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The Leafs are ‘buying in’ to Babcock’s system, and it shows

In their last four games, the Toronto Maple Leafs have:

--- Smoked the Los Angeles Kings, 5-0, outshooting them 34-26
--- Filled the net in a 7-4 win at Colorado, halting the Avalanche’s five-game winning streak
--- Lost 3-2 in Arizona, outshooting the Coyotes 39-26
--- Won 3-1 in Brooklyn, outshooting the Isles 38-26

No wonder Mike Babcock was in such a good mood this morning after practice. Of the four results, the only bad one was the loss in Arizona, and that came after playing the night before in Colorado.

Since a 2-8-4 start under their new, $50 million coach, the Leafs have gone 11-6-3.

“I think we’re playing better without the puck,” Babcock said. “So we have the puck a lot more, and we don’t spend as much time in our own zone. We execute. We have more speed.”

The result? Goals. Plenty of them. The Leafs have potted 25 of them in their last six games. Not too shabby, what with it being “impossible” to score in the NHL.

“We have different systems now and we’re doing a better job of playing with (the) system,” forward Tyler Bozak told the Associated Press. “Guys are buying in.”

And with better goaltending, it’s starting to show in the results.

These Leafs are by no means great, but they’re pushovers no more.

Related: Here are PHT’s mid-season Jack Adams Award picks