The Maple Leafs’ four-game win streak came to a hard stop Monday in Calgary, where Devin Cooley stole the spotlight and the Flames skated away with a 5-2 win.
Cooley turned aside 26 Toronto shots and outplayed Sergei Bobrovsky at the other end, with the final margin padded by two empty-net goals. The Flames also stretched their own run to four straight and sent down the Leafs in the visitors’ final trip to the Saddledome.
Toronto did get a late jolt from William Nylander, who was playing in his birth city and finished off a setup from Auston Matthews for the 800th NHL point of Matthews’s career. That goal cut the deficit to one with 13 minutes left. But Calgary had already done enough damage early, building a lead with speed, pressure and timely saves, and the Leafs never fully dug out.
The night also took a worrying turn for Kirill Marchenko, who left early in the second period after his left leg bent awkwardly under him on a slide into the boards.
Toronto opened fast, piling up a 5-0 shot advantage in the early going and looking ready to extend its run. Then the Flames settled in and started making life difficult, even with plenty of Leafs fans making themselves heard.
Calgary’s first goal came from Matvei Gridin, who beat Bobrovsky after the goalie dropped a bit too early and opened the top shelf. Less than two minutes later, Easton Cowan lost a puck battle in the Leafs zone and Mikael Backlund buried a nearly identical shot.
Cowan was also shaken up later in the period after taking a hard hit and then put his team down a man while trying to answer back. Before that, Toronto had a power play after Cooley played the puck in the no-go trapezoid, but the Leafs couldn’t cash in despite controlling possession. Cooley then got a toe on a strong Marchenko chance set up by Nylander.
After Nylander’s goal, Toronto was set to start another power play, but an angry Matthews was called for playing the faceoff puck with his glove. He then picked up another high-sticking minor, giving Calgary another chance to test the NHL’s top-ranked penalty kill for a fifth time.
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Flames Game Takes A Turn After Leafs Winger Goes Down
A routine-looking matchup between the Flames and Maple Leafs took an uneasy turn in the second period when Kirill Marchenko went down after an awkward sequence along the boards. Marchenko exited in discomfort after a hit by Yegor Sharangovich sent him into the boards, adding a jolt of concern to a game that had already settled into its normal rhythm.
For Calgary, the moment became one of those bencheside reminders of how quickly a game can change. Marchenko had been on the ice for 7:05 before leaving, and the lower-body injury left the Leafs to adjust on the fly while the Flames continued trying to keep their composure around a play that suddenly carried more weight than the score. [Read more 🡒]
Oilers Rivalry Loss Came With A Bigger Concern Calgary Will Notice
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What will linger beyond the points lost is the hit Hyman absorbed late in the game, a collision that sent him out of action and kept him from returning. In a rivalry that always carries extra weight in Alberta, any injury to a top Edmonton forward gets noticed fast, especially when it comes in a game where the Oilers already let one slip away. [Read more 🡒]
Flames May Be Finding A New Role That Fits Martin Pospisil
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The offensive contribution has been part of the appeal, too, with Pospisil showing he can still help drive play while handling more responsibility down the middle. There was also a brief altercation in the Toronto game, a reminder that his edge remains part of the package, but the bigger takeaway for the Flames is how smoothly he has taken to the new assignment. If this continues, Calgary may be finding a fit that gives Pospisil a clearer path to regular minutes and a more defined place in the lineup. [Read more 🡒]