Category: Maple Leafs

HABS 2, LEAFS 1 QUOTES

SHELDON KEEFE

Q. Kristen Shilton, TSN: Where did you see things start to slip away from your group to end up with the result you did tonight?

Sheldon Keefe: I would say towards the end of the first period it started to get away on us. I thought through the first period we could have very easily been up at least two or three nothing with some of them point blank chances that we had and missed. I’m not sure whether that discouraged us or maybe made us think it was going to be a little bit easier night. Don’t know what it was but they had a real strong push coming out of one of the TV timeouts there in the first and I thought we were really disconnected and played tired in the tail end of our shifts for the remainder of the game. We didn’t make good on the chances that we earned in the first period. We had more than enough offence there in the first to blow the game wide open and didn’t capitalize or didn’t go our way. Our game was a mess from there.

Q. Lance Hornby, Toronto Sun: What kind of spin did special teams have tonight? Just one power play in the whole game. I guess a silver lining would be you didn’t take any, but what do you feel about that situation?

Sheldon Keefe: We had our opportunity. I thought our power play, again, that maybe is an area you could look at where things started to go south on us a little bit. We were really disconnected there and just continued that way. We really struggled to string together passes after that, which I found just really bizarre because I thought at the start of the game, the way we were making plays and moving the puck was as good we’ve looked for quite some time. Then it just got away on us there. A lot of things have been going our way here for a long while. Today it didn’t and we didn’t help our own cause. We’ve got to regroup and get ourselves ready for what’s going to be a very difficult three games against Ottawa. 

Q. Luke Fox, Sportsnet: Montreal had over 45 hits. How much do you think their physicality either tired you out or made you get out of sync a little bit?

Sheldon Keefe: Yeah, I think that would be a factor, for sure. I thought the way we started the game and things were coming relatively easy for us off the start and we didn’t make good on it. I think it just allowed them to get into the game and they were probably a little frustrated with the way that the game started and they just started to focus on physicality. I do think that’s part of what just made us tired and had us playing on the back half of our shift tired. We had real long shift lengths and stuff like that where we just couldn’t get off the ice, couldn’t string together passes. I think that was a factor in the game, for sure. 

Q. Terry Koshan, Toronto Sun: Where’s your satisfaction at with the production you’re getting from the second and third line at 5-on-5?

Sheldon Keefe: I think we’d like to see more for sure. I don’t think we’re satisfied. I don’t think the players would be satisfied with it. That said, I think there are a lot of good things happening, especially when I look at JT’s game defensively in comparison to a year ago or a season ago in terms of how he’s playing, the structure he’s playing with, what he’s not giving up defensively. There’s a trade-off there for sure and he like a lot of other guys on our team are trying to find their way to create offense without giving that defensive stuff up. Last season we were creating a ton with our second line and giving up a ton so we’re trying to find a better balance there and the defensive side of it has been good. Tonight again we didn’t give up very much at all again tonight and we had more than enough offence generated in the first period and we didn’t make good on it and you don’t win in this league by playing one period or three quarters of a period.

Q. Mark Masters, TSN: Auston mentioned Carey Price’s ability to play the puck on dump-ins disrupts the rhythm. Did you sense that as well?

Sheldon Keefe: Yeah, that’s part of it, but every goalie in the NHL, if you make it easy and give them the puck, they’re going to start the other teams breakouts and it’s hard to forecheck. I think you have to do more with the pressure and the numbers they have in the neutral zone didn’t allow us to place the puck where we’d want it to get a strong forecheck. It’s a combination there with the job they did to clog the neutral zone. It’s not like he was getting out and knocking them down. I thought there were a lot of rolling pucks that came right to him. Especially at the start of the third period that was definitely a factor.  

FREDERIK ANDERSEN

Q. Mark Zwolinski, Toronto Star: Just wondering on the Gallagher goal what you saw. There was maybe a wee bit of question that he might have knocked that original shot down with a high stick. Did you see it at all that way?

Frederik Andersen: I think you’re pretty accurate that it was very close to being high. When it’s a play where he knocks it down and then taps it in, I think it’s not reviewable. It is what it is. Obviously, tough bounce at the end, but that happens sometimes unfortunately. We’ve got to move on and get ready for the next one.

Q. Mark Masters, TSN: It’s been a while since the team lost in regulation. What do you think the group can take from tonight as you get set for next week’s games?

Frederik Andersen: Sticking with it I think is important. I think the result tonight is obviously not what we liked, but we did some good things. I think in the first period we did have a lot of chances, some posts and some good chances that didn’t go our way. I think we still played a good game, but sometimes, like I said before, they have these type of bounces and we want to try to set us up in a good position where we don’t lose the game in that kind of way. Of course, we’d want to be ahead. 

MITCH MARNER

Q. Mark Masters, TSN: What made it hard to generate offence against the Canadiens as this game went along tonight?

Mitch Marner: I think we got away from our game plan, composure in our D-zone, staying on too long for offensive chances. Not being able to come back quick enough in our D-zone to help our D break out. Just little mistakes that we talked about that we know we’ve got to get better at. That one sucks to slip away but just got to look forward to Ottawa next.

Q. Mark Masters, TSN: [Montreal] came in on a bit of skid. Did you sense more urgency from them tonight or was this more about you guys?

Mitch Marner: I think both teams came off the get-go with urgency. I think as the game went on, we got too cute with it. We got away from what made us successful. We weren’t hard on the forecheck, we weren’t helping each other out on the forecheck and talking to each other. We had shifts where we were getting hemmed in our D-zone, thought we could go on an odd-man rush or an offensive chance and missed our changes and kind of got them on the right side of the puck most times that we were changing on the wrong side of it and give them opportunities.

AUSTON MATTHEWS 

Q. Lance Hornby, Toronto Sun: From a discipline perspective, you’re happy not taking any penalties but takes away something from your guys’ momentum if you don’t get some power plays.

Auston Matthews: I think in these tight games power play, penalty kills, special teams can really be the difference but like you said, there wasn’t many penalties tonight that were being called. That’s fine, we’ve got to generate our own momentum. I think we did that, especially early on in the first period. I thought we had a really good start and they had their pushback like we expected. It could have really gone either way but letting this one slip away definitely leaves a sour taste in your mouth.

Q. Mark Masters, TSN: After that good start, what made it tough for the team to generate offence especially in the third period?

Auston Matthews: On our dumps and rims, we just couldn’t keep it away from Price. That’s what really puts him above everybody else in this league. He’s just like a third defenceman back there. He’s breaking pucks down off the glass, rims, chip ins and he’s able to break the puck out. It’s difficult to create offence when we’re not keeping the puck away from him and they’re just breaking out smoothly every time we do get the puck and we chip it in and they do a really good job in the neutral zone. They do force you to throw in and dump pucks in. We just didn’t do a very good job of keeping it away from them and they were able to break out really cleanly. It staggered our offensive movement.

JOHN TAVARES 

Q. Mark Masters, TSN: John, what made it tough to generate offence against the Habs as this game went along tonight?

John Tavares: It was one of those kinds of games. Just seemed like there just wasn’t too much room, just weren’t as in sync. I think maybe it was some of our passes and just being a little bit better connected and executing on two, three plays in a row to be able to open up some open ice and get some looks. I think we can do a better job getting to the net. 

Q. Mark Masters, TSN: When two teams play together in short order we’re expecting adjustments. Did they show you anything different tonight that stood out?

John Tavares: They came in with a sense of urgency with the way the last few games have gone for them. They played hard, just tried to play physical. Obviously, we’re aware of some of the things that we do well. That’s part of it, we’ve seen it throughout the season so far. We have to find a way to break through. 

CANADIENS 2, MAPLE LEAFS 1 POSTGAME NOTES

MONTREAL CANADIENS (9-4-2 – 20 Points) vs.

TORONTO MAPLE LEAFS (11-3-1 – 23 Points)

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2021

 123OTFINAL
MONTREAL002–2
TORONTO100–1

GAME SUMMARY         |           EVENT SUMMARY        |           FACEOFF SUMMARY

ON THE SCORESHEET

  • Mitch Marner put the Maple Leafs on the board at 3:36 of the first period. Marner has eight points (2-6-8) over his last five games played. He has 13 points (5-8-13) in eight games on home ice this season. He is tied for third in the NHL in even-strength goals (7) and ranks third in the NHL in points (7-15-22).
  • Auston Matthews registered the primary assist on Marner’s first period goal. Matthews has assists (2) in two consecutive games and points (9-3-12) in nine consecutive games. In seven games on home ice, he has registered nine points (6-3-9). He has 20 points (12-8-20) in 17 career games against the Canadiens.
  • Zach Hyman picked up the secondary assist on Marner’s first period goal. Hyman has points (1-2-3) in two consecutive games. He has recorded five of his six assists on home ice and has six points in eight games at Scotiabank Arena (1-5-6). He has four points (1-3-4) in three games against Montreal this season.
  • Frederik Andersen stopped 23 of the 25 shots he faced in the loss.

SHOTS ON GOAL (5-on-5 in brackets)

 1st2nd3rdOTTOTAL
MONTREAL6 (6)7 (7)12 (12)–25 (25)
TORONTO9 (8)7 (7)6 (6)–22 (21)
      

SHOT ATTEMPTS (5-on-5 in brackets)

 1st2nd3rdOTTOTAL
MONTREAL16 (16)16 (16)25 (23)–57 (55)
TORONTO16 (15)12 (12)12 (12)–40 (39)

NO PLACE LIKE HOME

Record at Home6-2-0 (8 Games)
All-Time Record vs. Montreal  302-343-88-17 (750 Games)
All-Time Record vs. Montreal on the Road191-129-45-10 (375 Games)

MAPLE LEAFS LEADERS

Shots5 (Matthews)
Shot Attempts7 (Matthews)
Faceoff Wins9 (Tavares)
Faceoff Win Percentage100% (Engvall, Spezza)
Hits5 (Muzzin)
Blocked Shots4 (Muzzin)
Takeaways1 (Five players tied)
TOI25:19 (Rielly)
Power Play TOI1:32 (Marner, Matthews, Petan)
Shorthanded TOIN/A
Shifts24 (Holl, Muzzin)
5-on-5 Shot Attempt Percentage52.9% (Kerfoot – 9 for, 8 against)
  

RECORD WHEN…

Scoring first4-2-1
Lead after 16-1-0
Lead after 28-1-0
Do not score a power play goal2-2-0
Do not allow a power play goal4-1-0
Outshot by opponent6-2-1
Saturday2-1-1

OF NOTE…

  • The Maple Leafs went 0-for-1 on the power play tonight.
  • Toronto did not take a penalty in tonight’s game. It is the club’s first penalty free game since November 27, 2019 at Detroit (6-0 W).
  • Jake Muzzin was on the ice for a team-high 17 shot attempts at 5-on-5 tonight. Muzzin finished the game with a 5-on-5 shot attempt percentage of 45.6% (17 for, 20 against).
  • John Tavares won 100% (4 won, 0 lost) of his defensive zone faceoffs. He was 4-for-4 (100%) in the faceoff circle against Montreal centre Nick Suzuki and 3-for-3 (100%) in the faceoff circle against Montreal centre Phillip Danault in all situations.

UPCOMING GAMES:

  • Monday, February 15, 7:00 p.m. vs. Ottawa Senators (TSN4, TSN 1050)
  • Wednesday, February 17, 7:00 p.m. vs. Ottawa Senators (Sportsnet, FAN 590)
  • Thursday, February 18, 7:00 p.m. vs. Ottawa Senators (Sportsnet Ontario, FAN 590)
  • Saturday, February 20, 7:00 p.m. at Montreal Canadiens (Sportsnet, TSN 1050)
  • Monday, February 22, 7:00 p.m. vs. Calgary Flames (TSN4, TSN 1050)

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.

CANADIENS-MAPLE LEAFS PREGAME NOTES

MONTREAL CANADIENS (8-4-2 – 18 Points) vs.

TORONTO MAPLE LEAFS (11-2-1 – 23 Points)

FEBRUARY 13, 2021 ▪ 7:00 PM EST

SCOTIABANK ARENA (TORONTO, ON) ▪
TV: SPORTSNET ▪ RADIO: SPORTSNET 590 THE FAN

MAPLE LEAFS HISTORY versus MONTREAL

ALL-TIME RECORD:301-342-88-17 (748 Games)
ALL-TIME on the ROAD:110-214-43-7 (374 Games)
2020-21:1-0-0
LAST FIVE:1-1-3
LAST 10:6-1-3

MAPLE LEAFS CAREER LEADERS versus MONTREAL

GAMES PLAYED:Jason Spezza (68), Joe Thornton (55), John Tavares (37)
GOALS:Jason Spezza (32), Joe Thornton (15), John Tavares (15)
ASSISTS:Jason Spezza (38), Joe Thornton (28), John Tavares (20)
POINTS:Jason Spezza (70), Joe Thornton (43), John Tavares (35)
PENALTY MINUTES:Zach Bogosian (55), Wayne Simmonds (54), Joe Thornton (39)

MAPLE LEAFS – CANADIENS TEAM STATS

 TORONTOMONTREAL
GOALS FOR (Rank):52 (2nd)50 (t-3rd)
GOALS AGAINST (Rank):       36 (t-15th)37 (17th)
POWER PLAY [%] (Rank):15/43 [34.9%] (4th)10/48 [20.8%] (17th)
PENALTY KILL [%] (Rank):40/52 [76.9%] (21st)47/59 [79.7%] (19th)
SHOTS PER GAME (Rank):29.3 (20th)34.8 (1st)
SHOTS AGAINST PER GAME (Rank):27.9 (t-6th)28.8 (11th)
5-on-5 SHOT ATTEMPTS FOR (Rank):566 (10th)666 (3rd)
5-on-5 SHOT ATTEMPT % (Rank):50.5% (16th)54.5% (4th)
FACEOFF % (Rank):53.3% (5th)46.7% (t-26th)

MAPLE LEAFS – CANADIENS NOTES

First Matchup between Clubs:Dec. 26, 1917 (Toronto Arenas 7, Montreal 5)
All-Time Record:302-342-88-17 (749 Games)
All-Time Record at Home:191-128-45-10 (374 Games)
All-Time Record on the Road:111-214-43-7 (374 Games)
Last Win vs. Opponent at Home:Jan. 13, 2021 (Toronto 5, Montreal 4 OT)
  

MAPLE LEAFS LEADERS

CATEGORYLEADER
GOALS11 (Matthews)
ASSISTS15 (Marner)
POINTS21 (Marner)
POWER PLAY POINTS7 (Marner)
SHORTHANDED POINTSN/A
PIMs22 (Simmonds)
SHOTS55 (Matthews)
FACEOFF WIN%63.4% (Spezza)
5-on-5 SHOT ATTEMPT %66.3% (Thornton)
BLOCKED SHOTS25 (Muzzin)
TAKEAWAYS12 (Matthews)
HITS26 (Holl, Hyman)
TOI PER GAME23:47 (Rielly)
PP TOI PER GAME3:16 (Matthews)
SH TOI PER GAME3:46 (Holl)

MAPLE LEAFS PLAYER NOTES

Frederik Andersen– Leads the NHL in wins (9).- Third among NHL goaltenders in saves made (306).- Has an 9-3-2 record with a 2.62 goals-against average and a .921 save percentage in 14 career games against Montreal. 
TJ Brodie– Averaging 18:45 in even-strength ice time, which ranks second among Toronto skaters.- Fourth among Maple Leafs defencemen in points (0-4-4).
Justin Holl– Ranks 22nd among NHL defencemen who average at least 15 minutes of 5-on-5 ice time (16:45) with a shot attempt percentage of 52.7%.- Ranks 14th among NHL defencemen who average at least 15 minutes of 5-on-5 ice time (16:45) with a goals for percentage of 61.1%.- Ranks eighth in the NHL in shorthanded ice time per game (3:46).
Zach Hyman–  Leads Maple Leafs forwards in shorthanded ice time per game (2:48).- Has the highest on-ice goals for percentage (76.1%) at 5-on-5 among Toronto forwards who have appeared in at least 10 games.- Became the Toronto franchise leader in empty net goals on February 10 at Montreal.
Alex Kerfoot– One of four Maple Leafs to average over 1:00 in ice timer per game on the power play (1:14) and 1:00 per game on the penalty kill (1:46).- Ranks seventh among Toronto forwards in shifts per game (20.0).
Mitch Marner– Ranks third among NHLers in points (6-15-21).- Tied for sixth in the NHL in even-strength goals (6).- Leads NHL forwards in time on ice per game (23:02).- Has played 41.4% of Toronto’s shorthanded ice time.
Auston Matthews– Leads the NHL in goals (11).- Averaging 21:59 in time on ice per game, which ranks fourth among NHL forwards.- Ranks third among Maple Leafs in 5-on-5 shot attempt percentage (53.5%).- Ranks fourth in the NHL in shots on goal (55).-Registered his 300th career NHL point on February 8 vs. Vancouver to become the second-fastest Maple Leaf to reach the mark, tying Charlie Conacher (294 games).
Ilya Mikheyev– Ranks third among Maple Leafs forwards in shorthanded ice time per game (2:17).- Has an average of 15.0 shot attempts per 60 minutes of shorthanded ice time, which ranks second among NHLers who have played at least 30 minutes of shorthanded ice time.  
Jake Muzzin– Tied for 10th among NHL skaters in shorthanded ice time per game (3:41).- Ranks 34th among NHL defencemen who average at least 15 minutes per game in 5-on-5 ice time (16:52) in shot attempts per 60 minutes (11.68).- Has started 45.1 percent of his 5-on-5 shifts in the offensive zone, which is the lowest mark among Toronto defencemen.
William Nylander– Has the fifth highest points per 60 minutes at 5-on-5 (2.30) among Toronto skaters who have appeared in over five games.- Has a 5-on-5 shot attempt percentage of 55.1%, which is the second-highest percentage among Maple Leafs forwards who have appeared in at least five games.- Has 14 points (8-6-14) in 15 career games against Montreal. 
Morgan Rielly– Leads Maple Leafs in average time on ice (23:47).- Tied for seventh among NHL defencemen in points (2-9-11).- Has 15 points (3-12-15) in 28 career games against the Canadiens.
Jason Spezza– Has the third-highest points per 60 minutes rate (3.14) among Maple Leafs who have appeared in over five games.- Recorded his eighth career hat trick on February 4 vs. Vancouver.
John Tavares– Tied for fourth in the NHL in power play goals (4).- Has been on the ice for a team-high nine power play goals, which is tied for the Maple Leafs’ lead and is tied for the 30th-most in the NHL.- Has the fourth-highest faceoff win percentage (58.9%) among NHLers who have taken at least 200 faceoffs (202).- One of 44 NHLers to appear in at least 10 games and average at least a point per game (14GP; 5-9-14).
  

CURRENT POINT STREAKS

Alex KerfootPoints (1-1-2) in two consecutive games.
Auston MatthewsPoints (9-2-11) in eight consecutive games.
Ilya MikheyevPoints (1-1-2) in two consecutive games.
  

UPCOMING MILESTONES

Zach BogosianThree points from 200 NHL points
Justin HollFive games from 100 career NHL games
Auston MatthewsFive games from 300 career NHL games
Jake MuzzinTwo assists from 200 NHL assists
Three games from 100 games as a Maple Leaf
  

RECENT MILESTONES

Auston Matthews300th NHL point (Feb. 8 vs. VAN)
  

INJURY REPORT

Jack Campbell (Leg)Week-to-week.
Nick Robertson (Knee)On long term injured reserve.
Wayne Simmonds (Wrist)Expected to miss six weeks.
Joe Thornton (Rib)On long term injured reserve.
 Man Games Lost: 32
  

RECENT TRANSACTIONS

None 
  

LEAFS 4, HABS 2 QUOTES

SHELDON KEEFE

Q. Lance Hornby, Toronto Sun: How good do you feel for Ilya getting his first tonight? I notice Nik Antropov working with him, have you had some of the other coaches trying to keep his confidence going?

Sheldon Keefe: I feel great for him. First of all, he’s worked extremely hard, not just in our games, and he’s had a ton of chances and he’s really worked, he’s maintained his good defensive play. He’s continued to work at his game in practices and off days, development days. It’s nice to see him get rewarded, for sure. You like to see that.

Q. Mark Masters, TSN: John Tavares was talking about the mindset coming out in the third wanting to have your best period of the season. What did you see from the team that allowed them to eventually grab the upper hand against a quality opponent tonight?

Sheldon Keefe: That was our mindset. It was more just really trying to put at the forefront the fact that it’s an important game, one we want to find a way to the right side of, and pushed our guys just to have a real good start to the period. I thought we had played a fine game, but I don’t think we had any real strong pushes and we wanted that. I thought we got it. Just thought we had a little extra jump to start the period.

I thought we caught them on their heels a little bit and we attacked a lot quicker in transition. All those kind of things really helped us there. I thought we were really good defensively as well, even when they got the puck there at the start of the third. We created a lot of turnovers and helped us transition. That was a big part of it. Obviously, Justin Holl’s slapshot had a lot to do with it too.

Q. Josh Clipperton, Canadian Press: Just the way Freddie held you guys in certain points, just talk about his game tonight.

Sheldon Keefe: I thought he was good. Obviously, he wants to have the first shot back. Took him a little bit to get going in the game as it did our team, but he was solid after that. A lot of shots coming from the point and from the walls, a lot of stuff gets thrown in, a lot of the traffic makes it more challenging against this team. At the same time, I think like we’ve been talking about all offseason and all through camp, our job, as a team, is to help Fred out and do the job in front of them. I thought we did that today. There was a lot of things that I’d like to do better so we can control play a little bit better, more like we did at the start of the third period. But again, defensively today, we just didn’t give them much at all.

In fact, I had this as the lowest number of scoring chances we gave up in a game all season. Despite some of the volume I thought our guys did a really good job of protecting the middle of the ice, not giving anything up odd-man. The first goal they got in behind us a little bit right at the start of the game, but that was really it. They never got behind us again off the rush. Those were some of the things we talked about as keys for the game coming in and I thought our players stuck with it. And then Fred was solid for us.

Q. Mark Masters, TSN: Sheldon, you mentioned the whole slapshot like what are you thinking when you see that? Do you see that as a sign of a really confident guy? He was telling us he looked off William, he saw him beaver tapping a bit in the corner of his eye but went for it. What do you see when you watch that?

Sheldon Keefe: He and Derms, it’s just kind of a parting of the seas and, in both cases, the defenders and probably the goaltender aren’t expecting them to shoot like that and take them on. Not often you’re going to beat Carey Price with a clean shot like that, but obviously they did. Two great shots to the top of the net and massive goals for us.

FREDERIK ANDERSEN

Q. Mark Masters, TSN: How is the team dealing with these types of games, tighter games but finding a way to get the win?

Frederik Andersen: I think the patience in our game, that confidence that we don’t have to force it and let the plays develop and really stick to our process and system. Just wait and not force anything that’s not there, that patience is really paying off.

Q. Mark Masters, TSN: You see these guys in practice all the time, Travis Dermott, Justin Holl, did you know they had shots like that and the confidence to go out there and beat a goalie like Carey Price?

Frederik Andersen: Yeah I think both of them have great shots. It was probably a little more time and space there for Justin’s goal and he just took advantage and said thank you so it was a great shot.

Q. Kevin McGran, Toronto Star: The North Division seems to have all the goal scorers, how tough is it for goalies to know that every team night after night is coming at you?

Frederik Andersen: It’s another part of the job description I guess. I think every team is going to try and limit their time and space and for our players to gain as much space as they can and challenge their goalie. We’ve got a lot of great talent up front too so I don’t think we’re too worried about that just have to keep the confidence that we can score goals too. I think we’ve done a really good job of keeping them to the outside, especially tonight. They like to shoot the puck a lot and everyone kept them far away from the net so helped me out a lot.

JUSTIN HOLL

Q. Kevin McGran, Toronto Star: Talk about Freddie and what he’s meant to you on nights when maybe you don’t have your best game for a couple of periods to get you going, to keep you in game. What’s he doing that you’ve been liking?

Justin Holl: Totally. He’s making a lot of saves. He’s making critical saves, too. Timely saves when we really need them and he’s allowing us to find our game and he’s allowing us to catch fire at the right time. I really can’t say enough good things about what he’s done for our squad. He’s feeling it, and it’s really great for us.

Q. Luke Fox, Sportsnet: I’m guessing scoring is not on your mind when you start a game but how good does that feel, especially when it’s been a while?

Justin Holl: Yeah, for sure. I think that’s not my number one role but it feels good to contribute offensively and, like you said, it has been a while. It’s actually been a while since I scored on a goalie. I think my last one was an empty-netter and then it was a while previously before that one. It feels good and I’m just happy we were able to get the win.

Q. Luke Fox, Sportsnet: Any joking or chirping about the length of the goal drought?

Justin Holl: Uh, no. Everyone’s been pretty nice about it.

Q. Terry Koshan, Toronto Sun: Obviously, we see tonight the importance of guys picking it up a bit when Auston and Mitch aren’t on the scoresheet but what does it mean to yourself to contribute like this and see Ilya score his first and Dermott get his first in over a year as well?

Justin Holl: Absolutely, I think that’s good for our group because we obviously rely heavily on our star players and they’re bringing it every night but on the odd night that they’re held in check or call it what you want, it’s nice to see some secondary scoring. That’s the mark of really good teams.

Q. Terry Koshan, Toronto Sun: Now that we’ve seen the shot can we expect to see it again sometime?

Justin Holl: Yeah, exactly. I’ve uncorked it now. There’s no turning back.

Q. Mark Masters, TSN: Can you take us through the thought process – you’ve got the puck, you have time, you’re staring down Carey Price, what are you seeing as that unfolds?

Justin Holl: Yeah, JT gave me the puck. Really nice pass. I was able to find some space and I wound up and right when I would up I saw Willie out of the corner of my eye beaver-tailing, so as I came down I was like, ‘oh man, Willie’s going to want this biscuit,’ you know? But it went in and all’s well that ends well.

AUSTON MATTHEWS

Q. Josh Clipperton, Canadian Press: The team’s relied so much on you and [Marner} for offence this year. I’m wondering what it does for the team and how nice it is to see a lot of guys get their first tonight?

Auston Matthews:  I think it’s great. It just builds confidence throughout the lineup. Dermy’s been out for a bit, he comes back, scores a big, big goal for us. Holl as well. Mickey gets his first. I think that’s just all really positive stuff for us. Those guys start feeling it, get confidence, they start rolling. It’s great. It was a huge win for us tonight as well.

Q. Josh Clipperton, Canadian Press: How did you see the game play out in general? It looked a little bit like last game, it took you guys a little bit to get going and then you found your legs in the final period.

Auston Matthews: I thought the first 10, we kind of weathered the storm there. Then we started to get some opportunities and then there was just periods in the game there where they put their foot on the gas and we were back on our heels and vice versa. That’s a good team over there. They’ve got a lot of depth, great goaltending and they play really tight defensively so I think it’s a testament to our game tonight and just sticking with it, couple of big goals by our guys and hanging on there in the end.

Q. Mark Masters, TSN: Ilya got his first of the season but we know he’s had his chances. What sort of offensive upside do you see for him?

Auston Matthews: He’s so fast. I think you see it every night. His ability to get around defenders and get in there on the forecheck first. He’s had plenty of instance this season where he’s just blown by defence and he’s hit crossbars or the boys made good save. It’s definitely frustrating at times for sure. It’s really nice to see him break through tonight. He’s a big part of this team. He’s plays a really solid role for us. It’s always good to see those guys get going and hopefully this leads to more and more goals for him

JOHN TAVARES 

Q. Kevin McGran, Toronto Star: What does it do for team morale when you get a bunch of goals from guys that haven’t been scoring or are maybe not even counted on to score, when they contribute on nights when your big guys actually are kept off the board?

John Tavares: It’s massive. We’ve got guys all through our lineup that can contribute offensively. I think there’s no doubt about that. It’s great to see Mickey get. He must have had the most chances in the League without one yet so definitely great to see him get rewarded for the way he’s been playing. The pressure he puts on the opponent, just the threat that he is, how hard he is to play against and Dermy with a great shot, Holl with a great shot. Just great contributions, guys jumping into play and being assertive. They’re really good players and can contribute offensively. Just taking advantage of those opportunities, well deserved. It’s always a good feeling on the bench and in the room when those guys contribute.

Q. Mark Masters, TSN: What was your perspective on Justin’s goal? He was joking afterwards in his postgame interview that he maybe looked off William there. What did you see on that sequence?

John Tavares: He just had so much time to come down the middle and take his time. It was just a hell of a shot, the way he was able to tee it up, pick the corner on one of the best goalies in the League. Holler’s just got great instincts. I think he’s shown more and more offence as he’s gotten comfortable for the last couple years. His game continues to grow. Just great. Great job, whatever it was. I just saw it go in, it was a hell of a shot, upper part of the net. Obviously, a big one for us.

MAPLE LEAFS 4, CANADIENS 2 POSTGAME NOTES

TORONTO MAPLE LEAFS (11-2-1 – 23 Points) vs.

MONTREAL CANADIENS (8-3-2 – 18 Points)

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 2021

 123OTFINAL
TORONTO013–4
MONTREAL101–2

GAME SUMMARY         |           EVENT SUMMARY        |           FACEOFF SUMMARY

ON THE SCORESHEET

  • Travis Dermott put the Maple Leafs on the board with a goal at 15:18 of the second period. Dermott’s goal is his first point of the 2020-21 season. He had four goals and seven assists in 56 games during the 2019-20 season.
  • Justin Holl scored the second Toronto goal of the night at 1:50 of the third period. Holl’s goal is his first of 2020-21. He has six points (1-5-6) in 14 games played this season.
  • Ilya Mikheyev scored the third Maple Leafs goal of the game at 2:32 of the third period. Mikheyev’s goal is his first of the season. He has points (1-1-2) in two consecutive games. He has registered three points (1-2-3) in seven games on the road this season.
  • Zach Hyman had the secondary assist on Mikheyev’s third period goal and later scored the fourth Toronto goal into an empty net at 18:56 of the third period. Tonight’s empty net goal is Hyman’s 13th career empty net goal, making him the all-time franchise leader in the category. Hyman has five points (3-3-6) over his last five games played. Tonight’s game is his second multi-point performance of 2020-21. He has a goal and two assists in two games against Montreal this season. In 15 career games against the Canadiens, Hyman has recorded 13 points (5-8-13), his most against any opponent.
  • Jake Muzzin registered the primary assist on Dermott’s second period goal and later added the secondary assist on Holl’s third period goal before picking up the secondary assist on Hyman’s third period goal. His three assists tie his career-high for assists in a game (Previous: Dec. 11, 2014 Los Angeles at Ottawa) and his career-high for points in a game (3 – 9x). Muzzin has six assists over his last five games played. Tonight’s game is his second multi-assist and multi-point game of the season. He has registered six points (1-5-6) in seven games on the road this season. He has 13 points (4-9-13) in 18 career games against Montreal.
  • John Tavares had the secondary assist before recording the primary assist on Mikheyev’s third period goal. Tavares has five points (1-4-5) over his last five games. He has seven points (1-6-7) in seven games played on the road in 2020-21. In 37 career games against Montreal, he has recorded 35 points (15 goals, 20 assists).
  • Alex Kerfoot recorded the primary assist on Mikheyev’s third period goal. Kerfoot has points (1-1-2) in two consecutive games. He has six points (2-4-6) in nine career games against the Canadiens. He has three points (1-2-3) in seven games on the road this season.
  • Auston Matthews registered the primary assist on Hyman’s third period goal. Matthews has points (9-2-11) in eight consecutive games. He has eight points (5-3-8) in seven games played on the road in 2020-21.
  • Frederik Andersen stopped 33 shots to earn his ninth win of the season.

SHOTS ON GOAL (5-on-5 in brackets)

 1st2nd3rdOTTOTAL
TORONTO6 (3)6 (3)12 (9)–24 (15)
MONTREAL9 (7)13 (10)13 (13)–35 (30)
      

SHOT ATTEMPTS (5-on-5 in brackets)

 1st2nd3rdOTTOTAL
TORONTO14 (10)13 (9)16 (12)–43 (31)
MONTREAL15 (12)25 (21)19 (18)–59 (51)

ON THE ROAD AGAIN

Record on the Road5-1-1 (7 Games)
All-Time Record vs. Montreal  302-342-88-17 (749 Games)
All-Time Record vs. Montreal on the Road111-214-43-7 (375 Games)

MAPLE LEAFS LEADERS

Shots3 (Four players tied)
Shot Attempts6 (Hyman)
Faceoff Wins12 (Matthews)
Faceoff Win Percentage100% (Boyd, Mikheyev)
Hits4 (Engvall)
Blocked Shots4 (Holl)
Takeaways2 (Holl)
TOI26:24 (Rielly)
Power Play TOI3:36 (Marner)
Shorthanded TOI2:33 (Holl, Muzzin)
Shifts28 (Holl, Muzzin)
5-on-5 Shot Attempt Percentage50.0% (Dermott, Spezza)
  

RECORD WHEN…

Opponent scores first4-1-1
Trail after 12-1-1
Tied after 23-0-1
Do not score a power play goal2-1-0
Do not allow a power play goal4-0-0
Outshot by opponent7-1-0
Wednesday2-1-0

OF NOTE…

  • The Maple Leafs went 2-for-2 on the penalty kill and 0-for-2 on the power play tonight.
  • Justin Holl and Jake Muzzin were the lone Maple Leafs to not start a 5-on-5 shift in the offensive zone.
  • Auston Matthews won 75% (6 won, 2 lost) of his defensive zone faceoffs.
  • Morgan Rielly was on the ice for a team-high 15 shot attempts at 5-on-5 tonight. Rielly finished the game with a 5-on-5 shot attempt percentage of 42.9% (15 for, 20 against).

UPCOMING GAMES:

  • Saturday, February 13, 7:00 p.m. vs. Montreal Canadiens (Sportsnet, FAN 590)
  • Monday, February 15, 7:00 p.m. vs. Ottawa Senators (TSN4, TSN 1050)
  • Wednesday, February 17, 7:00 p.m. vs. Ottawa Senators (Sportsnet, FAN 590)
  • Thursday, February 18, 7:00 p.m. vs. Ottawa Senators (Sportsnet Ontario, FAN 590)
  • Saturday, February 20, 7:00 p.m. at Montreal Canadiens (Sportsnet, TSN 1050)

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.

LEAFS-HABS PREGAME NOTES

TORONTO MAPLE LEAFS (10-2-1 – 19 Points) vs.

MONTREAL CANADIENS (8-2-2 – 18 Points)

FEBRUARY 10, 2021 ▪ 7:30 PM EST

BELL CENTRE (MONTREAL, QC) ▪
TV: SPORTSNET ▪ RADIO: SPORTSNET 590 THE FAN

MAPLE LEAFS HISTORY versus MONTREAL

ALL-TIME RECORD:301-342-88-17 (748 Games)
ALL-TIME on the ROAD:110-214-43-7 (374 Games)
2020-21:1-0-0
LAST FIVE:1-1-3
LAST 10:6-1-3

MAPLE LEAFS CAREER LEADERS versus MONTREAL

GAMES PLAYED:Jason Spezza (67), Joe Thornton (55), John Tavares (36)
GOALS:Jason Spezza (32), Joe Thornton (15), John Tavares (15)
ASSISTS:Jason Spezza (38), Joe Thornton (28), John Tavares (18)
POINTS:Jason Spezza (70), Joe Thornton (43), John Tavares (33)
PENALTY MINUTES:Wayne Simmonds (54), Zach Bogosian (53), Joe Thornton (39)

MAPLE LEAFS – CANADIENS TEAM STATS

 TORONTOMONTREAL
GOALS FOR (Rank):48 (t-3rd)48 (t-3rd)
GOALS AGAINST (Rank):       34 (t-16th)30 (t-11th)
POWER PLAY [%] (Rank):15/41 [36.6%] (3rd)10/45 [22.2%] (14th)
PENALTY KILL [%] (Rank):37/49 [75.5%] (23rd)43/54 [79.6%] (17th)
SHOTS PER GAME (Rank):29.7 (t-19th)34.5 (1st)
SHOTS AGAINST PER GAME (Rank):27.3 (6th)29.0 (12th)
5-on-5 SHOT ATTEMPTS FOR (Rank):535 (9th)552 (6th)
5-on-5 SHOT ATTEMPT % (Rank):51.5% (12th)53.6% (5th)
FACEOFF % (Rank):53.3% (5th)46.7% (t-26th)

MAPLE LEAFS – CANADIENS NOTES

First Matchup between Clubs:Dec. 26, 1917 (Toronto Arenas 7, Montreal 5)
All-Time Record:301-342-88-17 (748 Games)
All-Time Record at Home:191-128-45-10 (374 Games)
All-Time Record on the Road:110-214-43-7 (374 Games)
Last Win vs. Opponent on the Road:Feb. 9, 2019 (Toronto 4, Montreal 3 OT)
  

MAPLE LEAFS LEADERS

CATEGORYLEADER
GOALS11 (Matthews)
ASSISTS15 (Marner)
POINTS21 (Marner)
POWER PLAY POINTS7 (Marner)
SHORTHANDED POINTSN/A
PIMs22 (Simmonds)
SHOTS52 (Matthews)
FACEOFF WIN%64.8% (Spezza)
5-on-5 SHOT ATTEMPT %66.3% (Thornton)
BLOCKED SHOTS24 (Muzzin)
TAKEAWAYS12 (Matthews)
HITS23 (Holl, Hyman)
TOI PER GAME23:35 (Rielly)
PP TOI PER GAME3:15 (Matthews)
SH TOI PER GAME3:51 (Holl)

MAPLE LEAFS PLAYER NOTES

Frederik Andersen– Leads the NHL in wins (8).- Fourth among NHL goaltenders in saves made (273).- Has an 8-3-2 record with a 2.67 goals-against average and a .919 save percentage in 13 career games against Montreal. 
TJ Brodie– Averaging 18:37 in even-strength ice time, which ranks second among Toronto skaters.- Fourth among Maple Leafs defencemen in points (0-4-4).
Justin Holl– Tied for 26th among NHL defencemen who average at least 15 minutes of 5-on-5 ice time (16:46) with a shot attempt percentage of 54.4%.- Ranks 18th among NHL defencemen who average at least 15 minutes of 5-on-5 ice time (16:46) with a goals for percentage of 64.7%.- Ranks third among right-handed NHL defencemen in shorthanded ice time per game (3:51).
Zach Hyman–  Leads Maple Leafs forwards in shorthanded ice time per game (2:52).- Has the highest on-ice goals for percentage (75.0%) at 5-on-5 among Toronto forwards.
Alex Kerfoot– One of four Maple Leafs to average over 1:00 in ice timer per game on the power play (1:19) and 1:00 per game on the penalty kill (1:49).- Tied for sixth among Toronto forwards in shifts per game (20.2).
Mitch Marner– Ranks third among NHLers in points (6-15-21).- Tied for third in the NHL in even-strength goals (6).- Leads NHL forwards in time on ice per game (23:08).- Has played 41.9% of Toronto’s shorthanded ice time.
Auston Matthews– Leads the NHL in goals (11).- Averaging 21:58 in time on ice per game, which ranks seventh among NHL forwards.- Ranks third among Maple Leafs in 5-on-5 shot attempt percentage (54.5%).- Ranks second in the NHL in shots on goal (52).-Registered his 300th career NHL point on February 8 vs. Vancouver to become the second-fastest Maple Leaf to reach the mark, tying Charlie Conacher (294 games).
Ilya Mikheyev– Ranks third among Maple Leafs forwards in shorthanded ice time per game (2:22).- Has an average of 15.6 shot attempts per 60 minutes of shorthanded ice time, which leads NHLers who have played at least 30 minutes of shorthanded ice time.  
Jake Muzzin– Tied for 10th among NHL skaters in shorthanded ice time per game (3:46).- Ranks 26th among NHL defencemen who average at least 15 minutes per game in 5-on-5 ice time (16:56) in shot attempts per 60 minutes (11.98).- Has started 47.8 percent of his 5-on-5 shifts in the offensive zone, which is the lowest mark among Toronto defencemen.
William Nylander– Has the fourth highest points per 60 minutes at 5-on-5 (2.48) among Toronto skaters who have appeared in over five games.- Has a 5-on-5 shot attempt percentage of 56.1%, which is the second-highest percentage among Maple Leafs forwards.- Has 14 points (8-6-14) in 14 career games against Montreal. 
Morgan Rielly– Leads Maple Leafs in average time on ice (23:35).- Tied for fourth among NHL defencemen in points (2-9-11).- Has 15 points (3-12-15) in 27 career games against the Canadiens.
Jason Spezza– Has the highest points per 60 minutes rate (3.44) among Maple Leafs who have appeared in over five games.- Recorded his eighth career hat trick on February 4 vs. Vancouver.
John Tavares– Tied for third in the NHL in power play goals (4).- Has been on the ice for a team-high nine power play goals, which is tied for the Maple Leafs’ lead and is tied for the 17th-most in the NHL.- Has the fourth-highest faceoff win percentage (59.4%) among NHLers who have taken at least 175 faceoffs (192).
  

CURRENT POINT STREAKS

Mitch MarnerAssists (12) and Points (3-12-15) in eight consecutive games.
Auston MatthewsGoals (9) and points (9-1-10) in seven consecutive games.
Morgan RiellyPoints (1-3-4) in three consecutive games.
  

UPCOMING MILESTONES

Zach BogosianThree points from 200 NHL points
Jake MuzzinFive assists from 200 NHL assists
Four games from 100 games as a Maple Leaf
  

RECENT MILESTONES

Zach BogosianFirst point as a Maple Leaf (Feb. 4 vs. VAN)
Auston Matthews300th NHL point (Feb. 8 vs. VAN)
  

INJURY REPORT

Jack Campbell (Leg)Week-to-week.
Travis Dermott (Leg)Did not play on Feb. 8 vs. VAN.
Nick Robertson (Knee)On long term injured reserve.
Wayne Simmonds (Wrist)Expected to miss six weeks.
Joe Thornton (Rib)On long term injured reserve.
 Man Games Lost: 28
  

RECENT TRANSACTIONS

None 
  

MAPLE LEAFS 3, CANUCKS 1 POSTGAME NOTES

VANCOUVER CANUCKS (6-10-0 – 12 Points) vs.

TORONTO MAPLE LEAFS (10-2-1 – 21 Points)

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 8, 2021

 123OTFINAL
VANCOUVER010–1
TORONTO102–3

GAME SUMMARY         |           EVENT SUMMARY        |           FACEOFF SUMMARY

ON THE SCORESHEET

  • Morgan Rielly put the Maple Leafs on the board at 6:38 of the first period. Rielly has points (1-3-4) in three consecutive games. Both of Rielly’s goals have come on home ice this season. The Maple Leafs are 7-0-0 when he records are point in 2020-21.
  • Auston Matthews scored the second Toronto goal of the night at 9:22 of the third period. Matthews’ goal is his 300th career NHL point. He has goals (9) and points (9-1-10) in seven consecutive games. With goals in seven consecutive games, Matthews has established a new career-long goal streak. He leads the NHL in goals scored (11).
  • Alex Kerfoot scored the third Maple Leafs goal of the game at 9:33 of the third period. Kerfoot’s goal is his second of the season and first on home ice. He has a goal and two assists in seven games at Scotiabank Arena this season.
  • Mitch Marner registered the primary assist on Matthews’ third period goal. Marner has assists (12) and points (3-12-15) in eight consecutive games. He has registered seven points (1-6-7) over this three game series with Vancouver. He has 12 points (4-8-12) over seven games on home ice.
  • Rasmus Sandin picked up the secondary assist on Matthews’ third period goal. Sandin’s assist is his first point of the 2020-21 season. He had a goal and seven assists in 28 games with the Maple Leafs last season.
  • Ilya Mikheyev had the lone assist on Kerfoot’s third period goal. Mikheyev has two assists over his last four games played. His assist tonight is his first point on home ice this season.
  • Frederik Andersen stopped 31 of the 32 shots he faced to earn his eighth win of the season.

SHOTS ON GOAL (5-on-5 in brackets)

 1st2nd3rdOTTOTAL
VANCOUVER13 (11)14 (12)5 (4)–32 (27)
TORONTO4 (3)3 (2)12 (11)–19 (16)
      

SHOT ATTEMPTS (5-on-5 in brackets)

 1st2nd3rdOTTOTAL
VANCOUVER17 (15)23 (20)15 (6)–55 (41)
TORONTO11 (10)9 (7)19 (16)–39 (33)

NO PLACE LIKE HOME

Record at Home6-1-0 (7 Games)
All-Time Record vs. Vancouver  64-62-22-3 (151 Games)
All-Time Record vs. Vancouver at Home38-25-11-1 (75 Games)

MAPLE LEAFS LEADERS

Shots3 (Marner, Tavares)
Shot Attempts6 (Marner)
Faceoff Wins8 (Matthews)
Faceoff Win Percentage100% (Boyd – 1 won, 0 lost)
Hits4 (Matthews)
Blocked Shots4 (Muzzin)
Takeaways1 (Six players tied)
TOI24:49 (Matthews)
Power Play TOI3:36 (Matthews)
Shorthanded TOI4:59 (Muzzin)
Shifts28 (Hyman, Marner)
5-on-5 Shot Attempt Percentage75.0% (Rielly – 18 for, 6 against)
  

RECORD WHEN…

Scoring first7-1-0
Lead after 16-0-0
Tied after 29-0-0
Do not score a power play goal1-1-0
Allow 1 power play goal5-2-1
Outshot by opponent6-1-0
Monday2-0-0

OF NOTE…

  • The Maple Leafs went 3-for-4 on the penalty kill and 0-for-2 on the power play tonight.
  • Morgan Rielly was on the ice for a team-high 18 shot attempts at 5-on-5 tonight. Rielly finished the game with a team-high 5-on-5 shot attempt percentage of 75.0% (18 for, 6 against).
  • Jason Spezza won 67% (4 won, 2 lost) of his defensive zone faceoffs.
  • John Tavares won 71% (4 won, 2 lost) of his faceoffs when matched up with Vancouver centre Bo Horvat.

UPCOMING GAMES:

  • Wednesday, February 10, 7:30 p.m. at Montreal Canadiens (Sportsnet, FAN 590)
  • Saturday, February 13, 7:00 p.m. vs. Montreal Canadiens (Sportsnet, FAN 590)
  • Monday, February 15, 7:00 p.m. vs. Ottawa Senators (TSN4, TSN 1050)
  • Wednesday, February 17, 7:00 p.m. vs. Ottawa Senators (Sportsnet, FAN 590)
  • Thursday, February 18, 7:00 p.m. vs. Ottawa Senators (Sportsnet Ontario, FAN 590)

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.

LEAFS 5, CANUCKS 1 QUOTES

SHELDON KEEFE
Q. Terry Koshan, Toronto Sun: Any sort of update on Simmonds?
Sheldon Keefe: No real update here yet, he’s still getting looked at and evaluated. We’ll have that for you
guys on Monday morning when we get back together again.
Q. Terry Koshan, Toronto Sun: Auston had commented on the consistency of the group tonight through
60, just your thoughts on how that unfolded from your vantage point?
Sheldon Keefe: Yeah, I’m going to go back and look at it. I don’t know if I’d be able to say it was 60
minutes consistent. Vancouver had their pushes, but I did like our start, obviously, and we knew the start
was going to be really important here tonight. We wanted to establish our game.
Once again, I thought we were able to do that. Vancouver pushed back pretty hard in the last seven, eight
minutes of the first period and then we were able to extend our lead in the second, which is really
important. I thought Vancouver put a lot more pressure on us here today. We capitalized when we had
our chances. Obviously, the Matthews line was really rolling here today. That just was the real difference
for us.
Q. Luke Fox, Sportsnet: What goes through a coach’s mind when you see a goal like Auston’s first one?
Does he still do stuff that surprises you?
Sheldon Keefe: He does. I think that just speaks to his ability and how special he is. That goal tonight,
just one of those, it happened so fast that I don’t think anybody on the ice was really ready for it. Just with
how quickly he went around a defender to put it in the net. It was impressive. These last two games — all
season I really think he’s been very good for us — but these last two games, he’s really had jump and I
think, if anything, I’ve probably gotten in his way a little bit here just with us getting in the lead and, maybe
not necessarily reducing his minutes because he’s still had pretty good minutes, but disrupting his flow
and times that I would normally get him out there and O-zone starts and shifts in succession, I’m holding
him back and getting more of a one to four type of rotation, disrupting his flow a bit.
I think in both these games that we’ve played here, he could have had four or five. He was really feeling it.
That’s really good for us, obviously, and good for him that he’s having that confidence. He was doing it in
all zones for us to start the season, and now he’s starting to get the consistent rewards around the net.
That’s great for him to get that.
Q. Luke Fox, Sportsnet: Safe to say this was Mikko Lehtonen’s best game?
Sheldon Keefe: Yeah, I would say so, definitely. He looked really confident and comfortable out there. I
thought his touches to the puck were real efficient. He didn’t have to defend a great deal here today,
which I think allowed him to get more comfortable, but definitely his touches were good. Not just on the
ones that resulted in goals, but throughout the game here, real solid moving with the puck.
Q. Jonas Siegel, The Athletic: I just wondered if you ever played against anyone who seemed to score
as easy as Auston makes it look.
Sheldon Keefe: There’s been a lot of really good players over the years. Obviously, we knows there’s a
number of special players, Auston certainly is one of them. Like I said, he does surprise me still, yet you
just expect something special because he’s capable of that and watching him in practice every day is a
pleasure. He’s certainly special and unique. A unique talent.
Q. Kevin McGran, Toronto Star: I’m just curious what you think of your third line’s performance tonight
with Kerfoot, Mikheyev and Vesey.
Sheldon Keefe: I thought they skated really well. I thought they had the puck a great deal. With those
guys, just like I did the other night, I’d have to go back and just roll through just their shifts and focus just
on them. I did that last game as well. Have to do that again just to see the detail inside of it. Offensively,
we’ve got three guys there that are really trying to find themselves offensively. But I thought the speed
they had on the puck and the work ethic that they had, we can’t take that away from them. That makes
them effective. I think in terms of chemistry as a line, I think they’re still looking to find it.
Q. Kevin McGran, Toronto Star: How much do you need them to score or prefer that they just don’t get
scored on?
Sheldon Keefe: Well, it depends on the game. On a night like tonight, we don’t need them to score, but
we need them to be hard to play against, we need them to win shifts and keep our positive progression
going as a team. That’s what you’re looking for. I think I said all three are trying to find themselves
offensively, looking to break out a little bit, but we’re finding ways to win games without that type of
offense. Those guys are still important players for us, all three of them are penalty killers.
Our penalty kill again here tonight, we end up taking too many and it ends up hurting us and costing Fred
a shutout. Not sure if we necessarily needed to kill as many penalties towards the end there. I thought
they were maybe looking to give them some calls, it cost Fred a shutout. I thought that our penalty kill has
constantly been good for us.
When we look and break it down with our process and how it’s gone, we like a lot of things about it. Yet
there’s one moment and I see it in each game where we’re costing ourselves a goal and it’s hurting the
overall results of our PK, but those three guys have all been really important pieces of what we think is a
PK that’s got a good process that over time will have better results.
Q. Josh Clipperton, Canadian Press: When you were envisioning what this team could look like or what
it could be, I’m sure you had some kind of framework or roadmap of what it would look like. How close is
this group right now on this streak to what you kind of envision them being?
Sheldon Keefe: I think it’s close, but obviously when you take someone like Joe out of our lineup it
changes a lot of things in terms of what we had envisioned. But in terms of how we’re playing I think
these last couple games are a little more of a reflection of that. We think we put together two good games
here of having some good offensive pieces to our game and really having that connection offensively
from our zone through the neutral zone into the offensive zone.
I think we were really disconnected in that area, especially on the Alberta trip. That’s matching what I
think has been not perfect detail defensively, but the fact that we’ve done a much better job on odd-man
rushes and generally allowing people to get behind us, comparing that with the offensive start, it’s starting
to look like what we expect from our group.
FREDERIK ANDERSEN
Q. Lance Hornby, Toronto Sun: A couple of the guys tonight talked about how patient the team is and
how they look on breakouts, what does it look like from your angle?
Frederik Andersen: It’s been good. I think we’ve been working on supporting each other throughout the
three different zones and obviously not spending too much time in our zone. I think we did that, especially
in the first 10 minutes. We came out really good and the guys spent a lot of time in their zone and wore
them down a little bit. We got off to a good start with the lead so good habits and, again, good start.
Q. Lance Hornby, Toronto Sun: National anthems, you come to the blueline and stand with the team
versus standing in your net. Is that a superstitious thing or a team unity thing?
Frederik Andersen: Maybe both. A little of both.
Q. Kevin McGran: Is this as good of a Leaf team, as good a role as you’ve seen in your time here?
Frederik Andersen: I don’t know, I don’t like to spend too much time thinking about comparing to old
teams and stuff like that. We’re really focused on staying present and trying to win each game. I think
we’ve seen a lot of good periods and got a lot of good leads, especially the last two games, and jumping
on them pretty hard and not giving them too much. I think we’re just happy, keep playing well and keep
helping each other out to play more simple and more structured. That’s how we can succeed in the later
part of the season, but we want to build it out by being present and playing every game and every period
like it’s the only thing that matters. That’s really all I’ve seen so far.
MIKKO LEHTONEN
Q. Josh Clipperton, Canadian Press: You would have seen videos of Auston, heard a lot about him but
what’s it like to see him up close?
Mikko Lehtonen: It’s been awesome. He’s so professional. His skills on the ice, they’re amazing. It’s fun
to play with him. It’s really fun to play with him.
Q. Josh Clipperton, Canadian Press: You got your chance tonight, two points. How did you feel?
Mikko Lehtonen: Really good. I felt confident. I think I played a good game. I felt good today.
Q. Mark Masters, TSN: Sheldon felt that that was your best practice with the team yesterday and said
you had been working hard with Stephane Robidas and coach Hakstol. In what ways do you feel you
were better tonight?
Mikko Lehtonen: I think all over. We had done a lot of little drills to help me play here and it has helped
me a lot here so that’s been good for me. For sure I felt good today and those practices have been
helping me.
Q. Mark Master, TSN: On the play where you set up Hyman, what did you see there and maybe for a
second might have been your goal?
Mikko Lehtonen: First I thought I was going to take my shot but then I saw Zach’s stick was wide open
there in the back door so it was kind of an easy pass for him.
MITCH MARNER
Q. Josh Clipperton, Canadian Press: What can you say about the heater Auston’s on right now?
Mitch Marner: He’s been playing great. He’s been getting himself in scoring areas. He’s working below
the puck in our d-zone especially coming out of our zone mostly with the puck in the middle of the ice and
when you give him that much space and time, he’s going to make something happen. I think just like our
team right now, we’re working well on our d-zone coming out with the puck with control, coming out
through the middle of the ice. I think as a unit we’re doing it very well. Like I said when you give him time
and space, it’s usually a goal.
Q. Josh Clipperton, Canadian Press: Just Wayne’s performance, two goals. What can you say about
what he’s brought tonight and throughout the whole season?
Mitch Marner: He’s brought everything really. He’s a guy that’s not afraid to speak up in our locker room.
He’s been with a lot of great teams. He knows what it takes. Every night he comes ready to play. He
always has everyone’s back on the bench. It’s something you need, something you love to have. He’s
been great with us, it’s been a lot of fun being with him. I’ve seen that goal a couple of times with Philly. It
was impressive to see with my own eyes tonight.
Q. Kevin McGran, Toronto Star: What can you say about the roll that the whole team feels like it on right
now, you guys aren’t taking your foot off the gas?
Mitch Marner: As I said, as a unit in the d-zone, we’re not panicking, we’re talking to each other, coming
out with the puck cleanly. I think it’s just something we’ve got to keep continuing to do. Often when we are
doing it well, it transforms into our offence and makes our offence go very well. Finding each other,
another impact I think is our offensive line changes. I think we’ve gotten a lot better at that in recent
games. Something we’ve just got to keep doing, keep getting better at. Something we need to fix is our
penalty taking, we’ve got to get that down. But I thought as a unit, we played well. We didn’t give a lot of
space or time, tried to make it hard on everyone on the other side.
AUSTON MATTHEWS
Q. Mark Masters, TSN: What did you like most about the team’s performance tonight?
Auston Matthews: I think we’re just consistent throughout the whole game. I don’t think we really had
any big lapses. They obviously had their chances and they had their possession time, but I thought we
really stuck with it, we stayed inside and forced them to the outside and just stuck with our structure for a
full 60 minutes/ I think it was a really, really solid game for us.
Q. Mark Masters, TSN: Being around Wayne Simmonds day in day out his teammate what stands out
the most to you?
Auston Matthews: Yeah, he’s a great teammate, he’s a great player and he really elevates our
competitiveness with the way he plays and the way he leads this team. The addition of him, as well as
[Bogosian], [Thornton], all these other guys that have come in, they’ve made an impact right away on
everybody. It’s only been positive for us. It’s great to see him get into his spot and he’s scoring goals and
pretty nifty won tonight. He’s been really, really good for us.
Q. Luke Fox, Sportsnet: When the offense is rolling like it has been the last couple of games, how much
do you miss not having fans in the building?
Auston Matthews: I think we miss the fans every single night. They play such a big part in what we do
and just the atmosphere and everything that goes into it. We definitely miss them. Can’t wait to have them
back, for sure.

MAPLE LEAFS 5, CANUCKS 1 POSTGAME NOTES

VANCOUVER CANUCKS (6-9-0 – 12 Points) vs.

TORONTO MAPLE LEAFS (9-2-1 – 19 Points)

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 6, 2021

 123OTFINAL
VANCOUVER001–1
TORONTO212–5

GAME SUMMARY         |           EVENT SUMMARY        |           FACEOFF SUMMARY

ON THE SCORESHEET

  • Wayne Simmonds put the Maple Leafs on the board with a power play goal at 4:42 of the first period and later scored the fifth Maple goal of the night at 3:16 of the third period. Simmonds has four goals over his last five games played. Tonight’s game is his first multi-goal and multi-point game of the season. He had one multi-goal game and two multi-point games in 2019-20.
  • Auston Matthews scored the second Toronto goal of the night at 14:04 of the first period and later scored the fourth Toronto goal of the game at 1:28 of the third period. Matthews has goals (8) and points (8-1-9) in six consecutive games. With goals in six consecutive games, Matthews ties his career-long goal streak set over six games between October 3, 2018 and October 13, 2018 (10 goals). Tonight’s game is his second multi-goal and fourth multi-point of the season.
  • Zach Hyman registered the secondary assist on Matthews’ first period goal and later scored the third Maple Leafs goal of the game at 7:36 of the second period. Hyman has points (2-2-4) in three consecutive games. Tonight’s game is his first multi-point performance of the season. He has five points (1-4-5) in six games on home ice this season. In nine career games against Vancouver, Hyman has seven points (3-4-7).
  • Mitch Marner registered the primary assist on Simmonds’ first period goal and later recorded the primary assist on Matthews’ first period goal before picking up the secondary assist on Hyman’s second period goal. Tonight’s three assist performance ties his career high for assists in a game (3 – 14x).  Marner has assists (9) and points (3-9-12) in seven consecutive games. Tonight’s game is his fourth multi-assist and seventh multi-point performance of the season. He has 11 points (4-7-11) in six games on home ice this season.
  • Morgan Rielly collected the secondary assist on Simmonds’ first period goal. Rielly has assists (3) in two consecutive games. He has recorded six assists over his last five games played.
  • Mikko Lehtonen registered the primary assist on Hyman’s second period goal and later had the primary assist on Simmonds’ third period goal. He has three assists over his last two games played. Tonight’s game is his first career multi-assist and multi-point game.
  • John Tavares picked up a secondary assist on Simmonds’ third period goal. Tavares has points (1-4-5) in four consecutive games. He has seven points (4-3-7) in six games on home ice this season.
  • Frederik Andersen stopped 27 of the 28 shots he faced in the loss.

SHOTS ON GOAL (5-on-5 in brackets)

 1st2nd3rdOTTOTAL
VANCOUVER7 (5)10 (9)11 (7)–28 (21)
TORONTO11 (9)12 (10)8 (7)–31 (26)
      

SHOT ATTEMPTS (5-on-5 in brackets)

 1st2nd3rdOTTOTAL
VANCOUVER11 (9)16 (15)24 (12)–51 (36)
TORONTO22 (18)20 (17)15 (11)–57 (46)

NO PLACE LIKE HOME

Record at Home5-1-0 (6 Games)
All-Time Record vs. Vancouver  63-62-22-3 (150 Games)
All-Time Record vs. Vancouver at Home37-25-11-1 (74 Games)

MAPLE LEAFS LEADERS

Shots5 (Simmonds)
Shot Attempts12 (Marner)
Faceoff Wins10 (Matthews)
Faceoff Win Percentage100% (Boyd, Nylander)
Hits3 (Hyman)
Blocked Shots2 (Five players tied)
Takeaways4 (Matthews)
TOI24:22 (Rielly)
Power Play TOI5:28 (Marner, Matthews)
Shorthanded TOI3:47 (Holl)
Shifts27 (Holl)
5-on-5 Shot Attempt Percentage85.7% (Petan, Spezza – 6 for, 1 against)
  

RECORD WHEN…

Scoring first6-1-0
Lead after 15-0-0
Lead after 28-0-0
Scored 1 power play goal6-0-1
Allow 1 power play goal4-2-1
Outshooting opponent5-1-0
Saturday2-0-1

OF NOTE…

  • The Maple Leafs went 3-for-3 on the penalty kill and 1-for-4 on the power play tonight.
  • Toronto has scored at least one power play goal in 11 of the club’s 12 games this season.
  • At 14:45 of the second period, the Maple Leafs initiated a Coach’s Challenge to review whether the Canucks were offside prior to JT Miller’s goal. It was determined that Vancouver’s Nils Hoglander was off-side prior to JT Miller’s goal and the original call was overturned – No Goal Vancouver.
  • Auston Matthews won 80% (4 won, 1 lost) of his defensive zone faceoffs.
  • Auston Matthews was on the ice for a team-high 22 shot attempts at 5-on-5 tonight. Matthews finished the game with a 5-on-5 shot attempt percentage of 68.8% (22 for, 10 against).
  • John Tavares won 67% (4 won, 2 lost) of his offensive zone faceoffs.

UPCOMING GAMES:

  • Monday, February 8, 7:00 p.m. vs. Vancouver Canucks (Sportsnet Ontario, TSN 1050)
  • Wednesday, February 10, 7:30 p.m. at Montreal Canadiens (Sportsnet, FAN 590)
  • Saturday, February 13, 7:00 p.m. vs. Montreal Canadiens (Sportsnet, FAN 590)
  • Monday, February 15, 7:00 p.m. vs. Ottawa Senators (TSN4, TSN 1050)
  • Wednesday, February 17, 7:00 p.m. vs. Ottawa Senators (Sportsnet, FAN 590)

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.

Toronto-Vancouver pregame notes

VANCOUVER CANUCKS (6-8-0 – 12 Points) vs.

TORONTO MAPLE LEAFS (8-2-1 – 17 Points)

FEBRUARY 6, 2021 ▪ 7:00 PM EST

SCOTIABANK ARENA (TORONTO, ON) ▪
TV: SPORTSNET ▪ RADIO: TSN 1050

MAPLE LEAFS HISTORY versus VANCOUVER

ALL-TIME RECORD:62-62-22-3 (149 Games)
ALL-TIME AT HOME:36-25-11-1 (73 Games)
2020-21:1-0-0
LAST FIVE:4-0-1
LAST 10:7-1-2

MAPLE LEAFS CAREER LEADERS versus VANCOUVER

GAMES PLAYED:Joe Thornton (70), TJ Brodie (37), Jake Muzzin (33)
GOALS:Joe Thornton (18), John Tavares (10), Jason Spezza (9)
ASSISTS:Joe Thornton (56), TJ Brodie (12), John Tavares (11)
POINTS:Joe Thornton (74), John Tavares (21), Jason Spezza (19)
PENALTY MINUTES:Joe Thornton (51), Jake Muzzin (24), Wayne Simmonds (23)

MAPLE LEAFS – CANUCKS TEAM STATS

 TORONTOVANCOUVER
GOALS FOR (Rank):40 (4th)47 (1st)
GOALS AGAINST (Rank):       32 (20th)55 (31st)
POWER PLAY [%] (Rank):14/35 [40.0%] (t-1st)8/49 [16.3%] (19th)
PENALTY KILL [%] (Rank):31/41 [75.6%] (23rd)49/61 [80.3%] (14th)
SHOTS PER GAME (Rank):30.5 (t-15th)30.4 (18th)
SHOTS AGAINST PER GAME (Rank):26.8 (6th)36.1 (31st)
5-on-5 SHOT ATTEMPTS FOR (Rank):458 (t-9th)556 (1st)
5-on-5 SHOT ATTEMPT % (Rank):51.8% (11th)46.3% (29th)
FACEOFF % (Rank):53.6% (4th)52.3% (7th)

MAPLE LEAFS – CANUCKS NOTES

First Matchup between Clubs:Oct. 11, 1970 (Vancouver 5, Toronto 3)
All-Time Record:62-62-22-3 (149 Games)
All-Time Record at Home:36-25-11-1 (73 Games)
All-Time Record on the Road:26-37-11-2 (76 Games)
Last Win vs. Opponent at Home:Feb. 4, 2021 (Toronto 7, Vancouver 3)
  

MAPLE LEAFS LEADERS

CATEGORYLEADER
GOALS8 (Matthews)
ASSISTS11 (Marner)
POINTS17 (Marner)
POWER PLAY POINTS6 (Marner, Tavares)
SHORTHANDED POINTSN/A
PIMs22 (Simmonds)
SHOTS46 (Matthews)
FACEOFF WIN%63.5% (Spezza)
5-on-5 SHOT ATTEMPT %66.3% (Thornton)
BLOCKED SHOTS17 (Muzzin)
TAKEAWAYS9 (Muzzin)
HITS21 (Holl)
TOI PER GAME23:45 (Rielly)
PP TOI PER GAME3:02 (Rielly)
SH TOI PER GAME3:55 (Holl)

MAPLE LEAFS PLAYER NOTES

Frederik Andersen– Tied for third in the NHL in wins (6).- Ninth among NHL goaltenders in saves made (218).- Has an 11-2-5 record with a 1.63 goals-against average and a .939 save percentage in 18 career games against Vancouver. 
TJ Brodie– Averaging 18:51 in even-strength ice time, which ranks second among Toronto skaters.- Fourth among Maple Leafs defencemen in points (0-4-4).- Tied for second among Maple Leafs in slap shots taken (4).
Justin Holl– Ranks 17th among NHL defencemen who average at least 15 minutes of 5-on-5 ice time (17:10) with a shot attempt percentage of 56.2%.- Tied for 18th among NHL defencemen who average at least 15 minutes of 5-on-5 ice time (17:10) with a goals for percentage of 64.7%.- Ranks third among right-handed NHL defencemen in shorthanded ice time per game (3:55).
Zach Hyman–  Leads Maple Leafs forwards in shorthanded ice time per game (2:49).- Has the highest on-ice goals for percentage (66.6%) at 5-on-5 among Toronto forwards.- One of 18 forwards in the NHL to start average over 12:00 minutes per game (14:25) of 5-on-5 ice time and start 40% or fewer of his 5-on-5 shifts in the offensive zone (40.0%), while having a 5-on-5 shot attempt percentage above 50% (51.9%).
Alex Kerfoot– One of five Maple Leafs to average over 1:00 in ice timer per game on the power play (1:01) and 1:00 per game on the penalty kill (1:44).- Ranks seventh among Toronto forwards in shifts per game (20.3).
Mitch Marner– Ranks third among NHLers in points (6-11-17).- Tied for the NHL lead in even-strength goals (6).- Leads NHL forwards in time on ice per game (23:05).- Has played 44.0% of Toronto’s shorthanded ice time.
Auston Matthews– Tied for second in the NHL in goals (8).- Averaging 21:48 in time on ice per game, which ranks eighth among NHL forwards.- Ranks fifth among Maple Leafs in 5-on-5 shot attempt percentage (54.9%).- Ranks second in the NHL in shots on goal (46).
Ilya Mikheyev– Ranks third among Maple Leafs forwards in shorthanded ice time per game (2:13).- Has an average of 19.7 shot attempts per 60 minutes of shorthanded ice time, which ranks fourth among NHLers who have played at least 20 minutes of shorthanded ice time.  
Jake Muzzin– Ranks 10th among NHL skaters in shorthanded ice time per game (3:48).- Ranks 26th among NHL defencemen who average at least 15 minutes per game in 5-on-5 ice time in shot attempts per 60 minutes (11.94).- Has the highest on-ice goals for percentage among Maple Leafs defencemen who have appeared in every game this season (64.7%).
William Nylander– Has the third highest points per 60 minutes at 5-on-5 (2.93) among Toronto skaters.- Has a 5-on-5 shot attempt percentage of 57.6%, which is the second-highest percentage among Maple Leafs forwards.- Has recorded six points (2-7-9) in five games on home ice this season.- Tied his career high for assists in a game and points in a game with his three assists performance on February 4 vs. Vancouver
Morgan Rielly– Leads Maple Leafs in average time on ice (23:45).- Tied for fourth among NHL defencemen in assists (8).- Has eight points (1-7-8) in 14 career games against Vancouver.
Jason Spezza– Has the highest points per 60 minutes rate (4.23) among Maple Leafs who have appeared in at least five games.- Recorded his eighth career hat trick on February 4 vs. Vancouver.
John Tavares– One of 34 NHLers to have appeared in at least 10 games while averaging at least a point per game (5-6-11).- Tied for third in the NHL in power play goals (4).- Has been on the ice for a team-high nine power play goals, which leads the Maple Leafs and is tied for the 12th most in the NHL.- Has the third-highest faceoff win percentage (60.4%) among NHLers who have taken at least 150 faceoffs (164).
  

CURRENT POINT STREAKS

Zach HymanPoints (1-1-2) in two consecutive games.
Mitch MarnerAssists (8) and Points (3-8-11) in six consecutive games.
Auston MatthewsGoals (6) and points (6-1-7) in five consecutive games.
Jake MuzzinAssists (3) in two consecutive games.
William NylanderPoints (2-3-5) in three consecutive games.
John TavaresPoints (1-3-4) in three consecutive games.
  

UPCOMING MILESTONES

Zach BogosianThree points from 200 NHL points
Auston MatthewsThree points from 300 NHL points
Jake MuzzinFive assists from 200 NHL assists
  

RECENT MILESTONES

Zach BogosianFirst point as a Maple Leaf (Feb. 4 vs. VAN)
Mikko LehtonenFirst NHL point (Jan. 30 at EDM)
  

INJURY REPORT

Jack Campbell (Leg)Week-to-week.
Nick Robertson (Knee)On long term injured reserve.
Joe Thornton (Rib)On long term injured reserve.
 Man Games Lost: 19
  

RECENT TRANSACTIONS

Feb. 2Added forward Nic Petan to roster.
  

Leafs 7, Canucks 3 quotes

SHELDON KEEFE

Q. Terry Koshan, Toronto Sun: Sheldon, if you wouldn’t mind just an update if you have one on Travis to start.

Sheldon Keefe: Yeah, I think it looks like it’s pretty minor. It was just a charley horse. Just something that he kept waiting and waiting to see if it was just going to go away, try to get it moving. It just didn’t settle down enough here for tonight, but we’re not expecting it to be anything too major. We’ll see how he is at practice tomorrow and make a plan from there.

Q. Terry Koshan, Toronto Sun: The fourth line, just what Petan did on the line, did you see enough to keep him in for another game and the way he worked with Boyd and Spezza tonight?

Sheldon Keefe: I thought those guys had a lot of jump today. They had the puck a lot, made great plays with it, Petan, in particular, seemed really confident for a guy who hasn’t played a game in a really long time. I thought he looked really comfortable, brought a lot to the group. Boyd and Spezza were very good. Obviously, Spezz had a terrific night here tonight and we’re happy for him. But, yeah, I thought the line was really good.

Q. Josh Clipperton, The Canadian Press: Can you put into words what Jason means to your group? Not so much tonight, but just in general?

Sheldon Keefe: Yeah, I think we’ve talked about it a lot, but like a night like this, it’s a good opportunity to revisit it. With his experience and his voice and his personality, it brings a lot to our room. We feel like we’ve added a lot to that department. I think having Spezz last season just showed us how valuable that is and we felt we could add to that, and I think we did.

Just the work that he’s put in all through the offseason to get himself ready to play and to push others to be ready and help our younger guys. And I guess another example, at his age and where we’re at in the season, he comes and he skates on one of our skill development days this week instead of taking the off day, which, even though he hasn’t played a great deal, nobody would have blamed him for taking the off day.

He comes in and he works with the skills coaches. Some of the guys were giving it to him a little bit, they thought that the hat trick goal looked a lot like some of the drills he was doing with the skills development staff, with our player development staff here this week. It’s great to see him get rewarded for that and the guys were really happy for him.

Q: Bob McGill, Leafs Nation Network: You watch practice and you see the hard work that the guys are putting in over the last couple of days, but I also hear the sounds of the fun that they’re having. You put both of those together and I think it helps in results that you get here tonight, do you think?

Sheldon Keefe: I do think that, Bob. We’ve been having success as a team so the guys are feeling good and they’re coming off a couple days off, they’re together again in practice. We’ve got lots of reasons to be positive, whether it’s the success of our team that we’ve had to date here and the wins we’ve put together, or just the fact that we get to play hockey and come together as a group. We’re grateful for that opportunity. The guys love being at the rink and being around each other.

Right from day one of camp there has been a real good vibe around our club and that continues to grow. A night like this just adds to it. We’ve got to get a sleep in here today and come to the rink again tomorrow and do it again. Come with great spirit, put our work in on the ice and the games won’t stop here. They’re going to come quickly and we’ve got to build upon it and not look back.

Q: Lance Hornby, Toronto Sun: It’s early, of course, you’ve now seen everyone in the division and have at least one win against everyone in the division. Significance of that? Again, it is early, but it’s got to make you feel good.

Sheldon Keefe: Well sure, like I said we’ve been able to get good results to this point and, like you said, we’ve seen everybody. The greatest challenge though throughout this whole schedule is to beat the same team in back-to-back games. In our case we’re going to play Vancouver three times, but we get the edge here today and they’re going to regroup and they’re going to make adjustments and we’re going to have to do the same.

We’re going to have to continue to get better and that’s the greatest challenge. We were able to do that against Calgary, we weren’t able to do that either time against Edmonton. We’ve got to find a way to bounce back and build upon this here because the reason why it’s so difficult is because the other team doesn’t feel good about what happened in the first game and they seek to get better and it’s important for us to not take our foot off the gas. It starts with practice tomorrow.

MITCH MARNER

Q: Mark Masters, TSN: What did you appreciate about Jason Spezza’s performance tonight?

Mitch Marner: I think everything. That’s vintage Spezza right there. Some of those shots and goals and moves he’s making, it’s vintage. I think anyone is happy for that guy whenever he does well and it’s a big game by him tonight. It’s a big one for our team as well for the start of the three games here against this team. It’s something everyone can feel good about.

Q: Mark Masters, TSN: On Auston’s second goal, was he calling for it or is that just an example of your chemistry with him?

Mitch Marner: I think a little bit of both. I know him and Hyman are always going to that short side post and tried to just get it out to him and it was a nice little chip shot by him.

Q. Chris Johnston, Sportsnet: Did you feel you guys benefitted from the time off since the last game and were able to generate a bit more offensively as a team?

Mitch Marner: Yeah, obviously four days off always helps a team. It gets you rested. It gets you everything you need. I think it was good for our team. I think we came out with the pop and jump we needed and got off to a great start. We played a pretty good 60 for most of it and it’s something we talked about we wanted to be more consistent with. I think everyone is happy leaving the rink tonight, but we know we play these guys again in two days. We’ve got to make sure we’re ready for that. 

AUSTON MATTHEWS

Q. Lance Hornby, Toronto Sun: What does Jason Spezza mean to this team and did you ever think that tonight you’d have to get a hat trick to keep pace with him?

Auston Matthews: He means a lot to this team. I think more than anybody knows. That was fun to watch tonight. That was vintage Jason Spezza. He put on a show. He deserves it. He works so hard every day. At this stage in his career, the dedication that he pours into his own game and into the team, it’s pretty incredible. To see a guy like him tonight get rewarded and put on a show like he did, that was pretty incredible.

Q. Kevin McGran, Toronto Star: What was the practice like preparing for these guys and what does it mean to face them three games in a row?

Auston Matthews: Just go through the regular pre-scout, go over a couple of things on their structure and on their play. I think the biggest part of it is on focusing on our own game and our own structure and making sure we’re playing with enough speed. I think coming off of the four day break, we came out and had a really good start, really good legs throughout the whole game so that’s always a positive, especially after you have those three, four days off.

Q. Josh Clipperton, Canadian Press: What was it like today with some of the new changes, the hour and 45 minutes, you guys are creatures of habit, no glass behind the bench – was it strange in any way?

Auston Matthews: I don’t think a lot of guys love the late get to the rink an hour and 45 before but it’s an unprecedented year so you’ve got to go with the flow. There’s going to be adjustments, there’s going to be stuff, roadblocks that get thrown in your way, I just think it’s all about adjusting and going with the flow.

NIC PETAN

Q. Kevin McGran, Toronto Star: How did it feel tonight, not just to play after a long layoff but to really contribute big fourth line minutes tonight?

Nic Petan: It felt good. Obviously, like you said, long time off. I think it’s like 11 months for me. It was just nice to be back out there and we played great, had a lot of speed, chipped pucks in, got pucks back and played well.

Q. Kevin McGran, Toronto Star: How have you stayed active through that layoff?

Nic Petan: Just the normal stuff, going to the rink, staying positive, getting workouts in. That type of stuff.

Q. Bob McGill, Leafs Nation Network:  Getting an opportunity here tonight and your line making that impact, playing with a guy like Jason Spezza also and your line was pretty significant in the victory, that has to feel pretty good.

Nic Petan: He’s an easy guy to find. It’s nice playing with him. Obviously, he’s got the shot and he showed it tonight. It’s always a pleasure playing with him.

Q. Chris Johnston, Sportsnet: What did you find was the biggest challenge in going so long between games?

Nic Petan: It’s a tough question. The pandemic’s huge, you can’t really expect that. Again just trying to stay positive, wait my turn and when it comes just be ready.

JASON SPEZZA

Q. Lance Hornby, Toronto Sun: Jason, how did it feel to have a night like that given your role here with the team? And did anyone give you a hat afterwards in the dressing room since there was nobody in the stands to throw any? 

Jason Spezza: No hats, but I got a bit of a water shower walking in the room. The guys got me good. But yeah, obviously, nice night, puck was following me. I haven’t had too many of those nights the last couple years so it’s obviously nice to get.

Q. Mark Masters, TSN: Auston and Mitch were just saying how much they’ve appreciated what you’ve brought to the table, your mentorship. What has it been like being around those two guys? How have they maybe given you some extra energy as well?

Jason Spezza: Yeah, I think the excitement and passion they have for the game rejuvenates the whole room. When you see your top guys at  work like that, it makes everybody want to be better. They’re fun guys to be around. I’ve seen a lot of growth in their games over the time that I’ve been here in the last year, and we hope to keep going.

Q. Kevin McGran, Toronto Star: Jason, for a guy that loves to be around the rink as much as you do what did you think of the new protocols where you couldn’t show up until an hour 45 before?

Jason Spezza: Yeah, I get here pretty early so the guys are giving me a hard time. Maybe I’ve been doing it wrong all these years. You roll with the punches. We talked about it at the start of the year, though, how there’s going to be changes, there’s going to be adapting. I thought it didn’t faze us today, we came out, we had a good start. When they change protocols it definitely keeps you guessing a little bit, but we adapted well to it.

MAPLE LEAFS 7, CANUCKS 3 POSTGAME NOTES

VANCOUVER CANUCKS (6-8-0 – 12 Points) vs.

TORONTO MAPLE LEAFS (8-2-1 – 17 Points)

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 4, 2021

 123OTFINAL
VANCOUVER111–3
TORONTO232–7

GAME SUMMARY         |           EVENT SUMMARY        |           FACEOFF SUMMARY

ON THE SCORESHEET

  • Auston Matthews opened the scoring for the Maple Leafs at 2:55 of the first period and later scored the third Toronto goal of the game at 3:04 of the second period. Matthews has goals (6) and points (6-1-7) in five consecutive games. Tonight’s game is Matthews’ first multi-goal and third multi-point performance of 2020-21. He has 10 points (7-3-10) in nine career games against Vancouver. Matthews has registered at least one point in nine of his 10 games played this season. He has five points (3-2-5) in four games on home ice.
  • Jason Spezza scored the second Maple Leafs goal of the night on the power play at 10:14 of the first period and later scored the fourth Maple Leafs goal of the night at 8:44 of the second period before completing the hat trick at 4:34 of the third period. Tonight’s game is his eighth career hat trick and his first since April 9, 2016 vs. Nashville as a member of the Dallas Stars. Spezza has seven points (4-3-7) over his last five games played. He has five points (3-2-5) in five games on home ice. He has 19 points (9-10-17) in 29 career games against the Canucks. 
  • John Tavares scored the fifth Toronto goal of the game at 17:56 of the second period. Tavares has points (1-3-4) in three consecutive games. He has six points (4-2-6) in five games on home ice this season. In 17 career games against the Canucks, he has recorded 21 points (10 goals, 11 assists).
  • Mitch Marner registered the primary assist on Matthews’ first period goal and later registered the primary assist on Matthews’ second period goal. Marner has assists (8) and points (2-8-10) in six consecutive games. Tonight’s game is Marner’s third multi-assist and sixth multi-point game of the season. He has seven points (3-4-7) in five games on home ice this season. In two games against the Canucks in 2019-20, he recorded three assists.
  • Jake Muzzin collected the secondary assist on Matthews’ first period goal and later had the secondary assist on Spezza’s third period goal. Muzzin has assists (3) in two consecutive games. Tonight’s game is his first multi-assist and multi-point game of the season. He has recorded five points (1-4-5) over his last five games played.
  • Morgan Rielly recorded the primary assist on Spezza’s first period goal and later collected the secondary assist on Tavares’ second period goal. Tonight’s game is Rielly’s third multi-assist and multi-point game of the season. Rielly has eight assists over his last five games played. He has eight points (1-7-8) in 14 career games against the Canucks.
  • William Nylander picked up the secondary assist on Spezza’s first period goal and later registered the primary assist on Tavares’ second period goal before recording the primary assist on Spezza’s third period goal. Nylander has points (2-3-5) in three consecutive games. Tonight’s game is Nylander’s second multi-assist and third multi-point performance of 2020-21. He has nine points (2-7-9) in five games at Scotiabank Arena this season.
  • Nic Petan registered the primary assist on Spezza’s second period goal. Petan’s assist is his first point of the 2020-21 season. He had three assists in 16 appearances with the Maple Leafs in 2019-20, while also recording 31 points (10 goals, 21 assists) in 25 games with the Toronto Marlies (AHL).
  • Travis Boyd picked up the secondary assist on Spezza’s second period goal and later recorded the secondary assist on Marner’s third period goal. Boyd has recorded a goal and three assists in three games played this season. Tonight’s game is his first multi-assist and first multi-point game of 2020-21. He had one multi-assist and multi-point game in 2019-20 as a member of the Washington Capitals. Tonight’s game is his first as a Maple Leaf at Scotiabank Arena.
  • Zach Bogosian registered the primary assist on Marner’s third period goal. Bogosian’s assist is his first point as a Maple Leaf. He had a goal and six assists in 27 games between Buffalo and Tampa Bay last season.
  • Frederik Andersen stopped 16 of the 19 shots he faced to earn his sixth win of the season.

SHOTS ON GOAL (5-on-5 in brackets)

 1st2nd3rdOTTOTAL
VANCOUVER6 (6)8 (7)5 (4)–19 (17)
TORONTO12 (11)11 (10)14 (8)–37 (29)
      

SHOT ATTEMPTS (5-on-5 in brackets)

 1st2nd3rdOTTOTAL
VANCOUVER7 (7)15 (13)9 (6)–31 (26)
TORONTO16 (15)17 (16)21 (13)–54 (44)

NO PLACE LIKE HOME

Record at Home4-1-0 (5 Games)
All-Time Record vs. Vancouver  62-62-22-3 (149 Games)
All-Time Record vs. Vancouver at Home36-25-11-1 (73 Games)

MAPLE LEAFS LEADERS

Shots7 (Matthews)
Shot Attempts8 (Matthews)
Faceoff Wins8 (Matthews, Tavares)
Faceoff Win Percentage100% (Simmonds – 1 won, 0 lost)
Hits6 (Simmonds)
Blocked Shots2 (Brodie)
Takeaways1 (Marner, Rielly)
TOI26:01 (Rielly)
Power Play TOI4:36 (Rielly)
Shorthanded TOI3:01 (Muzzin)
Shifts28 (Brodie, Holl, Rielly)
5-on-5 Shot Attempt Percentage100% (Dermott – 2 for, 0 against)
  

RECORD WHEN…

Scoring first5-1-0
Lead after 14-0-0
Lead after 27-0-0
Scored 1 power play goal5-0-1
Allowed 1 power play goal3-2-1
Outshooting opponent4-1-0
Thursday2-0-0

OF NOTE…

  • The Maple Leafs went 1-for-2 on the penalty kill and 1-for-4 on the power play tonight.
  • Toronto has scored at least one power play goal in 10 of the club’s 11 games this season.
  • Toronto’s line of Alex Kerfoot, Ilya Mikheyev and Jimmy Vesey were the lone Toronto skaters to not start a 5-on-5 shift in the offensive zone.
  • Travis Dermott (leg) left tonight’s game due to injury and did not return.
  • Morgan Rielly was on the ice for a team-high 22 shot attempts at 5-on-5 tonight. Rielly finished the game with a 5-on-5 shot attempt percentage of 73.3% (22 for, 8 against).
  • Jason Spezza won 80% (4 won, 1 lost) of his offensive zone faceoffs.

UPCOMING GAMES:

  • Saturday, February 6, 7:00 p.m. vs. Vancouver Canucks (Sportsnet, TSN 1050)
  • Monday, February 8, 7:00 p.m. vs. Vancouver Canucks (Sportsnet Ontario, TSN 1050)
  • Wednesday, February 10, 7:30 p.m. at Montreal Canadiens (Sportsnet, FAN 590)
  • Saturday, February 13, 7:00 p.m. vs. Montreal Canadiens (Sportsnet, FAN 590)
  • Monday, February 15, 7:00 p.m. vs. Ottawa Senators (TSN4, TSN 1050)

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.