Toronto’s 7-2 win over Edmonton on Saturday was not a one line show. William Nylander scored twice, including his 300th career goal, but Jack Roslovic, Auston Matthews, Troy Stecher, Zack MacEwen and Vinni Lettieri also scored, and that spread is the real story of a team that has now won four straight to improve to 7-4-2. Anthony Stolarz made 30 saves, and the Maple Leafs outscored the hosts 4-1 in the third period, a period in which depth, not star power, usually decides games. Edmonton, by contrast, got both its goals from Leon Draisaitl and both its assists of note from Connor McDavid, and lost by five.
The road streak behind the streak
Matthews and Kirill Marchenko both extended their season opening road point streak to five games, and Matthews now needs just one point to reach 800 in his career, which will make him the fastest player in franchise history to reach the milestone and the NHL’s third quickest American skater to hit the mark. Road point streaks matter because they measure consistency away from home, where matchups are harder and crowds are hostile, and Toronto’s ability to score on the road, from its top line and its depth lines alike, is what has turned a good start into a winning streak. No team has had more success in Rogers Place in Edmonton than the Maple Leafs, who have gone 12-2-1 there since the Oilers moved into their new arena, and Saturday extended that dominance in the most emphatic way possible.
What Monday tests next
Toronto visits the Calgary Flames on Monday night, continuing a road trip that will test whether the depth scoring travels as well as the stars do. Edmonton, meanwhile, hosts the Detroit Red Wings on Monday, with its own question to answer: whether a team that relies so heavily on McDavid, with 33 points in 11 games, and Draisaitl, with 12 goals, can find secondary scoring when the top line is contained. Toronto’s penalty kill, which had killed 40 of 41 opposition power plays and 30 in a row before Edmonton scored late on Saturday, is another part of the depth story, because a team that kills penalties, scores from its third line and gets 30 saves from its goaltender does not need its stars to be perfect. On Saturday, Toronto’s stars were excellent anyway. That combination, stars plus depth, is what makes a four game winning streak look like something more durable than a hot week.
