The Toronto Maple Leafs Give Up Their Lunch Money Too Easily
By William Cann
The Toronto Maple Leafs are currently 4th in the entire league with a .716 Pts%.
The Toronto Maple Leafs are also the #1 ranked PP in the NHL and the 7th best PK. They are 5th in goal differential, 3rd in scoring chance differential, and 3rd in high danger chance differential (all stats from hockey-reference.com).
Simply put, this is an elite team.
The team has struggled defensively in January due to a combination of factors, partly attributed to the struggles of Jack Campbell and the injury to Jake Muzzin, but they still sit near the top of the league despite the defensive slump.
Toronto Maple Leafs Do Have Just One Problem
If you omit the losses at the beginning of the season, when the team was just awful, the Leafs are actually an astonishing 28-7-2 since Oct. 10, 2021. That’s not a lot of losses folks.
Why then, do some fans still worry about this team after a 5-2 loss to the Flames during a seemingly meaningless game in February? It wasn’t the score, and it wasn’t the “win-o-meter”. It’s because the Flames asked the Leafs for their lunch money, and they basically just handed it over to them.
In my opinion, the book is out on the Leafs. Play them very physical, don’t make many mistakes, don’t take too many penalties, and make a few saves. Put the game in the hands of the referees, who won’t save the Leafs, and collect your 2 points.