Maple Leafs report cards: Toronto’s overtime struggles continue in loss to Islanders

The Toronto Maple Leafs refuse to win in overtime.

Erik Källgren single-handedly coughed up the lead with a bad turnover with three minutes left in regulation, spoiling a terrific defensive effort in front of him. While the Leafs gave up just 22 shots in regulation, and many of the low-danger variety, a flukey first-period Islanders goal combined with Källgren’s late-game mistake was enough to send this game into three-on-three action.

The Leafs were dreadful in overtime. Auston Matthews fired a low-danger shot from a distance, and both Mitch Marner and William Nylander had terrible giveaways. Sheldon Keefe decided to give Justin Holl a shift for some unknown reason, and Anthony Beauvillier beat Källgren with a nice shot to end it.

While the end result isn’t great, the Leafs were easily the better team tonight. The lack of five-on-five scoring continues to be a problem, but it felt like they could have played with a Zamboni driver in net for most of the night. The Leafs will win a lot of games if they continue to prevent chances like that, but at some point, the offence needs to come.

First star

John Tavares

There were plenty of players to choose from tonight, but let’s give Tavares the nod against his former team. He definitely started on time, as his line had a full shift in the offensive zone four minutes in, and he had another good chance in the slot halfway through the period. While they didn’t get on the scoreboard, the Leafs dominated during his minutes in the first. His hard work was rewarded five minutes into the second, as he fired a quick shot from the slot for a power-play goal.

Tavares finished with just sixteen minutes of ice time, as Sheldon Keefe opted to roll four lines while protecting a lead in the third, and the Leafs only had two power plays. However, he made a strong impact in those minutes and now has an impressive 22 points in 20 games.

Second star

Rasmus Sandin

Oliver Wahlstrom had a knee-on-knee collision with Matthews halfway through the third, and Sandin wasted no time dropping the gloves with a much bigger opponent. That’s what fans will remember about Sandin’s performance, but he also had one of his best games of the season. He looked far more confident with the puck on his stick and made a sweet pass to set up Tavares in the slot nine minutes in. He later made a gorgeous stretch pass that led to a good chance five minutes into the second and picked up a secondary assist on a cross-ice pass at the point. Opponents didn’t generate much against him, as he finished with a team low in expected-goals against.

Third star

Timothy Liljegren

Liljegren had been on the ice for just two five-on-five goals against through his first eight games. While he was on for the Källgren blunder, the goal against certainly wasn’t on him. He made a nice stretch pass in early first when he saw a Matt Martin hit coming and stood in there to fire it anyways. He looks stronger this season, as he bowled over Anders Lee halfway through the second, and won plenty of fifty-fifty battles. He picked up a primary assist on Matthews’ goal by shooting for the deflection. Opposing forwards really struggle to gain the zone against him, and Sheldon Keefe rewarded him by starting him in the second, third, and overtime. My only critique is that he just missed a puck over glass penalty at the end of the first when the Leafs were already shorthanded. Fortunately, it didn’t go over the glass, so Liljegren maintained a strong grade.

Player reports A-

The third line (Pierre Engvall, Pontus Holmberg, and Calle Järnkrok)

This line was fantastic, which is bad news for Nick Robertson. They started the game with a long stretch of offensive-zone time and were barely in their own end. They don’t hit all that much on the forecheck, but Engvall and Järnkrok forced plenty of turnovers from the Islanders’ defencemen. Engvall had a good rush chance with seven minutes left in the second, then made a nice pass to set up another. Järnkrok lost the handle on a two-on-one in the first, but had a great chance right in front of Ilya Sorokin halfway through the second. Holmberg was fairly boring but drew a penalty to give the Leafs a power play, and it led to a goal. They always seemed to be in the right position defensively. Holmberg set up Järnkrok for a chance in the final minutes, and Järnkrok barely missed. The Islanders scored to tie the game seconds later, but it wasn’t their fault. They were Toronto’s best line in terms of expected-goal percentage.

B+

The checking line (Zach Aston-Reese, David Kämpf, and Denis Malgin)

This line did not grade well by expected-goal percentage, but I don’t care, as they did their job well. While they hardly generated anything offensively, the Islanders also couldn’t generate much of anything during their minutes. Aston-Reese was noticeable on the back-check, and this line was able to fast-forward the game while giving Källgren a breather. New York’s first goal deflected off Kämpf and in, but that was just a fluke rather than a bad defensive play. They did what they were supposed to do.

B

William Nylander

Nylander had a bad turnover in overtime but was otherwise one of Toronto’s best forwards. He had two of Toronto’s best chances early on, as a wicked shot just missed off the cross-bar five minutes in, and Sorokin stoned him on a good one-timer in the early second. He made a nifty one-touch pass to Tavares to set up Toronto’s first goal and made a nice back-check shortly after. He now has points in 17 of Toronto’s 20 games and points in 11 of his last 12. He also made a nice defensive play with four minutes left to break up a rush, then transitioned the puck to eat up more time.

The shutdown pair (Mark Giordano and Justin Holl)

I liked the Leafs’ defensive play overall, and this pairing is tasked with the most difficult matchups. Giordano’s been on the ice for just five, five-on-five goals against through twenty games, and he wasn’t on for one tonight. Giordano made a nice play to tie up Mathew Barzal’s stick to prevent a good chance halfway through the first period and made a nice stretch pass that led to a good chance for Alex Kerfoot. I don’t know why Holl was on the ice in overtime, but he was fairly invisible in regulation, and that’s typically a good sign for a defensive defenceman.

B-

Mitch Marner

Marner extended his point streak to 13 games with a power-play assist on Toronto’s first goal. He has a point in 18 of 20 games, which is quite impressive given Matthews’ lack of five-on-five scoring. While that assist wasn’t anything special, he looked like Vintage Marner early on and set up Kerfoot for a good chance with four minutes to go in the first. He made a nice stretch pass to create another good scoring chance in the early second, and even took a shift on defence for an offensive-zone face-off in a 1-1 game. He also made a great back-check with seven minutes left to prevent an odd-man rush. Marner made a careless turnover in overtime but was fairly noticeable on both ends in regulation. Given his skill set, I’d like to see a primary point or two from him, but he played alright for the most part.

C

Alex Kerfoot

Kerfoot failed to register a shot on goal in his previous two games but had a couple of good opportunities through forty minutes. He looked fearless on the forecheck and made a nice takeaway that led to a Marner chance in the late second. He played a fine two-way game, but at some point, he needs to put the puck in the net. He doesn’t have a primary point in 10 games, and he doesn’t have a five-on-five goal all season.

Jordie Benn

Benn wasn’t overly noticeable, which is a good thing for a depth defenceman. It was his 600th career game, and he stopped Barzal in transition with a few minutes left in the second. He took a holding-the-stick penalty at the end of the first but was otherwise fairly invisible. The Leafs didn’t generate much offensively in his minutes, but that wasn’t really his fault.

Auston Matthews

Matthews scored his third five-on-five goal of the season, which means he’s no longer tied with Liljegren, Malgin, Aston-Reese, and Engvall. He had gone seven games without a five-on-five goal, and it was off of a deflection. While the goal is nice, and he played quite well defensively, he was fairly invisible and didn’t create many chances. The Holmberg and Tavares lines created more scoring chances, and most of his line’s chances were created by Nylander. The Leafs need more out of the reigning Hart Trophy winner.

Michael Bunting

Bunting finished with just one shot on goal, and his line barely generated any chances when he was on the ice. If you’re going to ride shotgun with Matthews and Nylander, you need to make more happen. He played low-event minutes, but the Leafs need him to create more offensively.

D+

Erik Källgren

Källgren looked awfully lonely during the game’s opening minutes, as he didn’t face a shot in the first six minutes. He faced just 15 shots in the opening 40 minutes, and most of them were of the low-danger variety. His only goal allowed before the second intermission was quite flukey, as it deflected off Kämpf and in.

While he wasn’t overly challenged, everything was going rather smoothly for Källgren until the final three minutes. This turnover is just not acceptable.

Beauvillier made a nice shot on the overtime winner, but the Leafs shouldn’t have been in overtime in the first place.

This was Källgren’s ninth game of the season tonight, and he’s now 2-2-4. The Leafs can’t find a way to win in overtime, and he is the king of that. The Leafs deserved two points tonight, and it definitely feels like he cost them one.

MIA

Morgan Rielly

Rielly missed most of the third period after colliding with Kyle Palmieri. He made a nice pass to set up Järnkrok for a chance in front and came close to scoring in the third. He didn’t play the full game, so it was tough to decide on a grade. I hope he’s okay.

Game Score

Final grade: B

The Leafs fully deserved the win tonight, and came out of the gates flying by registering the first seven shots of the game. They limited the Islanders to just one power play, and Källgren wasn’t tested with many high-danger chances. If Källgren doesn’t make the late-game turnover, Sheldon Keefe is probably smiling from ear to ear about their defensive effort, and he still might be. The bottom six was great defensively, and Sandin and Liljegren played one of their best games of the season on the back end. It was shutout calibre defence.

Unfortunately, the lack of five-on-five offence continues. The power play continues to look great, but Toronto’s only five-on-five goal came off of a deflection, and the Islanders entered play as the 31st-ranked team in expected goals against per minute. As good as the bottom six was, they lack scoring talent, and the Matthews line didn’t generate enough high-danger chances. While there are plenty of positives to take away from this game, the Leafs need more scoring eventually.

What’s next for the Leafs?

Heading to New Jersey to kick off a four-game road trip on Wednesday at 7 p.m. on Sportsnet.

(Top photo: John E. Sokolowski / USA Today)