The Maple Leafs sported new lines and defence pairs.

But they were plagued by the same old problems in a 5-3 loss to the Sabres in Buffalo on a Friday evening filled with dreadful developments.

The worst: William Nylander, their best player of the night and leading scorer this season, left midway through the third period after a cross-check to the mid-section.

Nylander scored before exiting, as did Auston Matthews (on the power play) and Dakota Joshua, with his first as a Leaf.

But Anthony Stolarz struggled in net and the Leafs dropped their third in a row (0-2-1), falling behind Buffalo in the standings after losing to the Sabres for the first time in their last six meetings.

It didn’t help that the Leafs were without two of their top defencemen: Chris Tanev (upper body), who w

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