As expected the Leafs had a couple players step up their game last night, both Kadri and Marleau offensively and Andersen really shut the door as he manned the fort. It was a big two points for the Leafs in many ways as they have struggled versus Minnesota over the years and were also missing their star player in Auston Matthews.
Matthews leads the league in plus/minus and you can be sure the Leafs are hoping he’s back in action for the back to back games against the Boston Bruins this Friday and Saturday.
Toronto sits with 20 points after 17 games and are six points back of the beast of the East, Tampa Bay. The Lightening have been outstanding this season scoring just as often as the Maple Leafs but have done a much better job at keeping the puck out of their net. If the Leafs want to complete with Tampa for the top spot in the Atlantic Division they are going to have to make some adjustments on the back end.
The Senators are a bit too close for my liking as they are only three points back but have three games in hand. The Leafs certainly want to hold one of the top three spots in the Division and not get into scramble mode in the wild card spots or worse. It’s a long season but as we all know it’s hard to make up lost ground with the overtime point being awarded and the league being so equal all round.
Last night’s game the Leafs got off to a typical start, scoring the first goal and of course letting the opposition back into the game quickly as they were scoring on about five minutes later. Toronto scores more goals than any other team in the first period of play; unfortunately they let in way too many!
Marleau scored his sixth of the season at the start of the second period and it was a big goal for the Leafs as they were outplayed majority of the game and certainly outshot (37-19) in favor of the Wild. The Leafs really need to do a better job at getting the puck on net and try to get an ugly goal or two here and there with a rebound or deflection. Not every goal has to be outstanding…
When JVR, Marner and Bozak register a single shot between the three of them it’s somewhat concerning. They really need to start firing the puck more, and it’s not like Dubnyk has been lights out this year. They need to shell a goalie who has been struggling and one shot between three players averaging 13-14 minutes a game isn’t going to cut it. This was a game where the Leafs were missing their best player, I expected players like JVR to step it up, instead he got 12:04 in ice time and wasn’t impressive what so ever.
It was a good game for Andersen to shine; he sported a .946 save percent and was the main reason why the Leafs walked away with two points. Good on him as the Leafs really needed a quality outing from their goalie who hasn’t been playing as well as he should be. Hopefully this is a sign of things to come with number 31 as he aims to get his save percent above .900 this weekend when Toronto faces one of their rivals in Boston.
The Bruins are 6-5-3 and have had some injury troubles this season. It’s been a busy two week for the Maple Leafs as they have had a total of eight games over that stretch and after the home and home against Boston they will have a break and not play again until they host the New Jersey Devils the following Thursday. So be sure to get your Leafs fix this weekend as the boys will be resting majority of next week. They will then play against the Canadiens in Montreal that Saturday, which you can bet will be a big game with the Habs beginning to pick up the momentum.
There was certainly something missing last night, our boy Auston Matthews.
Let’s hope he’s ready to go!
Thanks for reading, have a great day!