Rielly’s winner caps game of swings, long trip on deck
From a standings perspective, this Battle of Ontario might not have looked like the fairest of fights. But when the Ottawa Senators play the Toronto Maple Leafs, all bets are off.
It was up to Morgan Rielly — finishing a two-on-two rush with Zach Hyman halfway through the third period — to cap a 5-4 win over the Senators, a thrilling see-saw battle at Scotiabank Arena in which defence appeared to be optional. It was the fourth win in five games for a resurgent Toronto team, whose January woes seem to be turning into a Febru- ary festival, despite the best efforts of the spunky Senators, who save their best for the Leafs.
For the Leafs: Hyman opened the scoring, tipping in a pass from Mitch Marner, as the Leafs dominated the first 10 minutes of the first period. After they scored on their seventh shot compared to just one by Ottawa, they seemed to take their foot off the pedal. The first ended with shots even at 11 each. A stick save by a sprawling Muzzin, followed seconds later by a near miraculous glove save by an out-of-position Frederik Andersen, and — voila — the Maple Leafs sprung to life. Moments after those heroics, Andreas Johnsson, Matthews and John Tavares scored four minutes apart. Johnsson’s hot hand — a backhander in this case — continued with a goal at 14:20 of the second. It caught Craig Andersen by surprise. Johnsson had his first four-point game Monday. Matthews scored his fourth goal in five games and continues to run roughshod over Ottawa in his short career, now 15 points in 10 games. Tavares scored the Leafs’ fourth goal at 18:20, another easy-looking tap-in from Marner, who has a gift for those seeing-eye passes.
For the Sens: Magnus Paajarvi got Ottawa rolling at 17:18 of the first. The second half of the period and the early part of the second belonged to the Senators. Matt Duchene scored 1:35 into the second for a 2-1 lead before the pendulum swung back to Toronto. Thomas Chabot scored 40 seconds into the third period to get Ottawa within a goal at 4-3. Paajarvi scored again, unchecked to the side of the Leaf crease, at 3:59 to tie it up.
Oh, baby: The Maple Leafs feted broadcasting legend Bob Cole, who called the game for Sportsnet, and it was a dandy. The jumbo screen played highlights of Cole’s calls featuring the Maple Leafs during his 50 years. Cole is retiring after this season. The crowd gave him a standing ovation.
Andersen vs. Anderson: The Leafs’ goalie had the crowd chanting his name when, caught well out of position, he stopped a shot from sniper Mark Stone halfway through the second. He faced 43 Ottawa shots while his counterpart saw 30.
Up next: The Maple Leafs face the Canadiens in Montreal on Saturday, the start of a six-game road trip that will also take them to New York, Colorado, Las Vegas, Arizona and St. Louis.