Stolarz Criticizes Leafs; Team Loses 5-2

Toronto lost 5–2 to the New Jersey Devils as Jack Hughes recorded a hat trick, with the Leafs outskated and outshot and hampered by an upper-body issue to defenseman Chris Tanev. The defeat followed a heated moment earlier in the week when goalie Anthony Stolarz publicly criticized the team's compete level after a 4–3 overtime loss to the Seattle Kraken, implicitly singling out a breakdown involving William Nylander. Stolarz later pulled Nylander aside, accepted personal responsibility for the overtime sequence, and teammates including captain Auston Matthews said the group met, cleared the air and moved on. Coach Craig Berube urged such critiques remain internal but called mutual accountability healthy. The club sits 3–2–1 amid concerns about inconsistent 60-minute efforts and a sputtering power play, and coach-driven lineup tweaks — such as trying Max Domi with Matthews — are being explored.