Montreal rues missed chances against Maple Leafs

TORONTO — Special teams were the difference as the Toronto Maple Leafs defeated the Montreal Canadiens 2-1 at Scotiabank Arena Wednesday night in the season opener for both clubs.

The Leafs got a powerplay goal from Pierre Engvall, while the Canadiens went 0-for-4 on their power plays and were limited to one shot on a 5-on-3 advantage for 1:44.

“(The Leafs) put a lot of pressure on us, but I didn’t like our pace,” coach Dominique Ducharme said. “Our pace, our intensity. I think that’s the difference tonight. When you have a 5-on-3 in the third period, when you’re trailing by one goal, you have to take advantage.”

Ducharme did find things to like about his team’s play.

“I think 5-on-5 and the way we played defensively,” Ducharme said. “I really liked our start before we got the two penalties in the first period and that kind of slowed us down.”

The start included a goal by Jonathan Drouin, who is coming back after taking time off to deal with anxiety. He took a pass from Josh Anderson on an odd-man rush and made no mistake.

“It’s a big goal,” Drouin said. “It’s good to start the season this way. I would have liked the two points, but on a personal side, I’m happy to have scored in the first game. “

While Drouin would like to leave his troubles behind, he did offer an insight into his physical and mental state.

“I feel 100 times better,” he said. “I have peace of mind and I am more focused during games. I don’t want to go into detail, but it’s a whole different experience than in the past few years when I go to the arena.”

The line of Drouin, Anderson and newcomer Christian Dvorak was Montreal’s top line.

Dvorak’s statistics were impressive. He had three shots on goal, three hits and three blocked shots. He was also the only Montreal centre to win more than 50 per cent of his faceoffs.

Goaltender Jake Allen, who will shoulder most of the load until Carey Price emerges from the NHL/ NHLPA player assistance program, had a good outing. It took a perfect shot from William Nylander to break a 1-1 tie.

The good news from the top line is that Nick Suzuki and Cole Caufield each had four shots on goal and linemate Tyler Toffoli added three. The not-so-good news is that they didn’t score and Suzuki struggled on faceoffs, winning only seven of 17.

He wasn’t alone.

Jake Evans, who was over 50 per cent last season and through the playoffs, won three of 12 for a 25-per-cent success rate.

And fourth-line centre Cédric Paquette, who missed most of training camp, lost all six of his faceoffs, which means we may be seeing newcomer Adam Brooks sooner than later.