The Toronto Maple Leafs are off to a terrible start to the season. After dropping their season opener 3-2 against the Montreal Canadiens, one thing is clear: this team has a lot of turnover, and it'll take time for them to build chemistry.
This team has 10 players making their debut last night, which is a lot compared to other teams. For example, the Canadiens had just one new player in their lineup, so chemistry wasn't overly hard to build. However, for the Maple Leafs, they looked and played like they were unfamiliar with each other.
Don't panic; good things take time
When John Chayka took over this roster alongside Mats Sundin, there was one clear objective. That was to reshape this roster, making it faster, grittier, and more skilled, and that's what they did. Toronto has a completely different bottom six; their top six has two major additions: Gavin McKenna and Kirill Marchenko.
So, yes, things are going to take time in Toronto.
Unfortunately, this isn't something that the fanbase wants to hear, but it is the simple truth. With the new CBA and the new preseason structure, the team has only played four games. However, the Maple Leafs played those four games on just two nights in split-squad games, so there wasn't much consistency within the lineup.
For Toronto, the next few games may look rough, and hopefully they can steal a game or two. But it is the reality of the situation; there were simply too many new players and not enough time for them to build chemistry on the ice together. The hope is that by the time the game on Saturday night against the Ottawa Senators rolls around, they have figured something out and can get on the same page. Which would leave them with the game against the New York Islanders on Prime Wednesday Night Hockey to continue building chemistry and look less like such a new team.
Head coach Jim Hiller acknowledged that after the game last night. Here's what he had to say:
"We had a lot of new guys, and I thought we looked a little bit like a new team today. We just weren’t connecting with our passes. I don’t know if that has anything to do with nerves or being in the building for the first time and the first time everybody’s together. We weren’t clean as a team."Jim Hiller, Maple Leafs Head Coach
This just proves that there was some sort of disconnect, which Hiller felt too. Now the hope is that he and his coaching staff can find a way to get this club on the same page for the second game of the season against the aforementioned Islanders and get their first win of the season.
If they don't, it's still not time to panic; it's a long season. Yes, there are some high expectations, but there is time, and once this team figures it out, they will be one of the most potent offensive teams in the league. At times last night, they looked like it. There were a handful of their top players who looked good, and with more time playing together, that will only get better.
Despite the loss, it's still going to be a very fun season, Leafs Nation. Just don’t overreact to one game and panic; good things take time.
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