They’ll be content with a timely two-and-a-half games against a vulnerable foe.
Because that’s what the home team needed on a lethargic, lackluster Sunday night to turn the script on the Buffalo Sabers’ freefall in the shadow of the mighty NFL Bills.
The Maple Leafs showed no signs of urgency against their farm-system goaltender or avenged Saturday night’s mistakes, trailing by two points before the visitors’ field goal.
After halftime, they trailed 1-3.
All signs pointed to Tim Butte’s midfield skater earning the loudest cheers of the night.
But, alas, these are the sad Sabers, ten straight losses (three in overtime), no tax break, no Palm Trees, and no savior.
“I’m almost speechless. It’s my responsibility to fix this,” Buffalo coach Lindy Love said.
“This is the toughest solution I’ve ever had to deal with, but it’s my responsibility to put these guys in the right position to win a hockey game. There’s no one else. It’s just me.”
These are the Maple Leafs, and despite their recent troubles on offense, they still wear high-end game-wreckers and don’t need too many dominant shifts to turn around results.
So what if they don’t start the first two quarters on time?
The Maple Leafs were able to break out of turbo mode for a while and come back to beat a vulnerable opponent 5-3.
“Man, there’s momentum,” Max Domi said. “That’s the game of hockey, right?”
Nick Robertson hits four straight scrapes in 2:31 of 2nd period; hard-working John Tavares scores twice; Toronto’s inconsistent power play looks threatening again Sex, who played a role on both ends of the floor in back-to-back games this weekend.
“We just wanted to have a good 60 minutes,” defenseman and realist Jake McCabe said hours before puck dropped. “It’s been a while since we’ve really had a 60-minute hockey game that we’re proud of.”
Well, they’re still looking.
But they have accumulated some points in the table and taken plenty of encouragement from their first five-goal effort in December and some performances on multiple fronts.
Domi, who moved to the center position, broke his 27-game scoring drought and 16-game assist drought. Domi’s celebration was meaningful, but the player downplayed the significance of the goal after the game.
“It feels good, trust me,” Berube said. “I mean, he’s not happy that he didn’t perform or score. We need him to do that. But we need him to play the style of game he played tonight. That’s the difference to me. .
Berubu’s new third line of Bobby McMahon-Domi Robertson is lethal and fast.
“The three of us lined up and talked and we decided that our strengths were speed and skating,” Domi explained. “So, all three of us tried our best to do that. And then those two guys absolutely flew tonight.”
The recalled Denis Hilderby calmed down after a shaky start to seal victory in his first start with Anthony Stolarz injured and was confident enough to score an empty-net goal in just his third start.
The Maple Leafs as a team made a diligent and meticulous final frame check after their explosive second quarter to avoid wasting those fate-changing two and a half minutes.
Tavares scored three goals in a half-time insurance goal in natural fashion.
The better team eventually emerged and won.
“It was a great third period. You go out and check it out and don’t give them too much,” Berube praised. “Our leaders stepped up and really did a great job tonight.”
The team had a day off on Monday but will have to put in a more comprehensive effort Wednesday in Dallas.
• McMahon looked in good shape as he returned from a 17-day layoff due to groin pain.
The power forward led all skaters with five shots on goal against Detroit on Saturday and followed up with two assists and a +3 rating on Sunday.
• In an AHL goalie battle, Buffalo recalled Devon Levi for his first NHL start in a month.
Since the rest of the club flew in continuously from Washington and didn’t check into a Toronto hotel until 2 a.m., the team figured having Levi make the short trip from Rochester, N.Y., early would give them the advantage of having fresher bodies in their network.
Love was noncommittal about Levy’s prospects at a big club.
“Had a great game for us,” Love said of the 22-year-old’s 36-save performance.
The defenseman candidly reflects on the highs and lows of life under the microscope, detailing the consequences of his experiences Overtime own goal winner Playing for the Buffalo Sabers early in his final season in Toronto:
“They turned on me right away,” McCabe said on the podcast. “My own team scored the winning goal in overtime.”
he will always remember toronto sun The boos from the headliner (“Bryan McKlutz”) can still be heard every time he touches the puck on a breakaway during the 2007-08 season.
“It was painful. It sucked the life out of me. My house was egged on. I got hate mail,” McCabe said. “That was the hardest year of my life.”
The power bomber became so frustrated that he doubted he would ever play hockey again — only to bounce back at Florida State and step out of the spotlight.
“I need to get out of here just to save my life. It’s not fun anymore,” McCabe said. “That being said, I wouldn’t trade my time in Toronto for everything.
“I think everyone should play in a hockey market like this. It’s a special thing.”
• Berube flipped William Nylander onto the top line of Auston Matthews and Mitch Marner midway through the game. ($35.9 million worth of forward contracts coming your way.)
Matthew Ness joins John Tavares and Max Pacioretty on the second unit, which the coach uses to counter Tachi Thompson’s heavy line and free up Matthews’ unit.
“I wanted to loosen up the guys a little bit and give them some different looks,” Berube said. “It worked out.”
• Stolarz’s “day-to-day” injury will sideline him for at least a week.
The starter went on IR due to a lower-body injury suffered Thursday against the Ducks.
Berube did not want to comment on the goalkeeper’s status, so the next update is expected on Tuesday.
Joseph Wall will start Wednesday in Dallas.
