This season has been truly a textbook case of tragedy for the Toronto Maple Leafs. Discontent is brewing in the Leafs community, prompting fans and analysts alike to weigh in on the situation.
Amid a taut situation, a 29-year-old forward who has been anything but memorable has shared his true feelings about HC Craig Berube and his rapidly dwindling time on ice.
Dakota Joshua Gets Brutally Honest About Maple Leafs HC Slashing His Time on Ice
The Leafs went from being a dark-horse contender to an actual disaster in short order. While the Leafs embarked upon their November campaign, showing all signs of remarkable agility, it soon went downhill. The team now rests in 7th place in the Atlantic Division, faring only slightly better than the Buffalo Sabres.
The Maple Leafs have seen better days. The team has, first of all, been plagued by injury woes. Captain Auston Matthews returned after a prolonged absence to play against the Columbus Blue Jackets. The team has also struggled to maintain momentum through the course of a match. The second period, especially, has proved precarious for the Maple Leafs.
A former Leafs player chimed in to say that the team should refrain from frequent changes in the lines if it wants to be consistent and foster some kind of identity. Amid trying times, Dakota Joshua has spoken up about his sparse appearance during matches lately.
First of all, a thorough examination of the 29-year-old’s stats this season paints a picture, and it’s not pretty: five points in 22 games is grim and does little to improve the team’s overall image. Following his utter no-show for 22 games, Joshua was benched. Berube’s reasoning? The forward wasn’t doing nearly enough.
“‘We need more out of you’. And I agree with him. And I have no arguments with that. I need more out of myself, and so does the team,” Joshua admitted to Sportsnet, agreeing with Berube’s sentiment.
Despite the rough patch, Joshua remains optimistic about a comeback. “Everybody’s smart in here and gets the sense of how you’re playing. So, I totally understand it hasn’t gone well for me this year. But there’s a lot of hockey left to turn it around, and that’s what I plan on doing,” the 29-year-old noted, as reported by Sportsnet’s Luke Fox.
Maybe spending more time on the sidelines will do it for him, as Berube believes. “I just felt like he needed to get a reset, and sometimes that puts a little more fire in ’em, too,” the HC explained.
Maybe what the entire Maple Leafs roster needs right now is a reset. No wonder the management is considering being overly flexible with their tradeable assets right now. At this point, Toronto has little left to lose.