TORONTO – The bubble has just about burst and whatever remained of the Maple Leafs sinking playoff hopes is probably just on life support. A game they had to have Saturday fell apart like so many others during a losing skid that now numbers eight games. And a season, promising as recently as two weeks ago, has unraveled into a collapse that mirrors, if not eclipses, the infamous 18-wheeler of 2012. "I cant describe it right now," said a befuddled Joffrey Lupul following a 4-2 loss to Detroit, the Red Wings jumping two points ahead of the Leafs with two games still in hand. "This is probably the first time, after this game, that things are probably looking a little bleak for us." The scene was cheery in the visitors dressing room at Staples Center in Los Angeles after a resilient win over the Kings on March 13. The Leafs had stomped through the deathly California triangle with a pair of victories and had their sights set on claiming second spot in the Atlantic Division, a berth in the postseason all but assumed following their 15th win in a remarkable stretch of 22 games. They havent gotten a point since, losing eight straight in regulation for the first time in more than 25 years. It was more of the same in defeat against the Red Wings, still playing without their two best players in Pavel Datsyuk and Henrik Zetterberg. There was the stunning and all too familiar inconsistency. At once energetic, sharp and urgent in the opening period, the Leafs sputtered with errors in the second, spewing three goals in less than eight minutes. Troubling defensive breakdowns continued in that middle period meltdown. Detroit approached double-figures in odd-man opportunities for the evening, scoring three of their four goals in such situations, including two in that disastrous eight-minute stretch. "Its a very tough time," Dion Phaneuf said after the defeat, the third to the Red Wings this season. "This loss is the most disappointing out of the eight. Theres no hiding that." Perplexed Leafs like Phaneuf were struggling to comprehend how it could unravel so quickly, how a season filled with so much promise could deteriorate in a manner of a couple weeks. "Sometimes, its just been poor execution," Lupul said. "Sometimes, its been defensive lapses. Other times, the other teams played really well, but its our job to win hockey games and we havent been able to do it." Technically still alive, the Leafs would need to find an unbelievable and unlikely winning streak to revive their playoff hopes along with plenty of help from the likes of Columbus, Detroit, and even Washington. Up three points on Montreal after that win in L.A., Toronto now trails the Habs by 13, an incredible and hurried reversal rarely seen. "We went from a position where we were in control of our own destiny now to sitting at home cheering against other teams," Lupul said. "That part of its very frustrating." And now, or perhaps very soon, come the difficult questions for general manager Dave Nonis and his management team. What should the future hold for head coach Randy Carlyle? How much of what took place this season falls on his shoulders? Are the teams constant defensive failings a matter of coaching or are certain segments of the roster simply too flawed? How much of the collapse, for that matter, is the roster? Is it both the coaching staff and roster that need adjusting? Does a core featuring Kessel, van Riemsdyk, Lupul, Phaneuf, Kadri, Clarkson, Bernier and Rielly need serious tweaking? Are these the foundations of a team that can eventually win the ultimate prize? Where and what improvements can be attained? Where does the club go from here? A collapse of this magnitude should throw everyone and everything into question. Ron Wilson got the axe during the 2012 meltdown with only minor roster adjustments that summer (Luke Schenn notably traded). Mikhail Grabovski, Clarke MacArthur and Matt Frattin were among the jettisoned following the Game 7 unraveling last spring. What comes next this time around? Six games do still remain, but hope has been drained from these Leafs and a once (and perhaps still) bright future has suddenly become muddled with questions. The bubble has just about burst. "These are the tough days in sports when you dont get the job done," said Carlyle. Five Points 1. Nothing Quite Like This Formerly with the mostly dominant Kings, Jonathan Bernier said hed never been through something quite like this. "Probably not," Bernier said. "Having a long losing streak like that, especially close to the end of the season, never happened to me before." Others like Cody Franson were forced to reflect on the horrors of 2012, which saw the Leafs lose 19 of 24 games en route to another absence from the postseason. "I dont think it brings back memories of that," he said. "We havent thought about that stretch back then. I thought weve come out with a lot of good efforts and theyre ending up on the wrong side of the stick. Its not like were playing bad hockey, its just one of those things where every mistake that we do make ends up [in the net]." "The try is there, [but] we didnt get the job done," said Lupul. "We have to deal with that now." Losers in nine of the past 10, the Leafs lost 10 of 11 before Wilson was dismissed in March of 2012. 2. Bernier Back-to-Back Probably still not at 100 per cent, Bernier nonetheless started both ends of a back-to-back for just the second time in his NHL career. Facing a slew of odd-man rush opportunities, the 25-year-old gave up four goals for the third consecutive game. "I felt really good tonight," he said. Darren Helm scored three of the four on Bernier. The first saw him pick off Jake Gardiner at the offensive blue-line shorthanded before eventually outmaneuvering Torontos power-play unit for a backhand marker. Helm would add a second on a redirection - he was all alone in front - the third and final dagger on a breakaway. Gustav Nyquist notched the other Detroit goal, beating Bernier five-hole after Johan Franzens shot attempt ricocheted off the skate of Phaneuf moving in reverse. In three starts upon returning a groin injury that kept him out five games, Bernier has allowed 12 goals on 105 shots for an off-kilter .886 save percentage. Considering his earlier theatrics this season, its worth wondering just how healthy he really is. 3. Kadri Benched Nazem Kadri was on the ice for back-to-back goals on consecutive shifts in the middle frame and was eventually benched for it. The 23-year-old was casual on the back-check on the sequence that led to the second Wings goal from Nyquist, out-muscled by Joakim Andersson in a one-on-one battle that resulted in the third marker from Helm. Kadri began the third frame on the fourth line, joined by Jay McClement and Troy Bodie. He totaled just four shifts and less than four minutes in the period, finishing with just over 14 minutes on the evening. The London, Ontario native has just one goal and four points in the past 11 games. 4. Kessel 40-Goal Chase Rightfully lost in the Leafs collapse, but still a point of intrigue, is Phil Kessels chase for 40 goals. The 26-year-old posted a career-high of 37 back in the 2011-12 season, but remains stuck on 36 this year with just six games to play. The teams leading scorer finished March with four goals and 10 points in 15 games. Stung on the foot by a James van Riemsdyk pass attempt in the second frame, Kessel was seen limping around the underbelly of the ACC afterward. Carlyle had no update on his status. 5. Gardiner Revival With two assists in defeat on Saturday, Jake Gardiner finished March with 11 points and a share of the team lead (Tyler Bozak). The 23-year-old is up to 28 points on the year, third on the defence behind Dion Phaneuf (31) and Cody Franson (30). He led the Leafs with more than 23 minutes on Saturday. Franson, who scored the first Toronto goal, set a career-high with his 30th point of the year, eclipsing the 29 he posted last season. Stats-Pack 1-9-0 – Leafs record in the past 10 games. 11 – Points in the past 12 games for Jake Gardiner. 30 – Points this season for Cody Franson, a new career-high. .886 – Save percentage for Jonathan Bernier in three starts after return from a groin injury. Special Teams Capsule PP: 0-2Season: 20.4% (6th) PK: 3-3Season: 78.4 (28th) Quote of the Night "I cant describe it right now. 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TSN Hockey Insider Bob McKenzie tweeted on Monday that Hemsky will be going to market as an unrestricted free agent on July 1. Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk Jersey . The Eastern Conference-leading Celtics finished their recent trek at 3-1 on Monday in Salt Lake City when Rajon Rondo made a key jumper with 24.1 seconds remaining, as Boston held off the Utah Jazz, 107-102, at EnergySolutions Arena.BATHURST, N.B. -- Francois Tremblay stopped 28 shots for his sixth-career shutout as the Victoriaville Tigres blanked the host Acadie-Bathurst Titan 5-0 on Saturday in Quebec Major Junior Hockey League action. Angelo Miceli and Jean-Francois Plante each had a goal and an assist for the Tigres (26-19-6), who extended their win streak to 10 games, while Yan Pavel Laplante, Mark Tremaine and Carl Marois scored the others. Scott Oke and Matthew Boudreau led the Titan (17-31-5) with three shots a piece on Tremblay. Jacob Brennan turned away 26-of-31 shots for Acadie-Bathurst, which lost its ninth game in a row. --- SCREAMING EAGLES 5 WILDCATS 3 SYDNEY, N.S. -- Maxim Lazarev scored twice and Alex Bureau stopped 12 shots in relief as Cape Breton came from behind to defeat Moncton. Julien Pelletier, Cameron Darcy and Raphael Corriveau also scored for the Screaming Eagles (27-21-3), who trailed 3-0 after 20 minutes of action. Zachary Fortin allowed three goals on nine shots in 14 minutes of action before giving way to Bureau. Conor Garland had a pair of goals for the Wildcats (26-25-2) and Ivan Barbashev scored once. Monctons Alex Dubeau turned aside 38-of-43 shots in a losing cause. --- DRAKKAR 5 SAGUENEENS 4 CHICOUTIMI, Que. -- Felix Girard scored twice as Baie-Comeau edged the Sagueneens for its 10th win in a row. Valentin Zykov had three assists for the Drakkar (35-12-4), who also got single goals from Alexandre Ranger, Charles Hudon and Maxime St-Cyr. Simon Tremblay, Laurent Dauphin, Carl Tremblay and Victor Provencher replied for Chicoutimi (25-26-1). Philippe Cadorette had a big game for Baie-Comeau with 39 saves. Julio Billlia made 23 saves for the Sagueneens.dddddddddddd --- CATARACTES 6 OCEANIC 4 RIMOUSKI, Que. -- Gabriel Slight and Felix-Antoine Bergeron each scored twice as Shawinigan toppled the Oceanic. Brandon Gignac and Alexis DAoust also scored for the Cataractes (14-31-7) while Giovanni Fiore and Anthony Beauvillier tacked on three assists apiece. Anthony Chapados scored three times for Rimouski (29-15-7) and also set up Tyler Boland. Shawinigans Storm Phaneuf made 21 saves for the win as Olivier Tremblay stopped 30-of-36 shots for the Oceanic. --- ARMADA 4 MOOSEHEADS 3 (SO) BOISBRIAND, Que. -- Etienne Marcoux made 37 saves through regulation and overtime and another seven in the shootout as the Armada slipped past Halifax. Marcus Hinds scored the winner in the eighth round of the shootout for Blainville-Boisbriand (31-10-9) while Danick Martel had a pair of goals in regulation. Matthew Bursey also scored. Andrew Ryan, Jonathan Drouin and Brent Andrews scored for the Mooseheads (34-17-1), who sit three points behind the Armada for second spot in league standings. Halifaxs Zachary Fucale kicked out 19-of-22 shots in a losing cause. --- HUSKIES 6 SEA DOGS 1 ROUYN-NORANDA, Que. -- Marcus Power had two goals and an assist as the Huskies downed Saint John to end a five-game skid. Jeremy Lauzon scored once and set up two more for Rouyn-Noranda (27-18-5), Francis Beauvillier, Julien Nantel and Liam OBrien had a goal apiece and Jack Nevins had three assists. The Sea Dogs (16-31-4) got a goal from Matthew Highmore. Alexandre Belanger made 15 saves for the win as Chase Gaudet turned aside 41-of-47 shots in a losing cause. 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