Matthews: Leafs need to show 'more desperation'

Toronto Maple Leafs captain Auston Matthews said he wants his team to show more fight after back-to-back losses coming out of the Olympic break.

"I don't think concern's the right word. I just think we need more desperation, more fire, especially to start games," Matthews said following Thursday's 5-1 loss to the Florida Panthers, according to Sportsnet. "We know the position that we're in, and we need to be the more desperate team every single night.

"I thought the start wasn't great, but our second and third period, we competed. Guys worked. We did a lot of good things, but we need to turn that into a full 60-minute effort."

The Leafs were down 3-0 after the first period and never recovered. The defeat came a night after being outclassed by the Atlantic Division-leading Tampa Bay Lightning.

Toronto has two regulation wins in its last 14 games and sits eight points out of the final wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference with 23 games remaining. The 2015-16 campaign was the last time the team missed the postseason.

The Leafs likely need to go 18-5-0 down the stretch to snag the final playoff spot.