For their first matchup in over a year, the Toronto Maple Leafs took to UBS Arena to face the New York Islanders. The Islanders suffered a difficult 7-2 loss to the Utah Mammoth on Thursday and were hoping to bounce back on Saturday. Goaltender Ilya Sorokin was back in the lineup for Saturday’s game but was the second string netminder, with David Rittich starting.
The beginning of the first was rather uneventful, although Mat Barzal did find himself in the penalty box for high-sticking Max Domi.
Just after the halfway mark, Domi and Ryan Pulock were sent to the box, for cross-checking and slashing, respectively. Before the minors ended, Long Island fan-favorite, John Tavares, was sent off for slashing on Scott Mayfield. The Islanders earned about a minute of power play time, but the team could not convert.
In the dwindling seconds of the first, Rittich made a snappy glove save on a shot by Tavares to keep the game scoreless.
Early in the first, Adam Pelech was sent the puck from the face-off dot, sending the puck sailing over Joseph Woll’s right shoulder for the one goal lead.
The home team tried to keep the momentum going, earning more zone time after the goal. Toronto fought their way back into the Islanders’ zone though, with Auston Matthews wrapping his way around Rittich for his 420th career goal, tying himself with Mats Sundin for the most goals in Maple Leafs’ history.
After a few more tries, Matthews scored again, cementing himself as the all-time highest goal scorer in Toronto Maple Leafs history, with 421 goals in his ten seasons.
The Islanders looked determined to score in the third, but struggled to maintain possession for much of the first half.
With 8:50 remaining, Matthew Schaefer single-handedly forced his way through the neutral zone and faked-out Woll to tie the game. Barzal said that the “game wasn’t really going [their way]” but that he “loves when [Schaefer] gets aggressive with the puck.”
While the Long Island crowd was chanting Schaefer’s name, the Islanders got stuck behind the net, allowing Nicholas Roy to center a pass to Nicholas Robertson for the Leafs’ third goal of the game.
With 2:45 remaining, Emil Heineman sent the puck through Woll’s legs to tie the game from the right circle.
Tavares won the face-off to start overtime but Schaefer earned the puck back to send the Islanders towards Woll. Toronto fought their way back but couldn’t get a clean shot on Rittich.
Matthews had a Grade A chance on Rittich but the puck stayed out.
With 48 seconds remaining, Schaefer, number 48, capped the night off for the Islanders off a spinning pass from Barzal, beating Woll between his glove and pad. Schaefer said he felt his late mother with him tonight and credited her as the reason he aims to be strong every day. Barzal “figured that was [his] only play,” and, evidently, it worked.
The team is feeling more confident coming off a rough loss but fighting their way back in a historic game for the Leafs.
The New York Islanders next game is on Tuesday, January 6 at home against the New Jersey Devils.
