Washington simply could not match up against Toronto's top six, led by Matthews sterling effort.

Now that’s how you start a game.

When the Maple Leafs played in Philadelphia on Tuesday night, the Flyers scored in the opening minute in each of the first two periods. Sheldon’s Keefe’s club did it one day later, as Auston Matthews scored just 16 seconds in and William Nylander followed suit with a goal in the first minute of the second. Alex Ovechkin and Connor McMichael each scored in the second, but Toronto quickly responded with a goal of its own each time to maintain a two-goal lead after 40 minutes.

The start of the third was a disaster, as Toronto wasted two early power plays before leaving Ovechkin all alone for his second of the game. However, the Leafs responded immediately once the Capitals got within one, and goals from Bobby McMann, Tyler Bertuzzi and John Tavares capped off a 7-3 victory. Washington simply could not match up against Toronto’s top six.

3 Stars:

  1. Auston Matthews
  2. William Nylander
  3. Max Domi

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