Maple Leafs aiming to tighten up game after weekend’s defensive struggles

After giving up 10 goals on 87 shots in a pair of regulation losses over the weekend, the Toronto Maple Leafs are determined to tighten up their game.

“We’re scoring a lot of goals and I think sometimes we think about scoring more than we think about our play without the puck,” said head coach Craig Berube.

The Leafs lead the Eastern Conference and sit second overall in 5-on-5 goals this season, with 52 (3.25 per game). But that success has been cancelled out by their leaky defence. Toronto is allowing 3.75 goals per game, which is the worst mark in the conference and 31st overall.

“We’re just focused a little bit more on offence right now,” admitted top-line winger Matthew Knies, who has racked up five goals and 15 assists. “We’re just letting up too many chances, too many on odd-men rushes.”

How can the forwards help support a defensive group that is still missing Chris Tanev?

“Don’t turn pucks over,” Berube said.

After a pause, the coach continued.

“We can’t be trying to make all these plays, high-ice turnovers in the O-zone, turnovers at the blue line,” Berube said. “That kills your team. It kills the momentum. It kills everything.”

The talk around the dressing room is about how the team needs to communicate more on the ice.

“We’re all working hard, but just got to work smarter sometimes and help each other out [by] talking,” said defenceman Jake McCabe, who leads the team with a plus-10 mark. “Communication goes a long way, opens up your vision, and you are able to make plays that are under the gun, and with forecheck pressure, be able to make those slip plays or up the wall, the simple plays, whatever it may be.”

“We just got to communicate a little bit more,” echoed Knies. “Trust each other, you know, that we’re going to be in the right spots, and trust our systems.”

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Despite the defensive deficiencies, the Leafs will stick with the same six defencemen on Tuesday with lefty Dakota Mermis set to sit as a healthy scratch again.

Why not give Mermis a look to change the mix?

“We don’t have a righty-lefty on the three pairs as it is, and that’s going to make it even worse,” Berube explained.

The Leafs are already dressing four lefties with McCabe, who usually lines up beside the right-handed Tanev, being asked to play his off side.

“We got McCabe there now, which is new for him,” Berube said. “He played the left side the whole last year.”

McCabe committed a turnover, which led to the game-winning goal by Carolina Hurricanes forward Logan Stankoven on Sunday.

“I’ve been around a long time,” McCabe said. “I’ve made a lot of bad plays, so I’m ready to get back on the horse again.”

After missing Saturday’s game against the Leafs for personal reasons, defenceman Charlie McAvoy will be back in Boston’s lineup on Tuesday.

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The Leafs will shuffle their top-six look up front with leading scorer William Nylander moving back to the second line beside John Tavares and Bobby McMann.

Nick Robertson will move up to the top line with Auston Matthews and Knies.

“It just spreads it out a little bit,” said Berube. “I do like Willy with Matthews [together], but I think, at the same time, it’s nice to have a little bit more of a threat on two lines.”

Since sitting as a healthy scratch on Oct. 24 in Buffalo, Robertson has produced four goals and four assists in eight games. The 5-foot-9 winger is also averaging one hit per game in this stretch.

“He’s been flying,” Knies said. “He’s been scoring, producing. He’s working extremely hard. So, yeah, it’s fun to work with a guy like that who’s not afraid to go to the dirty areas and work his tail off to support you and get the puck back.”

Steven Lorentz will draw back in on the fourth line replacing Calle Jarnkrok.

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Anthony Stolarz gets the start for the Leafs. It will be his first game action since allowing four goals on 19 shots and being pulled on Saturday against Boston.

“He’s gonna be good,” promised Knies. “He’s gonna play like we need him to. We also owe him. I think we’ve kind of left him out to dry a little bit, so I think we need to play better defensively in front of him. But I think he knows that he can help us a lot, and I think he’s gonna do well here.”

Saturday marked the first time Berube pulled Stolarz, whose save percentage on the season has sunk to .889, due to a performance issue.

“I think Anthony’s game has to do with our game, too,” Berube said. “I think there’s a lot of games this year where he’s been solid, but we’re giving up chances that we did not give up last year. We have to tighten that up and ... our goalies will have more success.”

Jeremy Swayman will start again for the Bruins.

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Joseph Woll is scheduled to play a full game with the Toronto Marlies on Wednesday as his conditioning stint continues.

If all goes well, Berube indicated Woll could join the Leafs later this week.

Woll, who missed the start of the season for personal reasons, allowed three goals on 24 shots in a 36-minute appearance with the Marlies on Saturday.

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Scott Laughton will miss a second straight game after suffering an upper-body injury on Saturday courtesy of a big hit from Bruins defenceman Nikita Zadorov.

“He’s progressing nicely,” Berube said. “I think he might have skated today. I’m not sure, but I know that he wanted to get on the ice, so he’s going in the right direction.”

After Saturday’s game, Berube said that the hit by Zadorov looked like a headshot. Does the coach expect any emotional carryover into Tuesday’s rematch?

“It should inject some fire in you for sure, but we don’t want to be stupid either,” Berube said. “We’ve got to play the game. Yeah, if the opportunity arises to get a good lick on a guy, you get a good lick on a guy ... [but] we’ve got to move on, and we got to play.”

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Bruins centre Fraser Minten - a former Maple Leaf - scored the insurance goal in Saturday’s 5-3 win and earned a rave review from Marco Sturm afterwards.

“I thought he was the best player on the ice, to be honest,” the Boston coach boasted.

How good did the goal feel?

“As good as it can,” Minten told reporters on Saturday night. “Very good.”

Minten was facing the Leafs for the first time since being traded by Toronto in March.

“It’s pretty weird, to be honest, seeing his face in a different jersey,” Knies said. “Just kind of chatting with him on the ice, yeah, it’s weird.”

Minten has picked up a point in five of seven games and seems to be getting more and more comfortable in Boston.

“He’s done well,” said Knies. “He knows himself pretty well as a player. He’s a 200-foot player that is very good defensively, very solid offensively, and I think he’s really found a role there on the Bruins. I’m happy for him.”

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Brandon Carlo led the stretch after the Leafs skate on Tuesday. The defenceman, who was acquired as part of the Minten deal, is playing his first game back in Boston after spending the first nine seasons of his NHL career with the Bruins.

“I’m excited to be back and to kind of check this box with getting this first one out of the way,” the 28-year-old said with a smile. “I’m just trying to focus on winning a game tonight. I feel like that would be the greatest gratification for me.”

The Bruins are expected to welcome Carlo back on the video board as part of Tuesday’s game.

“Just trying to focus on the game,” Carlo stressed. “When I think too far, too much in the future and about certain things that’s where I feel like anxiety lies.”

Carlo still has some close friends on the Bruins, including David Pastrnak, who made his voice heard during their on-ice reunion on Saturday night.

“There was one time I got a puck out in the neutral zone and I was pulling it back and Pasta was just yelling at me like, ‘Brando! Brando! Brando!’ and trying to make me nervous. That was kind of funny. I appreciate that from him, you know, keeping it light. It was great to see those guys, and weird to play against them.”

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Lines at Leafs skate on Tuesday:

Knies - Matthews - Robertson

McMann - Tavares - Nylander

Joshua - Roy - Maccelli

Lorentz - Domi - Blais

Jarnkrok

Rielly - Carlo

Benoit - McCabe

Ekman-Larsson - Myers

Mermis

Stolarz starts

Hildeby