After winning their first game of the Global Series against the Detroit Red Wings by a 3-2 final score, the Toronto Maple Leafs looked to leave Sweden undefeated with a victory over the Minnesota Wild. In the end, they did just that, defeating the Wild in overtime by a 4-3 final score. With this win, the Maple Leafs won their fourth straight contest, and here are three notable takeaways from the contest now.
Nylander Plays the Hero In Sweden
This trip to Sweden was a huge one for William Nylander, as it allowed him the opportunity to play at home in front of his family and friends. In the club’s first game, Nylander potted a goal and two assists against the Red Wings. He built off this strong performance beautifully against the Wild, as he not only extended his franchise-record, season-opening point streak to 17 games but also scored the overtime winner.
Nylander’s immense confidence and skill were on full display during this goal. Defenceman Morgan Rielly made a crucial block in the Maple Leafs’ zone and quickly passed it to Nylander. From there, Nylander skated the puck into the Wild’s zone, blew past their defencemen, and deked out Marc-Andre Fleury for the goal. It was a perfect way for this wonderful trip to end, and Nylander got to play the hero in the country he represents in international play.
After this strong two-point performance, Nylander now has 12 goals and 27 points in 17 games. It has been a truly remarkable start for the superstar forward, and he is not showing any signs of slowing down.
Woll’s Solid Bounce-Back Game
Joseph Woll has had a few shaky starts as of late, so he was looking to bounce back against the Wild. In the end, he did just that, saving 33 out of 36 shots, equating to a .917 save percentage (SV%). Overall, the Missouri native did what was asked of him and was another big reason for the Maple Leafs’ win.
Related: 3 Takeaways From Maple Leafs’ 3-2 Win Over the Red Wings
While the Maple Leafs lost their 3-1 lead in the third period after back-to-back goals from Jacob Middleton and Mats Zuccarello, Woll should not be fully blamed for them. After Morgan Rielly’s early third-period goal, the Wild generated the vast majority of chances, so Woll was very busy. Furthermore, after these two Wild goals in the third, Woll stood tall and helped force overtime.
In the end, Woll made several saves on high-danger chances and looked extremely confident throughout the contest. With this win, the rookie netminder now has a 6-4-0 record, a 2.90 goals-against average (GAA), and a .917 save percentage (SV%).
Maple Leafs’ Other Stars Show Up
While Nylander is naturally getting a lot of buzz for his strong performance, that does not mean that we should ignore what the Maple Leafs’ other big-name players did during this contest. Auston Matthews scored his 14th of the season and added an assist. Mitch Marner had a two-assist night, while top rookie Matthew Knies scored. However, Rielly deserves the most recognition, as he had a goal, two assists, and that massive block at the end of the game.
If the Maple Leafs want to keep winning, they are going to need more strong games from their stars. With that, depth scoring will, of course, need to stay hot, as that has been a common theme in their current winning streak.
Overall, this was a good finish to a fantastic Global Series for the Maple Leafs. They improved to a 10-5-2 record and will look to keep the momentum going against the Chicago Blackhawks on Nov. 24 from here.