The Toronto Maple Leafs are 4-4-0 through the first eight games of the 2024-25 NHL season. Their four wins give them eight points and fifth in the Atlantic Division.
The Toronto Maple Leafs looked like a completely different team on Monday, October 21st, when they beat the Tampa Bay Lightning 5-2 than they did in their back-to-back losses to the Columbus Blue Jackets (6-2) and St. Louis Blues (5-1).
In the game against the Lightning, the Leafs looked like a hardworking team that won almost every puck battle. They looked like the team people expected them to look like under new head coach Craig Berube.
As bad as their 4-4-0 start may seem, it's not too far off of their slow starts in previous seasons. Last season, the Leafs were 5-2-1 in their first eight games.
They started the 2022-23 season with a 4-3-1 record, and in the 2021-22 season, the Leafs had a 3-4-1 record through the first eight games.
By the end of those three seasons, the Leafs finished with over 100 points. I think it is safe to say that it is too early to be throwing in the towel (or jersey) on the Leafs 2024-25 season.
It hasn't been all doom and gloom for the Leafs this season. There have been some things and some positive surprises. Those sometimes get forgotten when the team is losing.
Here is an early-season version of the good, the bad, and the ugly. Hopefully, the ugly and bad things will correct themselves.