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TORONTO – Peter Holland was riding the GO train just a couple days after he was traded to play for his hometown Maple Leafs when he was recognized by a fan. It was the kind of surreal moment that made life playing at home all the more real. "That never wouldve happened in Anaheim, California," Holland, a native of Caledon, told the Leaf Report with a chuckle. "That was pretty cool." No longer on the west coast with the Ducks, the 22-year-old enjoyed the biggest night of his NHL career in front of the hometown crowd on the Saturday night stage. With his parents and childhood skills coach (Joey Simon from Powerhouse Hockey) in the stands, Holland scored twice and added a helper as Toronto stunned the defending champion Chicago Blackhawks 7-3 at the ACC. It was the clubs first win in regulation since Nov. 19 and third in the past 20 games. Moved up in the lineup onto a unit with Joffrey Lupul and Mason Raymond – David Clarkson was serving the first of a two-game suspension – Holland scored his fourth this season and first of the game on an early power-play, notching his second on a tic-tac-toe feed from Lupul and Raymond. He would add an assist on the second of two goals from Lupul. "Theyve given me a good opportunity here and I think that as long as Im playing my game I think I have the ability to play at this level," said Holland, acquired from Anaheim in mid-November. "Obviously playing with guys like Lupul and Raymond is going to help me stick around too." A first round pick of the Ducks in 2009, Holland nearly doubled his season output with the standout performance against Chicago, now at five goals and seven points in 16 games this season. With injuries plaguing the Leafs at centre ice – Dave Bolland and Tyler Bozak are both sidelined – opportunity is there for someone like Holland to grab hold of. To this point, he had offered only brief glimpses of the skill his pedigree would infer. But with more opportunity – a career-high of over 19 minutes – he was able to show it off in a big way against the Blackhawks. "Im just kind of approaching it like its a job and it is a job," Holland said. As to the chance to play at home, after bouncing between outposts in Syracuse, Norfolk and Anaheim, Holland said its been more comfort than distraction. "If anything I think it almost relieves pressure," he said. "Youve got more of a support network around you. Its a thrill to play in front of them every night. Going back to minor hockey when your parents came to every game, driving you there and stuff, and now they can come to every home game here. Its a good feeling." Five Points 1. Response from St. Louis Only two days before shocking the Blackhawks at home, the Leafs were embarrassed on the road by the Blues. It was their eighth loss in 10 games and among the worst efforts of the year. "Off our performance in St. Louis we could not have anything close to that again," said Randy Carlyle following the win against Chicago, the leagues top team again this season. "They werent very proud of our performance. They knew that we didnt do a lot of things that we set out to do. "I thought that our hockey club responded the way they needed to respond," he continued. "They took responsibility for our actions and thats a good sign. But the most encouraging thing for us tonight was our work ethic and we stuck to our system and played it." Trekking through their most arduous portion of the schedule – which has included the Sharks, Bruins, Kings, Blues, and Blackhawks – the Leafs now face another top team in Pittsburgh on Monday. "It doesnt get any easier," said Lupul, who had four points on Saturday, "but certainly winning a game against the top team in the league gives you a little bit of confidence so hopefully we can run with it." 2. Cycle Offence Though they generated the bulk of their offence off the rush, the Leafs did manage to sustain bursts of the cycle game Carlyle has been pleading for. The fourth goal of the evening, and fourth this season from Nik Kulemin, found its way into the back of the net off such an attack. "Weve been striving for that," said Carlyle. "And in the games that we are effective it seems that we have more of that in the hockey game. Thats really what were trying to do is were trying to eliminate a one-dimensional rush team." That rush game was certainly effective, notably the line of Holland, Lupul and Raymond. "When you start to wear teams down, if you play more in their zone, your rush game becomes more effective," Carlyle said. "The players will tell you, they never get tired playing in that zone. Theyre not receiving the game. When youre attacking and youre creating more offensive zone time its a better feeling." The Leafs also benefited on this night from scoring beyond their top unit. Phil Kessel would score the seventh and final Toronto goal, his 17th this season, but the remainder of the offence came from the second and third lines. Pegged to slow down the Blackhawks imposing top trio of Patrick Sharp, Jonathan Toews, and Marian Hossa, the third line of Kulemin, Jerry DAmigo, and Jay McClement scored twice while holding their opponents off the scoresheet. "They did a heck of a job for us," said Carlyle. 3. Playing at Home In addition to the unlikely meet and greet with the fan on the GO Train, Holland said the second surreal moment of playing at home came when he put on the Leafs jersey for the first time, one he wore as a fan growing up. "I kind of let that sink in for a couple seconds there because that was a dream come true for sure," he said. Holland often made it down to Leafs games as a kid, mostly at the old Maple Leaf Gardens. "Some of my fondest memories were actually at the Garden," said Holland. "I was in there bleeding blue and white with the fans growing up." 4. Defensive Confusion A frequent frustration for Carlyle in recent weeks has been the rising tide of goals scored against from the critical areas or the zone surrounding the goal. "Its taking care of the front of your net before anywhere else," John-Michael Liles said of such improvement, prior to Saturdays game. "Ultimately, most teams are trying to draw you out of those critical areas so they can get the puck into those critical areas. Its no different than any other sport." Liles compared the tactic to soccer or basketball (where quality outside shooters draw defenders from the basket), noting the desire of an offence to space the defence out and away from the respective goal. "Its that movement (of) trying to confuse," he said. Defensive improvement stands high atop the Leafs priorities. During their ongoing struggle, theyve allowed three goals or more in 13 of 20 games, losing all but two of those games (including on Saturday). "Were trying to implement a defensive zone coverage that we can hang our hat on," said Carlyle. "Once you play better defensively then you start to become more of a team that (attacks) versus receiving the game. Thats really what has happened with our hockey club, I would say specifically in the last 15 games, is weve been receiving more than weve been attacking." 5. Shake-Up For the first time all season neither Paul Ranger nor Mark Fraser was in the lineup for the Leafs. A new-look third pairing of some speed and some skill saw John-Michael Liles paired with Morgan Rielly. The adjustment appeared an early success. "I thought they did a good job from a standpoint of we played our system and we moved the puck pretty much worrisome-free other than about five or six minutes in the second period," said Carlyle of the group. The Toronto defence has been a source of instability all season. Only one pairing has remained a constant from start to present: Carl Gunnarsson and Dion Phaneuf (save for Phaneufs recent two-game suspension). Asked prior to Saturdays game if he would consider splitting the two as he did last season – and thus balancing the group –Carlyle said no. "Its been an experiment that we felt it failed," said Carlyle. "We werent happy with that. I would say at this point we think that theyre our go-to pair. Right now, I dont think thats a possibility for us … But coaches change their minds." Searching for balance, Carlyle split Gunnarsson and Phaneuf for the first 28 games last season with Phaneuf playing alongside Korbinian Holzer and current Blackhawk Michael Kostka. By mid-March though he abandoned the plan and reconnected the teams usual top pairing. Bonus Point – Bolland Update A bit of positive news amid a difficult stretch for the Leafs saw Dave Bolland off crutches this week and walking around the Air Canada Centre on Saturday morning. "The update is that hes progressing along at the expected rate," said Carlyle without offering any concrete timeline. "Theres no great difference in where hes at versus where we thought he was going to be. Hes not ahead of schedule, hes right on schedule right now." Stats-Pack 7 - Goals for the Leafs against Chicago, a season-high. 3 - Points from Peter Holland, a career-high. 4 – Assists for Mason Raymond against Chicago, a career-high. Raymond also surpassed the 22 points he had in 46 games last season. He now has 24 points in 34 games. 19:22 – Ice-time for Holland, also a career-high. 5 – Points for Jake Gardiner in December. He had six points combined in October and November. 1 - Career NHL goal for Jerry DAmigo. DAmigo also added an assist against the Blackhawks. 2 - Goals from the Leafs third line, who also held Chicagos top unit scoreless. 9 – Games without a goal for Joffrey Lupul prior to a two-goal outing on Saturday. Lupul hadnt scored since Nov. 9 in Boston. Special Teams Capsule PP: 2-4Season: 24.3% (3rd) PK: 1-2Season: 76.7% (27th) Quote of the Night "You guys cant see it, but Im just going crazy inside right now." -Jerry DAmigo, moments after scoring his first career NHL goal. Up Next The Leafs travel to Pittsburgh for a Monday date with the Penguins. Ramon Sessions Jersey . Rockhold." Known as an aggressive striker, Belfort (23-10) instead paced himself as the engaged in the early going and showed restraint by not overcommitting against the larger Rockhold (10-2). But when the opportunity presented itself, Belfort delivered an incredible spinning heel kick that landed flush on Rockholds chin and sent him toppling to the floor. Markieff Morris Jersey . -- Gary Harris gave No. http://www.officialwizardsfanstore.com/ ... ds-jersey/. Moments after scoring and setting off another wild celebration at Minsk arena, Platt leapt into the arms of Belarusian captain Alexei Kalyuzhny. Dwight Howard Jersey . Kripps, of Summerland, B.C., and Edmontons Barnett used a terrific second run to move up two spots, putting the Canadian duo in medal contention with the final two runs set for Monday (11:15 a.m. ET, streaming live at cbc. Kelly Oubre Jr. Jersey . Earnshaw, 31, most recently spent time on loan in Israel with Maccabi Tel Aviv from Welsh club Cardiff City, which plays in Englands second-tier League Championship. Earnshaw began his career with Cardiff Citys youth program and turned professional in 1998.CHICAGO - Pau Gasol had a career-high 46 points to go along with 18 rebounds and the Chicago Bulls bounced back from two ugly losses with a 95-87 victory over the Milwaukee Bucks on Saturday night.Gasol was 17 for 30 from the field and 12 for 13 at the line. Kirk Hinrich added 16 points for Chicago, and Jimmy Butler had nine points, 10 assists and eight rebounds in the opener of a three-game homestand.The Bulls were coming off a pair of bad losses to Utah and Washington, when they shot a combined 36 per cent from the field. They werent much better against Milwaukee, finishing at 40 per cent (35 for 88), but Gasols big performance was enough to hold off the Bucks.Gasol helped the Bulls close it out in the final period. He had a driving layup that made it 87-75 with 4:01 remaining. He finished with four straight free throws, surpassing his previous career best of 44 points for Memphis against Seattle on March 28, 2006.The Bulls played without starters Derrick Rose and Mike Dunleavy. Rose, who missed much of the last 2 1/2 seasons due to a series of injuries, was sidelined by left knee soreness, and Dunleavy missed his fifth straight game with a right ankle injury.Brandon Knight scored 20 points for Milwaukee, which had won its last five road games. Jared Dudley had 15 points, and fellow reserve O.J. Mayo finished with 12.HORNETS 110, KNICKS 82NEW YORK (AP) — Kemba Walker scored 28 points and streaky Charlotte extended New Yorks losing streak to 15 games.Charlotte won its fifth in a row and did it so easily that Walker played only three quarters.Walker has played a big role in the five-game winning streak. He had 30 points in a victory over Orlando, 33 against Boston, 31 against New Orleans — when he made the go-ahead basket with 1.4 seconds left — and 29 against Toronto on Thursday night.Bismack Biyombo added 14 points, tying a career high, and 12 rebounds for the Hornets, the latest team to enjoy a laugher at the expense of the NBAs worst team — and maybe the worst Knicks team ever.The Knicks fell to 5-35 with their 25th loss in 26 games. Quincy Acy led them with 18 points.New York reaches the midway point of its schedule Thursday when it plays Milwaukee in London. The Knicks are on their longest single-season skid ever and free-falling toward their worst finish, which is 23-59 in the 82-game schedule.CLIPPERS 120, MAVERICKS 100LOS ANGELES (AP) — Blake Griffin scored 22 points, Chris Paul had 17 points and 13 assists and Los Angeles beat Dallas for its sixth win in eight games and second in a row.Jamal Crawford added 19 points, Matt Barnes had 18 points, J.J. Redick 16, and DeAndre Jordan had 13 points and 15 rebounds in the Clippers eighth win in their last 11 games against the Mavericks.Dirk Nowitzki scored 25 points and Monta Ellis had 15 of his 23 in the first half for Dallas, which had its three-game road winning streak snapped. Rajon Rondo was held to two points and eight assists in 27 minutes after going scoreless in the first half.Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle was ejected midway through the third after picking up his second technical for arguing a foul on Tyson Chandler.SPURS 108, TIMBERWOLVES 93MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Austin Dayye scored a season-high 22 points and had 10 rebounds to help San Antonio hand Minnesota its 15th straight loss.ddddddddddddPatty Mills scored 19 points and Tim Duncan added 13 points and six rebounds in 20 minutes for the Spurs (23-15), who were missing Manu Ginobili and Marco Belinelli with injuries.Minnesota (5-31) hasnt won since Dec. 10 and is tied with New York for the longest active losing streak in the NBA.Gorgui Dieng had 18 points, 12 rebounds and four blocks for the Timberwolves. Andrew Wiggins also finished with 18 points. That snapped a streak of six 20-point games for the No. 1 overall pick.TRAIL BLAZERS 103, MAGIC 92PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — LaMarcus Aldridge scored 25 points and Portland handed Orlando its sixth consecutive loss.Aldridge hit 10 of 22 shots to help the Blazers (29-8) tie Golden State for most wins in the NBA this season. Wesley Matthews added 18 points.Orlandos Nikola Vucevic scored a career-high 34 points and grabbed 16 rebounds. Victor Oladipo had 18 points and eight rebounds.76ERS 93, PACERS 92PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Michael Carter-Williams hit a running layup with 9.2 seconds left to lift Philadelphia past Indiana.Tony Wroten had 20 points to lead Philadelphia, which won consecutive games for just the second time this season and earned its third victory in the last four. The 76ers are 7-13 since opening 0-17.David West had 28 points for the Pacers, but came up short on a 13-footer at the buzzer that wouldve won it for Indiana. West had put the Pacers in front with a fadeaway 12-footer with 17.6 seconds left.PISTONS 98, NETS 93AUBURN HILLS, Mich. (AP) — Brandon Jennings scored all 20 of his points in the second half to help Detroit beat Brooklyn.Greg Monroe added 16 points and 17 rebounds for Detroit. The Pistons have won eight of nine since releasing Josh Smith.Joe Johnson led Brooklyn with 17 points. Brook Lopez had 11 points and 15 rebounds.RAPTORS 109, CELTICS 96TORONTO (AP) — Kyle Lowry scored 10 of his 19 points in the fourth quarter, James Johnson had 15 points and 10 rebounds and Toronto beat Boston to end a four-game losing streak.Lou Williams scored 19 points and Jonas Valanciunas and Amir Johnson each had 15 to help the Raptors improve to 6-0 against Atlantic Division opponents and avoid losing consecutive home games for the first time since March 2014. Toronto is 15-4 at home this season.Kelly Olynyk scored 23 points for Boston.Celtics forward Jeff Green was inactive for the second straight night and a person familiar with the situation told The Associated Press on Saturday night that Boston, Memphis and New Orleans have agreed on a five-player trade that would send him to Memphis. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the trade hasnt been announced and formal approval by the NBA is not expected until Monday morning.ROCKETS 97, JAZZ 82HOUSTON (AP) — James Harden had 30 points and five assists and Houston beat Utag for its third straight victory.Harden made four of Houstons 13 3-pointers, including two in the fourth quarter. Houston used 16 steals and forced 31 turnovers to overcome poor first-half shooting.Trey Burke and Enes Kanter each scored 16 points for Utah. 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