Explaining the start
I didn’t think the Leafs' first period was as bad as some other people (Nick Kypreos was not a fan of it on today’s podcast). Still, I did have a number of negative notes about their play, and their inability to handle the puck, so it took me awhile to figure out what I was seeing.
If you’re full of nervous energy, your legs work like crazy, but it’s harder to use your scalpel in all its intricate detail. The Leafs were getting touches and chances but couldn’t make a play, which makes sense in the context of nervous energy.
So while I had “down arrow” notes for William Nylander and Auston Matthews in the first period, over and over with the words “bobbled pucks” by their numbers, I should’ve seen it as a good sign they were around the puck and involved in the action over and over.
When the Leafs have failed in the past, the problem hasn’t been poor offensive touches, it’s been … not getting them at all. They’ve just quietly disappeared into the night. Those guys were involved from the jump (as much as possible with all the penalties), and it turns out that was a positive.
Leafs have started a bit nervous the past two games, and for a finesse style team, that's rough because all your possessions are a bit bobbly. We saw it against CBJ and MTL as well, when the series was on the line. I think the first 10 minutes the Leafs need to play more lunch pail hockey to weather the initial forecheck. Chip to space instead of trying to handle too much, and use the legs as your primary possession driver, and crash the net ugly on good rebound angles instead of sifting for picture perfect seam plays.
The best chances in hockey come off broken plays in the OZ, where the defense has to shift gears rapidly (Def, Off, suddenly back to Def). Most of the goals we've given up early are of this variety. In the early game, we can generate these of our own by forechecking with speed to cut down decision making time and shooting/retrieving without as much concern for shot quality (Carolina-style). Once a lead is established, roll out the Leafs' possession puck and suffocate the game.
