 10 rebounds, second only to Minnesotas Kevin Love. As for his teeth? "Its a little bit throbbing," he shrugged. It was the second of back-to-back losses for the Clippers. Earlier Thursday, the NBA said its referees made a mistake when they ejected Griffin in the teams 105-103 loss to the Warriors on Wednesday night. Griffin got his second technical with 10:43 left after scuffling with Andrew Bogut, following Warriors forward Draymond Green to the showers after they got into it at the end of the third. "A common foul should have been called on Griffin for initially attempting to dislodge the Warriors Andrew Bogut and a technical foul should have been asssessed to Bogut for grabbing Griffin by the shirt and wrestling with him," Rod Thorn, the NBAs president of basketball operations, said in a statement.dddddddddddd Clippers coach Doc Rivers said he thought Griffin handled the situation well. "Everyone is a target at some point in their career," Rivers said. "You just have to play through it." It was the second ejection for the Clippers in as many games. Forward Matt Barnes was ejected with 56 seconds left in the third quarter of a 120-116 OT win over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Sunday night. Barnes fouled Love. "Its a long season. Were in a bad ejection rut right now," Rivers said. "Well get out of it." No one got tossed on Thursday. Mo Williams made back-to-back 3s to give Portland a 34-22 in the first half. The Clippers responded with a 9-0 run to close to 34-31, but Aldridge scored six straight points in an 8-2 run and Portland stretched the margin to 42-33. Pauls 3-pointer closed the Clippers to within 47-46 at the intermission. Dorell Wright hit a 3-pointer that gave the Blazers an 84-75 lead early in the fourth quarter. But the Clippers clawed back in, and Pauls pull-up jumper made it 97-96 for Los Angeles first lead of the second half. After Aldridges tip-in, Paul added another jumper to give the Clippers a 99-98 lead then nailed a step-back 21-footer from the corner with 9.3 seconds left. Undaunted, Batum hit a 3-pointer to tie it at 101 with 5.3 seconds to go. Paul missed a 17-footer to send the game into overtime. "I got right where I wanted to -- I probably tricked myself too much, I dont even know if they had a foul to give," Paul said. "And with five seconds left I think I went a little too quick because I thought they were going to try and use one of their fouls. I didnt think I would end up as wide open as I was -- Ive got to make that shot. " Notes: The game was the first of three meetings between the two teams this season. The Clippers claimed last seasons series 3-1. ... The Clippers 14 first-quarter points are the fewest theyve scored in the first quarter. ... DeAndre Jordan finished with 19 rebounds before fouling out in overtime. ... Barnes also fouled out in OT. ' ' '