Post-Game Talk: Leafs lose 5-4 in OT

[Legion34]

They went 0/4 on the powerplay. Their powerplay had zero outcome on the game.

18 shots. Toronto had the edge in 5 on5 chances.


They also scored right after. Pp. it didn’t affect the outcome. But it absolutely affected the perception of the game

 

[Seath The Scaleless]

They went 0/4 on the powerplay. Their powerplay had zero outcome on the game.

Didn't they score right after a PP when the leafs had 3 D on the ice? Also, PP means the Leafs don't have the puck and can't press, so they're sitting back and getting tired

 

[ottomaddox]

Son of a bitch!

What a disgrace!

 

[BertCorbeau]

They went 0/4 on the powerplay. Their powerplay had zero outcome on the game.

PP's prevent the Leafs from getting their offensive game going and put them back in a defensive position for 2 minutes of the game .. Even if they're killed off they can hurt your momentum.

That 3rd goal came off a PP expiring when the lines were mashed together, which likely cause the miscommunication between Brodie and Muzzin on the goal.

 

[Lightsol]

4-1 powerplay advantage is rare in the playoffs.

Unless you're the Boston Bruins...

 

[PromisedLand]

he looked behind the play all night.... tough night for him

I've noticed that Tavares, Muzzin, Holl and to an extent Dermott struggle against fast teams.

 

[barilko05]

Leafs were dominated by a much, much, MUCH superior team in every facet. This is the difference between a first round failure and a Stanley Cup contender, Avs are a contender, the Leafs are not.

Pure embarrassment from top to bottom. Pathetic effort. Outshot over 20 to 5 in the third, gave up over 50 shots. Avs are superior to Toronto.

You're so full of brown stuff it's not funny. The Leafs are a far superior team OVERALL to the Avs. Offensively, Colorado has an edge (alightly). Our defensive game is way better and so is our goaltending. By a country mile. And our special teams are tops in the league on both sides of the puck. Too bad we only got to showcase one side tonight. We were beaten by a number of factors...missing a couple of key players, complacency after going up by 3 (it happens) and HORRIBLE officiating. Not by a superior team.

 

[IrishInOntario]

Had a helluva impact on the shot counter tho.

And the lack of Leafs PPs had a huge impact.

When you have a 3 goal lead, however, and they don't score on the powerplay against you, it's hard to complain to much about rhe things you can't control (the officiating), when you don't take care of the things you can (your multi-goal lead).

I'm certainly not blind. I acknowledge that the officiating favoured the Avalanche. I just want to see the Leafs better control games with the lead.

 

[SeaOfBlue]

Funny thing about that game. the Leafs went up 3-0 and the Av's cut it to 3-2 before the Av's goalie let in a softie and momentum swung. Tonight their normal goalie tandem came though and shut the door when needed.

In that first game it was almost the same script but goaltending was the difference.

Seems to be an issue with the Leafs when they get up in a game, they seem to make it harder on themselves. Teams push back and sometimes the Leafs can't handle it. That being said, this year they have been a lot better with them.

I mean we chased their starter... And even Francouz didn't have to make that many ten bell saves. We were actually very efficient on our top notch chances.

The Leafs deserved more than 1 PP today. Colorado played a great game today, but they were able to get away with a lot of things that made it easier to do whatever they wanted and made it a lot harder to do what we wanted. A lot of sticks in hands and little hooks that killed our opportunities and generated some for their team.

In the playoffs they usually let penalties that generate chances go, but they usually call the ones that kill chances. They didn't do that for us today for some reason.

 

[SmoggyTwinkles]

I’m just hoping they learn from this and rebound against Vegas, can’t let this become a losing streak or anything

Yeah, but if they're going to go on a losing streak it's probably going to be this next stretch.

I hope not, but if it happens at least pick up some points. Loser points are great when you win most of the time.

 

[BTP]

Jack Campbell after the game says: "We win that game every time if im on my game"

love the compete

 

[rdogg]

Classic Leafs. Get a comfortable lead then piss it away

Rinse, repeat.

 

[BertCorbeau]

When you have a 3 goal lead, however, and they don't score on the powerplay against you, it's hard to complain to much about rhe things you can't control (the officiating), when you don't take care of the things you can (your multi-goal lead).

I'm certainly not blind. I acknowledge that the officiating favoured the Avalanche. I just want to see the Leafs better control games with the lead.

Agreed and while that was their first loss after leading in 2 periods (17-0-0 before tonight), it stings that it's a 4-1 lead against an team the Leafs are fighting with to be amongst the best in the league.

That's the kind of game you want to close out to keep that confidence high.

But honestly they fooled me with their strong play last year and flopped in the playoffs, so it's almost pointless to look into this game for the long run because who knows what it means.

 

[BertCorbeau]

Jack Campbell after the game says: "We win that game every time if im on my game"

love the compete

He wants that OT goal back

 

[IrishInOntario]

Didn't they score right after a PP when the leafs had 3 D on the ice? Also, PP means the Leafs don't have the puck and can't press, so they're sitting back and getting tired

Your not always going to win the penalty battle. There is no doubt that sometimes it's going to tour opponent's way. But when they go 0/4 on those powerplays, it's hard to blame the officials for a team coughing up 3 goal lead (which the Leafs held twice).

 

[leafsfan5]

Lol, I'm not on tilt in the least. There is no question they are the deeper team. It's silly to suggest otherwise. There is no shame in that. Kadri and Mackinnon are on ridiculously good deals.

Mackinnon, Rantanen, Landeskog, Kadri, Burakovski, Nichushskin, Makar, Girard, Johnson, Bowen, Toews, Newhook.

Come on my dude, that's a filthy group, that includes one player (Johnson) north of 30 years old.

The only thing the Leafs have that the Avalanche don't is an elite goalie. We got outshot 50/25 tonight. It's ok to admit the Avalanche are really deep and talented. Certainly beatable, but deeper than the Leafs, a fact magnified when we have a couple regulars out of the lineup.

A lot of the guys you listed there are core players, not depth like your original point.

Leafs have depth options like Kase, Bunting, Kerfoot, Simmonds, Mikheyev. This is similar to the level the Avs have

And I don't disagree about the quality of the Colorado team. They're certainly elite, like I originally stated

 

[SeaOfBlue]

18 shots. Toronto had the edge in 5 on5 chances.


They also scored right after. Pp. it didn’t affect the outcome. But it absolutely affected the perception of the game

Fun fact, Kerfoot played more than Matthews (and everyone else) today. Matthews was on the ice for the entire OT as well.

That is the impact it has. 5 and half minutes of PK time for Kerfoot.

Also doesn't help when you don't even have a functional 4th line. Simmonds is fine, but when you have Seney and Clifford as his line mates, that is not great. They only played 6-8 minutes. You can't have that when Marner and Engvall are out.

 

[tmlms13]

This is what you get when you've played 3 games in a month vs teams that would barely make the playoffs in the AHL.

 

[LEAFANFORLIFE23]

He's anticipating the wrap around coming out the other side.

TBH that set up by Rantanen was filthy. Such a quick, subtle pass .. That's really hard to track. I won't blame Campbell on that one.

I will because you need to be looking at the puck.

 

[fahad203]

One of our main issues is Muzzin's sudden decline. I'm wondering if he is going to snap out of it. It's not like he is slower than the game or something, he is just making stupid decisions. If that pair was the shutdown pair they were the last 2 seasons we'd be the best defensive team in the league.

Dubas need to move on from Muzz at the draft, try and get a first for him. This is how you afford to keep Campbell and keep the cheap depth coming. 2 picks in the first would be huge.

There's nothing sudden about his decline. He has been on decline for a while now. He was pretty bad last year as well

Problem really isn't him. He needs a good partner who can carry the puck out. pairing with Holl has expedited his decline

 

[meefer]

*I missed the first two periods, so take these comments with a grain of salt.
*Colorado is a good team. We knew they'd come out firing in the 3rd and they did.
*Campbell was solid in the 3rd, the OT goal he'd like back.
*As @BTP rightly points out, losing Marner, Kase and Engvall will contribute to your PK being less effective.
*I don't like saying this, but ya, I think the refs did affect the game, at least in the 3rd. There was a trip in the OZ against Matthews, and the Brodie call??? Oh my.
*Kerfoot is impressing me, I know not the same for others, but his speed and drive make a difference. A better option than Mikheyev on the 2nd line imo.
*I thought I saw Muzz flex his leg in pain after a hit in the Leafs zone. I worry about his durability. He shrugged it off and helped keep the puck in the OZ later.
*Tough play for Matthews in OT, perhaps he should have skated off when he was dog tired? A tough call for him to make.
*While I didn't see much of him in the 3rd, based on comments here, Tavares didn't have a good game. Ok, not that I like it, but do some people really need to lose their shit?

 

[PromisedLand]

They went 0/4 on the powerplay. Their powerplay had zero outcome on the game.

thats the ice-time where Matthews, Tavares, Nylander are not on the ice playing offense

 

[Legion34]

Fun fact, Kerfoot played more than Matthews (and everyone else) today. Matthews was on the ice for the entire OT as well.

That is the impact it has. 5 and half minutes of PK time for Kerfoot.

Also doesn't help when you don't even have a functional 4th line. Simmonds is fine, but when you have Seney and Clifford as his line mates, that is not great. They only played 6-8 minutes. You can't have that when Marner and Engvall are out.

bottom line is it was a pretty even 5 on 5 game for the first 45 mins. The leafs had scored on more of their chances early. They had a chance to score in ot then lost. Probably an avs ot win is a just result.

but the ridiculous PPs and not calling tons of penalties against the avs made it silly.

If it was back and 4th scoring no one would bat an eye

 

[Mr_Fun]

I think before the game started, I would have taken the point, considering all who was missing. Don't like the idea of singling out any players here as it was all a team loss.

 

[IrishInOntario]

A lot of the guys you listed there are core players, not depth like your original point.

Leafs have depth options like Kase, Bunting, Kase, Kerfoot, Simmonds. This is similar to the level the Avs have

And I don't disagree about the quality of the Colorado team. They're certainly elite, like I originally stated

I listed 7 of their top 12 forwards, and 5 of their top 6 defensemen. That's 12 of their top 18 skaters (66% of the regular depth)... It's not like I pointed to 3 players and called them deep.

Mackinnon
Rantanen
Landeskog
Kadri
Burakovski
Nichushkin
Newhook

Makar
Girard
Johnson
Bowen
Toews