The Toronto Maple Leafs fell 4-1 to the Rangers on Saturday night, but the score was misleading as two empty-net goals made it look worse than it was. In reality, it was a close 2-1 game.
Despite being the stronger team, the Leafs couldn’t overcome poor coaching decisions, leading to a 3-2 record for the season. In the NHL, one-goal games are often unpredictable, and while Berube didn’t embarrass himself, several key choices might have altered the outcome in Toronto’s favor.
Craig Berube’s decisions played a major role in the Leafs’ loss. Here are my main concerns:
- Max Domi isn’t suited to play center. Though the Leafs are short on centers, playing Domi there has been a mistake. Matthews and Domi’s chemistry has been underutilized, and after five games, the forwards aren’t as dangerous as they should be. Berube should start addressing this.
- If Domi must play center, he shouldn’t get more ice time than John Tavares.
- Tavares and Robertson saw significantly less ice time compared to the other scoring lines, despite playing their best game so far. Berube should’ve recognized this and played them more.
- Shooting indiscriminately from everywhere is a long-term losing strategy.
- The power play is failing miserably.
- Pontus Holmberg isn’t a quality top-nine forward in the NHL.
- Ryan Reaves shouldn’t play again. The fourth line was a disaster. Even with Steve Lorentz’s contributions, not even Matthews could consistently succeed with that anchor.
- Choosing Simon Benoit or Conor Timmins over Timothy Liljegren.
Of all the questionable decisions, the worst was giving the fourth line multiple shifts in the last five minutes of a one-goal game. This would be heavily criticized if Berube wasn’t new. It was a bad move, and Berube needs to improve.
In summary, the Leafs played well and could have won if the coach had made better decisions.