I used to be a fairly decent tennis player when I was much younger.
There was this older guy that really wasn't any more talented than I was, but I could never beat him no matter what I did. One day I asked him what was it that allowed him to keep beating me. His answer was simple, he just kept the ball in play until I made a mistake by hitting out of bounds, or into the net, or served up a soft one he could slam.
Exactly how these teams continually beat the Leafs. They just keep playing a safe game until the Leafs make the mistake and then pounce on it.
Last night it was a bad read between Reaves and Edmunson, a careless high sticking penalty and an unnecessary slashing penalty. 3 goals.
Years past it was,
- Kerfoot's drop pass and later high stick on Hedman
- Dermott's "spinnerama" against the Habs
- Galch's OT disaster pass
- A game 5 horrific line change against the CBJ's
- Jake Gardiner in Game 7 vs the B's
- etc. etc.
Just wait for them to f**k up and it'll likely get you 2 of the 4 wins you need.
It's structure and attention to detail. Or said another way, coaching.
