Toronto Maple Leafs Had a November to Remember

The Toronto Maple Leafs had a good October, but the results weren’t going their way.  November, however was a month to remember. If this sounds familiar, it’s because the same thing happened last season.

During the 2021-22 season, the Toronto Maple Leafs had a 4-4-1 record in October for nine points. Then they posted a record of 12-2 in November for 24 points.

Last season’s Toronto Maple Leafs team finished the season with 115 points, a new franchise record. The start of the 2022-23 season may seem worse than last season, but it wasn’t.

Toronto is better right now compared to the same time last season. In October, they had a 4-4-2 record for ten points. They just finished an outstanding November with an 11-1-3 record for 25 points. Overall, they have 35 points right now, which is two points better than where they were at last season. (Stats from hockey-reference.com)

Considering all the injuries this team has experienced so far, it’s incredible to see no drop-off from last season. Toronto has seen both goaltenders plus four of their top-six defensemen get hurt. Despite those hardships, they battled through and are fourth overall in the NHL.

The Toronto Maple Leafs in November

November 1st-15th

The Toronto Maple Leafs started the month of November with some good news. On November 5th, defenseman Timothy Liljegren made his season debut and helped Toronto beat the Boston Bruins. He started the season on long-term injured reserve (LTIR) after having surgery in the summer to fix a hernia.

During the Hockey Hall of Fame weekend, Toronto honored Maple Leafs legend Borje Salming on November 11th and 12th. The hockey world learned in August of 2022 that Salming got diagnosed with ALS. November 12th would end up being Salming’s final public appearance. He passed away on November 24th.

The November 12th game against the Vancouver Canucks saw the debut of defenseman Jordie Benn. His on-ice return from injury coincided with the departure of defenseman T.J. Brodie. The team later placed Brodie on injured reserve.

On November 15th, goaltender Matt Murray returned from LTIR and helped Toronto beat the Pittsburgh Penguins. That game also featured Tavares scoring career goal number 400 and Pontus Holmberg recording his first NHL point. He assisted on the goal scored by Michael Bunting.

November 16th-30th

The game on November 21st against the New York Islanders was game number 600 for defenseman Jordie Benn. Toronto lost the game in overtime but also lost defenseman Morgan Rielly to injury. The injury was bad enough for him to get placed on LTIR.

Due to the injuries of defensemen Jake Muzzin, Rielly, and Brodie, the Toronto Maple Leafs made a trade on November 23rd with the Arizona Coyotes for defenseman Conor Timmins. The game on November 23rd against the New Jersey Devils saw Holmberg score his first NHL goal.

As mentioned above, on November 24th, the Maple Leafs and the rest of the hockey world lost one of its true legends in Borje Salming. He was a true pioneer and opened the door for many European players to follow his path to the NHL. He will be greatly missed by many.

On November 30th, Toronto welcomed back goaltender Ilya Samsonov and witnessed a historic night for Mitch Marner.

Toronto had a 2-1 lead against the San Jose Sharks, and with just over a minute left in the game, Marner scored into the empty net to give them a 3-1 lead.

The goal moves Marner into a tie for the longest point streak (18 games) in Toronto Maple Leafs history.

He joins Darryl Sitter and Eddie Olczyk as the only Toronto players to do it. Marner will look to set a new franchise record on Saturday, December 3rd against the Tampa Bay Lightning.