Toronto Maple Leafs: Blood, Sweat, Tears, and the Same Results
While the roster has changed, the Toronto Maple Leafs are the same.
As sports fans, we always want our teams to be champions every season. It results in an addictive, euphoric, and terrorizing mix of emotions throughout the regular and postseason. That is the best way to describe how the Toronto Maple Leafs fought their way through the ’20-’21 season.
As Leafs fans, we are accustomed to dealing with disappointments year after year.
Somehow, this time it feels even worse. I mean worse than marching back from being down 3-1 in a series, giving up a three-goal lead in the third, and ultimately losing in overtime.
Polishing the Toronto Maple Leafs Foundation
It was a busy offseason for general manager Kyle Dubas. He created cap space by trading away wingers Kasperi Kapanen and Andreas Johnsson. That freed up $6.6 million, which would be needed to maintain, and add complementing pieces to put the team over the top.
Veteran Jason Spezza returned on a league-minimum deal and lured Joe Thornton to join him on an identical contract. While he is not as old, Wayne Simmonds added another veteran presence with some much-needed grit.
To help with the questions on the back end, Travis Dermott was brought back on a one-year deal worth $874K, T.J. Brodie signed a four-year contract paying $5 million annually, and Zach Bogosian joined the team on a one-year $1 million deal. They added physicality and defensive stability.
More depth pieces in Jimmy Vesey and Travis Boyd filled out the bottom lines. After an impressive ’19-’20 season, Dubas retained Ilya Mikheyev for another two years.
Even though those ten moves impacted the team, Dubas continued his work mid-season. That’s with the additions of wingers Alex Galchenyuk and Nick Foligno.
The Toronto Maple Leafs had their needs, and they were more than covered. Kyle Dubas could not have done a better job setting up the team for success. Now, it was up to the coaches and players to make it work on the ice.
On the Ice
The Toronto Maple Leafs started the regular season with a 7-2-1 record and played as expected. They scored at least three goals in all but one game, with their losses resulting from poor defense/goaltending.
Jack Campbell suffered an injury in the January 24th matchup against Calgary and would be out until he re-injured himself on February 27th. Toronto compensated for his loss by scoring a ton in February, averaging a whopping 3.75 goals per game. (stats nhl.com).
At that point, Toronto was considered one of, if not the top team in the league. They accumulated a record of 9-2-1, solidifying their position atop the Scotia North Division and NHL.
The month of March was a very different story for the team. It consisted of their worst stretch of the season. After winning two games against the Edmonton Oilers, Toronto would play seven games before winning in regulation.
As Leafs fans, we all thought the worst of the situation. The team would not be able to recover from such a horrifying drop in play and the standings. Not that another Canadian team overtook them, but the Leafs erased their comfortable lead of the division.
Thankfully, the team rebounded by picking up 19 of the following 20 points available. That was later in March and the beginning of April. For the duration of the season, the Leafs played well, finishing first in their division, and tied for fifth in the NHL.
Their star-led offense is what carried the team throughout their highs and lows. Auston Matthews and Mitch Marner ranked fifth and fourth in the NHL for points. Add to that, five players on the team had more than 0.75 points per game.
The team’s offense is their powerhouse. While that was thriving, the goaltending struggled; at least under Frederik Andersen, but settled down when Campbell took over the starting gig. Heading into the postseason, the Leafs were ready to compete; or at least we thought they were.
When It Matters Most
You have to play well enough during the regular season to make the playoffs. From there, you need to beat four teams in four seven-game series. That’s tough regardless of the matchup.
In the first round of the 2021 NHL Playoffs, the Toronto Maple Leafs were up against their longtime rivals, the Montreal Canadians. It was the first time since 1979 that the two teams played each other in the playoffs.
Most fans and analysts had the Leafs winning the series, with some calling for a four-game sweep. Considering how both teams fared in the regular season, it wasn’t a far fetch.
Right out of the gate, the Habs’ physicality became an issue. They totaled 55 hits, compared to Toronto’s 27. Turnovers and odd-man rushes combined with poor execution cost the Leafs Game 1. It also didn’t help that captain John Tavares left the game with a horrifying concussion.
Come Game 2, Matthews led the team to an offensive explosion. Toronto scored two power-play goals after the team scored only once on their past 21 chances over their previous eight games. Scoring five goals was enough for Toronto to tie the series.
Their power play resumed their struggles, not scoring on any of their five chances. Campbell’s stellar performance held the Habs to only one goal on 29 shots. That was enough for Morgan Rielly’s second-period snipe to stand as the game-winning goal.
Game 4 was the second night of back-to-back games in Montreal, and Campbell carried over his momentum. He stopped all 32 shots from the Canadiens; meanwhile, Alex Kerfoot racked up three assists. At this point, Toronto needed to win one of the following three games to win the series.
The Leafs started slowly, which allowed the Canadiens to score two goals early, and another in the third. While Toronto would come back and force overtime in the third period, another costly turnover allowed Nick Suzuki to score on a two on 0.
It would take over 45 minutes of game-time for either team to score, with Corey Perry the first to get on the scoresheet. The 2,500 fans in the stands were loud and clear. Eventually coming back and forcing overtime once again, Toronto turns the puck over (AGAIN), and Jesperi Kotkaniemi ends the game.
The Toronto Maple Leaf’s worst nightmare, Game 7, approached quickly. Fast enough that no Leaf would score until the final two minutes of the game. The Toronto Maple Leafs, once again, gave up a comfortable lead to get booted from the playoffs.
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The Game 7 loss marks the eighth consecutive series-clinching game that Toronto lost. For a team that had Stanley Cup aspirations, their team fell drastically short than they should have. It marks one of, if not the most disappointing seasons in the franchise’s history.