For the latest Leafs updates or Follow @mikeinbuffalo on Twitter Maple Leafs head coach Mike Babcock said on Saturday morning that he was looking for his club to maintain a high level of play in the remaining week of the regular season to move into the playoffs on the right note. Toronto was unable to put together a complete effort, allowing a trio of second period goals in 3-1 loss to the Winnipeg Jets at Air Canada Centre. Patrick Marleau scored his 26th of the season on the power play early in the second period to give Toronto the lead, but the Leafs appeared weary in the second of back-to-back games and yielded control to the bigger and fresher Jets, giving up the game-tying goal to defenseman Josh Morrissey, the game-winner to blueliner Dustin Byfuglien and a third goal before the end of the middle frame to Jets forward Andrew Copp. “I'm disappointed, you always want to win each and every night.… Babcock said after the game. “I know looking at the schedule in advance we were in tough. I thought our second period hurt us. When you don't have quite as much juice, you're not quite as good. We made a couple of mistakes there not stopping in the D-zone on a couple of those plays and in the end, it ended up in our net. I didn't think they generated a ton and I didn't think we generated a ton. It was tight. In the end, they were better.… The news that superseded the result of the game was the injury to Travis Dermott. The rookie blueliner took a point shot from Winnipeg defenseman Ben Chiarot off the inside of his left skate late in the first period and hobbled to the bench and later to the dressing room. Dermott did not return for the second period, which forced the Leafs to play with five defensemen for the remainder of the game. Babcock indicated after the game that x-rays were taken during the game and that nothing was found, but that further tests would be performed on Sunday to determine how long the young blueliner will be out.
@sportingnewsca Here's the reason why Travis Dermott did not return for the start of the second period. #Leafs #TMLTalk pic.twitter.com/UTR3fQ6ZNX
— Michael Augello (@MikeInBuffalo) April 1, 2018