Toronto Maple Leafs attitude change a sign of optimism amid the current heat
ANAHEIM – After a convincing 6-2 win over the Los Angeles Kings, the Toronto Maple Leafs can’t be faulted for leaving the field for a day.
The team had traveled from New York to Los Angeles two days earlier and had a stop in Northern California in between two games in the Los Angeles area.
But the team is still practicing.
Maple Leafs coach Sheldon Keefe said he was thinking about giving the team a day off before or after Friday’s game against the San Jose Sharks, but he wanted to keep the team engaged.
“We just felt that on a trip like this, where the weather is nice, there’s going to be some distractions and keep the boys busy,” Keefe said.
It is only a 30 minute session on Thursday. On Saturday, the team practiced just over 20 minutes.
This approach seems to be working and there doesn’t seem to be any known dissent.
“I like him. I mean, the most exciting thing you can do is win,” Leafs guard Morgan Rielly said ahead of the team’s 4-1 win over the Sharks on Friday. “The holidays are okay if you want to do your own thing but to win the games and have that feeling in the room afterwards it’s more fun than anything else you’re going to do in your spare time. .”
The veterans agreed.
“We’re working. We’re not out here on vacation, we’re here to play hockey,” said Wayne Simmonds. We weren’t expecting to take days off and enjoy the sun and all that. We are not here to do anything, we are here to play. “
But perhaps the real buy signal came from William Nylander, who scored in the opening minute of the team’s most recent win.
“I think maybe we’ve learned over the years that we’ve played a couple [of] Nylander said.
The Maple Leafs have won 13 of their last 15 games and had 11 wins in November, the most in any month in the franchise’s history. They can get past the number 12 with a win over the Anaheim Ducks on Sunday.
Attitudes seem to have changed.
In October, the team was mired in a four-game streak of ups and downs and fell below 0.500 for the first time since Keefe took over as Leafs coach on November 20, 2019. The team wanted to keep their spirits up. more comfortable and that includes a new comfortable dress code.
In one Sportsnet interview with Christine Simpson, Auston Matthews revealed that the team has reverted to its traditional office attire after the team’s four-game losing streak. With a slight slur, he said that’s why the team wins games. But there may be some element of truth to the all-business approach the team currently takes.
“That time when we were having a hard time there, I think it was very good for us to learn,” Nylander said. “We don’t always win the games. It’s going to happen. So you have to learn to fight to get through that.”
“It could happen again this season and we will know how to deal with it.”
Expectations were high for the Maple Leafs last season. A disappointing loss to the Montreal Canadaiens in the opening round of 2021 sent them down. A difficult start to the season has changed everything for them.
They’re the hottest team in the NHL now, and the pattern has been set to try to stay that way.
Spezza’s important game and influence on the club
Jason Spezza will play in his 1200th NHL game on Sunday. The 38-year-old has made a successful transition from top scorer to daily contributor.
His adaptability and informal role as a player-coach on the Leafs were portrayed by his enthusiasm and sense of self for the game.
“When I talk to younger players, I think an important skill, if you want to play long term, is to be honest in assessing how you play,” Spezza said. “I think if you wait until your coach tells you you’re not playing well, it’s often too late.”
Spezza has four goals and three assists in 22 games. He doesn’t judge his play based on statistics, but on how he contributes to the team. He doesn’t play for the money, subdued by the fact that he only takes the league’s minimum wage just to get to the Maple Leafs.
“You have to change your value system based on what you judge yourself,” says Spezza.
Kase deals with ‘upper body injuries’
Ondrej Kase will miss the second consecutive game due to upper body injury. The severity of the injury is unknown, but Keefe said he lifted weights and attended team meetings while they were in San Jose.
Kase has a history of injuries, including a concussion that caused him to miss all but three games last season. It’s clear they’re taking a cautious approach to anything that forces players to keep training and competing.
In Kase’s absence, Nylander had time to take the penalty kick and it is likely he will reprise that role.
Clifford makes his season debut, Dermott returns
Kyle Clifford will be included in the squad against the Ducks on Sunday. Acquired in a transaction from St. Louis Blues to consider his future last week, the striker skated with Spezza and Pierre Engvall in training.
All three players skate together in the 2020 NHL Playoffs Round against the Columbus Blue Jackets. The team lost their best series of games 3-2, ending Clifford’s previous tenure in Toronto.
Travis Dermott will return to defense after sitting out the previous four games. Timothy Liljegren will be sidelined like a healed scratch.
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