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LOS ANGELES – Anze Kopitar looked skyward, unable to comprehend how exactly he had been robbed by the Toronto goaltender. Only it wasnt the extended right pad of his old teammate Jonathan Bernier early in the final frame, it was James Reimer, who stole a night that was supposed to belong to the former King. “Amazing,” said Nazem Kadri of the performance. Replacing an injured Bernier for the final two periods Thursday night, Reimer helped halt the Kings eight-game win streak with 31 saves, steering the Leafs to their second victory in the California triangle and perhaps biggest all season. He was brilliant from start (a late one in this case) to finish. The 25-year-old stopped every shot he faced in 40 busy minutes, including one other rewind-and-replay save on Kopitar in a hectic 17-save second frame. Reimer very nearly had to leave the game himself with an injury (more on that in Five Points), but remained in there to guide the Leafs to their 15th win in the past 22 games (15-4-3) and his first personally in nearly two months. His memorable right-pad stop on Kopitars doorstep attempt in that final frame came on a Kings power-play, the save setting the stage for Mason Raymonds eventual game-winner just seven seconds later. “That was probably the TSN Turning Point where he made that huge save and then we went down on the two-on-one and next thing you know were up a goal and we were able to hang on for the rest of the game,” Kadri said. Formerly the Leafs No. 1 in goal, Reimer has endured a trying season, relegated to the undesired backup position for the better part of the 2014 calendar. He was playing in just his third game since late January, making just six starts in the new year. It was two nights earlier on the second stop through California that he and his teammates were shelled by the Sharks, thumped 6-2 at the SAP Center in San Jose. But here on this night against the Kings, who were gunning to match a franchise record with nine straight wins, they found the means to elude the leagues hottest team on the shoulders of an unlikely candidate. Doubted and dissected constantly throughout his relatively brief NHL career, Reimer had not won a game since Jan. 21. His future with the organization, in light of Berniers ascendance, remains an open question certain to be settled in the summer. “I just came in and did my job,” he said. “Every time you get in there its an opportunity, whether its a full game or half a game or 10 minutes or whatnot. … It was just `Go in there and take care of business – dont think about the future or the past or anything like that. You kind of get those thoughts out of your head because they dont help you very much. So I was just trying to focus on what I had to do technically and mentally to stay sharp.” Coming off a terrific 43-save showing in Anaheim on Monday, Bernier was forced to exit his long-awaited return to the Staples Center after just 20 minutes, pulling himself because of a lower-body injury. It was a disappointing return to say the least. “He was a little sore before the game,” said head coach Randy Carlyle of Bernier, who did not speak to reporters afterward. “And we just said if you cant go let us know and after the first period he felt he wasnt going to be able to give us what we needed and we made a decision that wed go with Reimer.” Randy Carlyle said Bernier had been sore before the game. Bernier told them after the first that he wasnt able to continue. Carlyle was unsure of the extent of the injury (lower-body) and couldnt say whether the team would recall Drew MacIntyre from the Marlies for an upcoming game in Washington. Carlyle also defended the decision to keep Reimer in the net after getting his bell rung in a collision with Jarret Stoll, arguing that Stoll had actually hit the shoulder area. The value of owning two quality goaltenders was never more apparent. Five Points 1. Concerning Collision Two nights after James van Riemsdyk remained down on the ice for a moment or two after a thunderous collision with Dion Phaneuf, Reimer experienced a scary collision himself. Racing to corral a loose puck, he was run over by Jarret Stoll, the left leg of the Kings centre catching him square in the head. “It probably wasnt a very good choice,” said Reimer, “but I went for it, tried to shoot it away and he kind of dove for it and I think his knee or his skate or something just hit me in the head and just kind of rang my bell, thats all.” Reimer remained down on the ice for a few moments after the collision before consulting with the teams medical staff in the TV timeout. He opted to remain in the game without undergoing concussion tests. It was a questionable decision considering his injury history which includes a relatively recent battle with concussion and neck concerns – concerns which date back to an incident with Montreal captain Brian Gionta. “Well I dont think he really actually got kicked in the head,” said Carlyle defiantly. “If you really look at the replay, he didnt really strike him in the head. He hit him more in the shoulder area ... And he said he was fine.” “Obviously there [were] thoughts of coming off,” Reimer said, “but I didnt feel that it really warranted that. Obviously you have a little bit of a headache and stuff like that when you get hit in the head like that, but I felt that I was capable to keep going so I stayed in.” 2. Backup to the Backup There was definite chatter on the Toronto bench about what might happen in the event that Reimer could not continue with Bernier already sidelined for the night. “I was sitting beside Bernie and as soon as that happened I told him to take off his pads I might have to throw ‘em on,” said Kadri with a grin. “It would be somebody, but I dont know who it would be,” said Carlyle, joking that goalie coach Rick St. Croix and former goaltender and assistant coach Scott Gordon both declined. “I asked Colton Orr if he ever played goal and he said no.” Carl Gunnarsson was Reimers choice. “I think his dad was a goalie,” Reimer said. 3. Kadris Follow-up Campaign It took 64 games for Kadri to exceed his exploits of last season, registering his career-high 45th point of the year against the Kings before adding a second point later in the evening. While not nearly as explosive productivity-wise as his first full season in the NHL, Kadri has, nonetheless, had a solid follow-up campaign, on pace for more than 20 goals and 50-plus points. “I think so,” said Kadri, asked if hed taken the desired step forward in his second full season. “Especially just matching up against a lot of those top lines and going against those top centremen. Im still a young player whos trying to figure out what my boundaries as a player [are]. I think just matching me up against the best is only going to make me better.” On this night in L.A, Kadri saw a lot of two former Canadian Olympians, matched up against Mike Richards (2010) and Jeff Carter (2010/2014). He created the Leafs first goal on the power-play, finding a diving Dion Phaneuf in the slot, adding a second point – his 23rd in the past 25 games – on Gunnarssons second goal of the year. “The points are going to come,” said Kadri. “I know that. But I want to become a complete player that this team can trust, offensive zone, neutral zone, defensive zone. Thats really what Im striving towards.” 4. Kadri on the Dot Still only 23, Kadri remains a youthful work in progress, the finer points of the game an ongoing challenge. One such challenge has been the faceoff circle. Kadri is amongst the worst regulars in the league (at about 45 per cent), but feels hes slowly starting to figure it out. “Thats the same as all the young guys, Giroux, Crosby, top centremen in the league, their first couple years they were in the league they were under 50 per cent and thats right where I was hovering,” said Kadri prior to Thursdays game. “I think the last few weeks Ive definitely been able to figure out some tendencies and get a lot better in that area.” Seven-of-17 against the Kings, Kadri has won 51 per cent of his draws over the past five games. He ties the recent improvement to watching film “and just being around the league a little more, knowing what certain centremen are going to do … Just a lot of things Im working out as we go.” 5. Rangers Progression Torontos seven-defender lineup has worked in large part because of Paul Ranger, who has become the roving option for Carlyle. The 29-year-old has finally found a fit in the defensive role envisioned by the coaching staff at the beginning of the season. “Its just a will and a determination that I want to be in the lineup,” said Ranger ahead of Thursdays game. “I want to play. I want to be a part of things. Personally, for me, I want to be able to play and I want to play consistently. I want to play to the best of my ability, to continue to rise, to continue to improve my game every day. Just contribute as much as I can.” Ranger was a healthy scratch in 14 consecutive games before he was reinserted into the lineup as the seventh defender on Feb. 6. He had struggled to that point to establish himself as a viable option on the back-end. Bigger physically than his first go-around in the NHL, he is also being asked to perform with more of a defensive lean, a shift from the offensive player he was for the most part in Tampa. His game now is dependent on physicality and an aggressive “body-first mentality”. “Its an adjustment, a process,” he said. “Adjusting to the style of play here has been a challenge, but it is something that Ive accepted and taken on that challenge. Now I feel like for me its almost instinctual now, to play that way.” Dressing seven against the Kings, no Leaf defender played 20 minutes on Thursday. Stats-Pack 35-40 – Toronto penalty kill over the past 14 games. 256 – Shots for Phil Kessel this season, second behind only Alex Ovechkin. 46 – Points for Nazem Kadri this season, a career-high. 19:29 – Ice-time for Dion Phaneuf against the Kings, most among the Toronto defence. 15-4-3 – Leafs record over the past 22 games. 13-22 – Mark for Jay McClement in the faceoff circle on Thursday night. Special Teams Capsule PP: 1-3 Season: 21% (3rd) PK: 3-4 Season: 78.8% (28th) Quote of the Night “I was sitting beside Bernie and as soon as that happened I told him to take off his pads I might have to throw ‘em on.” - Nazem Kadri, on what the Leafs might do in the event of an injury to James Reimer. Up Next The Leafs continue their five-game road trip in Washington on Sunday afternoon. Nike Vapormax Sale . - Tom Brady and the Patriots routed the Bengals and quieted the doubters. Nike Vapormax Herren Deutschland . According to bodog.ca, Cleveland moved up to grab the best odds to win the Larry OBrian trophy at 4-1 on Friday. By comparison, the Miami Heats odds plummeted from 3-1 favourites before LeBron left, to 50-1. http://www.vapormaxschuhe.de/vapormax-plus-deutschland.html . "Today was a very great day for me. It was always my dream to be good in GS," Wierather said. "I took quite a long time to get there. It feels awesome to have my first win (in GS)." Wierather leads overall with 595 points from Lara Gut (568), who finished second, and Maria Hoefl-Riesch of Germany (535). Nike Vapormax Plus Bestellen . Second-seeded Sloane Stephens of the United States made lighter work of her day as she beat 2009 champion and Swiss wild card Timea Bacsinszky 6-3, 6-3. Two seeds fell: No. 4 Kirsten Flipkens of Belgium lost to Katarzyna Piter of Poland 6-4, 6-2, and No. Nike Vapormax Plus Billig .com) - The Eastern Conferences best team takes on one of its worst Tuesday night when the Atlanta Hawks pay a visit to the Wells Fargo Center to take on the Philadelphia 76ers.Each week, TSN.ca Fantasy Editor Scott Cullen and NFL Editors Ben Fisher and Mike Hetherington discuss three hot fantasy football topics. After their Week 1 performances, can either Tony Romo or Robert Griffin III be trusted as a QB1 this year? Cullen: Trust is a tricky thing and while Romo or Griffin could be legitimate Top 10 quarterbacks this season, its hard to trust that will be the case. Given his longer track record, which includes four 4,000-yard seasons, I might be inclined to ride longer with Romo but, right now, going with either one as your starting QB requires a leap of faith. Fisher: A three interception night from Romo barely phases me these days. Fantasy players that own Romo expect that to happen a couple times over the course of a season but in return they usually get a lot of passing yards and a high number of touchdowns. Romo threw for 281 yards and a TD against the 49ers too so his fantasy performance wasnt nearly as bad as his real life performance in Week 1. I still have Romo as a low-end QB1. Griffin on the other hand, hasnt really shown us much since his great rookie season. The farther removed he is from his brutal knee injury, the less we can blame that for his troubling performances. Or maybe thats just what he is now: a once very promising QB before injuries dropped him to a QB2. Hetherington: I believe Tony Romo still remains a low-end QB1. Its hard to believe hell have another three interception performance like Sunday and the Cowboys remain a questionable team on defence, meaning Romo should get plenty of passing opportunities in shootout games. RG3, on the other end, is not a QB1 you should count on this year. Griffin has yet to show the electrifying playmaking ability he did in his rookie year – when he 20 passing touchdowns and seven rushing scores - prior to his devastating knee injury. Griffin is a strong QB2 and bye-week replacement, but relying on him to carry your offence is inadvisable strategy. Cordarrelle Patterson has carried his strong 2013 finish into this year, how high in the WR rankings can he go this year? Cullen: As great as Pattersons Week One performance was, Im hesitant to get too high on a wide receiver after three catches for 26 yards. Its easy to get seduced by a 67-yard touchdown run, or Pattersons averaging over 17 yards per carry to this point in his career, but if Im counting on big production out of a wide receiver, it needs to come in the passing game. Thus, I would be good to start Patterson, with the idea that a 1,000-yard season is possible, but Im skeptical that he can get above a WR2 in standard formats. Fisher: I understand the hesitancy to buy into Pattersons big Week 1 performance; hes a receiver first and foremost and only had three catches for 226 yards. But why Im big on Patterson and think hell be a star, both in fantasy and in real life, is that hes a playmaker. Guys liike that always seem to find a way onto the highlight reel.dddddddddddd He should get enough touches each week to make a few big plays and put up strong fantasy numbers. Hetherington: Patterson will only go as far as his quarterback will take him. Unfortunately for fantasy owners, that quarterback is the unreliable Matt Cassel, who threw for just 170 yards in the Vikings 34-6 rout of the Rams on Sunday. Forgotten in Pattersons big fantasy stat line is just 26 of his yards came in the passing game on three catches. The explosive wide receiver racked up his fantasy points in the run game, including a 67-yard touchdown, leaving one to wonder if defences will be more prepared for those rushes going forward. I see Patterson as a boom-or-bust, low-end WR1 or top-tier WR2, meaning hes a risky but must start WR each week. At best, Patterson could crack the top-eight receivers in fantasy this season. At Worst, Cassel is benched after multiple ineffective weeks and the Vikings put Teddy Bridgewater under centre. Such a scenario could drop Patterson out of the top-15 WRs and leave him to struggle for targets in the Vikings run-first offence. Patterson could be a sell-high trade option for cautious owners. Can Julius Thomas overtake Jimmy Graham as top fantasy TE this year? Cullen: Sure, if Peyton Manning decides that Thomas is his guy, maybe Thomas makes a quantum leap, but its really hard to make the jump from where Thomas was all the way to Grahams level because Graham is practically in a league of his own – his only reasonable tight end competition over the past three seasons has been Rob Gronkowski, when Gronk isnt hurt. While Im throwing some water on the idea of Thomas surpassing Graham, I do view Thomas as the most likely candidate to join Graham and Gronk on the top tight end tier. Fisher: I still think Graham is the Saints top red zone target by a good margin while Thomas will likely have to share more of his red zone targets with other Broncos receivers, namely DeMaryius Thomas. If the Broncos score at the rate they did last year, there may be enough targets for Orange Julius to take over as the top fantasy TE, but the Saints offence isnt that far behind Denvers and over the course of the year I still think Graham ends up on top. Hetherington: After his three touchdown performance, Thomas has put himself in the conversation at the very least. If Thomas establishes himself as Peyton Mannings top red-zone target this season, the fourth-year tight end could lead the entire league in touchdowns, which would likely put him ahead of Graham in fantasy points. Graham will be the more reliable play each week as he has all but guaranteed receptions from Drew Brees, but its not hard to imagine Thomas finishing the season as the top point-getter at fantasys weakest position. Fantasy Football Report powered by Coors Light ' ' '