The Toronto Maple Leafs extended their Stanley Cup drought by making costly mistakes.

The Toronto Maple Leafs bowed out once again early in the NHL playoffs, losing a series to the Boston Bruins in seven games. The Leafs continued an epic drought, having last won a Stanley Cup in 1967. This was a season of promise, and it ended in total disappointment for Toronto. While the Leafs will likely want to blame someone or something for their failure, the team only has themselves to blame. Here are some reasons why.

In professional athletics, teamwork means just about everything. The Maple Leafs seemed to have forgotten that during this series. The Leafs saw a breakdown in their communication, and the anger spilled over during a pivotal Game 4. Down 2-1 in the series, the Leafs were at home in that contest and in desperate need of a win.

That didn’t happen, and a bad situation got even worse when Leafs players were seen yelling at each other on the bench during a 3-1 loss in Game 4. The argument was captured on camera, and released to the world. That argument may have been the moment when the Leafs lost this series.

Frustration has started to set in for the Maple Leafs stars 😠

pic.twitter.com/PbnQBNigKD

— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) April 28, 2024

It is certainly understandable to be frustrated, but to let an argument spill over in public is never a good thing. The Leafs had plenty of other challenges that were outside of their control, like injuries to stars William Nylander and Auston Matthews.  Nylander was out for the first three games of the series, while Matthews exited Game 4 with an illness. Matthews was also scratched from the lineup during Games 5 and 6, and that certainly hurt the club. The Leafs just couldn’t seem to hold their emotions in check for the greater good though, and it sunk them in this battle.

Leafs’ offense went MIA

Mandatory Credit: John E. Sokolowski-USA TODAY Sports
The Maple Leafs entered the NHL playoffs this season on the backs of their offense. The team had the second best scoring offense in hockey during the regular season, per league stats. Only the Colorado Avalanche scored more goals during the season than the Leafs.

The offense simply went out the door in this series. Toronto seemed unable to hold on to the asset that got them into the playoffs in the first place. The Leafs managed only one goal in three of the seven games against the Bruins. All three of those contests were losses. The club scored only two goals in two other games, but managed to win one of them. Nonetheless, the offense just couldn’t get it done, and it wasn’t just because of injuries. The Leafs had points leader Auston Matthews for most of the games in this series, and Nylander also returned. The club had their chances.

Toronto needed its offense to work, because the defense had never really been there this season. The Leafs used three goal tenders throughout the year, who each made at least 20 appearances in net. Ilya Samsanov handled the bulk of the work in net this season, but the team’s scoring defense was just ho-hum, languishing in the middle of the pack of the league.

Samsanov actually made a valiant effort in Game 7, picking up 29 saves on 31 shots. The team however put him in the position of having to win three games in a row, and the Toronto goaltender just came up short. The offensive miscues made by the team in the first four games of the series finally caught up with them, and that is ultimately on the Leafs.

In the end, the effort just wasn’t good enough. The Leafs did manage to force a Game 7 after falling behind 3-1 in the series, and that is admirable. It gives the club something to build upon for next year. Still, the team has only themselves to blame for the inconsistent and frustrating play they gave fans in this series. The drought lives on, Toronto, for at least one more season.