Leafs find a new way to lose... again

TAMPA, FLA.— It was a predictably awful game between the 13th- and 14th-best teams in the 15-team Eastern Conference before a not so interested crowd announced as 13,691 but realistically was significantly less than that.

"Too many men on the ice in the last minute of overtime? Nope, they hadn't used that one to sabotage themselves yet this season, and so it was applied Thursday night to produce the winning goal by the Tampa Bay Lightning with 9.8 seconds left in OT."

Leafs are 3-2 losers, their 35th defeat in 52 outings over the course of a wickedly miserable 2009-10 campaign. Head coach Ron Wilson asked about the latest escapade offered no excuses and seemed almost resigned to the fact that this group of athletes can dream up new ways to lose faster than he can plug the multiple holes in the Toronto dike.  "We should be more disciplined. We aren't, we lose. Why am I still coaching this useless roster?" said Wilson through barely disguised clenched teeth.

The Leafs gave the Lightning three different 4-on-3 advantages in the final nine minutes of competition.

Damn that must of hurt..

Leafs try something different.

TORONTO (AP) -The Toronto Maple Leafs (with their laughable 15-23 record) have a lot to think about. Last nights 'unexpected' loss to the last-place Carolina Hurricanes, a 4-2 win over Toronto on Tuesday night, reminded the Leafs how far they've fallen this season.

"I don't have much to say," said Leafs forward Phil Kessel, stuck on just one goal in 13 games. "We're not playing good enough. We are actually pretty terrible. We try to apply what we learn in practice, but sometimes it's hard. I don't know what else to say."

The loss to Carolina, which won on the road for the fourth time in 22 games, has left a sour taste in Leafs coach Ron Wilson's mouth. "It's time to try something different" Wilson said. "The struggles are nothing new to a franchise that seems destined to (suck) miss the playoffs for a fifth straight year. Until we start winning some games, all practices will be conducted with roller skates…on the ice. They (the Leafs roster) want to talk about hard, let's hear them bitch now."

Wilson hopes this new method will improve the agility of the listless leafs.

Note: The Maple Leafs created far more scoring chances than Carolina in the matchup of two of the NHL's worst teams. Toronto fired 15 shots at goalie Cam Ward in the third period alone, but couldn't get more than 2 in the net.