Last night, the Toronto Maple Leafs were back in action in an all-Canadian matchup against the Edmonton Oilers. They went into the game having collected points in their last six games and were looking to extend that to seven. Unfortunately, that was not the case. The Oilers took over the game in the second period and went on to win 6-2.
Related: Oilers’ Offence Explodes in 6-3 Win Over Maple Leafs
It was a terribly played game for the Maple Leafs, who essentially had no answer for the Oilers’ top stars, while their own top players looked nearly invisible. They will now reset and focus on their next game on Dec. 16th against the Chicago Blackhawks. However, before that, it is time to look at some takeaways from the game.
Maple Leafs Couldn’t Stop McDavid
It seems to be a common trend when Connor McDavid plays the Maple Leafs in Toronto that he looks superhuman. Once again last night, he was on another level. By now, there is a good chance that just about every member of Leafs Nation has seen the video of him using his speed to get past the defence and score. That clip shows just how fast he is and, honestly, just how bad the Maple Leafs’ defence looked on the play.
On his second goal, McDavid cut to the net with speed and when he threw the puck in front, Troy Stecher put it into his own net. A Maple Leafs defenceman blasting it past Dennis Hildeby is about as unfortunate as it gets. It happens, and he immediately apologized, but it could not have come at a worse time. That goal tied the game and completely shifted the momentum. After that, Edmonton took over and the rest was history.
Loss Shouldn’t Be on the Goalies
If you didn’t watch the game last night, there is a chance you woke up this morning and thought the loss was entirely on the goaltending. That really was not the case. Hildeby did not play that poorly. Sure, there are always one or two goals a goalie might want back, but that happens in almost every game. He kept the Maple Leafs in it early until the Oilers began to dominate, and there was not much he could do once things unraveled. As for Artur Akhtyamov, when he came in relief of Hildeby, he stopped all five shots he faced. The goalie change felt more about giving Hildeby a break and getting Akhtyamov some game action rather than placing the blame on anyone.
Related: Blaming Hildeby for the Maple Leafs Embarrassing Loss Is Just Wrong
From the second period on, the Maple Leafs’ team defence completely broke down. They allowed Edmonton to get to the net far too easily and there was very little pushback once the Oilers established position in the crease. The final 40 minutes were poorly played across the board and it cost them. It was a major step backwards and the kind of game that can hurt a goalie’s confidence, especially one like Hildeby who had been playing so well.
Turnovers Cost Them the Game
Last night, there were four instances where the Maple Leafs either blindly threw the puck up the middle of the ice or just made lazy plays that cost them. The first one came on the Stecher goal, when he flipped the puck out of the zone and it ended up in his own net. Then there was another with 30 seconds remaining in the second period, when a blind pass into the slot from behind the Oilers’ net led to them being caught on an odd-man rush and the puck ended up in the back of their net.
After giving up that goal late in the second, many would have thought they would have come out pushing. But nope, less than two minutes into the third period, the Maple Leafs gave up two goals, one of which came off a turnover from Oliver Ekman-Larsson. That play ended with Vasily Podkolzin putting the puck past Hildeby for Edmonton’s fifth goal of the game. Then, after all of that, William Nylander and Matthew Knies caused another turnover, which led to Zach Hyman scoring against his former team for the sixth goal.
Related: Maple Leafs Should Explore a Trade For Blackhawks’ Connor Murphy
The poor puck play led to four goals against before Steven Lorentz scored the third goal of the game. Those four goals were the difference. This is something the Maple Leafs need to clean up, and very quickly.
Next Up for the Maple Leafs
As mentioned above, the Maple Leafs are back in action on Dec. 16th against the Chicago Blackhawks. The game will honour long-time play-by-play commentator Joe Bowen as part of what is being called “Holy Mackinaw Night.” With a good chance that Connor Bedard will be out of the lineup due to injury, it sets up as a strong opportunity for the Maple Leafs to bounce back after a tough loss.
