The Toronto Maple Leafs are once again under fire after their latest performance sparked outrage among fans. Former player-turned-analyst Jay Rosehill recently unloaded on the Leafs’ efforts, delivering a blunt assessment.
The Leafs’ season has been riddled with injuries and inconsistent play. As a result, they currently sit six points out of the second wild card spot in the Eastern Conference.
During a recent episode of The Leafs Nation’s Leafs Morning Take, Rosehill put the Leafs on blast over their mentality. He questioned their lack of effort and insinuated that there may be ulterior motives aimed at forcing a coaching or management change. The former Leafs winger noted that the players need to be held more accountable.
“This is 100 percent on the players. If you watch that game last night and be like, ‘Man, we got to fire the GM or we got to fire the coach,’ what are you watching?” Rosehill said. “You [expletive] prima donnas think you’re just going to shut it down, blow a whole bunch of points, embarrass yourselves and the entire [expletive] organization to get what you want.”
Rosehill Backs Maple Leafs Head Coach Craig Berube
Jay Rosehill also backed Maple Leafs head coach Craig Berube, who has been under increased pressure to turn the season around. The former Leafs winger believes the organization could be leaning toward a coaching change in hopes of addressing the issues.
During Leafs Morning Take, Rosehill defended Berube and said he deserves to keep his job. He recalled his own experience playing for him on the Philadelphia Flyers and revealed explained his coaching methods.
“[Berube] doesn’t do anything that warrant that [expletive] response from the team. Nothing. That is not even feasible to say that’s justified their effort out there because of what the coach is doing and they want him fired,” Rosehill said.
He continued:
“They’ve already done that with [Mike] Babcock,” Rosehill said. “Then, there’s not a lot of responsibility and there’s not a lot of accountability. You can kind of play however you want. No one even knows what this system is, it’s just a loop and shoot [expletive] circus out there.”
Rosehill Explains Frustration with Leafs Roster
Rosehill also explained his frustrations with the Leafs roster and noted that they are underperforming. He made it clear that he doesn’t have a vendetta against them. However, he believes they should be performing much better given the players they have on their roster.
Although some players, such as John Tavares, are having strong seasons, captain Auston Matthews has struggled to find his form. That, as well as William Nylander‘s inconsistent play, which led to Berube challenging him to improve, has contributed to a disappointing season.
Rosehill expressed his frustrations because he believes the Leafs have shown glimpses and are capable of being a great team.
“I know I’m torching them right now and it wasn’t long ago when I was on board with them. Again, the reason I’m so [expletive] is because if they just decide to try their [expletive] best, they’re actually a pretty good hockey team,” Rosehill said. “They have a lot of pieces in place, which is even more infuriating that you watch what they did last night.”
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