from Chris Johnston of Sportsnet,

No compete. No consistency. Nothing.

We seem to be watching the Toronto Maple Leafs season unravel right before our eyes. Sure, it has essentially been trending in the wrong direction for the last two months, but during that spiral down the standings the players could always point to the fact that they remained in a playoff position.

Well no more.

The Leafs now have to look up in the Eastern Conference, which is going to be awfully tough to do since so many of them seem to be hanging their heads. The talk after a win at the Winter Classic on Jan. 1 was all about how it should serve as a springboard to new heights for this team. In the eight days since, they’ve stumbled through what should have been a relatively each stretch of schedule with an 0-3 record – getting outscored 18-5 in the process.

There are still 93 days and 37 games left to go before the post-season positions are crystallized. That’s an awfully long time and an awful lot of hockey. However, it doesn’t minimize the suddenly precarious position Toronto finds itself in, especially considering that it marched through October with a 10-4-0 record.

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