Friday night's loss to the Chicago Blackhawks was more than a hit in the standings for the Toronto Maple Leafs. Forward Michael Peca was injured following a collision with Blackhawks defenceman Jim Vandermeer. Peca suffered a fractured tibia as a result of the contact.

Yesterday Peca had surgery on the fractured leg, which required screws and plating to secure multiple fractures across the bone. The surgery was successful, but the minimum downtime for such an injury is three months, and it is unlikely he will be back on the ice for the Leafs this year unless they make the post season. And that is looking less likely every day.

Quick Shave:
Way to go Phoenix! This was either a case of the Phoenix Coyotes playing way over their heads, or the Anaheim Ducks taking them for granted. Regardless, Shane Doan and Fredrik Sjostrom scored two goals 13 seconds apart late in the third to defeat the Ducks 2-0, and give the Yotes faithful, a very nice Christimas present. Another team delivering a holiday surprise to their fans this week, as well as last night are the St. Louis Blues. The Blues dumped the Eastern Conference's best team in the Buffalo Sabres last night 3-2 in overtime. Bill Guerin potted a pair of goals including the game winner. So two of the worst teams in the league (statistically speaking of course) defeated the two best teams in the NHL last night! Another team in the spirit of giving last night was the Nashville Predators, as they put 7 pucks in the Los Angeles Kings stockings. The Predators shutdown the Kings for the 7-0 win. The San Jose Sharks defeated the Calgary Flames 4-1 last night. Sharks keeper Evgeni Nabokov made 21 saves on the evening and has won his last four starts. The New York Rangers have now lost 5 in a row, and their second consecutive when entering the third with a lead. The Rangers gave up a 3-0 lead last night to the Tampa Bay Lightning and allowed Dan Boyle to join the HTC and help his club to the 4-3 win. New York Islanders Rick DiPietro is really answering the bell after signing his 15 year contract. Last night the Isles netminder stopped all 26 Columbus Blue Jackets shots he faced for the 4-0 win, and his third victory by way of shutout this season. The Islanders are now just 2 points behind the 1st place Devils, and 1 point behind the second place Rangers.

Well I guess that's it for today. I want to wish all my boys Happy Holidays and thanks as always for the support!

Your friend on eggnog,
Captain Bosh