TORONTO — Don’t worry, they’re not panicking.
They’re just showing signs that they might.
When the general manager admits that the issues with his hockey team keep him up at night only 19 games in…. when he assures the fan base that he’s not about to do something rash… and when he feels compelled to give his handpicked head coach a vote of confidence even though that coach has more than two-and-a-half years and something in the ballpark of eight figures remaining on his contract… it’s not panicking.
But it’s in the neighbourhood.
One of those neighbourhoods where it’s best to stuff your hands in your pockets, keep your gaze straight ahead, and hope you plow through it unscathed.
“We’re not going to just go panic and start throwing things overboard just to do something, right?” Brad Treliving said Tuesday, on the morning before the night his disconnected, disheartened players try to avoid losing a sixth straight game.
Holding podium for 19 minutes in the bowels of Scotiabank Arena, the general manager of the Toronto Maple Leafs dropped the P-word in response to a question about his exploration of the trade market.
Thing is, there is no magical target out there waiting to solve these Leafs’ woes. And even if there were difference-makers on the block, Treliving isn’t exactly equipped with the pick or prospect or enticing roster capital to win a bidding war or execute a blockbuster. And even if he had the purchasing power, is it worth throwing good money after bad?
It’s not as if the team that is giving up the second-most goals per game and has won only six of 19 in regulation has earned a boost from the outside.
“Put anybody in the uniform and, playing the way we’re playing, we’re probably going to have the same result,” Treliving said.
“Even in games that we’ve won, we haven’t won the game. Sometimes we’ve scored more goals.”
What Treliving could not offer in a tangible plan for plugging all the leaks that keep perforating the SS Maple Leaf, he tried making up for in accountability and honesty.
The GM refused to take solace in the conference’s muddled standings or lean on the roster’s injury rash as an excuse. (“To me, that’s a losing mentality,” he said, accurately.)
He didn’t gaslight the fanbase by blaming bad luck or arguing that the Leafs’ under-the-hood analytics suggest a surge is coming.
They are their record, and their record ain’t pretty.
“We’ve underperformed to this point, and I take full responsibility,” Treliving said.
“I’m in charge of the hockey department. I’ve put the people in place on the ice, off the ice, so the responsibility lies with myself. And we start today, and every day, trying to get ourselves back up and going and improve where we are.”
Treliving called out his players’ “inconsistency of effort” and copped to a general lack of enthusiasm and competitiveness that any casual observer can spot.
The intended identity of being miserable to play against come mid-April feels like a pipe dream in mid-November.
“I think there’s been too much vanilla with our team,” he said.
Soft serve was not the identity Treliving and coach Craig Berube envisioned when crafting this roster in their very much aligned vision of a hard-nosed, defensively sound, forechecking group united to grind out 2-1 and 3-2 wins and hold onto a one-goal lead like an old grudge.
The Leafs have no intention to alter their style of play; they are simply asking the players to bear down and execute the original plan better.
Treliving said he will continue to support Berube’s message, that he’s not looking for a scapegoat. The answers must come from within.
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“I’ve got all the faith in our coach right now, so I don’t look at that as an issue,” Treliving said.
“Craig didn’t become a bad coach overnight. I think when you go when you go through difficult times, the easy thing is — and it’s the natural thing — you’re going to pick off the coach, the manager, whoever.
“The way out of it, to me, is not pointing fingers, but digging in together. And that’s what we intend to do right now — dig in together, try to find solutions. But Craig and his staff are working hard at it, and I support and have all the faith in the world.”
Treliving’s plan, right now, is the same plan a hold ’em player might have when dealt a 7-8 off-suit. Don’t invest. Don’t fold.
Keep your mouth shut, your eyes straight. Just pray things flop your way, even if your odds are long.
“We’re not airlifting in 15 new people tonight. This is the group we’ve got,” the GM said.
“The job of all of us is to maximize the people you got and get them the play at the highest level they can.”
OK.
But what if this collection of athletes, under this coach, has already begun to find its level?
Then do they panic? Or simply peter out of contention?
Injury updates: Chris Tanev (upper body) does not have a timeline for return. The Maple Leafs are hopeful to have more clarity on the defenceman’s situation next week…. Auston Matthews (lower body) skated on his own Tuesday morning. The earliest the captain could potentially return is Saturday in Montreal…. Nicolas Roy (upper body) will miss a couple more games, per Berube.
