Toronto: J. Anderson (11) PP (J. Duszak, B. Seney), J. Anderson (12) (A. Suomela, B. Seney), B. Seney (13) (C. Dahlström, F. Král), J. Anderson (13) PP (B. Seney, A. Steeves) Goaltender: E. Källgren (22/25) W
Lehigh Valley:B. Saulnier (2) (M. Millman, G. Rubtsov), W. Allison (2) (C. O’Reilly), A. Kile (1) (I. Ratcliffe, C. Gerard) Goaltender:G. Metcalf (23/27) L
ON THE SCORESHEET
Joey Anderson scored a hat trick, with two goals in the first period (12:13 and 18:12) and the overtime winner at 1:06 of extra time. This was his second career hat trick and second this season. He has points (5-1-6) in his last two games with the Marlies.
Brett Seney scored the game-tying goal at 17:59 of the third period. Hehad the secondary assists on both of Anderson’s first period goals and the primary assist on Anderson’s overtime goal. He has points (2-6-8) in his last three games with the Marlies.
Joseph Duszak recorded the primary assist on Anderson’s first period goal. This was his 10th power play assist. He has 21 points (1 goal, 20 assists) in 20 games this season. Duszak leads all defencemen in assists (20).
Antti Suomela registered the primary assist on Anderson’s second goal of the first period. He has eight points (4 goals, 4 assists) in 12 games with the Marlies.
Carl Dahlström picked up the primary assist on Seney’s third period goal.
Filip Kràl recorded the secondary assist on Seney’s third period goal.He has points (2-5-7) through five consecutive games. Kràl has 14 points (2 goals, 12 assists) in 27 games with the Marlies.
Alex Steeves had the secondary assist on Anderson’s overtime goal. He has points (4-2-6) in his last five games.
Erik Källgren stopped 22 of 25 shots he faced.
OF NOTE
This was Toronto’s fifth overtime win of the season and their sixth consecutive win.
Toronto went 3-for-3 on the penalty kill and 2-for-2 on the power play. Toronto is 12-6-1-0 when scoring on the power play and 10-5-0-0 when not allowing a goal on the penalty kill. Toronto has recorded two power play goals in a single game five times this season.
Toronto had a 27-25 edge in shots in all situations. Joey Anderson led the Marlies with six shots on goal. Toronto is 4-3-0-0 when outshooting their opponent.
The Marlies are 5-2-0-0 against Atlantic Division opponents and finish their season series 2-0-0-0 against the Lehigh Valley Phantoms.
Toronto is on a 10-game, 4,958 kilometre road trip and will face off against seven teams – Belleville Senators, Cleveland Monsters, Grand Rapids Griffins, Hartford Wolf Pack, Hershey Bears, Lehigh Valley Phantoms and Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins. It will be Toronto’s first meeting of the season with four opponents (HER, HFD, GR, WBS). The Marlies return to Coca-Cola Coliseum on Feb. 5.
RECORD WHEN
Scoring first 12-1-0-1 Leading after 1 9-1-1-1 Tied after 2 4-1-0-0 On the Road 8-5-0-0 January 6-1-0-0 Sunday 3-3-1-0 1 Goal Game 7-2-1-1
There was definitely a response from our group after the hit on Ho-Sang in a positive way. The emotional charge where you don’t want to see one of your own members of your group go down like that. Just the pure will and determination to have a response, to find some offence, to find a way to win the game for Ho-Sang was really good to see from the group.
On Joey Anderson and Brett Seney: Their energy and their take-charge mentality of the direction they want the game to go in, to push and drive the team to go in a certain way. They led by example on the ice. With the goal that Anderson had and Seney coming up big with a puck to the net that went off Chyzowski, they added a lot to our game today. Can’t say enough about the way they conduct themselves and how they lead this group.
JOEY ANDERSON (2nd CAREER HAT TRICK)
On coming back to the Marlies:
It’s great. I was excited to see all the guys today. It was a fun game. We battled some adversity and it was one of those games where we’re going to come together as a group from it. It was good to be around all of the guys.
On Toronto’s response in the third period: A bad hit we thought on (Ho-Sang), no call and then they come back and score right away. Guys were frustrated. We did it clean though. Guys weren’t taking dumb penalties after that. We just kept trying to piece away at it. We found a goal in regulation and got it to overtime and were able to capitalize on the power play to finish the deal.
BRETT SENEY (1 GOAL, 3 ASSISTS)
On Toronto’s response in the third period: Obviously what happened with Josh (Ho-Sang), we didn’t appreciate. We thought it was a play that could have been a call. We decided the best way to get back at them was to put the puck in the net and get back in the game. Obviously, it wasn’t the response we originally wanted with them scoring but I thought our group dug deep up and down the lineup to get into overtime there and then finish the job.
On Joey Anderson:
I love playing with the guy. He’s one of my good buddies off the ice. I can’t say enough good things about him. It’s always great to see him get rewarded.
On the overtime winner on the power play:
We’ve got to give a lot of credit to our PP coach, Snacks (AJ MacLean), who drew up a play for us and Steeves and Duszak executed there at the top and Joe’s there to put in the garbage.
UPCOMING GAMES: *All times Eastern Standard Time
January 19 at Hartford – 7:00 p.m. January 21 at WB/Scranton – 7:05 p.m. January 22 at WB/Scranton – 6:05 p.m. January 24 at Grand Rapids – 7:00 p.m. January 28 at Belleville – 7:00 p.m.
Sunday’s game between the Eagles and the Buccaneers included a moment during which Tampa Bay coach Bruce Arians went after defensive back Andrew Adams, physically. It came after a muffed punt by Philadelphia receiver Jalen Reagor. 20 more words
MINNEAPOLIS — By all accounts, Steph Curry hasn’t kept up his pledge to text Andrew Wiggins that photo of him soaring over former teammate Karl Anthony Towns. He hasn’t had to; Wiggins has needed no extra motivation to keep up the aggressive play on display against his former team in their first meeting this season.…
TORONTO MAPLE LEAFS (24-9-3 – 51 Points) at ST. LOUIS BLUES (22-11-5 – 49 Points) SATURDAY, JANUARY 15, 2022 1 2 3 FINAL TORONTO 3 1 2 6 ST. LOUIS 1 3 1 5 ON THE SCORESHEET
Michael Bunting scored for Toronto at 5:43 of the first period. Bunting recorded his eighth goal of the season. Bunting has registered four points (1G, 3A) through his last four games.
Mitch Marner scored for the Maple Leafs at 7:32 of the first period. Marner recorded his seventh goal of the season. Marner also registered the primary assist on Matthews’ power play goal. Marner posted his 16th assist of the season.
John Tavares scored for Toronto at 9:27 of the first period. Tavares recorded his 15th goal of the season.
Timothy Liljegren scored for the Maple Leafs at 8:18 of the second period. Liljegren posted his first career NHL goal.
Auston Matthews scored on a Toronto power play opportunity at 11:24 of the third period. Matthews posted his 25th goal of the season. Matthews has scored a goal in 10-straight road games (12G). Matthews also recorded the primary assist on Bunting’s goal. Matthews registered his 15th assist of the season. Matthews has posted seven points (5G, 2A) through his last five games.
Ilya Mikheyev scored the game-winning goal for the Maple Leafs at 16:45 of the third period. Mikheyev posted his fifth goal of the season, scoring all five goals through his last six games.
Alexander Kerfoot registered the primary assist on Tavares’ goal. Kerfoot recorded his 20th assist of the season.
Morgan Rielly posted the secondary assist on Tavares’ goal as well as the secondary assist on Matthew’s power play goal. Rielly has registered 27 assists this season.
Travis Dermott recorded the primary assist on Liljegren’s goal. Dermott posted his third assist of the season.
Pierre Engvall registered the secondary assist on Liljegren’s goal as well as the primary assist on Mikheyev’s goal. Engvall registered his eighth assist of the season. Engvall recorded his second-multi point game of the season and third of his NHL career. SHOTS ON GOAL (5-on-5 in brackets) 1st 2nd 3rd TOTAL TORONTO 14 (14) 13 (10) 13 (10) 40 (34) ST. LOUIS 10 (8) 11 (11) 4 (1) 25 (20) SHOT ATTEMPTS (5-on-5 in brackets) 1st 2nd 3rd TOTAL TORONTO 18 (18) 20 (15) 20 (16) 58 (49) ST. LOUIS 15 (13) 15 (15) 11 (7) 41 (35) ON THE ROAD AGAIN
The Maple Leafs are 10-5-2 on the road this season.
Toronto’s all-time record is 95-96-25-6 in 222 games against the St. Louis Blues and 35-63-14-1 in 113 games played in St. Louis.
Toronto is 13-4-2 against the Western Conference this season and 5-2-2 against the Central Division this season. MAPLE LEAFS LEADERS Shots 8 (Matthews) Shot Attempts 12 (Tavares) Faceoff Wins 14 (Tavares) Faceoff Win Percentage 100% (Engvall – 1 won, 0 lost) Hits 3 (Muzzin) Blocked Shots 2 (Matthews, Brodie) Takeaways 1 (Brodie) TOI 28:27 (Rielly) Power Play TOI 4:18 (Marner, Matthews, Nylander, Tavares) Shorthanded TOI 1:22 (Muzzin) Shifts 30 (Rielly) 5-on-5 Shot Attempt Percentage 72.41% (Nylander – 21 for, 8 against) RECORD WHEN…
The Maple Leafs were 1-for-3 on the power play and 2-for-2 on the penalty kill tonight.
Toronto is 7-7-2 when the opponent scores the first goal of the game.
The Maple Leafs are 14-1-1 when leading after one period and 4-0-2 when tied after two periods.
Toronto is 15-5-2 when outshooting their opponent.
The Maple Leafs are 7-2-2 in Saturday games. OF NOTE…
Per NHL Stats, Auston Matthews collected a point in his 10th straight road game (11-3—14) – the second double-digit road point streak of his career (11 GP in 2016-17).
Timothy Liljegren scored his first career NHL goal.
Ilya Mikheyev skated in his 100th career NHL game.
Timothy Liljegren was on the ice for a team-high 24 Toronto shot attempts-for at 5-on-5.
William Nylander finished the game with a team-high 5-on-5 shot attempt percentage of 72.41 percent (21 for, 8 against). UPCOMING GAMES: Jan. 19 Leafs at New York Rangers Madison Square Garden 7:30 pm ET Jan. 22 Leafs at New York Islanders UBS Arena 7:00 pm ET Jan. 26 Leafs vs. Anaheim Scotiabank Arena 7:00 pm ET Jan. 29 Leafs at Detroit Little Caesars Arena 7:00 pm ET Feb. 1 Leafs at New Jersey Prudential Center 7:00 pm ET Feb. 24 Leafs vs. Minnesota Scotiabank Arena 7:00 pm ET Stats reflect official NHL stats at the time of distribution. Please consult official NHL game sheets (links above) to confirm no statistical changes were made. For Maple Leafs notes, transcripts, audio clips and media guides, please visit MapleLeafs.com/pressbox. POSTGAME QUOTES: HEAD COACH SHELDON KEEFE On the emotions of tonight’s game: “A little bit crazy. You know, it’s just in the way it works out – a game like this – which kind of sums up the way the road trip went for us but obviously thrilled the way it worked out. Each time, when we needed to push back and respond, we did. Whether it was after the first goal of the game, whether it was after giving up the lead and getting it back, or in the third period there having to get a key goal on the power play and then grinding it out in the end, it was good to see for our guys. This is an important win for us going home.” On Liljegren’s first NHL goal: “It’s huge and we’re happy for him. It’s interesting you say I’ve been with him so long. I’ve been with him so long that I had to be reminded that it was his first goal. It feels like he’s been here a while and I’ve certainly seen him score but I guess that was just as the AHL level. I wasn’t really aware that it was his first one, but it certainly was a great one and we’re thrilled for him. I thought he played a great game today. He moved the puck really well, helped us on the breakout, got us out of trouble sometimes and, at times, got himself into trouble but then bailed himself out. It was great for him and huge to see him get rewarded.” On Marner’s return to the lineup: “I thought he was great tonight. For a guy who hasn’t played in a while and just had the one team practice on this trip, he had good legs. Whether it was his goal or the big-time pass he makes on Matthews’ power play goal to tie the game. That’s what Mitch does. He’s a game-breaker like that. It was certainly nice to have him back in the mix here tonight.” AUSTON MATTHEWS On tonight’s game: “Tough one and fun. I think you kind of hit it right on the head, just back-and-forth and up-and-down a bit of rollercoaster but we found a way to win and we’re going home with two points which is all that matters.” On Marner’s return to the lineup: “Well anytime he’s in the lineup he’s going to give you a lot of looks. He’s a world class player and he just finds a way out there. He makes plays, he’s sees the ice really well and he’s extremely dynamic so we’re a better hockey team when he’s playing so we’re happy to have him back.” MITCH MARNER On his return to the lineup after missing the last three games: “Coming in yesterday, it was just great being back with the guys. Especially with the injury and then the COVID situation, I didn’t really get to see the guys for two months or something like that so just being back with the guys brings me a lot of energy and a lot of joy. Obviously tonight, I just wanted to come in and keep it simple. If I had plays to be made, then try them, but obviously it feels nice to come back and contribute and help this team win.” On tonight’s win: “It was crazy. A rollercoaster ride. Obviously, that’s not the kind of game we want to play but I think we did a great job of staying with it, making sure we’re doing the right things no matter if we gave up the lead, they took it or anything like that, we just kept fighting back. Obviously, our power play wasn’t doing what we needed it to do tonight but that’s a big goal when we needed it. It’s a gritty win. We wanted to finish the trip off right and I think we’re all happy with how we finished this game.” TIMOTHY LILJEGREN On his first NHL goal: “I think we moved the puck well there in the o-zone and [Dermott] got the puck and I was open, got the pass and just thought I’d give it a go. I actually didn’t see the puck go in myself so I was kind of hesitant to celebrate there at first but it was nice.” On assessing his game with increased ice time tonight: “I don’t know. I felt kind of good out there. Obviously, I was on the ice for three goals in our net so the play in front of our net was not good enough today, especially from my side. I think all of the goals they scored when I was in was in front of the net so just not good enough. Other than that, I thought it was better than last game for my part.” ILYA MIKHEYEV On his improvement this season: “Just trying to help the team be better because we want to have progress ever game and step-by-step I just feel more confident now.”
Toronto: F. Kràl (2) (M. Abramov), A. Steeves (10) (C. Krys, C. Douglas), J. Ho-Sang (11) PP (M. Abramov, M. Hollowell), A. Steeves (11) (M. Abramov, J. Ho-Sang) Goaltender: J. Woll (26/28), E. Källgren (15/16) W
Hershey:A. Jonsson-Fjallby (10) SH (L. Johansen, B. Pinho), G. Pilon (12) PP (A. Jonsson-Fjallby, C. Franson), T. Geisser (2) (J. Snivley, G. Pilon) Goaltender:Z. Fucale (18/22) L
ON THESCORESHEET
Filip Kràl put the Marlies on the board at 5:21 of the second period.He has points (2-4-6) through four consecutive games. Kràl has 13 points (2 goals, 11 assists) in 26 games with the Marlies.
Alex Steeves scored at 14:10 of the second period and at 1:21 of overtime for the game-winning goal. He has points (4-1-5) in his last four games. Steeves is tied for third overall in goals (11) amongst AHL rookies.
Josh Ho-Sang scored on the power play 50 seconds into the third period and later added the secondary assist on Steeves’ game-winning goal. He has 18 points (10 goals, 8 assists) in 25 games this season.
Mikhail Abramov had the lone assist on Kràl’s second period goal and the primary assists on Ho-Sang’s third period goal and Steeves’ overtime goal. He has points (2-6-8) in his last six games.
Chad Krys recorded the primary assist on Steeves’ second period goal.
Curtis Douglas registered the secondary assist on Steeves’ second period goal. He has 13 points (4 goals, 9 assists) in 26 games this season.
Mac Hollowell picked up the secondary assist on Ho-Sang’s third period goal. He has nine points (1 goal, 8 assists) in his last eight games.
Joseph Woll stopped 26 of 28 shots he faced in 34:10 of action before leaving the game due to injury. Erik Källgren stopped 15 of 16 shots he faced in relief of Woll.
OFNOTE
This was Toronto’s fourth overtime win of the season.
Toronto went 2-for-3 on the penalty kill and 1-for-4 on the power play. Toronto is 11-6-1-0 when scoring on the power play and 7-5-1-1 when allowing a goal on the penalty kill.
Hershey had a 44-22 edge in shots in all situations. Alex Steeves led the Marlies with five shots on goal. Toronto is 13-7-1-1 when outshot by their opponent.
The Marlies are 4-2-0-0 against Atlantic Division opponents and 1-0-0-0 against the Hershey Bears. Toronto visited Hershey tonight for the first time since March 15, 2019 (5-4, OTW).
Toronto is on a 10-game, 4,958 kilometre road trip and will face off against seven teams – Belleville Senators, Cleveland Monsters, Grand Rapids Griffins, Hartford Wolf Pack, Hershey Bears, Lehigh Valley Phantoms and Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins. It will be Toronto’s first meeting of the season with four opponents (HER, HFD, GR, WBS). The Marlies return to Coca-Cola Coliseum on Feb. 5.
RECORD WHEN
Trailing after 1 5-7-0-0 Tied after 2 3-1-0-0 On the Road 7-5-0-0 January 5-1-0-0 Saturday 6-4-0-0 1 Goal Game 6-2-1-1
This is an extremely hard building to play in. Notorious for coming out with strong starts. They have a good crowd. We didn’t come out with the start that we have recently in the last few games. On top of them coming out strong and us being flat, we may it hard on ourselves. The guys were saying the right things in the first intermission and responded in the second.
On Joseph Woll leaving the game in the second period: I think one of our defenceman accidentally collided into him into the side of his leg. He may have tweaked his knee a little bit. Well assess and have our doctors look at it and see what comes of it. It was a heck of a job for him up until that point. Really kept us in the game with how many shots there were and then for how hard it is for Källgren to come in cold off the bench and play the way he did and give us a chance to win the game is great.
ALEX STEEVES (2 GOALS)
On tonight’s game: We felt coming out of the first period only down one was kind of a moral victory for us. I don’t think it was our best period. We had a really good talk in the locker room that started with the players and I think that helped us gather some steam and have a better second period, score a power play goal which was huge and then the overtime goal is good to pick up the extra point in a tough barn.
UPCOMING GAMES: *All times Eastern Standard Time
January 16 at Lehigh Valley – 3:05 p.m. January 19 at Hartford – 7:00 p.m. January 21 at WB/Scranton – 7:05 p.m. January 22 at WB/Scranton – 6:05 p.m. January 24 at Grand Rapids – 7:00 p.m.
The Lakers started the night just one game behind the Denver Nuggets in the Western Conference standings. But the longer Saturday night went on, the wider that gap became. At the end, on the wrong side of a 133-96 blowout, the Lakers had just fallen to 21-22, but they looked much worse team. Urgency, defense…
01/15/2022 06:30 (ET) TOR@MIL Milwaukee Bucks Dowtin, Jeff Out G League – On Assignment Galloway, Langston Out Health and Safety Protocols Holiday, Jrue Out Injury/Illness – Left Ankle; Soreness Lopez, Brook Out Injury/Illness – Back; Surgery Toronto Raptors Barnes, Scottie Out Injury/Illness – Right Knee; Injury Management Birch, Khem Out Injury/Illness – Nose; Fracture Bonga, Isaac Out G League – On Assignment Dragic, Goran Out Not With Team Johnson, David Out G League – Two-Way Trent Jr., Gary Doubtful Injury/Illness – Left Ankle; Swelling
• The Toronto Raptors (20-19) continue a five-game road trip (Jan. 14-21) Saturday night against the Milwaukee Bucks (27-17) at Fiserv Forum. The Raptors are 2-0 vs. the Bucks this season. Toronto has won five of their last six games against Milwaukee, including four straight on the road. Pascal Siakam and Fred VanVleet are averaging 26.5 and 24.0 points, respectively, against Milwaukee this season. The Raptors play eight-of-10 games on the road to end the month of January (Jan. 14-31). Toronto is 4-2 in the second game of a back-to-back set this season. • Fred VanVleet has made at least four three-pointers in a franchise record 10 consecutive games (Dec. 14 Jan 14) – the longest streak in the NBA this season. VanVleet is averaging 29.0 points and shooting .449 (57-127) from beyond the arc over his last 10 games. Only Stephen Curry and James Harden have longer streaks in NBA history. VanVleet’s 57 three-point field goals is also the franchise record for the most three-pointers made during a 10-game span. • The Raptors (13.4) are currently tied with Memphis for the NBA lead in offensive rebounds per game and rank second (16.8) in second-chance points per game – behind only the Grizzlies (17.7). Through seven games in January, the Raptors have outrebounded opponents 109-to-66 (+43) on the offensive glass. • Pascal Siakam recorded his team-leading ninth double-double with 23 points and 11 rebounds Friday night at Detroit. Siakam is currently averaging 20.8 points and career highs of 8.4 rebounds and 4.6 assists. He is one of just six players in the NBA averaging 20.0 points, 8.0 rebounds and 4.0 assists this season, along with Giannis Antetokounmpo, Luka Doncic, Joel Embiid, James Harden and Nikola Jokic. • Fred VanVleet (3.9) and Gary Trent Jr. (3.5) currently rank second and fourth, respectively, in the NBA in deflections per game. VanVleet has led the NBA in deflections per game each of the past two seasons,while Trent Jr. also ranks fourth in the league in steals per game (1.91) and has recorded multiple steals in 20 games. The Raptors lead the NBA in deflections per game (18.5) and rank third in steals (9.2). • Fred VanVleet was named Eastern Conference Player of the Week (Jan. 3-9) for the first time in his career after leading the Raptors to a perfect 4-0 record, averaging 30.3 points (sixth in the NBA), 6.5 assists, 4.8 rebounds and 36.5 minutes. He shot .467 (42-90) from the field, .453 (24-53) from three-point range and was 13-for-13 at the free throw line. VanVleet scored 30+ points three times and recorded his first career triple-double with a season-best 37 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists Jan. 7 vs. Utah. His 37 points was the most scored in a triple-double in franchise history. SECOND GAME OF A BACK-TO-BACK SET (4-2) FG% 3PT% FT% REB AST STL BLK TO PTS RAPTORS .441 .371 .775 47.0 21.7 8.0 6.0 14.3 110.2 OPPONENT .438 .333 .732 45.7 23.8 7.8 6.8 15.3 106.2 PROBABLE STARTERS F – OG ANUNOBY #3
MIN: 36.0 REB: 5.0 AST: 2.3 STL: 1.5 TO: 1.7 BLK: 0.4 PTS: 19.2 • Tallied 16 points, three rebounds and two assists in 37 minutes Jan. 14 at Detroit. • Has scored in double figures in eight straight games (Dec. 28 – Jan. 14), averaging 18.9 points during this stretch. • Averaging 20.8 points and 4.9 rebounds in nine road games this season. F – PASCAL SIAKAM #43
MIN: 35.9 REB: 8.4 AST: 4.6 STL: 1.0 TO: 2.5 BLK: 0.8 PTS: 20.8 • Finished with 23 points, 11 rebounds and four assists in 41 minutes Jan. 14 at Detroit. • Reached 1,000 career assists against the Pistons, becoming just the 10th Raptor to reach this milestone. • Has nine double-doubles in 26 games this season, something he did 13 times in 56 contests last year. C – PRECIOUS ACHIUWA #5
MIN: 24.4 REB: 7.5 AST: 1.3 STL: 0.6 TO: 1.1 BLK: 0.6 PTS: 7.7 • Recorded four points and led the bench with eight rebounds in 24 minutes Jan. 14 at Detroit. • Ranks second among sophomores in rebounding (7.5) – has led the Raptors in rebounding a team-high 12 times. • Averaging 7.9 points, 8.4 rebounds and 26.7 minutes in 17 starts this season. G – SCOTTIE BARNES #4
MIN: 35.5 REB: 7.9 AST: 3.5 STL: 1.0 TO: 1.9 BLK: 0.9 PTS: 14.5 • Contributed eight points, seven rebounds and two assists in 33 minutes Jan. 14 at Detroit. • Leads the Raptors with 95 offensive rebounds; also ranks first among all rookies. • Ranks second among rookies in rebounds (7.9), fourth in assists (3.5), and fifth in scoring (14.5). G – FRED VANVLEET #23
MIN: 37.8 REB: 4.9 AST: 6.7 STL: 1.7 TO: 2.6 BLK: 0.5 PTS: 22.1 • Scored a game-high 24 points in 42 minutes Jan. 14 at Detroit; added 10 assists, five rebounds and two steals. • The Raptors are 13-7, including 4-2 this season, when VanVleet records a double-double. • Leads the NBA in minutes per game (37.8), has logged 40+ minutes nine times.
INJURY REPORT Khem Birch (Nose; Broken) – Out Isaac Bonga (G League – On Assignment) – Out Goran Dragic (NWT) – Out David Johnson (G League – Two-Way) – Out Gary Trent Jr. (Left Ankle; Swelling) – TBD
2021-22 Matchups vs. St. Louis: First of Two 2021-22 Record vs. St. Louis: 0-0-0 Toronto Season Record: 23-9-3 Toronto Road Record: 9-5-2 TV: Sportsnet RADIO: TSN 1050
RECENT TRANSACTIONS January 3, 2022 Defenceman Teemu Kivihalme has been reassigned to the Toronto Marlies (AHL) from the Maple Leafs taxi squad
LAST GAME Score: Toronto 1 at Arizona 2 Date: Wednesday, January 12, 2022 TOR Goals: Matthews ARI Goals: Dzingel (2x) TOR Goaltender: Mrázek, 16/18, .889 SV% ARI Goaltender: Vejmelka, 45/46, .978 SV% TOR Power Play: 0-for-2 TOR Penalty Kill: 2-for-2
NEXT GAME Date: Wednesday, January 19, 2022 Opponent: at New York Rangers Time: 7:30 pm ET Broadcast Information: Sportsnet (TV), TSN 1050 (Radio)
INJURY REPORT Justin Holl Placed into the NHL’s COVID-19 protocol Ondrej Kaše Placed into the NHL’s COVID-19 protocol Nick Ritchie Placed into the NHL’s COVID-19 protocol
ALL-TIME VS. ST. LOUIS BLUES: First Matchup between Clubs: December 10, 1967 (Toronto 1 at St. Louis 2) All-Time Record: 94-96-25-6 (221 Games) All-Time Record at Home: 60-33-11-5 (109 Games) All-Time Record on the Road: 34-63-14-1 (112 Games) Last Road Win vs. Opponent: December 7, 2019 (Toronto 5 at St. Louis 2) Record in Last Five Games: 1-2-2
ACTIVE LEADERS VS. ST. LOUIS BLUES: Games Played: Jason Spezza (32), Wayne Simmonds (25), TJ Brodie (23) Goals: Jason Spezza (7), Wayne Simmonds (7), Jake Muzzin (6), John Tavares (6) Assists: Jason Spezza (13), Wayne Simmonds (7), Jake Muzzin (6) Points: Jason Spezza (20), Wayne Simmonds (14), Jake Muzzin (12) Penalty Minutes: Jason Spezza (16), Wayne Simmonds (16), Jake Muzzin (14)
2021-22 AVERAGES AND RANKINGS Points % GF/Game GA/Game PP% PK% SF/G SA/G FO% Toronto .700 3.31 2.49 29.6% 82.8% 34.0 31.3 55.4% St. Louis .662 3.41 2.62 29.6% 84.2% 31.9 31.8 49.8%
THE MAN ADVANTAGE IN 2021-22 Power Play: 29/98 (29.6%) Power Play Goal Leader: 8 – Matthews Power Play Point Leader: 15 – Matthews (8G, 7A) 2020-21 Power Play: 31/155 (20.0%)
ON THE PK IN 2021-22 Penalty Kill: 82/99 (82.8%) Shorthanded Goal Leader: 1 – Marner, Holl, Mikheyev Shorthanded Point Leader: 2 – Brodie (2A) 2020-21 Penalty Kill: 113/144 (78.5%)
FAST FACTS Saturday games 11th of 21 (10 home, 12 road) Back-to-Backs played 6 of 11 Record in first game of back-to-back 3-2-1 Record in second game of back-to-back 2-4-0 January games 6th of 10 (3 home, 7 road) RECENT MILESTONES
TJ Brodie Appeared in his 700th career NHL game, Nov. 2, 2021 vs. VGK TJ Brodie Scored his 50th career NHL goal, Dec. 14, 2021 at EDM Jack Campbell Appeared in his 100th career NHL game, Nov. 16, 2021 vs. NSH Pierre Engvall Appeared in his 100th career NHL game, Nov. 2, 2021 vs. VGK Ondrej Kaše Recorded his 100th career NHL point, Nov. 10, 2021 at PHI Ondrej Kaše Scored his 50th career NHL goal, Dec. 9, 2021 vs. TBL Alexander Kerfoot Appeared in his 300th career NHL game, Nov. 26, 2021 at SJS Alexander Kerfoot Recorded his 100th career NHL assist, Jan. 1, 2022 vs. OTT Auston Matthews Recorded his 200th career NHL goal, Oct. 25, 2021 at CAR Morgan Rielly Recorded his 250th career NHL assist, Oct. 27, 2021 at CHI Morgan Rielly Skated in his 600th career NHL game, Dec. 9, 2021 vs. TBL Wayne Simmonds Skated in his 950th career NHL game, Oct. 16, 2021 vs. OTT Jason Spezza Skated in his 1,200th career NHL game, Nov. 28, 2021 at ANA John Tavares Recorded his 200th point with the Maple Leafs, Oct. 18, 2021 vs. NYR John Tavares Scored his 100th goal with the Maple Leafs, Nov. 13, 2021 at BUF John Tavares Skated in his 900th career NHL game, Jan. 1, 2022 vs. OTT
UPCOMING MILESTONES TJ Brodie Nine points away from 300 career NHL points David Kämpf Three assists away from 50 career NHL assists Ilya Mikheyev One game away from 100 career NHL games played Jake Muzzin 10 points away from 300 career NHL points William Nylander One point away from 300 career NHL points William Nylander Seven games away from 400 career NHL games played
2021-22 TEAM LEADERS
CATEGORY LEADER CATEGORY LEADER GOALS 24 – Matthews BLOCKED SHOTS 51 – Holl ASSISTS 25 – Rielly TAKEAWAYS 34 – Nylander POINTS 38 – Matthews (24G, 14A) HITS 79 – Ritchie POWER PLAY POINTS 15 – Matthews (8G, 7A) TOI PER GAME 24:01 – Rielly SHORTHANDED POINTS 2 – Brodie (2A) PP TOI PER GAME 3:05 – Marner PIMs 40 – Simmonds SH TOI PER GAME 2:37 – Muzzin SHOTS 143 – Matthews WINS 18 – Campbell FACEOFF% 61.3% – Tavares GOALS-AGAINST AVERAGE 2.02 – Campbell SHOT ATTEMPTS% 58.42% – Matthews SAVE PERCENTAGE .935 – Campbell
BLUES NOTES
CURRENT INJURIES None 2021-22 Total Man Games Lost: 83 LAST GAME Blues, 2 vs. Kraken, 1 -The Blues collected their league-leading 13th comeback win of the season -Ville Husso made 31 saves for his 5th win of the season -Pavel Buchnevich scored his 14th goal overall and his 3rd game-winner, which shares 2nd on the team -Robert Thomas scored his 4th goal of the year (3 of the 4 have come at home) BLUES VS. MAPLE LEAFS -Tonight marks the 222nd all-time reg-season meeting between the Blues and Leafs -The Leafs are one of 6 teams the Blues (102-91-25-3) have beaten at least 100 times (VAN, LAK, DET, DAL, CHI) -The Blues dropped the most recent meeting (Dec. 7, 2019), 5-2 at Enterprise Center -Overall, the Blues have won 7 of the last 8 matchups -The Blues and Maple Leafs each share 2nd in the NHL with a 29.6% power play percentage (1. EDM, 30.2%) -Robert Thomas is set to appear in his 200th career game tonight NUMBERS GAME 25 – #25 Jordan Kyrou was recently named to the 2022 NHL All-Star game. This will mark his first NHL ASG appearance. Previously, he participated in the CHL Top Prospects Game in 2016, was an OHL First Team All-Star in 2018 and played in the AHL All-Star Game in 2019 1.12 – Kyrou is averaging 1.12 pts/game this season. The last Blue to average as much or more was Pavol Demitra (1.19) in 2002-03 (min. 30 games played in a season) 200 – Brayden Schenn collected his 200th career goal on Jan. 5, vs. PIT, becoming the 5th different current Blue to reach that plateau (Perron, Neal, O’Reilly, Tarasenko) 274 – The Blues rank 3rd overall with 274 points from forwards (1. FLA, 295) 13 – The Blues are riding a 13-game home point streak (12-0-1)…since Nov. 18, the most home points in the league in that span 13 – The Blues share 1st overall with 13 comeback wins this season, including 11 1-goal comebacks, one 2-goal comeback and one 3-goal comeback (FLA, COL) 241 – Vladimir Tarasenko posted 2 assists vs. DAL on Dec. 14, giving him 241 for his career and passing Red Berenson for 12th on the all-time franchise list 2 – In Tyler Bozak (#2) and Torey Krug (#5), the Blues feature two of the top 5 players in terms of career points among active players that were undrafted (#1 Mark Giordano) 12 – The Blues lead the league with 12 wins (12-5-1) when conceding the first goal 25 – The Blues have scored on the PP in 25 of their 37 games this season and share 2nd overall (29.6%) for conversion rate for the season (1. EDM, 30.2%). The team’s all-time single-season record is 24.6% in 1986-87 1 – The Blues have lost 1 game in regulation this season when keeping the opponents power play scoreless (18-1-5) 6 – Logan Brown’s debut with the Blues marked the sixth different father/son duo to play for the franchise (Logan/Jeff Brown, Mike/BJ Crombeen, Basil/Philip McRae, Peter/Yan Stastny, Peter/Paul Stastny, Bob/Brent Johnson) 4,500 – With their win in the Winter Classic, the Blues reached 4,500 all-time points to become the second non-original 6 franchise to reach that milestone (Philadelphia) St. Louis Blues: Media Notes 428 – David Perron recorded the 428th point of his Blues career at the Winter Classic, moving ahead of Keith Tkachuk for 11th on the all-time franchise list 5 – Perron posted his 5th hat trick as a Blue, on Oct. 23 vs. LA. Perron joined Brett Hull (27), Bernie Federko (11), Brian Sutter (7), Garry Unger (7) Jorgen Pettersson (5) and Brendan Shanahan (5) as the only players in team history with at least 5 hat tricks ARMY CHASING 500 -Blues GM Doug Armstrong is currently in his 12th season as GM -Sitting with 494, he is just 6 wins shy of reaching 500 wins as GM of the Blues -He passed Larry Pleau (486) as the winningest GM in team history back on Dec. 11 -His teams have posted eight 90+-point seasons (2 more shortened season were on pace for 90-plus) -Overall, in 17 seasons as an NHL GM, his teams have missed the playoffs just 3 times -Upon reaching 500, he will become the 25th GM in NHL history to posted as many wins with one franchise -He (704) is one of 20 GMs in NHL history to accrue at least 700 wins overall (1. David Poile, 1,469) SPECIAL TEAMS PLAYING BIG ROLE FOR BLUES -The Blues’ power play shares 2nd in the NHL this season at 29.6% (1. EDM, 30.2%) -The Blues’ home PP (28.6%) ranks 3rd, while their road mark (31.1%) ranks 2nd -The Blues are 16-6-3 this season when scoring at least 1 power play goal -The Blues’ penalty kill shares 5th in the NHL at 84.2% (1. CAR, 90.1%) -Pavel Buchnevich leads the Blues with 13 PP points overall -The Blues feature 7 different players with at least 3 PPG (Saad, Buchnevich, Barbashev, Perron, O’Reilly, Schenn, Kyrou) HOME SWEET HOME -The Blues are 12-0-1 in their last 13 home games (since Nov. 18), outscoring their opponents 51-24 over that span -Their 13-game home point streak is the 3rd longest home point streak in franchise history -The Blues have posted a 15-3-2 record at Enterprise Center this season for 32 points, giving them the 4th-best home pts% (.800) (1. FLA, .870) -The Blues rank 4th overall in home g/g (3.70) and 1st in ga/g (2.15) -Vladimir Tarasenko shares 12th in the NHL this season with 23 points at home (9g, 14a) (1. Huberdeau, 37 points) Longest Home Point Streaks in Franchise History
18-0-3 (21 GP) from Dec. 6, 2011 – Feb. 18, 2012
11-0-3 (14 GP) from Oct. 27 – Dec. 15, 2016
12-0-1 (13 GP) from Nov. 18 – Present KYROU -Kyrou has a 6-game point streak (5g, 7a) -Jordan Kyrou leads the Blues with 37 points (14g, 23a) -His 4 pts (2g, 2a) vs. MIN at Target Field were a league record for a Winter Classic -The Winter Classic marked the second time he has logged 4 pts in under 14 mins of ice time this season Blues with 4 points in under 14 mins of ice time (since 1997-98) Jordan Kyou – 1/1 at MIN (13:38) Jordan Kyrou – 10/18 at ARZ (13:06) Zach Sanford – 11/21 vs. CGY (13:19) Chris Stewart – 12/21 at EDM (13:42) KRUG -Torey Krug completed a full season with the Blues after reaching game 82 last Sunday vs. DAL -Krug posted 52 points and a +25 rating in his first “full season” -Since the beginning of 2020-21, he is one of 11 d-men with atleast 50 pts and a +25 rating -Only two d-men in Blues history have posted 50 pts and a +25 rating in a single season (98-99 Al MacInnis, 62 pts, +33 / 99-00 Chris Pronger, 62 pts, +52) BARBASHEV -Ivan Barbashev has 10 pts (3g, 7a) over his last 8 games -With 29 points (13g, 16a) through 36 games, he has set a new single-season career high -His 13 goals are 4th on the team and are just 1 shy of his career high (14 – 2018-19) -The Blues are 41-5-4 when he scores across his career -Scored his 50th career goal on Nov. 30 vs. TBL TARASENKO -Vladimir Tarasenko ranks 3rd on the Blues with 34 points (14g, 20a) this season -Tarasenko has a 6-game point streak (6g, 5a), scoring at least 1 goal in 5 of those games -He’s posted 5 multi-point efforts over his last 10 games, posting 15 points over that span (7g, 8a) -The Blues are 13-5-2 when has at least a point in a game this season BUCHNEVICH -Pavel Buchnevich has 12 points (3g, 9a) in his last 8 games) -Since Nov. 9, he ranks 5th overall with 32 points (1. Huberdeau, 39) -Since entering the NHL in 2016-17, he is one of 12 former 3rd-round draft picks that has accrued at least 200 points -Buchnevich has posted 20 or more goals in 2 of his last 3 seasons PERRON -David Perron has posted 8 points (2g, 6a) in his last 10 games -Last season, David Perron (58 pts, 56 gms) became the first Blue to post a point-per-game average for a season since Pavol Demitra (1.19 pts/gm in 2002-03) -Perron recorded his 28th career multi-goal game Oct. 16 in Denver and his 29th (hat trick) on Oct. 23 vs. LA (His teams are 25-3-1 when he scores at least twice) -Perron is getting better with age as he has eclipsed 55 points in 3 of his last 4 seasons after doing it once in his first 10 CAPTAIN O’REILLY -O’Reilly has a goal and 3 assists in his last 5 games -O’Reilly ranks 5th in the NHL this season with 406 FO wins (56.3%) (1. Bergeron, 493) -Over the last four seasons, he is one of 9 players with at least 200 points and a +55 rating (Marchand, MacKinnon, Panarin, Stone, Bergeron, Point, Aho, Rantanen) -Since 2018-19, only O’Reilly, Mika Zibanejad and Elias Lindholm have accrued 200 points while averaging over 2 mins of shorthanded ice time per game BERUBE REACHES RARE MILESTONE -On Dec. 29. vs. EDM, Berube recorded his 200th win as a head coach in the NHL, becoming the 7th different coach to win 200 games after playing in at least 1000 games Wins as Coach / Games Played Craig Berube – 204 / 1,054 Randy Carlyle – 475 / 1,055 Bob Pulford – 360 / 1,079 Craig MacTavish – 301 / 1,093 Red Kelly – 278 / 1,316 Brent Sutter – 215 / 1,111 Larry Robinson – 209 / 1,384 MILESTONE WATCH (reg. season) -James Neal is 4 shy of 300 career goals -Brayden Schenn is 9 shy of 100 goals as a Blue -Brandon Saad is 4 shy of 200 career goals…8 shy of 200 career assists -Tyler Bozak is 6 shy of 800 career games -Robert Thomas is 1 shy of 200 career games -Marco Scandella is 3 shy of 100 games as a Blue -Ryan O’Reilly is 7 shy of 900 career games
In a game that featured Karl-Anthony Towns and Ja Morant, a rising MVP candidate at just 22 years of age, Anthony Edwards was standing head and shoulders above the rest. Two nights after erupting for 20 points in the fourth quarter of Minnesota’s loss to New Orleans, Edwards exploded for 25 first-half points in Memphis […]
The view from left field 