TSN: The game was tied 3-3 after regulation and overtime, and needed eight shooters aside to settle the shootout.
Alexander Suglobov, Pohl, Nik Antropov and Murphy scored on Justin Pogge for Team White, while Team Blue's Alexei Ponikarovsky, Peca and Tlusty beat Mikael Tellqvist.

Canadian Press: Suglobov beat Halak on a breakaway at 14:39, and Ponikarovsky slammed in a rebound at 16:34 to seal the rout.

Canadian Press: The Leafs went with a young lineup that included no regular blue-liners from last year's team and a heavy presence of rookies up front.
Alex Steen, Matt Stajan, Alexei Ponikarovsky and O'Neill were the only regular forwards to play as Maurice continues to take a long look at some of those who played for him last season with the AHL's Toronto Marlies.
Maurice said he could have dressed a more veteran lineup, but felt like rewarding guys like John Mitchell, Brett Engelhardt, Colin Murphy and Jamie Sifers, who all had yet to play.

Sports Network: With many veterans now gone, the onus will be on younger players like Nik Antropov and Alexei Ponikarovsky to pick up the slack. Ponikarovsky has played the last two seasons as a regular, and blossomed in 2005-06. The 6-4, 220- pounder netted 21 goals last season.

Associated Press: Ponikarovsky made it 5-0 at 16:50 when he deflected Sundin's flip pass in mid-air, putting the puck into the left side as Gerber was caught sliding across to the right post.

Canadian Press: Even though Toronto dominated the first two periods, firing 36 shots, Auld held fast.
He robbed Alexei Ponikarovsky twice and Jeff O'Neill at the doorstep in the second period, plus made a spectacular glove save on Tucker after momentarily losing sight of the puck.

TSN: As hard as Alexei Ponikarovsky works, he doesn't appear to be an ideal fit alongside Mats Sundin because he doesn't have elite offensive instincts. On the other wing, Kyle Wellwood has shortcomings in his game, but his instincts and passing ability make him a better fit. It now appears that Darcy Tucker will be replacing Ponikarovsky on the top line.

TorontoSun: Alexei Ponikarovsky has provided plenty of fodder for the highlight reels of opposing goaltenders.
While he has just one goal thus far in this young season, Ponikarovsky has enjoyed seemingly countless numbers of point-blank scoring opportunities only to be robbed time and time again.
«It would be more frustrating if I wasn't getting any chances," he said. «At least I am getting opportunities. Sooner or later they will start going in.»
...
Ponikarovsky, meanwhile, will start alongside Matt Stajan and Jeff O'Neill, a trio that impressed Maurice in the latter stages of Monday's win.
«I thought Alexei looked good with those guys," Maurice said yesterday. «I thought they created a lot of good chances. In fact, keeping Pony on that line had as much to do with the (line shuffling) as putting Darcy with Mats did.»

Toronto Sun: Thanks to the emergence of a couple of young players, they can send out two strong lines —- which is about all you can expect in this modern era of parity and churn.
Kyle Wellwood appears to be the perfect fit for Sundin and Darcy Tucker, while on the second line, Matt Stajan has melded with Jeff O'Neill and Alexei Ponikarovsky to form another dangerous unit.
And really, as long as there aren't any total collapses in goal or on defence, that's the key to success in today's NHL. Increasingly, you live or die with the power play.
Since the new rule interpretations came into force a year ago, scoring is up across the league. But with the teams at full strength, it is down. This is now a power-play league. What you do with the man advantage determines your fate.
The Leafs' power play still is not spectacular from a statistical point of view.
But it's clear that it is starting to show signs of progress, especially when the top unit is out there.
On the second unit, O'Neill is looking more and more like the player whose quick release once filled nets all over the league, and Ponikarovsky has a wicked shot that should pay dividends if he can get it under control.