On Oct. 21, the Toronto Maple Leafs hosted the New Jersey Devils for their first matchup of the 2025-26 season. The Devils were looking to keep their four-game win streak alive, while the Maple Leafs were looking to get back in the win column. It was the Devils that would extend their win streak to five games with a 5-2 win over Toronto.
Game Recap
The Maple Leafs struck quick and early in the first period. Six minutes into the game, William Nylander had the puck in the faceoff circle. He passed it down to Oliver Ekman-Larsson at the blue line. He took a shot, but it was John Tavares who directed the puck into the net. Toronto had two power-play opportunities while the Devils had one in the second half of the first period. However, the score remained unchanged at the end of the first with the Maple Leafs leading 1-0.
A minute and change into the second period, the Devils tied things up. Brett Pesce passed the puck up to Jesper Bratt along the boards. He sent it down towards the center of the ice to Jack Hughes. He took a shot to tie the game. The Maple Leafs challenged for goaltender interference, but it was determined that the goal was good. The Maple Leafs headed to the box, and the Devils earned a power-play chance.
They did not waste that opportunity. With eight seconds remaining on the extra-man advantage, Luke Hughes passed the puck up to Timo Meier at the faceoff circle. His shot was saved by Anthony Stolarz, but Cody Glass picked up the rebound and scored to give the Devils the lead.
A minute later, Arseni Gritsyuk stole the puck away from the Maple Leafs in their offensive zone. He passed it to Luke Glendening at center ice. On a 4-on-1, he passed it to Brenden Dillon who was in front of the goal. He scored to give the Devils a two-goal lead.
Three minutes later, Nylander made a break for the net. He had Matias Maccelli on his wing, and he sent a quick pass to him. He took a shot to put Toronto within one.
With four minutes left in the second period, Bratt stole the puck from the Maple Leafs within their offensive zone. He sent the pass across the ice for Jack Hughes in the Devils’ offensive zone. With no one to defend him, he quickly skated up the net to give the Devils a two-goal lead once more.
In the third period, both teams received a power-play opportunity but did not capitalize. As time began to dwindle in the game, Toronto pulled Stolarz from the net. While the Maple Leafs had an extra man on the ice, Bratt stole the puck from them and sent it across the ice for J. Hughes. He took the shot, and with a lucky bounce, it hit the empty net to score his third career hat trick.
Next Up
The Devils will head back to New Jersey to play the second game of their back-to-back. They will host the Minnesota Wild tomorrow, Oct. 22. Toronto has a couple more days to wait until their next game. They will travel down to Buffalo to take on the Sabres on Friday, Oct. 24.
