The Toronto Maple Leafs may have lost, but who cares?
Sure, the Toronto Maple Leafs wasted a three-goal lead, which is disappointing, but I believe this was one of their greatest games of the season.
Ilya Samsonov played an excellent game for the Leafs, which was especially impressive given his previous injury scare.
They also played excellent defense against a top team despite the absence of Marner and Jarnkrok (among others), while Nick Robertson and Timothy Liljegren continued their development toward – dare we say it? – becoming star players.
So, altogether, who cares about a shootout loss and a meaningless point in the standings when everything else is going well?
The Toronto Maple Leafs should be very happy about the loss to Carolina.
What I enjoyed about this game was that the Leafs struggled in the first period but did not give up. Instead, they came out and played an excellent second quarter.
Because Marner is out and they’re playing against a quality team, you can excuse the poor first period. The fact that they regrouped and scored three times in a row in the second half is far more significant than everything else that occurred.
And, despite Carolina led 9-2 after one, Samsonov still had a chance to impress, which adds to the game’s positives.
You hate blowing leads, and without Marner and Jarkrok, the Leafs will let Carolina dominate after leading 3-0 or allowing those two goals at the conclusion of the game. These are two of the Leafs’ finest defensive players, as well as two of the team’s primary penalty killers, on an already poor penalty killing unit.
When you’re missing a top-ten player from your roster and facing one of the league’s greatest teams, you should be pleased to win the 5v5 minutes and earn a point against Carolina.
Robertson scored, Liljegren assisted, and both players played 2 x 5v5 with no goals against. (figures from naturalstatrick.com).
The Leafs may not have been able to add any star players to their roster at the Trade Deadline, but they have been unable to select and develop players outside the top five picks into serviceable support players during the last five years.
Robertson, McMann, and Liljegren are altering that, and they all appear to be coming into their own at the perfect time.
