"Jack Hughes off the cycle Brendan Dillon on a 4v1 Jack Hughes streaking down the wing 1v1 vs Stolarz Mattias Samuelsson with a clean look six seconds into a clean zone entry Jiri Kulich on a 3v2 tic-tac-toe Tage Thompson on a 3v2 Mattias Samuelsson off the cycle Tage Thompson on a cross-ice pass off the rush Bowen Byram on a point shot"
"Considering two of the 13 goals allowed were empty netters, this means over half of the goals the Leafs gave up this past week came off the rush. It's a complete mess of breakdowns, and they've been constantly seamed for cross-ice plays. The defense is going to receive a lot of scrutiny, but this is more on the forwards. They aren't tracking back with purpose, and often these goals stem from their turnovers."
Maple Leafs improved to 4-4-1 through nine games, matching last season's start. The team has scored five more goals through nine games than last year. The Leafs are tied for ninth in goals per game and seventh in total five-on-five goals, despite a 29th-ranked power play and Auston Matthews producing under a point-per-game. The primary problem is team defense, especially rush defense, with a 27th ranking in goals against per game. In three games this week the Leafs allowed 13 goals; over half of those goals came off the rush. Forwards frequently fail to track back, and many goals stem from turnovers.
Read at Maple Leafs Hotstove
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