The Toronto Maple Leafs took on the Buffalo Sabres in the first half of a back-to-back and things didn’t go as planned. After how they played against the New Jersey Devils on Tuesday night, the hope was that they would bounce back and use the pushback they got as motivation to go on a winning steak.
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However, that didn’t happen. They started out well, but then once the second period began, it was the same old team. They were flat, slow and lacked urgency. The Sabres were able to take advantage and come out with a 5-3 win. The good thing for the Maple Leafs is they don’t need to wait long to try and turn things around. They are back in action tonight on home ice and if they manage to lose that, fans may be calling for massive changes.
But, before we get to that, let’s look at the takeaways from the game last night.
Stolarz Isn’t Playing the Same as Last Season
This season there are a lot of things that feel different about the Maple Leafs. They seem slower and lack an offensive touch. Their defensemen at times so far this season have looked lost. But most importantly, their goaltending isn’t close to the same. It’s hard to judge Cayden Primeau who has only played in one game so far. But when it comes to Anthony Stolarz, his play isn’t the same as last season. He’s been shaky at times, his rebound control is not nearly as good and at least once per game, he lets in a very weak goal where he should have made a save. For example, last night it was the Alex Tuch shorthanded goal late in the third period. That was a play where Stolarz would have made a save last season, but this season he hasn’t been.
He isn’t the only one to blame, the defensemen has been atrocious. They are giving up numerous odd-man rushes, and leaving their goalie out to dry. That said, Stolarz’s play does need to be better. There is no telling of he isn’t playing the same because he’s been carrying majority of the workload or not. They’ll get a better read on that when Joseph Woll has completed his return-to-play process. But, just glancing at Stolarz’s number, they are drastically different than last season.
In seven games, he has a 2-4-1 record with a 3.31 goals against average (GAA) and a .885 save percentage. Last season, he ended the season as arguably the best goalie in the NHL aside from Winnipeg Jets’ Connor Hellebuyck. Right now, he is in 20th in the NHL in wins, 33rd in GAA and 32nd in SV%. That is no where close to where he needs to be, if he wants to be the starting goalie for the Maple Leafs. He needs to be better, he likely knows it. In all honesty, the entire team needs to be better, and regain some confidence, or else this season could go down the tubes, fast.
Nylander Leave Game with Injury
Some may argue that William Nylander has had a rough start to the season, but statically, he has been the best player on the Maple Leafs. And, that continued tonight. He was sprung on a breakaway and was able to beat Alex Lyon five-hole for his third goal of the season and first on a goalie this season. Unfortunately, that isn’t the takeaway from this game, but rather that he left the game with an injury and didn’t return.
Many fans on social media made sure they posted about Nylander being the best player for the Maple Leafs last night, despite leaving the game. Which as you could imagine was a huge loss when the team needed him most. In the last few minutes, Toronto had a six-on-four power play (PP) and then the man advantage with the goalie out after the PP ended. It was clear that they don’t have a player who possess the puck handling skills that Nylander does. So, naturally, every member of Leafs Nation is hoping that the injury isn’t bad. It didn’t look overly bad, it was a cross-check to the hip area that looked like it may have caught him in the arm. If it did, it could be bad, if not it may have just been a stinger and he could return tonight.
After the game, head coach Craig Berube spoke with the media and he didn’t give an official update. He did mention that they need more time to evaluate, and that there’s a chance he could play in the second half of the back-to-back. Obviously, that would be the ideal scenario. If he is hurt and out for a longer period of time, the Maple Leafs will likely call up David Kampf as the extra forward. They will likely also give Nicholas Robertson who was a healthy scratch last night, more ice time to prove what he can do, with more consistent playing time.
