So, what's the deal with these Leafs?
Observations as we wind down the first month of the season
Once again, I found myself pondering the same thing late yesterday evening (early morning).
Why am I up putting myself through this?
Truth be told, if Mitch Marner doesn’t finish a beautiful tic-tac-toe sequence late in the 2nd to cut the deficit to one, I was about to call it.
I didn’t, Auston Matthews scored his first real goal of the season, and the Maple Leafs finally played with the fight and urgency we’ve been waiting for in the 3rd Period versus the lowly San Jose Sharks. Glimpses of what this team should look like.
So, what gives?
If you haven’t already done so, I’d encourage you to have a read of Justin Bourne’s 10 thoughts on the current state of the Maple Leafs, published to Sportsnet.ca yesterday afternoon.
Justin is one of, if not the best, at objectively describing what he sees. Interestingly enough, his first thought is precisely the same one I had a few days ago while trying to make sense of the uninspiring play 2 weeks into the season.
When you tell a team (or insinuate) that the only opportunity for them to change the narrative is 6 months away, it’s hard to be surprised when the group lacks the intensity of a team that feels like it has something to prove every single night.
Does that make it right? Absolutely not. But there is a human element to sport that is far greater than most are willing to give it credit for, and similar to last season, this team needs to find the next gear ASAP or there will be no choice but to make big changes.
GAME 8 - Maple Leafs 3 @ Sharks 4 (OT)
In a trend that is becoming incredibly concerning, the Leafs started another game flat and gave up the opening goal in the early seconds of the 1st.
It was Justin Holl who visually appeared to make the gaff, but watch the goal again and you’ll see the blame lies with Auston Matthews who glides on the backcheck and never really shows the defensive prowess he’s known for:
The two teams settled in, and the Leafs tied the game late in the period when the new look Marner-Matthews-Kerfoot line generated some positive O-Zone time, and David Kampf swapped with Matthews and took advantage of a brilliant bump pass in the slot by Alex Kerfoot:
The game once again took a turn for the worse when T.J. Brodie and Pierre Engvall took consecutive minor penalties in the same sequence, leading to a 2-minute 5-on-3 that saw the Sharks score twice in 42 seconds and break the game wide open at 3-1.
I’m sure most Leafs fans were ready to hit the pillow at the end of the 2nd, until the top line gave us a glimmer of hope with this gorgeous Marner goal off the rush:
In a 3rd Period that fiiiiiiinally saw the Maple Leafs play to the level they’re capable of, it was Auston Matthews who tied the game with a seeing-eye shot from the top of the PP umbrella, for his first non-deflection goal of the season:
The Leafs would go on to lose in the coin-flip session on this absolutely breathtaking finish by Erik Karlsson, after a strong defensive play to stop William Nylander’s rush attempt:
QUICK HITTERS:
After being demoted to the 4th line, Michael Bunting appeared to have the jump and swagger to his game that has been missing to start the season
The same can be said after Matthews got on the scoreboard. Perhaps that was the energy he needed, as last season’s version of #34 showed up in the back half of the final period
This was William Nylander’s worst game of the season. He and his linemates finished the night with a 28% share of the even-strength shot attempts, and a 30% share of the expected goals
The Leafs best line of the night was the newly formed Aston-Reese-Kampf-Engvall line. David Kampf seems to play better when he has a play driver like Engvall by his side, and the group finished with an 80% share of the 5v5 expected goals
NEXT UP:
The Leafs continue through California to face the 4-5-0 Los Angeles Kings on Saturday night, led by 2017 1st Round pick Gabriel Vilardi (9 GP, 6 G, 4A, 10 PTS). Get your wagers in early for a big game from former Leaf/Marlie Trevor Moore (7 PTS). Puck drop is at 7 PM EST.