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Toronto Maple Leafs Slow Start Has Fans Getting Restless

By Jeremy Ridgewell

Oct 30, 2022; Anaheim, California, USA; Toronto Maple Leafs head coach Sheldon Keefe during the 1st period against the Anaheim Ducks at Honda Center. Mandatory Credit: Jason Parkhurst-USA TODAY Sports
Oct 30, 2022; Anaheim, California, USA; Toronto Maple Leafs head coach Sheldon Keefe during the 1st period against the Anaheim Ducks at Honda Center. Mandatory Credit: Jason Parkhurst-USA TODAY Sports /
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The Toronto Maple Leafs have a 4-4-2 record through the first ten games of the 2022-23 season. For a team with high expectations, that record is not good enough.

The Toronto Maple Leafs headed out on their five-game road trip with a 3-2 record. The road trip started with a 4-1 win in Winnipeg.

So far, that game in Winnipeg is the only time the Toronto players competed for a full 60 minutes. Fans thought the Maple Leafs had turned a corner and would have a good road trip to improve their season. Little did they know that the win in Winnipeg would be the only win from this five-game trip.

The Toronto Maple Leafs should have won two out of three games in California. Losing to the San Jose Sharks and Anaheim Ducks is embarrassing. Both teams are at the bottom of the NHL standings, and yet, Toronto could not find a way to beat them. The Maple Leafs did not compete hard enough to warrant a win.

As a result of their poor performance on the road trip, Toronto only managed to pick up four points out of a possible ten points. Some will argue that it’s still early in the season, but Toronto can’t afford to let easy points slip away. As the season moves along, points become tougher to get. Toronto needs to start playing at a higher level, and they need to do it soon.

What Comes Next for the Toronto Maple Leafs

It’s good that fans are not in charge of running this team because if they were, Toronto general manager Kyle Dubas and head coach Sheldon Keefe would be out of a job. Justin Holl, Pierre Engvall, and others would find themselves on new teams.

None of Toronto’s next five games will be easy, but they need to find a way to win at least three of them. Their toughest opponent will be the Boston Bruins on Saturday, November 5th. Boston has an 8-1-0 record and is the best team in the NHL. If the Toronto Maple Leafs fail to get above .500 over the next five games, changes will need to happen.

Between now and November 11th, when the Leafs play the Pittsburgh Penguins, they are expecting Timothy Liljegren back from the lineup, and may perhaps even get Matt Murray back.  Roster moves are going to happen to fit everyone under the salary cap. It helps that Jake Muzzin is still on LTIR, but that may not be enough.

Next. Ignore the Critics. dark

It’s going to be an interesting week for Toronto. We’ll have to wait and see if it’s good or bad. Their next game is on Wednesday against the Philadelphia Flyers. We’ll see if they learned anything from their disastrous road trip.

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