An up-and-down season for the Toronto Maple Leafs is currently in their biggest valley of the roller coaster. The team has lost four games in a row while the rest of their Atlantic Division opponents have continued winning games, leaving the Leafs six points out of a wildcard spot with five games to go before the Olympic break.

Things appeared to be turning around for them as they entered the new year, but they’ve gone back to their old ways over the past week, and teams like the Buffalo Sabres, who have been rolling lately, are going to be playing for their lives. The Maple Leafs’ place in the standings shines light on how devastating dropping points at this time of year can be. And the players know it.

“We want to win,” defenceman Simon Benoit told reporters at Tuesday morning’s optional skate ahead of their game against the Sabres. “That’s it, there’s no other, we just want to win. We have to win.”

Benoit admitted that the mood around the team is different than it’s been in years past, given that they’ve usually got a safe playoff position as they approach the deadline.

“I’ve been here for three years now, at this point we’re already in the playoff spot with a couple of points ahead.” Benoit said. “Obviously, this year it’s not the same scenario, we’re a couple of points behind. So, it’s a must-win, every night is a must-win if you want to make the playoffs.”

“It’s definitely a big one, we know the magnitude of it,” forward Bobby McMann added. “It’s something that we don’t really want to focus on, we just want to focus on playing our game more than anything, and coming out with a good start, I think, is the biggest thing.”

The Sabres have long been the afterthought of the Atlantic Division, having not made the playoffs since 2011, but their youth movement has been forcing people to pay attention to them, and they currently sit third place in the Atlantic Division. Captain Morgan Rielly says it isn’t surprising to see the Sabres finally found some success and talked about the challenge they’ll present the Leafs.

“They’ve always had skill and speed, things like that, and it was only a matter of time before they put it together,” Rielly told media. “You can say that about a lot of teams, so, we’re going to have our hands full here tonight, and it’s important that we’re all ready for the challenge.”

Puckdrop between the Maple Leafs and Sabres is at 7:00 pm eastern time from Scotiabank Arena.

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