The Toronto Maple Leafs faced the Washington Capitals on Saturday (Dec. 28) at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto hoping to pick up a win against one of the hottest teams in the entire league. Matt Murray was between the pipes for the Maple Leafs while the Capitals went with Logan Thompson.
Related: Maple Leafs Should Target Flyers’ Morgan Frost to Bolster Centre Depth
Without captain Auston Matthews, the Maple Leafs struggled to find the back of the net and were outplayed by a stronger Capitals team who were able to win 5-2, despite outshooting them. Murray finished the night stopping 27 of 31 shots while Thompson finished the night stopping 35 of 37 shots. With that being said, here are three takeaways from their unfortunate loss at home.
Maple Leafs Missed Matthews
The Maple Leafs had to try and get past one of the strongest teams in the league without their strongest goalscorer, as Matthews continues to deal with a nagging injury. Through 24 games this season, Matthews has scored 11 goals and added 12 assists for 23 points. While he has been a bit slower than usual when he is in the lineup, he is still someone the team can rely on to get them on the board considering his history being a multi-time 50-goal scorer. Without him, the team struggled to find offensive production.
Luckily, John Tavares and Bobby McMann were able to score goals and save them from being shut out. However, they couldn’t get anything more past Thompson. William Nylander, Matthew Knies, Nick Robertson, and Morgan Reilly weren’t able to find the scoresheet against the Capitals, and the team will need them to step up at both ends of the ice until Matthews is ready to suit up again if they want to win important games like this one.
Goaltending Injury Bug Causing Issues
The Maple Leafs have been dealing with some injury issues recently that have affected their ability to win games consistently. One of the biggest issues they’ve had is their problem between the pipes. Anthony Stolarz is going to be out for at least another few weeks as he deals with a knee injury, and Murray was recalled from the American Hockey League (AHL) to help out. Unfortunately, Murray didn’t look strong and wasn’t able to help the Maple Leafs pick up any points tonight.
It doesn’t help that Joseph Woll has also been dealing with injuries this season, so their issue with injuries has caused the team’s lack of depth between the pipes to be more exposed. While there isn’t any room for a trade to bring a goaltender in until closer to the 2025 Trade Deadline, the Maple Leafs will have to hope they’ll be able to start winning games with who they have, or they’re going to slip down the standings, especially with how tight the Atlantic Division is.
Special Teams Didn’t Help Out
The Maple Leafs are 19th in the NHL in terms of power play percentage (PP%) and went up against a strong Capitals penalty kill. They sit 6th in the NHL with an 83.0% penalty kill percentage (PK%).
Unfortunately, another issue for the Maple Leafs was their special teams, as they allowed a goal on the only man advantage the Capitals had and weren’t able to capitalize on either of the two opportunities they were given. While it’s not the end of the world considering they only had two opportunities, it’s concerning that they weren’t able to find another gear in the third period to push for a tying goal. Their effort was okay at best, and it was clear they were outworked and outplayed by the Capitals in every aspect.
The Maple Leafs are back in action on Tuesday (Dec. 31) when they take on the New York Islanders. The Capitals are back in action on Sunday (Dec. 29) in a matchup with the Detroit Red Wings.
As the 2024-25 season moves along, be sure to continue following The Hockey Writers as your source for news from around the NHL and the hockey world.
