NHL: New York Islanders at Toronto Maple Leafs - Source: Imagn

"Embarrassing loss and gutless effort": Leafs Nation rips into Auston Matthews-less Toronto Maple Leafs after 6-3 loss to struggling NY Islanders

Modified Dec 22, 2024 14:17 GMT

The Toronto Maple Leafs had been on a roll, especially after winning three consecutive games in the past week. However, their momentum was disrupted by the visiting New York Islanders, who, despite sitting second-to-last in the Metropolitan Division with a 13-14-7 record, had a surprise in store for the Maple Leafs at Scotiabank Arena on Sunday.

Playing without captain Auston Matthews, who was out of the lineup due to a re-aggravated upper-body injury sustained from a cross-check in Friday's win against the Buffalo Sabres, the Leafs looked clueless in the second leg of their back-to-back weekend stretch. Notably, 27-year-old Matthews has already missed nine games because of the same upper-body injury.

The Toronto Maple Leafs' crushing 6-3 defeat at the hands of the Islanders sparked widespread outrage and disappointment among Leafs Nation. Many took to X to express their frustration.

"How do you lose to the 2024 New York Islanders 😭😭😭😭," one fan reacted.

"Embarrassing loss and gutless effort!", another fan said.

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"Pitifull performance," a fan wrote.

Similar comments came flooding in.

"I don't know what it is, but we always come up short when we play these guys," a fan commented.

"More proof this is not a team built for a long run in the playoffs. Nylander has 2 goals but floats most of the night. Reilly is way overpaid. Reaves is absolutely useless. Why play him? Marner will leave because he isn't valued by management." A fan opined.

Meanwhile, some believed the loss wasn't entirely because of the poor performance from the Leafs players.

"All these negative fans should chill. They played last night on the road amd the Islanders haven’t played since Tuesday. It’s a scheduling loss if anything." A fan chimed in.

Islanders down Toronto Maple Leafs 6-3

The New York Islanders, who have had a forgettable season thus far, pulled off a stunning upset against the Toronto Maple Leafs. The Saturday night 6-3 win marked the Islanders' fifth straight victory over the Atlantic Division-leading Maple Leafs (21-11-2).

Russian right-winger Maxim Tsyplakov opened the scoring for the Islanders with his seventh goal of the season, just 1:49 into the game. Center Bo Horvat quickly followed with the first of his two goals on the night. New York's offense was well-rounded, with goals from Jean-Gabriel Pageau, right-winger Mathew Barzal and defenseman Noah Dobson.

However, the most impressive and celebrated goal of the night belonged to 20-year-old defenseman Isaiah George, who scored his first professional NHL goal in the third period. The 6-foot-1, Oakville-born player, was drafted 98th overall by the Islanders in 2022.

Both teams will be back in action on Monday. The New York Islanders will face the Buffalo Sabres, who are currently mired in a 13-game winless streak. Meanwhile, the Toronto Maple Leafs, who are 7-3-0 without their captain, will be hoping for his swift recovery and return to the lineup as they host the Winnipeg Jets, the best team of the ongoing NHL season with 24-10-1.