TORONTO - As James Reimer walked gingerly to the dressing room midway through the Toronto Maple Leafs practice on Tuesday, Jonathan Bernier remained laser-focused on the drill in progress.

Reimer has said he is "not too worried" about the injury that abruptly ended his workout, but if the team's new No. 1 can't play on Saturday against Alexander Ovechkin and the Washington Capitals then Bernier will be thrust back into the spotlight for the first time since a star-crossed outing on Nov. 15 at Madison Square Garden. 

"I have to approach it as a new season," Bernier said when asked about his mindset. "It's a long season and obviously James is playing well. I'm happy for him. We're winning. That's the important thing."

The last few days Bernier has quietly gone about his business as the team's backup goalie. That has included early sessions with goalie coach Steve Briere before the regular practices. 

The time away from the game-day glare is allowing Bernier to regroup mentally after a disastrous start to the season that saw him go 0-7-1 and post a .895 save percentage. And the 27-year-old has made peace with his wobbly start and came to the conclusion that his situation isn't quite as bleak as the numbers may indicate.  

"I take the blame, obviously, I don't have any wins," Bernier said. "But I don't think I was that far off to be at least .500. I can't really look at it as a really negative point, I just have to start fresh when I get the start and play like it's a new season."

Bernier believes a few bounces here and there would have changed the way he's been viewed thus far. In four of his eight starts, for example, he allowed two goals or less. But Bernier does acknowledge that some untimely errors, like a bad rebound in the last minute of his last start against the New York Rangers, have done him in. So it's time to hit the reset button. 

"Every day we work on small details of my game just to stay sharp for when I get the call," Bernier said of his sessions with Briere. "He's a good guy, just trying to loosen things up and make me feel good about my game."

How has it helped him? 

"We don't know yet," Bernier said with a wry grin before adding, "Just joking."

Bernier has only made one start since sustaining a lower-body injury on Oct. 31 and he has said the pain caused by a collision with Evgeni Malkin will linger for a little bit. He admits it's tough to stay sharp considering the lack of game action. 


"Yeah, definitely, it's never easy, but I'm not the only one in this position. I just got to make sure that whenever I do get the call to play, I got to be ready."

Head coach Mike Babcock said before the season that he believes Bernier is capable of being a 60-plus-game starter in the NHL. And the Leafs new bench boss hasn't given up on Bernier, who is still under contract for another season beyond this one. 

"The bottom line is if it's not going as good as you want, you've got to fix it," Babcock said. "Confidence is the biggest thing always. You've got to earn the right to feel good about yourself by how you are in practice. He's been a good goaltender and I'm sure he will be again."