Maple Leafs serve up a stinker in lopsided loss to Columbus

Article content

On a night that the National Hockey League was calling the Frozen Frenzy with all 32 teams in action, the Maple Leafs were iced out.

Article content

Our takeaways from the Leafs’ 6-2 loss in Columbus against the Blue Jackets on Tuesday night:

RESPONSE IS KEY

The Leafs put up little fight as the Jackets opened a 3-0 lead in the first period and added two more in the second to go up 5-0 before Matthew Knies scored.

Toronto was 5-0-2 in its previous seven games against Columbus and captain Auston Matthews had scored at least one goal in nine consecutive games versus the Jackets. Neither mattered as the Leafs had no traction in their second game of a back-to-back set after soundly beating Tampa Bay at home on Monday.

The Leafs didn’t play with structure, made bad decisions and had no physical impact at Nationwide Arena.

“It boils down to they out-skated us,” coach Craig Berube told media in Columbus. “They out-worked us and they were a harder team than we were. Bottom line.”

Article content

Article content

In other words, the Leafs were everything they weren’t in their first six games under Berube. It easily was their worst 60 minutes of hockey in the early stages of 2024-25.

“They brought their best and we brought our worst,” Mitch Marner said. “Flush it down the toilet. Game is over with, can’t do anything about it now. Get ready for (their next game on) Thursday.”

Said Matthews: “These games happen sometimes. It’s tough, it’s frustrating, you hope it’s a one-off. You move on.”

It was one of 82 games on the schedule. If you want to be of the opinion that it was typical Leafs to play down to a lesser opponent, go ahead.

We look at this way. Through the first half-dozen games, there was enough evidence that Berube’s preaching of playing with greater bite, grit and persistence had found its mark. Toronto was sound defensively and had plenty of cohesion. It didn’t win four of six to start because it got lucky.

Article content

It happened enough to have Leafs Nation feeling that a real change was in the air.

And the fan base should still feel that way.

Still, where the Leafs can really make a mark is at home on Thursday night against the St. Louis Blues, Berube’s former team.

The response to the loss against the Jackets should tell us more about this team than anything that occurred in Columbus. We don’t imagine they will be as bad. As we said, the manner in which they played their first six games didn’t come by accident.

Berube, meanwhile, did not have an update on forward Max Pacioretty, who left the game after the second period with a lower-body injury.

Forward Ryan Reaves drew back into the lineup and David Kampf was a healthy scratch. Berube threw his lines into a blender as the game progressed. Nothing was going to save Toronto.

Article content

HILDE-LEAST, FOR ONE NIGHT

On a night that the Leafs desperately needed to be bailed out by their goaltender, it didn’t happen in Dennis Hildeby’s second NHL start.

Hildeby was shaky at times and served up some big rebounds, giving the Jackets more scoring opportunities than they needed.

Hildeby was beaten six times on 38 shots, 12 days after he won in his NHL debut with 21 saves against the New Jersey Devils.

It’s soon going to be time for Hildeby to head back to the Toronto Marlies, with Joseph Woll around the corner from making his season debut. Big gaps between starts for Hildeby won’t happen with the Marlies. He needs to get the bulk of starts in the American Hockey League, even as Artur Akhtyamov and Matt Murray have been strong in the early going.

Article content

Berube said on Monday that it was possible that Woll would start in Columbus, but that was put off.

Woll still isn’t completely ready to play after experiencing some tightness in his groin, and as the Leafs have a scheduled day off on Wednesday, don’t expect him to start on Thursday.

Truth be told, Anthony Stolarz, with the way he has been playing, deserves to be in goal against the Blues. If Woll is ready, he can back up.

If Woll doesn’t start until Saturday in Boston against the Bruins or in Winnipeg against the Jets on Monday on the Leafs’ two-game trip, so be it.

NICK STRIKES

Had the Leafs failed to score more than the one goal supplied by Knies late in the second period, nothing positive could be taken out of the game.

And, true, scoring your team’s second goal in a lopsided loss amounts to little on the given night.

Article content

For Nick Robertson, though, finally scoring his first goal of the regular season after lighting up opposing goalies in the preseason has to be seen as a jumping-off point.

Berube hadn’t been dissatisfied with Robertson’s overall game, and the 23-year-old was trying to maintain his confidence as each match passed and he had not recorded his first point, never mind his first goal.

But the longer it went without erasing those zeroes, the better chance that doubt was going to start nibbling away at Robertson’s mental state.

When Robertson moved to his backhand to beat Jackets goalie Daniil Tarasov at 13:03 of the third period, we can imagine there was a sense of relief. Every other Leafs forward who played in each of the first six games had at least one point.

There’s no doubt that Robertson has more to give offensively. He went into Tuesday with only eight shots on goal and then scored on his only shot.

Now, to start scoring with greater regularity. Robertson is getting the chance he desired. It’s time to start taking fuller advantage.

[email protected]

X: @koshtorontosun

Article content