The Maple Leafs rallied from a three-to-one deficit to beat the Washington Capitals 4-3 on November 13 in Washington, DC. Maple Leafs forward Mitch Marner tied the game with Washington at three with less than a minute left to go, and John Tavares scored the overtime winner. The Maple Leafs relied on their stars to overcome the two-goal deficit in Washington to the hot Capitals. The Maple Leafs got two hard-earned points. Toronto currently has twenty-two points and sits just one point behind the defending Stanley Cup Champion Florida Panthers in the Atlantic Division.
Overcoming a Deficit to Hot Caps
The Maple Leafs overcame a three-to-one deficit on the road in Washington, DC. The Maple Leafs scored a goal in overtime to seal the four-to-three win. The Capitals have been hot this season, far exceeding their expectations. The Capitals are now a gaudy 10-4-1 after the heartbreaking loss. Star forward Alexander Ovechkin has ten goals in fifteen games, after not scoring in this one, as he pursues Wayne Gretzky‘s career record for goals.
Maple Leafs Have Amazing Scorers
Mitch Marner leads the way for the Maple Leafs with twenty-two points in just eighteen games played. William Nylander has twenty points for Toronto in those eighteen games. John Tavares is third on the Maple Leafs in scoring with sixteen points in just seventeen games. It is surprising to find Auston Matthews with just eleven points in thirteen games. Injuries have certainly taken their toll on the Maple Leafs. It is interesting to note that some of these same players factored in the scoring for Toronto. This is especially the case for John Tavares, who scored the overtime winner.
Maple Leafs Center John Tavares’s Career
This is John Tavares‘ fifteenth season in the National Hockey League. He spent his first nine years with the New York Islanders after being their first overall draft pick in the 2009 draft. John Tavares signed a seven-year, $77 million contract with the Toronto Maple Leafs, breaking the hearts of Islanders fans. He grew up rooting for the Maple Leafs, so this is a bit of a fairy tale story, but he is roundly booed, to this day, every time he touches the puck when he plays on Long Island.
Tavares has been a very good player over his seasons in the National Hockey League, but it is worth noting that he has never eclipsed one hundred points in his career, a plateau worthy of a player selected first overall. There is no question he scored a big goal on Wednesday night for Toronto. Tavares capped the scoring in the comeback for Toronto in Washington.
Scoring Summary
There were three goals in the first period of this game. Taylor Raddysh scored for Washinton in the first period. His goal was answered by one from Bobby McMann for the Maple Leafs to knot the score at one. Dylan Strome scored to give Washington a two-to-one lead at the end of the first period.
There was only one goal scored in the second period by Aliaksei Protas and at the end of the period Washington had a three-to-one lead. In the third period, both William Nylander and Mitch Marner scored for Toronto to tie the game at three. The Marner goal was on the power play with only forty-eight seconds left. The Maple Leafs had pulled their goaltender to give them a six-on-four advantage John Tavares scored the overtime winner.
Conclusion
The Toronto Maples Leafs got an important two points in Washington, DC, as the Atlantic Division of the National Hockey League is dog-eat-dog. Toronto hosts the Edmonton Oilers on November 16, the Vegas Golden Knights on November 20, and the anonymous Utah Hockey Club on November 24th. They do not have many games ahead and get to relax at home, so they needed these points.
