Maple Leafs on Verge of Historic Points Crash in NHL Season
The Toronto Maple Leafs are not only facing the prospect of missing the playoffs for the first time in a decade but are also trending toward their most significant single-season standings slide in franchise history. With the public's emotional investment in the team immeasurable, a potential record market crash in points is poised to be deeply upsetting for fans and analysts alike.
Current Season Struggles and Historical Context
From an Atlantic Division-best 108 points in the previous season, the Leafs are currently negative-38 with only 13 games remaining. The club mark for a plummet in consecutive seasons with identical games played is 23 points, a threshold they are dangerously close to surpassing. It is worth noting that only 34 times in NHL history have teams fallen 30 or more points when playing the same schedule.
This situation echoes the 1990-91 season, when under coach Doug Carpenter, Toronto went from an offensive powerhouse of 337 goals, 38 wins, and 80 points to just 57 points, shedding almost 100 goals. A terrible start of 1-9-1 led to Carpenter being replaced by assistant Tom Watt, and the Leafs did not make the playoffs again until 1993, when general manager Cliff Fletcher and coach Pat Burns arrived.
Efforts to Avoid Ignominy
To avoid flirting with that ignominy, coach Craig Berube's current Leafs need some combination of regulation wins and overtime or shootout points equalling 15, with a total of 26 at stake in the final weeks. After a 3-1 loss to the New York Islanders ended a slight three-game improvement where they earned five of a possible six points, Berube granted the team Wednesday off to prepare for a weekend back-to-back against the Carolina Hurricanes and Ottawa Senators.
Goaltender Anthony Stolarz expressed the team's frustration, stating, "It's obviously crappy where we are at this time of the year. But at the end of the day, it's an 82-game season, we have to re-set, play hard and try and establish a culture." He emphasized the need to guide young call-ups, saying, "We have a lot of callups and young guys. We need to play hard and show them the right way to do it."
Coaching Challenges and League Comparisons
Berube has been juggling this year's demanding NHL schedule with quality practice time, as there are a few new faces and many Leafs playing out of position after three centres were traded or injured. Morning skates have become more intense, though a regular workout Thursday was replaced by a fan event at Scotiabank Arena featuring a 3-on-3 tournament.
The league record for a one-year points decline, provided by NHL Stats, is a drop of 45 by the 2006-07 Philadelphia Flyers, from 101 to 56 points. Coach Ken Hitchcock was let go early in that season. Those Flyers and the 1970-71 Detroit Red Wings are the only teams to have fallen 40-plus points in a single season.
Historical Drops in Leafs and NHL Points
Largest one-year drops in Leafs points:
- 23 points: 1989-90 to 1991 – Won just four games up to U.S. Thanksgiving.
- 21 points: 1950-51 to 1952 – Disappearance of Stanley Cup OT hero Bill Barilko.
- 20 points: 1947-48 to 1949 – First place to fourth, but repeated as Cup champions.
- 18 points: 1986-87 to 1988 – GM Gerry McNamara fired.
- 16 points: 1971-72 to 1973 – Loss of goalie Bernie Parent, start of WHA defections.
- 16 points: 2013-14 to 2015 – Began three-year stretch of no playoffs.
Largest one-year drop in NHL points:
- 45 points: 2005-06 to 2007 – Philadelphia Flyers.
- 40 points: 1969-70 to 1971 – Detroit Red Wings.
- 38 points: 1952-53 to 1954 – Chicago Blackhawks.
- 38 points: 2018-19 to 2020 – San Jose Sharks.
- 37 points: 1984-85 to 1986 – Winnipeg Jets.
- 37 points: 1995-96 to 1997 – Detroit Red Wings.
As the season winds down, the Maple Leafs' performance in these final games will determine whether they set a new franchise low or manage to salvage some pride from a challenging campaign.
