The Toronto Maple Leafs got the response they were looking for on Monday night.
After a 4-1 loss to the New York Islanders on Saturday, Toronto regrouped and beat the San Jose Sharks 3-1 on Oct. 19, moving to 4-4-2 on the season. The win came with plenty of useful signs for the Maple Leafs, from strong goaltending to a sharp night on special teams.
Sergei Bobrovsky was a big part of the story. He turned aside 30 of 31 shots and finished with a .968 save percentage and a 2.81 goals-saved-above-expected.
It was a strong bounce-back after his rougher outing against the Islanders, and through seven games this season he now has a +4.5 GSAX, a .902 save percentage, and a 2.96 goals-against-average. For a goalie who drew some early skepticism from fans after Toronto signed him, performances like this are helping quiet the noise.
The goal that pushed the Leafs in front for good came from Gavin McKenna. Under heavy scrutiny after being selected first overall, McKenna delivered in the third period on the power play with the game-winning goal. It was his third goal of the season and moved him to six points in his first 10 NHL games.
Auston Matthews also kept rolling. He scored once and added two assists against San Jose, bringing his season total to 16 points. That puts him tied for third in the league in points, and his early-season production has made him look like the dominant offensive force Toronto has wanted.
Special teams helped lock it down, too. The Sharks had four power plays, but the Maple Leafs shut them all down.
Toronto also went 2-for-5 with the man advantage. That leaves the Leafs with a 26.7% power play, good for seventh in the NHL, while their penalty kill sits at 96.4%, the best mark in the league.
Jake McCabe earned notice on the back end as well. He blocked five shots and turned in a strong defensive night, even without registering a point this season. The coaching staff clearly trusts him, and he gave another example of why.
Toronto is right back at it tonight in Columbus against the Blue Jackets. It will be the first time Matthew Knies and Kirill Marchenko face off against their old teams since being traded.
In Other News...
Macklin Celebrini Gave The Sharks A Boost They Desperately Needed
The Sharks had little margin for error in Montreal, especially after falling behind by two goals, but they found enough push to claw back and leave town with a 4-3 overtime win over the Canadiens. The result nudged San Jose to 5-4-1 and gave the club another useful checkpoint on a six-game road trip that has already produced a few reminders that this group can hang around even when the night starts badly.
Macklin Celebrini was at the center of it again, giving San Jose the finish it needed when the game reached overtime. The Sharks were also operating without Alexander Wennberg, who exited Mondays game with an upper-body injury and was unavailable against Montreal, leaving his status day-to-day as the team waits to see how its lineup settles in for the next stretch. [Read more 🡒]
Stars Lose A Key Defensive Piece At The Worst Time
The Sharks are dealing with another lineup question after Alexander Wennberg was forced out of Mondays loss at Toronto in the third period with an upper-body injury. His availability matters because he has been part of San Joses forward mix, and any absence changes the way the club lines up down the middle and in support roles as it heads into the next stretch.
San Jose was already left to make an adjustment against Montreal, where Ty Dellandrea stepped into the lineup in Wennbergs place. With Wennberg now considered day-to-day, the Sharks will be watching closely to see whether this is a short-term absence or something that keeps them reshuffling the forward group again in the immediate future. [Read more 🡒]
Celebrini Gives Sharks Fans Another Reason To Believe
The Sharks left Montreal with a 4-3 overtime win that fit the kind of night their fans have been waiting to see more often. San Jose got goals from Michael Misa and Tyler Toffoli along with a two-goal performance from Macklin Celebrini, and the result at the Bell Center offered another reminder that this group can skate with some resilience when the game gets tight and the stakes start to rise.
Celebrini has been at the center of that optimism, giving San Jose a young cornerstone who can tilt a game in a hurry. The win also showed the value of having more than one source of offense, with Toffoli and Misa each finding the net as the Sharks kept pushing through a back-and-forth night that ended with two points on the road and another reason for their supporters to lean in. [Read more 🡒]