TORONTO – The Toronto Maple Leafs have played eight games and have only one victory to show for their efforts this season. It was hard to be critical of their efforts in most of those games. Heading into Monday the team was feeling rather confident, hot off a 52 shot performance.
But, a familiar problem reared its ugly head.
“We know we have to start better,” said defenceman Morgan Rielly. “We came out flat, we didn’t get going until late in the game and we can’t do that to ourselves against teams in this league. They’re going to make us pay. We can’t leave it to them again.”
In all but one of their games, the Leafs have surrendered the opening goal. First periods have been a particular struggle for the team. The Leafs have allowed nine goals to the opposition in the first 20 minutes of the game in 2015-16.
Despite the obvious issues in starting games, it was the second period that was particularly troubling.
“If I look at the whole game, the part that I didn’t like as a coach is in the second period when things went bad on us, we didn’t respond,” said Leafs head coach Mike Babcock. “I don’t know if it was being here or what it was but I can feel it on the bench that we didn’t just keep coming.”
Outshot 11-5 in the second period, the Leafs appeared listless and at times, uninterested.
They responded in the third period to outshoot their opponents 14-5 in the final frame. But again, they pressed too late.
Without centres Tyler Bozak and Nick Spaling in the lineup due to lower-body injuries, the Leafs managed a lowly 40 percent in face-off wins. Byron Froese was the only Leaf who performed well on the draws. His 65 percent accuracy was rewarded when he was used on the final face-off in Arizona territory with six seconds left in a last-ditch effort to tie the game.
“I’m optimistic Bozak and Spaling will make us a better hockey club,” said Babcock. “Froese will be in the lineup.”
The statement doesn’t bode well for Peter Holland, who drew into the lineup after sitting as a healthy scratch on Saturday. Both Holland and Mark Arcobello were 33 percent in the face-off circle. With Bozak and Gardiner expected to come off injured reserve before Friday, a player will have to be moved in order to stay under the 23-man limit.
“We can be in better spots, if you don’t want to be in better spots, we’ll find someone else who wants to be in better spots,” said Babcock who was clearly sending a message to certain players. “The positive for me in tonight’s game was 56, real simple. Face-offs alone, compete alone, you’ve got to be competitive if you’re going to beat the best of them. It’s that simple.”
Froese went from the minor leagues to second-line centre in a matter of days. With Babcock saying earlier in the morning that third and fourth liners are constantly playing for their jobs on a nightly basis, a change appears to be in the works.
But is that subtle change with Froese staying on going to help the Leafs’ goaltending, which has given up 3.25 goals per game? Will that help a special-teams that fell to 27thon the penalty-kill and 28th on the power-play after Monday’s game?
With only one win in eight games, changes will be constant, even if they are only subtle.
Source: news.nationalpost.com