The Toronto Maple Leafs got their 2024-25 regular season underway on Wednesday (Oct. 9) as they battled the Montreal Canadiens. In an unfortunate 1-0 loss, they dropped their record on the season to 0-1-0. Luckily, it’s only their first game of the season and there were some positives in the loss, but it’s still brutal to have lost their opening game of the campaign. In this article, we take a quick look at some takeaways from the first game of the season.
Goaltenders Stand Out, Stolarz Stops 26 of 27 Shots
While Joseph Woll was expected to start the first game of the season, an injury kept him out. Instead, the Maple Leafs went with Anthony Stolarz between the pipes, and it was a decision they benefitted from making. He stopped 26 of 27 shots and while he didn’t get the shutout, he looked calm and collected between the pipes while stopping several high-danger chances that the Habs had against him.
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His ability to not let the one goal against rattle him isn’t a common asset for Maple Leafs goaltenders in recent seasons, so it’s good to see he has that confidence in his game. On the other side of the ice, Habs goaltender Sam Montembault stopped all 48 shots he faced, earning his first shutout of the season and giving the Canadiens a strong start to their campaign.
Pacioretty Hasn’t Lost a Step
One forward who was facing a lot of stress heading into the first game was Max Pacioretty, who was formerly the captain of the Canadiens. Now an older veteran, there was concern he may not be able to maintain his strong two-way play with the Maple Leafs this season, but he proved the doubters wrong with a strong showing at both ends of the ice.
His defensive play hasn’t diminished, and his offensive game is still there. While he wasn’t able to register a point in the loss, Pacioretty drew two penalties, had two shots on goal, had four hits, and was on the ice near the end of the game setting up Auston Matthews for a late golden opportunity that was stopped by Montembault. Maple Leafs fans should be excited about what he can accomplish if this game is any sign of what he can bring to them this season.
Maple Leafs Shouldn’t Hang Their Heads
While losing hurts, the Maple Leafs have a lot to build off of. The Canadiens are considered a rebuilding team, so to outshoot them 48-27 proves their offensive game is there and the team is confident, but they happened to run into a hot goaltender, which happens. They could benefit from working on their discipline and staying out of the penalty box. However, when they were on the man advantage, their passing and puck possession were strong, so the special teams units were a stand-out positive.
Lots of positive things to gather from the first game of the season is a good thing, despite the loss. There are still 81 games to play and the team can bounce back from one loss. It may hurt a bit more since it was to a rival team, but they should have confidence in their ability to bounce back and start piling up the wins.
The Maple Leafs are back in action tonight (Oct. 10) against the New Jersey Devils where they will look to bounce back and pick up their first win of the season.
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