It was a quiet week for the Toronto Maple Leafs, who had just two games on their schedule: the third of four meetings against the Florida Panthers and the third and final against the desperate Columbus Blue Jackets, who were looking to sneak into the second wild card spot in the Eastern Conference.
There were many notable performances last week, including Nick Robertson and William Nylander’s two-goal night against the Blue Jackets and Matthew Knies’ three-point week, but below are last week’s choices for the three stars of the week.
3rd star: Auston Matthews
Week 26 stats: 2 GP – 1 G – 2 A – 3 PTS
Season stats: 61 GP – 30 G – 41 A – 71 PTS
Auston Matthews’ four-game point streak came to an end in Anaheim, but the production from the captain was right back there once the team got back home, thanks to a three-point week against the Panthers and Blue Jackets.
During a crucial meeting against the Panthers, Auston Matthews picked up a big primary assist midway through the third period in a 1-1 game, setting up his linemate Mitch Marner for the go-ahead goal. He only registered one point in the win, but that was enough to edge the Panthers, thanks to a fantastic effort from their goalie.
The other two points from Matthews came in their 5-0 blowout win over the Blue Jackets: a goal and another assist. The assist registered by Matthews on Saturday night was his 41st of the season, five shy of his career high of 46 set during the 2021-22 season. The goal, however, was his 30th of the campaign, and he climbed up the franchise’s history list with that tally. According to SportsnetStats on X, Matthews’ 30th goal gives him nine consecutive 30-goal seasons, which is good enough for second on the franchise’s all-time list, passing Darryl Sittler’s eight. Mats Sundin sits atop of that list with ten 30-goal seasons.
2nd star: Mitch Marner
Week 26 stats: 2 GP – 1 G – 2 A – 3 PTS
Season stats: 75 GP – 24 G – 70 A – 94 PTS
The mid-week showdown between the Maple Leafs and Panthers brought a ton of hype and excitement, given the potential playoff implications on either side as we head toward the finish line of the regular season. With the top of the Atlantic division so tight, a couple of wins this way and a couple of losses that way could throw the top three teams into a blender, potentially giving us different seedings.
Luckily for the Maple Leafs, who are searching for their first Atlantic Division title, Mitch Marner made that possibility a little more likely, thanks to the two big plays in the third period to help lead his team to an all-important victory. He finished off an Auston Matthews pass near the hash marks by one-timing his 24th of the season past Sergei Bobrovsky, giving his team the 2-1 lead with 9:10 remaining in the game.
But that wasn’t all. A little over four minutes later, Marner ripped a stretch pass up ice to Matthew Knies, who used his size to get in front of the defenceman and found himself alone on a breakaway. After fumbling the puck on a breakaway in their previous game against the Ducks, the 21-year-old made no mistake and scored his 27th of the season, giving his team the 3-1 lead. The Panthers scored to make it 3-2, meaning Knies’ goal ended up being the game-winner. It wouldn’t have happened if not for that terrific pass by Marner.
1st star: Anthony Stolarz
Week 26 stats: 2 GP – 2-0-0 – 1.00 GAA – .966 SV% – 1 SO
Season stats: 31 GP – 18-8-3 – 2.26 GAA – .922 SV% – 2 SO
Week 25’s third star, Anthony Stolarz, has one-upped his performance from that week to earn the first star from last week’s two-game slate. The 31-year-old began the week with a start against his former club, whom he had played against in the two prior games this season. Fortunately, Stolarz and the Maple Leafs got revenge this time and picked up the two points against their division rival.
The Edison, New Jersey native came up clutch for his team, making 29 saves in Toronto’s narrow 3-2 victory, giving them a slightly bigger cushion for the division lead. With the two points picked up against Florida and Stolarz extending his win streak to four games, Craig Berube decided to give him the next start at home, shifting away from the rotation of goalies they were using.
Stolarz’s start against the Blue Jackets marked the first time he or Woll had started consecutive games since mid-March, when Woll started against the Flames and Avalanche (March 17th and 19th). It is safe to say starting Stolarz against the Blue Jackets paid off, as he posted a 27-save shutout, the second one of the season and 10th of his career, in a 5-0 win.
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