2 days Ago
The Toronto Maple Leafs brought their strong goaltending into 2025. Joseph Woll made quality save after quality save, and he kept the game tied as his teammates struggled to beat Ilya Sorokin . The Leafs had far too many defensive breakdowns in the first, and ran into penalty trouble in the second, but the game was still tied at one heading into the third.
Bobby McMann scored both goals to lead his team to a sweep in the home-and-home series, including the game winner with three minutes to play. Despite the 2-1 win, the overall team grade is a C+. Player grades Woll was great in the first.
He denied an Anders Lee shot from the middle of the slot three minutes in, and followed it up with a breakaway save on Kyle Palmieri shortly after. While he only faced eight shots in the opening frame, almost all of them were fairly dangerous, and an average goalie likely lets in at least one. Advertisement His team was much better defensively to start the second, but Woll came up huge when his team got into penalty trouble at the end of the frame.
Scott Mayfield finally scored to tie it up in the final minutes of the second, but Woll had no chance of stopping it. He was clutch in the final minutes and stopped all 13 shots that he faced in the third. McMann opened the scoring in the second, as he came off the bench, got the puck in the slot, and beat Sorokin short-side.
He gave the Leafs the lead again with three minutes to play, as Oliver Ekman-Larsson ’s point shot bounced off the boards and onto his stick on the power play. IT’S BOBBY MCMANN..
.. AGAIN!! pic.
twitter.com/qJDATOyf6b — Toronto Maple Leafs (@MapleLeafs) January 3, 2025 Knies set up Rielly for a quality chance early on He had a good chance to score on a rebound with five to go in the third, but he was only able to get his skate on it. The Leafs heavily out-chanced their opponent during his minutes.
His minutes were quite boring, and you’d like more offence out of a line with Knies and William Nylander . However, he did what Craig Berube expected him to do and was responsible defensively. He was noticeable in the first, as he made a strong defensive play to break up an opposing rush, and also fired a quality chance while on an odd-man rush.
He picked up the lone assist on the game’s first goal by finding an open McMann. Rielly fired a quality chance at Sorokin nine minutes in, but he wasn’t able to capitalize. The Leafs spent most of his minutes in the offensive zone, but they need him to help generate a few more high-danger chances.
He played boring minutes in a game that featured plenty of scoring chances against. The Leafs spent the majority of his ice time in the offensive zone. Advertisement His line struggled early, but he made a nice play to drive to the net and create a rebound chance for John Tavares .
He then set up Knies for a decent scoring chance at the end of the second, but despite this, he looks a little bit out-of-place in a top-six role lately. He fired a hard wrist shot that hit the crossbar six minutes in, and this left everyone wondering if Auston Matthews was secretly playing in Lorentz’s jersey. He later jumped on the ice too early in the second and forced his team to kill a five-on-three for 20 seconds, but his teammates bailed him out.
Domi showed off his patience to set up Robertson for a quality chance halfway through the first. He was a focal point of the game’s first goal, as he threw a hard reverse hit on Isaiah George , and McMann was left uncovered when the Islanders tried to retaliate. Unfortunately, he then took an undisciplined penalty on his next shift.
Tavares made a questionable pass on the power play that allowed the Islanders to clear the zone, and also made a terrible giveaway that handed Mathew Barzal an excellent chance from the slot. Mitch Marner set him up for a high-danger chance to start the second, but he wasn’t able to capitalize. Kyle Palmieri had an early breakaway after Tanev ran into the ref.
While he doesn’t deserve all of the blame for his team’s defensive lapses, his job is to be a shutdown defenceman, and he was on for too many scoring chances against. McCabe didn’t stand out as much as usual, but he finished with three blocked shots in 21:10. He was lousy in the first, as he bobbled the puck three minutes in and gave the Islanders a quality chance against.
His defensive coverage lapsed halfway through the opening frame, as he didn’t notice an opposing player who was sneaking down in the offensive zone. Fortunately, he was far more dependable after the opening 20. Advertisement He made a bad decision to pinch in the neutral zone in the first, and Bo Horvat had a quality chance on a two-on-one as a result.
He picked up a primary assist on the game-winner by firing the puck wide on the power play, as it bounced right to McMann for an empty net. Dewar scored 11 goals last season, but he’s still sitting at zero on January 2nd. It would be nice to write something other than “he wasn’t noticeable on either end” for once.
What exactly is Reaves’ role on this team? He’s a fighter who doesn’t have a fight all season. Is he trying to win the Lady Byng? He turns 38 in a few weeks, and he looks his age. Marner was quiet in the first, but he showcased his impressive stick-handling and set up Tavares for an A+ chance to start the second.
He then had a short-handed breakaway on the penalty kill, but missed the net. He was incredibly quiet in the first two periods, as he failed to register a shot on goal. He finally created a great rush chance with five minutes to play in regulation, but he couldn’t beat Sorokin.
Game score What’s next? Heading home to play the Boston Bruins on Saturday at 7 p.m. on Sportsnet.
(Photo: Brad Penner / Imagn Images).
