November 10, 2024

Spezza scores. Hyman scores. Maple Leafs cling to top spot in the North

Hyman #Hyman

How important was the Maple Leafs’ 2-0 win over the Calgary Flames on Saturday night?

A good example came after Zach Hyman scored the second goal, late in the second period. After his wraparound effort, Hyman skated to the bench for the customary glove tap with his teammates. Only this time, Wayne Simmonds almost leapt off the bench with a high-five.

That was the level of emotion after snapping a three-game losing skid and six losses in their previous seven contests.

“When I came around the net (on a wraparound), I wanted to get it high,” Hyman said. “My momentum carried me to our bench, and Wayne was there when I got there.”

Jason Spezza opened the scoring in the first period for the Leafs, who scored were fighting to stay atop the North Division heading into a four-day break.

They entered Saturday’s game tied with Edmonton for top spot, with Winnipeg just two points behind. The Oilers and Jets met in the late game Saturday, but Toronto’s win ensured they would retain at least a share of the division perch.

Spezza’s goal was his seventh of the season, and marked the first time during the 1-6-0 slide that the Leafs had scored first.

“Really important,” coach Sheldon Keefe said about opening the scoring. “It’s difficult to play from behind. We got a big goal to start the game.”

Keefe made something of an eye-opening move prior to the game, starting Jack Campbell in net with Michael Hutchinson backing up. No. 1 goalie Frederik Andersen was given the night off. Keefe later said only that Andersen’s absence was the result of “something (soreness) he’s been dealing with.”

Campbell responded with a 31-save effort and has won all four of his starts this season, two by shutout.

Hyman’s goal was the best shift by any player up to that point in the game. He wound up with the puck behind the net after Morgan Reilly joined the rush, was tripped to the ice and took two defencemen with him as he slid hard into the end boards. Then he peeled around the net and fired a wrist shot into the top corner for a 2-0 lead.

Alex Galchenyuk picked up an assist, his first point as a Leaf.

  • Spezza on fire: Spezza has been among the Leafs’ leaders in points at five-on-five despite a relatively low average of 10:24 of ice time per game. Spezza ranks third in five-on-five points with 13; only Marner (with 22) and Matthews (20) are ahead of him.
  • “I had a deep angle there, but my stick was in the right place, so I took the shot and I was lucky it went in,” he said about Saturday’s goal.

    Spezza also scored in Friday’s game against Calgary, marking the first time he’s scored in back-to-back games since November 2019.

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  • Matthews vs. Tanev: Calgary coach Darryl Sutter wanted defenceman Chris Tanev on the ice whenever Auston Matthews was out during the two-game series. It was a solid matchup ploy by Sutter. Tanev was physical on the Leafs’ top player, including a nasty slam into the boards in the first period. Milan Lucic also mashed Matthews from behind, after the puck had left the area, and got a penalty for it. Overall, Matthews had three shots Friday night and four Saturday — two off the post. Matthews, upset after missing a bouncing puck with an open net in the third period, slammed his stick on the boards when he returned to the bench.
  • Simmonds steps up: Simmonds got the call on the top line with Matthews and Mitch Marner. It was just Simmonds’ second game back from a six-week injury layoff with a broken wrist. Matthews and Marner have now had five wingers this season: Hyman, Simmonds, Joe Thornton, the departed Jimmy Vesey and John Tavares. Matthews needed some kind of spark: entering the game, he had no goals in his previous three games, and three in nine. Toronto is now 10-5-0 when Matthews scores, 5-8-0 when he doesn’t.
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