If you feel like you’ve read this headline before on PHT, it’s because you have. We went with the same one in January, soon after which the Toronto Maple Leafs collapsed, falling out of a playoff spot and finishing 12th in the Eastern Conference.
Hence, the slightly worrying sense of déjà vu as the current version of the Leafs has won seven of its last nine, while outshooting its opponents in just two of those victories.
Last night, Toronto beat Detroit, 2-1 in a shootout, despite being outshot 42-19.
“We’ve seen over the last couple years, when you bank on hot shooting and hot goaltending, when it dries up, it’s not a very fun thing to do,” Leafs assistant GM Kyle Dubas acknowledged this morning on Sportsnet 590 The Fan.
“I don’t know if we’ve truly pieced together a complete game yet, but we’re striving to get there.”
The Leafs have three tough home games against Detroit, Los Angeles, and Anaheim coming up.
After that, they play a stretch of 17 away games in 22.
Related: Leiweke says he won’t let Leafs go through another collapse