The Toronto Maple Leafs have reached a point where the alarm bells are impossible to miss. After Sunday’s 4-0 loss to the New Jersey Devils, they slipped to 8-9-2 for 18 points, a mark that leaves them one point ahead of the Detroit Red Wings for the Atlantic Division basement.
A few of the usual offensive engines have held up their end. Auston Matthews, William Nylander, and to some extent John Tavares have done enough to keep the attack from completely stalling out. But the bigger issue is that some of the team’s major bets are not paying off, and two names stand out above the rest.
Darren Raddysh was brought in to be more than just another blue-line body. Toronto signed him to an eight-year, $68 million contract after a sign-and-trade with the Tampa Bay Lightning, expecting the kind of offensive punch that made him so valuable in 2025-26. He had a career year with Tampa Bay, scoring 22 goals and piling up 70 points, and the Leafs clearly believed his shot would add a dangerous layer from the back end.
Instead, the production has been uneven in the wrong ways. Raddysh has 10 points in 19 games, but he still hasn’t scored a goal for Toronto.
He also drew attention for the wrong kind of impact when an ill-timed penalty helped cost the Leafs a game against the Utah Mammoth. At five-on-five, his CF% sits at 47.7%, and he has a giveaway-to-takeaway ratio of more than 5:1.
Toronto did not hand him $8.5 million a year to get a distributor with shaky defensive results, especially not for nearly a decade.
The other major disappointment is Sergei Bobrovsky, the headline free-agent addition John Chayka made this offseason. The Leafs gave him the starter’s job, but the early returns have been rough.
In 12 games, Bobrovsky is 3-7-2 with a 3.34 GAA and a .886 save percentage. Those numbers are dragging the conversation toward last season’s regression with the Florida Panthers looking less like a blip and more like a warning sign.
What makes it worse is the timing. Bobrovsky hasn’t been delivering the kind of key stops Toronto needs when games are on the line.
The one outing that stands out as a possible carry job came in the 3-1 win over the San Jose Sharks on October 19. Outside of that, he has allowed three or more goals in practically every appearance.
With Anthony Stolarz performing more consistently so far in 2026-27, Bobrovsky could see his workload shrink in the weeks ahead.
For a goalie Toronto committed $21 million to over the next three years, that is not what the Maple Leafs had in mind.
In Other News...
Maple Leafs Defensive Depth Search Just Ran Into A Rival Wrinkle
The Maple Leafs are still sorting through a thinning blue line, and the need for another defense option has only grown as injuries pile up. Torontos depth situation has become more urgent with Ben Danford sidelined, leaving the club watching the waiver wire for any help it can find.
One name that has surfaced is Cameron Crotty, who was placed on waivers by Minnesota after being claimed from Ottawa. Toronto could look to make a move, but the path is not clean, since the waiver order and Ottawas position in the process could complicate things before the Leafs even get a chance to act. [Read more 🡒]
Auston Matthews Sends Frustrated Message As Leafs Problems Keep Growing
The Maple Leafs are still searching for answers after another uneven night, this one a 4-0 loss to the New Jersey Devils that stretched their skid to three games and left them trying to steady a season that has already veered off course. Connor Hellebuyck was perfect for New Jersey, turning aside all 23 shots he faced, while Torontos issues with consistency and special teams again sat front and center as the club tried to explain why the same problems keep resurfacing.
Auston Matthews did not hide his frustration afterward, and his comments reflected a team that knows the excuses are starting to run thin. With injuries part of the backdrop, the captain said the current group has to take more responsibility for the results, a message that lands with extra weight when the losses keep piling up and the margin for patience keeps shrinking. [Read more 🡒]
Maple Leafs Just Lost A Young Blue-Line Option At The Worst Time
The Maple Leafs were already looking for help on the blue line, and Ben Danford had been one of the young internal options with a chance to work his way into the conversation. Instead, the Toronto Marlies defenseman is dealing with a broken wrist and is expected to be out week-to-week, a tough break for a player trying to stay on the radar at exactly the right moment.
For Toronto, the timing makes the injury sting even more. With the NHL club already managing injuries on defense, Danfords setback removes a possible call-up candidate from the mix and leaves the organization weighing other ways to patch together its blue-line depth while he recovers. [Read more 🡒]