Leafs Win 5-4, Unfortunately
Posted 10:27 PM ET | Comments 5
Yes, the Leafs won, that's not a typo. I guess John Ferguson and Paul Maurice can sleep a little sounder tonight knowing that their jobs are safe for one more day at least. The pundits will talk, sarcastically mind you, of how everything is a-ok in Leafland, and there will be thousands of Leafs fans throughout North America that will be quick to say that the Leafs are on the cusp of a 27,000-game winning streak, but I think that everybody that follows the Leafs needs to take a step back.
It's ridiculous to think that the Leafs will not win any games for the remainder of the season, so when they do win one every now and again, just accept it. They might win 5 games, maybe even 6, or God forbid 10 games between now and April, but what all the pro-rebuilders need to realize is that even winning 10 games will probably guarantee us a top 3 draft pick.
The Carolina Hurricanes were 3-6-1 in their last 10 going into this game. The Leafs were 2-7-1. It's no surprise that the game appeared to be competitive and it's not exactly surprising that the Leafs won either. Both teams are playing terrible hockey. It's just that the Leafs were slightly less terrible tonight than the Hurricanes. There's nothing more to this. It's just that simple.
Coming up in the next 5 games the Leafs play the Bruins (4-6-0 in their last 10), the Sabres (1-4-5), the Devils (8-2-0), and the Capitals (5-3-2) twice. Their record against all 4 of those teams is terrible over the last few years and even though the Bruins and Sabres aren't playing well, they both usually find a way to beat the Leafs. If Toronto goes 0-5-0 in those games, nobody can that it was unexpected.
So, even though Toronto managed to walk away with a win tonight, remember Leaf fans, there's still light at the end of the tunnel. We're still a terrible hockey team, we're still in the hunt for a top 3 draft pick, and as a pro-rebuilder I can still keep my hopes high.
It's ridiculous to think that the Leafs will not win any games for the remainder of the season, so when they do win one every now and again, just accept it. They might win 5 games, maybe even 6, or God forbid 10 games between now and April, but what all the pro-rebuilders need to realize is that even winning 10 games will probably guarantee us a top 3 draft pick.
The Carolina Hurricanes were 3-6-1 in their last 10 going into this game. The Leafs were 2-7-1. It's no surprise that the game appeared to be competitive and it's not exactly surprising that the Leafs won either. Both teams are playing terrible hockey. It's just that the Leafs were slightly less terrible tonight than the Hurricanes. There's nothing more to this. It's just that simple.
Coming up in the next 5 games the Leafs play the Bruins (4-6-0 in their last 10), the Sabres (1-4-5), the Devils (8-2-0), and the Capitals (5-3-2) twice. Their record against all 4 of those teams is terrible over the last few years and even though the Bruins and Sabres aren't playing well, they both usually find a way to beat the Leafs. If Toronto goes 0-5-0 in those games, nobody can that it was unexpected.
So, even though Toronto managed to walk away with a win tonight, remember Leaf fans, there's still light at the end of the tunnel. We're still a terrible hockey team, we're still in the hunt for a top 3 draft pick, and as a pro-rebuilder I can still keep my hopes high.
The non-call on the hook of the Carolina D-man for the 5th Leaf goal was certainly a big help too. How does a referee who is 5 feet away from that play miss it?
yeah the same thing was going through my mind
its clear the refs hate the Leafs... when we want them to win, the refs make the bad calls, when we want them to loose, the refs help them win... seriously... talk about bias against a team, lol. (to anyone who didn't follow, that was humor)
Yeah too bad, a lose would have been best - the sooner we get Cliff in the better. A win is just what MLSE will use as an excuse to do what they always do... nothing... more Peddie
Well I liked the one where a linesman tripped the Leaf player and they called a penalty on the Carolina guy instead.But really you couldn't expect the Leafs to lose every game. Unless Toskala stopped coming then we could lose a ton easily. We got stuck with their backup for most of the game and their PK was absolutely horrible. Less penalties and we probably would have lost.Way I see it Boston will want to hold onto that playoff spot and should bring a good effort. You know Buffalo is going to break out eventually and the Leafs may be the target. And the Devils are just good right now. If the Caps can handle Ottawa anything can happen.Just hope the Leafs return to form and start losing again. Need to keep falling back to create change and get a good draft pick.