Maple Leafs at Capitals
Auston Matthews and Morgan Rielly have replaced Hall of Famers Wayne Gretzky and Bobby Orr as the answer to specific feats in the record book, namely Matthews becoming the youngest player to notch multiple points in each of his team's first five games of a season while Rielly has the most points by a defenseman in the modern era in that same stretch. The Toronto Maple Leafs' duo looks to continue its success on Saturday against the host Washington Capitals.
"We've got a lot of weapons. We're not scoring the same way over and over again. I feel like we're scoring on different looks and different plays," said the 21-year-old Matthews, who scored twice to increase his league-leading total to nine goals in Thursday's 5-3 win over Detroit. Rielly (12 points), who scored and set up a goal versus the Red Wings, told reporters that he wouldn't address "personal stuff" after besting Orr's 11-point performance in 1973-74. While Toronto's high-octane offense has its rabid fanbase thinking about ending a pronounced Stanley Cup drought, the current owners of the cherished chalice lit up the scoreboard with a franchise-best 18 goals in their first three games before an unceremonious 6-0 setback to New Jersey on Thursday. "It felt like they had six or seven guys out there. They were skating on ice. We were skating through mud," Capitals defenseman Matt Niskanen said.
TV: 7 p.m. ET, NHL Network, CBC (Toronto), NBCS Washington
ABOUT THE MAPLE LEAFS (4-1-0): Mitch Marner has scored in back-to-back contests and has recorded multi-point performances in four straight games while fellow forward Zach Hyman has notched an assist in four consecutive outings. John Tavares extended his point streak to three games after posting a career-high four-assist effort on Thursday. "I think the guys have been real good about that, whether it's (Tavares) or (Matthews) or (Marner) or any of those guys. They know what they're here for," coach Mike Babcock said. "It's an exciting time for our team, but we've got to get a lot better as you go."
ABOUT THE CAPITALS (2-1-1): Lars Eller did his best effort to turn the page after Washington's lopsided setback in the Garden State. "I think you just remind yourself that things aren't as bad as they looked just because of one night," the 29-year-old Dane said. "At the same time, you also have got to respond next game. Don't get too low and beat ourselves up about it, recognize what we did wrong and fix it. We know we are a very good team. One game doesn't change that." Captain Alex Ovechkin looks to rebound versus Toronto, against which he scored four goals last season as Washington won two of three encounters.
OVERTIME
1. Washington G Braden Holtby owns an 8-3-1 career mark with a 2.05 goals-against average and .934 save percentage versus Toronto.
2. Maple Leafs D Ron Hainsey added an empty-net tally on Thursday, giving him goals (two) and points (three) in two consecutive games.
3. Capitals C Nicklas Backstrom collected a goal and four assists in three meetings with Toronto last season.