Post-Game Talk: Leafs Lose 3-1

[BallardEra]

A regulation loss tomorrow night against Tampa will really make things interesting.

 

[Crazy Monkey]

We were dismantled

I love 34. But he can't miss a chance like that

 

[Mugzy97]

The beakout kills me. At one point, I think in the 3rd, the D had the puck in the corner and had a guy open at the hash marks, but rather than pass it to the wide open guy he flipped it up the glass to the blueline, to the waiting Panthers defenceman... like, wtaf. Zero composure. Laughable really.

It really feels like our gameplan is all based on a hope and a prayer. Fck, we looked so physically weak out there tonight.

It's just 1 game, but I am still concerned that they can be that bad...

The reality is the game was basically meaningless. If they finish 1,2,3 it doesn’t matter if they win the games when it matters.

But.. If they lost but played well and won some puck battles at least it would give us all a little hope.

 

[DarkKnight]

We were curling away and on our back foot all night, no jam or purpose. Now Florida was due for a determined effort and they played sound all night, so give them some credit. But, you never sensed any pushback, can't count how many times we made forward passes, standing still,facing our end, that's losing body language, just getting rid of pucks instead of moving up ice with any skating. We conceded the center of the ice too, through the neutral zone.

 

[Evilhomer]

My Dude,

the sun will shine tmo...

Don't bother. All of the drama queens are out tonight.

 

[wingman75]

A regulation loss tomorrow night against Tampa will really make things interesting.

Tampa takes the division lead with a win in regulation.

At least the race for playoff positioning is interesting.

 

[notbias]

Tampa takes the division lead with a win in regulation.

At least the race for playoff positioning is interesting.

The Leafs will win by a field goal tomorrow night and our board will declare this the best Leafs team ever...

That is how it goes.

 

[hamzarocks]

Pretty humiliating loss but atleast still 1st

18 shots though vs the Panthers without Ekblad, Tkachuk or Bennett is not a good site

 

[PROUD PAPA]

Panthers just made our Leafs their little pets tonight. I think all the talks of Panthers tanking , 8-1-1 in last 10….had gone to their heads and thought this was an easy game.

We can blame Reilly all we wanted but the whole
team was outshot almost 2-1 while AM and Willie had ZERO shot after 40mins. Forgot to mention Panthers played with Bennett, Tkachuk and Ekblad.

The whole blaming an individual for what this team does all too often is pretty feeble. Better than accepting reality though if it’s too ugly for individuals to process.
Not that he hasn’t been awful because he most certainly has.
Sorry to say but the bottom line is the team is flawed.
It is what it is.

 

[Ianturnedbull]

Toronto has qualified for the playoffs, won 4 straight (until tonight), and are ok. You'd never know it though...

 

[Antropovsky]

Oof, guess which one is the Leafs.

 

[GQS]

Minten was part of the Carlo trade.

I know but as someone else had pointed out elsewhere, the expectation was for Laughton to come in to play 3C to replace Minten who then became expendable and was used in the Carlo trade. What a Disastrous, useless trade the Laughton deal has become.

 

[Leafs98]

Not really that they lost but it was the way they lost. Stark reminder and my Leafitis is returning.

 

[Evilhomer]

We were curling away and on our back foot all night, no jam or purpose. Now Florida was due for a determined effort and they played sound all night, so give them some credit. But, you never sensed any pushback, can't count how many times we made forward passes, standing still,facing our end, that's losing body language, just getting rid of pucks instead of moving up ice with any skating. We conceded the center of the ice too, through the neutral zone.

Here is a question: for a while now so many posters here have ben saying that Florida is purposely tanking to play the Leafs. Maybe the Leafs purposely tanked tonight to ensure they play Ottawa?

Spoiler: both suggestions are silly. Florida was bound to break out of their slump at some point. They could still only manage 2 goals tonight. I'm pretty sure these two teams are going to end up meeting in the second round, and I think every game in that series will be a 2-1 grinding kind of game.

 

[torontoblood]

I want nothing to do with the Panthers, they are an awful matchup for this team. They give no time and space and no interference will ever be called on them. On top of that Barkov is Matthews ' daddy and Mitch is largely invisible against them too.

This. Leafs can’t get through their grinding defensive slog. The Panthers use borderline interference against us and rarely give us any room, time and space to make plays. It’s hard for the leafs wingers to win battles on the boards against Panthers players. And Bobrovsky is hard to beat on most nights.

They’re built for the rigors of the playoffs and they don’t even have a fully healthy lineup on the ice yet. They’re Deep on offense, their forecheck is relentless and aggressive, they provoke turnovers, they make crisp and smart zone entries, they got Speed, size physicality, grit, and elite goaltending and elite defensive awareness as a team. They are the team to beat in the east and the defending champs for a reason.

 

[wingman75]

The reality is the game was basically meaningless. If they finish 1,2,3 it doesn’t matter if they win the games when it matters.

But.. If they lost but played well and won some puck battles at least it would give us all a little hope.

Absolutely. The loss itself doesn't matter. The concern is the way they played and got dominated. They were not even close to being the better team, hell, they weren't really even in the game regardless of the score.

They could have skilled out a win, but we've all seen how that plays out in the playoffs. Spoiler, it doesn't.

Always disappoined when they lose. But really discouraged with the how they lost.

 

[ToneDog]

Florida and Tampa's 3rd lines will own ours. Never winning with our bottom 6.

 

[ACC1224]

Not a fan of Nylanders game tonight.
Looked like he’d rather had been somewhere else

 

[LeafalCrusader]

Destined to be clowned by Marchand in round one.

 

[Mugzy97]

Absolutely. The loss itself doesn't matter. The concern is the way they played and got dominated. They were not even close to being the better team, hell, they weren't really even in the game regardless of the score.

They could have skilled out a win, but we've all seen how that plays out in the playoffs. Spoiler, it doesn't.

Always disappoined when they lose. But really discouraged with the how they lost.

Well… better to have a bad game now instead of playoffs. One regular season game doesn’t define any team. On to the next one.

 

[wingman75]

The Leafs will win by a field goal tomorrow night and our board will declare this the best Leafs team ever...

That is how it goes.

Well, these are threads to discuss the game itself... so that is all fair game.

Beating Tampa is not the same as beating Florida imo.

 

[ACC1224]

Bérubé gets it.

 

[Antropovsky]

The problem is entirely in their heads. Mental midgets with zero edge to their game.

..they’ve ascended to godhood, reaching the summit where ambition ends.

 

[TopCheeseShotta]

Simply not good enuff.. That was a clinic from the Champs. Our staff and strategists need to play this tape repeatedly to understand how to counter such an aggressive connnssttant forecheck and puck pursuit they have.

A Woll blunder + a Rielly blunder = Game Over.

But this Captain of ours. Yikes. He is scared of his own shadow out there. Not good enuff, again.

 

[notbias]

Well, these are threads to discuss the game itself... so that is all fair game.

Beating Tampa is not the same as beating Florida imo.

I agree, this board is just super bipolar, that was all I was illustrating.

A win tomorrow and this board will think the Leafs are the best again.