Nylander leads Maple Leafs to 5-2 win over Blackhawks
TORONTO, CANADA - FEBRUARY 15: Tyler Johnson #90 of the Chicago Blackhawks gets a shot away against a checking William Nylander #88 of the Toronto Maple Leafs at Scotiabank Arena on February 15, 2023 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The Maple Leafs defea
TORONTO - William Nylander had a goal and two assists, Ilya Samsonov stopped 27 shots and the Toronto Maple Leafs beat the Chicago Blackhawks 5-2 on Wednesday night.
Auston Matthews, John Tavares and Rasmus Sandin each added a goal and an assist, and Conor Timmins also scored for the Maple Leafs, who won for the fifth time in eight games.
Sam Lafferty and Philipp Kurashev each had a goal and an assist for Chicago. Petr Mrazek finished with 37 saves. The Blackhawks have lost three straight and are 2-5-1 in their last eight.
Leapfrogged by Tampa Bay for second in the Atlantic Division since last playing Saturday night in a4-3 loss to last-place Columbus, the Maple Leafs opened the scoring after just 9 seconds into the game when Nylander moved in on a breakaway and slid home his 30th goal of the season.
The Blackhawks tied it on the game’s second shot 53 seconds later when Lafferty jumped on a turnover by Calle Jarnkrok and scored his ninth.
Sandin regained the lead for Toronto with his fourth on a shot that hit a Chicago stick and fooled Mrazek at 8:14.
Alexander Kerfoot appeared to give Toronto a two-goal lead just 15 seconds later only to have it overturned when the Blackhawks challenge for offside.
However, Matthews did push the lead to 3-1 when he scored his 26th off a pass from Nylander with 8:39 left in the first. Matthews, last season’s Hart Trophy winner as NHL MVP and the first player in a decade to score 60 goals, was back after spraining his knee on Jan. 25 — missed five games over a three-week stretch thanks to the All-Star break and Toronto’s bye week.
Chicago got back within one 46 seconds into the second when Kurashev fired his eighth.
Tavares made it 4-2 as he took advantage of Mrazek’s miscue to score his 24th at 7:37 of the middle period.
Timmins, playing for the first time since Jan. 27, then scored his second on a one-timer for a 5-2 lead with 3:53 left in the middle period.
NYLANDER MILESTONE
Nylander joined Matthews, Tavares and Phil Kessel as the only Maples players over the last 20 years to reach 30 goals in 55 games or fewer. The goal was the also fourth-fastest to start a game in franchise history behind only Charlie Conacher in 1932 (7 seconds), Mitch Marner in 2019 (7 seconds) and Ted Kennedy in 1953 (8 seconds).
MAPLE LEAFS TALK KANE, TOEWS
With both their contracts set to expire July 1, Blackhawks stars Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews could be moving on before the trade deadline — if they waive their no-movement clauses.
Tavares was asked before the game if it’s difficult to envision Kane and Toews in different uniforms.
"I don’t think you really ever thought it was going to possibly come to that point," he said. "But when you’re seeing it from the outside — just the way they’ve been talking about it, handling it in their situation now — that’s becoming more and more likely."
Matthews grew up idolizing Kane — a fellow U.S.-born star — and said it would be strange seeing one of his childhood heroes in another jersey.
"It would be a little weird," he said. "But it’s been weird not seeing him in the playoffs, too."
UP NEXT
Blackhawks: At Ottawa on Friday night to finish a four-game trip.
Maple Leafs: Host Montreal on Saturday night to finish a three-game homestand.