Toronto Maple Leafs head coach Jim Hiller reacted after a terrible loss by his team against the New Jersey Devils on Sunday night.
The Maple Leafs were dominated for three periods by the Devils en route to a 4-0 loss at home as the team lost its third straight game and sank further in the Eastern Conference Standings.
Jim Hiller Reacts to Bad Loss for Maple Leafs
Speaking to reporters after the game, Hiller shared his thoughts on the Maple Leafs’ bad game against the Devils.
“Not a good game for us. First period, I thought was alright. Obviously, that was our best period and not much going on, which probably benefited us tonight, and once a couple of their top players broke loose, we had a hard time with them,” Hiller said.
The Maple Leafs were missing one of their top scorers, Jack Roslovic, for this game, and Hiller pointed to the team’s injuries and the fact they were playing a back-to-back as some of the reasons why they were out of gas against the Devils.
But either way, it’s a loss, and no matter the reasons for it, the team needs to get back into the win column and snap their losing skid.
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It’s still a long season, and the Maple Leafs can certainly turn things around if they go on a hot streak. But right now things don’t look great for the team.
“It’s a long season, and it’s a hard stretch for us, no question. Playing good teams under those circumstances, but that’s the NHL. They keep coming. So you just have to be the best version of yourself, each player. Some guys are getting more opportunity than they ever had. They’ve got to take advantage. The other guys who are key leaders, they’ve got to make sure their game is up to par. And we’ve just got to do it all together. There’s just no other way. That’s the great thing about it. It’s just a team. We’ve got to fight for one another,” Hiller said.
Maple Leafs HC Jim Hiller Reacts to Terrible Loss Against Devils