The Maple Leafs jumped out to an early lead thanks to a power-play one-timer from William Nylander, but they were otherwise dreadful in the opening frame. Dallas led 2-1 heading into the first intermission, and the Stars held Toronto to just four shots. Just two of those four shots came at five-on-five, so Dallas definitely didn’t look like the team that gave up 48 shots to the Buffalo Sabres the night before.
The second period started just like the first, as the Leafs took advantage of an early power-play opportunity. Nylander was involved once again, as he found John Tavares in the bumper spot for yet another one-timer goal. As the game wore on, Toronto’s penalty kill suddenly looked excellent, and the Leafs took the lead with their third power-play goal just past the halfway point.
Evgenii Dadonov tied the game on a penalty shot in the third, but Mitch Marner and Nylander each scored less than a minute later to seal the victory for the Leafs. While it wasn’t always pretty, Sheldon Keefe’s team came away with a 5-4 win.
3 Stars:
- Mitch Marner
- William Nylander
- Auston Matthews