James van Riemsdyk, my goodness.
The Toronto Maple Leafs desperately need a win to qualify for the NHL postseason. Fighting for playoff their lives against the Pittsburgh Penguins Saturday, Leafs’ forward van Reimsdyk made sure to get his team out of an early 1-0 deficit with this an absolute beauty of a goal.
JVR knocks it out of the air and buries it! pic.twitter.com/4WbckAAUMJ
— Flintor (@TheFlintor) April 8, 2017
Frankly, van Riemsdyk’s body control on the play is outstanding. With the possibility of easily going offside, he managed to knock the puck out of the air with one hand and flip it to himself. Recovering the puck, he made a hard turn and sniped it past a helpless Marc-Andre Fleury. It’s an absolute beauty.
Undoubtedly perplexed, Penguins coach Mike Sullivan challenged the ruling as offside. But, after reviewing the play, referees determined van Riemsdyk managed to stay onside and have control of the puck. It was definitely worth a shot.
The goal took the immediate sting out of Phil Kessel opening up the scoring against his former team giving the Penguins an early lead. It also relaxed anxious fans across Toronto. The Leafs sit one point ahead of Tampa Bay. With two games left, they need a single win and they’re in.
If Toronto wins tonight and qualifies for the playoffs, Van Riemsdyk’s goal should be remembered as one of the most incredible and important of the entire season. JVR made the impossible seem possible. It also doesn’t hurt that it occurred when the Leafs absolutely needed a goal.
