A few days before his emotional and triumphant return to Philadelphia, Scott Laughton is sitting in the Toronto Maple Leafs dressing room and rhyming off names.
All those Flyers icons he sought out for advice and connection over the course of his 13 years and 661 games in the City of Brotherly Love.
“Bobby Clark. Bill Barber. Bernie Parent, before he passed. Paul Holmgren, who drafted me,” Laughton says, in conversation with Sportsnet.ca. “The best part of the game is the alumni, the guys who came before you… You seek them out.
“You just ask them about their experiences and how they won. They’re legends in the Flyers community. You ask them how they went about things in their career. And so, there’s certain conversations that have definitely stuck throughout my career, with some of those guys. And I’ll hold on to it.”
Laughton, too, will grip this night, one he’s had circled since his difficult trade away from his “second home” in Pennsylvania back to his first home in Ontario.
Beyond the customary hallmarks of a return date — leading the morning stretch, saluting the adoring locals during an emotional video tribute, chucking some money from the final year of his contract on the board — Laughton’s fingerprints were all over Thursday’s dramatic 2-1 overtime win, which runs the Leafs’ point streak to eight.
Until the low-event contest reached its 55th minute, one of Laughton’s favourite ex-teammates, Travis Konecny, was poised to be the lone scorer in a 1-0 decision for Philadelphia.
It was then that Laughton — an integral cog in the NHL’s hottest penalty kill — broke in 4-on-5, toe-dragged, and snapped Dan Vladar’s shutout bid with a laser high.
Laughton’s timely shorthanded strike pushed the game into a wild fourth period, where rookie Easton Cowan (a frequent target of Laughton’s friendly chirps) capped off the comeback on a pretty rush feed from John Tavares.
“We found a way,” Laughton said.
Equally impressive was Laughton’s dominance in the dot, as he went 19-1 in faceoffs.
“His blade’s pretty big, so maybe that helps,” Cowan told the broadcast post-game.
Always talking, Laughton says he probes fellow centres Tavares, Auston Matthews and Nicolas Roy for faceoff scouting tips prior to puck drop.
The 31-year-old Laughton is an old soul with a childish zest for life. He’s dead serious and hilariously lighthearted about his craft all at once.
He listens to Elvis Presley and The Tragically Hip and gets excited to cross paths with Darcy Tucker around the Leafs’ rink. He is also quickest to poke fun at his teammates, past and present.
He knows when to build them up or take them down a peg.
“He’s just always got something to say, something to keep you honest with,” Tavares says.
“His energy goes a long way, keeping the mood light. Just the enjoyment about being around him, he’s constantly keeping everyone on their toes. Even on some of the mornings where you feel a little groggy or when you’re on a long road trip… he just brings a certain energy and attitude that is a big part of our locker room.”
Craig Berube has worked with Laughton in both cities.
The coach uses the word spirit repeatedly in discussing Laughton’s contributions. Tough to identify on a spreadsheet. Impossible to ignore when you feel the presence.
In that respect, Berube compares Laughton to Cup winner Pat Maroon, another guy whose personality outweighed his shift length.
“Team spirit is really important. And I believe — no, I don’t believe it. I know it, that he brings that team spirit every game. He’s a great teammate,” Berube says.
“Likable guy, you know? Always chatting. So, he brings a lot to the team outside of the ice, and it’s important. Locker room guys are very important in this game, and then he impacts the ice with his work ethic and second and third effort out there as a player.
“He’s all about the team.”
For years, Laughton proudly wore an “A” for the Flyers.
A basic decoder ring will reveal the invisible leadership letter he now wears for the Maple Leafs, earned through effort, experience, and exuberance.
“No matter where you are, you have to be accountable to yourself, first and foremost. That’s where it starts,” Laughton says. “And then you try to hold everyone accountable. The guy beside you has got to hold you accountable, and you got to do the same. And it always doesn’t have to be from the coach; it can be from within the room.
“When teams gel the best is when you know the guy beside you is going to do the same thing. I’ve learned from a lot of good guys throughout the years and had a lot of conversations with old alumni.”
All that brain-picking couldn’t have fully prepared for Laughton’s rocky introduction to Leafs Nation, of which he was a member as a boy.
GM Brad Treliving paid a pretty penny to end Laughton’s love affair with Philly, and the bottom-six forward struggled with confidence and minuses toward the end of 2024-25.
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A fresh start in 2025-26, Laughton’s contract year, was set back first by a busted foot in pre-season and later by a Nikita Zadorov–delivered concussion four periods into his November return.
“That one stung a little bit more than the first one,” Laughton says.
The double whammy threw the usually healthy Laughton for a loop. He was grateful to the Leafs’ strength trainers and medics but sick of gym days and isolation.
“It’s hard when you’re hurt. That’s what you miss most, is being on the road with the guys, being in the room, being in the battle. That’s the biggest thing — being a part of it,” Laughton says. “So, I tried to stick around quite a bit throughout (the rehab).”
That included a false-start homecoming with the Leafs to Philly in late October, when Laughton participated in the team Halloween party but not the hockey game against the Flyers that followed.
“He’s been milking it pretty hard. And, quite frankly, the guys are getting tired of it,” said Morgan Rielly, wryly. “Happy to get it out of the way.”
And happier, surely, the way Laughton helped author the storybook finish.
Fox’s Fast Five
• Toronto’s penalty kill has allowed just four goals over its past 24 games, and the Maple Leafs are proud owners of the league’s best penalty kill since Nov. 10 (87.3 per cent).
The pristine PK went 3-for-3 Thursday, including a big 5-on-3 kill and a plus-1 rating.
“PK was excellent again,” Berube said. “Had to be.”
• How ’bout some love for Dennis Hildeby, who stopped 21 of 22 shots and all five on the Flyers’ power play?
The towering Swede’s stellar night was bookended by breakaway stops on Denver Barkey and Trevor Zegras. His season save percentage jumped to .920 on a night when the high-danger chances were 22-9 in the Flyers’ favour, per NaturalStatTrick.com.
Berube: “He was locked in from the get-go.”
• Laughton, with love, on Konecny: “He’s a rat. He’s a big-time rat… He’s about as big of a rat as they come.”
• Hey, Trevor Zegras, which Flyer do we not talk about enough?
“Travis Sanheim —not even close. Or Noah Cates. I’ll give you a forward and a defenceman. I mean, Travis plays 27 minutes a night (actually, a team-high 24:32). He plays hard minutes against the best players. He cheats in fantasy football, too. For the role he has, to do it every night and be such a good teammate, oh, he’s great. And then same with Catesy. Catesy’s the apples to apples on the offence. Like, every night he gets a tough matchup, and he’s producing, and he’s a great teammate. Those guys are special.”
• Despite missing 10 games — his most in a single season due to injury — William Nylander still leads the Leafs in assists (27) and points (41).
Expect Nylander (lower-body) to practise with the club Friday. It’s possible he returns to action Saturday versus Vancouver. If so, the star winger’s “day-to-day” status will have lasted 14 days.
