Toronto Maple Leafs centre Frederik Gauthier (33) and Pittsburgh Penguins goaltender Matt Murray (30) watch the puck during second period NHL hockey action in Toronto on Thursday, Oct. 18, 2018.Frank Gunn/The Canadian Press
What was supposed to be a great individual confrontation – Auston Matthews versus Sidney Crosby, John Tavares versus Evgeni Malkin – turned into a lesson on team play for the Toronto Maple Leafs.
By the end of a smart, physical display by the Pittsburgh Penguins, which resulted in a 3-0 win Thursday night for the visitors, the host Maple Leafs learned that maybe they just aren’t ready to play with the big boys. As in battle-hardened playoff champions who know how to win when the clamps are put on the fancy skaters.
The high-powered Maple Leafs offence could not muster so much as a goal, with Penguins goaltender Matt Murray making 38 saves after missing two games with a concussion. Frederik Andersen was almost as sharp in the Leafs net, making one mistake in letting a shot by Malkin sneak between his body and the post, but he finished with 36 saves.
The loss also meant an end to Matthews’ hot start of multiple points in each of the Leafs’ seven games before the Penguins slammed the door on them.
Coming into the game, the Penguins had a 2-1-2 record compared to the Maple Leafs’ gaudy 6-1-0 start, but they showed why they have three Stanley Cups since 2009.
“They’re a pretty highly skilled group [but] we didn’t give them any freebies,” Crosby said of the Maple Leafs. “We made them work for them. Regardless of who we played, we wanted to hold on to the puck little bit more. It’s a lot more fun playing that way and you can wear teams down that way.
“Tonight was our best game of the year so far. It’s important to build off this one.”
Down the hall in the Maple Leafs’ dressing room they were well aware the Penguins administered a harsh lesson.
“They were a lot heavier than us,” Leafs forward Zach Hyman said. “They were stronger than us. They had the puck more than us. They were a better team than us tonight.”
While a thrilling battle of individual heroics never materialized, Malkin dominated the stats sheet as he usually does against the Leafs. Coming into the game, he had 60 points in 36 games against the Leafs while Crosby had 58 in 41 games.
By the end of the night, Malkin had two goals, one into an empty net, plus an assist to add to his total. Crosby had a relatively quiet night but he did get an assist by winning a faceoff on the power play to set up Malkin for what stood up as the winning goal. Kris Letang scored a second empty-netter for the Penguins shortly after Malkin’s.
The Leafs’ vaunted power play and its stacked first unit never had a chance to get unwound. Its only chance was a shortened stint of one minute and 23 seconds in the second period when Murray took a penalty while the Penguins were on the power play.
Some thought the Leafs should have had a four-minute power play late in the first period when Penguins forward Jake Guentzek whacked Hyman on the head with his stick. No penalty was called but Leafs head coach Mike Babcock did not seem to think it would have made a difference in the outcome.
“Yeah, I mean, you always want [the referees] to get it right. They missed it,” he said. “Those things happen. I think all victories you've got to earn. It was right there for us to find another step and get better and find a way to get on the inside a little more and [the Penguins] did a good job. They kept us from doing that. There's a lesson learned in that. They're a more veteran, polished, playoff team than we are. It showed.”
With the Penguins embarking on a four-game road trip that took them from Toronto on Thursday night to Edmonton next Tuesday followed by Calgary and Vancouver, the question of whether Crosby is being eclipsed by a pair of 21-year-olds, Connor McDavid of the Edmonton Oilers and the Leafs’ Matthews, was a natural one. The fact Crosby went into the Leafs game still waiting for his first goal of the season after five games and Matthews was riding a hot streak of multiple points in all seven of his games added a lot of juice to the discussion.
By the end of the night, Crosby was still looking for his first goal but Matthews’ multiple-point streak came to an end. He and linemates Patrick Marleau and Kasperi Kapanen, sometimes matched against Crosby and sometimes not, had a quiet night.
When it came to the greatest-player debate, Crosby himself tried to pass the crown along to McDavid earlier in the week, although both Penguins coach Mike Sullivan and Babcock disagreed. “I think McDavid has set himself apart just based on the awards and the accolades he’s gotten and the consistency he’s had,” Crosby told NHL.com. “I think it’s fair to say it’s an easy pick just because of that.”
No way, Babcock insisted Thursday morning at the game-day skate. Crosby may be 31, an age considered to be on the downslope of a career in today’s youthful go-go NHL, but in Babcock’s eyes team accomplishments trump the personal ones. He has some authority here, having been Crosby’s coach for the gold medals won by Canada at the 2010 and 2014 Olympics.
“Here’s what I think – I think one guy has got two Olympic gold medals and three Stanley Cups,” Babcock said. “They [Matthews and McDavid] don’t. The thing is, how old is Sid? Is he 31? He’s a pretty young guy. Nick [Lidstrom] was, I thought, the best defenceman in the game at 40. So you can say the game has changed quite a bit but he can flat-out fly. I don’t think he plans on giving anything away.
“The other thing is, I saw McDavid play the other night … he had four points and was an absolute star. These guys have done if forever, too. Like I said, the measure in the end for all of us – we’re all here for the same thing, we want to have team success because team success, in the end, that’s how you’re measured.
“So when you’ve been the best player on the best team, to me, that’s totally different than being the best player on a team that’s not as good. You’ve got people around you to raise their game and set a standard. To me, it’s not even close.”
Sullivan didn’t surprise anyone when he picked Crosby as the best player in the league. He spoke of the superstar’s commitment to making the Penguins, who won Stanley Cups in 2009, 2016 and 2017 since Crosby came along, the best team possible.
“He's always bringing ideas to the coaching staff,” Sullivan said. “We learn as much from Sid as he does from our coaching staff with just the way he thinks the game.
“He’s such a privilege to coach because of his commitment to be the best player, but also his want and his passion for helping the Penguins win championships.”