The Toronto Maple Leafs have bounced back from a troubling start to March with three straight victories following a 4-3 win over the New York Rangers on Thursday (March 20). The Maple Leafs earned a convincing win over the Calgary Flames on Monday (March 17) before earning a tight-checking decision over the Colorado Avalanche on Wednesday (March 19). The Rangers were coming off a lacklustre performance versus the Flames on Tuesday (March 18), and most expected their players to come out flying versus a Toronto team playing the second half of a back-to-back. However, the Maple Leafs were the ones who dictated the pace and handed the suddenly sliding Rangers a third straight loss.
Toronto and the Florida Panthers are atop the Atlantic Division with identical records of 42-24-3. The Tampa Bay Lightning sit two points behind. The Maple Leafs and Panthers have two matchups against one another in April, and both teams have one more contest versus the Lightning. The division crown could come down to the wire, and those games will be influential in determining playoff seeding in the Eastern Conference.
Second Line Stars on Broadway
The reunited trio of John Tavares, Bobby McMann, and William Nylander was all over the scoresheet against the Rangers, compiling three goals, four assists and 11 shots on target. All three members scored or set up the four goals by the Maple Leafs. The combination’s reward for their performance was a substantial increase in ice time. Tavares led all Toronto forwards with 19:42; Nylander was not far behind at 19:28; and McMann logged 17:59.
Tavares got the opening goal on a one-timer off the rush after getting the puck back from Jake McCabe at the 12:30 mark of the first period. Nylander sprung the duo for a rush after an over-aggressive pinch by K’Andre Miller. After adding an assist in the final minute of the first frame, Tavares scored again in the second stanza after pouncing on a juicy rebound and hammering the puck into the back of the net. He became the 68th skater in NHL history to record 1,100 career points. Only seven active players in the league have more points than Tavares, and he is just 15 goals away from joining the 500 club. The former Leafs captain has 60 points through 62 games this season.
Nylander reached an impressive milestone on Thursday, too. His helper on the first of Tavares’ two goals made him the ninth player in franchise history to reach the 600-point plateau, accomplishing the feat in his 672nd regular-season appearance. The 28-year-old winger became the fastest active Swedish player to reach the mark, eclipsing Nashville Predators forward Filip Forsberg, who required 694 outings. Nylander had another helper in the second frame after stealing the puck deep in the offensive zone. There was a miscommunication between Miller and Adam Fox at the end of a long shift, and Nylander seized his opportunity to circle the net before finding Matthew Knies off the bench in the slot. Fox also created a screen when Matthews drove to the net. Nylander ranks second in the league with 38 goals and sits second in team scoring with 73 points across 69 contests.
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After seeing heavy minutes in January, McMann had his ice time inexplicably reduced and spent some time in the bottom six. He returned to the top six against the Avalanche and carried that momentum into Thursday. He won a battle in the corner after a lost faceoff late in the first period and beat Miller to the front of the net to deflect a point shot by McCabe. McMann also assisted on a second-period tally by Tavares. The 28-year-old McMann has proven he belongs on one of the top two lines, especially if head coach Craig Berube insists on pairing Matthews with Marner and Tavares with Nylander. Still, that leaves the bottom six in flux as the team attempts to balance depth scoring with defensive presences. It would have been preferable to acquire offensive help at forward at the trade deadline. However, the door shouldn’t be closed on Scott Laughton stepping up into that role despite his early struggles to supplement the contributions of Max Domi and Nicholas Robertson.
Defence Corps Coming Together
McCabe and Chris Tanev had another impressive showing. They have been the stir that stirs the drink all season as the team’s best defensive duo, and they rebounded nicely after struggling briefly upon Tanev’s return from an upper-body injury. They were solid against the Flames, played a responsible game versus the Avalanche, and were active at both ends of the ice against the Rangers. McCabe generated three assists, three hits and two blocks against the Rangers. Tanev added four blocks in the match. The only blemish was a late third-period goal when the Rangers had an extra attacker.
Toronto has a superb shutdown tandem in McCabe and Tanev, and the team is better behind them after Brandon Carlo’s acquisition from the Boston Bruins at the trade deadline. Carlo has provided stability to the second pairing, while Oliver Ekman-Larsson’s presence on the third unit gives Toronto more depth on the blue line than the team has had in a long time.
Goaltending Rounding Back Into Form
Anthony Stolarz didn’t need to stand on his head like he has in past starts this season, but he made some excellent saves and got back in the win column. He struggled to a 0-3-1 record with a 3.17 goals-against average and .876 save percentage in his previous five appearances in March. It’s been the first time this season that cracks in the armour have been noticeable for the 31-year-old netminder. Still, a slight slide was not out of the question as he approaches a new career high in games played.
Joseph Woll experienced a dip after setting his highs in appearances and starts before getting back on track, and Stolarz should follow suit. The 26-year-old Woll played well in a 4-3 shootout win over the Utah Hockey Club on March 10, and he was outstanding against the Flames and Avalanche this week. Both goaltenders may not want to admit it, but the internal competition has heated up as the end of the regular season draws near. Whoever has the hot hand going into the playoffs will likely get the nod in Game 1.
What Comes Next for the Maple Leafs?
The Maple Leafs weren’t inspiring much confidence but have been substantially better recently. The club visits the struggling Nashville Predators on Saturday (March 22) before returning home to face the plummeting Philadelphia Flyers on Tuesday (March 25). Toronto should maintain momentum in those matchups before rounding out the month with a three-game road trip out West.
With power-play opportunities dwindling in the last two games, the Maple Leafs must continue to get depth scoring at even strength. The team had an answer each time the Rangers scored and didn’t give their opponent a chance to build momentum while capitalizing on their mistakes. The Maple Leafs’ counterattack and forecheck have been more engaged, and the goaltending is holding up again. Those are all encouraging signs and serve as a reminder not to get too high or too low in the final 13 games of the 2024-25 campaign. While fostering better habits down the stretch is important, and finishing first in the Atlantic remains a priority, the real test of the team’s mettle will come in the postseason.
