The Toronto Maple Leafs took on the Columbus Blue Jackets in their last home game until Dec. 6. This game was much like the ones against the St. Louis Blues and Chicago Blackhawks, they played well for almost a full 60 minutes but unfortunately lost in overtime, 3-2.
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This season we’ve seen the Maple Leafs blow leads. But last night, we saw them battle back from a 2-0 deficit and push the game into overtime. This is a huge step forward for a Toronto team that has struggled mightily through the first 20 games of the season.
Easton Cowan’s Breakout Game
This is the game that Maple Leafs fans have been waiting for. Easton Cowan finally had a breakout game, where he played 20 minutes and even got promoted to the top line alongside William Nylander and John Tavares. He ended the night with an assist, plus-2 and four shots on goal. However, over his 21 shifts, he had a great impact on the game.
There was a notable difference in how Cowan played after he was sent down to the American Hockey League (AHL). Since he got called up, he has been playing a bit heavier, feistier, and overall better. He has been going harder in on the forecheck, harder to the net, and looks to have more confidence when he has the puck on his stick. An example was last night in the overtime period when he and Max Domi were on the ice together. Cowan collected the puck in the defensive zone and controlled it 200 feet up the ice, and instead of crossing it to Domi, he took it himself and drove to the net. If he can do more of that, he will look like a drastically different player and will likely keep his spot on the team.
Another Good Team Effort Despite Loss
There haven’t been many times this season that this team has been praised for their good team efforts. However, over the last three games they have been putting in some great efforts. Unfortunately, they haven’t gotten the results they’ve wanted, but it is a great step in the right direction. Hopefully, they can continue to string these games together and when they get their injured players back into the lineup, they can start to rattle off wins and move up the standings.
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Last night, their weakest area was defense, which showed on both goals by Adam Fantilli. The first goal was a product of the defense sitting back too far and giving him too much time and space, which led to him toe-dragging the puck and firing it past Joseph Woll. On his second goal, which was the overtime winner, Jake McCabe jumped up on the play and ended up by the Blue Jackets goal, and when the puck was turned over it left Domi back. Unfortunately, he played the angle poorly and allowed Fantilli to go wide on him, which gave him a great lane to the net and he was able to beat Woll for the winner and his second of the night. If things like that can be tightened up, the Maple Leafs will be a better team, but that is just extra attention to detail, which comes with more buy-in from the team
What’s Next for the Maple Leafs?
The Maple Leafs head out on the road for a six game road trip. Their first stop is against the Montreal Canadiens on Saturday night. They will also make stops in Columbus (Nov. 26), Washington (Nov. 28), Pittsburgh (Nov. 29), Florida (Dec. 2) and Carolina (Dec. 4) before returning him on Dec. 6th for another game again the Canadiens. This upcoming six game road trip is one of the most important stretches of their season. One where they need to come out with at least 3-4 wins on it to keep up with the teams ahead of them in the standings.
