If the Maple Leafs think this little bout of adversity to start the regular season eventually can be of benefit, so be it.

What if, however, what we’ve seen from the Leafs and their 3-3-1 start is a glimpse into what they are as a team?

Seven games is a small sample size, true. The Leafs, though, have been out-paced and out-smarted during several of their matches and couldn’t keep up with a quicker and better New Jersey Devils group in a 5-2 loss on Tuesday night at Scotiabank Arena.

The wrinkles that would should have been ironed out, for the most part, during the six-game preseason — getting new players comfortable in their new surroundings, finding out who fits best where — have seeped into the games that matter.

After the Leafs held an optional practice on Wednesday at the Ford P

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