The Toronto Maple Leafs earned a 4-3 comeback victory over the Pittsburgh Penguins Monday night, scoring all four of their goals in the final period to erase a three-goal deficit for the first time this season.

But despite the result, it wasn’t all smooth sailing according to head coach Craig Berube.

The Leafs’ bench boss was critical of his team’s 60-minute effort Monday night.

“I have no clue. I don’t have an answer for that right now. The second period (Pittsburgh) got the puck and did whatever they wanted with it… I mean, it’s not good enough,” Berube told reporters.

Craig Berube on lack of 60-minute effort by Leafs tonight:

“I have no clue. I don’t have an answer for that right now. The second period they got the puck & did whatever they wanted with it … I mean, it’s not good enough”@TSN_Sports

— Mark Masters (@markhmasters) November 4, 2025

“That’s all mental for me. It’s all mental for me,” he said.

“It’s gotta be better. That’s the bottom line.”

The Leafs had a total of eight shots on goal through two periods and trailed 3-0 heading into the third. Captain Auston Matthews got Toronto on the board early in the frame and a pair of William Nylander goals pulled the Leafs even. With just under 6:20 to go, Bobby McMann jumped on a rebound and put it past Penguins netminder Tristan Jarry for the eventual winner.

The Penguins out-shot the Leafs 37-20 on the evening.

Berube wasn’t the only one not satisfied with the Leafs’ overall level of play. Nylander agreed with his head coach on what he saw missing in the second period.

“It’s unacceptable. Yeah, there’s nothing more to say.”

“Just our compete level was not there, losing every battle, losing every puck, so that’s what it comes down to,” Nylander said when asked what was missing.

Goaltender Anthony Stolarz said Berube sent the team a strong message in the second intermission.

“Said a few things. You guys can use your imagination for that. And everyone else kind of echoed [it]. We’re big boys. We’ve been around long enough & we knew that that’s not our game,” Stolarz said.

Matthews praised the group for finding a way to get the win, but also said things have to get better in the bigger picture.

“It was great to come back and get the two points and have a great third period. I think the focus should be more on the first two periods and why we lacked all those different things that got us down in the game in the first place. It’s something we’ll figure out.”

The Leafs now sit 7-5-1 with 15 points through the first 13 games this season, good for third in the Atlantic Division. They will be back in action on Wednesday at home against the Utah Mammoth.