TORONTO — How swiftly the mood flipped.
Scotiabank Arena frothed with excitement when Jake McCabe picked a fight with Garnet Hathaway for clipping Toronto Maple Leafs goaltender Dennis Hildeby.
Blows were thrown. Bodies tumbled. The crowd roared.
These are the newly reformed stick-up-for-each-other Leafs, and the locals love an organic fight.
Yet when McCabe slowly gathered himself on the ice — helmet askew, visor as foggy as a Jetta’s windshield in January — and attempted to stand up, the defenceman stumbled like a knocked-down boxer. Morgan Rielly quickly protected his teammate’s head from falling back down.
The arena fell silent.
Whether McCabe was dazed by a punch, hitting the ice, or Hathaway squeezing in an extra knee after the ordeal doesn’t matter as much as his health going forward.
Just as Toronto’s 3-2 overtime victory over the transitioning Philadelphia Flyers is of less concern than the availability of one half of the club’s best shutdown pair.
“I didn’t like it. I didn’t like what I saw,” coach Craig Berube said. “He’s sticking up for his team and his teammate. We all really appreciate that. But I do not like seeing that happen.
“It’s concerning, for sure.”
Though McCabe did eventually, carefully skate off the ice under his own power, he did not return to the game due to what the team is calling an “upper-body” injury.
When McCabe took a puck to the head and got sidelined for 11 days in December, that was an “upper-body” injury, too.
He’ll undergo further evaluation Monday, but the idea of sustaining two head injuries in a span of 36 days is tough to swallow for an important player and an important season.
“Yeah, it’s tough. I mean, we all know what type of person and player he is. And he sticks up for his teammates and friends, so it’s hard to see him go down like that,” Oliver Ekman-Larsson said. “Hopefully he’s fine.”
If there is a silver lining to the frightening sight, it’s that the Atlantic-leading Maple Leafs keep proving their ability to pile up W’s no matter who hits IR.
Despite looking every bit like a squad playing shorthanded and on the sluggish half of a back-to-back, Toronto stuck to a patient plan in what Matthew Knies politely described as an “uneventful” game.
The Leafs blocked 17 shots, clogged the neutral zone like Ontario sinuses, and bided enough time for Auston Matthews to feed a streaking Rielly for the OT winner.
“It feels good. I thought we played well within structure,” Rielly said.
“You just try to keep your focus. Obviously, that’s your teammate. You want the best for him. But I think he would want our guys to stay focused and stay in the game.”
The Leafs’ knack for pushing through close games and injury woes has been their calling card during this four-game win streak and their 54-point first half of the season.
They’ll need to continue finding ways to win with their depth as they embark on this week’s mentors’ trip to Philadelphia and Carolina with McCabe’s health in doubt.
Knies is ecstatic for his guest, big brother Phillip, who was playing in a Slovak league as recently as 2022-23. And Matthews invited crowd-pleaser Joe Thornton, who was all smiles as he walked into his old SBA dressing room post-win.
“He’s pretty close to a lot of these guys from playing here and stuff. So, it’s great to have him with us,” Berube smiled.
“It’s great for those (mentors), because they love it. They love being in the meetings and hearing how we talk and show video. So, it’s a special trip.”
It’ll be that much more special if the Maple Leafs hear good news on McCabe.
Fox’s Fast Five
• Smart call by the Leafs switching from a rather rusty-looking Matt Murray to prospect Hildeby as the starter on these back-to-backs.
Hildeby admitted to “a rough start” by allowing Tyson Foerster to beat his blocker clean from distance at the 3:24 mark. But he settled right down, stopping 31 of 33 shots.
“Big part of the win,” Berube said.
Meanwhile, down on the farm, Murray gave up three on 23 shots in a loss to the Cleveland Monsters.
The only downside to Hildeby’s callup? It was too late for him to invite someone on this week’s road trip.
“I’m my own mentor,” he quipped, with a smile.
• Knies’ goal totals…
2023-24: 15 in 80 games.
2024-25: 15 in 39 games.
• McCabe and fellow Bash Brother Simon Benoit had a running bet over which one of them would finally score a goal this season. McCabe snapped a beauty Saturday in the win over Boston and celebrated like a richer man.
“I just lost 100 bucks yesterday,” Benoit revealed to reporters Sunday morning. “When we can contribute offensively, it’s always fun.”
Don’t look now, but three Leafs defencemen scored over the weekend.
• Walked to the rink excited for my first live look at Matvei Michkov. Hardly noticed he was dressed, except for a creative over-the-net pass that went nowhere. His stat line: zero points, two shots, minus-1 in 14 minutes. Shrug.
The Flyers’ Calder candidate has cooled right off: one goal and a dash-11 rating over his past 13 games.
• Brad Treliving would prefer trading for a centre with term.
With the Flyers open to selling, the defensively responsible Scott Laughton ($3 million cap hit through 2025-26) is worth a conversation. He scored the tying goal Sunday and led all forwards with four shots.
The 30-year-old Oakville, Ont., native hasn’t participated in the playoffs for five years. He doesn’t have trade protection.
