Opinion: The Toronto Maple Leafs Have A Maturity Problem Brewing

As the Toronto Maple Leafs continue to struggle this season, one thing is becoming increasingly clear: this team is struggling with moments of immaturity.

We're not just throwing the label of "immature" out there for this Maple Leafs team. It's been there for most of this season. You just needed to observe some of their players this past week to see some examples.

The most recent example was injured right winger William Nylander giving the middle finger to a camera during the Leafs' 4-1 loss to the Colorado Avalanche Sunday afternoon.

The NHL's player safety department fined him $5,000 for the "inappropriate gesture" on Monday.

"First off, I just really want to apologize for my actions yesterday," Nylander told reporters Monday. "(The finger) was out of frustration… I want to be out there with the guys. Yeah, just frustrated."

We've said regularly that we see the devil-may-care Nylander as a great fit in Toronto, but that doesn't mean he can't make mistakes. And flipping the bird definitely counts as an immature mistake. At least apologizing makes up for it somewhat.

Maple Leafs' William Nylander Apologies For Middle Finger Gesture, Hopes To Return From Groin Injury During Upcoming Road TripNylander flipped the middle finger at a camera during the TSN broadcast of the Toronto Maple Leafs' 4-1 loss to the Colorado Avalanche on Sunday.

The problem is, it's not the first time maturity has come into question for this Leafs team. Just head back to November, when Toronto blew a lead to the Carolina Hurricanes and lost 5-4.

"At times, we did some really good things, earned opportunities, and were able to give ourselves a lead," Tavares told reporters at the time. "And then our game just, for whatever reason, becomes really immature and we don't manage the game very well."

The stats bear him out, as Toronto has lost eight of 19 games this season when leading after the first period and seven of 19 when leading after the second frame. They've also lost 10 of 17 games when tied after the first period.

Now, it’s not all bad news for the Maple Leafs, as they're tied for second in the NHL in third-period comeback wins, with seven. They've also got 13 comeback wins overall, which is tied for sixth in the league. 

But if you want another example of why this Leafs team is immature, look at Toronto's recent efforts against former Toronto star and current Vegas Golden Knights right winger Mitch Marner. You could forgive one loss to Vegas, but good teams usually avenge a loss to one particular team by beating them in their next showdown. 

That's what happened when the Maple Leafs beat the best team in the league – the Avalanche – on Jan. 12. The Avs absorbed the defeat, but in their next game against the Buds, Colorado demolished them in a 4-1 win that was never close. That's the sign of a mature team. That's why the Avalanche are the class of the NHL.

And that's what we didn't see out of Toronto in their two games against Vegas. The Leafs built up multiple leads in the first game against the Knights before losing 6-5 in overtime on Jan. 15 – then, eight days later, Vegas beat Toronto 6-3. The Leafs had two chances to show Marner they'd moved on without him, but in both games, Toronto showed no mental toughness and deserved to be beaten both times.

'It Was Done The Right Way': Auston Matthews Reacts To How Maple Leafs Fans Welcomed Mitch Marner Back To TorontoMarner didn't register a point and played 17:25 in Vegas' 6-3 win over the Maple Leafs on Friday.

Meanwhile, another highly paid Maple Leaf – captain Auston Matthews – did not show the maturity the Leafs need from their leadership.

Matthews reportedly chose not to speak with the media before or after Toronto's second game against Vegas. Tavares and Scott Laughton faced the media post-game instead.

Frankly, Matthews should know better. When you wear the 'C' of an NHL team, you take on the responsibility to show up for any and all media availabilities. You may not be happy about it, but taking the easy way out by not showing up at all before or after an important game is clearly an immature stance from Matthews.

"You're the captain, dude, you're the guy," TSN's Bryan Hayes said on OverdriveMonday afternoon. "You've got to jump on a grenade sometimes, even though it sucks. You have to."

Toronto Maple Leafs' Slide Could Make Them Sellers, Not BuyersThe Toronto Maple Leafs' homestand slide undid much of their hot streak after the holidays. Upgrading their roster this season looks less like the answer than retooling and resetting for next year.

To be sure, we're not advocating that Leafs GM Brad Treliving trades Nylander or Matthews. They're essentially both untouchables. However, something important has to change with this Toronto group. The urgency that should be part of their game night in and night out simply isn't there. And by or before this season's March 6 trade deadline, Treliving needs to add veteran players who are willing to be mature in the face of adversity.

People make mistakes all the time – inside and outside of the NHL bubble. So you can forgive Nylander and Matthews for what happened in the past few days. But far too often this season, the Maple Leafs have been unable to step up and show they've got what it takes to succeed in the fishbowl market that is Toronto. And Matthews and Nylander are the Leafs' highest-paid players, so they're going to be judged more severely when things don't go the Buds' way. 

Unless we see maturity from the Maple Leafs very soon, they're going to squander their remaining chances to salvage their season.

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