WASHINGTON D.C. – The hole was three goals deep after just eight minutes and 44 seconds. And it would ultimately prove too daunting for the Maple Leafs to overcome in the U.S. capital. Doomed by the drudge of a sleepy start they fell in regulation Sunday afternoon for just the fifth time in the past 23 games (15-5-4), their comeback attempts sullied a 4-2 loss to the feisty Washington Capitals. Coming off a successful swing through the California triangle – they won twice – Toronto mustered just two shots in a stunted opening 20 minutes back east, down 3-0 before the frame was even halfway over. Washington scored twice on its first two power-play attempts, adding another from Jason Chimera at even-strength. “It looked like we were still in for our afternoon nap,” mused head coach Randy Carlyle of the period with some frustration afterward. “We werent good enough in the first 10 minutes,” added James Reimer, appearing in his third straight game. “You cant spot a team three goals. We just werent sharp, myself included, and it cost us. I thought we dominated the second and the third was anyones game, we just couldnt quite climb out of the three-goal hole.” The Leafs did dominate the middle period with the same emphasis as the Capitals did the first. They outshot the home-side 10-1 in the opening 11 minutes and 20-6 overall. But with three power-play opportunities and a slew of chances to score they could only get one by Jaroslav Halak, the eighth this season from Dion Phaneuf. David Clarkson had maybe the best opportunity to even the proceedings at three. Stuck with just one goal in the past 21 games and only four this season, the 29-year-old thought hed beaten Halak only to see the puck trickle off the goaltender and out. “Thats been the story this year,” Clarkson said. “I think even if I didnt celebrate it was still laying there for me to poke in.” Never coming closer he and the Leafs fell for the second time on a season-long road trip that wraps up Tuesday in Detroit against the hurting Red Wings. The momentum of emphatic wins in Anaheim and L.A. failed to carry over on the road back east. Knowing that first place in the Atlantic division is lost – Boston is up 15 points – Toronto has set its sights now on securing second spot and home-ice advantage in the first round. With 13 games to go they have 80 points, one up on Tampa and Montreal, who each carry games in hand. “If we wouldve won this one we wouldve been in a great spot,” said Carl Gunnarsson of the road trip at large. “Weve got a big one coming up here in Detroit to make it a good one.” Five Points 1. First Periods A nemesis on Sunday afternoon and all season for that matter, first periods have been a regular sore spot for the Leafs. Washington scored three unanswered in the opening frame on this day. Troy Bodie added a late goal to cut the deficit to two, just the second of two shots in the period for Toronto. Utterly displeased with his teams performance, Carlyle gathered the entire team for a chat during the second TV timeout. “It was more or less just get going,” Bodie said of Carlyles message. “We didnt have our feet going. We werent ready to play.” The Leafs boast a minus-15 goal differential in first periods this season, by far the worst of the three stanzas. Scoring their second of the night while out-shooting the Capitals 20-6, they improved to plus-13 in second periods. “I think finally we got our legs under us,” said Clarkson. “We started going and we kind of put them back on their heels a little bit.” 2. PK Stumbles The rising Leafs penalty kill entered the day with an 88 per cent success rate in the previous 14 games, turning the corner from an awful first half. “We knew we couldnt give up on it,” Jay McClement told the Leaf Report before the game. “We just had to keep working and wed get better because virtually its the same group of us from last year. I dont know what the reason was [for our struggles], but now it seems like weve got the confidence back.” That is until they faced the second best power-play unit in the league at the Verizon Center. Shadowing Alex Ovechkin, who leads the league with 19 power-play goals, the Leafs gave up a pair on Washingtons first two opportunities with the man advantage, once from an open Troy Brouwer in the slot, a second from Joel Ward on the back-door. “We missed assignments on our coverage,” said Carlyle. “You cant let Troy Brouwer shoot the puck from 10 feet in front of your goaltender. Theres obviously a missed assignment and missed coverage in that situation.” 3. Man Advantage Yields Little Boasting just two goals now in the past 11 games – 7 per cent in that span – the Toronto power-play meanwhile continued its dry spell. The Leafs grappled with three consecutive power-plays in the middle period, but failed to score even once. “We believe in our power-play,” said Joffrey Lupul prior to the game. “And theres going to be stretches when you dont get those goals, but as long as we keep doing things right with some of the scorers we have on the team eventually the power-play opportunities are going to turn into goals.” Punch-less on many recent nights, the Leafs did have their opportunities against the Capitals, mustering eight shots. Sneaking in from the right point Cody Franson had maybe the best opportunity to beat Halak, but was ultimately turned aside. The unit currently sits in a four-way tie for third overall at 20.7 per cent. 4. Goalies James Reimer made his third straight appearance Sunday, starting in place of the injured Jonathan Bernier. Fighting the puck early, Reimer yielded three goals on the first five shots, but settled as the night wore on. He made key stops in the final frame, including one on Jason Chimera breaking in partially alone.Citing the now 26-year-olds rebound trouble in that opening frame, Carlyle said he considered pulling Reimer in favour of Drew MacIntyre after the third Washington goal. “We did think about that,” said Carlyle. “But I didnt want to throw Drew into that type of situation without giving him a heads up …Weve got Reims here and weve got to show the confidence for him to fight through some of those situations. We know that Reims is going to start the next game in all probability.” Carlyle had little to offer as far as an update on Bernier, who remained with the team in Washington Sunday ahead of the trip to Detroit. Its clear the 25-year-old will miss his second straight game against the Red Wings Tuesday, the clarity of lower-body injury yet to be fully revealed. 5. Kadris Evolution Nazem Kadri said recently that “I want to become a complete player that this team can trust” and among coaches and teammates that desire for evolution has been seen on the ice. “I think hes maturing as a player,” said Carlyle of the 23-year-old, who established a new career-high for points in Los Angeles this past Thursday night. “I still think theres some room for Nazzie to grow. But I still think youve got to give the kid credit. Hes under a microscope. Hes under a lot of pressure to come in as a young player and play those minutes. We have all kinds of confidence [in him]. [But] maybe not as much confidence as he has if you know what I mean.” “Hes better in his defensive zone for sure,” added Lupul. “Just positioning and using his body and his stick down low. I think everyone probably saw the offensive talents [which] have always been there, but now – Ive been playing on his line for a while now – hes pretty reliable defensively. And as a winger he gets in a spot where youre able to find him, get him the puck.” For Lupul, thats the indicator for when Kadri is at his best. “I think thats one thing for me that when hes playing really well thats what I notice about being on his line is hes putting himself in a spot where hes basically demanding the puck and that he gets it. That shows his confidence and thats how you can kind of tell when hes on the top of his game.” Kadri finished with two shots in 20 minutes against the Capitals. Stats-Pack 35-40 – Toronto penalty kill over 14 games preceding Sunday in Washington. 54 – Consecutive games missed by Dave Bolland, who is still recovering from a left ankle injury, his return status as yet unknown. 15-5-3 – Leafs record in the past 23 games. 2-28 – Toronto power-play over the past 11 games. 29 – Points this season for Dion Phaneuf, eclipsing the mark he set in 48 games last season. Fighting the flu, Phaneuf had a goal and an assist in defeat against the Capitals. 42-57 – Goal differential for the Leafs in first periods this season, favouring the opposition. 8-15-4 – Leafs record this season when trailing after the first period. Special Teams Capsule PP: 0-3Season: 20.7% (T-3rd) PK: 2-4Season: 78.4% (28th) Quote of the Night “It looked like we were still in for our afternoon nap.” -Randy Carlyle, on his teams performance in the opening period Sunday. Up Next The Leafs conclude their five-game road trip with a division battle against the Red Wings on Tuesday. Jay Novacek Cowboys Jersey . Or at least on everyone elses expectations. Costa Rica followed up its surprise win over Uruguay with another World Cup stunner on Friday, beating four-time champion Italy 1-0 to secure a spot in the next round and eliminate England in the process. Deion Sanders Jersey . -- Martin Kaymer never lost sight of opportunity even amid so much evidence of trouble in the closing stretch Sunday at The Players Championship. http://www.cowboysrookieproshop.com/Cowb...kman-Jersey/.ca has you covered for whos in, whos out and what to expect from all 30 teams. Tony Pollard Jersey . The attacking midfielder arrives on a free transfer from Spains Malaga. The 28-year-old joins Scottish striker Kenny Miller and Argentine midfielder Matias Laba as designated players on the Whitecaps roster. Darren Woodson Womens Jersey . Then Klay Thompson put his foot on the gas. Thompson scored 19 of his 30 points in the fourth quarter and Harrison Barnes scored 14 points in his season debut to help the Golden State Warriors to a 106-93 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Wednesday night.TORONTO - Its only an exhibition game but the Canadian junior hockey teams contest versus Sweden on Sunday night could be a significant one for Connor McDavid and Curtis Lazar. The two forwards will make their Canadian team debuts in the RBC Road to the World Juniors at the Canadian Tire Centre in Ottawa. Watch Canada vs. Sweden live tonight on TSN2 and TSN GO at 7pm et/4pm pt. McDavid, 17, hasnt played since suffering a broken right hand during an Ontario Hockey League game Nov. 11. McDavid admits hell be trying to shake the rust. Just try and play as well as I can I mean thats the main thing, he said. I cant ask for too much, Ive been off for a while. Just do what I can. McDavid, expected to be one of the top two selections in the 2015 NHL entry draft, had 16 goals and 51 points in 18 games with the Erie Otters before the injury. I think its a matter for him to get back into his rhythm, Canadian team coach Benoit Groulx said. I thought he did pretty well last week in St. Catharines. Its only the feel for the game and the way hes got to go . . . I think hes just got to take one period at a time and keep things simple. Theres a chance fans in Ottawa could see McDavid on a line with Lazar. Obviously thatd be pretty special to play with a guy like that, said McDavid, who had a goal and four points in seven games at last years world junior tournament. He has so much experience and playing in the NHL he obviously has some good advice and plays a very pro-mentality type game. Lazar, a Senators prospect, was loaned to Hockey Canada on Thursday after appearing 27 games for Ottawa. He had a goal and six assists while averaging nearly 13 minutes of ice time. Ottawa had until midnight ET on Friday to decide whether to send Lazar to the tournament. The 19-year-old said it was tough awaiting the Senators decision. Its been a roller coaster of emotions lately, he said. I lost a little bit of sleep over it trying to figure it out, but the bottom line is its an opportunity to represent your country and that doesnt come too often. (Excitement) was building up there with decision time. I didnt know what was going to happen..dddddddddddd It was a unique situation to be in because both are good solutions. Canada finished fourth last year, losing to Russia in the bronze medal game. That is serving as motivation for Lazar, a native of Vernon, B.C. To be here, the gold medal is one thing to check off from my junior resume, he said. Im still sour from the result last year and how our team played. Im really going to try and take it upon myself to change that result. Lazar and Buffalo Sabres prospect Sam Reinhart are front-runners to be team captain, a decision Groulx expects to make following Sundays game. (Lazar) is giving us options obviously. Can play centre, wing, power play (and) penalty kill, said Groulx. Hes a competitor. He brings leadership on and off the ice so I think its a big asset for us. Lazar, who had three goals and seven points in seven games at last years junior tournament, is already embracing a leadership role on the team. Ive been to a Memorial Cup, Ive played in this tournament last year and I have a little bit of NHL experience too, he said. I can bring that pro mentality and just what it takes to, on a day-to-day basis, be in the NHL. I think it can really translate here. Having spent the first two-and-a-half months of the season in the NHL, Lazar said his Canadian junior teammates have been picking his brain about the pro life. Im trying to tell them what its all about because its pretty cool, said Lazar. I know for myself, every game is a different story. Ive line-matched against (Sidney) Crosby, the Sedins and thats been a real eye opener for me to see the skill… the best in the world play and Im trying to share that knowledge. Canada concludes its pre-tournament schedule Tuesday night in Montreal against Switzerland. The Canadians open the world junior tournament Friday night facing Slovakia at the Bell Centre. Projected Team Canada Lines Forwards Domi - Reinhart - Duclair Ritchie - McDavid - Lazar Petan - Paul - Fabbri Crouse - Gauthier - Virtanen Point (RW) Defence Nurse - Theodore Morrissey - Bowey Morin - Hicketts Heatherington (LD) Goaltenders Comrie starts Fucale ' ' '