Maple Leafs hit embarrassing new low after Matthews injury
Photo credit: Dan Hamilton-Imagn Images
The Toronto Maple Leafs are officially cooked without Auston Matthews, and head coach Craig Berube is running out of answers for a totally deflated locker room.
Losing your captain to a torn MCL is devastating. But the lack of pushback since that dirty knee-on-knee hit is completely unacceptable.
Toronto sits dead last in the Atlantic Division with a miserable 70 points. They have secured just two wins over their last 10 games.
The front office built this roster heavily around elite offensive output. Without their star center driving the transition game, the structure is completely broken.
Opposing defensemen are routinely clogging the neutral zone. The crisp passing we usually expect on the power play is entirely gone.
William Nylander is trying his best to fill the void. But asking wingers to replace a franchise center who banked 27 goals before going down is terrible hockey logic.
A Lost Season In Toronto, and Fans are Reacting
Berube demands a heavy, aggressive forechecking style. Right now, this roster just looks completely exhausted from the blue line forward.
The penalty kill is surrendering high-danger chances constantly. They are routinely losing 50-50 puck battles along the boards to lottery teams.
Over his NHL career, Matthews has masked a lot of deep organizational flaws. Now, management is being forced to evaluate exactly what they have left.
Fans are rightfully furious. You can buy tickets to the upcoming Battle of Ontario for under $100 on the secondary market.
That staggering price drop tells you everything about the current confidence in the Show. The summer rebuild cannot arrive soon enough.
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| POLL | ||
MARS 20|177 ANSWERS Maple Leafs hit embarrassing new low after Matthews injury Will the Maple Leafs trade a core piece this summer ? | ||
| Yes | 157 | 88.7 % |
| No | 20 | 11.3 % |
| List of polls | ||