MONTRÉAL — The Toronto Maple Leafs’ most dramatic and emphatic comeback of the season was sparked when the wrong stick landed in the right man’s hands.
Fiberglass busted and trailing 3-zip in the second period to a hungry Montreal Canadiens squad, an empty-handed Bobby McMann glided by the Bell Centre visitors’ bench mid-shift and surveyed his options from the outstretched helping hands.
He opted for fellow lefty Matthew Knies’s weapon.
“I saw a couple guys’ sticks. Wanted Kniesy’s. I thought that’d be the closest to it. Didn’t really think about the white tape, though. That’s always a difference. And then it actually felt good,” McMann explained.
“I won a battle with it. And then puck came around, and I felt like I had to bend over a little bit more. His is a little shorter. But then I was like: I got to rip this with his stick and see what happens.”
What happened was, the floodgates burst, and a touchdown’s worth of pucks flowed into the home side’s net on NFL divisional round weekend.
McMann’s “unassisted” snipe of the rush with a borrowed blade marked the first of seven unanswered goals for a Leafs squad that had been caved in and booed viciously through the first 20 minutes.
Final score? Toronto 7, Montreal 3.
With the Maple Leafs getting goals from forwards on all four lines, the blue line, plus two each from the power-play and penalty-kill units. Twelve Leafs hit the score sheet.
It was as decisive and united a response as you’ll see.
Who would’ve believed Toronto would push back with this much force in an enemy barn?
Especially with the suddenly relevant Habs smothering the Leafs in the first period and cranking the volume on a Saturday night crowd that arrived loud and early.
“Felt like they were all over us,” said Oliver Ekman-Larsson, who had a three-point night. “And we knew that coming in, too. So, I didn’t like the way we came out in the first.”
No one in Blue and White did.
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The Leafs started slow and defensively loose. They weren’t battle ready. McMann took a hooking penalty 200 feet from his net. Auston Matthews committed an atypical double-minor by high-sticking Nick Suzuki’s face, and his old draft classmate Patrik Laine ripped one on the ensuing power-play.
Coach Craig Berube believed all three Montreal strikes were preventable. Thing is, were it not for a dialled-in Joseph Woll, the Habs would’ve had four or five before the first buzzer.
Instead of berating each other during the intermission, though, the Leafs pushed the message that they were better than their performance.
“A lot of positivity, honestly,” McMann said. “Recognizing that we weren’t playing our game, and we were not playing up to how we should be.
“Realizing that we’re a really good team, and we’ve shown it many times this year. And if we stick with our plan, we’re going to come out on top.”
Matthews took ownership of his bad penalty and later ripped his first-ever shorthanded goal.
“Felt pretty good. I mean, tonight wasn’t my best night, especially that first period,” Matthews said. “This has been a tough building for us in the last couple years, and that first period was tough.
“So, I think it’s just a testament to the guys we got in the room. There’s a no-quit mentality.”
Woll epitomized that mindset, stoning the Canadiens in tight, sprawling and spread-eagling to limit the damage. Woll channeled his inner Grant Fuhr: OK, you got three. But no way you’re scoring a fourth.
“Our goaltender led the way,” Berube praised. “He did some diving and stuff. Little Fuhrsy action, which is good to see. He had a lot of effort in net tonight.”
McMann was living and dying with every high-danger chance: “A lot of times I was like, ‘Oh no,’ watching from the bench. ‘That’s in the net!’… And then somehow, he came up with a save.”
Berube’s significant mid-game adjustment, promoting centre Pontus Holmberg to a buzzing William Nylander’s second line in favour of Max Domi was a smart one.
A good feel for who was feeling it.
“I think we were creating a lot when we were out there,” Nylander said. “We found each other pretty good out there. So, a lot of chemistry.”
“I just like Holmberg’s game, going even back to the Jersey game, the way he’s skating with the puck and hanging on to pucks,” Berube explained. “And I loved Willy tonight; I thought he was goin’. Thought he was on his toes from the get-go, just trying to make a difference. So, I made that switch.”
Just as the Maple Leafs, as a whole, flipped the switch from no-show to no-quit after a lacklustre 20 minutes.
“It was a big game for both teams. And Montreal has been playing extremely well, and it showed in the first period. But we got our feet under us and started playing the right way and doing the right things,” Berube said. “It’s a great comeback win from the guys.”
Starting with the wrong weapon in the right sniper’s mitts.
“Maybe he should switch,” Berube chuckled.
“Actually, a lot of guys, coaches included,” McMann said, “are thinking I should be using white tape from now on. But I might need to be using it for a couple practices before I go at it.”
Fox’s Fast Five
• When Ryan Reaves asked Arber Xhekaj to end his fight drought, down 3-0 in the first, the big defenceman shooed him away and pointed at the scoreboard.
• Matthews’ scouting report on Calder candidate Lane Hutson, who leads all rookies in assists (34) and points (37):
“Really shifty. Really crafty. He’s really dynamic with the puck. Offensively, he sees the ice well. He makes plays. He’s able to draw guys in and put pucks past you and then into areas.”
• Are we sure about Samuel Montembeault for Team Canada?
• Wisconsin native Jake McCabe is starting to revel in this rivalry.
“Yeah, it’s always fun being here for the last couple years now,” McCabe says. “Just to feel the energy in the city. Even walking around, there’s lots of Leafs fans, lots of Habs fans. So, it’s a cool environment to be around. Obviously, I didn’t grow up in it like a lot of Canadians did, but definitely growing to love it.”
• Berube got a good laugh Saturday morning reminiscing about the infamous Flyers-Canadiens playoff pre-game brawl in 1987.
As a called-up rookie, Berube found himself watching the brouhaha from the bench.
“I knew some fireworks were gonna happen,” Berube recalled. “So it’s all going on, and Mike came up to me from the bench. I was watching the whole thing, and Mike goes, ‘You better go get dressed. We might need ya.’ And I ran in the room, was putting my gear on. He was just messing with me. But I was a kid, right? So, I better get in there and get my equipment on. We had a brawl, and nobody got kicked out!”
