The break for the 4 Nations Face-Off sure didn’t seem to faze the Toronto Maple Leafs. The team wrapped up a perfect weekend Sunday with a 5-2 victory in Chicago.
Craig Berube’s team didn’t get off to a hot start, as Teuvo Teräväinen opened the scoring with a power-play goal for the Blackhawks in the final seconds of the first. However, the script completely flipped in the second, as Max Domi set up Nick Robertson for a pair of goals and Jake McCabe fired a one-timer past Arvid Söderblom to score against his former team.
Philipp Kurashev pulled Chicago within one in the final seconds of the second, but Chris Tanev responded in the third en route to a comfortable victory. The Leafs looked like the far better team after the first period, and the overall team grade is an A.
Nick Robertson: A+
Robertson fired three of his team’s six shots on goal in the first period and then opened the scoring for the Leafs with a power-play goal in the second. He wasn’t done there, as he hustled to the net with fifteen seconds left in the period to take advantage of a terrific set-up from Domi for his second goal of the night.
Max Domi: A
Domi spent the bulk of his first-period minutes in the offensive zone and made a nice pass to set up Nick Robertson for a power-play goal in the second. He hit the post moments later, and made another great play to set up Robertson for yet another goal with fifteen seconds left in the period. However, just when it looked like he was going to have a perfect middle frame, Frank Nazar danced right around Domi and set up Kurashev eight seconds later.
The shutdown pair (Jake McCabe and Chris Tanev): A
They both scored in the same game, which feels like a once-in-a-lifetime event. Neither goal was overly special, but it’s tough to complain about a pair of goals and excellent defensive play. The Blackhawks failed to generate much of anything during their minutes.
The fourth line (Steven Lorentz, David Kämpf, Alex Steeves): A-
The Leafs haven’t received much offence from their fourth line this season, as stalwarts Ryan Reaves and Connor Dewar have been on for just three Leafs goals apiece at five-on-five this season. Things sure changed this weekend: this trio was on for two goals last night and one goal on Sunday.
Steeves made a clever breakout pass to send his linemates on a two-on-one in the early second and fired a hard shot from the slot moments later. His work on the forecheck played a minor role in Tanev’s third-period goal. Lorentz picked up a secondary assist on one of Robertson’s goals, while Kämpf picked up a secondary assist on Tanev’s. They also gave up next to nothing defensively.
Steven Lorentz evades two Blackhawks during the first period. (Patrick McDermott / Getty Images)
Bobby McMann: A-
McMann’s line was Toronto’s best in the first and he played a major role on Robertson’s first goal in the second. He started things off by drawing a penalty to give his team the man advantage and his hard work on the forecheck started the goal sequence off on the power play. It feels like he never has a bad game.
Joseph Woll: A-
Woll was perfect in the opening nineteen minutes of each of the first two periods, but Chicago scored with eleven seconds left in the first and seven seconds left in the second. He had little chance of stopping either goal, but apart from those two chances, his team did well to limit shot quality. While he didn’t have to be spectacular, he finished with 25 saves and stopped everything he had a chance to stop.
Pontus Holmberg: A-
Holmberg racked up three points on Saturday night, and he picked up right where he left off on Sunday by setting up Nylander for an A+ chance in the opening minutes. He didn’t pick up a point on the play, as Nylander hit the post, but it was the team’s best offensive play of the period. He parked himself in front of the net ahead of Tanev’s third-period goal and also picked up an empty-netter.
Conor Timmins: A-
Timmins was noticeable in the first, completing two stretch passes and breaking up a rush from Nazar. He was on for Chicago’s first goal, but it was the result of a nice play from Tyler Bertuzzi. He was zipping the puck around effectively and made another nice stick-check to break up a Nazar rush in the third.
Auston Matthews: B+
Matthews was quiet in the first, but noticeable in the second. He won a pair of puck battles to set up each of his linemates for a quality chance and later picked up an assist by winning a faceoff cleanly against Connor Bedard. You expect to see him put the puck in the net against a team like Chicago, but he was the best player on his line.
The second pair (Morgan Rielly and Oliver Ekman-Larsson): B
They were on for Chicago’s second goal, and Ekman-Larsson failed to take away a dangerous cross-ice pass on the play. He left his man in a panic after Nazar danced around Domi, and he was ultimately left covering neither the set-up man nor the goal scorer. Rielly made a fairly nice play to block a pass on an odd-man rush ten minutes in, but it wasn’t anything spectacular.
Simon Benoit: B
I hardly noticed him, other than when he bowled over Connor Bedard at the end of the first. He wasn’t on for a goal for or against at even strength.
The first-line wingers (Matthew Knies and Mitch Marner): B-
Their line was excellent defensively, but they failed to get on the scoresheet against a weaker opponent. However, they spent the bulk of their minutes in the offensive zone, and it’s worth noting that two-thirds of Toronto’s top line is likely exhausted after the 4 Nations Face-Off.
John Tavares and William Nylander: C+
Nylander hit the post four minutes in, but this duo was a tad quiet by their standards. They were solid defensively but you expect a little bit more offence against the second-worst team in the league.
Game Score
What’s next?
Heading to Boston to play the Bruins on Tuesday at 7 p.m. on TSN.
(Top photo of Nick Robertson: David Banks / Imagn Images)
