What Did We Learn From the Maple Leafs’ 3-2 Loss to Ottawa?

Well, the Maple Leafs lost 3-2 to the Senators on Saturday night, and now they're 1-2. That's not exactly panic time. We're three games into the season. But that's enough hockey to start asking a few questions.

So, what did we learn?

The Maple Leafs are getting chances. They're just not finishing enough of them.

Jim Hiller was asked afterward if he thought the Maple Leafs were generating enough offence. His answer was basically: yes. He mentioned six or seven posts and crossbars. That's a lot of iron. And he's right. Those are usually good chances. Auston Matthews tied the game early in the second with a nice tip on a Morgan Rielly shot. Kirill Marchenko then scored his first goal as a Maple Leaf on the power play.

So there were some good things. But here's the part Hiller didn't like. When the game got to the point where Toronto really needed something to happen, the power play wasn't dangerous enough. I think that's becoming an interesting word around this team: dangerous.

It's not enough to have the puck. It's not enough to hit a post. It's not enough to have a nice-looking power play. At some point, you have to make the other team worry.

The third period told us a little more.

The Maple Leafs took some careless penalties in the third, and Hiller thought those hurt the team's momentum. Ottawa pushed back, and Toronto struggled to get out of its own end. Hiller also admitted he might have been able to get some fresher players on the ice late. That's a pretty honest answer from a coach three games into a new season.

And then there's the faceoff circle. Toronto lost that battle again, winning just 43.1 percent of the draws. They've now lost the faceoff battle in two of three games. None of this means the season is going sideways. But these little things add up.

Toronto also has to remember that division games matter. Last season, the Maple Leafs struggled against their own division, and 28 of those games are on the schedule. Losing two of them at home doesn't help.

There’s a lot of good in the Maple Leafs game. But winning is good, too.

Still, I came away thinking there was more good here than the 3-2 score suggests. Matthews scored. Marchenko scored his first. The team created chances. Now comes the harder part. Make them dangerous.

That's what I'd like to learn next. That the team can finish.