No Auston Matthews? No problem for the Toronto Maple Leafs.
Turns out, the Leafs didn’t need the NHLs’ top goal scorer to beat the Carolina Hurricanes, taking a 3-2 victory behind rookie goalie Erik Kallgren, who quickly has Leafs fans salivating.
Kallgren blanked the Dallas Stars 4-0 on Tuesday, becoming the fourth goalie in Leafs history to have a shutout in his first career start. The Swede stopped nearly everything again against Carolina (41-14-5), making 35 saves and besting Canes goalie Frederik Andersen, who came into the game with 30 wins.
Ilya Mikheyev scored in the first period and Mitch Marner in the second for the Leafs (39-17-5), who were outshot and out-chanced much of the game but made the most of their offensive opportunities at Scotiabank Arena.
Defenseman Ethan Bear scored for the Canes in the third, moving down into the slot for his fourth of the season. But the Leafs quickly countered as Ondrej Kase scored off the rush for a 3-1 lead.
Carolina’s Vincent Trocheck scored in the final seconds after the Canes pulled Andersen for a sixth attacker.
It was the second return to Toronto this season for Andersen, and a second loss in Toronto for the former Leafs goaltender. The first came in overtime on Feb. 7, when COVID-19 restrictions limited the crowd in Scotiabank Arena to 500. Those restrictions now lifted, and it was full Thursday.
Matthews, who has 45 goals, was serving the second game of a two-game suspension for his cross-check to the neck of Buffalo’s Rasmus Dahlin.
Canes coach Rod Brind’Amour said before Thursday’s game that Matthews’ absence would not change his team’s approach but it was the rookie goalie the Canes, like the Stars, could not solve.
Kallgren, 25, and Andersen both were initially seventh-round draft picks — Kallgren by Arizona in 2015 and Andersen by the Canes in 2011. Kallgren spent last season in the Swedish Hockey League and with the Toronto Marlies in the AHL this season before being called up by the Leafs with Jack Campbell injured and Petr Mrazek struggling.
In the first period, the Leafs beat the Canes down the ice and Andersen guessed wrong on Toronto’s first goal.
After winning a board battle, the Leafs were off in transition. Mikheyev scored on a shortside backhander for his 12th of the season as Andersen came off the post a little anticipating a pass.
The Canes had a 14-6 edge in the first but were forced to play from behind. Nor did it help Carolina that it was 0-2 on the power play — the second as the Leafs had the puck shorthanded more than the Canes.
In the opening moments of the game, Canes defenseman Brady Skjei found himself with the puck, an open net and Kallgren caught without his paddle. But Skjei couldn’t collect the puck, couldn’t score. Skjei had another scoring chance early in the second, but Kallgren again was ready and made the stop.
Andersen was beaten by Marner after a pass off the boards that Canes defenseman Jaccob Slavin couldn’t stop. In alone, Marner beat Andersen for his 24th of the season.
The Canes were without injured defenseman Tony DeAngelo for a 10th consecutive game, but Brendan Smith played his first game since Feb. 20. Smith had missed 10 games after suffering a fractured skull blocking a shot against the Penguins.
The Canes last played Sunday, losing at Pittsburgh. Another scheduling quirk had a three-day gap between games as Carolina faced three games in four days — the Canes host the Washington Capitals on Friday.
