Maple Leafs’ Slide Continues With Costly Loss in Seattle
The Maple Leafs' road trip couldn’t have gotten off to a worse start. With their Eastern Conference rivals - Buffalo, Montreal, and Boston - all picking up wins earlier in the evening, Toronto dropped a 5-2 decision to the Seattle Kraken at Climate Pledge Arena, falling further behind in the playoff race.
That’s now six straight games without a win for the Leafs, who are 0-5-1 over that stretch. And if you’re wondering how far they’ve fallen, here’s the reality: they sit 10 points out of a playoff spot. It’s their longest winless skid since November 2019 - a stretch that ended with Mike Babcock’s dismissal.
Early Trouble, Again
Anthony Stolarz was back in net for just his second game since returning from an upper-body nerve issue, and unfortunately, the trend continued. Just like his previous outing against Vegas, he gave up a goal on the first shot he faced. This time it was Matty Beniers, who found space in the slot and made no mistake just 1:21 into the game.
To their credit, the Leafs responded with some pushback. They controlled stretches of the first period and were rewarded when Nick Robertson - one of the few bright spots on the night - tied things up at 15:02 with a quick-release shot that beat Joey Daccord clean.
But whatever momentum they had didn’t carry over.
Second Period Breakdown
The second period was where things unraveled. Shane Wright pounced on a rebound at 6:23 to put Seattle back on top.
Then, just 31 seconds later, Brandon Montour jumped into the rush and beat Stolarz to make it 3-1. Two goals in under a minute - a gut punch that Toronto couldn’t recover from.
The Leafs did manage to claw one back early in the third. Morgan Rielly, from the point, wired a shot through traffic for his first power-play goal of the season. Remarkably, it was also the first power-play goal by a Leafs defenseman all season - a stat that underscores just how stagnant the blue line’s offensive production has been.
But the hope was short-lived. Less than three minutes later, a turnover by Matias Maccelli in the defensive zone led to Wright’s second goal of the night.
The Kraken capitalized instantly, and the Leafs were back down by two. Head coach Craig Berube let his frustration be known at the bench, but the message didn’t spark a turnaround.
A Familiar Feeling
The Leafs have had success in Seattle before - they were 4-0 in their previous visits since the Kraken joined the league in 2021-22. But this time, there was no magic, no rally, and no answers.
This wasn’t just a bad night - it was a missed opportunity in a season that’s quickly slipping away. The offense is sputtering, the defensive lapses are piling up, and the goaltending hasn’t been able to bail them out. With the playoff gap growing and the pressure mounting, the Leafs are running out of time to right the ship.
Next up: three more games on this road trip. If Toronto wants to keep its postseason hopes alive, they’ll need to find a spark - and fast.