The Toronto Maple Leafs had a 4-2 lead over the divisional rival Buffalo Sabres during Thursday night’s contest at Scotiabank Arena thanks to a hat trick from newly acquired forward Kirill Marchenko.
However, not only did the Maple Leafs lose former captain John Tavares to injury, but 2026 first overall draft pick Gavin McKenna was benched for the majority of the third period, and he didn’t take a single shift during overtime.
Adding insult to injury was the fact that the Maple Leafs allowed the Sabres to storm back with three straight goals, winning the game in overtime by a 5-4 final score.
Toronto Maple Leafs Rookie Gavin McKenna Was Benched By Coach Jim Hiller
Following the game, Hiller was naturally asked about the reasons why McKenna was benched, and he offered an odd explanation.
“That was my decision… we went for a stretch we had those penalties,” Hiller said via Anna Dua on X, formerly known as Twitter. “We wanted to get him out there. He sat for so long and he sits through the intermission. Probably should’ve gotten him out at the start of the third. I’ll talk to him about that.”
And naturally, this response isn’t exactly sitting well with fans.
“Geez, this guy ain’t going to last the year. Come on man. Management needs to hold this guy accountable. The season isn’t long enough and they play in the toughest division, you can’t just piss away games and then say “oh well”,” one fan said.
Another fan said, “The fact he’s not taking responsibility for his dumb decision and tries to make a bull**** excuse starting to make me think if he’s the right coach for this team.”
““Probably should’ve gotten him out at the start of the third.” Zero urgency dude. Just say you didn’t care about the win lol,” exclaimed another fan.
Finally, this fan said, “Jim Hiller was completely out coached. He let his team attempt to play defense for a 20 minute third period and they don’t have the shutdown talent.”
The Maple Leafs Blew A 4-2 Lead To The Sabres
The Maple Leafs were in good position to take two points from the divisional rival Sabres, leading 4-2 thanks to a hat trick from Kirill Marchenko.
But Toronto allowed Buffalo to storm their way back into the contest with three unanswered goals, leading to a disappointing collapse.
Maple Leafs’ Jim Hiller Has Strange Response to Benching Gavin McKenna