Game Review: Defensive leakiness continues as Maple Leafs lose third straight game (and possibly William Nylander to injury)

"This game was a whirlwind from the start. Just five minutes and one second into the game, it was already 1-1. Mattias Samuelsson opened the scoring after the Sabres pushed the puck up ice on a Leafs line change. Multiple Leafs were covering one Sabre in the defensive zone; first, Dakota Joshua and Philippe Myers covered Alex Tuch on the entry, and then Easton Cowan and Mermis covered Josh Doan in front."

"Just 23 seconds later, Nylander tied the game on a breakaway off a nice flip pass by OEL. Nylander didn't beat him clean as the puck trickled through Alex Lyon, but as we have seen over the years, Nylander is money on a breakaway - and he was flying in this game. Unfortunately, just over a minute afterward, the Sabres scored."

"Once again, though, the Leafs battled back. This time, it was courtesy of a power-play goal as Tavares set up Matthews for a one-timer that he blew by Lyon. It was the kind of play that you watch and wonder why the Leafs don't do it more often; Matthews has developed a good one-timer, but he doesn't use it nearly enough. On this occasion, the pass was in the wheelhouse, and Matthews made no mistake."

The game opened with rapid scoring and multiple lead changes within minutes. Mattias Samuelsson scored on a Leafs line-change breakdown after a Ryan McLeod pass. William Nylander tied the game 23 seconds later on a breakaway off an OEL flip pass. The Sabres quickly regained the lead on a stretch pass that created a 3v2 and a simple tic-tac-toe finish. The Leafs responded with a power-play goal as John Tavares set up Auston Matthews for a one-timer. Toronto then successfully killed a 5-on-3, with Jake McCabe leading the penalty kill effort.

Read at Maple Leafs Hotstove