Time for the Maple Leafs to hit the road.
As the struggling club flew to Edmonton on Thursday, the hope on the team’s charter had to be that the road doesn’t hit back.
It’s a struggling Leafs group that will start a four-game trip on Saturday against the Oilers, one that has lost six of its past nine games, including the past three, with all of those losses coming in regulation.
And in that six-pack of futility, which sandwiched a three-game winning streak, the Leafs were outscored 23-7.
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Stops in Calgary, Seattle and Vancouver follow the clash with Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl and the rest of the Oilers before the break for the 4 Nations Face-Off.
It’s the longest trip of the season, both in days and distance travelled, for the Leafs to this point.
Lengthy absences from home will become the norm, as the Leafs will have another four-game trip in the week after the break and twice in March they will head west for three-game trips.
“I’m glad we’re going on the road,” Leafs coach Craig Berube said after Toronto lost against Minnesota on Wednesday night. “I think it’ll be good for the team to be together and spend some time together.
“It’s a big road trip for us, that’s for sure. We’ll get some healthy bodies back, hopefully, and go from there.”
That group of potential returnees includes centre John Tavares, top-line winger Matthew Knies, goalie Anthony Stolarz and perhaps defenceman Jani Hakanpaa, who wants to play in a game or two before he suits up for Finland at the 4 Nations event.
We should have a better idea on injuries after the Leafs practise on Friday in Edmonton.
As for winger Brandon Saad, he’s not what the Leafs need. There’s history there in that Saad played for Berube with the St. Louis Blues, but once Saad clears waivers and become an unrestricted free agent on Friday, Toronto might want to take a pass.
The prime target for Leafs general manager Brad Treliving remains — and should be — a centre. Following that, a depth defenceman.
In 43 games this season with the Blues, Saad had seven goals and nine assists.
As a whole, perhaps the Leafs will take a cue from their recent road games, as they’re 6-2-0 in their past eight away from Scotiabank Arena.
If so, they’ll have to perform with more urgency and better execution than what they have been putting forth recently.
The sub-par hockey caught up to the Leafs on Wednesday night, when their loss to the Minnesota Wild, coupled with the Florida Panthers’ win against the Los Angeles Kings, dropped the Leafs to second place in the Atlantic Division, one point back of the defending Stanley Cup-champion Panthers.
In five of the aforementioned six losses in nine games, Toronto has outshot the opponent at five-on-five. If you’re satisfied with the scoring chances the Leafs have been getting, have at it.
It’s the single goals per game that are glaring on the scoreboard. That’s what matters in the standings, not whether the Leafs are almost scoring.
“We’re in a position where we have to play a little bit better and try to find the back of the net,” defenceman Morgan Rielly said. “We’ve got a handful of games here before we go on a break. It’s important that we go out and play hard, perform and ultimately try to get some results.”
There should be a boost once Stolarz returns, but in the meantime, Joseph Woll has to find a way to supply more consistent goaltending. He has slipped a bit in his past seven starts, going 3-4-0 with an .885 save percentage. That’s quite a dip from his overall save percentage in 27 games, which stands at .908.
The list of Leafs who can be more productive isn’t short. Rielly knows he can give more and Max Domi has to find a way to start making more of a difference. Even Mitch Marner has been quiet, recording one assist in the past three losses.
“I don’t think we’ve really been on a road trip longer than three, four days this year, so it will be good to get on the road and get together as a team,” Leafs captain Auston Matthews said.
“These are always the best ones to bond and get together, especially when you’re going through adversity like this. That’s the perfect time.”
Now, to make it a successful business trip.
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