The Toronto Maple Leafs beat the Tampa Bay Lightning 2-0 last night. The game was one of those shot-for-shot, chance-for-chance games, with both teams tugging at the same piece of rope all night.
The Maple Leafs ended up riding Morgan Rielly’s first-period goal right to the finish line, and every shift after that had the tension humming in the building. Both Toronto and Tampa Bay played the sort of “grown-up hockey” that doesn’t always get headlines. Both teams got their sticks in the lanes, and bodies were angled the right way, with hard, effective checking. Nothing cute, nothing reckless. Just solid.
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And you have to give credit to both teams. Defensively, this was one of the Maple Leafs’ better nights. They boxed out, they got back quickly, and they didn’t give Tampa much clean ice to work with. But, the same went the other way.
Then, there was Dennis Hildeby. He was tall, steady, and almost sleepy calm. He handled the rest of the night. Make no mistake, he was the difference in this game for his version of the Blue & White. For his solid effort, he recorded his first NHL shutout, making 29 saves, and was the backbone of a well-earned 2–0 win.
(John E. Sokolowski-Imagn Images)
If you were nervous watching it, you weren’t alone. It was tight, it was tense, but the Maple Leafs matched Tampa stride for stride and looked completely comfortable doing it. I kept telling myself the Maple Leafs were going to blow it, but they didn’t.
Item One: Maple Leafs Goaltending in Chaos, Yet Somehow Still Holding Together
It’s funny calling it “chaos” when the results have been this steady, but that’s what it is — organized chaos. Goalies in, goalies out, two on injured reserve, young guys getting tossed into the fire. It should be a mess. And yet, it isn’t. The Maple Leafs have stitched things together well enough that you stop worrying about style points and focus on the scoreboard.
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Hildeby gave them another strong chapter in this little saga. He put up a clean sheet against one of the league’s streakiest offensive teams. He wasn’t diving around or doing anything theatrical. The team helped by keeping the house tidy in front of him, and he did the rest. Believe it or not, the team has now put together six straight games allowing two or fewer goals. For a club that had been leaking earlier in the season, that’s a massive shift.
The sneaky part is where this puts them in the standings. They don’t feel like a team climbing, but here they are, two points off the pace with Tampa and Boston right there in sight. While the Lightning stumble, Toronto’s found a way to make “good enough on paper” goaltending look sturdier in game action. Matthews sealing the game at the buzzer was a bonus, but the real story was the team holding things together when they could’ve easily unraveled.
Item Two: Dakota Mermis Leaves After Knee-on-Knee: Status Coming Tuesday
It was a tough moment late in the game when Dakota Mermis took that knee-on-knee from Gage Goncalves. You could tell immediately that he was in trouble. Goncalves got the major, and the misconduct (the right call), and the Maple Leafs had to quietly reshuffle the blue line while trying to close out a one-goal game.
Before the hit, Mermis was giving the team what Craig Berube asks from his depth defenders. Don’t panic, get clean touches, and quick outs. He had a shot, a block, and about ten minutes of steady, “you don’t notice him — and that’s a compliment” hockey. Those minutes matter more than people realize, especially in a game with no breathing room.
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Berube said afterward that Mermis will be evaluated on Tuesday. He’s listed as day-to-day for now. With the San Jose Sharks up next on Thursday, Toronto will hope this doesn’t derail their defensive rhythm. They can plug holes for a night, but every little disruption changes the chemistry back there. The good news is that Chris Tanev looks close to being ready to go and could draw in.
Item Three: Did the Maple Leafs Miss a Trick with Scott Laughton in the Canadiens’ Shootout?
Going back a couple of days, here’s one thing that bothered me about Berube’s coaching decisions. That breakaway goal Laughton scored against the Montreal Canadiens was one of those little hockey moments where you sit up straighter. Not many guys try a slapper on a breakaway; fewer pull it off clean. But he did.
He fooled the goalie completely, dragged the Maple Leafs into overtime, and looked like a guy playing with some swagger. Which is why I thought he should’ve been rewarded with a chance in the shootout. Hot hand, confidence rolling, and a goalie who clearly hadn’t figured him out and had to be guessing.
Instead, Toronto went with the regular rotation. Coaches have their reasons, which include trust and long-term patterns. But sometimes the game seems ready to tell you something, and you’d be wise not to ignore it. This felt like one of those “maybe give him another go” nights.
Related: Maple Leafs’ Scott Laughton: Veteran Presence Done Right
There would be no guarantee he’d score again, of course. But if momentum is real, I say saddle it up. And so is unpredictability. Laughton had both. It’s one of those small decisions that won’t make a headline, but it stuck with me and made me wonder. It’s probably one reason I’m not an NHL head coach.
What’s Next for the Maple Leafs?
San Jose comes into town on Thursday. This is a fun team with some great young stars. But, it’s one the Maple Leafs should handle. Still, you never assume anything with this team in this league.
The big things to watch: Hildeby’s next step, the Mermis update, and whether this tightened defensive rhythm holds. It wasn’t flashy against Tampa, but it was Craig-Berube boring. And if they can bottle that, they’ll put themselves in a good spot heading toward the Olympic break.
