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DALLAS – Most of the 122 points James van Riemsdyk accumulated previously in a Maple Leafs uniform had come with fellow American Phil Kessel, the pair forming Torontos most consistent offensive duo in recent years. Cheap Raptors Jerseys . van Riemsdyk teamed with a new partner in Dallas, though, to help the Leafs avoid what wouldve been a season-long four-game losing streak. He and Nazem Kadri combined for a pair of goals in a Tuesday night victory in the Lone Star state, the final game before the three-day holiday break. Its always nice when youre playing well right off the bat and generating some chemistry, Kadri said of teaming successfully with van Riemsdyk after the 4-0 win. Obviously generating scoring chances and getting goals is definitely a confidence booster. van Riemsdyk and Kadri have played together infrequently throughout the formers two-plus year in tenure in Toronto, but the underlying possession numbers in that time appear positive for both. Its an experiment well worth trying and one that Randy Carlyle opted for after weeks of substandard play from the usual top unit of van Riemsdyk, Kessel and Tyler Bozak. Carlyle is hoping to find a more balanced look, with the potential for two dangerous scoring threats, depth actually a strength of the Leafs this season. (Joffrey Lupul replaced van Riemsdyk on the left side of that line with Bozak and Kessel, a throwback to a look used prominently under the teams previous head coach, Ron Wilson.) JVR enjoys playing there too so its not like were taking anybody out of position, said Carlyle. They get equal ice-time, [van Riemsdyk] still gets his power-play and penalty-killing minutes. What it does is it moves Lupul up in our lineup. Not only could the Leafs be better off with the two forming a secondary threat separate from Kessel, but they could benefit simply by breaking up what had been an awful defensive line, one that surrendered more goals and far more shots than it ever ended up creating at even-strength. The trio had been the Leafs worst possession line this season. van Riemsdyk, for his part, said hes still figuring out where he fits alongside Kadri and the third member of the current trio, Mike Santorelli. I think we do a little bit better job on the cycle when Im playing with those two guys, said van Riemsdyk, who has 15 goals. Theres different roles; youve got to find your niche when you play with different players. Hopefully we continue to build on that. Eluding a check along the wall in the Dallas zone, he flung a backhand pass to Kadri streaking to the front of the net, the 24-year-old centre tucking a shot beyond Kari Lehtonen. Kadri repaid the favour a period later, finding van Riemsdyk leaking behind the Stars defence; the winger beat Lehtonen with a backhand through the pads. van Riemsdyk edged into the top-20 in NHL scoring with the multi-point effort – his eighth this season – now with 32 points through 35 games. Kadri, meanwhile, has 19 even-strength points, tied for second on the Leafs. As to snapping a three-game slide, Carlyle called it an early Christmas gift. Losing streaks, you dont want them to linger and the one was lingering long enough for us, he said. Hopefully we can use this as a little bit of a breather for us. We can enjoy the holidays. Its the best Christmas present we couldve given ourselves and then [we] get ready to embark on a five-game road trip. Thats going to be a tough one coming. Five Points 1. More Shots, More Goaltending Jonathan Bernier deserves much of the credit for securing that early Christmas gift. Shelled for seven goals and then pulled in his last start, Bernier rebounded Tuesday with a perfect 43-save effort against the Stars. It was the second shutout of the season for the 26-year-old. He made some extremely timely saves, some acrobatic saves that will be on the highlight reel, said Dion Phaneuf afterward. He was a rock back there for us again. Berniers workload got busier and more difficult as the night wore on. His play late in the second period and then again in the final frame kept the Leafs from having their lead evaporate entirely. Among the stops were a glove hand on Ryan Garbutt, a splits-inducing right pad stop on Seguin and then another shoulder save on Seguin, who had a point blank opportunity on a rebound. He was called on far, far too often again tonight, Carlyle said. We were able to withstand the storm; Bernie was a big reason for it. Tuesday marked the ninth time in 35 games that the Leafs have allowed 40 shots or more, sitting an improbable 6-3-0 on those nights. The club continues to talk about cutting down the bountiful shots and chances against their goaltenders, but like last season, that talk hasnt compounded into action. Only Buffalo has given up more shots on average this season than Toronto. 2. Rebound Control Bernier, who improved to 5-1-1 against the West this season, wasnt entirely pleased with his performance against the Stars oddly enough. I actually dont think my rebound control was right on tonight, he said. I had a few bad rebounds but the [defencemen] did a good job tying up sticks and let me get back in position. Most of the night I felt pretty good, but theres just a few that got away from me. 3. Extension Talks The collective bargaining agreement dictates that any player on a one-year contract may not enter into an extension of that contract prior to Jan. 1st, but it says nothing about the two sides being able to start negotiations. And to date the Leafs have had no talks with Cody Franson – who signed a (third straight) one-year deal last summer – regarding a new contract. Having squabbled with the team in three consecutive contract negotiations Franson says hes not too worried about waiting this time around, though hed be happy to see those talks begin as soon as possible. Toronto has waited until July 1st with key free agents before. They let Tyler Bozak reach unrestricted free agency in the summer of 2013 before signing him to a five-year deal worth $21 million. But theyve also struck early too; signing Dion Phaneuf, Phil Kessel and Joffrey Lupul before any hit the open market. If the team wants to keep Franson, it might be wise to come to terms before then. The 27-year-old is amongst the league scoring leaders on defence, has shown promise on a top pairing (aiding Dion Phaneuf) and is pushing nearly 21 minutes per game. Hes thus in line to fetch a big raise and will get it somewhere if he hits the open market. Beyond whether they want him back or not is whether the Leafs can even afford to keep Franson. The club has a lot of other holes to plug in the summer ahead – Nazem Kadri and Jonathan Bernier are both restricted free agents – with limited cap space to do so. Trading another asset, such as Joffrey Lupul or Jake Gardiner, might be the solution. 4. Return to Dallas Tuesday was not actually the first game back in Dallas for Stephane Robidas after a Stars career that spanned more than 700 games. That came in April when Robidas – traded to Anaheim a month earlier – stepped onto the American Airlines Center ice as a member of the Ducks in Game 3 of the first round playoff series. Even with fans in the crowd holding signs commemorating his return, Robidas remembers it being a kind of weird dynamic. Youre the enemy, he said of that April night, noting the intensity of a playoff game. Im playing for the rivals. It didnt end well at all for Robidas (though his Ducks would eventually emerge from the series in six games (before losing to the eventual champion, L.A. Kings). On the 10th shift of his first game back in the Lone Star state, Robidas broke his right knee for the second time in a matter of months and was taken off the ice on a stretcher. He remains a beloved figure in Dallas, as noted by longtime teammate, Trevor Daley. Hes probably the guy that I respect the most in this game, said Daley. Just an unbelievable human being … Not enough words I could say about him. Daley and Robidas joined the Stars at about the same time in the early 2000s, reaching the Conference Finals together in 2008. Ive learned a ton from Steph, he said. Every time he goes on the ice, every time you see him you know what youre going to get out of him. Just a special person. The Stars honoured Robidas with a video tribute during the first TV timeout. He received a standing ovation. 5. Surrogate Coach Leafs assistant Steve Spott described Robidas as a surrogate coach for the club. Its a job Daley could see his old teammate holding at some point down the line. Isnt he already coaching now? Daley said with a laugh. I could see it, yeah. He would make a great [defence] coach, help the young guys. I know Steph loves helping young guys and bringing young guys [along]. Hes done a great job with some of the young guys we have now. Spott saw proof of that ahead of Sundays game in Chicago. Robidas, whos had his struggles this season, was scratched to make room for Jake Gardiner against the Blackhawks. Spott took note of Robidas nonetheless approaching Gardiner with some advice ahead of an eventual 4-0 loss. Do what you do best, Robidas counseled Gardiner. Be yourself. Hes just a very positive person and a true leader, Spott said. Stats-Pack 6-4-3 – Road record for the Leafs this season. 7 – Power-play goals for Tyler Bozak this season, a career-high. 9 – Number of times the Leafs have allowed 40 shots or more this season. 34.4 – Average shots against allowed by Toronto this season. 65-36 – Possession advantage for the Stars. Special Teams Capsule PP: 1-5 Season: 20.3% (9th) PK: 4-4 Season: 83.9% (10th) Quote of the Night He made some extremely timely saves, some acrobatic saves that will be on the highlight reel. -Dion Phaneuf, on the performance of Jonathan Bernier. Up Next The Leafs pick up after the holiday break with a Sunday game in Florida, the first of a five-game road trip. Pascal Siakam Jersey . -- Brandon Hope stopped 46 shots and Kurtis MacDermid scored with 27 seconds remaining in overtime as the Owen Sound Attack edged the visiting Kingston Frontenacs 5-4 on Saturday in Ontario Hockey League action. Danny Green Jersey .This one was bigger than most.Ben Roethlisberger and LeVeon Bell came up big in a game that Pittsburgh had to win Sunday, leading the Steelers to a 42-21 drubbing of the Cincinnati Bengals that left the AFC North race wide open. http://www.cheapraptorsjerseys.com/?tag=cheap-c-j-miles-jersey .Y. -- That hangover from the Big East tournament is gone for Villanova.The Toronto Raptors Northern Uprising continues to inspire fans across the country, as overnight data from BBM Canada confirms that Sunday nights Game 4 against the Brooklyn Nets attracted an average audience of 885,000 viewers, making it the second most-watched Raptors game ever, just behind the Raptors Game 7 loss to Philadelphia in 2001. Audience levels peaked at 1.46 million late in the fourth quarter as the Raptors secured the 87-79 victory. The game is the most-watched First Round game in the history of the NBA Playoffs on Canadian television. Confirming the Raptors popularity in their hometown, Game 4 was the most-watched sports broadcast of the week in the Greater Toronto Area, delivering more viewers than any hockey game, and reached 20.5% of viewers. Overall, the Raptors First Round NBA PLAYOFFS series against the Brooklyn Nets on TSN has attracted a total reeach audience of 6 million unique viewers through the first four games. Vince Carter Jersey. . The Raptors on TSNCanadians can continue to follow the Raptors on Canadas Sports Leader throughout the First Round of the NBA PLAYOFFS. Live coverage continues Wednesday (April 30) with Game 2: Brooklyn @ Toronto on TSN, TSN GO, and TSN Radio 1050 in Toronto. The broadcast schedule for Games 5-7 is as follows**:• Game 5: Brooklyn @ Toronto – Wednesday, April 30 at TBD • Game 6: Toronto @ Brooklyn – Friday, May 2 at TBD • Game 7: Brooklyn @ Toronto – Sunday, May 4 at TBD (if necessary) TSNs complete NBA post-season coverage, which includes the NBA FINALS, is available for live streaming on TSN GO. *Audiences prior to August 31, 2009 are based on BBM Nielsen Media Research Mark II meters.**Schedule subject to change ' ' '