Auston Matthews Reveals Locker Room Message That Fueled Comeback Win Against Canadiens
The Maple Leafs went from being down 3-0 after the first to winning 7-3, and captain Auston Matthews revealed how the team stayed mentally strong.
Being down 3-0 in the first is never the best way to start off a game, and for the Maple Leafs and Auston Matthews, it was the worst possible. Needless penalties including a double minor from the captain himself created a huge hole for Toronto to dig out of.
But whatever happened over the course of the first intermission must have sparked something, as Toronto stormed back with seven unanswered goals and a complete team effort capped off by the save of the year by Joseph Woll.
Adding his first career shorthanded goal, Matthews was one of 12 Maple Leafs to register a point, and talked post-game about what motivated the team to fight back.
The Maple Leafs' Talent Finally Bails Them Out
It was a special night for Toronto, and not just because they scored seven-plus goals in Montreal for the first time since 1942, but because it was the first time all season it felt like they had a complete team effort from top to bottom.
Along with Matthews, the Leafs saw Nick Robertson, Oliver Ekman-Larsson, William Nylander, David Kampf, Steven Lorentz, and Bobby McMann all light the lamp, but they did so in every way imaginable.
Two power play goals, two shorthanded goals, an empty netter, a breakaway highlight reel play, point shot, it didn't matter for Toronto; they were able to capitalize on their chances and proved that if they can play at this pace come playoff time, it'll be a much more successful push.
Oh, and Joseph Woll also decided to do this.
Yeah, safe to say once the Leafs headed out for the second, the Montreal Canadiens had no idea what they were up against.
Toronto pushed their lead in the Atlantic to three points in front of Florida, and push the Canadiens nine points behind the Panthers for second.
For the Maple Leafs, it was a great sign that proved even against a team with a ton of momentum, they can pull it together and claw themselves into a dominant win. It bodes well for the playoffs too, as the team starts to make a case for being a real contender for the Stanley Cup.
