Believe it or not, the Toronto Maple Leafs have now won nine straight home openers.

Saturday night’s 4-2 win against the Pittsburgh Penguins was a good start, but I want to see more from this team at home in 2024-25.

Last season, the Leafs went a pedestrian 22-15-4 at Scotiabank Arena. Simply put, that’s just not good enough, especially for a team that has real Stanley Cup aspirations. Unsurprisingly, that record ranked 19^th amongst the NHL’s 32 teams —with a bevy of non-playoff squads hovering all around them.

Good thing they were excellent on the road, right?

For one reason or another, the Leafs have been unable to establish an identity on home ice for quite some time now. It’s certainly a far cry from the Pat Quinn era, where night in and night out, that barn was rocking, and that team was out for blood. That was a long time ago —that’s for sure.

As one would expect, the regular season issues have certainly transferred to the postseason as well. Over the years, Toronto’s had a very difficult time getting the job done in front of their home crowd. In fact, it’s cost them series —multiple times.

Any way you slice it – and perhaps Craig Berube is the perfect guy to have in charge right now – the Leafs need to find a way to make Scotiabank Arena a house of pain again.

Personally, I think a lot of it’s about the brand of hockey. If the opponent comes in thinking and knowing it’s going to be an easy night physically, they can sort of let their guard down. It takes the pressure right off.

Well, this year, this team should look different. And to be fair, so far, they have —to an extent. They’re not going to be pushed around anymore —at least one would think.

Over and above all that, I think the crowd deserves a bit of blame, too. It’s been way too easy for visitors to play there. On the best of nights, that place sounds like a funeral home when there’s a viewing taking place. As someone who’s been fortunate enough to visit a plethora of arenas around the NHL, there’s no question that a loud crowd can go a far way in boosting a squad.

In the long run, there are 41 home dates. The process starts with this early season four-game homestand. It’s time for the Maple Leafs to turn back the clock. Across the board, it’s imperative that they find consistency in their game as quickly as they can.