In week four of Leafs hockey, the Buds had 4 games on the slate, going 2-1-1, for an overall record of 6-5-2.

Maple Leafs 6, Jets 4

If there’s one thing that stayed the same with this team, it’s the ability to come off hot after a terrible game. Last week, the Leafs got washed by Columbus, St Louis, and Boston. They come back to start a new week with a great showing against Winnipeg, putting up 19 shots in the first frame. This was a game for Toronto to lose. They had no business showing out as well as they did early on with the week they just had, but I guess it’s something about playing the Jets that just gets you going. Fueled by a John Tavares hattrick, the Leafs never let up, pressuring the Jets the whole game and outplaying them on both ends of the ice.

The first 30 minutes of the game was all Toronto, punishing Winnipeg and tearing the Jets apart. As the Jets tried to push back, the Leafs scored an insurance goal with Tavares notching his second of the game. As the Jets were climbing back to a 5-4 deficit, Tavares shot it into the empty net to complete his hattrick and finish the game.

Kyle Connor had two goals and two assists, and Gabriel Vilardi and Mark Scheifele each had a goal and an assist for the Jets (8-1-0). Connor Hellebuyck made 30 saves, and Josh Morrissey had three assists. As the Jets tried to push back, the Leafs held their own and secured the win. A great bounce-back game from the week that they’ve had.

Maple Leafs 4, Kraken 1

Seeing this team in-person throw out a performance like this is truly scintillating. The game didn’t start off too hot, with chances for both teams not amounting to much; just a slow and boring period of hockey. That was until Matthew Knies was able to busy one right before the end of the period, for his sixth of the season.

In the second, it was the Nylander and Tavares show. Their line has been on fire over the last couple games, giving the Leafs a sense of comfort when they’re out on the ice. On Nylander’s second goal, John Tavares fed him the puck with a beautiful pass off his knees in front of the net. This goal marked Nylander’s eighth of the season, giving a boost to his team lead.

The final period was a solid period from both sides, chances on each end and good stops from the goaltenders. Joseph Woll had a shutout going up until the Kraken were able to score 6-on-5 to close the shutout bid. It seemed to be a boring, uneventful game, but that is the kind of hockey the Leafs need to play to beat these worse teams like Seattle.

Maple Leafs 2, Blues 4

Just like that, after a strong couple games, the old Leafs are back. They had a ton of great chances, and they just couldn’t capitalize. Mitch Marner opened the scoring for Toronto in the first period, but Colton Parayko led a comeback for St. Louis with two second-period goals and an assist. Jordan Kyrou and Pavel Buchnevich also scored for the Blues, while Steven Lorentz added Toronto’s second goal. Despite outshooting the Blues early, Toronto faltered in the second period. Jordan Binnington made 35 saves for St. Louis, ending their three-game losing streak​.

The second period was heavily tilted in St. Louis’ favor, with a mix of physicality and smart hockey throughout. “We had an OK first, but I think in the second period, we just got pucks deep,” Parayko said. “Had good line changes, I thought, where we got pucks into their zone and we would just get into the O-zone and just roll them over and keep going, and I think took over the game. It was good, I thought. A good game.”

Without any time to think, the Buds went right back at it against a tough Minnesota Wild team, who have been on a hot start since opening night.

Maple Leafs 1, Wild 2

It’s like when they play a solid game and they have a chance at winning, they blow it. It was a strong game for both teams, each having great chances and good defensive moments. Ryan Hartman opened the scoring with his third of the year on a goal that was initially reviewed to put the Wild up 1-0 midway through the first. William Nylander answered quickly with the Leafs first powerplay marker since October 21st, tying the game. Toronto donned a new powerplay unit, consisting of Matthews, Nylander, Marner, Tavares, and Knies; no defensemen. Their first run with this new unit was strong, keeping themselves in the attacking zone and moving well. Hopefully this is a jolt to kickstart this powerplay back near the top of the leaderboard where they belong.

The second period was a tight one, with no scoring and locking up both teams’ offenses. With 2:28 remaining in the second period, Oliver Ekman-Larsson was flagged for both a crosscheck and roughing, but Toronto managed to overcome the four-minute penalty. The Wild were unable to take advantage of the prolonged power play, as Minnesota’s man advantage continued into the third period and fell short.

Deadlocked at 1-1, we entered overtime. No shots were recorded until just over two minutes into the added frame, where Matt Boldy scored on a breakaway to seal the game. The puck came loose in front of the Toronto net, and Max Domi bounced on it. Instead of skating it out, he flips it in front of him to catch up to it, only Wild defender Jared Spurgeon catches the puck before Domi, sending it to Boldy to seal the deal. With a bad line change from Ekman-Larsson, and a defensive mishap from Pacioretty, that’s all she wrote. The Leafs fall to 6-5-2 and face a tough Bruins team on the 5th.