Ex-Maple Leafs captain John Tavares sends a clear message to his teammates following 3-0 Senators defeat

After the Toronto Maple Leafs’ 3-0 loss to the Ottawa Senators on Tuesday, former captain John Tavares had a message for his teammates. Ottawa gained a 1-0 regular season series lead against the Maple Leafs after edging the Leafs in every aspect of the game.

"We should be disappointed," Tavares said. "I mean, we can say we can wash this one, but I think it's disappointing just the way we've been playing over the past week."

The Senators outshot the Leafs 41-27 with a 46.3 faceoff percentage. The Leafs were slightly better in a face off with 53.7 percent but failed on giveaways with 20 compared to Ottawa's 11.

Further, Tavares commented on the lack of momentum against Senators.

“We just got really away from our game,” Tavares said per NHL.com. “Clearly they had some good legs early. Our legs weren’t great and we didn’t manage the game very well. We just got away from what was bringing us success. Just disjointed and we really weren’t able to build any momentum throughout the night.”

Tavares has been a key player for the Leafs this season. He scored a goal in a 4-1 win over Montreal on Saturday. Tavares now has eight goals and six assists in 16 games. His 59 shots put him in a tie for sixth in the NHL, alongside teammate William Nylander.

On Friday, John Tavares scored twice in a 3-1 win over the Red Wings. His goals helped end a three-game point drought. Tavares has three multipoint efforts this season.

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John Tavares' comments came following shutout loss to the Senators

The Toronto Maple Leafs lost 3-0 to the Ottawa Senators on Tuesday. The Senators took the lead early, with Josh Norris scoring just 41 seconds into the game. Tim Stutzle made it 2-0 at 3:12 of the second period, and Michael Amadio scored 43 seconds later to make it 3-0.

The Maple Leafs struggled throughout the game. Coach Craig Berube said they were outskated and didn't have the puck.

“Tonight we didn’t have the puck, so it’s pretty tough to score any goals when you don’t have the puck,” Berube said per NHL.com. “They had the puck the whole game pretty much until the third period."

The Maple Leafs couldn’t generate much offense, especially at 5-on-5, and have only scored one goal at even strength in the last five games. This loss was a missed chance for the Leafs to extend their winning streak.