Dave Litman
As October has come to a close, and Halloween is behind us, it’s time for a look back at a month that was full of tricks, treats and some frightful facts for the Toronto Maple Leafs.
Our October review, covering the Buds’ first 11 games of the season, must, however, start with the Frightful. After all, the team came out of the month tied for last place in the Atlantic Division with an underwhelming 5-5-1 mark.
Frightful Factors from October for Maple Leafs
The Defense:
27th in the league in giveaways, and oh, those odd-man rushes.
It’s been one odd-man rush after another this season. Their 6-3 loss to the Columbus Blue Jackets this week was a case in point, including this 5-on-1 rush that led to a Zach Werenski goal:
Top d-man Chris Tanev going out of the lineup 10 days ago didn’t help matters, but he returns Saturday night, after revealing he was dealing with a concussion. Hopefully, having him back on the blueline can turn things around.
“Obviously, it’s a game of mistakes and things happen, and just having the ability to work hard to… bail a teammate out,” said Tanev.
“I think just cleaning up how much we’re giving up and sort of the chances we’re giving up, and then checking, working for each other, and then we’ll be fine”.
The Not-So-Powerful Power Play
This has certainly been frightening to watch. After sitting in the Top 10 in power play percentage last season at 24.8%, the Leafs were 29th this October, at 13.8%.
Zone entry has been a huge problem. And once they do manage to cross the blueline, they just don’t have a facilitator to create chances (I think they used to have a pretty good one… Mitchell something…?).
Even Nylander, their top producer this season, has just two points on the power play.
Auston Matthews’ Scary Season So Far
The Maple Leafs captain, he of the two 60-goal season resume, is currently tied for 108th in the NHL scoring race. You read that right. With five goals and eight points in 11 games, he has just not looked right. But why? That is the question.
As noted by Jonas Siegel and James Mirtle on The Leaf Report podcast, the underlying numbers show that Matthews is 4th in the NHL in Expected Goals Generated; 99th percentile in shots; and 95th percentile in High-Danger Shots. So what gives?
“They don’t have the same inevitability as before,” said Siegel. “Remember how quick it would come off his tape? And you would say ‘How the hell does he do that?’… The opportunities aren’t the same caliber.”
Siegel wonders if it has to do with the system. He asks if he’s at full health. Or does it have something to do with “who he’s playing with”?
Jay Rosehill and Nick Alberga of The Leafs Nation are asking the same questions.
No one, however, wants to acknowledge the elephant in the room. Mitch Marner is gone, and Matthews is feeling it. Jack Eichel, on the other hand, Marner’s new star linemate in Vegas, is leading the NHL in scoring going into November. Coincidence? I think not.
But whatever the real reasons are, if Matthews can’t get back to being the Hart Trophy-contending superstar he used to be, this team is in for… dare we say, a frightful rest of the season.
Leafs’ Goaltending has taken a major hit this season
2024-25: 4th in the NHL in save percentage (.905)
2025-26: 31st (second-last) in save percentage (.872)
This isn’t how it was supposed to be. The Leafs were supposed to be set between the pipes this season, with one of the strongest tandems in the league. But then Joseph Woll went on leave due to a personal matter (which he has every right to), and Anthony Stolarz was left to shoulder too much of the load.
After leading the NHL in save percentage last season at .926, Stolarz was forced to take on a much heavier workload than he’s used to. And it’s shown. An .886 Sv% and a 3-4-1 mark is a far cry from the netminder that finished fifth in Vezina Trophy balloting last season. The frustration even led to Stolarz calling out his teammates for their lack of effort in front of him (and at the other end of the ice).
Leafs Tricks & Treats from October include John Tavares’ 500th Goal
John Tavares provided a Maple Leafs ‘treat’ on Wednesday night, but the ‘trick’ was that not many people around Toronto noticed it. Tavares notched his 500th career NHL goal. An incredible milestone. But in the midst of a moribund 6-3 loss, there was no fanfare. And because Trey Yesavage was etching his name in the annals of baseball history Wednesday night with his legendary World Series Game 5 performance that captivated the entire country, no one noticed.
The poor guy didn’t even get to raise his arms in celebration. He deserved better.
Tavares, Knies & Nylander the only ‘treats’ from October for Maple Leafs
Matthew Knies has been another ‘treat’ for this Leafs team this season. With 14 points in 11 games, he continues his ascent to star status.
William Nylander has shown flashes of being a ‘treat’, and with 15 points in nine games, he does sit in the Top 15 in NHL scoring. But even on a 130-point pace, he hasn’t been able to lift this team out of its doldrums.
As November kicks off, we are set to turn back the clocks. Can Auston Matthews, the power play, and the Toronto goaltending do the same?
