Connor McDavid’s extraordinary skill and speed, another 3rd-period breakdown

McDavid dominated the proceedings, getting virtually every look he wanted, but the Maple Leafs were able to keep the hyperpaced Oilers largely in check for the better part of two periods. And for the second consecutive game, in what’s been a recurring theme of the season overall, the Maple Leafs completely surrendered, giving up two goals to Vasily Podkolzin in rapid succession during the third frame.

Toronto’s leaders, save for Morgan Rielly and Oliver Ekman-Larsson, were nowhere to be seen post-game. And whether it was intentional or not, it was a theme of head coach Craig Berube’s post-game address. William Nylander is excused, as Berube revealed that he was playing at 75 percent due to illness, accounting for a dreadful performance overall.

“Third periods, it’s been two games in a row at home, where we’re flat. That’s the bottom line for me. Whatever it is, we should’ve been coming out and dictating how we’re going to play that period and how we wanted to play it,” Berube said.

Morgan Rielly and Scott Laughton shared the same assessment as their head coach, post-game.

“It’s hard to understand, we just have to be better,” Laughton said. “We have to better managing games in certain situations. You see those guys, you know how good they are in moments, and it can turn on you that quick. We just gotta know. We don’t have to make the perfect play every shift, it’s a 60-minute game for a reason. You gotta wear the team down and go the other way, play north, make them come to you. I don’t think we did enough of that.”

“It’s not that different from the San Jose game,” Rielly stated. “Going into the third period in a good position and you don’t execute, you don’t play the way you need to to win the game.”

Easton Cowan, Oliver Ekman-Larsson and Steven Lorentz all scored for the Maple Leafs, minute details during a thorough 6-3 defeat.

Here are three takeaways from the Maple Leafs’ 6-3 loss to the Oilers: 

Welcome to The Connor McDavid Show

If you haven’t heard by now, Connor McDavid is extraordinarily great at hockey. McDavid’s all-world speed, processing and skill was on full display against the Maple Leafs, and he dominated the game from the outset of the contest.

McDavid scored the game’s opening goal, capitalizing on a turnover as only he could. Evan Bouchard intercepted an errant pass from Nicolas Roy and found McDavid cutting through centre. Three strides in, and McDavid was gone. Oliver Ekman-Larsson was caught looking the other way through the neutral zone, but this is being pedantic. McDavid made the Leafs look outright stationery en route to the net and tucked it home for a highlight-reel goal. And this was just mere foreshadowing.

McDavid also proved the adage ‘you need to be good, to be lucky’ true during the second period. Careening into the offensive zone, McDavid tossed a speculative puck towards the net, and Troy Stecher accidentally finished the play on an own goal.

Edmonton’s captain is an exceptional playmaker as well, and he was making great reads ahead of the play for his teammates seemingly on every shift. McDavid commands a real gravity effect, and when he took off in transition, the Leafs were on their heels, scrambling for position. As he flew through the zone, McDavid shook off Oliver Ekman-Larsson and Simon Benoit, before dishing the puck off to Leon Draisaitl. Darnell Nurse was left wide-open, and one-timed the puck into the net.

It was a tremendous performance for McDavid, certainly worth the price of admission for the fans in attendance. He was making excellent defensive plays and cleared the puck away from Matthew Knies, on what could’ve led to a potentially game-changing goal.

This is the type of game where the eye test reigns supreme. Connor McDavid proved he’s the best player in the world during a homecoming marquee, where he dominated the pre-game storylines. He was the story on Saturday. It was one god damn hell of a show.

Troy Stecher’s own goal is his first major blunder with the Maple Leafs

McDavid flew into the offensive zone and took a great angle against Jake McCabe, driving to the net. Surveying his options, McDavid threw a dangerous pass across the goalmouth and Stecher redirected it into his own net. You could see the agony on Stecher’s face from the press box, and he immediately apologized to Hildeby for the error.

Stecher was clearly forgiven by his teammates, which would occur naturally, but he’s exceeded expectations to say the least, and this was his first glaring error with the club.

“Shit happens. He’s doing the right thing, trying to get it away,” Maple Leafs goaltender Dennis Hildeby said. “I think I could’ve got my stick on the pass in the first place too. It’s just unfortunate.”

Artur Akhtyamov makes 1st NHL appearance after Dennis Hildeby pulled in the 3rd

Berube made it clear that Hildeby wasn’t pulled due to poor performance.

Joseph Woll could potentially be an option for Tuesday’s game against the Chicago Blackhawks, if he’s cleared to play by the team. Woll spoke glowingly about Hildeby and Akhtyamov at Friday’s practice, and the Leafs certainly boast internal confidence about all of their goalies. Will Akhtyamov make his first start of his NHL career on Tuesday, if Woll is unavailable, to reduce Hildeby’s workload? We’ll certainly find out in the coming days.

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