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Toronto Maple Leafs Blow Leads, Lose 6-5 to New York Islanders in OT

By Chris Okrainetz

Apr 11, 2015; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; The Toronto Maple Leafs logo on the offices of the Air Canada Centre before the final game of the season against the Montreal Canadiens at Air Canada Centre. Mandatory Credit: Tom Szczerbowski-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 11, 2015; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; The Toronto Maple Leafs logo on the offices of the Air Canada Centre before the final game of the season against the Montreal Canadiens at Air Canada Centre. Mandatory Credit: Tom Szczerbowski-USA TODAY Sports /
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The Toronto Maple Leafs (24-17-10) blew a trio of leads on Monday night and allowed the New York Islanders (23-18-10) to steal an extra point from them.

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Thoughts and Observations

This was easily one of the

Toronto Maple Leafs

ugliest losses of the season. They blew leads, had breakdowns in their own zone, left skaters open in the home plate area, it wasn’t pretty. Defence seems to be a foreign concept at times too.

Frederik Andersen

and the Leafs were bailed out by a couple posts tonight, as the

John Tavares

,

Anders Lee

and

Josh Bailey

line rang iron twice. But think if those shots would have went in? The Leafs might have given up six or seven goals a lot earlier tonight. Freddy’s numbers have taken a beating since the All-Star break and he’s allowed five or more goals in each of his last three starts. It’s not all Andersen’s fault, however. The defence has been beyond abysmal recently.

Despite the collapse, though, the Leafs did move back into a playoff spot tonight and are now third in the Atlantic division.

More from Toronto Maple Leafs

The Leafs’ fourth line got ripped apart tonight. They were under 30 percent possession tonight and they were regularly hemmed in their own zone.

  • Sportsnet put up an interesting graphic during the second period when they showed the list of active players who have the most assists in their first 50 career games. Marner was tied for sixth on this list with Alex Ovechkin at 31 assists and trails only Nicklas Backstrom (32), Patrick Kane (33), Evgeni Malkin (33), Sidney Crosby (34), and Connor McDavid (36). Not bad company to be associated with.

    • The attendance at the Barclays Center was abysmal tonight. Hockey fans in the New York area missed a great game, too.

    Stat of the Night

    How awesome was it to see all five Toronto goals scored by a different rookie tonight? It was a rare feat that had to be our stat of the night.

    What’s Next

    It ‘s a quick turnaround for the Maple Leafs, as they head home to host the Dallas Stars (21-22-10) at the Air Canada Centre on Tuesday night. The Leafs have struggled in the second game of back-to-backs this season, posting a 3-8 record, but the Stars have been awful on the road this season, posting a 7-13-4 record.

    The Stars routed the Leafs in Dallas last week, 6-3, meaning the Leafs should be extra motivated for this contest. The Stars have lost three of their last four road games and have allowed three goals or more in nine of their last 10 games. Needless to say, I think we’ll see our fair share of goals again on Tuesday night.

    Next: Should the Leafs Trade for Shattenkirk?

    What did you think of the Toronto Maple Leafs 6-5 overtime loss to the New York Islanders on Monday night? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.

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