Jan 25, 2025; Ottawa, Ontario, CAN; Toronto Maple Leafs head coach Craig Berube speaks to his team during a timeout in the third period against the Ottawa Senators at the Canadian Tire Centre. Mandatory Credit: Marc DesRosiers-Imagn Images [https://deweb-519a7.b-cdn.net/post-images/69a28f88-3950-4f54-b055-a1aae5946354.jpeg] Jan 25, 2025; Ottawa, Ontario, CAN; Toronto Maple Leafs head coach Craig Berube speaks to his team during a timeout in the third period against the Ottawa Senators at the Canadian Tire Centre. Mandatory Credit: Marc DesRosiers-Imagn Images NASHVILLE — The Toronto Maple Leafs arrived in Nashville with momentum, carrying a three-game winning streak as they prepared to face the struggling Nashville Predators. The Leafs looked like a team that had overcome their struggles from just a couple of weeks ago, and in the first 20 minutes of action at Bridgestone Arena on Saturday, they appeared unstoppable. However, the game completely flipped in the second period, with Nashville scoring five unanswered goals for a 5-2 victory. "It was a total flip," Maple Leafs head coach Craig Berube said after the game. "What we did to them in the first what they did to us in the second and we had breakdowns that cost goals. There was no reason for it." Maple Leafs forward John Tavares said his team "should be pissed off" by the inability to finish off the two-game road trip. Ironically, the Leafs had a 2-0 lead as out-of-town games with their opponents had concluded. The Tampa Bay Lightning and Florida Panthers lost in regulation. A single point would have given the Leafs sole possession of first place in the Atlantic Division. Instead they are second place, holding the same 42-25-3 record as Florida, but losing out on the first tiebreaker (regulation wins) However, they couldn't stop a team ranked 30th out of 32 in the NHL, playing for nothing but pride. "It's a huge opportunity missed for us," Maple Leafs defenseman Chris Tanev said. "We're trying to win every game. So 12 games left, try to go 12-0. Start of the year, you try to go 82-0. Our mindset's the same. We want to win every game and we want to win our division." With 12 games remaining, Berube sounded the alarm on some mental mistakes he was seeing from the Leafs on Saturday. The odd-man rushes allowed have been a problem, but is he surprised to be seeing this so late in the season as the club gears up for the postseason? Berube said, "I'm not sure if I'm surprised. These kinds of mental mistakes can happen throughout the year. However, I haven't seen mistakes like we made tonight in a while." -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Stay updated with the most interesting Maple Leafs stories, analysis, breaking news and more! Tap the star to add us to your favorites on Google News [https://news.google.com/publications/CAAqBwgKMK-q0gsw7sXpAw/sections/CAQqEAgAKgcICjCvqtILMO7F6QMwytvfCA?ceid=CA:en&oc=3] to never miss a story.
