Auston Matthews scored twice, including the game-winning goal midway through the third period, to lead the visiting Toronto Maple Leafs to a 5-3 victory over the Calgary Flames on Monday.
Goaltender Jack Campbell made 26 saves for Toronto to tie a franchise record with nine consecutive wins to start a season.
Jason Spezza, Wayne Simmonds and John Tavares also scored and William Nylander notched two assists for Toronto, which is on a 7-0-1 roll that has solidified its spot atop the North Division. The Maple Leafs finish the season with an impressive 8-0-1 road record against the Alberta teams.
Mikael Backlund scored twice for the struggling Flames. Andrew Mangiapane added a goal, and Elias Lindholm had two assists. Jacob Markstom stopped 25 shots in his 300th career game, but Calgary lost its fourth straight games and fell to 1-8-0 in the past nine. This defeat was as disappointing as any because the Flames drew even after trailing 2-0 and 3-2.
With the score tied 3-3, Matthews scored Toronto's first power-play goal in 12 games -- snapping an 0-for-29 swoon -- with a rebound tally for his league-leading 27th of the season with 9:10 remaining in regulation.
Now at 185 career goals, Matthews moved past Jimmy Carson for the most goals in NHL history among U.S.-born players within their first five seasons.
Tavares capped a two-point game, which gives him 801 points in his career, with an insurance goal 80 seconds later that rounded out the scoring.
After a scoreless first period, Spezza opened the scoring early in the middle frame by converting his own rebound at 3:10. Matthews doubled the lead with his textbook wrist shot from the slot at 7:53 of the period.
Then came goals in waves. Mangiapane gave the hosts a boost when he buried a rebound with 1:54 remaining in the second period, and Backlund snapped an eight-game drought when he evened the count early in the third period.
Simmonds restored the Toronto lead at 7:13 of the final period by redirecting a long shot from his knees, but Backlund's second of the game, a short-handed goal, tied the contest just past the midway point of the frame.
That set the stage for Matthews and Tavares to score the decisive goals.
--Field Level Media
Toronto | Calgary | |
Auston Matthews 2 | Points | Mikael Backlund 2 |
Auston Matthews 2 | Goals | Mikael Backlund 2 |
William Nylander 2 | Assists | Elias Lindholm 2 |
Auston Matthews 1 | Power Play Goals | N/A |
N/A | Short Handed Goals | Mikael Backlund 1 |
Jack Campbell .897 | Save Percentage | Jacob Markstrom .833 |
Jack Campbell 26 | Saves | Jacob Markstrom 25 |
Team | Shots | Goals | Power Play | Penalty Kill | Penalty Mins | Face Offs Won |
Toronto | 30 | 5 | 1-4 | 1-1 | 2 | 29 |
Calgary | 29 | 3 | 0-1 | 3-4 | 8 | 37 |