Babcock critical of veterans after disappointing loss.

It would be inaccurate to say Toronto Maple Leafs head coach Mike Babcock has completely avoided criticising his players this season, but he certainly has kept any kind of negative comments to a minimum. When Babcock took the job in Toronto he stated earlier on one of his goals was to insulate his players from the pressures of the market, and he has done an admirable job this far.

With that said, after a disappointing shoot out loss to the Buffalo Sabres on Monday night, Babcock piled the blame on to the shoulders of two of his veteran players, and although he did not name names, you can draw your own conclusions.

"It wasn't our kids that made mistakes tonight," said Babcock as per TSN's Tony Ambrogio. It was two guys we count on big time there in the third period that cost us."

Babcock is referring to the lacklustre third period in which the Maple Leafs allowed two unanswered goals which allowed the Sabres to force overtime, before eventually taking a shoot out win over Toronto.

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