Matthews scoreless, Domi turnover, and more: 3 reasons why Toronto Maple Leafs 2-1 in OT against Minnesota Wild

The Toronto Maple Leafs lost their second game in as many nights as they went down 2-1 in overtime to the Minnesota Wild on Sunday night at the Xcel Energy Center.

Matt Boldy gave the Wild the overtime win at 2:14, while Ryan Hartman had the other goal for the Wild. Meanwhile, William Nylander scored his ninth of the year for the Leafs to tie the game late in the first period.

So, let’s take a look at the three reasons why the Toronto Maple Leafs lost to the Minnesota Wild.

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Three reasons why Toronto Maple Leafs lost against Minnesota Wild

#3 Costly Domi turnover leads to game-winner

The Leafs played a relatively solid defensive game throughout the night, but the Leafs made a costly miscue in overtime that led to the game winner by Matt Boldy. The play started with Max Domi stealing the puck in the Leafs’ zone.

Domi looked like he had a breakaway but stopped pursuing the puck, as it seemed that Wild blue liner Jared Spurgeon had retrieved the puck. Meanwhile, the other two Toronto Maple Leafs’ players went off for a line change. With Domi failing to pursue the puck, Spurgeon fed the puck up ice before Boldy deked Leafs’ netminder Anthony Stolarz for the winner.

#2 The Leafs run out of gas

The Leafs played the second leg of back-to-back games on Sunday night. As such, the Leafs seemed to run out of steam as the game progressed. That lack of energy seemed evident in the third period, as the Wild outplayed and outshot the Leafs 11-5.

In overtime, it seemed as though the Leafs simply ran out of gas and stopped skating. That lack of drive led to the rush that ended the game on the poor line change by the Leafs. The Wild took advantage of the Leafs’ fatigue, eventually outlasting them in overtime.

#1 Auston Matthews' scoring drought continues

The Leafs managed two goals against the St. Louis Blue on Saturday night before registering a single marker on Sunday against the Wild. The three goals in two games highlight the offensive drought the Toronto Maple Leafs are going through.

Given the amount of high-end talent on the Leafs, it’s a shame that they cannot muster more goals to support the great goaltending they’ve gotten from Stolarz. In particular, Auston Matthews has failed to live up to expectations thus far, having only registered five goals this season. The Leafs need Matthews to get going if they want to impact the Atlantic Division.

The Leafs have an off-day on Monday before taking on the Boston Bruins, marking their third game in four nights.