The Toronto Maple Leafs (26-21-9) beat the Calgary Flames (22-27-6) 4-2 on Monday night, in a game that they probably should have lost, and that most likely brought conflicting emotions for the fans in Toronto and those who took over the Saddledome.
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It’s great to watch your team win, but with the current petition to sell at the trade deadline, winning games isn’t always what you want to see. But hey, they won, so let’s talk about it.
Have a Night, Willy!
Ok, let’s be honest about this. William Nylander beat the Flames 4-2 on Monday night. The Olympic-bound winger had a goal and two assists, and was ready to dominate from puck drop. He scored 35 seconds into the game on a breakaway and won a hard puck battle behind the Calgary net to set up Matias Maccelli’s 2-0 goal.
On Troy Stetcher’s goal, Nylander set up Auston Matthews for a one-timer in the slot, but ended up coralling a loose puck, circling the left face-off dot, and pausing just enough to set Stecher up in front of the net to give the Maple Leafs a 3-0 lead.
Overall, Nylander registered just three shots and wasn’t credited for any hits. However, this was one of those games where the Maple Leafs needed a star to take over, and Nylander delivered. Not only has he been buzzing since he came back from injury, but he also makes his linemates better, and he puts players who are already miscast in better positions to succeed.
Nylander now has 18 goals and 51 points in 39 games this season, including four goals and 10 points in his last six games. For a season that has been largely negative and injury-riddled for Nylander, those are some darn good numbers.
Woll’s Performance Was Much Needed
Despite some flashes of brilliance, this season has been up and down for Joseph Woll, to say the least. He has a .908 save percentage and a 2.92 goals-against average. Both numbers are respectable, but not where he or his team would like them to be.
If Nylander won the game for the Maple Leafs offensively, Woll won the game on the defensive end, specifically in the third period. Toronto was outshot 13-8 in the third and had to hold on for dear life after squandering a 3-0 lead.
“He had to make some diving saves and second, and third, effort saves with some of these bounces that went on,” head coach Craig Berube said. “He was solid tonight for us.”
The most memorable save of the night was a dive to poke the puck away from Adam Klapka after Woll was caught out of position.
“I don’t even really know what happened,” Woll said. “I just dove. Thank God it didn’t go in.”
Monday night was a really important game for him, not necessarily for the standings, but to get his mojo back and show his team he is still the man of the future.
Alright, Maple Leaf Fans, Let’s Not Get It Twisted
After snapping their losing streak on Saturday night, the Maple Leafs have now won two in a row and look to make it three against the Edmonton Oilers on Tuesday night.
Your head and heart might be battling big time right now. With the two wins, the Maple Leafs are seven points back of a playoff spot with essentially a month and a half left of the regular season. I would love to see a run and talk about the team in late April and early May. However, we all know how unrealistic that seems, and probably is, and we all know they should probably be getting rid of a handful of players, which would theoretically make them worse down the stretch.
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Let’s not get it twisted, these two wins are nice, but they had to scratch and claw for two points against two of the worst teams in the NHL, although I give credit to the Flames. They may not get the results, but they work their butts off every night and are not an easy out. Give the boys credit for four points on the first two games of this three-game road trip, but not too much.
Maple Leafs Have One Game Left Before a Much-Needed Break
The Maple Leafs take on the Oilers on Tuesday night to finish off the road trip and the pre-Olympic portion of the schedule. After this, they will be back in action on Feb. 25 and 26 for a back-to-back against the Tampa Bay Lightning and the Florida Panthers in the Sunshine State, before finishing off the month at home against the Ottawa Senators.
