The Toronto Maple Leafs have been near the bottom of the Atlantic Division for some time, and they know they need to pick up their play if they want to stay competitive. It was a perfect opportunity for them to get right against the Washington Capitals, but they were dominated from the beginning of the game to the end, as they lost 4-0.

Words are hard to come by when you suffer a loss like that, but sometimes, all you need to do is tell the truth about how the team played. Oliver Ekman-Larsson was that player for the Maple Leafs after the loss, and he didn't hold his thoughts back on how they performed.

“I think they were a little more desperate than us,” Ekman-Larsson said via Sid Seixeiro. “Obviously, we've got to come out harder. I thought we were pretty flat the whole night. Didn't really create anything. We gave up a lot of chances.”

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Ekman-Larsson was then asked how he could explain that the Capitals were more desperate than them, considering where each team is in the standings.

“It's one thing to talk about it, it's another thing to do,” Ekman-Larsson said. “That's the hard part right now, and that's something we need to figure out. It's going to be nights you don't have it, and it's going to be nights you don't have the power play, but the compete has to be there. That's something we have to bring every single day, and I thought they competed a little harder than us today.”

For Ekman-Larsson, it seems like it comes down to effort, and the Maple Leafs are going to have to come out with better energy if they want to start winning more games. They're currently 15-13-5, and there is still time for them to turn things around, but it's going to take a collective group effort.