TORONTO – Auston Matthews saw a familiar script unfold.
asserted
script → see → ?
The Maple Leafs had plenty of good moments.
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Leafs → have → moments
And as then they have so often during a miserable home stretch, a couple of crucial mistakes at key moments once again wound up as their ultimate undoing.
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couple → wind → undoing
Toronto was tied 2-2 with the high-flying Wild early in the third period Thursday when a series of miscues in both the neutral and defensive zones led to a parting of the seas in front of goaltender Anthony Stolarz.
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series → tie → Stolarz
Minnesota winger Matt Boldy took advantage to complete his hat trick — and send injury-hit Toronto to its fifth straight home defeat.
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Boldy → take → defeat
“I thought we played a pretty solid game against a really good team,” Matthews said in the wake of a 5-2 setback where he scored his Maple Leafs-leading 12th goal of the season.
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he → think → season
“And then there’s just compounding really big mistakes that end up in the back of our net.
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that → compound → net
That kind of stuff just has to leave our game.
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kind → have → game
“I get it’s tough sledding right now for everybody, and it’s obviously not fun when the losses keep piling up.
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losses → get → everybody
The confidence gets shaken a little bit, but it’s on us as a team, as a group, to fight through it.”
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it → shake → it
The game-winning goal saw the Wild move into Toronto’s end before Maple Leafs winger William Nylander and defenceman Oliver Ekman-Larsson got their coverage signals crossed on Boldy and linemate Ryan Hartman.
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signals → win → Boldy
Maple Leafs head coach Jim Hiller indicated the issues actually started earlier.
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issues → indicate → ?
“We screwed that up in the neutral zone,” he said.
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he → screw → zone
“It shouldn’t have got to that point.
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It → get → point
Once it got to that point, it makes it hard.
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it → get → point
But we should have cleaned that up earlier.
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we → clean → that
“There’s a chance to clean that up earlier, I’ll just leave it at that.”
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I → ’ → that
Toronto (8-11-2) has lots to clean up after starting the campaign with plenty of enthusiasm and new faces following the franchise’s first playoff-less spring in a decade.
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Toronto → have → decade
The Maple Leafs, however, have now lost five in a row and been outscored 22-9 as part of this disastrous run at Scotiabank Arena.
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Leafs → lose → Arena
Even a victory Saturday against Connor McDavid’s Edmonton Oilers would still give Toronto its fewest points ever on a six-game homestand.
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victory → give → homestand
“No one’s feeling sorry for ourselves,” said Stolarz, who finished with 21 saves as the club dropped to 1-7-0 over its last eight.
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club → feel → eight
“We have to treat every game like a playoff game …
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We → have → game
you gotta hit everything, gotta block shots.
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you → got → shots
We have to start playing some desperate hockey to get us back on track.”
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us → have → track
Asked where he saw a silver lining amid this ugly run, Hiller didn’t get into specifics.
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Hiller → ask → specifics
“I see lots of hope,” he said.
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he → see → hope
“I see lots of hope.
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I → see → hope
Yeah, yeah, I see lots of hope.
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I → see → hope
I see it all over the place.
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I → see → place
TANEV SITS AGAIN
Toronto defenceman Chris Tanev was rested a second time in three games for load management purposes.
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Tanev → sit → purposes
The 36-year-old shutdown blueliner missed nine contests earlier in the schedule with an upper-body injury.
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blueliner → miss → injury
He was limited to just 11 appearances because of various ailments in 2025-26.
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He → limit → 2025
Tanev said after sitting Sunday’s 4-0 loss to the New Jersey Devils that he doesn’t agree with the decision, but accepts it given his health issues over the last 12 months.
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he → say → months
“I think he knows we have his best interests at heart,” Hiller said following Thursday’s optional morning skate.
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Hiller → think → skate
“He’s a good teammate, he’s a good player, and when he’s called upon, he plays hard.”
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he → ’ → ?
Hiller added the decision on Tanev’s availability is collaborative through different parts of the organization.
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decision → add → organization
“We have great resources and just a crack staff,” he said.
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he → have → resources
“Everyone’s involved with it and debate it, and a good decision’s made … then everybody moves forward.”
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everybody → involve → it
GETTING CLOSER
Wild defenceman Brock Faber is nearing a return after suffering a skull fracture in the pre-season.
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Faber → get → season
Head coach John Hynes said the 24-year-old could be back as early as Saturday against the Boston Bruins.
uncertain
old → say → Bruins
…and 4 more, not listed.
The Aporia
