“We’re out there trying to win games, that’s all we’re thinking about,” defensive end Morgan Rielly said at practice Tuesday. After a 1-2-2 road trip that ended with a 4-3 overtime loss to the Anaheim Ducks on Sunday when they blew a 3-1 lead in the third period, the Maple Leafs will play eight of their next 10 games at Home begins with the Philadelphia Flyers on Wednesday (7 p.m. ET; SN1, TVAS, NBCSP+, ESPN+, SN NOW). Despite high expectations, Toronto (4-4-2) got off to a slow start through 10 games, including regulation losses to the Montreal Canadiens, Arizona Coyotes and Vegas Golden Knights and overtime losses to the San Jose Sharks and Ducks — all teams that did did not qualify for the Stanley Cup Playoffs last season. As for any suggestions that Keefe’s job is in jeopardy, the players disagree. “We’re a hockey team that wants to win games,” forward Mitchell Marner said. “Keefe did an incredible job with this team when he came in and did what he did. If you look at our numbers, we’ve really improved in a lot of things and he’s done a great job here. It’s been a lot of fun playing for him. For us, it’s just making sure we start with our effort, our accountability, and once we get those two things going, I think we’re really going to be moving in the right direction.” Marner was held publicly accountable by Keefe during Sunday’s loss, pinned for a change after two turnovers that led directly to Anaheim goals. He left the bench during a stoppage in the game to vent his frustration, but said his displeasure stemmed from his poor play, not the bench. “I take a lot of responsibility on myself and [Keefe] he does with everybody here in this locker room,” Marner said. “It doesn’t matter who you are, you have to show that every player is accountable regardless, and I have no problem with that.” Keefe is 120-54-21 in 195 games in four seasons since replacing Mike Babcock as Toronto’s coach on Nov. 20, 2019, and the Maple Leafs have lost all three playoff series during his tenure. He said he is not focusing on the mounting pressure. “My focus is just to make our team play better,” Keefe said. “I think one area we can improve on the most is how connected we are, how we execute coming out of our zone and going through the neutral zone and just going from there on offense.” The Maple Leafs are built around offensive prowess, but they rank 27th in the NHL in goals per game (2.70) as of Tuesday, having scored more than three in a game once. Toronto ranked second with a 3.80 goals per game average last season when it went 2-4-1 in its first seven games, then won five straight en route to finishing second in the Atlantic Division (54-21-7 ). Captain John Tavares agreed with Keefe that the road to improvement offensively starts in the defensive zone. “We’re looking at how we break the leg and just trying to be more efficient there,” Tavares said. “Open up our speed and our ability to get into the offense and forecheck and hopefully connect all three zones together.” While the players admitted they can sense the frustration among a fan base eager to see the Maple Leafs succeed, center Auston Matthews said fans aren’t alone in those feelings. “I think we’re disappointed, too,” Matthews said. “I think it’s not a one-way street. We want to be better, win games and play to our potential… We expect a lot from each other.”
