TORONTO - There are many questions surrounding the Toronto Maple Leafs, namely: How did this happen? How, in less than two weeks, did a team that was sitting pretty in second place in the Atlantic Division fritter away a three-point lead over the Montreal Canadiens and nine-point advantage over the Detroit Red Wings? As the players come to grips with the roots of their six-game losing streak, Tuesdays almost-comeback against the St. Football Jerseys Throwback Outlet . Louis Blues highlighted a big issue: Why cant the Leafs play with the desperation they show when down two or three goals at the start of games? "Thats the million-dollar question right now," winger James van Riemsdyk said. "It seems like every time we get down we start to ramp it up, and then its always just a little too little, too late at the end." It may be too little, too late for the Leafs if they cant figure out how to solve that problem. Theyre tied at 80 points with the Red Wings, Columbus Blue Jackets and Washington Capitals but are fourth among those teams for the Eastern Conferences two wild-card spots because theyve played the most games (74). Of course that also means their eight remaining are the fewest among those in the race and theres not much time to figure out slow starts, a central problem during this losing skid. Against the Blues, the Leafs scored first for the first time since March 10, but they also gave up a season-high 23 shots in the opening period and were hemmed in their zone often. "We just couldnt get out of our zone," winger Joffrey Lupul said. "They put a lot of pressure on us, and we couldnt handle it." Coach Randy Carlyle noticed some of the pressure that has been building on his team early on Tuesday night. "Theres a lot of tenseness in our players," he said after the 5-3 loss. "The first three puck recoveries, we just slapped the puck away. We didnt pick up the puck and skate with it at all. Thats showing signs of being nervous, tense, (a lack of) confidence not wanting to make a mistake, which led to more offensive-zone time (for St. Louis)." The listless Leafs led for less than five minutes, then trailed from the time David Backes scored with 32.3 seconds left in the first period until the end of the game. It was only after ex-Toronto forward Alex Steen scored to make it 4-1 that the Leafs showed some fire and launched a comeback bid that fell short. At this point, players are even self-aware that the transformation is happening once they fall behind. "It seems like when we get down, then were playing with no fear, were letting some of our skill take over, our defencemen are rushing the puck out of the zone and making plays," Lupul said. "Theres something to be said about being down and not having that fear anymore, but realistically weve got to play like that right from the start. Its more of a psychological thing than it is a physical thing." If its a mental problem, defenceman Carl Gunnarsson doesnt have the answer. "Weve been talking about it," he said. "I dont know whats going on there, but weve got to figure out a way here to change it." Changing it and managing to play as well as they did in the bulk of the third period against the Blues would give the Leafs a good chance of coming out of this tailspin and making the playoffs. Gunnarsson and goaltender Jonathan Bernier agreed that, although thats a challenge, the end result could be scary for opponents. "If we play like we did in the third period for 60 minutes, I dont think theres a lot of teams that can beat us," Gunnarsson said. Of course if the Leafs make mistakes like they did in the first half of the game and throughout this losing streak, they can lose to any team left on the schedule. They visit the Philadelphia Flyers on Friday before returning home to face the Detroit Red Wings on Saturday and also have games against the Calgary Flames, Boston Bruins, Winnipeg Jets, Tampa Bay Lightning, Florida Panthers and Ottawa Senators to close out the season. We have a lot of fight left in us," van Riemsdyk said. "Theres eight games left, and well have to leave it all out there in every game." Discount Football Jerseys Throwback . - Quarterback Brady Quinn says he has been released by the Miami Dolphins. Cheap Football Jerseys Throwback China .com) - Colorado may be ahead of the Vancouver Canucks in the Western Conference standings, but they are a club that the Avalanche may want to avoid in the playoffs. http://www.cheapfootballthrowback.com/ . Reimer is winless (0-2-1) since returning from a six-week absence due to concussion-like symptoms. The Maple Leafs dropped a 4-2 decision to the hosting Washington Capitals on Friday.BUFFALO, N.Y. -- If USA Hockey needed a reminder of how well Ryan Miller can play, the Buffalo Sabres goalie provided one. Playing three days before the U.S. Olympic hockey roster will be released, Miller made 49 saves to lead the Sabres to a 2-1 win over the Washington Capitals in a six-round shootout on Sunday night. "Olympics or not, hes going to play like that no matter what," said Drew Stafford, who scored the Sabres regulation goal. "If Im picking the team, hes my guy, but Im a little biased on that end." Miller stood out as the Sabres were outshot 50-17. He stopped 12 shots from Alex Ovechkin before the shootout and then stopped him and five others in the tiebreaker. "That was worth the price of admission to watch goaltending like that," Sabres coach Ted Nolan said. "Very rarely do we get to see it live, and tonight he was sensational." Steve Ott scored the lone shootout goal as the Sabres improved to 5-0-1 in their last six home games after starting 3-12-1 there. Philipp Grubauer made 16 saves for Washington, and Troy Brouwer scored the Capitals only goal. Buffalo is 4-1-2 in its last seven games. "It feels good when they stay out and you get a win like that," Miller said. "Its nice." Washington controlled the majority of the play, registering 15 shots in the first three periods before adding five in overtime. "We made the right decisions with the puck, and the power play was working today, but we didnt score," Ovechkin said. "(Miller) was on top of his game and he carried them into the shootout and onto victory." Capitals coach Adam Oates had a hard time faulting his team after its dominant performance that didnt produce a win. "I cant really complain," Oates said. "Theres games that your goalie steals games for you, and I kind of look at that one as a game that their goalie did for them." Washington had the first 12 shots, and with 13:52 gone, Miller stopped Eric Fehr from point-blank range to keep the Capitals off the board. Buffalo finally put a shot on Grubauer with 4:23 left in the first. Matt DAgostinnis odd-angle snap shot was met with a loud cheer from the home crowd. Clearance Football Jerseys Throwback. Grubauer said the lack of action didnt bother him. "Its OK," Grubauer said. "Youve got to face it shot by shot, and not look at different outcomes or how much time goes by. You just see it as a little break." Ott took a cross checking penalty 5:53 into the game, but Washingtons NHL-best power play couldnt take advantage. Miller made a shoulder save on a deflection by Mikhail Grabovski. The Capitals had a 15-3 shots edge in the first period. Grubauer stopped Grabovski and then foiled Matt Moulson with a left pad save in the crease off the ensuing faceoff. Capitals forward Tom Wilson laid a heavy hit on Ville Leino late in the second period, and Marcus Foligno challenged him to a fight. Foligno was given an instigator penalty and 10-minute misconduct, putting Washingtons power play back on the ice. Despite being outshot 30-10, Buffalo took a 1-0 lead when Stafford tapped in Christian Ehrhoffs rebound with 1:42 left in the second. "Christians shot was an easy little wrister, and those are the ones that find their way through," Stafford said. Grubauer made a glove save on DAgostini moments later to keep the Capitals deficit at one goal. Washington tied it off a giveaway by Ott 5:34 into the third period. Brouwers slap shot beat Miller over the right shoulder. "Ott tried to backhand the puck, and it just slipped off the backhand of his stick," Nolan said. "When he makes a mistake its not because hes not trying. It was a bad bounce for us." Miller returned to form over the next few minutes, including three successive saves from a prone position. "Hes the best goalie in the league, and I dont say that lightly by any means," Ott said. "The team didnt steal the game, Ryan Miller stole that game for us." NOTES: Brooks Laich sat out a second consecutive game and for the 13th time in 14 games because of a groin injury. ... The Sabres used the same lineup from Fridays shootout loss in Toronto. ... Washington outshot an opponent for the first time in six games. ' ' '