Another disappointing performance pushed the Toronto Maple Leafs deeper into their downward spiral on Saturday, as a 5-2 loss to the rival Montreal Canadiens marked their seventh defeat in eight games.
The pattern has become impossible to ignore. Toronto once again showed a lack of execution, urgency, and compete level, leaving their fans and head coach frustrated.
After labelling the effort "inexcusable," coach Craig Berube now faces mounting pressure to take further action and address the team's growing list of problems before the slide becomes even more damaging.
It won't get any easier for the Leafs as they head home for a brief reprieve and rest before heading to Columbus for the first of five more road games. Since this team can't escape its early-season funk, one thing is clear: Berube must take more definitive steps to spark his underperforming squad.
Berube Must Sit Leafs' Underachievers
The Maple Leafs started well in Montreal, but quickly surrendered to the Habs after giving up the game's first goal. It marked the fourteenth time in twenty-two games that Toronto has given up the first goal. The Leafs then completely lost their confidence, and the onslaught began.
It was 2-0 Canadiens by the end of the first period. Just over thirteen minutes into the middle period, Montreal had extended the lead to 4-0 and chased Leafs' starting goaltender Joseph Woll. It was a mercy pull by Berube.
Up to that point of the second, the Canadiens were outshooting the Maple Leafs 16-1. Worse, an improbable number of the shots came on cross-seam passes through the slot area to Montreal players waiting for one-timers. As Sportsnet analyst Craig Simpson stated, it was with the kind of ease that one might see when viewing a practice, and defense is only a rumor.
By the end of the second, the Canadiens led 4-1. They outshot the Leafs 17-6 during the middle frame. Woll's outstanding play was the only thing that kept the score respectable. From there, Montreal cruised to victory and was never threatened.
Remember, too, that Montreal was slumping coming into the game. They were 1-4-2 in their previous seven games, the same record that Toronto had over its last seven games. Currently, the rest of the NHL is licking its chops at the prospect of facing the Maple Leafs, an embarrassing standard for a franchise that has had its share of shameful moments.
The Leafs have played few games against the league's elite, and only seven (1-6-0 record) of their twenty-two games to date have been played on the road. Toronto doesn't have a signature win over a formidable opponent, and they have a fifth-worst .477 points-percentage league-wide.
The Maple Leafs have been hit hard by injuries. Defenseman Jake McCabe left halfway through the game against Montreal with an upper-body injury. He joins Auston Matthews, Matthew Knies, Chris Tanev, Brandon Carlo, and Anthony Stolarz as key pieces missing from the lineup.
The absence of those players hurts, but the Maple Leafs have a multitude of issues before being hit by the injury bug. All teams deal with injuries at some point. The Leafs have to find a way to succeed until reinforcements arrive.
The bigger issue, as general manager Brad Treliving recently referred to, is the team's effort and enthusiasm. On too many occasions over the first quarter of the season, the Maple Leafs have been outworked. It's something the team's fans are all too familiar with, having experienced postseason disappointments.
Berube has frequently been caught on camera during Leaf games or practices, berating his players for their effort or lack of execution. He has occasionally made his frustration public through the media.
It leaves him with one last resort to get the attention of his players. He needs to take away ice time or bench players for repeated mistakes or not playing within the team's desired structure. Berube has to determine which players can, and are willing, to do what's needed to resurrect the Maple Leafs' season.