The Toronto Maple Leafs Look to Keep It Going Against Islanders

The Toronto Maple Leafs head into tonight’s match-up with the New York Islanders on the back of a resounding win.

Last week was a decent week for the Toronto Maple Leafs; though the New Jersey Devils got the better of them, the loss was in overtime, and they proved a lot more dominant against the Buffalo Sabres.

It was the special teams that really showed up to play versus Buffalo, with 4 successful kills, a shorthanded goal and a 66% success rate on the power play.

Unfortunately for Toronto, the Islanders are an even-match for them in terms of penalty minutes per game and are among the better teams in the league for not giving up penalties.

Toronto Maple Leafs Vs New York Islanders

With that in mind, it’s going to come down to the Leafs to get it done five-on-five, which is something that hasn’t quite clicked. Yet.

The Leafs are currently ranked 28th in goals per minute at 5v5.  Their roster is obviously not going to finish the season so low, and some positive regression is eventually going to come their way. (stats naturalstattrick.com).

It’s plain to see that Auston Matthews is just waiting to explode into his Hart Trophy winning form, indeed you could see the frustrations coming to the surface versus Buffalo.

Last year the Islanders were able to hold him completely scoreless, which is certainly not the outcome he’ll be looking for tonight.

Also heading into tonight’s game, it’s worth noting that Mitch Marner is quietly on a point streak that recently saw him become just the second player in franchise history to amass more than one 12-game point streak.

As always, the spotlight will turn to the newest member of the 400-goal club as John Tavares plays against the team that drafted him.

Given this will be his 300th regular season game for the Toronto Maple Leafs, you’d expect no ill will, but apparently Islanders fans still can’t let this one rest – a goal or two from the captain though will suffice to silence them until next time.

On paper, the Islanders shouldn’t be too concerning for the Leafs, though in Ilya Sorokin they do have a goalie that can steal a game, while Toronto is starting with third-choice, Erik Kallgren.

All told, it is going to come down to a strong defensive performance in front of his net to ensure that the Islanders can’t crash their way through.

They may not play the most stylish hockey, but they are managing to sit 3rd in the Metropolitan Division and shouldn’t be underestimated.

Tonight’s game feels like the sort of match-up that could lead to a lacklustre Toronto Maple Leafs performance akin to their West Coast trip. Let’s instead hope for something that more closely resembles the Buffalo game.