The Toronto Maple Leafs next five games have huge potential to make-or-break this season, given the caliber of opposition.
Perhaps the only blessing is the fact that of these five games, four of them will be Toronto Maple Leafs home games, but equally this could be a curse if they go on a losing run.
After all, this is a fanbase that hasn’t shied away from booing the team already this season and a jersey toss is never too far away when you’re putting in the feeble efforts this team have thus far.
A 4-4-2 record for October isn’t great, but that record could look a lot better with a little luck, and it’s not like the team has played horribly.
Tough Stretch Coming For the Toronto Maple Leafs
Perhaps the scariest part of these upcoming five games is the fact that all but one of the Toronto Maple Leafs opponents is above league-average in terms of their points percentage right now.
First up are a rejuvenated Philadelphia Flyers team, that despite injuries are getting the job done, with Carter Hart the backbone of their successes so far.
This fact alone should put a certain amount of fear into a Leafs’ top-six that has for the most part yet to find it’s stride. Certainly, there’s every chance that the Leafs find themselves shut-down by an in-form goalie versus the Flyers.
That’s followed up by this season’s first encounter with the Boston Bruins on Saturday night. Given their injuries and given the relative age of their roster, Boston were no longer meant to be a scary prospect.
However, a 8-1-0 start has them leading the league with David Pastrnak already in mid-season form with 16 points in his first 9 games. Likewise, the returning David Krejci has been no slouch with 8 points.
Just these two fixtures alone should strike fear into the misfiring Toronto Maple Leafs. There is real risk of being shut-out in the first and then humiliated in the second, both of which will be at Scotiabank Arena and could lead to harsh responses from the fans in attendance.
A road-trip to face the Carolina Hurricanes the night after facing Boston could very well put the writing on the wall in terms of a big change, if the Toronto Maple Leafs haven’t upped their game by this point.
Perhaps there is no harder back-to-back to be facing when the team is seemingly lacking in confidence than a high-flying Boston followed by the possession game of Carolina.
The Maple Leafs then welcome the Vegas Golden Knights to town, who despite dealing Marc-Andre Fleury and losing Robin Lehner to injury have only conceded 17 times through 10 games.
The Leafs have already experienced their strength and the power of their collective goal this year first hand, dropping the contest in Vegas to them 3-1.
To face them again so soon seems ever more daunting when that defeat is still lingering in the air – after all, it wasn’t just a fluke-y one-goal win, it was a show of strength.
Finally, to round out the Leafs five games of hell, the Pittsburgh Penguins come to town and while they’re not quite the perennial Stanley Cup contender anymore, they have a habit of putting exclamation marks on Maple Leaf seasons.
After all, it took a 7-1 shelling by the Penguins to spark the team to life last campaign and prior to that, it was a similar 6-1 defeat at the hands of Pittsburgh that seemingly cost Mike Babcock his job.
Could it prove to be the game that ends Sheldon Keefe’s time in charge of the Toronto Maple Leafs this season too?
Certainly, you wouldn’t be ruling it out at this point. There is remarkable symmetry to the stretch that ultimately cost Babcock his job as his final three losses came at the hands of Boston, Pittsburgh and Vegas.
The next five games truly will decide this season for the team; they need to either show up or be prepared to deal with the consequences.