When asked about his team and the Maple Leafs struggling to meet expectations to start the season, the Florida Panthers forward pushed back on the idea that Toronto’s position outside the Eastern Conference playoff picture should be treated as a crisis.
“If you think that your playoff dreams are done 25 games in, you have bigger problems,” Marchand said. “I know they don’t think that in the room. It’s just, obviously, with the media attention and the fan support they have in Toronto, things get blown way out of proportion up there.”
The Leafs sit right behind the Panthers in the standings with 25 points and are four points out of the second wild-card spot.
Marchand, whose Panthers beat the Maple Leafs in Round 2 last season, added that there shouldn’t be any doubt of Leafs’ ability to turn things around — especially with a majority of the season still remaining.
“What are they, four points out of a playoff spot?” Marchand said. “If people are thinking they’re out of a playoff spot for the season, they gotta find a new job.”
Marchand also praised the Leafs during last season’s playoff series, when he made it a point to talk about the changes the team showed under Craig Berube.
Meanwhile, the former Boston Bruins pest defended Auston Matthews, noting how his game has evolved despite a downturn in goals.
“I think he’s focusing more on the 200-foot game,” Marchand said. “He’s playing more physical, more physical defensively. One of the things I really noticed about him last year was he was much more reliable, much tougher to play against in his end of the ice than in years past.”
Marchand said Matthews’ shift in style of play shows his maturity and commitment.
“He easily could have worried about cheating offensively, chasing 60-plus goals every year,” Marchand said. “But to play that way, you’re going to sacrifice scoring the way you did in the past. That’s what you have to do to win. It’s part of why they were such a good team last year.”
Marchand added that while Matthews remains dangerous with the puck in the offensive zone, “he’s much more reliable” overall.
The Leafs and Panthers square off Tuesday in Sunrise, Fla., for the first time since Florida eliminated Toronto in Round 2 last season.
