Mike Johnson calls for a system shake-up as Leafs spiral: Leafs Morning Take

"Thanks to Buffalo's victory over Carolina on Sunday, the Toronto Maple Leafs find themselves in dead last in the Eastern Conference. Obviously, that's where the conversation started on the Monday edition of Leafs Morning Take. Right off the bat, Jay Rosehill delivered another of his infamous rants where he questioned the team's compete level, pride, and competitiveness. Simply put, that wasn't good enough in Montreal. Lose with dignity -at least. They had NOTHING."

"Funny enough, Toronto played looked really good for the first seven or eight minutes to start the game, but after that, it was all Habs. It's like the Leafs just quit on the game. They had no pushback or resolve, and quite frankly, they got bullied by their rivals. Not good. Frankly, Joseph Woll wasn't the reason they lost. That was a mercy pull."

"After that, TSN's Mike Johnson dropped by the show to offer up some perspective. He doesn't feel this is rock bottom. In fact, he brought up a good point: Wasn't the Carolina game supposed to be rock bottom? At any rate, Johnny gave his thoughts on Saturday night's debacle, the lack of response, and ultimately, where he thinks the Leafs go from here. Additionally, he talked about all the injuries and whether it's simple to use those as excuses."

Buffalo's victory over Carolina left the Toronto Maple Leafs in last place in the Eastern Conference. Jay Rosehill questioned the team's compete level, pride, and competitiveness following a demoralizing loss in Montreal. Toronto started strong for seven or eight minutes but then ceded control, showing no pushback or resolve and getting bullied by their rivals. Joseph Woll was pulled as a mercy, though the loss reflected poor team performance. The Leafs have dropped seven of eight outings (1-5-2) and are 1-6-0 on the road, with five upcoming games away. Mike Johnson suggested this may not be rock bottom, noted injuries complicate evaluation, and flagged coaching stability and impending returns for Matthews, Knies, and Roy as key factors.

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