'Upset' Maple Leafs need to be urgent against desperate Calgary Flames

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The Maple Leafs aren’t a happy group.

For good reason, of course, as they’ve been stumbling for a while, winning once in their past six games.

“They’re upset about things and they’re pissed off, and that’s a good thing,” Leafs coach Craig Berube said on Monday after the team’s morning skate at Scotiabank Arena. “This morning, we went over a few things, where we’re at as a team, and talked about some urgency that we need more throughout the game, not when it’s desperate time.”

The Leafs’ recent spin has left them battling with the Tampa Bay Lightning for second place in the Atlantic Division and home-ice advantage in the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs.

First place in the division? Well, that would mean passing the Florida Panthers, who are four points up on the Leafs and the Lightning. The Leafs have two games in hand on Florida (so does Tampa) but that doesn’t mean it’s an automatic four points for Toronto.

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The next challenge for the Leafs comes in the form of the Calgary Flames, who have arrived in Toronto in the thick of the fight for a wild-card spot in the Western Conference.

We would suggest that the Leafs, with their offensive talents, should be able to take advantage of a Flames team that has scored the fewest goals in the National Hockey League. But just because the Leafs are mad and recognize that they have to play with more intensity and execution than they have been recently doesn’t mean they will turn it around on Monday night.

Still, it might be worth remembering the Leafs have won six of their past seven games against the Flames.

The general confidence in the Toronto dressing room hasn’t waned.

“We have to push through,” defenceman Morgan Rielly said. “We’re capable of doing that.

“You look at our division, it’s tight. It’s a good opportunity for us to rise and come together and start playing some good hockey.

“As a group, we know what we’re going through, we know what we’re dealing with, we’ve had a chance to sit with it and talk about it. It’s a good opportunity for our group to overcome adversity at an important time in the season and move forward.”

What does former Leafs centre Nazem Kadri expect from his old club tonight?

“A hungry one,” Kadri said. “We expect them to come out hard and try to play their best. It’s big points for both teams. These are ones that we need to have. It should be a good hockey game.”

Joseph Woll will start in net for Toronto. Dustin Wolf, who is bound to get some Calder Trophy votes as the NHL’s top rookie, will get the start for the Flames.

From the way the Western Conference is shaping up, one of the Flames, Vancouver Canucks, St. Louis Blues or the Utah Hockey Club will get the second wild-card seed. The Canucks, who are in that spot now, and Blues each have 73 points while the Flames and Utah each have 71 points.

It’s coming up on six years since the Leafs traded Kadri to the Colorado Avalanche.

The amiable Kadri was asked whether he still has friends in the Toronto organization.

“Everybody,” Kadri said. “I’m going to have some family and friends in the building and it feels quite similar, like you never left.

“You’re on the other side, but I’m still very good friends with everybody. Chat with them on a pretty regular basis. It’ll be a lot of fun to try to go out there and get on the right side of things.”

tkoshan@postmedia.com

X: @koshtorontosun