RALEIGH, NC – The Maple Leafs scored first, and it was Auston Matthews who did it, playing with new linemates.
So that part of the narrative changed.
But the general theme – that the Leafs aren’t playing hockey very well – remained the same, as former Leaf Frederik Andersen backed the Carolina Hurricanes in a 4-1 win over a troubled Toronto team that got off to a start. disastrous in the NHL season. .
With Leafs president Brendan Shanahan taking in the game, Monday’s disappointing effort will only add to the noise players say they are trying not to hear.
“We obviously realize that we have to play better,” Matthews said before the game. But at the same time, it is not the end of the world. We are still trying to figure it out and we are still trying to fit in. We have a lot of work to do and we realize that. But at the same time, we’re not going to let the outside shake us just because that’s the narrative that’s being portrayed right now. “
The Leafs largely finished in the second period, when Carolina scored goals from Sebastian Aho, Steve Lorentz and Nino Niederreiter to take over the game. Andrei Svechnikov added an empty net.
It is not unusual for Shanahan to show up to a game. But the last time he did it after a humiliating loss in Pittsburgh, coach Mike Babcock was fired.
The Leafs then head to Chicago for a date Wednesday with the Blackhawks. A loss there in 2012 preceded the firing of coach Ron Wilson by then-general manager Brian Burke, who replaced him with Randy Carlyle and made the first reference to the team being akin to an “18-wheeler falling off a cliff. “.
- LLLL: Expectations were much higher than 2-4-1 after seven games. But now there are four defeats in a row (0-3-1) by a team that lacks cohesion, effort and apparently the will to do the things that the coaching staff wants.
Before the game, coach Sheldon Keefe acknowledged that his team was playing “below” expectations, but defended the parts of their game that he believes will make them successful, namely puck possession, skillful plays and shot creation. . But the “answer” game I was hoping for didn’t happen.
- In front of Freddie: Before the game, Matthews was asked if the advantage is for the shooter or the goalkeeper when both sides know each other as well, as Andersen and his former teammates.
“I’d like to think of him as an advantage shooter, but he’s great,” Matthews said. “It takes up a lot of space in that network and it is not easy to pass the goals.”
As it turned out, the advantage went to Matthews head to head, but to Andersen against the rest of the Leafs.
- Bunting Friendship: Much has been made of the friendship between Matthews and Andersen, but a new friendship is forming between Matthews and his new leftist, Michael Bunting.
“We’ve actually spent a lot of time off the ice,” Matthews said of Bunting. “We have a mutual friend who he played with. We have much in common “.
Bunting replaced Nick Ritchie on the top line, a move that paid immediate dividends with Bunting’s tough check that led to Matthews’ first goal of the season, his 200th career goal.
It came about in a showdown against Andersen, who is now dealing with the Hurricane pipes after forging a friendship with Matthews for five years together as Leafs. It was the Leafs’ first lead since defeating Ottawa on Oct. 16, the third game of the season.
- ‘Change the chemistry’: The line change was necessary because the Leafs seemed so listless as they lost 7-1 at Pittsburgh on Saturday night. The changes were wholesale. William Nylander was back with Matthews, where he last played regularly with Babcock. Also, Mitch Marner was reunited with John Tavares, with Alex Kerfoot up from the third row. Pierre Engvall has third-line duties. Ritchie skidded down the fourth row.
“Time for a different look, just to change the chemistry a bit,” Keefe said after the morning skating.
- Leaf Notes: Former Carolina goalkeeper Petr Mrázek (groin) received a standing ovation from the crowd when he introduced himself as Leaf in the first period … Defender Timothy Liljegren and forward Michael Amadio were good scratches.
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