Miss a penalty shot — in overtime, no less — and one might believe it’s not meant to be.
But hard work can trump bum luck.
Just ask William Nylander.
When Jordan Binnington denied unlikely shooter T.J. Brodie on the defenceman’s first career penalty shot, the Toronto Maple Leafs didn’t waste time wondering if they should be allowed to take the power-play instead.
No, Auston Matthews backchecked hard on the St. Louis Blues’ next strong rush, cut off a lane, and forced Vladimir Tarasenko to curl back to the blue line.
Spotting a tired Tarasenko as the last man back, Nylander pounced. He stripped the power forward of the puck and darted in alone on Binnington.
Forehand. Backhand. Roof.
Game over.
The Leafs’ 5-4 overtime victory at Enterprise Center Tuesday extended Toronto’s win streak to three games and jolted its record to 15-2-3 over its past 20.
Nylander’s burst of brawn and brilliance puts him on pace for 49 goals and 94 points and allows the Maple Leafs to escape what coach Sheldon Keefe termed a “chaotic” game with two points.
“We talked about not having the break stall our momentum but continue to springboard us forward,” John Tavares told reporters.
Mission accomplished.
A fine night to be named Calle
The jury has generally been out on Calle Järnkrok since he inked his four-year, $8.4-million contract with Toronto over the summer — a rare longish-term commitment by GM Kyle Dubas in free agency.
Järnkrok was fine in the early going, but the winger has battled injury, bounced around the lineup, and had yet to make a significant offensive impact.
Well, the 31-year-old looks to be inspired by his tryout at filling the team’s greatest need up front: second-line left wing.
With Nick Robertson (injured) and Denis Malgin (traded) out of the running, Järnkrok has quietly built a top-six case for himself, gathering eight points in his past eight outings.
Tuesday brought the Swede’s most impactful performance as a Maple Leaf: a drawn penalty, a pair of assists, plus a goal.
Järnkrok’s diligent work on Alexander Kerfoot’s shorthanded marker was something else:
On the opposite bench, ex-Leaf Calle Rosen opened the scoring for the Blues with his career-high third goal of the season.
Rosen would not have been in the lineup were it not for St. Louis’ top offensive defenceman, Tory Krug, getting placed on long-term injured reserve with a lower-body injury. He’s out a minimum of six weeks.
“Tough break for him and the team,” Blues coach Craig Berube said.
With Krug sidelined, Justin Faulk made good on his promotion to the Blues’ top power-play unit, rifling a slapshot from the point clear through Samsonov.
Impossible to watch O’Reilly without thinking trade
Knowing Blues GM Doug Armstrong’s distaste for own rentals and overpays as well as St. Louis’s position in the standings (five points out of a wild-card spot, minus-20 goal differential), it’s next to impossible to watch Ryan O’Reilly and not wonder about trade destinations.
Surely, the contending Maple Leafs will have some level of interest in the 31-year-old pending UFA.
On this night, O’Reilly skated 20:58, won 56 of his faceoffs, and faked pass before ripping his 10th goal of his contract year and 250th of his career.
“We had some chances, for sure. A little frustrating that way, but they’re a dynamic team,” O’Reilly said postgame. “We scored some big goals, stuck with it, it’s a good point. But the position we’re in right now, we need two points.”
Samsonov starting to skid?
Generous run support has masked some slippage in Samsonov’s game, which was rock solid to start.
Call it nerves, the need for a mental reset, or simply an inevitable regression to his norm, but the affable Russian has averaged four goals against over his past three starts.
After flip-flopping starts between his two goalies through the bulk of December, coach Sheldon Keefe opted to give Samsonov a chance to redeem himself after he squeaked out an underwhelming win over the Flyers prior to the Christmas break.
Surely, Samsonov would like a couple goals back in this one, too, but he secured the two points.
Still, this three-game run represents his roughest stretch as a Leaf. Samsonov’s past three save percentages: .821, .842, .882.
Fox’s Fast 5
• Jordan Kyrou’s return from an upper-body injury was a boon to the Blues. The club’s leading scorer (17-16–33 in 32 GP) sniped the third period’s tying goal, salvaging a critical standings point.
“I feel great. It feels awesome to be able to get back in the lineup,” Kyrou said. “Any time you know you’re missing, you kind of feel like you let the boys down. It feels great to be back.”
• Pontus Holmberg was given a small slice of power-play time. More evidence that he is in the coach’s good books.
• A positive sign as both Rasmus Sandin (neck) and Morgan Rielly (knee) are on the road trip and took part in morning skate, their status upgraded as day-to-day.
“I suspect we’ll see them both in practice (Wednesday) and then make a determination for the remainder of the trip,” Keefe said.
“Both guys look like they’re moving well and doing well, so it was a good step for them.”
• Fourth-liner Dryden Hunt was traded to Toronto Dec. 19 but has yet to play for his new team. Hunt’s Leafs debut has been delayed 10 days. Pencil him in for Thursday in Arizona.
“It was a tough call just because we do want to get him in and get him involved. At the same time, we don’t necessarily see a reason to disrupt the lineup,” Keefe said. “We have liked what we have seen from Joey Anderson and want to continue to give him an opportunity.”
• Following a nine-day rest, Matt Murray will take the Maple Leafs crease Thursday at cozy Mullett Arena.
