Still in holiday mode, but here are some notes on a good win by the Maple Leafs in their first game back from the break.

– After taking control of the game in a dominant second period, the Maple Leafs moved to 8-0-3 when protecting leading after 40 minutes. For much of the third, with the score 2-0, the Islanders poured it on while the Leafs were a little passive, but it was impressive how the Leafs gathered themselves after the 2-1 goal and closed out the game safely. It looked like the avalanche had started to fall at 2-1, but it was a composed response from the team defensively.

– The Leafs were credited with 27 blocked shots tonight to the Isles’ 10. A lopsided advantage in blocked shots can be a side effect of getting out possessed, but that wasn’t the case tonight — the Leafs were only edged in shot attempts in the final couple of minutes as the Isles pressed. Toronto did a great job getting in lanes, and — outside of PA Parenteau’s error leaving his point man alone on the Kulemin goal — put together a clean night of defensive zone coverage in allowing just 26 shots on goal and seven high-danger scoring chances (they outchanced the Isles 6-1 in HDSC with the score close).

– Wins in three of the last four for Bernier. He closed out the game well when called upon, but it was his early work that deserves the most credit, as the Leafs were sloppy in the first period with their zone exits and were unable to sustain much in the way of offensive zone time.

– Nice night at the rink for Nazem Kadri; head to head with Tavares, Kadri won his matchup on possession:

TOI CF CA CF% Kadri vs Tavares 12:07 18 12 60

That goes along with two assists — one on Grabner goal, one on the empty netter as Babcock turned to him on those late left-side defensive zone draws — along with two penalties drawn, including one that led to a goal with the extra man on the ice. Add in three shots on goal and a couple of hits, including an early one to set the tone on Tavares… nights like these, consistently, is what Kadri needs to become a go-to center in the League.

Kadri is up to six points in his last five as he’s starting to collect on what he was owed early in the season.

– I won’t hold it against the broadcast crew given they needed to feed their narrative for Hometown Hockey in Oshawa (where JT played junior), but it was funny how much attention Tavares was garnering from the announcers during gameplay despite his -2 and solitary SOG.

– Gruelling night physically for Morgan Rielly, as it was just one of those games where he kept finding himself in positions where he had to take hits to make plays, but he hung in there really well. If I had to nitpick his offensive game so far this season, it’s that he could shoot more effectively — hard and low — for rebounds at times. He did a good job of that on goal #2, generating the rebound for Grabner to bang in.

– Jake Gardiner looked incredible on a second-period powerplay. The pass he threaded backdoor to Holland at the right post from the top of the left circle was a thing of beauty and really it’s an insult it wasn’t finished off. It’s a great thing that his “wow” moments are coming with fewer and fewer, “yeah buts.” Gardiner’s tradition has been to turn it on in the second half, and given he just played arguably the best first half to any season since breaking the NHL, we could be in for a treat if the pattern holds.

– With honourable mentions to Tyler Bozak and Gardiner, James van Riemsdyk is the 34-game winner of the “most improved under Mike Babcock” award. Funny how the work ethic and without-the-puck improvements he’s made are only making him a more productive player, as he’s outpacing his 56 points from last season with his current 32-goal, 61-point projection.

– With 38 shots for, the Leafs are closing in on the top five in the League in shots per game. The Leafs never left the bottom five under Carlyle.

Even Strength Shot Attempts Chart

Even Strength Scoring Chances Chart

Despite the Leafs’ two-goal lead, the Isles never really closed the gap in terms of scoring chances in what was a clean night for Toronto defensively.

Shot Location Chart



Leafs Player Stats – Toronto 3 vs. New York 1

PLAYER G A P +/- PIM S HITS BKS FO% PP TOI SH TOI TOI M. Hunwick 0 0 0 2 2 2 0 3 - 0:25 0:00 23:02 D. Phaneuf 0 0 0 -1 0 3 3 2 - 2:03 0:46 18:36 P. Parenteau 0 1 1 0 0 2 1 2 0% 1:55 0:00 18:20 J. Lupul 0 0 0 0 0 2 1 2 - 1:43 0:00 14:22 J. van Riemsdyk 1 0 1 1 0 6 0 0 - 2:11 0:00 18:26 S. Matthias 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 - 0:06 0:00 9:27 P. Holland 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 40% 1:59 0:00 15:43 D. Winnik 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 - 0:06 0:46 13:58 B. Boyes 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 - 1:52 0:00 10:55 M. Grabner 1 0 1 1 0 1 0 0 - 0:00 1:14 16:18 T. Bozak 1 0 1 1 0 1 0 0 53% 2:08 0:00 18:35 N. Kadri 0 2 2 2 0 3 2 1 8% 1:46 0:00 17:30 M. Rielly 0 1 1 2 0 2 0 2 - 0:30 1:02 22:12 R. Polak 0 1 1 1 0 2 6 4 - 0:00 1:25 20:36 L. Komarov 0 0 0 2 0 6 4 2 0% 1:43 0:46 17:43 J. Gardiner 0 0 0 -1 0 2 2 5 - 1:27 0:00 19:57 M. Marincin 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 - 0:00 0:47 12:26 B. Froese 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 2 38% 0:06 1:14 10:09

Mike Babcock Post Game