Toronto Maple Leafs Must Fix Inconsistencies After Another Disappointing Loss

The Toronto Maple Leafs continued their current skid by losing to the Boston Bruins in a 4-3 overtime decision Saturday night. And Leafs fans who are paying close attention have every right to be concerned about the direction and performance of this group.

Once again, the Leafs’ power play was the pits, going 0-for-3 and dropping on the season to 29th overall at just 10 percent efficiency. Toronto assistant coach Marc Savard needs to come up with a solution for the power play, and quickly, as this element of Toronto’s game is completely unacceptable.

Also unacceptable – the overall urgency in Toronto’s game. The Buds had just five shots on net in the first period, and only six shots on net in the third frame. Does that sound competitive to you? It shouldn’t. The overall effort from Leafs players against Boston brings to mind coach Craig Berube’s comments after Thursday’s loss to St. Louis, telling media his team was playing “a little cute” and playing “lazy hockey”. He was absolutely right, and that was evident yet again Saturday. Through 10 percent of the season, the Buds have disappointed as often as they’ve thrived, and that’s all on them.

Related: Berube Accuses Maple Leafs’ Stars Of Playing ‘Too Cutesy’ and ‘Lazy Hockey’

The Leafs can’t expect goalies Anthony Stolarz and Joseph Woll to steal game after game for them. There needs to be a group effort to be more consistent and less lackadaisical, and it starts from captain Auston Matthews and assistant captain Mitch Marner and extends down through the rest of the lineup.

From a positive point of view, Toronto is finally getting some decent production on offense from their defense corps. Morgan Rielly scored his second goal of the year Saturday, and first-year Leaf Chris Tanev got his first regular-season point with the team. Led by veteran Oliver Ekman-Larsson (one goal, five points), the Leafs’ defense is more well-rounded than it was last season. And while it was encouraging to see Matthews post a goal and two points and to see Marner generating three assists in a single game for the second time this season, Toronto management has to be worried that they’re not getting the proper balance of solid play at both ends of the ice.

The Leafs must be better in a hurry, as their next stretch of 10 games – including showdowns against Winnipeg, Seattle, St. Louis, Minnesota. Boston, Detroit, Montreal, Ottawa, Washington and Edmonton – doesn’t have a single ‘gimme’ game in it. If Toronto isn’t careful, they could soon fall deep down the Atlantic Division standings and be forced to chase a wild-card Stanley Cup playoff berth the rest of the way this season. And that’s hugely frustrating, as they have more than enough talent to be on the winning side of the ledger much more often than not, and they’re relatively healthy compared to some of their opponents.

Leafs Nation is already exhausted by the Jekyll-and-Hyde performance to begin this season. More of the same will be met with a chorus of boos the next time they’re playing at home, and rightfully so. Toronto has demonstrated they’re one of the more inconsistent teams in the league, and until that changes, they deserve to be called on the carpet by fans, media and coaches alike. There’s no excuse for what we’re seeing from them as of late, and they’re now even more under the microscope as management tries to figure out what ails them.

For the most part, it’s usually true that things in Toronto aren’t as good or as bad as they sometimes seem. But the Leafs’ current stretch of stumbling is indeed concerning, and they need to atone for it in a hurry. If they can’t do that, Leafs brass should be looking into notable roster alterations. Nothing less than a streak of wins will undo the damage that’s already been done in Toronto, and Berube, GM Brad Treliving and Buds’ players will either be part of the solution or be part of the problem.