Sheldon Keefe believes his club got what was coming to it Thursday night.
The Toronto Maple Leafs head coach wasn't happy with the team's play in a stunning Game 3 loss to the Columbus Blue Jackets. Keefe was disappointed with what he saw, even when the Leafs led the contest before blowing a three-goal lead and losing 4-3 in overtime, falling behind 2-1 in the best-of-five series.
“I didn’t like our game at 1-0, 2-0, 3-0," the bench boss told reporters postgame, according to TSN's Kristen Shilton. "We got what we deserved. We didn’t have any purpose or plan to our game.”
The Maple Leafs went up by three midway through the second period on rookie Nick Robertson's first NHL goal, following tallies from Cody Ceci and William Nylander. However, the Blue Jackets responded with Pierre-Luc Dubois' pair of goals and one from Seth Jones. Dubois later capped off a hat trick with the winner in overtime.
Toronto dominated possession in the opening period. But Columbus improved in the second stanza and controlled play in the third, before the Maple Leafs earned a bigger share in the extra frame.
| 5-on-5 xGF% | Blue Jackets | Maple Leafs |
|---|---|---|
| 1st period | 16.52 | 83.48 |
| 2nd | 45.37 | 54.63 |
| 3rd | 62.19 | 37.81 |
| OT | 46.28 | 53.72 |
Neither club will be able to rest much after the extended contest Thursday night. The Maple Leafs will try to stave off elimination in Game 4 on Friday, with puck drop scheduled for 8 p.m. ET.
(Analytics source: Natural Stat Trick)
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