A look at the Atlantic Division standings; Leafs in 6th and all 7 of their division rivals have games in hand
This season is a very important one for the Toronto Maple Leafs and, more accurately, Kyle Dubas, Sheldon Keefe and Brendan Shanahan. Still, even with everything on the line, the Leafs have now given up 6 points in the standings to inferior opponents, showing little-to-no pushback and absolutely no will to win in almost half of their games.
Currently, the Atlantic Division is led by the Boston Bruins at 5-1-0 through 6 games - and that's with Bruce Cassidy (VGK) no longer behind the bench. The Bruins are also without Norris Trophy-caliber defenseman Charlie McAvoy patrolling the blueline, without the league's MVP (most valuable pest) Brad Marchand disrupting the opposition's game plan and without 6'5 Brandon Carlo imposing his will on ambitious forecheckers. This is a team facing more roster hardship than the Leafs and yet still finding a way to dominate.
The Florida Panthers are currently holding down the Atlantic Division's 2nd spot, owning a 4-1-1 record, despite losing MacKenzie Weegar and Jonathan Huberdeau this summer. Many had anticipated that Florida would be a worse team with Tkachuk than they were with Huberdeau and Weegar. So far, it's looking like the rumours of their imminent demise have been greatly exaggerated.
The next 3 teams on the list should turn your stomach if you're a Leafs fan, as Buffalo, Detroit and Ottawa have all outscored the Leafs this season and have racked up the same point total (8), each having played less games. Both Buffalo and Detroit have two games in hand on the Leafs, while Ottawa has one game in hand.
The Leafs sit in sixth, just two points up on both Tampa and Montreal, both of whom have a game in hand and own identical 3-3-0 records. The silver-lining here is that the Leafs have scored more goals than both Tampa and Montreal, for what that's worth.
For Dubas, Keefe and Shanahan, every game is going to start to matter a lot sooner than it would have in any normal season. The Leafs have already deployed scouts in the early going, with representation at last night's Devils/Caps game, so perhaps they're looking at making a splash at some point in the not-too-distant future if this team can't turn things around.
We all know this team is uber-talented. We know that there are several game-breakers on this team. We know that they have the ability to cave in the opposition's goaltender on any given night. What we have been witnessing in the early stages of this season, however, is a team who is unwilling to empty the tank on every shift. A team who seemingly refuses to learn from past mistakes and a team who may need a stark reminder of what's on the line this season. If they continue this way, I don't see any way that a major change isn't warranted, as much as that might get in the way of team morale. High team morale is only something that the Leafs should get to experience if they're going out there and executing every night. If they're not executing, something has to give.
| POLL | ||
OCTOBRE 25 | 282 ANSWERS A look at the Atlantic Division standings; Leafs in 6th and all 7 of their division rivals have games in hand Where will the Leafs finish in the Atlantic Division standings when the season wraps? | ||
| Top spot | 42 | 14.9 % |
| 2nd or 3rd | 125 | 44.3 % |
| 4th or 5th | 67 | 23.8 % |
| 6th, 7th or 8th | 48 | 17 % |
| List of polls | ||
