Maple Leafs HC makes his thoughts crystal clear about high penalty count in shutout Game 4 loss

Toronto Maple Leafs head coach Craig Berube was blunt in assessing the root cause for his team’s shutout loss in Game 4 against the Florida Panthers on Sunday night.

During the post-game press conference, Berube didn’t mince his words about the unusually high number of penalties the Maple Leafs took in the game.

Berube stated:

“We don’t need to take those [stick penalties], the hooking, and the interference. We will be smarter than that. In the end, I really liked our physicality and compete out there. The guys played hard.”

In total, the Maple Leafs took eight penalties totaling 27 minutes. The Panthers ended up converting on one of their six power play opportunities, with Carter Verhaeghe’s first-period power play goal standing as the game-winner.

Berube added:

“It is a tough series. They are a very good team. We know that. It is a battle.”

The Maple Leafs were shut out for the second time this postseason. The Leafs lost Game 5 of their first-round series against the Ottawa Senators, 4-0. However, the Leafs bounced back in Game 6 to wrap up the series.

As such, the Leafs will be looking for a similar bounce-back effort in Game 5 on Wednesday night at Scotiabank Arena.

Game 5 stands as the most crucial game in the series, as the winner will have a chance to close out the series in Game 6 in Florida next Friday night.

Maple Leafs’ discipline falters in Game 4

penalty trouble derailed the Leafs' offense in Game 4 against the Panthers - Source: Imagn

The Toronto Maple Leafs have played a tough, physical game throughout their second-round series with the Florida Panthers without falling into penalty trouble.

In the first three games of the series, the Leafs took a total of nine penalties for 20 minutes. However, the Leafs let their guard down in Game 4, more than doubling their total penalty minutes from the first three games.

Thus, it’s fair to assume that running into significant penalty trouble hampered the Leafs’ offense to the degree that the team was unable to get anything going offensively.

The Leafs had three power play opportunities of their own but failed to cash in. It’s worth pointing out that Toronto did get a couple of looks with the man advantage. But Craig Berube’s all-forward first power play unit could not break through.

Moving forward, the Leafs will be looking to play a more disciplined game as the series is now a best of three.