The Toronto Maple Leafs were back in action last night against the Florida Panthers. This marked the first time the two teams had met since the Panthers handed the Maple Leafs a Game 7 loss in the second round of the 2025 NHL playoffs.
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Unfortunately, to start the 2025-26 season, both teams have struggled not only with collecting points early but also with injuries. Which made last night’s game all the more important as both clubs are trying to push back into the playoff picture before the new year arrives.
Now, onto the takeaways from last night’s game.
New Found 3rd Line Dominated
It’s always interesting how fast things can change. Just the other night, Dakota Joshua was a healthy scratch, and last night he, Nicolas Roy and Bobby McMann absolutely dominated the game against the Panthers. And with Joshua’s goal, that now gives him goals in back-to-back games since re-entering the lineup. When Craig Berube put them together, it didn’t seem like anyone expected this. From the fan base’s perspective, it almost looked like they were just trying something new to see what would happen. And so far through two games, it has worked.
They’ve been a line Berube goes to when he needs a spark. Last night, they generated the first goal on a point shot from Troy Stecher. And the Maple Leafs’ second goal was a direct result of a hard-working shift. Roy won the faceoff and they flipped it up to Joshua, who along with McMann had fled the zone. When he picked it up, he worked it around and snuck it past Sergei Bobrovsky to give them a 2-0 lead. By the end of the night, McMann and Joshua combined for four points, while Roy had a huge impact without registering one.
Maple Leafs Beat the Panthers at Their Own Game
This season has been bleak for the Maple Leafs. They’ve gotten out to leads and then by the ten-minute mark of the third, they’d blow it and go on to lose. But last night, they played a tight-checking, defensive game that looked very similar to how the Panthers have beaten them in the past. After they jumped out to the early 2-0 lead, they finally looked comfortable. They held that lead until Sam Reinhart scored with seven minutes left in the second. But after that, they didn’t fold, which is something they’ve done plenty of times this season.
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Instead, they kept playing their game, which led to two more goals in the third. The fourth was an empty netter, but even that came after a hard-working shift from Max Domi and Auston Matthews to get the puck up to John Tavares to seal it. If they can continue playing this way, they’ll have no issue turning their season around. The hardest part is getting complete buy-in from everyone on the ice. That’s something we’ve now seen in back-to-back games, which is promising. Especially when the bottom-six is driving that buy-in, because they’re likely the group that will help swing this season back in the right direction.
What’s Next for the Maple Leafs?
The Maple Leafs continue their road trip in Raleigh to take on the Carolina Hurricanes on Thursday, Dec. 4 before returning home to face the Montreal Canadiens on Dec. 6. This road trip was widely considered one that could ruin their season. However, as they head into the final stop, they are currently 3-2 and looking to finish 4-2.
