Honestly it’s over for the Leafs.

You know, this has got to be one of the lowest moments for this Toronto Maple Leafs core. I mean, aside from the playoff losses, when it comes to regular season at least, tonight’s loss against Montreal, I think could be a tipping point. I don’t know if Craig Bub is gone, but I don’t know. Until this season, there’s I think often been the feeling that if the Leafs can get it together, if they can fire on all cylinders, they would be good enough. Matthews, Knander, Tvarez, MNER, they would be enough to carry the team to wherever now with MNER gone. But also, and perhaps more importantly, their awful defensive play all year, I don’t think Leafs fans believe anymore. And the difference, I think, between an organically grown team on the up and up and a Leafs team built around four players was pretty evident tonight when the Leafs got spanked by the Hav. This game was 52. It would have been worse had Joseph Wall not had a great game. He was pulled nonetheless. There is this one sequence in the third period where Montreal basically toyed with the Leafs for 30 straight seconds on a delayed penalty. It was honestly insane. I mean, look at the opening goal. Caulfield Suzuki Hudson. Beautiful skating, beautiful passing, tic-tac-toe. This is how Montreal played all night. Demidov also had a great game. He got a second assist on the second goal and a primary assist on the third. Noah Dobson second of the night. I love this one. Slowsky gives it to Demidov at the post. He lays it out for Dobson who just tease it home. Honestly, once Montreal started, they did not stop. They scored four in a row. Josh Anderson number four. Joseph Wall also, as I mentioned, was pulled after that one. He wasn’t the issue. He really was not. The Leafs have been awful defensively all year. Yeah, losing Mner is tough. Their production has been fine though. It’s just they’re not built for even the regular season, much less the playoffs. So, I don’t know. They needed the Gaver signing in the offseason. The Rangers got, I guess, and probably a whole lot more. Anyway, Leafs fans, how are you feeling right now? Please let me know. See you guys next time. Bye-bye.

The Toronto Maple Leafs were just embarrassed by the Montreal Canadiens during Hockey Night in Canada. We’ll discuss that and more in today’s NHL hockey video.

50 comments

  1. Agree with the sentiments here, core 4 window has closed and there isnt a core 3 window. Pull an OKC Thunder and trade our top guys for a bunch of 1st round picks, get young quick by drafting a ton and shorten the rebuild in doing so.

  6. This is a head office issue! Their inability to make players excel is legendary! When a player's confidence is lost, hang up the skates! Someone drafts these players, someone seen talent, where does talent disappear!! I witnessed highly skilled co-workers lose confidence, devastating!

  7. Marner might not be the best come playoff time, but he's a force in the regular season. Hugely good offensively, and a possession monster. No team could just lose a player like him and hope to be better for it, especially without significant additions. If he had been replaced with a legit top 4 defender or a top power forward, maybe the leafs would have been able to be better in the long run. But you don't just add spare parts with his cap space and go "DEPTH" and think you'll be bettet

  8. Matthews is making 13.25M, Newhook is making 2.9M. matthews has 2 more points in the same number of games.
    When are leafs fans gonna actually start to get upset with their captain? He's perpetually injured now. Always playing through something. He had a pathetic season (for a guy who scored 60+ not too long ago) last season, he's on track for basically the same season this year. The guy needs to be traded before his value declines to a point where he's no longer tradable because of the contract. That said, its a short one. Kinda looking like a genius move now since if he keeps this up, he's probably worth no more than 10M when he reups. Even with the cap going way up

  9. Its far from over for the leafs injurys include Knies ,Matthews and Tanev their elite defensive defencman so is Stolarz .. The Leafs are fourth in the league in goals

  10. The Chief and his coaching staff arent going to have a Merry Christmas. The General manager is also Generaly mismanaging the team too. You can blame the Injuries but the team was allready in trouble from the start of the season. Im back to not watching when it gets ugly again….

  11. "Honestly it's over for the Leafs" Well, DUH! The season was over for the Leafs before it began. Only 6 of the 32 teams had a 100 point scorer last year. The Leafs traded their 100 point man away, and make no significant additions! And said 100 point scorer had an assist on about two-thirds of Matthews goals. So, the trade was also bound to bring Matthews production down… Leafs tore a big hole in their offense int the off-season and didn't do anything to plug it. Letting fans scapegoat players is stupid, but at least Marner will get a Stanley Cup ring now, like so many other Leafs who got a ring after they left the Leafs.

  13. I hate this leafs team right now. Sure, some key players are injured, but that's no excuse for being soft pushovers who are completely lost at every moment. Defence is nonexistent. Team play is dead, anything they try is a half assed solo play. They look slow, lazy, and panicky. I switched to watching the Ottawa vs New York PWHL game half way through. Ottawa lost 3-0 but showed ten times the effort Toronto Maple Laughs showed. And to top it all off, the only moment the Leafs showed any spirit was when the final horn blew. Only then did they get a bit scrappy (i can't account for the time i wasn't watching). Where was that for the whole last hour of actual game play? Pathetic. Just pathetic.

  23. First thing to do is get rid of the dam Harold Ballard Organ grinder who wants to listen to the 19th century F ING organ! Every time that shit plays it's like bring out the clown players! 😂

  24. It's not over… yet.

    Toronto is still in a spot where if they pop off a few wins in a row they climb back into the picture and become a threat for the division. That being said….. rime is ticking and they have a mountain to climb.

  26. Leafs management absolutely sucks. The worst I've seen since tha Harold Ballard era. Making such brilliant trades getting rid of Marner for Roy and picking up and playing Dakota Joshua a lot, who is a life negative plus minus player who can't score if there was an empty net. Too many 4th line players with no direction on this team with no direction. Too many others, to mention.

  30. Not a Leafs fan. And the main reason I really don’t like the team and organization is, that they seem so stupidly arrogant. It must start in the management somewhere and trickle down to the team. Every time the Leafs get a new player that I really like, he then seems to turn into a bitch 😂 I might just be biased, but I’m convinced that it’s their attitude. No team spirit.

  35. Grow up leafs fans. Always the same-if you aren't doing well then its catastrophic, and if you are doing well its plan the civic parade. Teams have to find what works and the coaches are paid to do this. Be quiet and stop reacting to click-baiting idiots.🏒

  37. The Leafs have lots of talent, but the even back to the Salming days always seemed to claim power based on the stars, and not the whole team. The Leafs have no heart. Look at the last 3 years of the Oilers, there is no reason with that roster that they shouldn't have got at least on Cup, but no, sure they were close, but really? There is a lack of heart. The Leafs are the most guilty of this lack of oomph for the longest time. Perhaps it's the guarantee of sold out games regardless of how poor they play, who knows. It's almost like they know they will lose, so it's almost self fulfilling prophesy.

  43. Well I imagine it doesn’t help when their team looks like a hospital right now. Matthews, Knies, McCabe, Carlo, Roy, Tanev, Rifai. Them losing Marner certainly doesn’t help either.

  45. Leafs fans are harsh with criticism about Leafs play…Leafs fans remember nothing comes easy for an expansion team…Be patient…Better seasons ahead…

  49. Leafs are great at playing there position if theres no other team on the ice. And when they pass, they float it out in the direction of one of there covered team mates. Its hard to watch right now.

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