Toronto Maple Leafs right wing Connor Brown (12) chases Florida Panthers centre Jonathan Marchessault (81) during first period NHL hockey action in Toronto on Thursday, November 17, 2016.Nathan Denette/The Canadian Press
This time, it was Connor Brown's turn.
The Toronto Maple Leafs rookie scored his team's first two goals and then added two assists in a 6-1 win over the Florida Panthers on Thursday night, improving the Leafs' record to 6-2-0 in November and 7-2-0 at home on the year.
Brown's burst more than doubled his point total on the season and was just the latest strong showing from one of the Leafs' seven rookies. Even as Auston Matthews has laboured through an 11-game goal drought (with only two assists), others such as Mitch Marner and Zach Hyman have stepped up big, filling the net for Toronto in recent wins.
Marner added to his totals against Florida with his seventh of the season. Leo Komarov, Jake Gardiner and James van Riemsdyk – who now has a point a game on the year – had the other goals to spoil Panthers netminder James Reimer's first game against his former team.
Toronto is now on pace for 92 points – a 23-point improvement over last season and enough to put the team in contention for a playoff spot at year's end.