It’s very seldom that two players can be blamed for a loss against an inferior team, and Wednesday night’s game against the Columbus Blue Jackets was no different. But there were certainly some players who didn’t do themselves any favours with their efforts.
Morgan Rielly is the longest-serving Maple Leaf who, you could make an argument, loves the team and the city more than anybody else. And when he turns it on come playoff time, he quickly goes from scapegoat to fan favourite. But his play throughout the 2024-25 season to date has been less than desirable for the money he makes, and all of his flaws were on display against the Blue Jackets.
First, it was a blocked shot leading to a rush the other way where Nobleton, ON native Adam Fantilli picked the top corner on goaltender Dennis Hildeby (who we’ll get to in a second) for a shorthanded goal. Then, on Columbus’ third goal of the game (which came less than two minutes after Columbus scored their second), he found himself standing still after losing sight of the puck leading to Fantilli’s second goal of the game. He ended up finishing minus-2 on the night, adding another forgettable game into what’s frankly been a forgettable season for the defenceman.
The game also showed that Hildeby is not ready for the NHL, with all due respect. The 23-year-old has played well at the NHL level at times, but the bad games have outweighed the good ones at this point, and tonight was one of the bad ones. Allowing a shorthanded goal top corner short side is not something a 6-foot-7 netminder will find themselves absolved of blame for, and in the end, allowing four goals on 18 shots when your team came out of the gate dominating their opponent is something that can’t happen if you’re looking to secure a win.
It doesn’t help that Blue Jackets goaltender Elvis Merzlikins stood on his head for the most part, making a number of clutch saves early in the game to keep his team in it when the Leafs had their foot down on the gas. But this wasn’t one of those games where they peppered shots into the opponent’s chest. They had a number of high-danger chances that could have opened the game up early on, but credit to Merzlikins, he single-handedly won his team the first period and allowed his forwards to do the rest of the work.
The Maple Leafs will look to bounce back with a win over the Ottawa Senators on Saturday night, a game that should garner some normal reactions from the fans depending on how it goes.
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