Kukla's Korner Hockey

Kukla's Korner Hockey

No Structure In Toronto's Loss To Chicago

03/14/2019 at 9:35am EDT

from Steve Simmons of the Toronto Sun,

The dressing room was open and silent and empty, a mirrored version of this rather pathetic, more than troubling night of Maple Leafs hockey.

No one was at their stalls. No one was undressing by their nameplates. Only the individual players forced to stand by the Leafs banner were dragged out to face the music on a night when no music played in the dressing room.

It is hard to know where to begin as the Leafs imploded for the second consecutive home game, looking nothing like the contender they are supposed to be, lacking speed and structure and effort and, in the words of John Tavares — always first out to speak when no one else will — saying you can’t win when you chase the puck and chase the game and don’t win any of those races along the way.

This has to be terribly upsetting for Mike Babcock, coach in question, who preaches and teaches structure and then none of it appears evident once the puck is dropped. On Monday, it might have been understandable, as the Leafs were playing the best NHL team in years.

On Wednesday night, with Boston losing on Tuesday, with this being a game in hand on the Bruins, with the Chicago Blackhawks still listed as playoff longshots, with something tangible to play for, the Leafs played as though they paid no attention to what Babcock was pushing at the morning skate: Defensive zone coverages. How to play without the puck and where to position yourself.

continued

Below, watch the highlights of Chicago's 5-4 win over Toronto...

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Paul Kukla founded Kukla’s Korner in 2005 and the site has since become the must-read site on the ‘net for all the latest happenings around the NHL.

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