Jackets squashed by Kadri
Hat trick leads Leafs to ninth win in last 10 MAPLE LEAFS 6, BLUE JACKETS 3
A Nazem Kadri hat trick and superb goaltending from Frederik Andersen.
The simple math added up to another victory for the Toronto Maple Leafs on Wednesday night at the Air Canada Centre.
Kadri recorded his fourth career NHL hat trick and Andersen stopped 54 shots as the Leafs won for the ninth time in 10 games, beating the Columbus Blue Jackets 6-3.
It’s the first time the Leafs have won all five games in a five-game home stand.
Kadri also had two assists to give him five points, setting a career high. Kadri completed the hat trick at 11:21 of the third when Mitch Marner found him hiding and fed him with a perfect pass.
The win apparently came with a hefty price for the Leafs, as defenceman Jake Gardiner left in the first period and did not return. While social media was abuzz with the idea Gardiner had been traded, the Leafs announced at the start of the third period that Gardiner would not return because of a lower-body injury. It was thought he might have been hurt on a slash.
Not only was Gardiner leading the Leafs in ice time heading into the game with an average of 22 minutes, 52 seconds, he has supplied more than his fair share of offence, recording 35 points (four goals and 31 assists) in 58 games.
The Blue Jackets, who won eight of their previous nine games in Toronto, kept up their recent shoot-from-anywhere mentality.
After recording 101 shots on goal in their past two games combined (51 against the New York Islanders on Tuesday and 50 versus the New Jersey Devils on Saturday), the Jackets fired 57 at Andersen. The previous high given up by the Leafs this season was 48.
There was a standing ovation for Andersen in the third period and chants of “Freddie, Freddie!” after he made a point-blank toe save on Boone Jenner. Had the Jackets forward scored, the game would have been tied 4-4.
In 10 games since getting Marner as a linemate, Kadri has seven goals and eight assists. In the previous 20 games before the line switch, Kadri had one goal and one assist.
Still, for the most part at even-strength, the Leafs were chasing the game. The Jackets had 22 shots on goal in the second, the most allowed by Toronto in any period in 2017-18.