The Leafs’ 4-1 loss to the Islanders left Jim Hiller focused on the same problem from several angles: too much on the outside, not enough getting to the dangerous areas, and not enough finishing once they did.
Hiller said the Islanders were exactly what Toronto expected, even before the game tilted after the first period and New York was down to 10 forwards. The issue, in his view, wasn’t who was available for the Islanders. It was Toronto’s inability to work its way inside and make life uncomfortable around the net.
“They played a good game. It didn’t surprise us at all.
In a game like that, you’ve got Sorokin in goal. You’ve got some big, strong defensemen.
You’ve got to get inside, and you’ve got to get some pucks around there and try to create some chaos.”
Toronto managed that a few times. One chance became a goal, and another came on a deflection opportunity from Raddysh. After that, Hiller said the effort to repeat it just wasn’t there often enough.
“We did it two or three times. One was a goal.
One was a really good chance on the deflection from Raddysh, and we didn’t do it after that. We just didn’t do it enough.
“You’re not going to score on the perimeter against this team.”
He also said the Leafs didn’t consistently support those pushes with their defensemen, leaving the attack too easy to defend.
“We had some of those [perimeter looks], and then at other times, we jammed it in with our forwards without turning up and using our D, trying to just crash the net. I don’t think our D had many looks tonight, and there was nothing inside.”
Asked whether the Islanders’ short-handed state made the defeat sting more, Hiller didn’t bite.
“I mean, that can be part of the story. It’s just disappointing.
I don’t think it makes it more disappointing. It’s just disappointing.
“They could have their full lineup in there, and our lack of fortitude to get to the inside makes it disappointing in any case.”
Hiller said he thought Toronto’s group had a strong morning skate and showed energy ahead of the game, but that edge never carried over.
“I thought we were really good this morning. We had a lively, energetic, kind of passionate skate this morning, and it just didn’t translate. I think the spirit’s fine, but we want to win some games, let’s be honest.”
He was asked about urgency with the Leafs trying to reverse a three-game slide, but Hiller said his approach doesn’t change based on the streak.
“It’s a long season, so I try not to get into that.
“I have a sense of urgency every game. If we had won three in a row, you could ask me the same question and say, “What’s the sense of urgency to win four?” And I would say it’s the exact same thing it is for Monday.
“That’s just the way I look at it.”
Hiller also addressed Sergei Bobrovsky’s play to start the season, saying the goaltender has done his part.
“He’s been good. He’s been good.
“We’ve got to score some more goals for him. I think if you look at a lot of his starts, we haven’t scored many goals. Not enough goals, anyways.”
On Gavin McKenna, Hiller said the effort was there, even if the night never opened up much offensively.
“It was good. He was skating.
“He just, like everybody else, had a hard time getting too much done.”
As for Chris Tanev, who skated in the morning, Hiller had no timetable to offer.
“No update. But I think anytime you see a guy on the ice, it’s positive.
There’s no question. But I don’t have any update.”
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